Book: Hebraic Literature; Translations from the Talmud, Midrashim and

V >> Various >> Hebraic Literature; Translations from the Talmud, Midrashim and




Two sparks issued from between the two cherubim and destroyed the
serpents and scorpions and burned the thorns in the wilderness. The
smoke thereof, rising and spreading, perfumed the world, so that the
nations said (Cant. iii. 6), "Who is this that cometh out of the
wilderness like pillars of smoke, perfumed," etc.

_Ibid., Vayakhel._

Better to lodge in the wilderness of the land of Israel than dwell in
the palaces outside of it.

_Midrash Rabbah_, chap. 39.

"And give thee a pleasant land" (a coveted land) (Jer. iii. 19). Why is
it called a coveted land? Because the Temple was in it. Another reason
why it was so called is, because the fathers of the world have coveted
it. Rabbi Shimon ben Levi says, "Because they (who are buried) there
will be the first to be raised in the days of the Messiah."

_Shemoth Rabbah_, chap. 32.

"When the Lord thy God shall enlarge thy border, as He hath promised
thee" (Deut. xii. 20). Rabbi Yitzchak said, "This scroll no man knows
how long and how broad it is, but when unrolled it speaks for itself,
and shows how large it is. It is so with the land of Israel, which, for
the most part, consists of hills and mountains; but when the Holy
One--blessed be He!--shall level it, as it is said (Isa. xl. 4), 'Every
valley shall be raised and every mountain and hill shall be made low,
and the crooked shall be made straight, and the rough places smooth,'
then shall that land speak, as it were, for herself, and its extent
stand revealed."

_Devarim Rabbah_, chap. 4.

Blessed are they who dwell in the land of Israel, for they have no sin,
no iniquity, either in their lives or in their deaths.

_Midrash Shochar Tov on Ps. lxxxv._

"Better is a dry morsel and quietness therewith" (Prov. xvii. 1). This,
saith Rabbi, means the land of Israel, for even if a man have nothing
but bread and salt to eat, yet if he dwells in the land of Israel he is
sure that he is a son of the world to come. "Than a house full of
sacrifices with strife." This means the outside of the land, which is
full of robbery and violence. Rabbi Y---- says, "He who walks but an
hour in the land of Israel, and then dies within it may feel assured
that he is a son of the world to come; for it is written (Deut. xxxii.
43), 'And his earth shall atone for his people.'"

_Midrash Mishle._

See also the Talmud, Kethuboth, fol. 111, col. 1. Dr. Benisch
renders "and make expiation for His ground and His people." The
Targums of Jonathan and the Yerushalmi have, "He will make
atonement for His land and for His people;" and Onkelos puts it
thus, "He will show mercy unto His land and His people." Our
rendering, however, is in accordance with the sense given to it
in the Talmud. There are Jews who travel about the world with
bags of earth from the Holy Land, which they sell in small
quantities for high prices to such as can afford it, and believe
in its virtue as a protection against the worms of the grave.

Jerusalem is the light of the world; as it is said, "And the Gentiles
shall come to Thy light" (Isa. lx. 3). And the light of Jerusalem is the
Holy One--blessed be He!--as it is written, but "the Lord shall be unto
thee an everlasting light" (Isa. Ix. 19).

_Bereshith Rabbah_, chap. 59.

Ten portions of wisdom, ten portions of the law, and ten portions of
hypocrisy are in the world; nine portions of each are in the land of
Israel and one outside of it.

_Midrash Rabbah Esther._

"And it shall come to pass that from one new moon to another, and from
one Sabbath to another, shall all flesh come to worship before Me, saith
the Lord" (Isa. lxvi. 23). But how is it possible that all flesh shall
come every new moon and Sabbath to Jerusalem? Rabbi Levi saith, "In the
future Jerusalem will be as the land of Israel, and the land of Israel
will be as the whole world." But how will they come from the end of the
world every new moon and Sabbath? "The clouds will come and carry them
and bring them to Jerusalem, where they will perform their morning
prayer, and will carry them back to their several homes; and this is the
meaning of the prophet's saying (Isa. Ix. 8), 'Who are these that fly as
a cloud (in the morning), and as the doves to their windows (in the
evening)?'"

_Pesikta._

"He stood and measured the earth" (Hab. iii. 6). Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai
expounded "He stood and measured" thus: "The Holy One--blessed be
He!--measured all the nations, and He found none worthy to receive the
law except the generation in the wilderness. He measured all the
mountains, and He found none on which to give the law except Mount
Sinai. He measured all cities, and found none in which to build the
Temple except Jerusalem. He measured all lands, and found none worthy to
be given unto Israel except the one now called the land of Israel. This
it is that is written, 'He stood up and measured the earth.'"

_Vayekra Rabbah_, chap. 13.

"I went down to the bottoms of the mountains" (Jonah ii. 6). From this
we learn that Jerusalem is situated on seven hills. The world's
"foundation-stone" sank to "the depths" under the Temple of the Lord,
and upon this the sons of Korah stand and pray. (They) pointed this out
to Jonah. The fish said unto him, "Jonah, behold thou art standing under
the Temple of the Lord; therefore pray, and thou shalt be answered."

_Pirke d'Rab. Eliezer_, chap. 10.

"And there went out fire from the Lord" (Lev. x. 2). Abba Yossi saith,
"Two threads of fire came out from the Holy of holies, and these were
disparted into four: two entered the nostrils of the one (i.e., Nadab),
and two entered the nostrils of the other (i.e., Abihu), and thus
consumed them. Their souls were burned, but not their garments; for it
is said, 'So they went near, and carried them in their coats'" (ver. 5).

_Torath Cohanim_, sec. _Shemini_.

Rabbi Jacob teaches that he who has no wife abideth without good,
without help, without joy, without blessing or atonement, to which Rabbi
Yehoshua ben Levi adds, (yea) also without peace or life. Rabbi Cheya
says that he is not a perfect man, for it is said, "And blessed them and
called their name man" (Gen. v. 2), where both are spoken of together as
one man.

_Midrash Rabbah Bereshith_, chap. 17.

"My beloved is like a roe" (1 Cant. ii. 9). As a roe leaps and skips
from bush to bush, from covert to covert, from hedge to hedge, so
likewise does the Holy One--blessed be He!--pass from synagogue to
synagogue, and from academy to academy, that He may bless Israel.

_Pesikta._

(Cant. v. 1), "I came into My garden," the synagogues and academies; "My
sister, My spouse," the congregation of Israel; "I have gathered My
myrrh with My spice," the Bible (that is); "I have eaten My honeycomb
with My honey" (this means) the Halachoth, Midrashoth, and Aggadoth; "I
have drank My wine with My milk," this alludes to the good works which
are reserved for the sages of Israel. After that, "Eat, O friends!
drink, yea, drink freely, O beloved!"

_Yalkut Eliezer_, fol. 41, col. 2.

When Solomon brought the ark into the Temple and said, "Lift up your
heads, O ye gates! and the King of glory shall come in," the gates were
ready to fall upon him and crush his head, and they would have done so
if he had not said at once, "The Lord of hosts, He is the King of glory"
(Ps. xxiv. 9, 10). The Holy One--blessed be He!--then said to the gates,
"Since ye have thus honored Me, by your lives! when I destroy My Temple,
no man shall have dominion over you!" This was to inform us that while
all the vessels of the Temple were carried into captivity, the gates of
the Temple were stored away on the very spot where they were erected;
for it is said (Lam. ii. 9), "Her gates are sunk into the ground."

_Midrash Rabbah Devarim_, chap. 15.

We are reminded of this tradition in the conclusion service for
Yom Kippur, where we repeat, "Speedily thou shalt open the
hidden gates to those who hold fast Thy law." The allusion is to
"the gates of the Temple," which "are supposed to be sunk in the
ground."

Rabbi Akiva once met on a journey a remarkably ugly man toiling along
under a great load of wood. Rabbi Akiva said unto him, "I adjure thee to
tell me whether thou art a man or a demon." "Rabbi," said he, "I was
once a man, and it is now some time since I left the world. Day after
day I have to carry a load like this, under which I am obliged to bow
down, and submit three times a day to be burned." Then Rabbi Akiva asked
him, "What was the reason of this punishment?" and the reply was, "I
committed an immorality on the Day of Atonement." The Rabbi asked him if
he knew of anything by which he might obtain for him a remission of his
punishment. "I do," was the answer. "When a son whom I have left behind
me is called up to the (public) reading of the law, and shall say,
'Blessed be the blessed Lord,' I shall be drawn out of hell and taken
into Paradise." The Rabbi noted down the name of the man and his
dwelling-place, whither he afterward went and made inquiries about him.
The people of the place only replied, "The name of the wicked shall rot"
(Prov. x. 7). Notwithstanding this, the Rabbi insisted, and said, "Bring
his son to me." When they brought him, he taught the lad to repeat the
blessing, which he did on the ensuing Sabbath at the public reading of
the law; upon which his father was immediately removed from hell to
Paradise. On the self-same night the father repaired direct to Rabbi
Akiva, and gratefully expressed his hope that the Rabbi's mind might be
as much at rest as his own was.

_Midrash Assereth Hadibroht._

There are three things which a man does not wish for: Grass to grow up
among his grain-crops; to have a daughter among his children; or that
his wine should turn to vinegar. Yet all these three are ordained to be,
for the world stands in need of them. Therefore it is said, "O Lord, my
God, Thou art very great!... He causeth the grass to grow for the
cattle" (Ps. civ. 1, 14)

_Midrash Tanchuma._

There are four cardinal points in the world, etc. The north point God
created but left unfinished; for, said He, "Whoever claims to be God,
let him come and finish this corner which I have left, and thus all will
know that he is God." This unfinished corner is the dwelling-place of
the harmful demons, ghosts, devils, and storms.

_Pirke d'Rab. Eliezer_, chap. 3.

A Min once asked Rabbi Akiva, "Who created this world?" "The Holy
One--blessed be He!"--was the reply. "Give me positive proof of this,"
begged the other. "Come to-morrow," answered the Rabbi. On coming the
next day, the Rabbi asked, "What are you dressed in?" "In a garment,"
was the reply. "Who made it?" asked the Rabbi. "A weaver," said the
other. "I don't believe thee," said the Rabbi; "give me a positive proof
of this." "I need not demonstrate this," said the Min; "it stands to
reason that a weaver made it." "And so thou mayest know that God created
the world," observed the Rabbi. When the Min had departed, the Rabbi's
disciples asked him, "What is proof positive?" He said, "My children, as
a house implies a builder, and a garment a weaver, and a door a
carpenter, so likewise the existence of the world implies that the Holy
One--blessed be He!--created it."

_Midrash Terumah._

When the Holy One--blessed be He!--created the world, it was a level
expanse free from mountains; but when Cain slew Abel his brother, whose
blood was trodden down on the earth, He cursed the ground, and
immediately hills and mountains sprang into existence.

_Midrash Vayosha._

"The Lord your God hath multiplied you, and behold ye are this day as
the stars of heaven for multitude" (Deut. i. 10). Why did He bless them
with stars? As there are degrees above degrees among these stars, so
likewise are there degrees above degrees among Israel. Again, as these
stars are without limit, without number, and of great power from one end
of the world to the other, so likewise is Israel. (Cf. 1 Cor. xv. 41.)

_Midrash Rabbah Devarim._

"Flee, my beloved" (A.V. "make haste," Cant. viii. 14). When Israel eat
and drink, and bless and praise the Holy One--blessed be He!--He
hearkeneth to their voice and is reconciled; but when the Gentiles eat
and drink and blaspheme and provoke the Holy One--blessed be He!--He has
a mind to destroy His world, until the Law enters and pleads in defense,
"Lord of the universe! before Thou regardest those that blaspheme, look
and behold Thy people Israel, who bless, and praise, and extol Thy great
Name, with the Law, and with songs and with praises!" And the Holy
Spirit shouts "Flee, my beloved! flee from the Gentiles, and hold fast
to Israel!"

_Midrash Rabbah Shir-Hashirim._

Rabbon Gamaliel called on Chilpa, the son of Caroyna, when the latter
asked the Rabbi to pray on his behalf; and he prayed, "The Lord grant
thee according to thine own heart" (Ps. xx. 4). Rabbi H----, son of
Rabbi Isaac, said, "It was not so; he prayed thus, 'The Lord fulfill all
thy petitions'; for a man often thinks in his heart to steal or commit
some other transgression, and therefore 'The Lord grant thee according
to thine own heart,' is a prayer not to be offered on behalf of every
man." But the answer was, "His heart was perfect before his Creator, and
therefore he did so pray on his behalf."

_Midrash Shochar Tov_, 20.

Thou wilt find that whithersoever the righteous go a blessing goes with
them. Isaac went down to Gerar, and a blessing followed him. "Then Isaac
sowed," etc. (Gen. xxvi. 12). Jacob went down to Laban (Gen. xxx. 27),
and Laban said, "I have learned by experience that the Lord hath blessed
me for thy sake." Joseph went down to Potiphar, and "the Lord blessed
the Egyptian's house for Joseph's sake" (Gen. xxxix. 5). Thus also thou
wilt find it was with the ark which came down to the house of Obed-edom,
etc. (2 Sam. vi. 11). Our forefathers came into the land and a blessing
followed at their heels, as it is said (Deut. vi. 11), "And houses full
of good things," etc.

_Yalkut Ekev._

"And the Lord put a word in Balaam's mouth" (Num. xxiii. 5). An angel
took up his seat in Balaam's throat, so that when he wished to bless,
the angel permitted him, but when he desired to curse, the angel tickled
his throat and stopped him. "Word" in this place means simply an angel;
as it is said (Ps. cvii. 20), "He sent His word and healed them." Rabbi
Yochanan says, "There was an iron nail in his throat which permitted him
when he wished to bless, but rasped his throat and prevented him when
about to curse." "Word" in this place means only an iron nail; for it is
said (Num. xxxi. 23), "Every thing (or word, for the original has both
meanings) that may abide the fire."

Ibid.

Rabbi Avin said four kinds of excellency were created in the world: (1.)
Man's excellency over the animal kingdom; (2.) the eagle's excellency
over the feathered tribes; (3.) the excellency of the ox over domestic
cattle; and (4.) the lion's excellency over the wild beasts. All were
fixed under the chariot of God; as it is said (Ezek. i. 10), "As for the
likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, the face of a
lion, the face of an ox, and the face of an eagle." And why all this? In
order that they should not exalt themselves, but know that there is a
kingdom of heaven over them; and on this account it is said (Eccles. v.
8), "He that is higher than the highest regardeth, and there be higher
than they." This is the meaning of Exod. xv. 1: "He hath triumphed
gloriously."

_Midrash Shemoth_, chap. 23.

No man in Israel despised himself more than David when the precepts of
the Lord were concerned, and this is what he said before God (Ps. cxxxi.
1, 2), "'Lord, my heart was not haughty' when Samuel anointed me king.
'Nor were mine eyes lofty' when I slew Goliath. 'Neither did I exercise
myself in matters too great and wonderful for me' when I brought up the
ark. 'Have I not behaved myself, and hushed my soul, as a babe that is
weaned of his mother?' As a child which is not ashamed to uncover
himself before his mother, so have I likened myself before Thee, in not
being ashamed to depreciate myself before Thee for Thy glory," etc. (See
2 Sam. vi. 20, 21.)

_Bamidbar_, chap. 4.

"I sleep, but my heart waketh" (Cant. v. 2). The Synagogue of Israel
says "I sleep" with regard to the end of days, "but my heart waketh"
with regard to the redemption; "I sleep" with regard to redemption, but
the heart of the Holy One--blessed be He!--waketh to redeem me.

_Midrash Shir Hashirim._

Rabbi Ishmael saith all the five fingers of the right hand of the Holy
One of Israel--blessed be He!--are severally the efficient causes of
redemptions. (1.) With His little finger He pointed out to Noah how to
construct the ark; as it is said (Gen. vi. 15), "And thus thou shalt
make it." (2.) With the finger next to the little one He smote the
Egyptians; as it is said (Exod. viii. 19), "This is the finger of God."
(3.) With the third finger from the little one He wrote the tables; as
it is said (Exod. xxxi. 18), "Tables of stone written by the finger of
God." (4.) With the fourth finger, that which is next the thumb, the
Holy One--blessed be He!--pointed out to Moses how much the Israelites
should give as a ransom for their souls; as it is said (Exod. xxx. 13),
"This shall they give." (5.) With the thumb and the whole hand the Holy
One--blessed be He!--will in the future destroy the children of Esau,
for they oppress the children of Israel, as also the children of
Ishmael, for they are their enemies; as it is said (Micah v. 9), "Thine
hand shall be uplifted upon thy adversaries, and all thy enemies shall
be cut off."

_Pirke d'Rab. Eliezer_, chap. 48.

"For Mine own sake, for Mine own sake, will I do it" (Isa. xlviii. 11).
Why this repetition? The Holy One--blessed be He!--said, "As I redeemed
you when you were in Egypt for My name's sake"--(Ps. cvi. 8), "He saved
them for His name's sake,"--"so in like manner will I do it from Edom
for My own name's sake. Again, as I redeemed you in this world, so
likewise will I redeem you in the World to come;" for thus He saith
(Eccles. i. 9), "The thing that hath been is that which shall be" (Isa.
li. 11); "The redeemed of the Lord shall return;" not the redeemed of
Elijah, nor the redeemed of the Messiah, but "the redeemed of the Lord."

_Midrash Shochar Tov Tehillim_, 107.

"Her children are gone into captivity before the enemy" (Lam. i. 5).
Rabbi Isaac saith, "Come and see how greatly beloved are the children!"
The Sanhedrin were exiled, but the Shechinah was not exiled with them.
The Temple guards were exiled, but the Shechinah was not exiled with
them. But with the children the Shechinah also was exiled. This is that
which is written (Lam. i. 5, 6), "Her children are gone, ... and from
the daughter of Zion all her beauty (i.e., the Shechinah) is departed."

_Midrash Rabbah Eicha._

"How doth the city sit solitary!" (Lam. i. 1). Three have, in
prophesying, made use of this word "How"--Moses, Isaiah, and Jeremiah.
Moses said (Deut. i. 12), "How can I myself bear your cumbrance!" Isaiah
said (Isa. i. 21), "How is the faithful city become an harlot!" Jeremiah
said (Lam. i. 1), "How doth the city sit solitary!" Rabbi Levi saith,
"The thing is like to a matron who has three friends; one saw her in her
prosperity, another saw her in her dissipation, and the third saw her in
her pollution. So Moses saw Israel in their glory and prosperity, and he
said, 'How can I myself bear your cumbrance!' Isaiah saw them in their
dissipation, and he said, 'How is the faithful city,' etc.; and Jeremiah
saw them in their pollution, and he said, 'How doth the city sit
solitary!'"

_Midrash Rabbah Eicha._

Hezekiah saith the judgment in Gehenna is six months' heat and six
months' cold.

_Midrash Reheh._

Gehenna has sixteen mouths, four toward each cardinal point. The
Gentiles say, "Hell is for Israel, but Paradise is for us." The
Israelites say, "Ours is Paradise."

_Midrash Aggadath Bereshith._

Rabbi Yochanan ben Zachai says, that coming once upon a man who was
gathering wood, he addressed him, but at first he made no reply.
Afterward, however, he came up and said, "Rabbi, I'm not a living man,
but a dead one." "If thou art a dead man," said I, "what is this wood
for?" He replied, "When I was alive upon earth, I and an associate of
mine committed a certain sin in my shop, and when we were taken thence,
we were sentenced to the punishment of mutual burning; so I gather wood
to burn him, and he does the same to burn me." I then asked him, "How
long are you to be punished thus?" He replied, "When I came here my wife
was _enceinte_, and I know she gave birth to a boy. May I beg thee,
therefore, to see that the child is instructed by a teacher, for as soon
as he is able to repeat, 'Bless ye the blessed Lord!' I shall be brought
up hence and be free from this punishment in hell."

_Tanu d'by Eliyahu._

Rabbi Berachia saith, "In order that the Minim, apostates, and wicked
Israelites might not escape hell on account of their circumcision, the
Holy One--blessed be He!--sends an angel to undo the effects of it, and
they straightway descend to their doom. When Gehenna sees this, she
opens her mouth and licks them." This is the purport of (Isa. v. 14),
"And she opened her mouth to those without law" (i.e., to those without
the sign of the covenant).

_Midrash Rabbath Shemoth_, chap. 19.

"God hath also set the one over against the other" (Eccles. vii. 14),
i.e., the righteous and the wicked, in order that the one should atone
for the other. God created the poor and the rich, in order that the one
should be maintained by the other. He created Paradise and Gehenna, in
order that those in the one should deliver those in the other. And what
is the distance between them? Rabbi Chanina saith the width of the wall
(between Paradise and Gehenna) is a handbreadth.

_Yalkut Koheleth._

"Those passing through the valley of weeping make it a well; also
blessings shall cover the teacher" (Ps. lxxxiv. 6, A.V.). "The valley of
weeping" is Gehenna. "Make it a well," for their tears are like a well
or spring. "Also blessings shall cover the teacher." Rabbi Yochanan
saith, "The praises of God that ascend from Gehenna are more than those
that ascend from Paradise, for each one that is a step higher than his
neighbor praises God, and says, 'Happy am I that I am a step higher than
the one below me.' 'Also blessings shall cover the teacher,' for they
will acknowledge and say, 'Ye have taught well, and ye have instructed
well, but we have not obeyed.'"

_Yalkut Tehillim_, 84.

Those of the house of Eliyahu have taught that Gehenna is above the sky,
but some say it is behind the mountains of darkness.

_Tanu d'by Eliyahu._

Gehenna was created before Paradise; the former on the second day and
the latter on the third.

_Yalkut_.

In T.B. P'sachim, fol. 54, col. 1, it is said that the reason of
the omission of the words, "And God saw that it was good," in
respect to the second day of the creative week, was because
hell-fire was then created; but see the context.

When Adam saw (through the Spirit) that his posterity would be condemned
to Gehenna, he disobeyed the precept to procreate. But when he perceived
that after twenty-six generations the Israelites would accept the law,
he bestirred himself in compliance; as it is said (Gen. iv. 1), _Adam
vero cognovit uxorem suam Hevam_.

_Yalkut_.

"And the souls they had gotten in Haran" (Gen. xii. 5). These are they
who had been made proselytes. Whoever attracts a Gentile and
proselytizes him is as much as if he had created him. Abraham did so to
men and Sarah to women.

_Bereshith Midrash Rabbah._

"Sing and rejoice" (Zech. ii. 10). The Holy One--blessed be He!--will in
the future bring all the proselytes that were proselytized in this
world, and judge all the nations of the world in their presence. He will
say to them, "Why have ye left Me and served idols, which are nothing?"
They will reply and say, "Had we applied at Thy door, Thou wouldst not
have received us." Then will He say to them, "Let the proselytes that
were made from among you come forward and testify against you."

_P'sikta._

These are the pious female proselytes--Hagar, Osenath, Zipporah,
Shiphrah, Puah, the daughter of Pharaoh (Bathia), Rahab, Ruth, and Jael.

_Yalkut Yehoshua_, 9.

"The Lord keepeth the proselytes" (Ps. cxlvi. 9). "I esteem it a great
compliment on the part of the proselyte to leave his family and his
father's house and come to Me. Therefore I on My part will command
respecting him (Deut. x. 19), 'Love ye therefore the proselyted.'"

_Midrash Shochar Tov_, 146.

"I am a God near at hand" (Jer. xxiii. 23). "I am He who drew Jethro
near, and did not keep him at a distance"; therefore thou also when a
man comes to be proselytized in the name of Heaven, draw him near, do
not repulse him or keep him at a distance. From this thou art to learn
that while one repulses with the left hand he is to draw with the right,
and not as Elisha did. (He repulsed Gehazi with both hands.)

Copyright (c) 2007. knowncrafts.net. All rights reserved.