Talmud sobre Josué 2:26

Rebbi Yasa, Rebbi Ḥelbo. Rebbi Berekhiah, Rebbi Ḥelbo comes to it in the name of Rebbi Eudaimon from Ḥaifa: A person has to turn his face to the wall in order to pray. What is the reason? (Is. 38:2) “Hezekiah turned his face to the wall.” Which wall did he lift his eyes to? Rebbi Joshua ben Levi said, he lifted his eyes to Raḥab’s wall, (Jos. 2:15) “For her house was on the wall of the fortification.” He said before Him: Master of the world, Raḥab the inn-keeper saved two souls for You, and see how many souls You saved for her. [That is what is written (Jos.6:23): “The youths came, etc.” Rebbi Simeon bar Yoḥai said, even if her family was 200 persons strong and they furthermore were related to another 200 families, all of these were saved by her merit²¹⁶The argument, as usual, refers to the part of the verse not quoted in the text: “The youths, the spies, came and removed Raḥab, her father, her mother, her brothers, and all her belongings; and they removed all her families and deposited them outside of the camp of Israel.” One would have expected “all her family” but it says “all her families”..] My forefathers who brought to You all these proselytes, so much more²¹⁷This expression is elliptic, see the last two paragraphs.. Rebbi Ḥananiah bar Pappus²¹⁸In the Babli, he is called Rebbi Ḥanina bar Pappus. He belongs to the circle of the students of R. Yoḥanan, but it is not known whether he was himself one of the latter’s students. His authority was accepted by Abbaie and Rava, the undisputed leaders of the fourth generation of Amoraïm in Babylonia. said, he lifted his eyes to the wall of the Temple. (Ez. 43:8) “When they put their lintel next to My lintel, their doorposts next to My doorpost, with the wall between Me and them²¹⁹This verse ends with a curse upon the people addressed, the bad kings of Judea. But since the royal palace and the Temple were designed by David and built by Solomon, one must assume that the layout and use were done by praiseworthy kings..” They were important people, they could not go and pray in the Temple every time, so they prayed in their house and the Holy One, praise to Him, considers it as if they had prayed in the Temple. My fathers who built for You all this glory, so much more. Rebbi Samuel bar Naḥman²²⁰In the Babli (10b), this sermon is by Rebbi Levi and the following one by R. Simeon ben Laqish. said, he lifted his eyes to the wall of the woman from Sunem, as it was said (2Kings 4:10): “Let us make a small upper storey on the wall”. He said before Him: Master of the world, the woman from Sunem made one wall for Elisha and You revived her son. My forefathers who built for You all this glory, so much more that You should give me my life. The rabbis say, he lifted his eyes to the walls of his heart. (Jer. 4:19) “My innards, my innards I make tremble, the walls of my heart are in uproar.” He said before Him: Master of the world, I checked all my 248 limbs²²¹This number is given in Mishnah Ahilut 1:8 where they are all enumerated in anatomic detail. that You gave me and I did not find one of them I offended You with; so much more that You should give me my life.

What is the difference between mugmar and wine? Everybody smells mugmar, each person tastes wine. Rebbi Zeïra in the name of Rav Jeremiah²⁰⁰The entire discussion is paralleled in Babli 43a/b.: One has to recite the benediction for mugmar as soon as the smoke rises. Rav²⁰¹The text, “Rebbi”, is in error since Rebbi Zeïra was the student of Rav Jeremiah in Babylonia and the teacher of Rebbi Jeremiah in Galilee. Jeremiah wanted to examine Rebbi Zeïra. He said to him, which benediction does one recite on perfumed oil? He said, “He Who gave pleasant fragrance in perfumed oil.” He said to him, “He Who gave pleasant fragrance in spice wood.” Isaac bar Abba from Meḥasiah²⁰²A Babylonian; twice mentioned as associate of Rav Ḥananel. Mata (“City of”) Meḥasia was the place of Rav’s Yeshivah. and Rav Ḥananel were sitting. One said, “Praise to Him Who gave pleasant fragrance in spice wood.” The other one said, “Praise to Him Who gave pleasant fragrance in the plants of the earth.” He who said “in the plants of the earth” objected to him who said “in spice wood”: are they wood? He answered him, is it not written (Jos. 2:6) “She hid them in the hemp of wood”, are these wood? They went to the Yeshivah of Rav and heard Rav Huna²⁰³Head of the Yeshivah of Rav after Rav’s death. in the name of Rav: “He Who gave pleasant fragrance in spice wood.” Ganiva said, he who uses oil for dirt²⁰⁴If the oil is used primarily for cleaning and it does not matter that it is perfumed This applies to all other cleaning fluids also. does not have to recite a benediction. Rebbi Yudan said, even if he collects it into his hand. Rebbi Ḥelbo, Rav Huna in the name of Rav: He who sprinkles olentia²⁰⁵Latin olens, olentis “sweet smelling” (E. G.). Most authors equate the word with oleamentum, “ointment made from olive oil”; this fits neither the spelling of the word nor the context. in his house²⁰⁶If the main intent is to either bind the dirt or to get rid of bad odors, not to produce the pleasant fragrance. does not have to recite a benediction. Rav Ḥisda said, on everything he recites “He Who gave pleasant fragrance in spice wood” except for musk on which he recites “He who gave pleasant fragrance in all kinds of spices.²⁰⁷Musk is of animal, not vegetable, origin. The statement of Rav Ḥisda in the Babli is quoted in the name of Rav; but there the benediction for musk is accepted for everything except for balsamum.”