Midrasch zu Chabakkuk 3:3
אֱל֙וֹהַ֙ מִתֵּימָ֣ן יָב֔וֹא וְקָד֥וֹשׁ מֵֽהַר־פָּארָ֖ן סֶ֑לָה כִּסָּ֤ה שָׁמַ֙יִם֙ הוֹד֔וֹ וּתְהִלָּת֖וֹ מָלְאָ֥ה הָאָֽרֶץ׃
Gott kam von Teman und der Heilige vom Gebirge Paran. Sela! Der Himmel war von seinem Glanze bedeckt und voll war die Erde seines Ruhmes.
Ein Yaakov (Glick Edition)
"The same will happen with all the other nations." Why did he enumerate the two and not the rest of the nations? Because the reign of these two lasted until the Messianic age. But why should the other nations enter after seeing the disappointment of the first two? Because they will think: "The first two enslaved Israel, but we did not enslave them." "Finally they will say before Him: 'Sovereign of the Universe! Didst Thou then give us the Torah and we did not accept it?' But how could they say so? Is it not written (Deut. 33, 2) The Lord came from Sinai, and rose from Sair unto them: He shined forth from Mount Paran. And again there is a passage (Habak. 3, 3) God cometh from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. And to the question, What has the Lord to do in Sair and Paran, R. Jochanan said: "From this it may be inferred that the Holy One, praised be He! has presented His Torah to every nation, but it was not accepted until He came to Israel [hence their claim]." Therefore, we must say that they will say to Him: "Have we then accepted the Torah, and not fulfilled its commandments?" But what answer is this? Could they not be accused because they have not accepted? We must therefore say that they will plead thus: "Sovereign of the Universe! Hast Thou then arched the mountain over us as Thou didst over the children of Israel; for the passage says (Ex. 19, 17) And they stood at the foot of the mountain, upon which R. Dimi b. Chasa of Chihah remarked: "From this we may infer that the Holy One, praised be He! arched the mountain over them like a tank and said to them: 'If you accept the Torah then it is well, but if not, there shall be your graves.' Finally, the answer will come, (Is. 43, 9) And announces to us former things, i.e., the Holy One, praised be He! will say to them: 'The seven commandmenst which were given to you, have ye observed them?' And whence do we know that they have not? From that which R. Joseph taught: "What is the meaning of the passage (Hab. 3, 6) He standeth and shaketh the earth; He beholdeth and maketh the nations to tremble. What did He behold? He beheld that the seven commandments accepted by the descendants of Noah, were not observed. And therefore He absolved the nations of them." Should they then have profited [by their disobedience]? Said Mar b. Rabbina: (Fol. 3) "It means that even should they fulfill them, they shall not be rewarded."
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Mekhilta d'Rabbi Yishmael
R. Eliezer, the son of R. Yossi Haglili was wont to say (Ibid. 147:19) "He relates His statutes to Jacob, His statutes and His judgments to Israel. He did not do so for any other nation." Now what did these poor nations do that He declined to give them the Torah? (Ibid. 20) "Judgments they would not know" — they declined to accept (the Torah), viz. (Habakkuk 3:3) "G d came from the south … (4) with a glow like light … (5) "Before Him went a plague … (6) "He stood and measured out the land. He saw and He released the nations" (viz. Avodah Zarah 2b).
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Pesikta Rabbati
… it is written there “Behold the heaven and the heaven of heavens cannot contain You…” (Melachim I 8:27) and here it is written “…the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle.” (Shemot 40:35) R’ Yehoshua of Sachnin said in the name of R’ Levi ‘to what is this likened? To an open cave at the edge of the sea. When the sea storms the cave is filled, but the sea is not reduced. So too, even though it is written that ‘the glory of the Lord filled the Tabernacle’ the upper and lower worlds did not lose anything of the brilliance of the glory of the Holy One, just as it is written “Do I not fill the heavens and the earth? says the Lord.” (Yirmiyahu 23:24) Therefore it is written here ‘And it was’. Just as the Divine Presence was here below at the beginning of the creation of the world but withdrew to above, now it returned to be below as it had been “And it was that on the day that Moses finished…” (Bamidbar 7:1) ... [Another explanation. “And it was that on the day that Moses finished erecting the Mishkan…” (Numbers 7:1)] R’ Simon said: at the time when the Holy One told Israel to erect the Tabernacle, He hinted that when the Tabernacle below is erected, the Tabernacle above is erected, as it says “And it was that on the day that Moses finished…” (ibid.) It does not say ‘erecting the Tabernacle’ but rather ‘erecting this (et) the Tabernacle.’ This refers to the Tabernacle above. The Holy One said: in this world, when the Tabernacle was erected, I commanded Aharon and his sons that they bless you. In the time to come I, in my glory, will bless you. So it is written “May the Lord bless you from Zion, He Who made heaven and earth.” (Psalms 134:3)
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