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

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_Yoma_, fol. 18, cols, 1, 2; fol. 19, col. 2.

Sacerdos nascitur, non fit,--a priest is born, not made, we may
truly say, just altering one word of a well-known proverb. His
father was a priest, and so were his forefathers as far back as
the time of Aaron; his sons and his sons' sons after him will
belong to the priestly order, and so the name was far too often
only the badge for exclusive and hereditary privilege. This
rule, that applies to the priests, holds good also with regard
to the Levites. (_Berachoth_, fol. 29, col. 1.)

There was a town in the land of Israel called Gophnith, where there were
eighty couples of brother priests who married eighty couples of sister
priestesses in one night.

_Berachoth_ fol. 44, col. 1.

Flay a carcass and take thy fee, but say not it is humiliating because I
am a priest, I am a great man.

_P'sachim_, fol. 113, col. 1.

Philo Judaeus, De Sac. Honor, (p. 833), says, "The hides of the
burnt-offerings proved a rich perquisite of the priesthood."

The number of high priests who officiated in succession during the 410
years of the continuance of the first Temple was only eighteen, but the
number who held office during the 420 years of the second Temple
amounted to more than three hundred, most of them having died within a
year after their entrance upon the office. The reason assigned by the
Talmud for the long lives of the former and the short lives of the
latter is the text given in Prov. x. 27, "The fear of the Lord
prolongeth days, but the years of the wicked shall be shortened."

_Yoma_, fol. 9, col. 1.

Before a priest could be admitted into active service in the Temple he
had to undergo bodily inspection at the hands of the syndicate of the
Sanhedrin. If they found the least defect in his body, even a mole with
hair upon it, he was ordered to dress in black and be dismissed; but if
he was perfectly free from blemish, he was arrayed in white, and at once
introduced to his brother priests and official duties.

Ibid., fol. 19, col. 1.

The daughters of a male proselyte who has married the daughter of a
female proselyte are eligible to marry priests.

_Yevamoth_, fol. 57, col. 1.

If thou seest an impudent priest, think not evil of him; for it is said
(Hosea iv. 4), "Thy people are as they that strive with the priest" (see
chap. ii. p. 25, Note c.).

_Kiddushin_, fol. 70, col. 2.

So long as there is a diadem on the head of the priest, there is a crown
on the head of every man. Remove the diadem from the head of the high
priest and you take away the crown from the head of all the people.
(This is a Talmudic comment on Ezek. xxi. 31; A. Ver., 26.)

_Gittin_, fol. 7, col. 1.

A king shaved his head every day, a high priest did the same once a
week, and an ordinary priest once a month.

_Sanhedrin_, fol. 22, col. 2.

When a priest performs the service of the Temple in a state of
defilement, his brother priests are not required to lead him before the
tribunal, but the juniors of the priestly order are to drag him out into
the hall and brain him with clubs.

_Sanhedrin_, fol. 81, col. 2.

When kings were anointed, the holy oil was laid on the forehead in the
form of a coronet, and when, says Rabbi Mansi bar Gadda, priests were
anointed, the operation was performed in the shape of the Greek letter
k.

_Horayoth_, fol. 12, col. 1.

A learned man who is of illegitimate birth is preferable to an ignorant
priest.

Ibid., fol. 13, col. 1.

A priest who makes no confession during service has no part in the
priesthood. (He forfeits his emoluments.)

_Menachoth_, fol. 18, col. 2.

The bald-headed, the dwarfed, and the blear-eyed are ineligible for the
priesthood.

_Bechoroth_, fol. 43, col. 2.

Rav Chisda says, "The portions that fall to the priests are not to be
eaten except roasted and that with mustard," because Scripture says
(Num. xviii. 8), "by reason of the anointing," i.e., by way of
distinction, for only kings (who, of course, are anointed) eat roast
meat with mustard.

_Chullin_, fol. 132, col. 2.

If a case of mistaken identity should occur between the child of a
priestess and the child of her female slave, so that the one cannot be
distinguished from the other, they both are to eat of the heave-offering
and to receive one share from the threshing-floor. When grown up, each
is to set the other free.

_Gittin_, fol. 42, col. 2.

From the old clothes of the priests the wicks were made for the lamps in
the Temple.

_Shabbath_, fol. 21, col. 1.

Scripture authority is given in proof that the very garments possessed
the faculty of making atonement for sin every whit as effectually as
animal sacrifices. We are taught that the priest's shirt atones for
murder, his drawers atone for whoredom, his mitre for pride, his girdle
for evil thoughts, his breastplate for injustice, his ephod for
idolatry; his overcoat atones for slander, and the golden plate on his
forehead atones for impudence.

_Zevachim_, fol. 88, col. 2.

All this and a great deal more on the subject may be found in
the Selichoth for Yom Kippur.

For seven years was the land of Israel strewn with brimstone and salt.

_Yoma_, fol. 54, col. 1.

"Then shall we raise against him seven shepherds" (Micah. v. 5). Who are
these seven shepherds? David in the middle: Adam, Seth, and Methuselah
on his right hand; Abraham, Jacob, and Moses on his left.

_Succah_, fol. 52, col. 2.

Who were the seven prophetesses? The answer is, Sarah, Miriam, Deborah,
Hannah, Abigail, Huldah, and Esther.

_Meggillah_, fol. 14, col. 2.

It is lawful to look into the face of a bride for seven days after her
marriage, in order to enhance the affection with which she is regarded
by her husband, and there is no Halachah (or law) like this.

_Kethuboth_, fol. 17, col. 1.

The Rabbis are especially careful to caution their daughters to
guard against such habits as might lower them in the regard of
their husbands, lest they should lose aught of that purifying
and elevating power which they exercised as maidens. It is thus,
for instance, Rav Chisda counsels his daughters: "Be ye modest
before your husbands and do not even eat before them. Eat not
vegetables or dates in the evening, and touch not strong drink."
(_Shabbath_, fol. 140, col. 2.)

Once upon a time a demon in the shape of a seven-headed dragon came
forth against Rav Acha and threatened to harm him, but the Rabbi threw
himself on his knees, and every time he fell down to pray he knocked off
one of these heads, and thus eventually killed the dragon.

_Kiddushin_, fol. 29, col. 2.

On the seventh of the month Adar, Moses died, and on that day the manna
ceased to come down from heaven.

Ibid., fol. 38, col. 1.

The seventh of Adar is still, and has long been, kept sacred as
the day of the death of Moses our Rabbi--peace be with him!--and
that on the authority of T.B. Kiddushin (as quoted above), and
Soteh, fol. 10, col. 2; but Josephus (Book iv. chap. 8, sec. 49)
most distinctly affirms that Moses died "on the first day of the
month," and the Midrash on Esther may be quoted in corroboration
of his statement. The probability is that the Talmud is right on
this matter, but it is altogether wrong in connecting with this
event the stoppage of the manna (see Josh. v. 10, 12).

Seven years did the nations of the world cultivate their vineyards with
no other manure than the blood of Israel. Rabbi Chiya, the son of Abin,
says that Rabbi Yehoshua, the son of Korcha, said, "An old man, an
inhabitant of Jerusalem, related to me that Nebuzaradan, captain of the
guard, killed in this valley 211 myriads (about 2,110,000), and in
Jerusalem he slaughtered upon one stone 94 myriads (940,000), so that
the blood flowed until it reached the blood of Zechariah, in order that
that might be fulfilled which is said (Hosea iv. 2), 'And blood toucheth
blood.'"

_Gittin_, fol. 57, col. 1.

The seventh of Adar, on which Moses died, was the same day of the same
month on which he was born.

_Soteh_, fol. 10, col. 2.

A male hyaena after seven years becomes a bat; this after seven years, a
vampire; this after other seven years, a nettle; this after seven years
more, a thorn; and this again after seven years is turned into a demon.
If a man does not devoutly bow during the repetition of the daily prayer
which commences, "we reverently acknowledge," his spine after seven
years becomes a serpent.

_Bava Kama_, fol. 16, col. 1.

It is related of Benjamin the righteous, who was keeper of the poor-box,
that a woman came to him at a period of famine and solicited food. "By
the worship of God," he replied, "there is nothing in the box." She then
exclaimed, "O Rabbi, if thou dost not feed me I and my seven children
must needs starve." Upon which he relieved her from his own private
purse. In course of time he fell ill and was nigh unto death. Then the
ministering angels interceded with the Holy One--blessed be He!--and
said, "Lord of the Universe, Thou hast said he that preserveth one
single soul of Israel alive is as if he had preserved the life of the
whole world; and shall Benjamin the righteous, who preserved a poor
woman and her seven children, die so prematurely?" Instantly the
death-warrant which had gone forth was torn up, and twenty-two years
were added to his life.

_Bava Bathra_, fol. 11, col. 1.

Seven prophets have prophesied to the nations of the world, and these
were Balaam and his father, Job, Eliphaz the Temanite, Bildad the
Shuhite, Zophar the Naamathite, and Elihu the son of Barachel the
Buzite.

Ibid., fol. 15. col. 2.

There are seven who are not consumed by the worm in the grave, and these
are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, Moses, Aaron, and Miriam, and Benjamin
the son of Jacob.

Ibid., fol. 17, col. 1.

Seven men form an unbroken series from the creation down to our own
time. Methuselah saw Adam, Shem saw Methuselah, Jacob saw Shem, Amram
saw Jacob, and Ahijah the Shilonite saw Amram, and Ahijah was seen by
Elijah, who is alive to this day.

Ibid., fol. 121, col. 2.

Seven years' famine will not affect the artisan.

_Sanhedrin_, fol. 29, col. 1.

Seven years of pestilence will not cause a man to die before his time.

Ibid.

"And it came to pass after seven days that the waters of the flood were
upon the earth" (Gen. vii. 10). Why this delay of seven days? Rav says
they were the days of mourning for Methuselah; and this teaches us that
mourning for the righteous will defer a coming calamity. Another
explanation is, that the Holy One--blessed be He!--altered the course of
nature during these seven days, so that the sun arose in the west and
set in the east.

Ibid., fol. 108, col. 2.

The first step in transgression is evil thought, the second scoffing,
the third pride, the fourth outrage, the fifth idleness, the sixth
hatred, and the seventh an evil eye.

_Derech Eretz Zuta_, chap. 6.

Seven things cause affliction:--Slander, shedding of blood, perjury,
adultery, pride, robbery, and envy.

_Erchin_, fol. 17, col. 2.

A ram has but one voice while alive but seven after he is dead. How so?
His horns make two trumpets, his hip-bones two pipes, his skin can be
extended into a drum, his larger intestines can yield strings for the
lyre and the smaller chords for the harp.

_Kinnim_, chap. 3, mish. 6.

Rav Chisda said, The soul of a man mourns over him the first seven days
after his decease; for it is said (Job xiv. 22), "And his soul shall
mourn over him."

_Shabbath_, fol. 152, col. 2.

The Rabbis have taught that a man should not drink water on Wednesdays
and Saturdays after night-fall, for if he does, his blood, because of
risk, will be upon his own head. What risk? That from an evil spirit who
on these evenings prowls abroad. But if the man be thirsty, what is he
to do? Let him repeat over the water the seven voices ascribed to the
Lord by David in Psalm xxix. 3-9, "The voice of the Lord is upon the
waters," etc.

_P'sachim_, fol. 112, col. 1.

Seven precepts did Rabbi Akiva give to his son Rabbi Yehoshua:--(1.) My
son, teach not in the highest place of the city; (2.) Dwell not in a
city where the leading men are disciples of the wise; (3.) Enter not
suddenly into thine own house, and of course not into thy neighbor's;
(4.) Do not go about without shoes; (5.) Rise early and eat in summer
time because of the heat, and in winter time because of the cold; (6.)
Make thy Sabbath as a week-day rather than depend for support on other
people; (7.) Strive to keep on close friendly terms with the man whom
fortune favors (lit. on whom the present hour smiles). Rav Pappa adds,
"This does not refer to buying or selling, but to partnership."

Ibid.

How is it proved that mourning should be kept up for seven days? It is
written (Amos viii. 10), "I will turn your feasts into mourning," and
these in many cases lasted seven days.

_Moed Katon_, fol 20, col. 1.

Rav Chisda said there are seven kinds of gold:--Gold, good gold, the
gold of Ophir, purified gold, beaten gold, shut-up gold, and gold of
Parvain.

_Yoma_ fol. 44, col. 2.

The shut-up gold (1 Kings vi. 12) was of the purest and rarest
quality, so that when it appeared in the market for sale, all
shops in the locality were "shut up," for there could be no sale
of any other gold before that. All gold-dealers "shut up" their
shops in order to be present on so rare an occasion; and hence
the name of this kind of gold--"shut-up gold."

Each day of the Feast of Tabernacles they walked round the altar once,
and said, "O Lord, save us, we beseech Thee! O Lord, prosper us, we
beseech Thee!" But on the last day they encompassed it seven times. On
their departure they said, "Beauty belongeth to thee, O altar! Beauty
belongeth to thee, O altar!"

_Succah_, fol. 45, col. 1.

It deserves to be noted here for the information of some of our
readers that the words translated above, Save now, or Save, we
beseech thee, are the original of our word Hosanna. The 25th and
26th verses of Psalm cxviii, which begin with this expression,
were repeated at the Feast of Tabernacles; and hence the bundles
of palm and willow branches (carried on this occasion), the
prayers, and the festival itself, were so named, i.e. Hosanna.

The Tempter is known by seven distinctive epithets:--(1) The Holy
One--blessed be He!--calls him evil; as it is said, "For the imagination
of man's heart is evil." (2.) Moses calls him uncircumcised; as it is
said (Deut. x. 16), "Circumcise therefore the uncircumcised foreskin of
your heart." (3.) David calls him unclean; as it is said (Ps. li. 10),
"Create in me a clean heart, O God!" Consequently there must be an
unclean one. (4.) Solomon calls him enemy; as it is said (Prov. xxv. 21,
22), "If thine enemy hunger, give him bread to eat; if he be thirsty,
give him water to drink; for thus thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his
head, and the Lord shall reward thee" (i.e., oppose him with the law.
The word rendered bread, is metaphorically taken for the law, Prov. ix.
5, so that give him water to drink means also the law, Isa. lv.
1--Rashi. And the Lord reward thee, read not reward, but cause him to
make peace with thee, not to war against thee.) (5.) Isaiah calls him
stumbling-block; as it is said (Isa. lvii. 14), "Cast ye up, cast ye up,
prepare the way, take up the stumbling-block out of the way of my
people." (6.) Ezekiel calls him stone; as it is said (Ezek. xxxvi. 26),
"I will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh and I will give
you a heart of flesh." (7.) Joel calls him the hidden one; as it is said
(Joel ii. 20), "I will remove far from you the hidden one," i.e., the
tempter who remains hidden in the heart of man; "and I will drive him
into a land barren and desolate," i.e., where the children of men do not
usually dwell; "with his face toward the former sea," i.e., with his
eyes set upon the first Temple, which he destroyed, slaying the
disciples of the wise that were in it; "and his hinder part toward the
latter sea," i.e., with his eyes set on the second Temple, which he
destroyed, also slaying the disciples of the wise that were in it.

_Succah_, fol. 52, col. 1.

Once a Jewish mother with her seven sons suffered martyrdom at the hands
of the Emperor. The sons, when ordered by the latter to do homage to the
idols of the Empire, declined, and justified their disobedience by
quoting each a simple text from the sacred Scriptures. When the seventh
was brought forth, it is related that Caesar, for appearance' sake,
offered to spare him if only he would stoop and pick up a ring from the
ground which had been dropped on purpose. "Alas for thee, O Caesar!"
answered the boy; "if thou art so zealous for thine honor, how much more
zealous ought we to be for the honor of the Holy One--blessed be He!" On
his being led away to the place of execution, the mother craved and
obtained leave to give him a farewell kiss. "Go, my child," said she,
"and say to Abraham, Thou didst build an altar for the sacrifice of one
son, but I have erected altars for seven sons." She then turned away and
threw herself down headlong from the roof and expired, when the echo of
a voice was heard exclaiming (Ps. cxiii. 9), "The joyful mother of
children" (or, the mother of the children rejoiceth).

_Gittin_, fol. 57, col. 2.

The story of this martyrdom is narrated at much greater length
in the Books of Maccabees (Book iii. chap. 7, Book iv. chaps.
8-18). In a Latin version the names are given, that of the
mother Solomona, and her sons respectively Maccabeus, Aber,
Machir, Judas, Achaz, Areth, while the hero of our Talmudic
reference, the seventh and last, is styled Jacob. Josephus,
Ant., Book xii. chap. 6, sec. 4, may also be referred to for
further and varying details.

The land of Israel was not destroyed till the seven courts of judgment
had fallen into idolatry, and these are they:--Jeroboam, the son of
Nebat; Baasha, the son of Ahijah; Ahab, the son of Omri; Jehu, the son
of Nimshi; Pekah, the son of Remaliah; Menahem, the son of Gadi; and
Hoshea, the son of Elah; as it is written (Jer. xv. 9), "She that hath
borne seven languisheth: she hath given up the ghost; her sun is gone
down while it is yet day; she hath been ashamed and confounded."

_Gittin_, fol. 88, col. 1.

"He stood and measured the earth; he beheld and freed the Gentiles
(A.V., he drove asunder the nations, Hab. iii. 6); he beheld that the
seven precepts which the children of Noah accepted were not observed; he
stood up and set their property free for the service of Israel."

_Bava Kama_, fol. 38, col. 1.

This is one of the weightier expositions met with from time to
time in the Talmud, in which one recognizes a more than
ordinarily deep and earnest feeling on the part of the
commentator. The interpreter expresses himself as a man instinct
with the exclusive Hebrew spirit, and as such claims his title
to the whole inheritance. It is a claim abstractly defensible,
and the just assertion of it is the basis of all rights over
others. The only question here is whether the Jew alone is
invested with the privilege. There can be little doubt that the
principle on which he claims enfeoffment in the estate is a
sound one, that the earth belongs in no case to the sons of
Belial, only to the sons of God.

Seven things distinguish an ill-bred man and seven a wise man:--The wise
man (1.) does not talk before his superior in wisdom and years; (2.) he
does not interrupt another when speaking; (3.) he is not hasty to make
reply; (4.) his questions are to the point, and his answers are
according to the Halachah; (5.) his subjects of discourse are orderly
arranged, the first subject first and the last last; (6.) if he has not
heard of a thing, he says, I have not heard it; and (7.) he confesseth
the truth. The characteristics of the ill-bred man are just the contrary
of these.

_Avoth_, chap. 5, mish. 10.

If a man does not work during the six days of the week, he may be
obliged to work all the seven.

_Avoth d'Rab. Nathan_, chap. 11.

Seven have no portion in the world to come:--A notary; a schoolmaster,
the best of physicians, a judge who dispenses justice in his own native
town, a wizard, a congregational reader (or law-officer), and a butcher.

_Avoth d Rab. Nathan_, chap. 37.

Seven attributes avail before the Throne of Glory, and these
are:--Wisdom, righteousness, judgment, grace, mercy, truth, and peace.

Ibid., chap. 36.

There are seven points in which a righteous man excels another:--(1.)
The wife of the one is more comely than the other's; (2.) so are the
children of the one as compared with those of the other; (3.) if the two
partake of one dish, each enjoys the taste according to his doings; (4.)
if the two dye in one vat, by one the article is dyed properly, by the
other not; (5, etc.) the one excels the other in wisdom, in
understanding, in knowledge, and stature, as it is said (Prov. xii. 26),
"The righteous is more excellent than his neighbor."

Ibid., chap. 37.

Seven patriarchs were covenant-makers:--Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob,
Moses, Aaron, Phinehas, and David.

_Derech Eretz Zuta_, chap. 1.

Seven liquids are comprehended under the generic term drink (Lev. xi.
34):--Dew, water, wine, oil, blood, milk, and honey.

_Machshirin_, chap. 6, mish 6.

For tertian fever take seven small grapes from seven different vines;
seven threads from seven different pieces of cloth; seven nails from
seven different bridges; seven handfuls of ashes from seven different
fireplaces; seven bits of pitch from seven ships, one piece from each;
seven scrapings of dust from as many separate doorways; seven cummin
seeds; seven hairs from the lower jaw of a dog and tie them upon the
throat with a papyrus fibre.

_Shabbath_, fol. 66, col. 2.

The Rabbis teach that the precept relating to the lighting of a candle
at the Feast of Dedication applies to a whole household, but that those
who are particular light a candle for each individual member, and those
that are extremely particular light up eight candles on the first day,
seven on the second, decreasing the number by one each day. This is
according to the school of Shammai; but the school of Hillel say that he
should light up one on the first day, two on the second, increasing the
number by one each of the eight days of the fast.... What is the origin
of the feast of Dedication? On the twenty-fifth day of Kislev (about
December), the eight days of the Dedication commence, during which term
no funeral oration is to be made, nor public fast to be decreed. When
the Gentiles (Greeks) entered the second Temple, it was thought they had
defiled all the holy oil they found in it; but when the Hasmoneans
prevailed and conquered them, they sought and found still one jar of oil
stamped with the seal of the High Priest, and therefore undefiled.
Though the oil it contained would only have sufficed for one day, a
miracle was performed, so that the oil lasted to the end of the week
(during which time more oil was provided and consecrated for the future
service of the Temple). On the anniversary of this occasion the Feast of
Dedication was instituted.

_Shabbath_, fol. 21, col. 2.

The Feast of Dedication is annually celebrated by all Jews
everywhere, to commemorate the purifying of the Temple and the
restoration of its worship after its desecration by Antiochus
Epiphanes, of which an account may be found in 1 Maccabees iv.
52-59. It is very probable that some of our Christmas
festivities are only adaptations of the observances of this
Jewish feast in symbolism of Christian ideas. During the eight
days of the festival they light up wax candles or oil lamps,
according to the rubric of the school of Hillel. Previous to the
lighting, the following benedictions are pronounced:--

"Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our God! King of the universe, who
hath sanctified us with Thy commandment, and commanded us to
light the light of Dedication."

"Blessed art Thou, O Lord, our God! King of the universe, who
wrought miracles for our fathers in those days and in this
season."

"Blessed art Thou, O Lord, Our God! King of the universe, who
hath preserved us alive, sustained us, and brought us to enjoy
this season."

After the lighting, the following form is repeated:--"These
lights we light to praise Thee for the miracles, wonders,
salvation, and victories which Thou didst perform for our
fathers in those days and in this season by the hands of Thy
holy priests. Wherefore by command these lights are holy all the
eight days of the Dedication, neither are we permitted to make
any other use of them, but to view them, that we may return
thanks to Thy name for Thy miracles, wonderful works, and
salvation."

Another commemorative formula is repeated six or seven times a
day during this festival; viz, during morning and evening
prayers and after each meal.

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