Tafsiran yang Mengutip untuk Mazmur 119:71

In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth. The reason the Torah begins with the letter bet is because throughout the book of Ecclesiastes, King Solomon compares the Torah to the sun, whose path only traverses three directions, like the shape of the letter bet which is open to the north (referring to the left side of the letter, which in classical cartography was used for north, as opposed to maps today which have the left side on the map represent west). And its giving [of the Torah] was through Moses, whose face was like the sun. Perhaps the reason is because the evil inclination, which opposes the Torah, comes from the north and breaks through the fence of the Torah, as it is written: And I will distance the northern one from you (Joel 2:20). Similarly, the gold that comes from the north opposes the Torah. And for the most part, they [wealth and Torah] flee from each other, as it is written: It is good for me that I have been afflicted, that I might learn Your statutes (Psalms 119:71). This is not the place to elaborate further on this matter. It can be further explained according to what is said: Wisdom has built her house (Proverbs 9:1), therefore the wisdom of the Torah begins with bet, as it [this wisdom] is the mistress of the general house.

Rabbi Yose ben Kisma said: Once I was walking by the way when a man met me, and greeted me and I greeted him. He said to me, “Rabbi, where are you from?” I said to him, “I am from a great city of sages and scribes”. He said to me, “Rabbi, would you consider living with us in our place? I would give you a thousand thousand denarii of gold, and precious stones and pearls.” I said to him: “My son, even if you were to give me all the silver and gold, precious stones and pearls that are in the world, I would not dwell anywhere except in a place of Torah; for when a man passes away there accompany him neither gold nor silver, nor precious stones nor pearls, but Torah and good deeds alone, as it is said, “When you walk it will lead you. When you lie down it will watch over you; and when you are awake it will talk with you” (Proverbs 6:22). “When you walk it will lead you” in this world. “When you lie down it will watch over you” in the grave; “And when you are awake it will talk with you” in the world to come. And thus it is written in the book of Psalms by David, king of Israel, “I prefer the teaching You proclaimed to thousands of pieces of gold and silver” (Psalms 119:71), And it says: “Mine is the silver, and mine the gold, says the Lord of Hosts” (Haggai 2:8). The teaching in this mishnah is similar to the words of Rabbi Nehorai in chapter four, mishnah fourteen, “go as a [voluntary] exile to a place of Torah and say not that it will come after you” Rabbi Nehorai teaches that one should leave a city where one cannot learn Torah to go to a place where one can learn Torah. In our mishnah we see a reverse move: Rabbi Yose ben Kisma will not leave his city which is full of sages, even to go to a place where they will give him all of the money in the world. The wealth of Torah accompanies not only in this world, but to the grave and onwards to the world to come. Note how opposite this idea is from the ancient practice of burying a person with some of his material possessions, which were to go on with him to the world to come. In Judaism what accompanies a person to the world to come are not his material possessions but his spiritual accomplishments: learning Torah and performing good deeds. This is what God truly cares about. Rabbi Yose uses several texts to prove that true wealth belongs to God and is given through His Torah. The wealth of money and jewels cannot tempt Rabbi Yose to leave a life of Torah.

And Moses caused Israel to journey. Rashi explained that “he caused them to journey” means he made them travel against their will, because they did not want to depart from the spoils of the Sea, and Moses was afraid that too much wealth would lead them to sin. The incident of the Golden Calf proves this, as the abundance of gold that was given to them was the cause of its creation. Therefore, he made them journey against their will. Furthermore, Moses thought that excessive wealth would be a reason for them to be unworthy of receiving the Torah, because Torah and wealth flee from each other and are like rivals to one another, as it is written, It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn Your statutes (Psalms 119:71). Therefore, he made them journey against their will.