Midrash sur Job 3:31

Befitting is (the ascription of) "greatness" to the Lord. And thus did David say (I Chronicles 29:11) "To you, O Lord, is [befitting the ascription of] greatness, might, splendor, triumph, and majesty." A king of flesh and blood enters a province, and all praise him as "strong" — when he is weak; as "rich" — when he is poor; as "wise" — when he is foolish; as "merciful" — when he is cruel; as "trusty" — when he is not. He is lacking in all of these (fine) attributes — All men are flattering him. But it is not so with Him who spoke and brought the world into being. He is more than He is praised for being. I shall sing to the Lord, who is might, as it is written — (Devarim 10:17) "the God who is great and mighty and awesome," (Psalms 24:8) "the Lord, mighty and strong, the Lord, strong in war," (Isaiah 42;13) "The Lord as a mighty one shall go forth. As a man of war, He will stir up wrath. He will shout; He will scream. He will overpower His foes," (Jeremiah 10:14) "There is none like You, O Lord. Great are You and great is Your name in strength." I shall sing to the Lord, who is rich, as it is written — (Devarim 10:19) "To the Lord your God belong the heavens, etc.", (Psalms 24:1) "To the Lord belongs the earth and its fullness, etc.", (Ibid. 95:5) "His is the sea and He has made it," (Chaggai 2:8) "Mine is the silver and Mine is the gold," (Ezekiel 18:4) "All of the souls are Mine. The soul of the father and the soul of the son alike are Mine." I shall sing to the Lord, who is wise, as it is written — (Mishlei 2:6) "For the Lord shall give wisdom. From His mouth are knowledge and understanding", (Daniel 2:21) "He gives wisdom to the wise, and knowledge to the knowers of understanding". (Jeremiah 10:7) "Who will not fear You, King of the nations? For among all the sages of the nations and in all of their kingdoms, there is none like You." I shall sing to the Lord, for He is merciful, as it is written — (Exodus 34:6) "Hashem, Hashem, the G d who is merciful and gracious", (Devarim 4:31) "For a merciful G d is the L rd your G d", (Psalms 25:6) "Remember Your mercies, Hashem, etc.", (Ibid. 145:8) "Good is the Lord to all, and His mercies are on all his works", (Daniel 9:9) "To the Lord our God is mercy and forgiveness." I shall sing to the Lord, who is a Judge, as it is written — (Devarim 1:17) "… for the judgment is God's", (Psalms 82:1) "G d stands in the assembly of the almighty. In the midst of the judges shall He judge," (Devarim 32:4) "The Rock, perfect is His work, for all of His ways are just." I shall sing to the Lord, who is trusty, as it is written — (Ibid. 7:9) "the trusty G d, etc." (Ibid. 32:4) "… a G d of trust, without wrong, etc." I shall sing to the Lord, who is comely, who is glorious, who is exalted, whose like does not exist — (Psalms 89:7) "For who in the heavens can be compared to the Lord, can be likened to the Lord among the sons of the mighty"? (Ibid. 8) "God greatly dreaded in the great council of the holy, held in awe by all around Him"

For this shall every pious one pray unto Thee at the time when Thou mayest be found (Ps. 32, 6). R. Chanina said: "L-eth Metzo, (At the time when thou mayest be found) alludes [to the time when one is about to take a] wife, as it is written (Pr. 18, 22.) Whoso hath found a wife hath found happiness." In Palestine, when a man married he was asked Matzah (found), or Motzei (find). Matzah, as it is written (Pr. 18, 22.) Whoso hath found (Matza) a wife hath found happiness; Motzei, as it is written (Ecc. 7, 26.) And I find (Motzei) the woman more bitter than death. R. Nathan said: "L-eth Metzo, refers to the Torah, as it is written (Pr. 8, 35.) For he who findeth me (the Torah), findeth life." R. Nachman b. Isaac said: "L-eth Metzo, means [the time of] death, as it is written (Ps. 68, 21.)The escape from death." We have also a Baraitha to the same effect: There are nine hundred and three kinds of deaths in the world, as it is said (Ib.) The escape from death (Totzaoth). The numerical value of the word Totzaoth, amounts to nine hundred and three; the hardest of all deaths is croup, and the easiest of all is the divine kiss; croup is like a thorn in a ball of wool, which [if one tries to tear loose] lacerates backward (in the opposite direction of the knots); others say as the gushing water at the entrance of a canal [when the sluice bars are raised]; the kiss referred to is like the extraction of a hair from milk. R. Jochanan said: "L-eth Metzo, refers to the grave." R. Chanina said: "Where is the Biblical passage to prove it? (Job 3, 22.) Who would rejoice, even to exulting, who would he glad could they but find a grave." Rabba b. R. Shila said: "Thus it is that people say: 'Man ought to pray for peace even to the last clod of earth thrown on his grave.' " Mar Zutra said: "L-eth Metzo, refers to the necessity of living in a place where there are sanitary conditions." The sages of Palestine [upon hearing all the opinions in explaining the above passage] remarked that Mar Zutra's opinion is the best of all.

“Where you die, I will die, and there I will be buried; so may the Lord do to me, and so may He continue, as death will separate between you and me” (Ruth 1:17).
That¹²³Referring to the previous passage, that good deeds and righteous actions must be accomplished in this world. is what the verse said: “Small and great are there; and a servant is free from his master” (Job 3:19) – Rabbi Simon said: This is one of four verses that are similar to one another. “Small and great are there” – in this world, one who is small can become great, and one who is great can become small. But in the future,¹²⁴In the World to Come. one who is small cannot become great and one who is great cannot become small. “And a servant is free of his master” – that is, he does the will of his Maker [yotzero], angers his [evil] inclination [yitzro]; when he dies, he goes free, as it is stated: “And a servant is free of his master.”
Rabbi Meyasha, grandson of Rabbi Yehoshua, was gravely ill for three days. After three days he recovered. His father said to him: ‘Where have you been?’ He said to him: ‘I was in a chaotic world.’ He said to him: ‘What did you see there?’ He said to him: ‘I saw many people who are respected here and disgraced there.’ When Rabbi Yoḥanan and Reish Lakish heard, they went to visit him. His father said to them: ‘Have you heard what this child said?’ They said to him: ‘What did he say?’ He related the matter to them. Reish Lakish said: ‘Is it not an explicit verse? “So said the Lord God: Remove the mitre, and lift the crown; this shall no longer be; exalt the abased, and abase the exalted”’ (Ezekiel 21:31). Rabbi Yoḥanan said: Had I come up only to hear this matter, it would have sufficed. Rav Huna the Exilarch asked Rabbi Ḥisdai: What is this that is written: “Remove the mitre, and lift the crown?” He said to him: “Remove the mitre” from our rabbis, and “lift the crown” from the nations of the world. He said to him: You are kindness,¹²⁵This is based on his name. You, Ḥisdai, are kindness, ḥesed. and what is yours is kindness.

Samuel said: "Whoever makes a vow, although he fulfills it, is to be termed wicked." Said R. Abba: "What is the passage to prove it? (Deut. 23, 23) But if thou forbear to vow, it shall be no sin in thee. We infer through the similar words chadala, chadaly (forbear) it is written here thechdal, and again it is written there (Job 3, 17) There the wicked cease (chadlu) from troubling."

"Lord God, You have begun" (Deuteronomy 3:24): There is a [relevant] parable: To what is this comparable? To a king that saw an orphaned woman and sought to marry her. He sent to propose to her. She said, "I am not fit to marry the king." He sent [again] and proposed seven times, but she did not listen to him. After a while, she married the king. [Later,] the king got angry with her and sought to divorce her and marry another [woman]. The first one said, "I have no shame if you divorce me, as it is you who sought me to begin with. However since you are divorcing me, I plead with you, do not do to this [wife] like what you have done to me." So [too] did the Holy One, blessed be He, do to Moshe. He seduced him for seven days. And [Moshe] said to him (Exodus 4:10), "I am not a man of words." After a while, the Holy One, blessed be He, appeased him. [So] he went on His mission, and all of the miracles happened through him. In the end, [God] said to him, "For 'you shall not enter [the land]'" (Deuteronomy 32:52). [So] Moshe our teacher said to Him, "Master of the world, if You do not want me to bring them to the land, I have no shame, as 'You began,'" which is an expression of beginning; "but since You have decreed this upon me, do not do to the one who brings them like You have done to me, 'That he should go in front of them [...] and that he bring them' (Numbers 27:17)." "And the Lord said to me, 'It is enough (rav) for you; do not add'" (Deuteronomy 3:26). As your opponent has preceded you. As so did Iyov state (Job 31:35), "O that I had someone to give me a hearing; O that the Omnipresent would reply to my writ, or my opponent (eesh rivi) write a book (a bill of charges)!" And which book [is that]? "This is the book of the generations of Adam" (Genesis 5:1, as Adam brought death to the world). What did Job say? "Small and great are there, and the slave is free of his master" (Job 3:19). Therefore, "It is enough."

When the first Adam ate from the tree, he caused death for all. Another interpretation (of Deut. 3:26): SO THE LORD SAID UNTO ME: ENOUGH FROM YOU! The litigant against you has already preceded you, as Job has already stated (in Job 31:35): O THAT SOMEONE WOULD GIVE ME A HEARING! [HERE IS MY SIGNATURE. LET THE ALMIGHTY ANSWER ME, AND LET MY ACCUSER WRITE A TRUE BILL (literally: A BOOK.] Which [BOOK]? (Gen. 5:1:) THIS IS THE BOOK OF THE GENERATIONS OF ADAM. So what did Job say (in Job 3:19)? THE SMALL AND THE GREAT ARE THERE, AND THE SLAVE ('eved) IS FREE FROM HIS MASTERS. Ergo (in Deut. 3:26): ENOUGH FROM YOU! DO NOT <EVER> SPEAK <UNTO ME ON THIS MATTER> AGAIN.

[(Deut. 31:14:) BEHOLD (HN) THE DAYS ARE DRAWING NEAR FOR YOU <TO DIE>. Moses said to the Holy One: Sovereign of the Universe, with the word that I <used to> praise³⁰Cf. Gk.: kalos. you when I said (in Deut. 10:14): BEHOLD (HN) THE HEAVENS <AND THE HEAVENS OF THE HEAVENS, THE EARTH AND ALL THAT IS IN IT> BELONG TO THE LORD YOUR GOD! By that <very word> (i.e., HN) you have condemned me at death.³¹Above, Deut. 2:6; Tanh., Deut. 11:7.: The Holy One said to him: I am bringing about contentment, (as in Deut. 31:16): BEHOLD (HN-) YOU (-K) ARE <SOON> TO SLEEP WITH YOUR ANCESTORS…. R. Abbahu said: The words, BEHOLD YOU (HNK), can only mean contentment, since it is stated (in Job 3:17): THERE (in death) THE WEARY ARE AT REST (yanuhu, understood to have the root HNK).³²Cf. Gen. R. 9:5.

(Deut. 3:26), “Do not [ever] speak [unto me on this matter] again.]” This is related to what Job said (in Job 20:6-7), “Even though one's height ascends to the heavens, [and his head reaches the clouds]. He perishes forever, like his dung….” With reference to whom did Job say this verse? It only speaks with reference to the day of death. So even though one ascends to the heavens and makes himself wings like a bird; when his time to die arrives, his wings are broken, and he falls before the angel of death like an animal before the butcher. So also has David said (in Ps. 146:4), “His spirit departs; he returns to the ground.” And Job has already stated (in Job 3:19), “The small and the great are there, and the slave ('eved) is free from his master.” As even if his master bought him for thousands and thousands of gold coins, once [the slave’s] time to die has come, he cannot say, “He is my slave,” but rather he becomes free from his master. Another interpretation (of Job 20:6), “Even though one's height ascends to the heavens.” This refers to Moses, who ascended to the firmament and who came to the Araphel (the lower sky). Moreover, he was like the ministering angels in that he spoke with Him (i.e., with the Holy One, blessed be He,) face to face and received the Torah from His hand. When his time to die arrived, He said to him (in Deut. 31:14), “Behold the days are drawing near for you to die.” [Moses] said to Him, “Master of the world, is it for nothing that my feet have trodden Araphel? Is it for nothing that I have run before Your children like a horse, that my end be for the worm? R. Abbahu said, “To what is the matter comparable? To one of the nobles of the kingdom, who found a certain Hindu sword, which was unmatched [in the world] and who said, ‘This is suitable only for the king.’ What did he do? He brought it to the king as a gift.¹⁵Gk.: doron. The king said, ‘Cut off his head with it.’ So also Moses said to the Holy One, blessed be He, ‘By the word that I [used to] praise¹⁶Rt.: KLS. Cf. Gk.: kalos. you, when I said (in Deut. 10:14), “Behold (hen), the heavens [and the heavens of the heavens, the earth and all that is in it] belong to the Lord your God!’ By that [very] word (i.e., hen) You are decreeing death over me, when you say (in Deut. 31:14), “Behold (hen), the days are drawing near for you to die.”’”¹⁷Below, Deut. 11:6. He said to him, “Moses, I have already decreed¹⁸Rt.: QLS. Cf. Lat.: census; Gk.: kensos. death over the first Adam.” He said to him, “My master, the first Adam deserved to die. You decreed an easy commandment for him, and he transgressed it. Hence it is fitting for him to die. [God] said to him, “Consider Abraham, [who] sanctified My name in My world [but still died].” He said to him, “Master of the world, From Abraham there came out Ishmael, whose race provoked You to anger, as stated (in Job 12:6) ‘The tents of robbers prosper, [and those who provoke God have security, the ones whom God brought forth in His hand].’” He said to him, “Consider Isaac, who stretched out his neck upon the altar.” He said to him, “From Isaac there came out Esau, who in the future will destroy the Temple and burn Your sanctuary.” He said to him, “Consider Jacob, out of whom there came twelve tribes without any flaw.” He said to him “Jacob did not ascend into the firmament, his feet did not trod Araphel, he was not like the ministering angels, he did not receive Torah from Your hand and he did not speak with you face to face.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Deut. 3:26), “Enough from you; do not [ever] speak [unto Me on this matter] again.” He said to Him, “Perhaps [future] generations will say, ‘If He had not found bad things in Moses, He would not have removed him from the world.” He said to him, “I have already written in my Torah (in Deut. 34:10), “Never again did there arise in Israel a prophet like Moses.” He said in front of Him, “The people will say] I did your will in my youth, but I did not do your will in my old age.” He said to him, “I have already written (in Deut. 32:51), “Because you acted faithlessly with me.”¹⁹Cf. Numb. 20:12. He said to Him, “Please let me enter the land [and spend] two or three years there, and after that let me die.” He said to him (in Deut. 32:52), “And there you shall not go.” He said to Him, “If I am not to enter while alive, let me enter after my death.” He said to him, “Not while you are alive, and not when you are dead.” He said in front of Him, “Why all this anger against me?” He said to him (according to Deut. 32:51), “Because you did not sanctify Me.” He said to him, “With all mortals you are guided two or three times by the principle of mercy, as stated (in Job 33:29), ‘Behold, God does all these things two or three times to a man’; yet in my case, when a single sin is found in me, you do not forgive me.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “See here, Moses, you have committed six sins, and I have not disclosed one of them. First you said, (in Exod. 4:13) ‘Please make someone else your agent’; secondly (in Exod. 5:23), ‘For ever since I came to Pharaoh to speak in Your name, [he has dealt worse with this people, and You have still not delivered Your people]’; thirdly (in Numb. 11:22) ‘If the sheep and cattle would be slaughtered for them , would it be [enough] for them’; fourthly (in Numb. 16:29), ‘The Lord did not send me’; fifthly (in Numb. 20:10), ‘Listen, you rebels, [shall we bring forth water for you from this rock]’;²⁰See above, the note at the end of Exod. 1:20. sixth (in Numb. 32:14), ‘And now you brood of sinners have arisen in place of your ancestors.’ But were Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob sinners, for you to say this to their children?” He said to Him, “I have learned so from You, when you said (in Numb. 17:3), ‘The censers of these who have sinned [at the cost of their lives].’ He said to him, “I said (ibid.), ‘At the cost of their lives,’ and not, ‘at the cost of their ancestors.’” He said in front of Him, “I am an individual, while Israel numbers sixty myriads (i.e., 600,000). They have sinned before You a lot of times; and when I sought mercy on their behalf, You forgave them. You took care of sixty myriads [because of me], yet You are not taking care of me.” He said to him, “Moses, a decree over a community is not like a decree over an individual. Furthermore, up to now [the] time was delivered into your hands, but from now [the] time is not delivered into your hands.” He said to Him, “Master of the universe, rise up from the seat of judgment and sit down upon the seat of mercy for me, so that I do not die. Then my sins shall be forgiven through torments which You shall bring on my body. So do not deliver me to the pangs of the angel of death. Moreover, if You do this, I will proclaim Your praise to all who come into the world, just as David has said (in Ps. 118:17), ‘I shall not die, but live [and recount the works of the Lord].’” He said to him (in vs. 20), “This is the gate of the Lord; the righteous shall come through it.” [From this it follows that] death has been ordained from time immemorial for the righteous and for all mortals. When Moses saw that they paid no attention to him, he went to the heaven and earth, where he said to them, “Seek mercy for me.” They said to him, “Before seeking mercy for you, we should seek mercy for ourselves, since it is stated (in Is. 51:6), ‘for the heavens shall vanish like smoke, and the earth shall wear out like a garment.’”²¹See ‘AZ 17a, for this verse applied to Eleazar ben Dordia in a similar way. He went to the stars and planets. He said to them, “Seek mercy for me.” They said to him, “Before seeking mercy for you, we should seek mercy for ourselves, since it is stated (in Is. 34:4), ‘All the host of heaven shall rot away….’” He went to the mountains and hills. He said to them, “Seek mercy for me.” They said to him, “[Before seeking mercy for you,] we should seek mercy for ourselves, since it is stated (in Is. 54:10), ‘For the mountains shall move, and the hills shall be shaken.’”²²The translation of the verb tenses here differs from some biblical translations but fits the sense of the midrash. He went to the Great Sea. He said to it, “Seek mercy for me.” [The sea] said to him, “Son of Amram, how is today different from a couple of [other] days? Are you not the son of Amram, who came upon me with your rod, smote me, and divided me into twelve parts? For I was unable to stand before you because the Divine Presence was walking at your right hand. It is so stated (in Is. 63:12), ‘Who had His glorious arm walk at the right hand of Moses, who divided the waters before them […].’ So what has happened to you today?” When the sea reminded him what he had done in his youth, he cried out and said (in Job 29:2), “’O that I were as in the months of old, as in the days when God watched over me!’ When I passed through you, I was a world king; but now I am prostrate, and they pay no attention to me.” Immediately he betook himself to the arch[angel] of the [Divine] Presence and said to him, “Seek mercy for me, that I not die.” He said to him, “My master, Moses, why the exertion? This is what I have heard from behind the curtain:²³Pargod. Cf. Lat.: paragauda or [paragaudis] (a garment with a lace border); Gk.: Paragaudes (a garment with a purple border). That your prayer is not heard on this matter.” Putting his hands on his head, Moses sobbed and wept, as he said, “With whom shall I seek mercy for myself?” R. Simlay said, “At that time the Holy One, blessed be He, was full of anger over him, as stated (in Deut. 3:26), ‘But the Lord was angry with me […],’ until Moses began by uttering this Scripture (Exod. 34:6): ‘Then the Lord passed before him and proclaimed, “the Lord, the Lord is a merciful and gracious God, slow to anger…].’” Immediately the holy spirit was cooled off.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “Moses, I have sworn two oaths, one that you should die and one to destroy Israel. To repeal both of them is impossible; so if you want to live, Israel will be destroyed.” He said before Him, “You are coming to me with a plot. You are seizing the rope at both ends. Let Moses and a thousand like him be destroyed, but do not let one person in Israel be destroyed.” He said to him, “Master of the Universe, should feet that have climbed up to the firmament, should a face that has greeted the Divine Presence, should hands that have received Torah from Your hands lick the dust? Woe!²⁴Vay. All mortals will say, “If Moses, who ascended on high, became like the ministering angels, spoke with Him face to face, and received Torah from His hand, had no reply for responding to the Holy One, blessed be He, how much the worse it will be for [mere] flesh and blood, who comes with no [merit from] Torah and with no [merit from the] commandments?” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “Why all this anguish that you are experiencing?” He said, “Master of the world, I am afraid of the pangs of the angel of death.” He said to him, “I am not delivering you into his hands.” He said in front of Him, “Master of the universe, my mother Jochebed, who was distressed (literally, whose teeth were blunted) during her lifetime by two of her sons, will be distressed by my death.” He said to him, “So has it come up in [My] mind, and so is it the way of the world: every generation with its expositors, every generation with its administrators,²⁵Gk.: pronoi (“prudent ones”). every generation with its leaders. Up to now it has been your lot to serve in front of Me, but now your lot is over and the time of your disciple Joshua for him to serve [Me] has arrived.” He said to him, “My Master, if I am dying because of Joshua, let me go and become his disciple!” He said to him, “If you want to do that, go and do it.” Moses arose and went early to Joshua's door.²⁶Cf. the somewhat different account in Deut. R. 9:9. Now Joshua was seated expounding [Torah], so Moses stopped to bend his stature and put his hand on his mouth. But Joshua's eyes were hidden, and he did not see him, so that he (Moses) would be sorrowful and resign himself to death. When Israel came to Moses' door to study Torah, they asked and said, “Where did Moshe our master [go]?” [Others] said to them, “He got up early and went to the door of Joshua.” [So] they went and found him at the door of Joshua, with Joshua sitting and Moses standing. They said to Joshua, “What has come over you that Moses our master stands, while you sit?” When he raised his eyes and saw him, he immediately rent his clothes. Then sobbing and weeping, he said, “O my master, my master! My father, my father and lord!” Israel said to Moses, “Moses our master, teach us Torah.” He said to them, “I am not allowed.” They said to him, “We are not leaving you.” A heavenly voice (bat qol) came forth and said to them, “Learn from Joshua.” [So] they took upon themselves to sit and learn from the mouth of Joshua. Joshua sat at the head with Moses to his right and with [Elazar and Ithamar] to his left. So he sat and expounded in the presence of Moses. R. Samuel bar Nahmani said that R. Johanan said, “When Joshua opened by saying, ‘Blessed be the One who has chosen the righteous,” they took the traditions of wisdom from Moses and gave them to Joshua. Now Moses did not know what Joshua was expounding. After Israel arose [from the session], they said to Moses, “[Explain] the Torah [we have just heard] to us.” He said to them, “I do not know what to answer you.” So Moses our master was stumbling and falling. It was at that time that he said, “Master of the universe, up to now I requested life, but now here is my soul given over to You.” Then when he had resigned himself to death, the Holy One, blessed be He, opened by saying (in Ps. 94:16), “’Who will stand for Me²⁷In context, the word, me, here is self-referential to the author of Psalms, and not referring to God. against evildoers?’ Who will stand for Israel in the time of My wrath? Who will stand in the battle of My children? And who will stand and seek mercy for them, when they sin before Me?” At that time Metatron²⁸Lat.: metator (“measurer,” “one who marks out boundaries”). came and fell on his face. He said to Him, “Master of the world, [as] in Moses' life he belonged to You, so in his death he belongs to You.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “Let me give you a parable. To what is the matter comparable? To a king who had a son. Now on each and every day, his father was angry with him and sought to kill him because he did not maintain respect for the father; but his mother rescued him from his hand. One day his mother died and the king wept. His servants said to him, ‘Our lord king, why are you weeping?’ He said to them, ‘It is not over my wife alone that I am weeping, but for my son; for many times when I was angry with him and wanted to kill him, did she rescue him from my hand?’” So also did the Holy One, blessed be He, say to Metatron, “It is not over Moses alone that I am weeping, but over him and over Israel, for look at how many times that they angered Me, and I was angry with them; but he stood in the breach before Me to turn back My anger from destroying them.” They came and said to Moses, “The hour has arrived for you to depart from the world.” He said to them, “Wait for me until I bless Israel, for they have not found contentment from me all my days, because of the rebukes and warnings with which I rebuked them.” He began to bless each tribe separately. When he saw that the time was growing short, he included all of them in a single blessing. They came and said, “The hour has arrived for your soul to depart from the world.” He said to Israel, “I have caused you a lot of grief over the Torah and over the commandments, but now forgive me.” They said to him, “Our lord master, you are forgiven.” Israel also arose before him and said to him, “O Moses our master, we have angered you a lot and increased the burden upon you. Forgive us.” He said to them, “You are forgiven.” They came and said to him, “The moment has arrived for you to depart from the world.” He said, “Blessed be the name of the One who lives and abides forever.” He said to Israel, “If you please, when you enter the land, remember me and my bones, and you shall say, ‘Woe (oy) to the son of Amram, who ran before us like a horse but whose bones have fallen in the wilderness.’” They came and said to him, “The half moment has arrived.” He took his two arms and placed them on his heart. Then he said to Israel, “See the final end of flesh and blood.” They answered and said, “The hands which received the Torah from the mouth of the Almighty shall fall to the grave.” At that moment his soul departed with a kiss (from the Holy One, blessed be He),²⁹See MQ 28a. as stated (in Deut. 34:5), “Then Moses [the servant of the Lord] died there [in the Land of Moab at the command of the Lord (literally, by the mouth of the Lord)].”³⁰BB 17a; ARN, A 12:2; Cant. R. 1:2:5; Petirat Mosheh Rabbenu, recension A, in A. Jellinek, Bet ha-Midrasch (Leipzig: Vollrath, 1853-57), vol. I, p. 129; ibid., recension B, in Jellinek, vol. VI, p. 77. Now [the ones who] took care of his burial were neither Israel nor the angels but the Holy One, blessed be He, [Himself], as stated (in vs. 6), “Then He (the Holy One, blessed be He,) buried him (Moses) in the valley [in the Land of Moab].” And for what reason was he buried outside the land? So that those who die when outside the land might live [again] through his merit,³¹The translation here follows the traditional Tanhuma. Deut. 2:6. So also Codex Vaticanus Ebr. 34. The Buber text omits “might live again” and reads “through their merit.” as stated (in Deut. 33:21), “He has chosen the best for himself, [for there is an honored lawgiver's portion].” But when did Moses our master die? On the seventh of Adar,³²Seder ‘Olam Rabbah, 10; TSot. 11:7; Qid. 38a; see Meg. 13b; Sot. 12b. as stated (in Deut. 34:5), “Then Moses the servant of the Lord died there [in the Land of Moab].” It is also written (in vs. 8), “And the children of Israel mourned Moses [on the Plains of Moab for thirty days.]” And it is written (in Josh. 1:1), “And it came to pass after the death of Moses, [the servant of the Lord, the Lord spoke unto Joshua]”; (Josh. 4:19) “Now the people came up from the Jordan on the tenth day of the first month (i.e., Nisan).” Reckon back thirty-three days [from then]. Ergo, he died on the seventh of Adar. And where is it shown that he was born on the seventh of Adar? Where it is stated (in Deut. 31:2), “He said to them, ‘I am one hundred twenty years old today.’”³³Since Moses spoke these words on the day of his death, his birthday must have been the same as the day of his death. What is the text teaching with, “today?” Today, I have fulfilled my days and any years. [It is there] to teach you that the Holy One, blessed be He, fulfills the years for the righteous from day to day and from month to month, as stated (in Exod. 23:26), “I will fulfill the number of your days.”

(Deut. 31:14:) “Behold (hn) the days are drawing near for you [to die].” Moses said to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Master of the world, with the word that I [used to] praise²⁸Cf. Gk.: kalos. You when I said (in Deut. 10:14), ‘Behold (hn) the heavens [and the heavens of the heavens, the earth and all that is in it] belong to the Lord your God’; by that [very word] (i.e., hn) you have condemned me to death?”²⁹Above, Deut. 2:6. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “I am bringing you peace of mind, (as in Deut. 31:16), ‘Behold (hn-) you (-k) are [soon] to sleep with your ancestors….’” R. Abbahu said, “The words, behold you (hnk), can only mean peace of mind, since it is stated (in Job 3:17), ‘there (in death) the weary are at rest (yanuhu, understood to have the root hnk).’”³⁰Cf. Gen. R. 9:5. (Deut. 31:14, literally:) “Behold your days are drawing near [to die].” R. Joshua ben Levi said, “A drawing near is uttered with reference to the forefathers, and a drawing near is uttered with reference to the kings (in I Kings 2:1), ‘Then when the days for David to die drew near.’ With reference to the prophets (there is Moses, whom the Holy One, blessed be He, addresses in the second person in Deut. 31:14), ‘Behold your days are drawing near [to die].’” R. Samuel bar Nahmani said, “Do days die? These words are simply a reference to the righteous. When they die, their days pass away from the world, but they themselves remain alive, as stated (in Job 12:10), ‘In whose hand is every living soul.’ If the living are delivered into His hand, are the dead not delivered into His hand? It is simply that these are the righteous, who even in their death are called living.³¹Ber. 18ab. Thus it is stated (in II Sam. 23:20), ‘And Benaiah ben Jehoiada, the son of a valiant warrior (literally, of a living person) from Kazbeel, [who had performed great deeds…].’ And is not everyone [eventually] dead? However, the wicked during their lifetime and in their death are called dead, as stated (in Ezek. 21:30), ‘And you, O slain wicked [prince of Israel, whose day has come…].’” And so it says (in Deut. 17:6), “On the evidence of two or three witnesses shall the dead be put to death.” Does someone dead deserve another death? It is simply that the wicked during life are regarded as dead. Because on seeing the rising sun, such a one does not say the blessing, "blessed be the One who forms light."³²The opening blessing before the morning Shema‘. When it sets, he does not say the blessing, "who brings on evenings."³³The opening blessing before the evening Shema‘. Nor does he say a blessing when eating or drinking. However, the righteous do say a blessing for each and every thing that they eat and drink, and see and hear. Moreover, [these blessings] are uttered not only while they are alive, but even when they are dead. Thus it is stated (in Ps. 149:5-6), “Let the saints rejoice in glory; let them sing for joy upon their beds. With paeans to God in their throats and two-edged swords in their hands.”

R. Juda said in the name of Rab: (Jer. 9, 11-12) Who is the wise man that may understand this? And who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken, that he may declare it; for what is the land destroyed? (Ib. b) The beginning of the verse was questioned by the sages, but in vain. The continuation of the verse was questioned by the prophets, also without any result, until the Holy One, praised be He, explained it Himself in the succeeding verse. And the Lord said: "Because they forsook my law, which I had set before them." R. Juda said in the name of Rab: "This signifies [that even when they did study the Torah], they did not pronounce the prescribed benediction for it." R. Nachman said: What is the meaning of the following passage (Pr. 14, 33) In the heart of the man of understanding resteth wisdom, but in the bosom of the fools it is made known; i.e, In the heart of the man of understand resteth wisdom, refers to a scholar, the son of a scholar; but [the little which is] in the bosom of fools is made known, refers to a scholar the son of a commoner." Ulla said: "This is what people say: 'A single coin in a bottle cries kish-kish, " (clangs). R. Jeremiah said to R. Zera: "What is the meaning of the passage (Job. 3, 19) The small with the great is there, and the servant free from his master. Do we not know then that the great and small are there? It must therefore be interpreted thus: He who makes himself little for the purpose of studying the Torah in this world, will become great in the future world; and also he who hires himself for a slave to the Torah in this world, will become a free man in the future world."

... “May the Lord bless you from Zion…” (Psalms 128:5) This comes to teach that the Holy One blesses them from the place that He blesses Israel. And from where do we learn that the blessings come out from Zion? As it says “As the dew of Hermon which runs down on the mountains of Zion…” (Psalms 133:3) and it says “May the Lord bless you from Zion, and see the good of Jerusalem all the days of your life.” (Psalms 128:5) May you merit to see the good of Jerusalem in the time to come, “And may you see children to your children, peace upon Israel.” (Psalms 128:6)

In the Torah of Rabbi Meir they found written 'and behold it was very good' - as 'and behold death was good'. Rabbi Shmuel Bar Nachman said: I was riding on the shoulder of my elder, and he was going from his city to Kfar Chanan through the way of Beit She'an, and I heard Rabbi Shime'on ben Eleazar sitting and explaining in the name of Rabbi Meir: 'and behold it was very good' - as 'and behold death was good.' Rabbi Chama bar Chanina and Rabbi Yonatan [disagree]. Rabbi Chama bar Chanina said: "it would have been proper that the First Adam did not taste the taste of death - and why was he charged with death? One reason: it is written (Ezekiel 28:13) [Ezekiel 28:12 begins: Son of man, take up a lamentation for the king of Tyre, and say to him: Thus says the Lord GOD: Your seal most accurate, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty] 'you were in the Garden of Eden' - was Chirom in the Garden of Eden? Impossible! Rather, [Ezekiel/Gd] said to him 'you were the one who caused the one in the Garden to die.'" Rabbi Chia, the son of the son of Rabbi Berachia said in the name of Rabbi Berachia 'you were a covering cherub' (Ezekiel 28:14) ['covering' can also be understood as 'washing away'] you were the one who cause that same cherub to die." Rabbi Yonatan said to him: "if that was so, let [God] decree death to the evil ones only, and let Him not decree death on the righteous. But then the evil ones would not repent over their deceptions, and also so that the evil ones wouldn't say 'the only reason the righteous are alive is that they are accostumed to do mitzvot and good deeds, let us be accostumed to do mitzvot and good deeds - and this doing would not be for its own sake. ...

(Fol. 60a) Our Rabbis taaught: "It once happened that when Hillel the Old was coming along the road and heard a sorrowful cry he said, 'I am sure it is not in my house.' And concerning such men, says the passage (Ps. 112, 7.) Of an evil report shall he not he afraid; his heart is firm, trusting in the Lord." Raba said: "We can infer this passage in whatever way we desire, either from the beginning to the end, or from the end to the beginning; from the beginning to the end: Of an evil report shall he not be afraid, [because] his heart is firm trusting in the Lord, or from the end to the beginning: [Having] his heart firm trusting in the Lord, he shall not be afraid of an evil report." A certain disciple followed R. Ishmael, the son of R. Jose, in the market of Zion, whereupon the latter noticed that the disciple was frightened; he said to him: "Hast thou sinned? for it is written (Is. 33, 14.) In Zion sinners are in fear." The disciple asked him, "Is it not written (Pr. 28, 13.) Happy is the man that always feareth." 'This refers to the Torah"' [was R. Ishmael's answer]. Juda b. Nathan was following R. Hamnuna and noticed that he groaned; Juda b. Nathan said: "That man is inviting afflictions upon himself, for it is written (Job 3, 25.) For the thing which I greatly feared, is come upon me, and that which I was afraid of is come unto me." Has it not been written also (Pr. 28, 14.) Happy is the man that always feareth? The last refers to the Torah.

After he escaped from Esau, the trial of Dinah came upon him. He survived the anguish of Dinah’s experience only to suffer grief over (the death of) Rachel. After all these troubles had passed by, Jacob had hoped to enjoy a period of tranquility, only to experience the sorrow of Joseph. And so Scripture states: I was not at ease, neither was I quiet, neither had I rest; but trouble came (Job 3:26). This was followed by the sorrow he experienced over Simeon, and the anguish over Benjamin. Therefore he prayed unto God Almighty (El Shaddai), saying: “Let Him who hath said to heaven and earth dai (“enough”), say to my afflictions dai (“enough”).” When the Holy One, blessed be He, created the heavens and the earth, they continued to expand until the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them dai (“enough”). Therefore, it is written: God Almighty.

R. Yosé the Galilean explained: Out of the mouths of babes and sucklings hast Thou founded strength (Ps. 8:3). Babes are those still in their mother’s wombs, as is said: Or as a hidden untimely birth I had not been; as babes that never saw life (Job 3:16). Sucklings are those who suckle at their mother’s breasts, as is said: Gather the children and those that suck the breasts (Joel 2:16). Rabbi maintained: Babes refers to children out on the street, as it is said: To cut off the children from the street (Jer. 9:20). Likewise it says: The young children ask bread (Lam. 4:4). All opened their mouths and sang the song unto the Lord. R. Meir declared: Even the embryos in their mother’s wombs sang the song, as it is said: Bless ye God in full assemblies, even the Lord, ye that are from the fountain of Israel (Ps. 68:27). Even the angels sang the song, as it is said: O Lord our Lord, how glorious is Thy name in all the earth! Whose majesty is rehearsed above the heavens (ibid. 8:2).

(Gen. 14, 15) And he divided himself against them, he and his servants by night (Lyelah) and smote them. R. Jochanan said: "The name of the angel who came to assist Abraham was Lyelah (night) as it is said (Job 3, 3) And the night when it was said, There hath been a male child conceived, etc." R. Isaac of Nafha said: "This means a thing concerning the night was wrought for him, as it is said (Jud. 5, 20) From heaven they fought — the stars in their courses fought against Sissera." Resh Lakish remarked: "The explanation of Nafcha is better than that of bar Nafcha's" (Jochanan, who was called bar Nafcha). R. Jochanan said: "When that righteous man (Abraham) reached the city of Dan, his strength began to fail, for [he saw that] in the future his children would worship idols in Dan, it it is said (I Kin. 12, 29) And the other he put in Dan. And also this wicked one Sennacherib did not feel himself strong until he reached Dan, as it is said (Jer. 8, 16) From Dan was heard the snorting of his horses."

The Seers (i.e., the prophets) were the ones who said the doubled letters, mantzepakh (mem, nun, tzadi, peh, and kaf, which are the letters that have a different form when they appear at the end of a word). [The doubling of kaf that is found in Genesis 12:1,] "Lekh lekha (Go for yourself)," hints to Avraham that he will father Yitschak at one hundred years [of age] (as the numerical value of these two words is one hundred). [The doubling of mem that is found in Genesis 26:16,] "ki atsamta memenu (as you have become more powerful than us)" is a hint [to Yitschak] that hints that he and his seed will be powerful in both worlds. The doubling of nun [that is found in Genesis 32:12,] "Hatsileini na (Save me)" [is a hint to] Yaakov, [that] he will be saved in both worlds. The doubling of peh [that is found in Genesis 50:24,] "pakod yifkod (He will surely remember you)" [is a hint to] Yosef, [that] He will remember you in this world, and He will remember you in the world to come. The doubling of tzadi [that is found in Zachariah 6:12,] "hinei eesh, Tsemach shemo, ou'metachtav yitsmach (behold, a man called Branch shall branch out from the place where he is,)" is [referring to] the messiah. And so is it stated (Jermiah 23:5), "vahikimoti leDaveed tsemach tsadeek (and I will raise up a true branch of David)." ["The leader of fifty" (Isaiah 3:3)] ("Sixty were the queens" [Song of Songs 6:8]). Twenty-four books (of the Bible), and add to them eleven of the thirteen [books of the minor prophets] - besides Yonah which is by itself - and six orders of the Mishnah and nine chapters of Torat Kohanim, behold ["The leader of fifty"] ("Sixty were the queens"). "[Sixty were the queens] and eighty were the concubines" (Song of Songs 6:8). Sixty tractates and eighty study halls that were in Jerusalem corresponding to its gates. "And maidens without number" (Song of Songs 6:8). The study outside. "Behold the bed of Shlomo, sixty warriors" (Song of Songs 3:7). [This] corresponds to the [number of] letters of [the priestly blessing,) "May the Lord bless you and keep you, etc." (Numbers 6:24-26). The Satan (HaSatan) has the numerical equivalent of the count of the days of the solar year, as he rules over all the year to slander, except for Yom Kippur. Rabbi Ami bar Abba said, "Avraham was missing five organs before he was circumcised and [before he] fathered. The [letter] hay (with a numerical value of five) was added [to his name] and he became complete and fathered, and he was called Avraham [corresponding to the complete set of organs, two hundred and forty-eight], the numerical count of his letters." [Regarding] Sarai, two Amoraim (later rabbinic teachers) differed. One said, "The [letter] yod [with a numerical count of ten that was taken from her] was divided into two, [to give] a hay to Avaraham and a hay to Sarah." And [the other] said, "The yod that was taken from Sarah raised a protest until Yehshoua came and had a yod added, as it is stated (Numbers 13:16), "and Moshe called Hoshea [...], Yehoshua." And it saved him from the counsel of the [other] spies. [The significance of the letters in the name,] Yitschak [is as follows]: Yod [with a numerical count of ten] corresponds to the ten trials [of Avraham]. [The letter] tsadi [with a numerical count of ninety, as] Sarah was ninety when he was born. [The letter] chet [with a numerical count of eight, as] he was circumcised on the eighth day. And the letter kof [with a numerical count of one hundred, as] Avraham was a hundred years old when he was born. Yaakov was called according to [the significance of the letters of] his [own] name: Yod [corresponds to] the tenth of his offspring going backwards, Levi. Count from (the last son), Binaymin to Levi - there are ten sons, and Levi was the tenth. And he gave him as a tithe to the Omnipresent to fulfill [what he said] (Genesis 28:22), "all that You give to me, I will surely tithe it to You." [The letter] ayin [with a numerical count of seventy corresponds to the number of offspring he took to Egypt], "with seventy souls" (Deuteronomy 10:22). Kof corresponds to the [number of the] letters of the blessing [that he received], "And may He give you [etc.]" (Genesis 27:28). Take away the name [of God] from there, and one hundred [letters] remain. [The letter] bet [with a numerical count of two] corresponds to two angels [that he saw on the ladder in his dream] rising. Yehudah was called according to [the significance of the numerical count of the letters of] his [own] name: Thirty, corresponding to the thirty virtues of the monarchy. There were six hundred and thirteen letters on the tablets - from "I am" (Exodus 20:2) to "to your neighbor" (Exodus 20:14) - corresponding to the six hundred and thirteen commandments. And they were all given to Moshe at [Mount] Sinai; and in them are statutes and judgments, Torah and Mishnah, Talmud and aggadah. "The fear of the Lord is his treasure" (Isaiah 33:6). There is no greater characteristic than fear and humility, as it is stated (Deuteronomy 10:12), "And now Israel, what does the Lord, your God, ask of you [besides to fear Him]." "The fear of" (Yirat) has a numerical value of six hundred and eleven; along with Torah and circumcision, behold that is six hundred and thirteen. [The numerical value of] fringes (tsitsit) is six hundred. [Add] eight strings and five knots, behold that is six hundred and thirteen. "[The man (David)] raised on high" (II Samuel 23:1) - [high (al)] has a numerical value of one hundred, corresponding to one hundred blessings. As on every day, one hundred men of Israel were dying. [So] David and ordained [the daily saying of] one hundred blessings. "And now Israel, what (mah) does the Lord, your God, ask of you" - read it as one hundred (meah), these are the hundred blessings. Once he ordained it, the pestilence ceased. "This is the law of the burnt-offering (olah), it is the burnt-offering" (Leviticus 6:2), [meaning] the yoke (ulah) of Torah and the yoke of repentance. "Two anointed ones" (Zechariah 4:14). These are David and Aharon who were anointed with the anointing oil, such that their anointing was for [all] the generations. With Aharon, it is written (Numbers 25:13), "It shall be for him and his descendants after him, a pact of priesthood for all time." With David it is written (Ezekiel 37:25), "and My servant David as their prince for all time." "Forgive all guilt and take the good (tov)" (Hosea 14:3). Israel said, "Master of the world, at the time that the Temple existed, we would offer a sacrifice and be cleansed. But now all we have in our hand is prayer." The numerical value of tov is seventeen. Prayer [consists of] nineteen [blessings]. Take away from them the blessing for the malfeasers that was composed at Yavneh, and "Let the sprout of David blossom," which they ordained for the sake of "Probe me, Lord, and try me" (Psalms 26:2). Rabbi Simon says, "'Forgive all guilt and take the good (tov).' The numerical value of tov in at-bash (matching letters based on how close they are to the center of the alphabet) is [the same as] soul (nefesh). Israel said, 'Behold the fat from us, from our souls. May it be Your will that it be atonement for us and "that we pay with the words of our lips" (Hosea 14:3).'" "And the Lord gave her conception (herayon)" (Ruth 4:13). [Herayon] has a numerical value of the [number of the] days of the nine months of birthing (two hundred and seventy one). The name of the angel that is appointed for conception is night, as stated (Job 3:3), "and the night [that it was] said, 'A man was conceived." The measure of the water of a mikveh (ritual bath) is forty seah corresponding to the [forty mentions] of well, written in the Torah. And [the volume of] how many eggs is the measure of the mikveh? Five thousand seven hundred and sixty. And a seah is a hundred and forty-four eggs. Forty-three and a fifth eggs is the measure of [what is required for] hallah [tithe]. And from where [do we know] that a mikveh requires forty seah? As it is written (Isaiah 8:6), "Since this nation has rejected the waters of Shiloach that flow gently (le'at)." The numerical value of le'at is forty. Behold the measure of a seah is a tefach by a tefach with the height of [sixteen] tefach [and a fifth]. And one who separates the measure of the hallah [tithe] must separate [one part in forty three] and a fifth [from Torah writ like the numerical value of hallah]. Forty lashes (which are actually thirty-nine) is from Torah writ, as it is written (Exodus 35:1), "These (eleh) are the things which the Lord commanded." [The numerical count of] "eleh" is thirty-six; "things" (being plural) is two; "the things" [indicates an additional] one - behold, forty minus one (thirty-nine). "He shall strike him forty, he shall not add" (Deuteronomy 25:3), corresponds to the forty curses received by the snake, Chava, Adam and the ground, and the sages lessened one, because of "he shall not add." A Sanhedrin is twenty-three, so [that it is possible for] those advocating innocence to have one more (than twenty), and those advocating guilt to have two more. It is best for the two to come and push off one. The numerical value of anathmea (cherem) is two hundred and forty-eight. And Shmuel said, when it takes force it takes force on [all] two hundred and forty-eight organs, and when it leaves, it leaves from two hundred and forty-eight limbs, as it is written (Habakuk 3:2), "in anger, remember to have mercy (rachem, which is made up of the same letters as cherem)." It is written,"tirash," but we read it [as] tirosh. [If] he merits, he becomes a rosh (leader); [if] he does not merit, he becomes a rash (poor person). Our rabbis, may their memory be blessed said, "A man is recognized by three things: by his purse, by his glass and by his anger. Tavel is Ramaliah. Seshach is Bavel (Babylon) [according to] its numerical value of in at-bash. The numerical value of Gog and Magog is seventy, as they are the seventy nations [of the world].

[(Gen. 43:14:) AND MAY GOD ALMIGHTY (ShDY) GRANT YOU MERCY.] What was the reason for Jacob to bless them with < the formula > GOD ShDY?⁴⁶Tanh., Gen. 10:10; below, 10:16. To teach you that a lot of afflictions had come upon him. While he was in his mother's womb, Esau had contended with him, as stated (in Gen. 25:22): BUT THE CHILDREN STRUGGLED TOGETHER WITHIN HER.⁴⁷Cf. PRK 3:1. And so it says (in Amos 1:11): BECAUSE HE PURSUED HIS BROTHER WITH THE SWORD AND DESTROYED HIS WOMB. "His womb" is < what is > written.⁴⁸DESTROYED HIS WOMB would normally be read as a metaphor and translated by an expression such as “cast off all pity.” Because of Esau he fled to Laban. See how many troubles there were! (Gen. 31:40:) THUS I WAS: BY DAY SCORCHING HEAT CONSUMED ME…. < Look at > how, when he left, < Laban > pursued after him to kill him, [as stated (in Gen. 31:23)]: AND PURSUED AFTER HIM FOR A JOURNEY OF {THREE} [SEVEN] DAYS. He escaped from him; Esau came with the intention of killing him. On account of him he lost all that gift⁴⁹Gk.: doron. (according to Gen. 32:15 [14]): TWO HUNDRED SHE-GOATS…. He went away from Esau; the trouble about Dinah came (in Gen. 34). Then after that, the trouble with Rachel < dying > (in Gen. 35:19). Then, after these troubles, he was intending to rest a bit, until there came the trouble about Joseph (in Gen. 37); and after that, the trouble with his father, Isaac, who died (in Gen. 35:29) ten years after the sale of Joseph. So the Scripture has cried out (in Job 3:26): I WAS NOT TRANQUIL, NOT QUIET, HAD NO REST; AND TROUBLE CAME. After that there came upon him the trouble with Simeon (in Gen. 42:24); and after that, the trouble with Benjamin (in Gen. 42:36; 43:3-15). He therefore prayed (in Genesis 43:14) AND MAY GOD ShDY. Now he says: The one who said: Enough (DY), to the heavens and to the earth should say: Enough (DY), to my afflictions. For, when the Holy One created the heavens and the earth, they continued expanding until the Holy One said to them: Enough (DY).⁵⁰See above, 1:11; 3:25. below, 10:16. It is therefore written (in Gen. 43:14): GOD WHO IS ENOUGH (ShDY).

The Seers (i.e., the prophets) were the ones who said the doubled letters, mantzepakh (mem, nun, tzadi, peh, and kaf, which are the letters that have a different form when they appear at the end of a word). [The doubling of kaf that is found in Genesis 12:1,] "Lekh lekha (Go for yourself)," hints to Avraham that he will father Yitschak at one hundred years [of age] (as the numerical value of these two words is one hundred). [The doubling of mem that is found in Genesis 26:16,] "ki atsamta memenu (as you have become more powerful than us)" is a hint [to Yitschak] that hints that he and his seed will be powerful in both worlds. The doubling of nun [that is found in Genesis 32:12,] "Hatsileini na (Save me)" [is a hint to] Yaakov, [that] he will be saved in both worlds. The doubling of peh [that is found in Genesis 50:24,] "pakod yifkod (He will surely remember you)" [is a hint to] Yosef, [that] He will remember you in this world, and He will remember you in the world to come. The doubling of tzadi [that is found in Zachariah 6:12,] "hinei eesh, Tsemach shemo, ou'metachtav yitsmach (behold, a man called Branch shall branch out from the place where he is,)" is [referring to] the messiah. And so is it stated (Jermiah 23:5), "vahikimoti leDaveed tsemach tsadeek (and I will raise up a true branch of David)." ["The leader of fifty" (Isaiah 3:3)] ("Sixty were the queens" [Song of Songs 6:8]). Twenty-four books (of the Bible), and add to them eleven of the thirteen [books of the minor prophets] - besides Yonah which is by itself - and six orders of the Mishnah and nine chapters of Torat Kohanim, behold ["The leader of fifty"] ("Sixty were the queens"). "[Sixty were the queens] and eighty were the concubines" (Song of Songs 6:8). Sixty tractates and eighty study halls that were in Jerusalem corresponding to its gates. "And maidens without number" (Song of Songs 6:8). The study outside. "Behold the bed of Shlomo, sixty warriors" (Song of Songs 3:7). [This] corresponds to the [number of] letters of [the priestly blessing,) "May the Lord bless you and keep you, etc." (Numbers 6:24-26). The Satan (HaSatan) has the numerical equivalent of the count of the days of the solar year, as he rules over all the year to slander, except for Yom Kippur. Rabbi Ami bar Abba said, "Avraham was missing five organs before he was circumcised and [before he] fathered. The [letter] hay (with a numerical value of five) was added [to his name] and he became complete and fathered, and he was called Avraham [corresponding to the complete set of organs, two hundred and forty-eight], the numerical count of his letters." [Regarding] Sarai, two Amoraim (later rabbinic teachers) differed. One said, "The [letter] yod [with a numerical count of ten that was taken from her] was divided into two, [to give] a hay to Avaraham and a hay to Sarah." And [the other] said, "The yod that was taken from Sarah raised a protest until Yehshoua came and had a yod added, as it is stated (Numbers 13:16), "and Moshe called Hoshea [...], Yehoshua." And it saved him from the counsel of the [other] spies. [The significance of the letters in the name,] Yitschak [is as follows]: Yod [with a numerical count of ten] corresponds to the ten trials [of Avraham]. [The letter] tsadi [with a numerical count of ninety, as] Sarah was ninety when he was born. [The letter] chet [with a numerical count of eight, as] he was circumcised on the eighth day. And the letter kof [with a numerical count of one hundred, as] Avraham was a hundred years old when he was born. Yaakov was called according to [the significance of the letters of] his [own] name: Yod [corresponds to] the tenth of his offspring going backwards, Levi. Count from (the last son), Binaymin to Levi - there are ten sons, and Levi was the tenth. And he gave him as a tithe to the Omnipresent to fulfill [what he said] (Genesis 28:22), "all that You give to me, I will surely tithe it to You." [The letter] ayin [with a numerical count of seventy corresponds to the number of offspring he took to Egypt], "with seventy souls" (Deuteronomy 10:22). Kof corresponds to the [number of the] letters of the blessing [that he received], "And may He give you [etc.]" (Genesis 27:28). Take away the name [of God] from there, and one hundred [letters] remain. [The letter] bet [with a numerical count of two] corresponds to two angels [that he saw on the ladder in his dream] rising. Yehudah was called according to [the significance of the numerical count of the letters of] his [own] name: Thirty, corresponding to the thirty virtues of the monarchy. There were six hundred and thirteen letters on the tablets - from "I am" (Exodus 20:2) to "to your neighbor" (Exodus 20:14) - corresponding to the six hundred and thirteen commandments. And they were all given to Moshe at [Mount] Sinai; and in them are statutes and judgments, Torah and Mishnah, Talmud and aggadah. "The fear of the Lord is his treasure" (Isaiah 33:6). There is no greater characteristic than fear and humility, as it is stated (Deuteronomy 10:12), "And now Israel, what does the Lord, your God, ask of you [besides to fear Him]." "The fear of" (Yirat) has a numerical value of six hundred and eleven; along with Torah and circumcision, behold that is six hundred and thirteen. [The numerical value of] fringes (tsitsit) is six hundred. [Add] eight strings and five knots, behold that is six hundred and thirteen. "[The man (David)] raised on high" (II Samuel 23:1) - [high (al)] has a numerical value of one hundred, corresponding to one hundred blessings. As on every day, one hundred men of Israel were dying. [So] David and ordained [the daily saying of] one hundred blessings. "And now Israel, what (mah) does the Lord, your God, ask of you" - read it as one hundred (meah), these are the hundred blessings. Once he ordained it, the pestilence ceased. "This is the law of the burnt-offering (olah), it is the burnt-offering" (Leviticus 6:2), [meaning] the yoke (ulah) of Torah and the yoke of repentance. "Two anointed ones" (Zechariah 4:14). These are David and Aharon who were anointed with the anointing oil, such that their anointing was for [all] the generations. With Aharon, it is written (Numbers 25:13), "It shall be for him and his descendants after him, a pact of priesthood for all time." With David it is written (Ezekiel 37:25), "and My servant David as their prince for all time." "Forgive all guilt and take the good (tov)" (Hosea 14:3). Israel said, "Master of the world, at the time that the Temple existed, we would offer a sacrifice and be cleansed. But now all we have in our hand is prayer." The numerical value of tov is seventeen. Prayer [consists of] nineteen [blessings]. Take away from them the blessing for the malfeasers that was composed at Yavneh, and "Let the sprout of David blossom," which they ordained for the sake of "Probe me, Lord, and try me" (Psalms 26:2). Rabbi Simon says, "'Forgive all guilt and take the good (tov).' The numerical value of tov in at-bash (matching letters based on how close they are to the center of the alphabet) is [the same as] soul (nefesh). Israel said, 'Behold the fat from us, from our souls. May it be Your will that it be atonement for us and "that we pay with the words of our lips" (Hosea 14:3).'" "And the Lord gave her conception (herayon)" (Ruth 4:13). [Herayon] has a numerical value of the [number of the] days of the nine months of birthing (two hundred and seventy one). The name of the angel that is appointed for conception is night, as stated (Job 3:3), "and the night [that it was] said, 'A man was conceived." The measure of the water of a mikveh (ritual bath) is forty seah corresponding to the [forty mentions] of well, written in the Torah. And [the volume of] how many eggs is the measure of the mikveh? Five thousand seven hundred and sixty. And a seah is a hundred and forty-four eggs. Forty-three and a fifth eggs is the measure of [what is required for] hallah [tithe]. And from where [do we know] that a mikveh requires forty seah? As it is written (Isaiah 8:6), "Since this nation has rejected the waters of Shiloach that flow gently (le'at)." The numerical value of le'at is forty. Behold the measure of a seah is a tefach by a tefach with the height of [sixteen] tefach [and a fifth]. And one who separates the measure of the hallah [tithe] must separate [one part in forty three] and a fifth [from Torah writ like the numerical value of hallah]. Forty lashes (which are actually thirty-nine) is from Torah writ, as it is written (Exodus 35:1), "These (eleh) are the things which the Lord commanded." [The numerical count of] "eleh" is thirty-six; "things" (being plural) is two; "the things" [indicates an additional] one - behold, forty minus one (thirty-nine). "He shall strike him forty, he shall not add" (Deuteronomy 25:3), corresponds to the forty curses received by the snake, Chava, Adam and the ground, and the sages lessened one, because of "he shall not add." A Sanhedrin is twenty-three, so [that it is possible for] those advocating innocence to have one more (than twenty), and those advocating guilt to have two more. It is best for the two to come and push off one. The numerical value of anathmea (cherem) is two hundred and forty-eight. And Shmuel said, when it takes force it takes force on [all] two hundred and forty-eight organs, and when it leaves, it leaves from two hundred and forty-eight limbs, as it is written (Habakuk 3:2), "in anger, remember to have mercy (rachem, which is made up of the same letters as cherem)." It is written,"tirash," but we read it [as] tirosh. [If] he merits, he becomes a rosh (leader); [if] he does not merit, he becomes a rash (poor person). Our rabbis, may their memory be blessed said, "A man is recognized by three things: by his purse, by his glass and by his anger. Tavel is Ramaliah. Seshach is Bavel (Babylon) [according to] its numerical value of in at-bash. The numerical value of Gog and Magog is seventy, as they are the seventy nations [of the world].

When the earth heard this expression thereupon it trembled and quaked, crying before its Creator: Sovereign of all worlds ! I have not the power to feed the multitude of mankind. The Holy One, blessed be He, replied: I and thou will (together) feed the multitude of mankind. They agreed to divide (the task) between themselves: the night was for the Holy One, blessed be He, || and the day (was apportioned) to the earth. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He created the sleep of life, so that man lies down and sleeps whilst He sustains him and heals him and (gives) him life and repose, as it is said, "I should have slept: then had I been at rest" (Job 3:13). The Holy One, blessed be He, supports (man) with the earth, giving it water; and it yields its fruit and food for all creatures—but the first man's food "in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life" (Gen. 3:17).

When the earth heard this expression thereupon it trembled and quaked, crying before its Creator: Sovereign of all worlds ! I have not the power to feed the multitude of mankind. The Holy One, blessed be He, replied: I and thou will (together) feed the multitude of mankind. They agreed to divide (the task) between themselves: the night was for the Holy One, blessed be He, || and the day (was apportioned) to the earth. What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He created the sleep of life, so that man lies down and sleeps whilst He sustains him and heals him and (gives) him life and repose, as it is said, "I should have slept: then had I been at rest" (Job 3:13). The Holy One, blessed be He, supports (man) with the earth, giving it water; and it yields its fruit and food for all creatures—but the first man's food "in toil shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life" (Gen. 3:17).

... Jeremiah said: when I was coming up to Jerusalem, I lifted up my eyes and saw a woman sitting on the mountaintop, her clothes were black and her hair unkempt. She cried: I am seeking who will comfort me! And I cried: I am seeking who will comfort me! I came near and spoke with her, and I said to her: if you are a woman, then speak with me. If you are a spirit, then go away from me. She answered and said to me: Do you not recognize me? I am the one who had seven children. Their father went away to a land across the sea and as I was going up to cry for him, a prophet said to me ‘the house collapsed on your seven children and killed them.’ I do not know for whom I am crying and for whom my hair is unkempt.I answered and said to her: you are no better than my mother Zion, who was made a pasture for the beasts of the field. She answered and said to me: I am your mother Zion, I am she – the mother of seven, so it is written “She who bore seven has been cut off…” (Jeremiah 15:9) Jeremiah said to her: the blows you have received are like those of Job. Job’s sons and daughters were taken from him, your sons and daughters were taken from you. From Job I took his silver and gold, from you I have taken your silver and gold. I cast Job into the trash heap, you I have made into a heap of trash. And just as I came back and consoled Job, so too in the future I will return and console you. I doubled Job’s sons and daughters, and in the future I will double your sons and daughters. I doubled Job’s gold and silver, and in the future I will do so for you. I shook the trash from Job, and of you it is said “Shake yourselves from the dust, arise, sit down, O Jerusalem…” (Isaiah 52:2) Flesh and blood built you and flesh and blood destroyed you. But In the time to come I will build you, because thus it is written “The Lord is the builder of Jerusalem; He will gather the outcasts of Israel.” (Psalms 147:2) Amen! May the Holy One fulfill what is written about us speedily and in our day “And the redeemed of Zion shall return, and they shall come to Zion with song, with joy of days of yore shall be upon their heads; they shall achieve gladness and joy, and sadness and sighing shall flee.” (Isaiah 35:10)

And these are the days of the years of the life of Avraham (Bereishit 25:7). It's written, God knows the days of the pure, and their inheritance will be eternal (Tehillim 37:18). God knows the days of the pure: this is Avraham, as it is said And be pure. And their inheritance will be eternal - and these are the days of the years of the life of Avraham. That he adores the Holy Blessed One, who gives the righteous and writes them in the Torah, so that the inheritance of their days will be remembered forever: In ripe old age, old and satisfied (Bereishit 25:8). And Avraham perished (ibid.) - Rabbi Yehuda bar Ilai said, the original pious would suffer with intestinal disease for ten and twenty days, to say that illness clarifies. Rabbi Yehuda said, everyone of whom it is said "perish" died of intestinal disease. It's written, strength and beauty are her robes [and she laughs at the last day] (Mishlei 31:25) - every reward of the righteous is prepared for them for the future to come. The Holy Blessed One shows them, before they are in this world, all the reward which They will eventually give them in the world to come - and their souls are satisfied and they sleep. Rabbi Elazar says, it's like a banquet which a king prepared and invited guests, and showed them what they would eat and drink, and their souls are satisfied and they sleep - so too with the Holy Blessed One. They show the righteous before they are in this world their veentual reward, and they sleep, as it is said For now I would be lying down, silent (Iyov 3:13). That is to say, at the time of the departure of the righteous, the Holy Blessed One shows them the reward of their labour. When Rabbi Abahu slept, thirteen rivers of balsam were shown to him. He said to them, whose are these? They said to him, yours. He said, these are Abahu's? ...

And these are the days of the years of the life of Avraham (Bereishit 25:7). It's written, God knows the days of the pure, and their inheritance will be eternal (Tehillim 37:18). God knows the days of the pure: this is Avraham, as it is said And be pure. And their inheritance will be eternal - and these are the days of the years of the life of Avraham. That he adores the Holy Blessed One, who gives the righteous and writes them in the Torah, so that the inheritance of their days will be remembered forever: In ripe old age, old and satisfied (Bereishit 25:8). And Avraham perished (ibid.) - Rabbi Yehuda bar Ilai said, the original pious would suffer with intestinal disease for ten and twenty days, to say that illness clarifies. Rabbi Yehuda said, everyone of whom it is said "perish" died of intestinal disease. It's written, strength and beauty are her robes [and she laughs at the last day] (Mishlei 31:25) - every reward of the righteous is prepared for them for the future to come. The Holy Blessed One shows them, before they are in this world, all the reward which They will eventually give them in the world to come - and their souls are satisfied and they sleep. Rabbi Elazar says, it's like a banquet which a king prepared and invited guests, and showed them what they would eat and drink, and their souls are satisfied and they sleep - so too with the Holy Blessed One. They show the righteous before they are in this world their veentual reward, and they sleep, as it is said For now I would be lying down, silent (Iyov 3:13). That is to say, at the time of the departure of the righteous, the Holy Blessed One shows them the reward of their labour. When Rabbi Abahu slept, thirteen rivers of balsam were shown to him. He said to them, whose are these? They said to him, yours. He said, these are Abahu's? ...

“And he bought the part of the field where he had pitched his tent from the sons of Hamor, the father of Shechem, for a hundred kesitas.” (Bereshit 33:19) R’ Yudan bar Simon said: this is one of the three places about which the nations of the world cannot defraud Israel and say ‘this is stolen property in your hands.’ They are – the cave of the Machpela, the Holy Temple and the grave of Yosef. The cave of the Machpela, as it is written “And Abraham listened to Ephron, and Abraham weighed out to Ephron the silver…” (Bereshit 23:16) The Holy Temple, as it is written “And David gave to Ornan for the place shekels of gold weighing six hundred.” (Divre HaYamim I 21:25) The grave of Yosef, as it is written ““And he bought the part of the field where he had pitched his tent…” (Bereshit 33:19)

“When suddenly a scourge brings death,” (Job 9:23) Antoninus asked our teacher, Rabbi Judah the Prince, a question. He said to him, “What is the connection of “When suddenly a scourge brings death (to the second half of the verse, “he mocks as the innocent fail.”) Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi explained this with a parable: A king decreed that a person should receive a hundred lashes and would receive a hundred dinarim,, a dinar for each lash, (as long as he received all the lashes.) But no money ever left the king’s hand. In this way, he mocked the one who received lashes. Thus, “He mocks as the innocent fail."... he mocks as the innocent fail." (Job 9:23). Rav Acha said: When the righteous sit in tranquillity and desire to sit in tranquility in this world, the Satan comes and accuses, saying: “Is that which is set for (the righteous) in the World to Come not enough that they seek serenity in this world?” Know that this is certainly the case. Our Forefather, Jacob, sought to dwell in serenity in this world and the “Satan” [difficulty, impediment] of Joseph clung itself to Jacob. “And Jacob dwelt … etc.”(Gen 37:1) [actually is connected to]“I had no repose, no quiet, no rest, and trouble came” (Job 3:26) - I had no repose – from Esau; no quiet – from Laban; no rest - from Dinah; and trouble (lit. anger) came – the trouble of Joseph.

Open for me the gates of righteousness. In the next world [He] says to a person: What was your occupation? And he says: I fed the hungry. They say to him: Th[ere] is the gate of one who feeds the hungry; enter it. Another says: I gave water to the thirsty; and they say to him: Th[ere] is the gate of one who gives water to the thirsty; enter it. And the same for one who clothes the naked, and one who raises orphans and one who is charitable; and so with all the mitzvot. David said: I did all of the[se things]; open all of them for me. Therefore he says: Open for me the gates of righteousness so that I may enter them.