Midrash su Osea 12:3

(Lev. 7:12:) “If he offers it for a thanksgiving, and he shall sacrifice.” See how the Holy One, blessed be He, forgives the sins of Israel. See what did they offer to the Holy One, blessed be He? It is simply that the Holy One, blessed be He, said, “Whoever has a bull, let him bring a bull; and whoever has a calf let him bring a calf. Whoever has a lamb, let him bring a lamb. Whoever has a dove, let him bring a dove. Whoever has not one of all these, let him bring fine flour; and whoever has neither flour nor anything at all, let him bring words.” Thus it is stated (in Hos. 14:3), “Take your words with you and return unto the Lord.” And do you say that it is accepted? Said the Holy One, blessed be He, (as in Hos. 12:3, cont.), “and we shall pay with our lips for the bulls.” Why? As there is no greater repentance in front of the Holy One, blessed be He, than confession. It is therefore stated (in Lev. 7:12), “If he offers it for a thanksgiving” (as the word for thanksgiving can also be understood as confession).

Another interpretation (of Gen. 44:18): PRAY, MY LORD. (Vs. 19:) MY LORD ASKED. It is also stated (in vs. 20): UNTO MY LORD. (Vs. 33:) AND NOW PLEASE LET YOUR SERVANT REMAIN < AS A SLAVE TO MY LORD INSTEAD OF THE LAD >….²⁸The point of all these citations is to demonstrate that Judah has now humbled himself. The Holy One said to him: Behold, you have now let go of your former power, and spoken supplications. By your life, in spite of what I said (in Hos. 12:3 [2]): THE LORD HAS A LAWSUIT WITH JUDAH, I will instead be gracious and have compassion on you. It is so stated (in Is. 57:16): FOR I WILL NOT CARRY ON A LAWSUIT FOREVER. And the EVER (in FOREVER) is nothing but a reference to Judah, since it is stated (in Joel 4:20 [3:20]): BUT JUDAH SHALL BE INHABITED FOREVER.²⁹Since the FOR in FOREVER can mean AGAINST, Is. 57:16 is therefore understood to mean: FOR I WILL NOT CARRY ON A LAWSUIT AGAINST JUDAH.

(Lev. 22:27:) “When a bull or a sheep or a goat […].” This text is related (to Micah 6:3), “My people, what have I done to you and how have I wearied you; testify against Me.”⁵¹PRK 9:5; Lev. R. 27:6; Numb. R. 10:1. R. Aha said, “Testify against Me (i.e., prove me wrong by keeping the commandments), and receive a reward. And do not testify (against your neighbor falsely), and receive a settlement of accounts.” R. Samuel bar Nahman said, “On three occasions the Holy One, blessed be He, came to dispute with Israel, when the nations of the world rejoiced: At that time, when He said to them (in Is. 1:18), ‘Please come and let us dispute together,’ they rejoiced and said, ‘Now He will finish them off.’ When the Holy One, blessed be He, saw that they were rejoicing, He reversed [the punishment] for the better. He said (ibid.), ‘though your sins be as scarlet, they shall become as white as snow […].’ When the nations of the world heard this, they were astonished and said, ‘Is this an answer; is this a rebuke? He has only come to amuse Himself with His children (and not to dispute with them seriously).’ In the second [occasion], when He said to them (in Micah 6:2), ‘[Hear, O mountains, the claim of the Lord …] for the Lord has a claim with His people, and He will dispute with Israel,’ they rejoiced and said, ‘Now He will finish them off.’ When the Holy One, blessed be He, saw that, He reversed [the punishment] for the better and said (in Micah 6:5), ‘My people, please remember what King Balak of Moab plotted and what Balaam answered him….’⁵²Cf. PR 48:1. When the nations of the world heard this, they were astonished and said, ‘Is this an answer; is this a rebuke? He has only come to amuse Himself with His children.’ The third [occasion] when He said (in Hos. 12:3), ‘The Lord has a claim with Judah,’ they rejoiced and said, ‘Now He will finish them off.’ When the Holy One, blessed be He, saw that, He reversed [the punishment] for the better and said (in Hos. 12:4) ‘In the womb he grabbed his brother by the heel […].’” [The situation] is similar to a woman who complained to the judge about her son and brought him for trial. Everyone came to see. They said, one to another, “See that this woman has brought her son to be killed in the case.” When the woman saw this and heard what they said, she reversed [her mind] to speak with different words. When she came before the judge, he said to her, “What has your son done to you?” She said to him, “When he was in my womb, he kicked me.” He said to her, “Has he done anything else to you?” She said, “No.” He said to her, “There is no legal offense at all.” Everyone was astonished and said, “Is this an answer; is this a rebuke? She only came to amuse herself with her son.” So they left with embarrassment on their faces. So too did the Holy One, blessed be He, go back and reverse His rebuke to love, and the nations of the world left confounded. (Micah 6:3:) “And how have I wearied you?” R. Berekhyah said, “[The situation] is similar to a king who sent his proclamation⁵³Gk.: prostagma. to a province. What did the people of the province do? When they received it, they uncovered their heads, and read it in fear, in awe and in trembling. So did the Holy One, blessed be He, say to Israel, ‘The reading of the Shema is My proclamation. I did not burden you and I did not tell you that you were to read it either standing upon your feet or with your heads uncovered, but (according to Deut. 6:7) “when you are sitting in your house, when you are walking on the road, when you are lying down, and when you are getting up.”’” Another interpretation (of Micah 6:3), “and how have I wearied you”: R. Judah bar Simon said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, said, ‘I have delivered ten [kinds of] beasts to you (for food).⁵⁴See also PR 16:1; Numb. R. 20:5; 21:16. Three are in your possession, and seven are not in your possession. Now these are those which are in your possession (according to Deut. 14:4), “the bull, the sheep, and the goat.” And these are those which are not in your possession (according to Deut. 14:5), “The deer, the gazelle, the roebuck, the wild goat, the ibex, the antelope, and the mountain sheep.” I did not burden you, nor did I tell you to go up into the mountains or tire yourselves out in the fields in order to bring Me a sacrifice from those [which are not in your possession]. Rather [your sacrifices come] from those which are in your possession, which grew up at your feeding trough. This is what is stated (in Lev. 22:27), “A bull or a sheep or a goat.”’”

[Another interpretation of (Lev. 22:27): A BULL OR A SHEEP < OR A GOAT >. This text is related] (to Micah 6:3): MY PEOPLE, WHAT HAVE I DONE TO YOU? AND HOW HAVE I WEARIED YOU? TESTIFY AGAINST ME.⁶⁰Tanh., Lev. 8:10; PRK 9:5; Lev. R. 27:6; Numb. R. 10:1. R. Aha said: TESTIFY AGAINST ME (i.e., prove me wrong by keeping the commandments), and receive a reward. (Exod. 20:13 [16]): DO NOT BEAR FALSE WITNESS AGAINST YOUR NEIGHBOR, and you will receive settlement of accounts. R. Samuel bar Nahman said: On three occasions the Holy One came to dispute with Israel, when the nations of the world rejoiced and said: How can these people dispute with their creator? Now he will finish them off. At that time, when he said to them (in Is. 1:18): PLEASE COME AND LET US DISPUTE TOGETHER, they rejoiced and said: Now he will finish them off. When the Holy One saw that they were rejoicing, he reversed < the punishment > for the better. He said (ibid.): THOUGH YOUR SINS BE AS SCARLET, < THEY SHALL BECOME AS WHITE > AS SNOW < …. > When the nations of the world heard this, they were astonished and said: Is this an answer? Or is this a rebuke? They said: He has only come to amuse himself with his children (and not to dispute with them seriously). The second < occasion > was when he said to them (in Micah 6:2): HEAR, O MOUNTAINS, THE LAWSUIT OF THE LORD < …; > [FOR THE LORD HAS A LAWSUIT WITH HIS PEOPLE, AND HE WILL DISPUTE WITH ISRAEL]. The nations of the world rejoiced and said: Now he will finish them off. When the Holy One saw that, he reversed < the punishment > for the better and said (in Micah 6:5–6): MY PEOPLE, PLEASE REMEMBER WHAT KING BALAK OF MOAB PLOTTED…. WITH WHAT SHALL I COME BEFORE THE LORD?⁶¹Cf. PR 48:1. The nations of the world were astonished and said: Is this an answer? Or is this a rebuke? He has only come to amuse himself with his children. The third < occasion > was when he said (in Hos. 12:3 [2]): THE LORD HAS A LAWSUIT WITH JUDAH [AND WILL PUNISH JACOB ACCORDING TO HIS WAYS]. The nations of the world said: Now the Holy One will finish them off. When the Holy One saw that, he reversed < the punishment > for the better. (Hos. 12:4 [3]:) IN THE WOMB HE GRABBED HIS BROTHER BY THE HEEL…. < The situation > is similar to a woman who complained to the judge about her son. When she {decided} [saw] that the judge was sentencing {her} [the] people to death, [she said]: If I make known the offense of my son, he will say to kill him. What did she do? She hung around [until] he had finished his cases. He said to her? What was your son's offense? She said to him: When he was in my womb, he kicked me. He said to her: But has he done anything to you now? She said: No. He said to her. Be gone! There is no legal offense at all. The nations of the world were astonished [and said]: He has {not} [only] come to amuse himself with his children.

Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman said: On three occasions, the Holy One blessed be He entered into a dispute [nitvake’aḥ] with Israel, and the nations of the world rejoiced with great joy but ultimately departed shamefacedly. When the prophet said to them: “Let us go now and reason together [venivakheḥa], says the Lord” (Isaiah 1:18) – the nations of the world rejoiced and said: How can they enter into a dispute with their Creator? Who can enter into a dispute with his Creator? Now He will eliminate them from the world. When the Holy One blessed be He saw that the nations of the world were joyful, he transformed it for [Israel] into good, as it is stated: “If your sins will be like scarlet, they will be whitened as snow; if they will be reddened like crimson, they will be like wool” (Isaiah 1:8). The nations of the world were astounded and said: Is that a response, is that rebuke; rather, He came only to amuse Himself with His children.
When the Holy One blessed be He said: “Hear, mountains, the Lord’s quarrel, and the strong foundations of the earth, [the Lord has a quarrel with His people,] and with Israel He will contend” (Micah 6:2), the nations of the world rejoiced and said: How can they enter into a dispute with their Creator? Who can enter into a dispute with his Creator? Now He will eliminate them from the world. When the Holy One blessed be He saw the joy of the nations of the world, he transformed it for them into good. That is what is written: “My people, what did I do to you and how did I tire you? Testify against Me” (Micah 6:3). “My people, remember now what [Balak king of Moav] counseled” (Micah 6:5) – the nations of the world were astounded and said: How can this be; He came only to amuse Himself with His children.
When the prophet said: “The Lord has a quarrel with Judah and will reckon with Jacob” (Hosea 12:3), the nations of the world rejoiced and said: How can they stand before their Creator? Who can enter into a dispute with his Creator? Now He will eliminate them from the world. When the Holy One blessed be He saw the joy of the nations of the world, he transformed it for them into good, as it is stated: “In the womb he was at his brother’s heels, [and in his strength he strove with God]” (Hosea 12:4).
Rabbi Yudan said: This is analogous to a widowed woman who was complaining about her son to a judge. Once she saw that the judge sentences people with fire and tar, with punishments and rods, she said: If I inform the judge of my son’s misdeeds, he will kill him. When the previous trial ended, he said to her: ‘Is this your son?’ He said to her: ‘How did this son of yours mistreat you?’ She said to him: ‘Sir, when he was in my womb he kicked me.’ He said to her: ‘This is not [cause for] a trial.’ That is what is written: “In the womb he was at his brother’s heels” (Hosea 12:4). Rabbi Elazar bar Rabbi Simon said: The God of Jacob our patriarch accorded him honor.⁹⁰The conclusion of the verse in Hosea is: “And in his strength he strove [sara] with God.” Rabbi Shimon interprets the word sara as related to serara, authority, and asserts that God accorded Jacob honor by granting him authority.

In the case of the sacrifices, also it is so. The Holy One, blessed be He, said: ‘The Ox is pursued by the lion, the goat is pursued by the leopard, the lamb by the wolf; do not offer unto Me from those that pursue but from those that are pursued.’ Hence if is written, “When a bullock, or a sheep, or a goat, is brought forth …It may be accepted for an offering” (Lev. 22:27).