Midrash sobre Génesis 15:7

Another interpretation (of Exod. 6:3): AND I APPEARED UNTO ABRAHAM, UNTO ISAAC, AND UNTO JACOB AS EL SHADDAI, BUT BY MY NAME Y--H I WAS NOT KNOWN TO THEM. I did not proclaim⁴¹From the Gk.: parresiazesthai, i.e., “to speak freely.” it to them <even> if it was pronounced,⁴²Although the Divine Name appears several times in Scripture before the time of Moses, and was specificially revealed to Abraham (Gen. 15:7) and Jacob (Gen. 18:13), the Holy One had never before revealed it in answer to a specific request and never pronounced it in the way that he did for Moses in Exod. 3:14. but to you I have revealed it because you are going to redeem Israel, so as to make them prosper.⁴³Exod. R. 6:4. The Holy One said: In this world I have revealed my name to individuals, but in the world to come, I am making my name known to all Israel, as stated (in Is. 52:6): THEREFORE MY PEOPLE SHALL KNOW MY NAME….

[(Exod. 29:1): AND THIS IS THE THING….] This text is related (to Ps. 119:89): FOREVER, O LORD, DOES YOUR WORD STAND FIRM IN THE HEAVENS.³⁵Tanh., Exod. 8:12; Exod. R. 38:6. R. Berekhyah the Priest said: From time immemorial you have treated us with the measure of mercy.³⁶Cf. PR 40:2. When? When our father Abraham was cast into the fiery furnace, the angels quarreled with each other.³⁷Exod. R. 18:5. Michael said: I am going down to rescue him,³⁸Cf. Gen. R. 44:13. but Gabriel said: I am going down and rescue him.³⁹Pes. 118a. The Holy One said: I am going down in my glory to rescue him, as stated (in Gen. 15:7): I AM THE LORD WHO BROUGHT YOU OUT FROM UR OF THE CHALDEES…. He said to them (the angels): You shall rescue his children's children. When Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah descended into the fiery furnace, the angel went down to rescue them.⁴⁰See Deut. R. 1:12; cf. Pes. 118ab; PR 35:2; M. Pss. 117:3, according to which the angel was Gabriel. Then the angels said (in Ps. 119:89–90): FOREVER, O LORD, DOES YOUR WORD STAND FIRM IN THE HEAVENS…. YOU HAVE ESTABLISHED THE EARTH AND IT STANDS FIRM. You are the foundation of the world.

“If she is a wall, we will build upon her a silver turret; and if she is a door, we will affix upon her a cedar panel. I am a wall, and my breasts are like towers; then I was in his eyes as one who finds peace” (Song of Songs 8:9–10).
“If she is a wall, we will build upon her a silver turret”; “if she is a wall” – this is Abraham. The Holy One blessed be He said: If he stands firm in his convictions like a wall, “we will build upon her a silver turret” – we will rescue him and build him up in this world. “And if she is a door [delet], we will affix upon her a cedar panel” – if he is poor [dal] in mitzvot and sways to and fro in his actions like a door, “we will affix [natzur] upon her a cedar panel” – just as a drawing [tzura] exists only for a short while, so I will stand with him only for a short while.
“I am a wall” – Abraham said before the Holy One blessed be He: ‘I am a wall, and I will establish my good deeds like a wall.’ “And my breasts are like towers” – as I am destined to establish factions and groups of righteous men like me in the world.²³This is a reference to Abraham’s offspring. The term breasts is used to represent nourishing and raising the offspring. “Then I was in his eyes as one who finds peace” – the Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘Just as you descended into the fiery furnace, so, I will extricate you intact.’ That is what is written: “I am the Lord who took you out of Ur²⁴Ur means fire in Aramaic. of the Chaldeans” (Genesis 15:7).

“While the king was at his feast, my nard released its fragrance” (Song of Songs 1:12).
“While the king was at his feast,” Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Meir says: While the King of kings was at His feast, in the firmament, Israel released a foul odor and said to the calf: “This is your god, Israel” (Exodus 32:4). Rabbi Yehuda said to him: ‘Enough, Meir, one does not expound Song of Songs disparagingly, but rather, favorably, as Song of Songs was given only in praise of Israel. What is: “While the king was at his feast”? While the King of kings was at His feast, in the firmament, Israel released a fine fragrance before Mount Sinai, and said: “Everything that the Lord has spoken we will perform and we will obey” (Exodus 24:7).
According to the opinion of Rabbi Meir, it should have said: My stench released its odor.²⁶⁸Since the verse was referring to the Golden Calf, it should have referred to stench rather than the fragrance of the sweet-smelling nard. Rather, a treatise ascended in their hand from the Diaspora,²⁶⁹The midrash is citing an ancient tradition recorded in a treatise that was transported from Babylon during the Return to Zion to build the second Temple. and they taught in its regard that He skipped the incident of the calf for them and the act of the Tabernacle preceded it.²⁷⁰The sin of the Golden Calf (Exodus chap. 32) should have been recorded in the Torah immediately following the events of the revelation at Sinai. Instead, it is preceded by the commandments concerning the building of the Tabernacle (Exodus chapters 25–31), to indicate that even when Israel sinned, they were still beloved in the eyes of the God. Therefore, the verse characterizes their odor as nard.
Rabbi Eliezer, Rabbi Akiva, and Rabbi Berekhya, Rabbi Eliezer says: “While the king was at his feast,” while the King of kings was at His feast, in the firmament, Mount Sinai was already enveloped in flames, as it is stated: “The mountain was burning with fire” (Deuteronomy 4:11). Rabbi Akiva says: While the King of kings was at His feast, in the firmament, already, “the glory of the Lord rested on Mount Sinai” (Exodus 24:16). Rabbi Berekhya says: While Moses was at his feast in the firmament,²⁷¹While he was still on Mount Sinai. as he is called king, as it is stated: “He became king in Yeshurun, when the heads of the people were assembled” (Deuteronomy 33:5), already, “God spoke all these matters saying” (Exodus 20:1).
Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov and the Rabbis, Rabbi Eliezer says: While the King of kings was at His feast, in the firmament, Mikhael, the great prince, had already descended from the heavens and rescued Abraham our patriarch from the fiery furnace. The Rabbis say: The Holy One blessed be He descended and rescued him, as it is stated: “I am the Lord who took you out of Ur of the Chaldeans” (Genesis 15:7). When did Mikhael descend? It was in the days of Ḥanaya, Mishael, and Azarya.²⁷²Mikhael is identified as the angel who descended to rescue Ḥananya, Mishael, and Azarya from the fiery furnace (see Daniel 3:25).
Rabbi Tavyomei said: While Jacob our patriarch was lying [mesev] in his bed, ²⁷³The expression “at his feast [bimsibo]” in the verse is interpreted as a reference to Jacob lying on his deathbed. the Divine Spirit gleamed in him, and he said to his sons: “God will be with you” (Genesis 48:21). He said to them: ‘He is destined to rest His Divine Presence in your midst.’ Rav Naḥman said: It is written: “Israel and everything that he had traveled and came to Beersheba” (Genesis 46:1). Where did he go? He went to chop down the cedars that Abraham our patriarch had planted in Beersheba, as it is stated: “He planted a tamarisk in Beersheba” (Genesis 21:33).²⁷⁴Jacob chopped them down in order to take them to Egypt. Rabbi Levi said: It is written: “The central bar inside the planks extending from end to end” (Exodus 26:28). The bar was thirty-two cubits long. From where did they have it in their possession at that moment?²⁷⁵Where did they get such a long piece of wood in the wilderness, just when they needed it to build this part of the Tabernacle? It teaches that they were hidden with them from the days of Jacob our patriarch. That is what is written: “And everyone with whom acacia wood was found” (Exodus 35:24); “acacia wood was found,” is not written here, but rather, “with whom…it was found”—from the outset.
Rabbi Levi bar Ḥiyya said: They chopped them down in Magdala of the dyers²⁷⁶This was the name of a place in the Land of Israel. and took them with them down to Egypt. They had no knots and no cracks. There were acacia trees in Magdala and the custom was to prohibit [using] them due to the sanctity of the Ark.²⁷⁷Even in the times of the Sages of the midrash, acacia trees grew in Magdala, but due to the tradition that the wood eventually used for the Ark and the rest of the Tabernacle had been cut from there, the people of Magdala would not make use of the acacia trees. They came and asked Rav Ḥananya, colleague of the Rabbis, and he said to them: Do not deviate from the custom of your ancestors.

R. Berechiah the priest BeRabbi,¹¹See above, note 6. declared: The Holy One, blessed be He, will deal mercifully with us forever. Wherein is this stated? At the time that Abraham descended into the fiery furnace, the guardian angels quarreled with one another. One said: I shall descend and save him; while another one insisted: I shall descend and save him. While Michael declared: I shall descend (to save him), and Gabriel called out: I shall descend. Thereupon, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to the angels: None of you will do so. I, in all My glory, will descend and rescue him, as it is said: I am the Lord that brought thee out of Ur of the Chaldees (Gen. 15:7).

The Holy One, blessed be He, told the angels: You shall descend to rescue his descendants Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah when they are cast into the furnace. The angels did descend to rescue them, as it is said: Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego, who hath sent His angel, and delivered His servants that trusted in Him (Dan. 3:26). Then the guardian angels proclaimed: Forever, O Lord, Thy word standeth fast in heaven. Thy faithfulness is unto all generations; Thou hast established the earth, and it standeth. They stand this day according to Thine ordinances (Ps. 119:89–91). Unto all generations you demonstrated Your faithfulness when You informed us that we would descend to rescue Abraham’s descendants.

(Lev. 19:23:) “When you come into the land.” Solomon said (in Prov. 31:16), “She sets her mind on a field and acquires it.” Come and see. Whatever Abraham thought about in his heart the Holy One, blessed be He, gave him. He thought [about] the land of [Israel], and He gave it to him, as stated (in Gen. 15:7), “I am the Lord who brought you out from Ur of the Chaldees [to give you this land as a possession].” Abraham said to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Master of the world, You have given me permission to speak in front of You, as stated (in vs. 8), “And he said, ‘Lord God, how shall I know that I shall possess it?” He replied and said to him (in vs. 13), “Know full well [that your seed shall be aliens in a land not theirs where they shall serve them and be oppressed by them].” Woe to that person who brings something out of his mouth without knowing how he brought it out. Because Abraham said (in vs. 8), “how shall I know,” He answered him, “Know fully well… they shall serve them and be oppressed by them for four hundred years.” One who speaks [like this] in front of any man is liable for his life; all the more so is he liable for his life if he speaks in front of the Holy One, blessed be He; he and his children and his children’s children until the end of all the generations [and] until the revival of the dead. It is not sufficient for these until the time of judgement, the time that a person’s soul withdraws from him. So did Solomon yell out (in Eccl. 6:7), “Is all human toil for one's mouth?” All the commandments and righteous deeds that one does; it is enough for the time that one's soul goes out of him. It is therefore stated (in Eccl. 6:7), “Is all human toil for one's mouth?” When Abraham heard from the Holy One, blessed be He, (in Gen. 15:13), “Know full well,” he thought about it in his heart and said, “Is it possible that every people which enslaves my children goes away in peace and is not condemned?” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Gen. 15:14), “But I am also judging the nation which they shall serve….” It is therefore stated (in Prov. 31:16), “She sets her mind on a field and acquires it.”

(Lev. 19:23:) WHEN YOU COME INTO THE LAND. Solomon said (in Prov. 31:16): SHE SETS HER MIND ON A FIELD AND ACQUIRES IT. Come and see.⁵²Tanh., Lev. 7:13. Whatever Abraham thought about in his heart the Holy One gave him. He thought [about] the land of [Israel], and he gave it to him, as stated (in Gen. 15:7): I AM THE LORD WHO BROUGHT YOU OUT FROM UR OF THE CHALDEES [TO GIVE YOU THIS LAND AS A POSSESSION]. Abraham said to the Holy One, Sovereign of the World, you have given me permission to say to you (in vs. 8): HOW SHALL I KNOW < THAT I SHALL POSSESS IT >? He replied and said to him (in vs. 13): KNOW FULL WELL < THAT YOUR SEED SHALL BE ALIEN IN A LAND NOT THEIRS WHERE THEY SHALL SERVE THEM AND BE OPPRESSED BY THEM >. Woe to that person who brings something out of his mouth without knowing how he brought it out. Because < Abraham > said (in vs. 8): HOW SHALL I KNOW? his children were condemned to be enslaved in Egypt for four hundred years. So Solomon said (in Eccl. 6:7): IS ALL HUMAN TOIL FOR ONE'S MOUTH…? What is the meaning of IS ALL HUMAN TOIL FOR ONE'S MOUTH…? All the commandments and righteous deeds that one does. It is enough for the time that one's soul goes out of him. It is therefore stated (in Eccl. 6:7): IS ALL HUMAN TOIL FOR ONE'S MOUTH? When Abraham heard < from the Holy One > (in Gen. 15:13): KNOW FULL WELL, he thought about it in his heart and said: < Is it possible >⁵³Both sets of bracketed words in the sentence occur in Codex Vaticanus Ebr. 34 and in the traditional Midrash Tanhuma (Jerusalem: Eshkol, n.d.), Lev. 7:23. that every people which enslaves my children goes away in peace and is not condemned? The Holy One said to him (in Gen. 15:14): BUT < I AM > ALSO < JUDGING > THE NATION < WHICH THEY SHALL SERVE >…. It is therefore stated (in Prov. 31:16): SHE SETS HER MIND ON A FIELD AND ACQUIRES IT.

R. Shila stated: Observe that the verse is written Thou shalt not harden thy heart, nor shut thy hand from thy needy brother (Deut. 15:7). What is the meaning of thy brother? It is not written “from the poor” but rather from thy brother to teach us that the two of you are equal, and that you should not cause yourself to become like him (poor).

Another explanation: "And it was in the middle of the night" - David said (Psalms 77:7), "I recall my music at night:" The congregation of Israel said, "I recall the breakings, that You broke the enemies for my sake at night." And [the term], 'my music' (niginati) only means breaking, as you would say (Lamentations 3:63), "I am their song." And I [would also] say (Genesis 14:20), "who gave over (migen) your enemies into your hand." Sancheriv came against us - You broke him at night, as it is stated (II Kings 19:35), "And it was on that night and the angel of the Lord came out and he smote in the camp of Assyria." Rabbi Nechemia said, "Come and see the love of the Holy One, blessed be He for Israel; as behold, the ministering angels - who are mighty of strength, doers of His will - the Holy One, blessed be He, made them guardians over Israel. And who are they? Michael and Gavriel, as it is stated (Isaiah 62:6), 'Upon your walls Jerusalem, I have appointed guardians.' And when Sancheriv came, Michael went out and smote them; and Gavriel, from the command of the Holy One, blessed be He, saved Chanania and his friends." Why was it like that? Rather the Holy One, blessed be He, made a condition with them. When? When He wanted to go down to save Avaraham from the fiery pit: Michael and Gavriel said in front of Him, "We will go down to save him." He said [back] to them, "If [even] one of you would go down there to the pit, you would save him, but [since Avraham] went down for My name, then I will go down and save him," as it is stated (Genesis 15:7), "I am the Lord who took you out of the Ur Kasdim (understood here as the fire of Kasdim);" "but I will give you a time [to go down and save others."] When did they go down? "Since you were prepared to save him for My honor, you, Michael [will descend] against the camp of Assyria; and you, Gavriel [will descend] against the camp of Kasdim (the Chaldeans)." When Gavriel went down to save Chanania, Mishael and Azaria, he tore the fire and came out and set aflame all those that had thrown them in, as it is stated (Daniel 3:22), "those men that raised Shadrakh, Meshakh, etc." And some say, "Four nations died there: At first, it is written (Ibid. 3), 'Then were gathered the satraps, the prefects, the governors[, etc.]' and the advisers of the king and, here, four [of them] are lacking, as it states (Ibid. 27), 'And the satraps gathered.'" Hence Chanania said (Psalms 117:1), "Praise the Lord, all nations;" Mishael said (Ibid.), "exalt him all peoples;" and Azaria said (Ibid. 2), "Since His kindness has overwhelmed us;" and the angel said (Ibid.), "'and the truth of the Lord is forever' - what He said to me when I went down to save Avraham is true." And so [too with] Michael, [God] did what He told him, as it is stated (II Kings 19:35), "And it was on that night and the angel of the Lord came out." It was taught, "All of the commanders and the dukes were drinking wine and left their receptacles thrown out. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Sancheriv, 'You have done yours,' as it is stated (Ibid. 23), 'By the hand of your messengers have you cursed;' 'I too [will act] by the hand of my messenger.'" What did He do to him? "And under his glory there shall be kindled a burning like the burning of fire." (Isaiah 10:16) What is [meant by] "and under his glory?" That He burned his body from the inside and left his clothing on the outside, since the glory of a person is his clothing. And why did He leave his clothing? Rather, since they were the descendants of Shem, as it is stated (Genesis 10:22), "The sons of Shem were Eilam and Ashur (Assyria)." The Holy One, blessed be He, said, "I am indebted to Shem, their father, as he and Yafet took their clothing and covered the nakedness of their father," as it is stated (Genesis 9:23), "And Shem and Yafet took the cloak." Hence, the Holy One, Blessed be He, said to Michael, "Leave their clothing and burn their souls." What is written there? "And they arose in the morning and, behold, dead corpses." This is [the meaning of] that which is written (Psalms 101:8), "In the mornings, I will annihilate the evildoers of the world." And Hizkiyahu and Israel were sitting and saying Hallel (Psalms of praise recited on festivals), as it was the night of Pesach, and they were afraid to say [it] now - Jerusalem was being conquered by his hand. When they woke up early in the morning to stand and read the Shema and to pray, they found their enemies were dead corpses. Hence, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Yeshaya (Isaiah 8:3), "'and call his name, "quick take booty, fast loot"' and be quick to loot booty; and the [other] one call 'with us is the Power (Imanuel),' to say that I am with him," as it is stated (II Chronicles 32:8), "with him is the forearm of flesh but with us is the Lord, our God." And just like the Holy One, blessed be He, acted in this world by the hand of Michael and Gavriel, so [too] in the future to come, he will act through them, as it is stated (Obadiah 1:21), "And the saviors will come up on Mount Zion to judge the mountain of Esav" - this is [referring to] Michael and Gavriel. And our Holy Rabbi said, "This is Michael by himself, as it is stated (Daniel 12:1), 'And at that time, Michael will stand, the great minister who stands for the children of Your people.'" As he [is the one that] demands the needs of Israel and speaks for them, as it is stated (Zechariah 1:12), "And the angel of the Lord answered and said, 'Lord of hosts, until when when will you not have mercy on Jerusalem?'" And I will [also] say (Daniel 10:21), "and none is being strong with Me except for Michael, your minister." Rabbi Yose said, "To what are Michael and Samael similar? To a defender and a prosecutor standing in court. This one is speaking and that one is speaking. [When] this one finished his words and that one his words, that defender knows that he has won. [Then] he begins to praise the judge, that issues the verdict. That prosecutor [then] requests to add something. The defender [then] says to him, 'Be quiet and let us hear from the judge.' So is it that Michael and Samael stand in front of the Divine Presence; and the Satan [Samael] prosecutes and Michael deliberates on the merit of Israel, and [then] the Satan comes to speak and Michael silences him. Why? As it is stated (Psalms 85:9), 'I will hear what the Power, the Lord, will speak, as He will speak peace about His people.'" This is [the meaning of] "I recall my music at night" - about the miracle of Hizkiyahu. Another explanation: "I recall my music at night" - I recall what you have done for us in Egypt, and the plots (menagnin) that you did to the Egyptians. How is it? At first, when the Holy One, blessed be He, requested to bring plagues upon the Egyptians, He said to bring the plague of the firstborn first, as it is stated (Exodus 4:23), "behold I am killing your son, your firstborn." [Pharaoh] started to say (Exodus 5:2), "Who is the Lord that I should listen to His voice?" The Holy One, blessed be He, said [to Himself], "If I bring the plague of the firstborn first, he will send them [right away], but rather I will bring other plagues upon him (first). And in its heels (beekev zot), I will bring them all," as it is stated, "And the Lord smote every firstborn." Hence David praises (Psalms 90:11), "Who knows the boldness of Your anger" - who knows your plots that You do in the sea, as it is stated (Psalms 77:20), "In the sea is Your way and Your path in the great waters, and Your footsteps (eekvotekha) were not known" - things that you do afterward (beekev), who [can] know?

The second trial was when he was put into prison for ten years—three years in Kuthi, seven years in Budri. After ten years they sent and brought him forth and cast him into the furnace of fire, and the King of Glory put forth His right hand and delivered him from the furnace of fire, as it is said, "And he said to him, I am the Lord who brought thee out of the furnace of the Chaldees" (Gen. 15:7). Another verse (says), "Thou art the Lord the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of the furnace of the Chaldees" (Neh. 9:7).

THE SEVEN WONDERS OF OLD
SEVEN wonderful things have been done in the world, the like of which have not been created. From the day when the heavens and the earth were created no man was ever saved from the fire until our father Abraham came and was delivered from the fiery furnace. All the kings of the earth heard (thereof) and they were astonished, for they had not seen anyone like him from the day when the world was created. And whence do we know that he was delivered from the fiery furnace? Because it is said, "And he said unto him, I am the Lord that brought thee out of the furnace of the Chaldees" (Gen. 15:7). Another text says, "Thou art the Lord the God, who didst choose Abram, and broughtest him forth out of the furnace of the Chaldees" (Neh. 9:7).

(Devarim 32:10) "He found him in a desert land": This refers to our father Abraham. An analogy: A king and his soldiers go out to the wilderness, whereupon his soldiers bring him to a place of afflictions, invaders, and marauders, and they abandon him — whereupon there joins him a hero, who says to him: King, do not despair; fear nothing. I swear not to leave you until you return to your palace and sleep in your bed, as it is written (in respect to Abraham, Bereshith 15:7) "I am the L-rd, who brought you out of Ur Kasdim, etc."