Midrash su Deuteronomio 30:19

(Deut. 32:1:) “Give ear, O heavens, and let me speak; let the earth hear the words of my mouth.” This text is related (to Prov. 16:26), “The soul of a laborer labors for him, because his mouth (i.e., hunger) urges him on.” Why did Moses call to the heavens and the earth at the time of his passing away? [It was] simply to teach you that he called them to charge them concerning himself. He said to them, “Behold, the Holy One, blessed be He, has decreed over me that I am to die. Set your mind on how you will receive me in glory, so that you look at me as if I were alive and speaking words of Torah for the world.” (Deut. 32:1:) “Give ear, O heavens,” as I have already told you (in Deut. 4:26), “I have called heaven and earth to witness against you today.” See to it that you do not accuse¹Rt.: QTRG, from the Greek verb kategorein. Israel after my death,²See III Enoch 26:12 = Sefer Enoch: Seder Ruhot, in A. Jellinek, Beth ha-Midrasch (Leipzig: C. W. Vollfath, 1853–57), vol. 5, pp. 179–180. but be mindful, as if I were alive, standing up to ask mercy for [Israel]. Isaiah said (in Is. 1:2), “Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth.” What was the reason for Isaiah saying, “Hear, O heavens, and give ear, O earth?” [It was] simply to teach you that all the words of the prophets are equivalent. Moses said, “Give ear, O heavens,” and Isaiah said, “Hear, O heavens.” R. Aqiva said, “[This] teaches that when Moses uttered the Torah, he was in the heavens, and that he was speaking with the heavens like one who is speaking with his friend, since he said, ‘Give ear, O heavens.’ But when he saw that the earth was far from him, he said, ‘Let the earth hear the words of my mouth.’ In the case of Isaiah, however, because he was on earth, he said, ‘Hear, O heavens,’ [since they were] far from him. After that he said, ‘And give ear, O earth, because it was near to him. (Is. 1:2, cont.:) “For the Lord has spoken.” They said to him, “Isaiah our teacher, if the Holy One, blessed be He, had spoken, would not the earth have quaked? Has it not already been stated (in Ps. 68:9), ‘The earth quaked, and the heavens [poured], because of the God of Sinai, [because of God, the God of Israel].’ The waters also trembled, as stated (in Ps. 93:4), ‘Than the roarings of many waters....’ When? [When] (in Exod. 20:1) ‘God spoke all these words, saying.’ If he had spoken with you, would you have lived?” It is comparable to a governor who entered a city. A prefect³Gk.: strategos. of that city came. When the governor came to speak with them, they became bewildered. In a few days, a certain bumpkin came. He said to them, “This is my friend, and I am accustomed to speak with him.” They said to him, “We cannot speak with him, but if he is your friend, speak with him on our behalf, and then [speak] with us [and let us know what he says].” [Similarly,] Israel said to Isaiah, “In our case he has called us his children, as stated (in Exod. 4:22), ‘Israel is My first-born son.’ It is also written (in Is. 46:3), ‘[Hearken unto me, O house of Jacob …,] the ones who have been borne by Me from birth, [carried from the womb].’ When He spoke with us at Sinai, our soul departed with His word. Should He speak with us [again], we shall die. But you are our master; draw near and listen, just as Moses our master did.” And what was this crown (status) that Isaiah had? What is stated (in Is. 49:5), “And now the Lord has spoken, the One who formed me in the womb to be His servant […].” Therefore is it stated (in Is. 32:1:) “Hear, O heavens….”

R. Jacob the son of Issi asked: Why does it say; I love the habitation of Thy house, and the place where Thy glory dwelleth? Because the Tabernacle is equal to the creation of the world itself. How is that so? Concerning the first day, it is written: In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth (Gen. 1:1), and it is written elsewhere: Who stretched out the heavens like a curtain (Ps. 104:2), and concerning the Tabernacle it is written: And thou shalt make curtains of goats’ hair (Exod. 26:7). About the second day of creation it states: Let there be a firmament and divide between them, and let it divide the waters from the waters (Gen. 1:6). About the Tabernacle it is written: And the veil shall divide between you (Exod. 26:33). With regard to the third day it states: Let the waters under the heavens be gathered (Gen. 1:9). With reference to the Tabernacle it is written: Thou shalt also make a laver of brass … and thou shalt put water therein (Exod. 30:18). On the fourth day he created light, as is stated: Let there be lights in the firmament of heaven (Gen. 1:14), and concerning the Tabernacle it is said: And thou shalt make a candlestick of pure gold (Exod. 25:31). On the fifth day He created birds, as it is said: Let the waters swarm with swarms of living creatures, and let the fowl fly above the earth (Gen. 1:20), and with reference to the Tabernacle. He directed them to offer sacrifices of lambs and birds, and it says as well: And the cherubim shall spread out their wings on high (Exod. 25:20). On the sixth day he created man, as it is said: And God created man in His own image, in the image of God He created him (Gen. 1:27), and about the Tabernacle it is written: A man who is a high priest who has been anointed to serve and to minister before God.³You write that this is not a direct quote from the Bible. On the seventh day The heaven and the earth were finished (Gen. 2:1), and with regard to the Tabernacle it is written: Thus was completed all the work of the Tabernacle (Exod. 39:32). Concerning the creation of the world it is written: And God blessed (Num. 2:3), and of the Tabernacle it is said: And Moses blessed them (Exod. 39:43); with regard to the creation it is said: And God finished (Gen. 2:2), and of the Tabernacle it is written: On that day Moses made an end (Num. 7:1); of creation it says: And hallowed it (Gen. 2:2), and of the Tabernacle: And had anointed it and sanctified it (Num. 7:1). Why is the Tabernacle equal to heaven and earth? Because even as heaven and earth bear witness concerning Israel, as it is written: I call heaven and earth to witness against you this day (Deut. 30:19), so the Tabernacle bears witness in behalf of Israel, as is said: These are the accounts of the Tabernacle, even the Tabernacle of the testimony (Exod. 38:21). Hence it is said: Lord, I love the habitation of Thy house, and the place where Thy glory dwelleth (Ps. 26:8).

(Numb. 5:17), “Then the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel and some of the dust.” And, why does he take water and dust and test her? Because he was created from the dust, and she was formed from the water.²¹Cf. Gen. R. 14:7. Therefore she was tested by water and by dust as to whether she was as pure as when she was created or not. Another interpretation: Why is she tested with water and with dust? Because they are her witnesses. Thus it is stated (in Deut. 30:19), “I have called the heavens and the earth to witness against you today.” Another interpretation: Why is she tested with water [and with dust]? Because a person who sows some seeds in the dust does not know what they are, until the water comes down upon them and makes known whether they belong to the owner of the field, or [whether they are] what others have sown. [(Numb. 5:12), “If anyone has his wife go astray.”] This text is related (to Job 24:15), “The eye of an adulterer watches for twilight, saying, ‘No eye shall see me.’” And so the adulterer says, “No human being knows about me”; but the Holy One, blessed be He, has His eyes ranging over all the earth.²²Numb. R. 9:1. So it says (in Jer. 23:24), “’If someone hides in secret places, shall I not see him; do I not fill heaven and earth,’ says the Lord.” Such is the way of those who commit transgression. They wait for a time of darkness, so that no one will see them. It is therefore stated (in Job 24:15), “The eye of the adulterer watches for twilight.” So also thieves watch for an hour of darkness, as stated (in vs. 16), “He breaks into houses in the dark.” And so it says (in Is. 29:15), “Woe to those who delve deeply to hide a plan from the Lord, for their works are in darkness; [so they say, ‘Who sees us and who knows about us?’]” The thief and the adulterer are obdurate, because they remove the Divine Presence. The Holy One, blessed be He, as it were, fills the realms above and the realms below, as stated (in Jer. 23:24), “’do I not fill heaven and earth,’ says the Lord.” Also in regard to the place where the adulterer comes to commit adultery, the Holy One, blessed be He, is there in His glory. It is so stated (in Is. 6:3), “the whole earth is full of His glory.” Now the adulterer says to the Holy One, blessed be He, “Remove Yourself, and give way to me for a while.” The matter is exceedingly difficult, as it were. Since He is slow to anger, He gives way to him; for (according to Job 11:11) “He knows those who are worthless; so when He sees iniquity, [does He not discern it?]” It also says (in Job 24:15, cont.), “He (i.e., the Holy One, blessed be He) turns a secret into a face.”²³This rendering fits the context of what follows in the midrash. A more traditional rendering, which fits the context of Job, would read, “AND HE (i.e., the adulterer) PUTS A VEIL ON HIS FACE. Ergo (in Job 24:15), “When the eye of an adulterer watches for twilight, saying, ‘No eye shall see me.’” So what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He turns a secret into a face. He puts the face of [the] adulterer on that fetus.²⁴Lev. R. 23:12. While the adulterer and the adulteress do not want her to become pregnant but only to satisfy their sexual desire, the Holy One, blessed be He, proclaims²⁵Gk.: parresiazesthai. them to the world. Ergo, “He turns a secret into a face,” so that the people may know [about him] and say, “Surely this one's face resembles the face of [the] adulterer”; for [the Holy One, blessed be He,] has formed the image of the fetus in the likeness of the adulterer. Ergo (ibid.), “He turns a secret into a face.” It is therefore called whoredom (zimmah); for they both deny and say, “We do not know what this is (zeh mah).”²⁶Literally: “This is what?” The Hebrew uses the unusual word order to make the parallel with “whoredom” (zimmah). R. Isaac said, “The power of the adulterer is strong, because it weakens the power of the Divine Presence. How? When the fetus is conceived from the husband, the Holy One, blessed be He, forms its image in forty days. For thus have our masters taught, ‘In forty days the image of the fetus is recognizable.’ After forty days, when the adulterer comes into her, the Holy One, blessed be He, stands wondering and says, ‘After whom shall I form [the fetus]? The image (rt.: tswr) of the husband or the image of the adulterer?’ (According to Deut. 32:18,) As it were, ‘You were unmindful of (tshy) the Rock (tswr) that bore you.’²⁷I.e., the adulterer forgot that the Holy One would expose him. The yod (= y) is [here written] small. [Thus, you] weaken (tsh, without the yod) the hands (yad in the dual) of the Creator (tsayyar).” R. Abbahu said, “To what is the matter comparable? To a sculptor (tsayyar, rt.: tsyr), who was fashioning (rt.: tsyr) an image²⁸Gk.: eikonion. of a king. When he came to finish the face,²⁹Gk.: prosopon. they said to him, “The king is dead, and another king has arisen.” When the sculptor heard that, his hands failed. He began to say, “What shall I do with these colors³⁰In the ancient world statues were painted. which I have? Shall I fashion [them] in the form of the former king or in the form of the second king?” He began to be bewildered. Now similarly, when the husband has marital relations with his wife, the Holy One, blessed be He, forms the fetus in the likeness of its father. [Then] in turn the adulterer comes into her. Ergo, the colors are mingled. Thus it is stated (in Hos. 4:2), “Swearing, lying, murdering, stealing, committing adultery break out; bloodshed follows bloodshed.” What does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He returns, as it were, and changes the face into the likeness of the adulterer. Ergo (in Job 24:15) “He turns a secret into a face.”