Midrash for Daniel 12:3

(Dan. 12, 3) And the intelligent shall shine brilliantly, like the brilliance, etc. This refers to a judge who decides according to the equity of truth. And they that bring money to righteousness shall be like the stars, for ever and ever. This refers to the collectors of charity. In a Baraitha, however, it is taught And the intelligent shall shine brilliantly, like the brilliance. This refers to both the judges and the collectors of charity. And they that bring money to righteousness shall be like the stars, for ever and ever, refers to the instructors of children. Who, for instance, is meant? For instance, R. Samuel b. Shilath, whom Rab found once standing in a garden. He said to him: "Have you left your honorable position [instructing children with devotion and honesty]?" He said to Rab: "It is thirteen years since I have last seen [this part of my property], and even now my mind is with my pupils." But what [reward is mentioned] of the Rabbis? Rabina said: (Jud. 5, 31) But they that love Him as the sun when he goeth forth in his might.

THE CREATION ON THE SECOND DAY
ON the second day the Holy One, blessed be He, created the firmament, the angels, fire for flesh and blood, and the fire of Gehinnom. Were not heaven and earth created on the first day, as it is said, "In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth" (Gen. 1:1)? Which firmament was created on the second day? Rabbi Eliezer said: || It was the firmament which is above the heads of the four Chajjôth (living creatures), (as it is said), "And over the head of the Chajjôth there was the likeness of a firmament, like the colour of the terrible crystal" (Ezek. 1:22). What is the meaning of (the expression), "like the colour of the terrible crystal"? It means like precious stones and pearls; it illuminates all the heavens like a lamp which is illuminating the whole house and like the sun which is shining with maximum intensity at noonday, as it is said, "The light dwelleth with him" (Dan. 2:22); and like this in the future will the righteous shed light, as it is said, "And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament" (Dan. 12:3). Were it not for that firmament the world would be engulfed by the waters above it and below it; but (the firmament) divides the waters (above) from the waters (below), as it is said, "And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, (and let it divide the waters from the waters)" (Gen. 1:6), it illuminates between the waters above and the waters below.

(Lev. 19:2:) YOU SHALL BE HOLY. R. Pinhas bar Hama the Priest said: R. Reuben said: What is the meaning of that which is written (in Ezek. 3:12): AND AFTER ME¹⁹This translation follows the interpretation of the midrash. A more traditional translation would be BEHIND ME. I HEARD A GREAT ROARING SOUND. What is the meaning of AFTER ME ('HRY)?²⁰Tanh., Lev. 7:6; also above, Exod. 4:13. After ('HRY) I and my friends praised him, I heard the ministering angels, as they praised him and said (ibid., cont.): BLESSED BE THE GLORY OF THE LORD FROM HIS PLACE. It also says (in Job 38:7): WHEN THE MORNING STARS (i.e., the seed of Jacob)²¹This interpretation of THE MORNING STARS is explicit in the parallel passage of Gen. R. 65:21, which explains that Jacob’s offspring are likened to stars in Dan. 12:3. See also the much fuller parallel in Tanh., Lev. 7:6. SANG TOGETHER, then (ibid., cont.:) ALL THE CHILDREN OF GOD (i.e., all the angels) SHOUTED FOR JOY. R. Mani said: Let not the recitation of the Shema be trivial in your eyes because there are two hundred forty-eight words in it,²²The number includes the response after the first line of the Shema (cited below) plus the three preliminary words with which one precedes the Shema when praying in private, i.e., El melekh ne’eman (“God is a faithful king”). corresponding to < the number of > parts that are in a human being; and out of them < comes > BLESSED BE THE NAME OF HIS GLORIOUS MAJESTY FOREVER AND EVER.²³This blessing is the liturgical response to the first line of the Shema. The Holy One said: If you have kept what is mine in reciting it properly, I will also keep what is yours. Therefore, David offered praise²⁴Rt.: QLS; cf. Gk.: kalos (“beautifully”). (in Ps. 17:8): KEEP ME AS THE PUPIL OF AN EYE. The Holy One said to him (in Prov. 4:4): KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS AND LIVE. R. Simeon ben Halafta said: To what is the matter comparable?²⁵Deut. R. 4:4. To someone who < lives > in Galilee and has a vineyard in Judea, while someone in Judea has a vineyard in Galilee. The one who < lives > in Galilee goes to Judea to cultivate his vineyard. The one in Judea goes to Galilee to cultivate his vineyard. < One day > they meet with each another, and one said to the other: Instead of you coming to my place, keep watch over what is mine in your neighborhood; and I will keep watch over what is yours in my neighborhood. So did David say (in Ps. 17:4): KEEP ME AS THE PUPIL OF AN EYE? The Holy One said to him (in Prov. 4:4): KEEP MY COMMANDMENTS AND LIVE. Similarly the Holy One said to Israel: Keep my commandment, the commandment to recite the Shema morning and evening, and I will keep you, as stated (in Ps. 121:7): THE LORD SHALL KEEP YOU FROM ALL EVIL; HE SHALL KEEP YOUR SOUL.