Midrash su Salmi 75:78

“Return, return, O Shulamite; return, return, and we will gaze upon you. Why will you gaze at the Shulamite like at a dance of two companies?” (Song of Songs 7:1)
“Return, return, O Shulamite,” Rabbi Shmuel bar Ḥiyya bar Yudan [said] in the name of Rabbi Ḥanina: Four times “return,” is written here, corresponding to the four kingdoms that rule over Israel. Israel comes under their control unscathed and emerges unscathed. “The Shulamite,” a nation in whose midst the eternal One who lives in peace [shalom] moves about; that is what is written: “I have moved about in a tent and a Tabernacle” (II Samuel 7:6).¹God rested His presence in the Tabernacle in the midst of Israel. The Tabernacle resided in four places in the Land of Israel: Gilgal, Shilo, Nov, and Givon, corresponding to the four times “return” is written here, as though the word Shulamite is written with each one (Maharzu, Bereshit Rabba 66:2).
Another matter, “the Shulamite,” a nation to whom [a blessing] concluding with peace is [recited] each day, just as it says: “And grant you peace [shalom]” (Numbers 6:26). Alternatively, “the Shulamite,” the nation that I am destined to settle in an abode of peace; that is what is written: “My people will live in a peaceful abode…” (Isaiah 32:18). Another matter, “the Shulamite,” the nation to whom I extend peace; that is what is written: “Behold, I will extend peace toward it” (Isaiah 66:12).
Rabbi Elazar bar Rabbi Maron said: A nation that completes [mashlemet] the stability of the world, both in this world and in the World to Come. Rabbi Yehoshua of Sikhnin said in the name of Rabbi Levi: A nation that all the good of the word comes only due to its merit. That is what is written: “God will give you from the dew of the heavens, and from the fat of the earth” (Genesis 27:28); “you,” the matter is dependent upon you and your merit, as it is written: “The Lord will open for you His good storehouse” (Deuteronomy 28:12), the matter is dependent upon you and your merit.
Rabbi Shmuel bar Tanḥum and Rabbi Ḥanan, the son of Rabbi Berekhya from Botzra, [said] in the name of Rabbi Yirmeya: The nation that made peace between Me and My world, as had they not accepted My Torah, I would have returned My world to emptiness and disorder, as Huna said in the name of Rabbi Aḥa: It is written: “The earth and all its inhabitants melt away” (Psalms 75:4). Had Israel not stood before Mount Sinai and said: “Everything that the Lord has said, we will perform and we will heed” (Exodus 24:7), the world would have begun to disintegrate. Who buttressed the world? It is I [anokhi], as it is stated: “I [anokhi] set its pillars firm, Selah” (Psalms 75:4); by the merit of: “I [anokhi] am the Lord your God” (Exodus 20:2), I set its pillars firm.²God caused the pillars of the world to be firm in the merit of the people of Israel accepting the Ten Commandments, the first of which was “I am the Lord your God” (Etz Yosef).

It has been taught on the authority of R. Simeon the son of Lakish: Why does Scripture say of the creation process (simply) first day, second day, third day, fourth day, fifth day, the sixth day, adding the definite article (heh)⁵The numerical value of heh is five. only in this instance, so that it reads the sixth day? This is to teach us, the rabbi explained, that God made an agreement with the works of creation in which he declared: If Israel accepts the Torah, in which there are five books, well and good, but if not I will return you to a state unformed and void (Gen. 1:2). Hence the sons of Korah exclaimed: When the earth and the inhabitants thereof trembled, I Myself established the pillars of it (Ps. 75:4). The word pillars in this verse refers to the Torah, which the Holy One, blessed be He, revealed at Sinai.

“It was during the days when the judges judged, there was a famine in the land. A man from Bethlehem of Judah went to reside in the field of Moav, he, his wife, and his two sons” (Ruth 1:1).
“It was during the days when the judges judged” – Rabbi Yoḥanan began and said: “Hear My people and I will speak; [Israel, and I will forewarn you]” (Psalms 50:7). Rabbi Yoḥanan said: One forewarns only one who can hear it. Rabbi Yudan ben Rabbi Simon said: In the past they were called Israel like all other nations: “Savta, Rama, and Savtekha” (Genesis 10:7);¹These are the names of nations listed in Genesis, chap. 10. from here forward, they are called only My people. “Hear My people and I will speak” – from where did you merit to be called My people? From “and I will speak” – from what you spoke before Me at Sinai and said: “Everything that the Lord has spoken we will do and we will heed” (Exodus 24:7). Rabbi Yoḥanan said: “Hear My people” – [what I have said] in the past; “and I will speak” – in the future. “Hear My people” – in this world; “and I will speak” – in the World to Come. So I will have a response to the angels of the nations of the world who are destined to accuse them before Me and say: ‘Master of the universe, these worship idols and those worship idols, these engaged in forbidden sexual relations and those engaged in forbidden sexual relations, these spilled blood and those spilled blood, and these are going down to the Garden of Eden and those are going down to Gehenna?’
At that time, the advocate of Israel is silenced. That is what you say: “At that time Mikhael will stand” (Daniel 12:1). Is there sitting on high? Did Rabbi Ḥanina not say: There is no sitting on high, as it is written: “I approached one of those standing [kamaya]” (Daniel 7:16). What is this language kamaya? Standing [kayama], as it is written: “Seraphim stood above Him” (Isaiah 6:2), and it is written: “The entire host of heaven standing in His presence on His right hand and on His left” (see I Kings 22:19). And you say “will stand”?²Since angels always stand, what does it mean that the angel Mikhael will stand at that moment? [Rather,] what is “will stand”? It is stand silent, as you say: “Shall I wait, because they do not speak, amdu] and do not answer>?” (Job 32:16).
The Holy One blessed be He says to him: ‘Do you stand silent and not advocate on behalf of My children? By your life, I will speak in support of their righteousness and rescue My children.’ What righteousness? Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Yoḥanan, one says: Due to the righteousness that you established My world because you accepted My Torah, as had you not accepted My Torah, I would have restored it [the world] to emptiness and disorder, as Rabbi Huna said in the name of Rabbi Aḥa: “Earth and all its inhabitants dissolve, [I set its pillars, selah]” (Psalms 75:4). The world would have already dissolved, had Israel not stood before Mount Sinai…³Referring to a midrash that appears in Shir HaShirim Rabba 1:9: “If Israel had not stood on Mount Sinai and said: ‘Everything that the Lord has spoken we will do and we will heed’ (Exodus 24:7), the world would have dissolved and returned to emptiness and disorder.” The midrash there then continues as it does here. And who established the world? “I [anokhi] set its pillars” (Psalms 75:4). Due to the merit of anokhi, “I set its pillars, selah.”⁴Anokhi is the first word of the Ten Commandments. In other words, due to the merit of Israel’s future acceptance of the Ten Commandments and the entire Torah, God established the foundations of the world. One said: Due to the righteousness you did for yourselves in accepting My Torah, as had you not done so, I would have eliminated you from among the nations.
“God; I am your God” (Psalms 50:7) – Rabbi Yoḥanan said: It is sufficient for you that I am your patron. Reish Lakish said: Although I am your patron, how does My patronage help at trial?⁵The midrash is responding to the repetition in the verse: “God; I am your God.” God [Elohim] represents the attribute of justice, and the verse thus presents a tension between God being strictly just and God being particularly Israel’s God, i.e., their patron.
Rabbi Shimon bar Yoḥai taught: I am the God for all humankind, but I have designated My name only upon My people Israel. I am not called the God of all the nations, but rather, the God of Israel. “God [Elohim]; I am your God” – Rabbi Yudan interpreted the verse in reference to Moses: The Holy One blessed be He said to Moses: ‘Even though I called you “god to Pharaoh” (Exodus 7:1), “I am your God” – I am above you.’ Rabbi Abba bar Yudan interpreted the verse in reference to Israel: Although I called you god, as it is stated: “I said you are godlike [elohim]” (Psalms 82:6), “I am your God” – know that I am above you. The Rabbis interpreted the verse in reference to judges: Even though I called you elohim, as it is stated: “Do not curse elohim” (Exodus 22:27), know that I am above you. Then He said to Israel: ‘I accorded honor to the judges and called them elohim, and they demean them. Woe unto a generation that judges their judges.’

(Lev. 9:1) “And it came to pass on the eighth day….” This text is related (to Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers, ‘Do not make merry….’” What is the meaning of [the words], “I say to the merrymakers (rt.: hll), ‘do not make merry (rt.: hll)?’”⁴This root can also mean “act with abandon” and is to be taken in that sense here. For another interpretation of the word, see Lev. R. 20:2. [The verse refers] to whoever sings in a mahanaim dance (mahol),⁵As in Cant. 7:1 [6:13]. In comparing these two words, the midrash assumes that both words come from the root HLL and ignores the fact that in the first case the H is a he while in the second case the H is a het. and so it says (in Jud. 21:21), “to dance (lehol) in the dances.” [Because no happiness endures for a mortal] (Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers, ‘Do not make merry (rt.: hll).’” Why? The one who is happy today shall not be happy tomorrow; and the one who is depressed today shall not be depressed tomorrow. And so it says (in Eccl. 2:2), “Of laughter I said, ‘It is mad (rt.: hll)….’”⁶Cf. PRK 26:2–3. Are you willing to understand? As behold, even the happiness of the Holy One, blessed be He, did not endure. When? When the Holy One, blessed be He, created His world. He was very happy, as stated (in Ps. 104:31), “the Lord shall be happy in His works.” It also says (in Gen. 1:31), “Then God saw everything which He had made; and behold, it was very good.” [These verses are] to teach you that the Holy One, blessed be He, found pleasure in and took pride in His works. Then He gave the first Adam an easy commandment, but he did not fulfill it. Immediately He rendered him a verdict⁷Gk.: apophasis. [of death], as stated (in Gen. 3:19), “for dust you are, and unto dust you shall return.” So He, as it were, did not remain in His happiness but said, “I created everything only for the human, and now he dies. What pleasure is there for Me? [Now surely if the Holy One, blessed be He,] did not remain [happy], how much the less shall people [remain happy! It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers, ‘do not make merry.’”] How happy Abraham was! He was blessed in the world, magnified, slew some kings and handed over heaven and earth to the Holy One, blessed be He. Also when the Holy One, blessed be He, gave him a son at age one hundred, he circumcised him and reared him. Then finally he was told (in Gen. 22:2), “Please take your son, your only son…, [and go unto the land of Moriah,] and offer him there as a burnt offering.” So he made a three-day journey, as stated (in Gen. 22:4), “On the third day….” When he returned from Mount Moriah, he buried Sarah. He did not find a place to bury her until he bought one for four hundred silver shekels. Then after that, old age came upon him. Now surely if such was the case with Abraham the righteous, how much the more is it the case with the wicked! Isaac did not remain in his happiness: He escaped from the sword and from the men of Gerar. And [God] informed them about who he was, so that they came to him. Thus it is stated (in Gen. 26:26, 28), “Then Abimelech came unto him from Gerar […. And they said, ‘We have clearly seen that the Lord is with you.’]” But he did not remain in his happiness. Rather (according to Gen. 27:1), “Now it came to pass, that when Isaac was old and his eyes were too weak to see.” So just as [this loss of happiness] happened in the case of Isaac the burnt offering of the Holy One, blessed be He, (according to Gen. 22:2), how much the more does it happen in the case of the wicked! Jacob was the first-born of the Holy One, blessed be He, as stated (in Exod. 4:22), “Israel is My first-born son.” How happy he was! He saw a ladder, and (according to Gen. 28:12-13) “the angels of god were ascending and descending [….] And behold, the Lord stood upon it and said, I am the Lord….” Then he went to Laban, fled from Esau, became Laban's servant for twenty years and in the end became wealthy, sired children and returned in peace. He also met Esau and was saved from him, and paid his vow. But in the end he did not remain in his happiness. Instead (according to Gen. 34:1), “Now Dinah [the daughter whom Leah had borne to Jacob] went out…,” and was raped]. There also came upon him the trouble over Joseph. Now surely if Jacob the righteous – one to whom the Holy One, blessed be He, had said, “In whom I will be glorified,” as stated (in Is. 49:3), “Israel, in whom I will be glorified” – did not remain in his happiness, how much the less will the wicked [so remain! It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers, ‘Do not make merry.’”] How happy Joshua was! He slew thirty-one kings, gave Israel the land to possess, and distributed it. In addition all Israel gave him a [helping] hand and said (in Josh. 1:18), “Anyone who disobeys your command… [shall be put to death.” Such an honor was] something of which [even] Moses our master did not merit. Still he (i.e., Joshua) did not remain in his happiness, but rather died childless. It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers, ‘Do not make merry.’” How happy Eli was, when he was king, chief justice, and high priest! It is so stated (in I Sam. 1:9), “now Eli [the priest] was sitting on the throne by the doorpost of the Temple of the Lord.” “Now Eli the priest was sitting on the throne,” because he was king. [He was] “by the doorpost of the Temple of the Lord,” because he was chief justice. Still he did not remain in his happiness. Instead (according to I Sam. 4:18), “And it came to pass that when he (i.e., a messenger) mentioned the ark of God, he (i.e., Eli) fell backward from off the throne….” Moreover, his two sons, Hophni and Phinehas died. So just as this [shift in fortune] happened with Eli the righteous, how much the more [does it happen with] the wicked! You find neither man nor woman who saw joys like Elisheba bat Amminadab, [the wife of Aaron, as stated (in Exod. 6:23), “And Aaron took for a wife Elisheba bat Amminadab”].⁸PRK 26:2; Zev. 102a; Tanh. (Buber), Lev. 6:2. She saw her husband become high priest serving in the high priesthood and [as a] prophet. In addition, Moses, her husband's brother, was king and prophet. Moreover, her sons were deputies [to the high priest] in the priesthood, and her brother Nahshon was head of all of the princes of Israel.⁹According to Numb. 10:13, Nahshon was in command of the troops of Judah, and the troops of Judah headed those of the other tribes. See also Numb. 2:3; I Chron. 2:10. Still she did not remain in her happiness. Rather, when two of her sons went in to offer a sacrifice, (according to Lev. 10:2,) “Fire came forth from before the Lord and consumed them, so that they died before the Lord.” It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers, ‘Do not make merry.’” And so Solomon said (in Eccl. 2:2), “Of laughter I said, ‘It is mad.’” There is a story about one of the great Babylonian [scholars], who married off his son,¹⁰PRK 26:2; Lev. R. 20:2. and made a great banquet for the sages. He said to his son, “Go up and bring us a jar of such and such a wine from the attic.” He went up to the attic. [There] a snake [from] among the jars bit him, and he died. His father remained with those who were reclining [at his table]. So he delayed and did not come. [Finally,] his father said, “Let me go up and see what my son is doing.” His father went up [and] found him cast down dead among the jars. What did that saint do? He waited by himself until the guests had eaten and drunk sufficiently. When they had finished, he said, “You came to say a bridegrooms' blessing over my son. [But instead] say a mourners' blessing over him. You came to bring my son to the wedding canopy. [Instead] bring him to [his] grave.” They said about R. Zakkay of Kabul and they opened about him (in the words of Eccl. 2:2), “Of laughter I said, ‘It is mad; and what does joy do?’”

R. Levy opened (with Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers (la-holelim), ‘Do not make merry;’” [‘la-holelim’ means] those who create confusion (ma'arbavya').¹⁴PRK 26(27):3; Lev. R. 20:2. These are the ones whose heart is full of evil intrigues (holhaliyot).¹⁵Although the main text reads holhaliyot, Buber cites the word in his notes as the more traditional halholiyot. In either case, whatever the spelling, the midrash interprets holelim and holhaliyot as coming from the same root. R. Levi called them "woe-makers";¹⁶Dehonayya’ [zehonayya’]. The word seems coined as a pun on “merrymakers” (holelim). See Jastrow, p. 373, s.v., WYNY’. these are the ones who bring woe (alelay) into the world. (Ps. 75:5, cont.:) “To the wicked, do not lift up the horn.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to the evil ones, “The righteous have not been happy in My world, so would you seek to be happy in My world? The first Adam was not happy in My world, so would you seek to be happy in My world?” R. Levi said in the name of R. [Simeon] ben Menasya], “The round of the first Adam's heel outshone¹⁷Literally: Made dim [by comparison]. the sphere of the sun.”¹⁸PRK 4:4; 12:1; 26(27):3; PR 14:10; Lev. R. 20:2. And do not be surprised at this. According to universal custom, when a person makes two small plates,¹⁹Gk.: diskarion. one for himself and one for his household, whose does he make the more beautiful? Is it not his own? So the first Adam was created for the service of the Holy One, blessed be He, but the sphere of the sun was created for the service of mortals. Is it not all the more certain that the round of the first Adam's heel outshone the sphere of the sun? Now if the round of Adam's heel outshone [it], how much the more [must] the countenance²⁰Gk.: charakter; or possibly krystallos; Lat. crystallum. of his face [have outshone it]. R. Levi said in the name of R. Hama bar Hanina, “The Holy One, blessed be He, set up thirteen canopies for the first Adam in the Garden of Eden, as stated (in Ezek. 28:13), ‘You were in Eden, the garden of God, every precious stone was your covering; sapphire, turquoise….’” R. Shimon ben Laquish said, “Eleven.” Our masters said, “Ten.” And they do not disagree. The one that made thirteen of them, makes three out of “every precious stone was your covering”; the one who made them eleven, makes one out of it; and the one that makes ten of them, does not make any from them. Then after all this glory, [he was told] (in Gen. 3:19), “for dust you are and unto dust you shall return.” Abraham was not happy in My world, so would you seek to be happy in My world? Abraham had a son born to him at the end of a hundred years. Then the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him (in Gen. 22:2), “Please take your son….” So he journeyed, as written (in vs. 4), “And on the third day [Abraham] lifted [his eyes and saw]….” What did he see? He saw a cloud joined to the mountain. He said to his son, “My son, do you see what I see…?”²¹See Tanh. (Buber), Gen. 4:46, and the note there. This is that which is written (in Gen. 23:2), “and Abraham come to mourn for Sarah and weep for her.” From where had he [just] come? He had [just] come from Mount Moriah.²²Eccl. R. 9:7:2. The Holy One, blessed be He, as it were, was not happy in His world, so should people seek to be happy in His world? "The Lord [was] happy in His works" is not written here (in Ps. 104:31), but “let the Lord be happy [in His works].” And when will He rejoice in His works? When He will rejoice in the actions of the righteous in the world to come.²³See M. Pss. 75:2. Israel was not happy in My world, so would you seek to be happy in My world? "Israel [was] happy in its Maker" is not written here (in Ps. 149:2), but “Let Israel be happy in its Maker,” because it is in the future that they are going to be happy in the Holy One, blessed be He. It is therefore written (in Ps. 75:5), “I say to the merrymakers, ‘Do not make merry.’”

Our Rabbis were taught: Whence do we infer that we should mention the Patriarchs [in the prayer of Amida]? It is written (Ps. 29, 1) Ascribe unto the Lord, ye sons of the mighty. And whence do we infer that we should mention [in the Amida the power [of God]? It is written (Ib.) Ascribe unto the Lord glory and strength. And whence do we infer that the K'dusha [His Holiness] must be mentioned? It is written (Ib. 2) Ascribe unto the Lord the glory of His name; bow down to the Lord in the beauty of holiness. And what reason had they for placing the Benediction of Wisdom [fourth] after the Benediction K'dusha? Because it is said (Is. 29, 23) Then will they sanctify the Holy One of Jacob, and the God of Israel will they reverence; and immediately follows: They also that were erring in spirit shall acquire understanding. And what reason had they in placing the Benediction concerning Repentance after Wisdom? Because it is written (Is. 6, 10) Lest his heart understand, and he will repent, and be healed. If so, we ought then to mention the section treating with Healing after Repentance [the sixth, instead of the eighth benediction]? This you cannot assume, for it is written (Ib. 55, 7) And let him return unto the Lord, and he will have mercy upon him; and unto our God, for He will abundantly pardon. The section of Pardon is therefore arranged after Repentance. But why did they desire to rely on this [verse], and not rely on the former? Because there is another passage to the same effect (Ps. 103, 3) Who forgiveth all thy iniquities, who healeth all thy diseased, who redeemeth from the pit thy life. This means to say that both redemption and healing come after forgiveness. But there is a passage (Is. 6, 10) He will repent and be healed? [Hence healing follows repentance]? This healing, however, does not refer to disease, but to forgiveness. And what reason had they in arranging the prayer for Redemption in the seventh Benediction? Said Raba: "Because Israel is destined to be redeemed in the seventh (Sabbatical) year, it was therefore designated in the seventh benediction. But has not the master said that in the sixth [of the Sabbatical years], there will be different rumors, in the seventh year of the Sabbatical years [great] wars will break out, and at the close of the seventh year Mesiah b. David will appear? Hence in the seventh will there be war and not redemption. War will mark the beginning of the redemption. And what reason had they for arranging the prayer for Healing in the eighth Benedictions? "Because," said R. Akiba, "circumcision takes place on the eighth day, and requires healing; it was therefore designated in the seventh Benediction." And what reason had they for arranging the prayer for the Blessing of the Year in the ninth Benediction? "This prayer," said R. Alexandri, "is against those who raise prices, as it is written (Ps. 10, 15), Break Thou the arm of the wicked, etc. And David also said it in the ninth chapter." And what reason had they for arranging the prayer for the Reunion of the Exile after the Benediction of the Blessing [of the harvest] of the Year? Because it is written (Ezek. 36, 8) But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall send forth your boughs, and your fruit shall ye bear for my people Israel; for they are near at hand to come. And as soon as the reunion of the exile will take place, there will be the punishment of the wicked, as it is said (Is. 1, 25) I will turn my hand against thee, and purge away as with lye thy dross. And further (26) it is written: I will restore thy judges as at the first, and thy counsellors as at the beginning. After the judgment of the wicked there shall no more exist any sinners. This includes the arrogant, as it is said (Ib.) But destruction shall come over transgressors and sinners together. And those that forsake the Lord shall perish, and when sinners will cease to exist, the strength of the righteous is exalted; as it is written (Ps. 75, 11) And all the strength of the wicked will I hew off, but the strength of the righteous shall be exalted. Righteous proselytes are included among the righteous; as it is said (Lev. 19, 32) Before the hoary head shalt thou rise up, and honor the old man. And immediately it follows: If a stranger sojourn with thee, ye shall not vex him. And where will their horn be exalted? In Jerusalem; as it is said (Ps. 122, 6) Pray ye for the peace of Jerusalem; may those that love ye prosper. And as soon as Jerusalem will be rebuilt David will come (Fol. 18) as it is said (Hos. 3, 5) After that will the children of Israel return and seek for the Lord their God and David their king. And together with David will come prayer, as it is said (Is. 57, 7) Even these will I bring to My holy mountain, and make them joyful in My house of prayer. And as soon as prayer comes, service in the Temple will come with it, as it is said further: Their burnt-offerings and their sacrifices shall be accepted upon My altar. And as soon as service comes, there will come a thanksgiving, as it is said (Ps. 50, 23) Who so offereth thanksgiving glorifieth Me. And what reason had they for placing the Blessing of the Priests after the Benediction of Thanks giving? Because it is written (Lev. 9, 22) And Aaron lifted up his hands toward the people, and blessed them, and came down after he had offered the sin-offering and burnt-offering and peace-offering. Why not say that he blessed them before the service? You cannot possibly think so; for it is written: He came down after he had offered — it is not written to offer, but after offering. Then why not say it immediately after the Benediction concerning the [restoration of the Temple] Service? You cannot possibly think so, because it is written: Whoso offereth the thanksgiving (glorifieth Me. And why did they desire to rely on this [verse], and not rely on the former? Because common sense teaches that service and thanksgiving are the same thing. And what reason had they for placing [the Benediction concerning] Peace after the Blessing of Priests? Because it is written (Num. 6, 21) And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel and I will bless them; i.e., the blessing of the Holy One, praised be He! is peace, as it is said (Ps. 29, 11) The Lord will bless His people with peace. [Hence the arrangement of the Amida or Eighteen Benedictions.] Now [let us see], if one hundred and twenty elders, among whom there were many prophets, have arranged the Eighteen Benedictions in accordance with their orders, why was it necessary that Simon of Peculi should rearrange them? They had been forgotten, therefore he reintroduced the order.

“He severed in his enflamed wrath all the horn of Israel; He retracted His right hand from before the enemy. He burned in Jacob like flaming fire, consuming all around” (Lamentations 2:3).
“He severed in his enflamed wrath all the horn of Israel.” There are ten horns: the horn of Abraham, the horn of Isaac, the horn of Joseph, the horn of Moses, the horn of Torah, the horn of priesthood, the horn of Levites, the horn of prophecy, the horn of the Temple, the horn of Israel, and some say, the horn of the Messiah.
The horn [keren] of Abraham, as it is stated: “My beloved had a vineyard in a fruitful corner [keren]” (Isaiah 5:1).⁷⁷The Sages identify the term “beloved” in the verse as referring to Abraham. See, similarly, Eikha Rabba Prologue 24; Eikha Rabba 1:1. The horn of Isaac, as it is stated: “Caught in the thicket by its horns” (Genesis 22:13). The horn of Joseph, as it is stated: “His horns are the horns of aurochs” (Deuteronomy 33:17). The horn of Moses, as it is written: “The skin of his face was radiant [karan]” (Exodus 34:29). The horn of Torah, as it is written: “Rays [karnayim] from His hand to him” (Habakkuk 3:4). The horn of priesthood, as it is written: “His horn is raised high in honor” (Psalms 112:9).⁷⁸This verse refers to honor [kavod], a term used particularly in regard to priests; see, e.g., Exodus 28:2, 40 (Maharzu). The horn of the Levites, as it is stated: “All of these were sons of Heiman, the king's seer in matters of God, to raise the horn” (I Chronicles 25:5).⁷⁹The reference is to a family of Levites. The horn of prophecy, as it is written: “My horn is exalted in the Lord” (I Samuel 2:1). The horn of the Temple, as it is written: “From the horns of the aurochs; answer me (Psalms 22:22).⁸⁰The midrash elsewhere (Midrash Tehillim 102) relates that David prayed to God that He save him from an auroch, and promised to build the Temple in return (Maharzu). The horn of Israel, as it is stated: “He raised a horn for His people” (Psalms 148:14). And some say the horn of the Messiah, as it is stated: “Exalt the horn of His anointed one” (I Samuel 2:10).⁸¹The word Messiah [mashiaḥ] literally means “anointed one.”
All of them were placed on the heads of the Israelites, and when they sinned they were taken from them. That is what is written: “He severed in His enflamed wrath all the horn of Israel.” They were given to the nations of the world. That is what is written: “Concerning the ten horns that were on its head, and the other that arose, and before which three fell” (Daniel 7:20), and it is written thereafter: “And the ten horns: From this kingdom, ten kings will arise, and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the earlier ones, and he will subdue three kings” (Daniel 7:24). When Israel repents, the Holy One blessed be He will restore them to their place. That is what is written: “All the horns of the wicked I will sever, while the horns of the righteous shall be raised” (Psalms 75:11). The horns that the Righteous One of the world severed, when will He restore them to their place? When the Holy One blessed be He exalts the horn of His anointed one, as it is written: “He will give strength to His king and exalt the glory of His anointed one” (I Samuel 2:10).
“He retracted His right hand from before the enemy.” Rabbi Azarya said in the name of Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Simon: When iniquities were the cause and the enemies entered Jerusalem, they took the mighty of Israel and bound their hands behind them. The Holy One blessed be He said: ‘I wrote in the Torah: “I will be with him in distress” (Psalms 91:15), and now My children are wallowing in distress and I am in comfort?’ As it were, “He retracted His right hand.”⁸²The Hebrew phrase in the verse, usually translated “He retracted His right hand,” can also be translated “He put His right hand behind Him.” God does not respond to the atrocities and indignities committed by the enemy to His people, as though His hands are tied behind His back.
Ultimately He revealed it to Daniel. That is what is written: “But you, go to the end” (Daniel 12:13). [Daniel] said to Him: ‘To give an accounting?’ The Holy One blessed be He said to him: “And rest” (Daniel 12:13). He said to Him: ‘Will I rest forever?’ He said to him: “You will stand” (Daniel 12:13). He said to Him: ‘With whom, with the righteous or with the wicked?’ He said: “To your fate” (Daniel 12:13), with the righteous. He said to Him: ‘“At the end of days [hayamim]” (Daniel 12:13),⁸³This is when all the dead, righteous and wicked, will arise for judgment. or at the end of the right hand [hayamin]?’⁸⁴This is when God will reveal His right hand and bring salvation to the righteous. He said to him: ‘To the end of the right hand; that right hand that is subjugated. I put an end to My right hand.⁸⁵I put an end to the restrictions on My right hand. When I redeem My children, I will have redeemed My right hand.’ That is what David said: “So that Your beloved ones be saved, deliver Your right hand and answer me” (Psalms 60:7).

E [agora que entendemos que, nem] o SANTO – Bendito Seja – permaneceu [feliz] muito menos as pessoas [permanecerão felizes!] E por [constatar, tal fato] foi dito [em Tehilim 75: 5] ...eu disse aos arrogantes: Não se vangloriem!…

E também lhe sobreveio sofrimento, pelo que ocorreu com Iossef. Certamente se Iáacov – o Justo por excelência, a quem o SANTO – Bendito Seja – disse, do qual me orgulho, como dito [em Ieshaiahu 49: 3] Israel, do qual me orgulho - mesmo assim, não permaneceu em sua felicidade; Muito mais e além nós que, em comparação, somos como o perverso! Daí, o sentido do que foi mencionado antes: “eu disse aos חוללים arrogantes, não se תהלו vangloriem” - de Tehilim 75: 5 – e como foi dito [Kohelet 2: 2] Sobre o riso, eu disse: Isso é מְהוֹלָל estúpido...

E quão feliz foi Iehoshua! Ele lutou as guerras de conquista da Terra, chegando a executar trinta e um reis no conflito, e deu a Israel a Terra para possuir e fez a distribuição do território. E adicionalmente, todo o povo de Israel lhe ofereceu auxílio dizendo, [Iehoshua 1: 18] qualquer um que desobedecer suas ordens...[receberá pena capital. Tamanha era a honra dada a ele] algo que nem mesmo Moshe nosso mestre, experimentou. E mesmo assim Iehoshua não permaneceu em sua felicidade. Em vez disso, ele morreu sem filhos. E, portanto foi dito [em Tehilim 75: 5] “eu disse aos חוללים arrogantes, não se תהלו vangloriem”

E mesmo assim, ela não permaneceu na sua felicidade. Em vez disso, quando seus dois filhos foram oferecer uma Oferta [tal qual registrado em Vaicrá 10: 2] Um fogo veio de perante o HaShem e os consumiu – deste modo eles morreram perante o HaShem – E por causa deste tipo de coisa que foi dito [em Tehilim 75: 5] “eu disse aos חוללים arrogantes, não se תהלו vangloriem”

(Lev. 9:1:) AND IT CAME TO PASS ON THE EIGHTH DAY…. This text is related (to Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY….⁴On this translation, See Jastrow, p. 373, s.v., WYNY’. What is the meaning of < the words >, I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS (rt.: HLL): DO NOT MAKE MERRY (THWLW, rt.: HLL)?⁵This root can also mean “act with abandon” and is to be taken in that sense here. So also in the parallel, Tanh., Lev. 3:2. For another interpretation of the word, see Lev. R. 20:2. < The verse refers > to whoever sings in a Mahanaim dance (MHWLH),⁶As in Cant. 7:1 [6:13]. In comparing THWLW and MHWLH, the midrash assumes that both words come from the root HLL and ignores the fact that in the first case the H is a he while in the second case the H is a het. And so it says (in Jud. 21:21): TO DANCE (LHWL) IN THE DANCES.

(Lev. 16:1:) NOW THE LORD SPOKE UNTO MOSES AFTER THE DEATH < OF AARON'S TWO SONS >. This text is related (to Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS (la-holelim): DO NOT MAKE MERRY…. < La-holelim means > "to those who create confusion (la-ma'arbavya')."¹⁴Tanh., Lev. 6:2; PRK 26(27):3; Lev. R. 20:2. These are the ones whose heart is full of evil intrigues (holhaliyot).¹⁵Although the main text reads holhaliyot, Buber cites the word in his notes as the more traditional halholiyot. In either case, whatever the spelling, the midrash interprets holelim and holhaliyot as coming from the same root. R. Levi called them "Woe-makers."¹⁶Dehonayya’ [zehonayya’]. The word seems coined as a pun on “merrymakers” (holelim). See Jastrow, p. 373, s.v., WYNY’. These are the < MERRYMAKERS (holelim) > who bring woe (alelay) into the world. (Ps. 75:5 [4], cont.:) TO THE WICKED, DO NOT LIFT UP THE HORN. The righteous have not been happy in my world, so would you seek to be happy in my world? [The first Adam was not happy in my world, so would you seek to be happy in my world?] R. Levi said in the name of R. Simeon [ben Menasya]: The round of the first Adam's heel outshone¹⁷Literally: Made dim < by comparison >. the sphere of the sun.¹⁸PRK 4:4; 12:1; 26(27):3; PR 14:10; as well as Tanh., Lev. 6:2; Lev. R. 20:2. [And do not be surprised at this. According to universal custom, when a person makes two small plates,¹⁹Gk.: diskarion. one for himself and one for his household, whose does he make the more beautiful? Is it not his own? So the first Adam was created for the service of the Holy One, but the sphere of the sun was created for the service of mortals. Is it not all the more certain that the round of the first Adam's heel outshone the sphere of the sun?] Now if the round of Adam's heel outshone < it >, how much the more < must > the countenance²⁰Gk.: charakter; or possibly krystallos; Lat. crystallum. of his face < have outshone it >. R. Levi said in the name of R. Hama bar Hanina: The Holy One set up thirteen canopies for the first Adam in the Garden of Eden, as stated (in Ezek. 28:13): YOU WERE IN EDEN, THE GARDEN OF GOD, EVERY PRECIOUS STONE WAS YOUR COVERING. Then after all this glory, < he was told > (in Gen. 3:19): FOR DUST YOU ARE AND UNTO DUST YOU SHALL RETURN. Abraham was not happy in my world, so would you seek to be happy in my world? Abraham had a son born to him at the end of a hundred years. Then the Holy One said to him (in Gen. 22:2): PLEASE TAKE YOUR SON, YOUR ONLY SON. So he journeyed, as written (in vs. 4): AND ON THE THIRD DAY [ABRAHAM LIFTED HIS EYES] AND SAW. What did he see? He saw a cloud joined to the mountain. He said to his son: My son, what do you see?²¹See above, Tanh. (Buber), Gen. 4:46, and the note there. He said to him: I see a beautiful mountain with a cloud joined to it. He said to his lads: Do you see anything? They said to him: We see a mountain and a hill. He said to them (in vs. 5): STAY HERE WITH ('M) THE DONKEY, < i.e., STAY HERE, YOU > PEOPLE ('M) WHO ARE LIKE THE DONKEY.²²So Yev. 62a; Ket. 111a; Qid. 104a; BQ 49a; Nid. 17a; Eccl. R. 9:7:1; PRE 31. See also Gen. R. 56:2; PR 40:6. He took his son Isaac and went up to the top of the mountain. Then he built the altar, arranged the wood, bound him upon the altar, and took the knife. If the Angel had not said to him (in vs. 12): DO NOT RAISE [YOUR HAND AGAINST THE LAD], he would have already been slaughtered. When he came to his mother, she said to him: What did your father do to you. He told her: Daddy took me, brought me up mountains, brought me down valleys, brought me up to the top of a particular mountain, and built an altar. So he told the whole story. If the Angel had not said to him (in Gen. 22:12): DO NOT RAISE [YOUR HAND AGAINST THE LAD], I would have already been slaughtered. She said to him: Woe (vay) to you, < my > poor son! If < the angel > had not said to him (in vs. 12): DO NOT RAISE < YOUR HAND >, you would have already been slaughtered! She did not succeed in finishing the sentence before her breath departed from her. It is so stated (in Gen. 23:2): AND ABRAHAM PROCEEDED TO MOURN FOR SARAH AND WEEP FOR HER. From where had he < just > come? He had < just > come from Mount Moriah.²³Eccl. R. 9:7:2.

{Because no happiness endures for a mortal,} (Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY (rt.: HLL). Why? The one who is happy today shall not be happy tomorrow; and the one who is depressed today shall not be depressed tomorrow. And so it says (in Eccl. 2:2): OF LAUGHTER I SAID: IT IS MAD (rt.: HLL)….⁷Cf. PRK 26:2–3. Are you willing to understand that even the happiness of the Holy One did not endure? When? When the Holy One created his world. He was very happy, as stated (in Ps. 104:31): MAY THE LORD BE HAPPY IN HIS WORKS. It also says (in Gen. 1:31): THEN GOD SAW EVERYTHING WHICH HE HAD MADE; AND BEHOLD, IT WAS VERY GOOD. < These verses are > to teach you that the Holy One found pleasure in and took pride in his works. Then he gave the first Adam an easy commandment, but he did not fulfill it. Immediately he rendered him a verdict⁸Gk.: apophasis. < of death >, as stated (in Gen. 3:19): FOR DUST YOU ARE, AND UNTO DUST YOU SHALL RETURN. So he, as it were, did not remain in his happiness but said: I created everything only for the human, and now he dies. What pleasure is there for me? [Now surely if the Holy One] did not remain < happy >, how much the less shall the children of Adam < remain happy >! [It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY.]

Israel was not happy in my world, so would you seek to be happy? "Israel was happy in its maker" is not written here (in Ps. 149:2), but LET ISRAEL [BE HAPPY IN ITS MAKER], because it is in the future that they are going to be happy in the Holy One. It is therefore written (in Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY.

{Isaac did not remain in his happiness.} [In the case of Isaac also, how happy he was!] The Holy One saved him from the sword and from {burning} [the fire] {and from the men of Gerar}. He also delivered him from the men of Gerar and informed them [about who he was, so that they came to him]. Thus it is stated (in Gen. 26:26, 28): THEN ABIMELECH CAME UNTO HIM FROM GERAR […. AND THEY SAID: WE HAVE CLEARLY SEEN THAT THE LORD IS WITH YOU.] But he did not remain in his happiness. Rather (according to Gen. 27:1): NOW IT CAME TO PASS, THAT WHEN ISAAC WAS OLD AND HIS EYES WERE TOO WEAK TO SEE. So just as < this loss of happiness > happened in the case of Isaac, (according to Gen. 22:2) the burnt offering of the Holy One, how much the more does it happen in the case of the wicked! [It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY.]

Jacob was the first-born of the Holy One, as stated (in Exod. 4:22): ISRAEL IS MY FIRST-BORN SON. How happy he was! He saw a ladder, and (according to Gen. 28:12) THE ANGELS OF GOD WERE ASCENDING AND DESCENDING, as they looked at him with the Holy One standing above it. It is so stated (in Gen. 28:13): AND BEHOLD, THE LORD STOOD UPON IT…. Then he went to Laban, fled from Esau, became Laban's servant for twenty years, and in the end became wealthy, sired children, and returned in peace. He also met Esau, was saved from him, and paid his vow. But in the end he did not remain in his happiness. Instead (according to Gen. 34:1): NOW DINAH < THE DAUGHTER WHOM LEAH HAD BORNE TO JACOB > WENT OUT…, < and was raped >. There also came upon him the trouble over Joseph. Now surely if Jacob the Righteous, one to whom the Holy One had said: In whom I will be glorified, as stated (in Is. 49:3): ISRAEL, IN WHOM I WILL BE GLORIFIED, did not remain in his happiness, how much the less will the wicked < so remain >! [It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY.]

How happy Joshua was! He slew thirty-one kings, gave Israel the land to possess, and distributed it. In addition all Israel gave him a < helping > hand and said (in Josh. 1:18): ANYONE WHO DISOBEYS YOUR COMMAND… < SHALL BE PUT TO DEATH >. < Such an honor was > something of which Moses our master was not worthy. Still he (i.e., Joshua) did not remain in his happiness but died childless. It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY.

How happy Eli was, when he was king, chief justice, and high priest! It is so stated (in I Sam. 1:9): NOW ELI [THE PRIEST] WAS SITTING ON THE THRONE BY THE DOORPOST OF THE TEMPLE OF THE LORD. [NOW ELI THE PRIEST WAS SITTING ON THE THRONE, because he was king. < He was > BY THE DOORPOST OF THE TEMPLE OF THE LORD, because he was chief justice]. Still he did not remain in his happiness. Instead (according to I Sam. 4:18): AND IT CAME TO PASS THAT WHEN HE (i.e., a messenger) MENTIONED THE ARK OF {THE LORD} [OF GOD], HE (i.e., Eli) FELL BACKWARD FROM OFF THE THRONE…. Moreover, his two sons, Hophni and Phinehas died. So just as this < shift in fortune > {happens with the righteous ones} [happened with Eli the Righteous], how much the more < does it happen with > the wicked! It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY.

You find neither man nor woman who saw joys like Elisheba bat Amminadab, [the wife of Aaron, as stated (in Exod. 6:23): AND AARON TOOK FOR A WIFE ELISHEBA BAT AMMINADAB.]⁹PRK 26:2; Zev. 102a; below, Tanh. (Buber), Lev. 6:2. She saw her husband become high priest serving in the high priesthood and prophet. In addition, Moses, her husband's brother, was king and prophet. Moreover, her sons were deputies < to the high priest > in the priesthood, and her brother Nahshon was head of all of the tribes of Israel.¹⁰According to Numb. 10:13, Nahshon was in command of the troops of Judah, and the troops of Judah headed those of the other tribes. See also Numb. 2:3; I Chron. 2:10. Still she did not remain in her happiness. Rather, when two of her sons went in to offer sacrifice, (according to Lev. 10:2) FIRE CAME FORTH FROM BEFORE THE LORD AND CONSUMED THEM, SO THAT THEY DIED BEFORE THE LORD. It is therefore stated (in Ps. 75:5 [4]): I SAY TO THE MERRYMAKERS: DO NOT MAKE MERRY.

Another matter, “on my bed at nights,” this is the night of Babylon. “I sought the one whom my soul loves,” this is Daniel; “I sought him, but did not find him.” “I will rise now, and circulate in the city, in the streets and in the squares. I will seek the one whom my soul loves,” this is Daniel. “I sought him, but I did not find him.” “The watchmen…found me,” these are the Chaldeans; “the one whom my soul loves,” this is Daniel. Where did he go? One says to a fast; and one says to a feast. The one who says to a fast, as he was pleading for mercy regarding the destruction of the Temple: “Now, our God, heed the prayer of Your servant” (Daniel 9:17). The one who says to a feast; to read the writing of Belshatzar; that is what is written: “Mene mene tekel ufarsin” (Daniel 5:25). Rabbi Ḥiyya the Great and Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta, Rabbi Ḥiyya said: Mene: mem, mem, tav, vav, samekh; nun, nun, kof, peh, yod; alef, alef, lamed, resh, nun.⁵The letters were ordered in columns of three and the final word divided into two columns, the result being:
ננקפי
Thus, in order to understand the writing, Daniel had to read each column from top to bottom. This is an allusion to the fact that the message came down from above. Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta said: Yod, tet, tav; yod, tet, tav; alef, dalet, kaf; peh, vav, gimmel, ḥet, mem, tet.⁶This inverts all the letters on the basis of the at bash cipher, in which alef, the first letter of the alphabet, is replaced with tav [at], the last letter; beit is replaced with shin, etc. This is also an allusion to the divine source of the message. The Rabbis say: Alef, nun, mem; alef, nun, mem; lamed, kof, tav; nun, yod, samekh, resh, peh, vav.⁷According to this opinion, the order of the letters in each word was reversed. Rabbi Meir says: In accordance with its plain meaning. Mene mene tekel ufarsin.⁸The words were written as they appear, and not in code. The reason the scholars other than Daniel could not decipher it is because the Hebrew letters were written in the Assyrian script, which was then adopted as the regular Hebrew script, and not in the more familiar ancient Hebrew script. God has counted [mana] the years of your kingdom and it has been completed.⁹Mene is written twice to indicate that God counted at the outset and counted again at present, and the time for the Babylonian kingdom had elapsed. God weighed [tekel]¹⁰Tav in Aramaic replaces the Hebrew shin; therefore tekel is the equivalent of shakal – weighed. on the scale...¹¹He weighed your good deeds and evil deeds and the result is that you do not have the requisite virtue to remain in power. He has divided [paras] your kingdom and given it…¹²He has given it to the Medes and the Persians.
At that moment all Israel assembled near Daniel and said to him: ‘Our master Daniel, all the dire and harsh prophecies that Jeremiah prophesied befell us, and the one positive prophecy that he prophesied in our regard: “For at the completion of seventy years for Babylonia, [I will remember you]” (Jeremiah 29:10), has not yet transpired.’ He said to them: ‘Bring me the book of Isaiah.’ He began reading until he reached this verse: “A prophecy of the wilderness of the sea, like gale force winds in the south” (Isaiah 21:1). If sea, why wilderness, if wilderness, why sea? Rather, these are the four kingdoms that are likened to beasts, as it is written: “And four great beasts” (Daniel 7:3).¹³The reference is to the four kingdoms who would subjugate Israel, of which Babylonia was the first. Rabbi Ḥanina said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: “Each different from the other” (Daniel 7:3); the damage that each causes is different from the other. If you merit, from the sea; if not, from the forest; just as these beasts, that ascend from the sea, do not cause damage and those that emerge from the forest do cause damage, so too, if you merit, the nations will not rule over you. On a similar note, “the boar from the forest [miyaar] will gnaw at it” (Psalms 80:14). There is a suspended ayin.¹⁴The ayin in the word miyaar is written such that it is small and suspended over the other letters. This is so that the word can be read without the ayin, as river [yeor], or with the ayin, as forest [yaar]. If you merit, it will be from the river [yeor] and if not, from the forest [yaar]. Just as the beast that ascends from the sea does not cause damage, [and that which] emerges from the forest causes damage, so it is.¹⁵With the nations of the world.
“Like sweeping gale force winds in the south” (Isaiah 21:1), Rabbi Levi said: You do not have any windstorm that is as severe as the windstorm that comes from the north and causes the people located in the south to turn white from terror. What is this?¹⁶What is the prophet referring to with this imagery? This is Nebuchadnezzar, who arose from the north and destroyed the Temple that was located in the south. “Coming from the wilderness [from a fearful land]” (Isaiah 21:1). From where did he come? Rabbi Ḥanina said: He came from a desolate path in the wilderness, [as it is stated]: “Coming from the wilderness from a fearful land.”
“A harsh vision was told to me” (Isaiah 21:2). There are ten expressions for prophecy: Vision [ḥazon], prophecy [nevua], preaching [hatafa], speech [dibur], saying [amira], command [tzivui], burden [masa], parable [mashal], poetry [melitza], riddle [ḥida]. Which is the harshest of all? Rabbi Eliezer says: Vision [ḥazon] is the harshest, as it is stated: “A harsh vision [ḥazut] was told to me” (Isaiah 21:2). Rabbi Yoḥanan said: Speech [dibur] is the harshest, as it is stated: “The man, lord of the land, spoke [diber] harshly with us” (Genesis 42:30). The Rabbis say: Burden [masa] is the harshest, in its plain sense: “Like a heavy burden [masa]” (Psalms 38:5).
“The traitor betrays and the plunderer plunders. Ascend [ali], Eilam! Besiege, Media!” (Isaiah 21:2). The trouble of Eilam has already disappeared [nitalem]. “Besiege [tzuri], Media,” the trouble [tzara] of Media has already been created [notzera]. “All its sighing I ended” (Isaiah 21:2); all the sighing caused by Babylon. “Therefore my loins are filled with trembling” (Isaiah 21:3), Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said: Because they sensed some of the trouble that the kingdoms would cause, our ancestors became restive. Initially, “…to circumvent the land of Edom, and the soul of the people grew restive” (Numbers 21:4).¹⁷They grew uneasy as they traveled past Edom because they sensed the troubles that Edom, identified as Rome, would cause the Jewish people. Jeremiah said: “We bring our bread at the peril of our lives” (Lamentations 5:9). Daniel said: “I, Daniel, my spirit was distressed” (Daniel 7:15). Isaiah said: “Therefore my loins are filled with trembling” (Isaiah 21:3). We, who are engulfed within their innards for many days, many years, many eras, and many epochs, all the more so.
“Therefore, my loins are filled with trembling; pains have overcome me, like the pains of a woman in childbirth. I am confounded from hearing; I am frightened from seeing” (Isaiah 21:3). “I am confounded from hearing”—the sounds of blasphemies and curses of the wicked; that is what is written: “You have been haughty toward the Lord of heaven: and the vessels of His House…” (Daniel 5:23).
“I am frightened from seeing,” from seeing the tranquility of that wicked one; that is what is written: “King Belshatzar made a great banquet” (Daniel 5:1). What is “great”? Rabbi Ḥama ben Rabbi Ḥanina said: Greater than that of his God. He said to them: ‘Your omer, how was it prepared for sacrifice?’ They said: ‘With thirteen sifters.’ He said to them: ‘But mine is with fourteen sifters.’
“My heart is bewildered” (Isaiah 21:4), this is the court, which erred in the calculation of one day.¹⁸They erred in the calculation of the end of the Babylonian exile, and were therefore bewildered as to why it had not yet ended. Their calculation as to the day of their redemption was incorrect. “Terror [palatzut] has frightened me” (Isaiah 21:4), Rabbi Pinḥas in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua said: You enjoyed my cup [peyali].¹⁹They ate and drank using the Temple vessels. Alternatively, palatzut, the mouth [peh] that spreads words of cynicism [letzut]; alternatively, “terror [palatzut] has frightened me,” because words of cynicism emerged.
“My night of desire, he has transformed into horror” (Isaiah 21:4), the night regarding which my soul was yearning for, for redemption, has been transformed into horror. “Setting the table” (Isaiah 21:5), you set the table,²⁰The midrash merely translated this Hebrew expression into Aramaic. The prophet is describing Belshatzar’s arrogant and elaborate feast in celebration of the fact that Israel, he assumed, would never be redeemed. “kindling the candelabrum” (Isaiah 21:5), you set up the candelabrum, you kindled the lamps.
“Arise princes” (Isaiah 21:5), these are Cyrus and Darius; “anoint the shield” (Isaiah 21:5), receive the kingdom.²¹Belshatzar arrogantly celebrated, but ultimately he was supplanted by Darius the Mede and Cyrus the Persian. Cyrus had said to Darius: ‘Reign before me.’ Darius said to Cyrus: ‘That is not what Daniel articulated: “Your kingdom is divided and given to Media and Persia” (Daniel 5:28), to Media first and to Persia thereafter. You should reign before me.’²²This implies that Media would rule before Persia. According to the extant text of the midrash, this is difficult to understand, as Cyrus the Persian would have been correct in offering Darius the first rule. Apparently the correct version is that Darius offered Cyrus first rule, and Cyrus responded that Darius should rule first based on the order implied in the verse in Daniel (Maharzu). When that wicked one²³Belshatzar. heard, he dispatched and said to his armies: ‘Any nation and kingdom that rebelled against me, we will invade them.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘Wicked one, you sent to everyone,²⁴You sent threats to all the nations who rebelled. did you perhaps send to me?²⁵Did you repent your sins in an attempt to revoke the decree that you will be stripped of your kingdom? By your life, the punishment of that man²⁶Belshatzar. will not come from anywhere else, but rather from Me.’ That is what is written: “For it is not from the east or the west…but God is the Judge; He humbles this one and elevates that one” (Psalms 75:7–8), He will humble Belshatzar and elevate Cyrus and Darius.
Cyrus and Darius were Belshatzar’s gatekeepers. When he heard these verses, he said to them: ‘Anyone whom you see here tonight, even if he says to you: I am the king, remove his head.’ It is not the way of kings to situate their lavatories within their halls, but rather outside their halls. His bowels were loose all that night and he went out and they did not notice him. When he entered, they noticed him. They said to him: ‘Who are you?’ He said to them: ‘I am the king.’ They said to him: ‘Is this not what the king commanded, that anyone whom we see here this night, even if he says to you: I am the king, remove his head?’ What did they do? They took a branch from the candelabrum and pierced his brain. That is what is written: “On that night, Belshatzar the Chaldean king was killed (Daniel 5:30).
At what hour was he killed? Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman, Rabbi Elazar said: At the time when sleep begins. Rabbi Shmuel said: When one can distinguish between a wolf and a dog. They do not disagree. The one who says: When sleep begins [says that Belshatzar] was convulsing that entire day, as it was attributed to him as part of his reign.²⁷He was struck at the beginning of the night, but since his reign included the calendar day that began that night, he did not actually die until the beginning of the following night (Matnot Kehuna). Some suggest that the text should read that he was convulsing all night and died in the morning (Rabbi David Luria). The one who says: When one can distinguish between a wolf and a dog [says that] he was dying all that night, as it was attributed to him as part of his reign.²⁸He was struck at the beginning of the night and convulsed into the morning, when there is enough light to recognize the difference between a wolf and a dog (Matnot Kehuna). Rabbi Binyamin ben Levi said: Like the time between one cup and another cup, one kingdom was replaced by another kingdom. That is what is written: “For a cup is in the hand of the Lord with foaming wine…He pours from it. [But the dregs are sucked, drunk by all the wicked of the earth]” (Psalms 75:9).
This is why the prophet mocks and says: “Go down and sit on the dust” (Isaiah 47:1). The punishment fits the crime; just as there: “The elders of the daughter of Zion will sit silently on the ground” (Lamentations 2:10), so here: “Go down and sit on the dust.” Rabbi Ḥunya said: So said Jerusalem to the daughter of Babylon: Old, worn out, repulsive harlot, go down. You consider yourself a virgin; you are old. “Sit on the ground without a chair” (Isaiah 47:1), your meriting that throne is null and void.
What merit did he have?²⁹By what merit did the Babylonian kings rule until that point? “At that time Merodakh Baladan, [son of Baladan, king of Babylon], sent [scrolls and a gift to Hezekiah; he had heard that he had become ill and recovered]” (Isaiah 39:1). They said that Merodakh was a sun worshipper, and he was accustomed to eat at the sixth hour and would sleep until the ninth hour. When the orb of the sun receded in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah,³⁰The sun moved backward ten hours as a sign that Hezekiah would recover from his illness (see II Kings 20:8–11). he slept and arose and found that it was morning. He sought to kill all of his guards. He said to them: ‘You let me sleep all day and all night?’ They said to him: ‘The day receded.’ He said to them: ‘Who was the God who caused it to recede?’ They said: ‘The God of Hezekiah caused it to recede.’ He said to them: ‘Is there a god greater than my god?’ They said to him: ‘The God of Hezekiah is greater than your god.’ He immediately sent scrolls and a gift to Hezekiah. That is what is written: “At that time Merodakh Baladan…sent.”
What did he write in them? Greetings to Hezekiah, greetings to the great God, greetings to Jerusalem. When the letters had been dispatched he reconsidered and said: ‘I acted improperly. I had the greetings to Hezekiah precede those to his God.’ Immediately, he arose from his throne, took three steps, recalled the letters and wrote other letters in their place. He wrote in them: Greetings to the great God of Hezekiah, greetings to Hezekiah, and greetings to Jerusalem. The Holy One blessed be He said: ‘You arose from your throne and took three steps in My honor; by your life, I will establish three cosmopolitan kings from you who will rule from one end of the world to the other.’ These are they: Nebuchadnezzar, Evil Merodakh, and Belshatzar. When they arose and blasphemed, the Holy One blessed be He eliminated any vestige of them from the world, and established others in their stead.
It is written: “Hezekiah rejoiced over them and he showed them his treasure house [beit nekhoto]” (Isaiah 39:2). What is beit nekhoto? Rabbi Imi said: It is the bite [nekhita] that he took from Sennacherib, and the plunder that he plundered from Sennacherib. He showed them a sword swallowing a sword.³¹He showed them weapons, each of which was superior to the one before (Matnot Kehuna). Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: He showed them houses adorned with ivory like wax.³²Magnificently carved, as though it had been wax melted and poured into a mold. Alternatively, the ivory was actually softened, like wax, so as to allow for its beautification (Rabbi David Luria). Rabbi Yehuda says: He showed them honey as hard as a rock.³³This was apparently honey of exceptional quality, which was very sweet or which could last for a long time or be transported easily. Rabbi Levi said: With this we go out to war and emerge victorious.³⁴He showed him the Ark in the Holy of Holies, and opened it and showed him the Tablets, and said that in the merit of the Torah, Israel is victorious in battle (Etz Yosef).
It is written: “Take millstones and grind flour” (Isaiah 47:2). Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: All the people grind wheat and you say: “Take millstones and grind flour”? Rather, so said Jerusalem to the daughter of Babylon: ‘Had it not been that they waged war against me from On High, could you have overcome me? Had He not “sent fire into my bones” (Lamentations 1:13), could you have overcome me? It is ground flour that you ground; it is a dead lion that you killed; it is a burnt abode that you burned.’ Another matter, “take millstones and grind flour,” in the past, others would grind for you, now, “take millstones and grind flour.”³⁵This hard labor is representative of the fact that Babylon will fall.
“Expose your braid” (Isaiah 47:2), be stripped of your dignity; this is the king, who is situated behind seven partitions. “Bare a leg [shovel], [expose a thigh to cross rivers]” (Isaiah 47:2), stand exposed to the current [shibolet] of the river.³⁶Instead of crossing on a ferry, you will wade through the river on foot like a poor person (Etz Yosef). “Cross rivers,” in the past you would cross in wagons of silver and gold, and now, “expose a thigh to cross rivers.” “Your nakedness will be exposed” (Isaiah 47:3), the punishment fits the crime. Just as there,³⁷When Babylon exiled Israel. “all who honored her demeaned her because they saw her nakedness” (Lamentations 1:8), so, here,³⁸In the downfall of Babylon. “your nakedness will be exposed.” Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: The Holy One blessed be He said: ‘I am destined to bring punishment upon the daughter of Babylon, and even though Daniel will seek mercy on its behalf, as it is written: “Redeem your sins with charity…” (Daniel 4:24), I will not listen to him.’ Why? “Our Redeemer, the Lord of hosts is His name” (Isaiah 47:4).³⁹Our redemption and the construction of the second Temple are contingent upon the downfall of Babylon.

Another matter, “on my bed at nights,” this is the night of Babylon. “I sought the one whom my soul loves,” this is Daniel; “I sought him, but did not find him.” “I will rise now, and circulate in the city, in the streets and in the squares. I will seek the one whom my soul loves,” this is Daniel. “I sought him, but I did not find him.” “The watchmen…found me,” these are the Chaldeans; “the one whom my soul loves,” this is Daniel. Where did he go? One says to a fast; and one says to a feast. The one who says to a fast, as he was pleading for mercy regarding the destruction of the Temple: “Now, our God, heed the prayer of Your servant” (Daniel 9:17). The one who says to a feast; to read the writing of Belshatzar; that is what is written: “Mene mene tekel ufarsin” (Daniel 5:25). Rabbi Ḥiyya the Great and Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta, Rabbi Ḥiyya said: Mene: mem, mem, tav, vav, samekh; nun, nun, kof, peh, yod; alef, alef, lamed, resh, nun.⁵The letters were ordered in columns of three and the final word divided into two columns, the result being:
ננקפי
Thus, in order to understand the writing, Daniel had to read each column from top to bottom. This is an allusion to the fact that the message came down from above. Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta said: Yod, tet, tav; yod, tet, tav; alef, dalet, kaf; peh, vav, gimmel, ḥet, mem, tet.⁶This inverts all the letters on the basis of the at bash cipher, in which alef, the first letter of the alphabet, is replaced with tav [at], the last letter; beit is replaced with shin, etc. This is also an allusion to the divine source of the message. The Rabbis say: Alef, nun, mem; alef, nun, mem; lamed, kof, tav; nun, yod, samekh, resh, peh, vav.⁷According to this opinion, the order of the letters in each word was reversed. Rabbi Meir says: In accordance with its plain meaning. Mene mene tekel ufarsin.⁸The words were written as they appear, and not in code. The reason the scholars other than Daniel could not decipher it is because the Hebrew letters were written in the Assyrian script, which was then adopted as the regular Hebrew script, and not in the more familiar ancient Hebrew script. God has counted [mana] the years of your kingdom and it has been completed.⁹Mene is written twice to indicate that God counted at the outset and counted again at present, and the time for the Babylonian kingdom had elapsed. God weighed [tekel]¹⁰Tav in Aramaic replaces the Hebrew shin; therefore tekel is the equivalent of shakal – weighed. on the scale...¹¹He weighed your good deeds and evil deeds and the result is that you do not have the requisite virtue to remain in power. He has divided [paras] your kingdom and given it…¹²He has given it to the Medes and the Persians.
At that moment all Israel assembled near Daniel and said to him: ‘Our master Daniel, all the dire and harsh prophecies that Jeremiah prophesied befell us, and the one positive prophecy that he prophesied in our regard: “For at the completion of seventy years for Babylonia, [I will remember you]” (Jeremiah 29:10), has not yet transpired.’ He said to them: ‘Bring me the book of Isaiah.’ He began reading until he reached this verse: “A prophecy of the wilderness of the sea, like gale force winds in the south” (Isaiah 21:1). If sea, why wilderness, if wilderness, why sea? Rather, these are the four kingdoms that are likened to beasts, as it is written: “And four great beasts” (Daniel 7:3).¹³The reference is to the four kingdoms who would subjugate Israel, of which Babylonia was the first. Rabbi Ḥanina said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: “Each different from the other” (Daniel 7:3); the damage that each causes is different from the other. If you merit, from the sea; if not, from the forest; just as these beasts, that ascend from the sea, do not cause damage and those that emerge from the forest do cause damage, so too, if you merit, the nations will not rule over you. On a similar note, “the boar from the forest [miyaar] will gnaw at it” (Psalms 80:14). There is a suspended ayin.¹⁴The ayin in the word miyaar is written such that it is small and suspended over the other letters. This is so that the word can be read without the ayin, as river [yeor], or with the ayin, as forest [yaar]. If you merit, it will be from the river [yeor] and if not, from the forest [yaar]. Just as the beast that ascends from the sea does not cause damage, [and that which] emerges from the forest causes damage, so it is.¹⁵With the nations of the world.
“Like sweeping gale force winds in the south” (Isaiah 21:1), Rabbi Levi said: You do not have any windstorm that is as severe as the windstorm that comes from the north and causes the people located in the south to turn white from terror. What is this?¹⁶What is the prophet referring to with this imagery? This is Nebuchadnezzar, who arose from the north and destroyed the Temple that was located in the south. “Coming from the wilderness [from a fearful land]” (Isaiah 21:1). From where did he come? Rabbi Ḥanina said: He came from a desolate path in the wilderness, [as it is stated]: “Coming from the wilderness from a fearful land.”
“A harsh vision was told to me” (Isaiah 21:2). There are ten expressions for prophecy: Vision [ḥazon], prophecy [nevua], preaching [hatafa], speech [dibur], saying [amira], command [tzivui], burden [masa], parable [mashal], poetry [melitza], riddle [ḥida]. Which is the harshest of all? Rabbi Eliezer says: Vision [ḥazon] is the harshest, as it is stated: “A harsh vision [ḥazut] was told to me” (Isaiah 21:2). Rabbi Yoḥanan said: Speech [dibur] is the harshest, as it is stated: “The man, lord of the land, spoke [diber] harshly with us” (Genesis 42:30). The Rabbis say: Burden [masa] is the harshest, in its plain sense: “Like a heavy burden [masa]” (Psalms 38:5).
“The traitor betrays and the plunderer plunders. Ascend [ali], Eilam! Besiege, Media!” (Isaiah 21:2). The trouble of Eilam has already disappeared [nitalem]. “Besiege [tzuri], Media,” the trouble [tzara] of Media has already been created [notzera]. “All its sighing I ended” (Isaiah 21:2); all the sighing caused by Babylon. “Therefore my loins are filled with trembling” (Isaiah 21:3), Rabbi Shimon ben Gamliel said: Because they sensed some of the trouble that the kingdoms would cause, our ancestors became restive. Initially, “…to circumvent the land of Edom, and the soul of the people grew restive” (Numbers 21:4).¹⁷They grew uneasy as they traveled past Edom because they sensed the troubles that Edom, identified as Rome, would cause the Jewish people. Jeremiah said: “We bring our bread at the peril of our lives” (Lamentations 5:9). Daniel said: “I, Daniel, my spirit was distressed” (Daniel 7:15). Isaiah said: “Therefore my loins are filled with trembling” (Isaiah 21:3). We, who are engulfed within their innards for many days, many years, many eras, and many epochs, all the more so.
“Therefore, my loins are filled with trembling; pains have overcome me, like the pains of a woman in childbirth. I am confounded from hearing; I am frightened from seeing” (Isaiah 21:3). “I am confounded from hearing”—the sounds of blasphemies and curses of the wicked; that is what is written: “You have been haughty toward the Lord of heaven: and the vessels of His House…” (Daniel 5:23).
“I am frightened from seeing,” from seeing the tranquility of that wicked one; that is what is written: “King Belshatzar made a great banquet” (Daniel 5:1). What is “great”? Rabbi Ḥama ben Rabbi Ḥanina said: Greater than that of his God. He said to them: ‘Your omer, how was it prepared for sacrifice?’ They said: ‘With thirteen sifters.’ He said to them: ‘But mine is with fourteen sifters.’
“My heart is bewildered” (Isaiah 21:4), this is the court, which erred in the calculation of one day.¹⁸They erred in the calculation of the end of the Babylonian exile, and were therefore bewildered as to why it had not yet ended. Their calculation as to the day of their redemption was incorrect. “Terror [palatzut] has frightened me” (Isaiah 21:4), Rabbi Pinḥas in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua said: You enjoyed my cup [peyali].¹⁹They ate and drank using the Temple vessels. Alternatively, palatzut, the mouth [peh] that spreads words of cynicism [letzut]; alternatively, “terror [palatzut] has frightened me,” because words of cynicism emerged.
“My night of desire, he has transformed into horror” (Isaiah 21:4), the night regarding which my soul was yearning for, for redemption, has been transformed into horror. “Setting the table” (Isaiah 21:5), you set the table,²⁰The midrash merely translated this Hebrew expression into Aramaic. The prophet is describing Belshatzar’s arrogant and elaborate feast in celebration of the fact that Israel, he assumed, would never be redeemed. “kindling the candelabrum” (Isaiah 21:5), you set up the candelabrum, you kindled the lamps.
“Arise princes” (Isaiah 21:5), these are Cyrus and Darius; “anoint the shield” (Isaiah 21:5), receive the kingdom.²¹Belshatzar arrogantly celebrated, but ultimately he was supplanted by Darius the Mede and Cyrus the Persian. Cyrus had said to Darius: ‘Reign before me.’ Darius said to Cyrus: ‘That is not what Daniel articulated: “Your kingdom is divided and given to Media and Persia” (Daniel 5:28), to Media first and to Persia thereafter. You should reign before me.’²²This implies that Media would rule before Persia. According to the extant text of the midrash, this is difficult to understand, as Cyrus the Persian would have been correct in offering Darius the first rule. Apparently the correct version is that Darius offered Cyrus first rule, and Cyrus responded that Darius should rule first based on the order implied in the verse in Daniel (Maharzu). When that wicked one²³Belshatzar. heard, he dispatched and said to his armies: ‘Any nation and kingdom that rebelled against me, we will invade them.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘Wicked one, you sent to everyone,²⁴You sent threats to all the nations who rebelled. did you perhaps send to me?²⁵Did you repent your sins in an attempt to revoke the decree that you will be stripped of your kingdom? By your life, the punishment of that man²⁶Belshatzar. will not come from anywhere else, but rather from Me.’ That is what is written: “For it is not from the east or the west…but God is the Judge; He humbles this one and elevates that one” (Psalms 75:7–8), He will humble Belshatzar and elevate Cyrus and Darius.
Cyrus and Darius were Belshatzar’s gatekeepers. When he heard these verses, he said to them: ‘Anyone whom you see here tonight, even if he says to you: I am the king, remove his head.’ It is not the way of kings to situate their lavatories within their halls, but rather outside their halls. His bowels were loose all that night and he went out and they did not notice him. When he entered, they noticed him. They said to him: ‘Who are you?’ He said to them: ‘I am the king.’ They said to him: ‘Is this not what the king commanded, that anyone whom we see here this night, even if he says to you: I am the king, remove his head?’ What did they do? They took a branch from the candelabrum and pierced his brain. That is what is written: “On that night, Belshatzar the Chaldean king was killed (Daniel 5:30).
At what hour was he killed? Rabbi Elazar and Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman, Rabbi Elazar said: At the time when sleep begins. Rabbi Shmuel said: When one can distinguish between a wolf and a dog. They do not disagree. The one who says: When sleep begins [says that Belshatzar] was convulsing that entire day, as it was attributed to him as part of his reign.²⁷He was struck at the beginning of the night, but since his reign included the calendar day that began that night, he did not actually die until the beginning of the following night (Matnot Kehuna). Some suggest that the text should read that he was convulsing all night and died in the morning (Rabbi David Luria). The one who says: When one can distinguish between a wolf and a dog [says that] he was dying all that night, as it was attributed to him as part of his reign.²⁸He was struck at the beginning of the night and convulsed into the morning, when there is enough light to recognize the difference between a wolf and a dog (Matnot Kehuna). Rabbi Binyamin ben Levi said: Like the time between one cup and another cup, one kingdom was replaced by another kingdom. That is what is written: “For a cup is in the hand of the Lord with foaming wine…He pours from it. [But the dregs are sucked, drunk by all the wicked of the earth]” (Psalms 75:9).
This is why the prophet mocks and says: “Go down and sit on the dust” (Isaiah 47:1). The punishment fits the crime; just as there: “The elders of the daughter of Zion will sit silently on the ground” (Lamentations 2:10), so here: “Go down and sit on the dust.” Rabbi Ḥunya said: So said Jerusalem to the daughter of Babylon: Old, worn out, repulsive harlot, go down. You consider yourself a virgin; you are old. “Sit on the ground without a chair” (Isaiah 47:1), your meriting that throne is null and void.
What merit did he have?²⁹By what merit did the Babylonian kings rule until that point? “At that time Merodakh Baladan, [son of Baladan, king of Babylon], sent [scrolls and a gift to Hezekiah; he had heard that he had become ill and recovered]” (Isaiah 39:1). They said that Merodakh was a sun worshipper, and he was accustomed to eat at the sixth hour and would sleep until the ninth hour. When the orb of the sun receded in the days of Hezekiah king of Judah,³⁰The sun moved backward ten hours as a sign that Hezekiah would recover from his illness (see II Kings 20:8–11). he slept and arose and found that it was morning. He sought to kill all of his guards. He said to them: ‘You let me sleep all day and all night?’ They said to him: ‘The day receded.’ He said to them: ‘Who was the God who caused it to recede?’ They said: ‘The God of Hezekiah caused it to recede.’ He said to them: ‘Is there a god greater than my god?’ They said to him: ‘The God of Hezekiah is greater than your god.’ He immediately sent scrolls and a gift to Hezekiah. That is what is written: “At that time Merodakh Baladan…sent.”
What did he write in them? Greetings to Hezekiah, greetings to the great God, greetings to Jerusalem. When the letters had been dispatched he reconsidered and said: ‘I acted improperly. I had the greetings to Hezekiah precede those to his God.’ Immediately, he arose from his throne, took three steps, recalled the letters and wrote other letters in their place. He wrote in them: Greetings to the great God of Hezekiah, greetings to Hezekiah, and greetings to Jerusalem. The Holy One blessed be He said: ‘You arose from your throne and took three steps in My honor; by your life, I will establish three cosmopolitan kings from you who will rule from one end of the world to the other.’ These are they: Nebuchadnezzar, Evil Merodakh, and Belshatzar. When they arose and blasphemed, the Holy One blessed be He eliminated any vestige of them from the world, and established others in their stead.
It is written: “Hezekiah rejoiced over them and he showed them his treasure house [beit nekhoto]” (Isaiah 39:2). What is beit nekhoto? Rabbi Imi said: It is the bite [nekhita] that he took from Sennacherib, and the plunder that he plundered from Sennacherib. He showed them a sword swallowing a sword.³¹He showed them weapons, each of which was superior to the one before (Matnot Kehuna). Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: He showed them houses adorned with ivory like wax.³²Magnificently carved, as though it had been wax melted and poured into a mold. Alternatively, the ivory was actually softened, like wax, so as to allow for its beautification (Rabbi David Luria). Rabbi Yehuda says: He showed them honey as hard as a rock.³³This was apparently honey of exceptional quality, which was very sweet or which could last for a long time or be transported easily. Rabbi Levi said: With this we go out to war and emerge victorious.³⁴He showed him the Ark in the Holy of Holies, and opened it and showed him the Tablets, and said that in the merit of the Torah, Israel is victorious in battle (Etz Yosef).
It is written: “Take millstones and grind flour” (Isaiah 47:2). Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: All the people grind wheat and you say: “Take millstones and grind flour”? Rather, so said Jerusalem to the daughter of Babylon: ‘Had it not been that they waged war against me from On High, could you have overcome me? Had He not “sent fire into my bones” (Lamentations 1:13), could you have overcome me? It is ground flour that you ground; it is a dead lion that you killed; it is a burnt abode that you burned.’ Another matter, “take millstones and grind flour,” in the past, others would grind for you, now, “take millstones and grind flour.”³⁵This hard labor is representative of the fact that Babylon will fall.
“Expose your braid” (Isaiah 47:2), be stripped of your dignity; this is the king, who is situated behind seven partitions. “Bare a leg [shovel], [expose a thigh to cross rivers]” (Isaiah 47:2), stand exposed to the current [shibolet] of the river.³⁶Instead of crossing on a ferry, you will wade through the river on foot like a poor person (Etz Yosef). “Cross rivers,” in the past you would cross in wagons of silver and gold, and now, “expose a thigh to cross rivers.” “Your nakedness will be exposed” (Isaiah 47:3), the punishment fits the crime. Just as there,³⁷When Babylon exiled Israel. “all who honored her demeaned her because they saw her nakedness” (Lamentations 1:8), so, here,³⁸In the downfall of Babylon. “your nakedness will be exposed.” Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: The Holy One blessed be He said: ‘I am destined to bring punishment upon the daughter of Babylon, and even though Daniel will seek mercy on its behalf, as it is written: “Redeem your sins with charity…” (Daniel 4:24), I will not listen to him.’ Why? “Our Redeemer, the Lord of hosts is His name” (Isaiah 47:4).³⁹Our redemption and the construction of the second Temple are contingent upon the downfall of Babylon.

When thou takest the sum (Exod. 30:12).¹¹This entire section is to be found almost verbatim in Pesikta de-Rav Kahana, pisha 2:4–5. R. Jonah began to discuss the verse For God is judge; He putteth down one, and lifteth up another (Ps. 75:8). A Roman matron asked R. Yosé the son of Halafta: “In how many days did the Holy One, blessed be He, create the world?” “In six days,” he replied, “as it is said: For in six days the Lord made the heaven and the earth (Exod. 20:11).” “What has he been doing since that time?” she queried. “He has been uniting couples and making one man wealthy and another poor,” he responded. Whereupon she retorted: “I too am able to do this. I have many slaves and maid servants, and I can couple them all on this very night. What He has been doing since the time of creation, I can do easily in one hour.” “It may appear a simple matter to you,” he replied, “but to Him it is as difficult as splitting the Red Sea, for it is written: God maketh the solitary to dwell in a house (Ps. 68:7).”

What does bakosharot (“prosperity”) imply? The one who is not pleased (with his mate) weeps, the one who is pleased sings. Hence the word bakosharot (from beki, “weeping,” and shirot, “songs”) is used in the text. He causes one to ascend the ladder and another to descend. Thus it is said: For God is judge; He putteth down this one, and lifteth up this one (Ps. 76:8).

(Numb. 32:1:) “Much livestock.” This text is related (to Ps. 75:7), “For it is not from the east or from the west [or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)].” What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7) “For it is not from the east (rt.: mts') or from the west?”¹⁵Numb. R. 22:8. It is not from a person working hard by going out (rt.: mts') for trade and traveling from east to west and searching in wildernesses and on mountains (harim) that he becomes wealthy. Rather even if one sails away in ships to go from east to west and searches in wildernesses and on mountains (harim), he does not become wealthy. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7, cont.), “or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)?” R. Abba Sanagoria says, “Every use of harim in Scripture denotes mountains except for here, where it denotes exaltation. Thus one is not exalted from these things.” So what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He takes possessions (nekhasim) from one and gives them to another, as stated (in Ps. 75:7, cont.), “For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.” That is why they are called nekhasim, as they are covered (nikhsim) from one and revealed to another. And why is the name of [common coins] called zuzim? Because they move (zazim) from one and are given to another. [It is called] money (mammon), because what you count (mah [she’atah] moneh) is not anything. [It is called] coins (ma’ot), because they are from time (me’et) to time. And one can expound [with these] expression[s of money]. And so did Hannah say (in I Sam. 2:7), “The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He casts down, He also (af) lifts high,” [meaning] with the anger (af) that He bring upon one, He lifts up the other. A certain matron asked R. Jose ben Halafta, “In how many days did the Holy One, blessed be He, create His world? He said to her, “In six days, as stated (in Exod. 31:17), ‘for in six day the Lord made the heavens and the earth.’”¹⁶Above, Numb. 1:18; Gen. R. 68:4; PRK 2:4; Lev. R. 8:1; Numb. R. 3:6; cf. above, Gen. 1:2. She said to him, “And what has He been doing since that time?” He said to her, “He sits down and makes ladders for raising up one and putting down another. Hence it is stated (in Ps. 75:7), ‘For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.’” You yourself know that, when He wanted the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben to become wealthy, He brought down the Midianites in front of Israel, so that the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben would become wealthy. What is written above (in Numb. 31:9)? “Then the children of Israel took the women and children of the Midianites captive, and all their cattle, all their livestock, and all their wealth they seized as plunder.” Then after that, it is written (in Numb. 32:1), “Now [the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad] had much livestock.” See that He brought down the Midianites and raised up the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad, to fulfill that which is stated, (in Ps. 75:8), “For it is not from the east or from the west…, for it is God who judges; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.”

(Numb. 32:1:) “Much livestock.” This text is related (to Ps. 75:7), “For it is not from the east or from the west [or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)].” What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7) “For it is not from the east (rt.: mts') or from the west?”¹⁵Numb. R. 22:8. It is not from a person working hard by going out (rt.: mts') for trade and traveling from east to west and searching in wildernesses and on mountains (harim) that he becomes wealthy. Rather even if one sails away in ships to go from east to west and searches in wildernesses and on mountains (harim), he does not become wealthy. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7, cont.), “or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)?” R. Abba Sanagoria says, “Every use of harim in Scripture denotes mountains except for here, where it denotes exaltation. Thus one is not exalted from these things.” So what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He takes possessions (nekhasim) from one and gives them to another, as stated (in Ps. 75:7, cont.), “For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.” That is why they are called nekhasim, as they are covered (nikhsim) from one and revealed to another. And why is the name of [common coins] called zuzim? Because they move (zazim) from one and are given to another. [It is called] money (mammon), because what you count (mah [she’atah] moneh) is not anything. [It is called] coins (ma’ot), because they are from time (me’et) to time. And one can expound [with these] expression[s of money]. And so did Hannah say (in I Sam. 2:7), “The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He casts down, He also (af) lifts high,” [meaning] with the anger (af) that He bring upon one, He lifts up the other. A certain matron asked R. Jose ben Halafta, “In how many days did the Holy One, blessed be He, create His world? He said to her, “In six days, as stated (in Exod. 31:17), ‘for in six day the Lord made the heavens and the earth.’”¹⁶Above, Numb. 1:18; Gen. R. 68:4; PRK 2:4; Lev. R. 8:1; Numb. R. 3:6; cf. above, Gen. 1:2. She said to him, “And what has He been doing since that time?” He said to her, “He sits down and makes ladders for raising up one and putting down another. Hence it is stated (in Ps. 75:7), ‘For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.’” You yourself know that, when He wanted the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben to become wealthy, He brought down the Midianites in front of Israel, so that the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben would become wealthy. What is written above (in Numb. 31:9)? “Then the children of Israel took the women and children of the Midianites captive, and all their cattle, all their livestock, and all their wealth they seized as plunder.” Then after that, it is written (in Numb. 32:1), “Now [the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad] had much livestock.” See that He brought down the Midianites and raised up the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad, to fulfill that which is stated, (in Ps. 75:8), “For it is not from the east or from the west…, for it is God who judges; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.”

(Lev. 13:2:) “When anyone has [on the skin of his flesh a swelling or a sore or a bright spot].” This text is related (to Job 38:25), “Who split open a channel for the flow (shtp) and a path to move the sounds?” R. Joshua of SIkhnin said in the name of R. Levi, “In Arabia they call the hair (s'r) a flood (shtp'). Thus¹⁷I.e., interpreting Job 38:25 to mean, WHO SPLIT OPEN A CHANNEL FOR THE HAIR? for each and every hair that a person has, the Holy One, blessed be He, has created its own separate follicle (literally, well).”¹⁸Cf. Lev. R. 15:3; BB 16a. Because Job uttered a complaint and said, (in Job 9:17), “’For He crushes me with a tempest (rt.: s'r)¹⁹The Targum and Peshitta both read, FOR A HAIR. and multiplies my wounds for no reason,’ [i.e.] for no reason He has brought all these afflictions upon me.” Elihu said to him (in Job 34:10), “Heaven forbid! May wickedness be far from God and injustice from the Almighty.” Rather (in vs. 11), “’For he repays a person according to his actions, [and provides for one according to his ways].’ He brings everything [upon a person] according to his [own] measure (of what he does).” R. Abbin the Levite said in the name of R. Abba bar Kahana, “The Holy One, blessed be He, does not measure out [reward and punishment] in a basket. Rather everything is with justice, as stated (in Ps. 75:8), ‘For it is God who judges]; one He puts down, and another He lifts up.’” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Job, “Even with regard to the hair which is upon you, I have made a follicle for it and made a measure for it, as stated (in Job 38:25), ‘Who split open a channel for the flow (i.e., for the hair).’” There is a story about a certain priest who examined leprosy spots. When he became poor, he wanted to go abroad. He called his wife [and] said to her, “Because people used to come to me to show their leprosy spots, it is hard from me to leave them. Rather come and let me teach you, so that you may examine the leprosy spots. If you see a person's hair with its follicle dried up, you will know that [such a person] is stricken; because for each and every hair the Holy One, blessed be He, has created its own separate follicle [from which it drinks. If] its follicle dries up, the hair dries up.” His wife said to him, “But surely if for each and every hair the Holy One, blessed be He, has created its own separate follicle [from which it drinks], in your case, since you are a human being, with so many hairs on you and with your children being supported²⁰PRHS, perhaps related to the Gk. adj. pronoos (“prudent”). by you, is it not all the more certain that the Holy One, blessed be He, will summon support for you?” Therefore, she did not allow him to go abroad. Another interpretation (of Job 38:25), “Who split open a channel for the flow”: When the Holy One, blessed be He, created the human, He created him with wisdom. How? If He had created him with a lot of water and a little blood, he would have become frail.²¹Gk.: asthenes, i.e., “weak” or “sick.” If He had created him with a lot of blood and a little water, he would have become a leper. [He therefore created him with] half water and half blood, [thereby] a perfect human.

(Numb. 19:2, cont:) “That they bring unto you [a red heifer without blemish].” R. Jose bar Hanina said, “The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses. ‘To you I am revealing the reason for the heifer, but to others it is an unquestioned statute.’”⁸⁸PRK 4:7; PR 14:13; Numb. R. 19:6. As Rav Huna said, “It is written (in Ps. 75:3), ‘For I will set a time, when I Myself will judge with equity.’ It is also written (in Zech. 14:6), ‘On that day there shall be no light of cold (yqrot) and frost.’⁸⁹See also Pes. 50a. Things that are hidden from you in this world are going to be clear to you in the world to come, as with the blind person who gains his sight. Thus it is stated (in Is. 42:16), ‘I will lead the blind by a road they do not know, [… these things I have done].’ ‘I will do’ is not stated here, but ‘I have done,’ in that I have already done them for R. Aqiva and his colleagues.” Another interpretation: Things that were not revealed to Moses were revealed to R. Aquiva and his colleagues (as found in Job 28:10), “his eye sees every precious thing.” R. Jose bar Hanina said, “It was implied (in Numb. 19:2) was that all heifers perish, but [Moses’] lasts forever.” R. Aha said in the name of R. Jose bar Hanina, “When Moses ascended into the firmament, he heard the voice of the Holy One, blessed be He, sitting and being occupied with the parashah of the [red heifer], and he was reciting a halakhah (i.e., a passage of oral Torah) in the name of its author (from Parah 1:1), ‘My son, Eliezer says, “The calf [whose neck is to be broken]⁹⁰See Deut. 21:3-4. is to be one year old, but the [red] heifer is to be two years old.”’⁹¹See Braude’s translation of PR, 14:13 p. 290, n. 91, which records a suggestion of Mordecai Margulies, who notes that R. Eliezer would have begun his instruction with this mishnah. Moses said, ‘Master of the world, do not the realms above and below belong to you? Now you are citing a halakhah in the name of flesh and blood?’ He said to him, ‘A righteous man is going to arise in my world and is first going to begin [his teaching] with the parashah of the [red] heifer, R. Eliezer says, “The calf [whose neck is to be broken] is to be one year old, but the [red] heifer is to be two years old.”’ He told Him, ‘Master of the universe, may it be [Your] will that he come from my loins.’ He said to him, ‘By your life, he is to be from your loins.’ Thus it is stated (of Moses' offspring in Exod. 18:4), ‘And the name of the one⁹²So literally. In the biblical context the translation would normally read: AND THE NAME OF THE OTHER WAS ELIEZER. was Eliezer,’ [i.e.,] the name of that particular one [who would begin his teaching with Tractate Parah] was Eliezer. A certain stranger questioned Rabban Johanan ben Zakkay, “These things which you do seem like a kind of sorcery.⁹³Numb. R. 19:8; PRK 4:7; PR 14:14. You bring a heifer, burn it, pound it, and take its ashes. Then [when] one of you is defiled by a corpse, they sprinkle two or three drops on him, and you say to him, ‘You are clean.’” He said to him, “Have you ever had a bad spirit of madness enter you?” He told him, “No.” He said to him, “Perhaps you have seen someone into whom a bad spirit has entered?” He told him, “Yes.” He said to him, “So what did you do for him?” He said to him, “They bring roots and burn them beneath him. Then they sprinkle water on [the spirit], and it flees.” He said to him, “Let your ears hear what you are uttering with your mouth. Similarly is this spirit an unclean spirit. Thus it is stated (in Zech. 13:2), ‘and I will also remove the prophets and the unclean spirit from the land.’ They sprinkle the purifying water upon him, and he flees.” After the gentile had left, [R. Johanan's] disciples said to him, “Our master, you repelled this one with a [mere] reed [of an answer]. What have you to say to us?” He said to them, “By your lives, a corpse does not defile, nor does a heifer purify, nor does water purify. Rather, the Holy One, blessed be He, has said, ‘I have enacted a statute for you. I have issued a decree, [and] you are not allowed to transgress against my decree.’” Thus it is written (in Numb. 19:2), “This is the statute of the Torah.” And for what reason are all the sacrifices male and female, while that one is [only] female?⁹⁴PRK 4:8. R. Ayyevu said, “It is comparable to the son of a female slave who defiled a king's palace.⁹⁵Lat.: praetorium Gk.: praitoriom. The king said, ‘Let his mother come and clean up the excrement.’ Similarly has the Holy One, blessed be He, said, ‘Let a heifer come and atone for the incident of the [golden] calf.’”

(Lev. 13:1–3:) THEN THE LORD SPOKE UNTO MOSES AND UNTO AARON, SAYING: WHEN ANYONE HAS ON THE SKIN OF HIS FLESH < A SWELLING OR A SORE OR A BRIGHT SPOT, AND IT BECOMES ON THE SKIN OF HIS FLESH THE PLAGUE OF LEPROSY, HE SHALL BE BROUGHT UNTO AARON THE PRIEST…. AND THE PRIEST SHALL INSPECT THE PLAGUE ON THE SKIN OF HIS FLESH >…. This text is related (to Job 38:25): WHO SPLIT OPEN A CHANNEL FOR THE FLOW (ShTP)? R. Joshua of Sikhnin said in the name of R. Levi: In Arabia they call the hair (S'R) a flood (ShTP'). Thus²⁶I.e., interpreting Job 38:25 to mean, WHO SPLIT OPEN A CHANNEL FOR THE HAIR? for each and every hair that a person has the < Holy One > has created its own separate follicle (literally: well).²⁷Tanh., Lev. 4:6; cf. Lev. R. 15:3; BB 16a. Because Job uttered a complaint and said: (in Job 9:17): FOR HE CRUSHES ME WITH A TEMPEST (rt.: S'R)²⁸The Targum and Peshitta both read, FOR A HAIR. [AND MULTIPLIES MY WOUNDS FOR NO REASON], < i.e. > for no reason he has brought all these afflictions upon me; Elihu said to him (in Job 34:10): Heaven forbid! MAY WICKEDNESS BE FAR FROM GOD AND INJUSTICE, FROM THE ALMIGHTY. Rather (in vs. 11): FOR HE REPAYS A PERSON ACCORDING TO HIS ACTIONS, [AND PROVIDES FOR ONE ACCORDING TO HIS WAYS]. He brings everything < upon a person > according to measure. R. Abbin the Levite said in the name of R. Abba bar Kahana: The Holy One does not measure out reward and punishment {with a respite} [in a basket]. Rather everything is with justice, as stated (in Ps. 75:8 [7]): [FOR IT IS GOD WHO JUDGES]; ONE HE PUTS DOWN, AND ANOTHER HE LIFTS UP. The Holy One said to Job: Even with regard to the hair which is upon you, I have made a follicle for it and made a measure for it, as stated (in Job 38:25): WHO SPLIT OPEN A CHANNEL FOR THE FLOW (i.e., FOR THE HAIR). There is a story about a certain priest who examined leprosy spots. When he became poor, he wanted to go abroad. He called his wife < and > said to her: Because people used to come to me to show their leprosy spots, come and let me teach you, so that you may examine the leprosy spots. If you see a person's hair with its follicle dried up, you will know that < such a person > is stricken, because for each and every hair the Holy One has created its own separate follicle [from which it drinks]. < If > its follicle dries up, the hair dries up. His wife said to him: But surely if for each and every hair the Holy One has created its own separate follicle [from which it drinks], in your case, since you are a human being, with so many hairs on you and with your children being supported²⁹PRHS, perhaps related to the Gk. adj. pronoos (“prudent”). by you, is it not all the more certain that the Holy One will summon support for you?³⁰Cf. Matthew 10:29–31 // Luke 12:6–7. Therefore, she did not allow him to go abroad.

However, a rich man may destroy himself and his wealth in this world, as it is said: And those rights perish by evil adventure (Eccles. 5:13). Not all who are rich today will be rich tomorrow, nor will all who are poor today be poor tomorrow, as it is said: For God is judge; He putteth down one and lifteth up another (Ps. 75:8).

(Nume. 32:1:) MUCH LIVESTOCK. This text is related (to Ps. 75:7–8 [6–7]): FOR IT IS NOT FROM THE EAST OR FROM THE WEST OR FROM THE WILDERNESS THAT THERE COMES AN EXALTATION (harim), FOR IT IS GOD WHO JUDGES; ONE HE PUTS DOWN, AND ANOTHER HE LIFTS UP. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7 [6]:) FOR IT IS NOT FROM THE EAST (rt.: MTs') OR FROM THE WEST?¹⁹Tanh., Numb. 9:6; Numb. R. 22:8. It is not from the fact that, when a person works hard by going out (rt.: MTs') for trade and traveling from east to west, he becomes wealthy. <No!> Even if one sails away in ships to go from east to west and returns over wildnesses and over mountains (harim), he does not become wealthy. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7 [6], cont.:) OR FROM THE WILDERNESS THAT THERE COMES AN EXALTATION (harim)? R. Abba²⁰According to Tanh., Numb. 9:6; and Numb. R. 22:8, this sage was R. Abba of Serungaya (near Tiberias). says: Every use of harim in Scripture denotes mountains except for here, where it denotes exaltation. Thus one is not exalted from these things. So what does the Holy One do? He takes from one and gives to another. A certain matron asked R. Jose ben Halafta: In how many days did the Holy One create his world? He said to her in six days.²¹Above, Numb. 1:18; Gen. R. 68:4; PRK 2:4; Lev. R. 8:1; Numb. R. 3:6; cf. above, Gen. 1:2. She said to him: And what has he been doing since that time? He said to her: He sits down and makes ladders for raising up one and putting down another. You yourself know that, when he wanted the children of Reuben and Gad to become wealthy, he brought down the Midianites at their hand. What is written (in Numb. 31:9)? THEN THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL TOOK THE WOMEN [AND CHILDREN] OF THE MIDIANITES CAPTIVE, [AND ALL THEIR CATTLE, ALL THEIR LIVESTOCK,] <AND ALL THEIR WEALTH THEY SEIZED AS PLUNDER>. Then after that <comes> (Numb. 32:1:) NOW THE CHILDREN OF REUBEN <AND THE CHILDREN OF GAD> HAD MUCH LIVESTOCK. Ergo (in Ps. 75:8 [7]): FOR IT IS GOD WHO JUDGES; ONE HE PUTS DOWN, AND ANOTHER HE LIFTS UP. And who is wealthy? One who is happy with his lot, as stated (in Ps. 128:2): YOU SHALL EAT THE PRODUCE OF YOUR HANDS; YOU SHALL BE HAPPY, AND IT SHALL GO WELL WITH YOU.

(Nume. 32:1:) MUCH LIVESTOCK. This text is related (to Ps. 75:7–8 [6–7]): FOR IT IS NOT FROM THE EAST OR FROM THE WEST OR FROM THE WILDERNESS THAT THERE COMES AN EXALTATION (harim), FOR IT IS GOD WHO JUDGES; ONE HE PUTS DOWN, AND ANOTHER HE LIFTS UP. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7 [6]:) FOR IT IS NOT FROM THE EAST (rt.: MTs') OR FROM THE WEST?¹⁹Tanh., Numb. 9:6; Numb. R. 22:8. It is not from the fact that, when a person works hard by going out (rt.: MTs') for trade and traveling from east to west, he becomes wealthy. <No!> Even if one sails away in ships to go from east to west and returns over wildnesses and over mountains (harim), he does not become wealthy. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7 [6], cont.:) OR FROM THE WILDERNESS THAT THERE COMES AN EXALTATION (harim)? R. Abba²⁰According to Tanh., Numb. 9:6; and Numb. R. 22:8, this sage was R. Abba of Serungaya (near Tiberias). says: Every use of harim in Scripture denotes mountains except for here, where it denotes exaltation. Thus one is not exalted from these things. So what does the Holy One do? He takes from one and gives to another. A certain matron asked R. Jose ben Halafta: In how many days did the Holy One create his world? He said to her in six days.²¹Above, Numb. 1:18; Gen. R. 68:4; PRK 2:4; Lev. R. 8:1; Numb. R. 3:6; cf. above, Gen. 1:2. She said to him: And what has he been doing since that time? He said to her: He sits down and makes ladders for raising up one and putting down another. You yourself know that, when he wanted the children of Reuben and Gad to become wealthy, he brought down the Midianites at their hand. What is written (in Numb. 31:9)? THEN THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL TOOK THE WOMEN [AND CHILDREN] OF THE MIDIANITES CAPTIVE, [AND ALL THEIR CATTLE, ALL THEIR LIVESTOCK,] <AND ALL THEIR WEALTH THEY SEIZED AS PLUNDER>. Then after that <comes> (Numb. 32:1:) NOW THE CHILDREN OF REUBEN <AND THE CHILDREN OF GAD> HAD MUCH LIVESTOCK. Ergo (in Ps. 75:8 [7]): FOR IT IS GOD WHO JUDGES; ONE HE PUTS DOWN, AND ANOTHER HE LIFTS UP. And who is wealthy? One who is happy with his lot, as stated (in Ps. 128:2): YOU SHALL EAT THE PRODUCE OF YOUR HANDS; YOU SHALL BE HAPPY, AND IT SHALL GO WELL WITH YOU.

Another matter, “I have likened you [dimitikh], my love,” the Rabbis say: Because Israel appeared like mares, and [the horses of] the wicked Egyptians were aroused stallions, and they were pursuing them until they sank in the sea. Rabbi Simon said: Heaven forbid, Israel did not appear like mares, but rather the waves of the sea appeared like mares and [the horses of] the wicked Egyptians were aroused stallions, and they pursued them until they sank them in the sea. The Egyptian would say to his horse: ‘Yesterday, I would drag you to the Nile and you would not follow me, and now, you are sinking me in the sea?’ The horse would say to its rider: “He cast into the sea [rama bayam]” (Exodus 15:1); see what is in the sea [re’eh ma bayam]. A trap is prepared for you in the sea. Rabbi Yishmael taught: “The Lord overthrew Egypt in the midst of the sea” (Exodus 14:27); it teaches that the horse would cast its rider upward and he would descend downward with the horse above him. Rabbi Levi said: Like one who stirs a pot; what is below rises to the top and what is above descends below.
“My love [rayati]”—what is rayati? Rabbi Yonatan said: My benefactor; it is they who provide for Me two daily continual offerings. That is what is written: “The one lamb you shall offer in the morning” (Numbers 28:4), as Rabbi Yehuda bar Simon said: Israel would sacrifice two continual offerings each day, one in the morning and one in the afternoon. The one in the morning was sacrificed for transgressions that were performed at night, and the one in the afternoon was sacrificed for transgressions that were performed during the day. There was, then, no person in Jerusalem who would remain overnight with iniquity ascribed to him, as it is stated: “Righteousness would dwell there” (Isaiah 1:21).
Another matter, “I have likened you, my love [rayati]”—the shepherds [rayata] of My world, as you accepted the Torah. Had you not accepted it, I would have restored My world to emptiness and disorder, as Rabbi Ḥanina said in the name of Rabbi Aḥa: It is written: “The earth and all its inhabitants melt away; I set its pillars firm, Selah” (Psalms 75:4). Had Israel not stood at Mount Sinai and said: “Everything that the Lord has spoken we will perform and we will obey” (Exodus 24:7), the world would have melted away and returned to emptiness and disorder. Who firmly established the world? “I [anokhi] set its pillars firm, Selah.” Due to the merit of “I [anokhi] am the Lord your God” (Exodus 20:2),²⁵¹Due to the fact that Israel accepted the Torah, represented by the first of the Ten Commandments, “I am the Lord your God,” God set the the world on a firm foundation. “I set its pillars firm.”

The Holy One, blessed be He, said: I have exalted you and have humbled the poor, but I am also able to humble you and exalt the poor, for I am the Judge, as it is said: For God is judge; He putteth down one and lifteth up another (Ps. 75:8).

(Exodus, Ibid.) "All the inhabitants of Canaan melted ('namogu')": When the inhabitants of Canaan heard that the Holy One Blessed be He had said to Moses (Devarim 20:16-17) "But from the cities of these people … you shall utterly destroy them," they said: These and those (Edom and Moav) feared only for their money and their property, but they are coming against us to destroy us and to inherit our land — whereupon "namogu", "namogu" signifying melting, as in (Ezekiel 21:12) "and every heart will melt", and (Psalms 75:4) "The earth and all its inhabitants will melt" ("namogim"), and (Ezekiel 21:12) "In order to melt ("lamug") the heart."

The R. Nahman BeRabbi said: Observe what is written in this verse: Thou shalt surely give him, and thy heart shall not be grieved when thou givest unto him; of this thing the Lord thy God will bless thee in all thy work (Deut. 15:10). It does not say “for the sake of,” “on account of,” “in consequence of,” or “instead of,” but simply because of this I have made you rich and him poor. But if you do not give to him, I will reverse the wheel of fortune and make you poor and him rich. Why is that? Because God is judge; He putteth down one, and lifteth up another (Ps. 75:8).

[(Gen. 19:24:) THEN THE LORD RAINED DOWN.] This text is related (to Ps. 11:6): UPON THE WICKED HE SHALL RAIN COALS; FIRE, BRIMSTONE, AND BURNING WIND SHALL BE THE PORTION OF THEIR CUP. This portion was prepared before the world was created, as stated (ibid.): THE PORTION OF THEIR CUP. What is the meaning of THE PORTION OF THEIR CUP? (Ps. 75:9:) FOR IN THE HAND OF THE LORD THERE IS A CUP FOAMING WITH WINE, FULL OF MIXED WINE; AND OUT OF THIS HE POURS. < AS FOR ITS DREGS, SURELY ALL THE WICKED OF THE EARTH SHALL DRAIN THEM OUT AND DRINK THEM. > FOR IN THE HAND OF THE LORD THERE IS A CUP…. Lest you say that it was not full, the text says: FULL OF MIXED WINE. Lest you say: They did not drink from it, the text says: OUT OF THIS HE POURS. AS FOR ITS DREGS, SURELY ALL THE WICKED OF THE EARTH SHALL DRAIN THEM OUT AND DRINK THEM. It is therefore stated (in Ps. 11:6): THE PORTION OF THEIR CUP. From that cup they drank, as stated (in Ps. 11:6): THE PORTION OF THEIR CUP.

...And they will take for you a red cow - Rabbi Yose son of Rabbi Hanina says, The Holy One blessed be he said to Moses: "to you I will reveal the reason for the red cow, but for others it will be a decree (without reason)", as Rav Huna says, "it is written (Psalms 75:3) "At the time I choose, I will give judgment righteously/equitably", and it is written (Zechariah 14:6), "And it will come to pass on that day there will not be light, yeqarot and qippa'on. The written [tradition of orthography in scrolls] version is "yiqpa'un" {future tense = they will float}, [meaning] things which are hidden/covered from you in this world, in the future will float up [to the surface] in the world to come."

אֱלִישֶׁבַע בַּת עֲמִינָדָב....Elisheva bat Aminadav did not have joy in the world. she witnessed 'five crowns' in one day: her brother-in-law (Moshe) was a king, her brother (Nachshon) was a prince, her husband (Aron) was a Kohen Gadol, her two sons were both Deputy Kohanim, Pinchas her grandson was a war priest. But when her sons entered to draw near (to Gd) they were burnt, her joy was turned to mourning. as it is written, "after the death of the two sons of Aaron." Vayikra 16:1

This is related to the verse (in Ps. 75:7), “For it is not from the east or from the west or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim) […].” What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7) “For it is not from the east (rt.: mts') or from the west?” It is not from a person working hard by going out (rt.: mts') for trade and traveling from east to west and searching in wildernesses and on mountains (harim) that he becomes wealthy. Rather even if one sails away in ships to go from east to west and searches in wildernesses and on mountains (harim), he does not become wealthy. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7, cont.), “or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)?” R. Abba of Rumania says, “Every use of harim in Scripture denotes mountains except for here, where it denotes exaltation. Thus one is not exalted from these things.” So what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He takes possessions (nekhasim) from one and gives them to another, as stated (in Ps. 75:7, cont.), “For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.” That is why they are called nekhasim, as they are covered (nikhsim) from one and revealed to another. And why is the name of [common coins] called zuzim? Because they move (zazim) from one and are given to another. [It is called] money (mammon), because what you count (mah [she’atah] moneh) is not anything. [It is called] coins (ma’ot), because they are something for a time (mah le’et). And one can expound [with these] expression[s of money]. And so did Hannah say (in I Sam. 2:6-7), “[…] The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He casts down, He also lifts high.” What is the meaning of, “He also (af) lifts high?” With the anger (af) that He bring upon one, He lifts up the other. A certain matron asked R. Jose ben Halafta, “In how many days did the Holy One, blessed be He, create His world? He said to her, “In six days, as stated (in Exod. 31:17), ‘for in six day the Lord made the heavens and the earth.’”⁵Gen. R. 68:4; PRK 2:4; Lev. R. 8:1; Numb. R. 3:6. She said to him, “And what has He been doing since that time?” He said to her, “He sits down and makes ladders [for] raising up one and putting down another. Hence it is stated (in Ps. 75:7), ‘For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.’” You yourself know that, when He wanted the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben to become wealthy, He brought down the Midianites in front of Israel, so that the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben would become wealthy. What is written above (in Numb. 31:9)? “Then the children of Israel took the women and children of the Midianites captive, [and all their cattle, all their livestock, and all their wealth they seized as plunder].” Then after that, it is written (in Numb. 32:1), “Now [the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad] had much livestock.” See that He brought down the Midianites and raised up Israel, to fulfill that which is stated, (in Ps. 75:8), “For it is not from the east or from the west…, for it is God who judges; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.”

This is related to the verse (in Ps. 75:7), “For it is not from the east or from the west or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim) […].” What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7) “For it is not from the east (rt.: mts') or from the west?” It is not from a person working hard by going out (rt.: mts') for trade and traveling from east to west and searching in wildernesses and on mountains (harim) that he becomes wealthy. Rather even if one sails away in ships to go from east to west and searches in wildernesses and on mountains (harim), he does not become wealthy. What is the meaning of (Ps. 75:7, cont.), “or from the wilderness that there comes an exaltation (harim)?” R. Abba of Rumania says, “Every use of harim in Scripture denotes mountains except for here, where it denotes exaltation. Thus one is not exalted from these things.” So what does the Holy One, blessed be He, do? He takes possessions (nekhasim) from one and gives them to another, as stated (in Ps. 75:7, cont.), “For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.” That is why they are called nekhasim, as they are covered (nikhsim) from one and revealed to another. And why is the name of [common coins] called zuzim? Because they move (zazim) from one and are given to another. [It is called] money (mammon), because what you count (mah [she’atah] moneh) is not anything. [It is called] coins (ma’ot), because they are something for a time (mah le’et). And one can expound [with these] expression[s of money]. And so did Hannah say (in I Sam. 2:6-7), “[…] The Lord makes poor and makes rich; He casts down, He also lifts high.” What is the meaning of, “He also (af) lifts high?” With the anger (af) that He bring upon one, He lifts up the other. A certain matron asked R. Jose ben Halafta, “In how many days did the Holy One, blessed be He, create His world? He said to her, “In six days, as stated (in Exod. 31:17), ‘for in six day the Lord made the heavens and the earth.’”⁵Gen. R. 68:4; PRK 2:4; Lev. R. 8:1; Numb. R. 3:6. She said to him, “And what has He been doing since that time?” He said to her, “He sits down and makes ladders [for] raising up one and putting down another. Hence it is stated (in Ps. 75:7), ‘For God it is who gives judgment; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.’” You yourself know that, when He wanted the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben to become wealthy, He brought down the Midianites in front of Israel, so that the Children of Gad and the Children of Reuben would become wealthy. What is written above (in Numb. 31:9)? “Then the children of Israel took the women and children of the Midianites captive, [and all their cattle, all their livestock, and all their wealth they seized as plunder].” Then after that, it is written (in Numb. 32:1), “Now [the Children of Reuben and the Children of Gad] had much livestock.” See that He brought down the Midianites and raised up Israel, to fulfill that which is stated, (in Ps. 75:8), “For it is not from the east or from the west…, for it is God who judges; He brings down one man, He lifts up another.”

Rav Huna said: It is written (in Ps. 75:3 [2]): FOR I WILL SET A TIME, WHEN I MYSELF WILL JUDGE WITH EQUITY. It is also written (in Zech. 14:6–7): ON THAT DAY THERE SHALL BE NO LIGHT OF COLD (YQROT) AND FROST, <BUT THERE SHALL BE CONTINUOUS DAY>.¹²¹See also Pes. 50a. Things that are hidden from you in this world are going to be clear to you in the world to come, as with the blind person who gains his sight. Thus it is stated (in Is. 42:16): I WILL LEAD THE BLIND BY A ROAD THEY DO NOT KNOW, [ … ] I WILL TURN DARKNESS BEFORE THEM INTO LIGHT, [ … ] THESE THINGS I HAVE DONE. "I will do" is not stated here, but I HAVE DONE, in that I have already done them for Aqiva and his colleagues. [R. Aha said: Things that were not revealed to Moses were revealed to R. Aqiva, as stated (in Job 28:10): AND EVERY PRECIOUS THING (YQR) HIS EYE BEHOLDS. This is in reference to R. Aqiva and his colleagues.]

[The following dialogue, one of many, is reported in the name of R. Yosi ben Halafta, one of the Mishnah’s most prominent sages, and an unnamed Roman woman of rank.] Rabbi Yehudah bar Simon began: "God returns the solitary ones homeward" (Psalms 68:7). A Roman Matron asked Rabbi Yosi ben Halafta, "In how many days did God create the world?" He said, "In six, as it is said, 'Since six days God made...' (Exodus 20:11) "And since then," she asked, "what has God been doing?" "God sits [on the Heavenly Throne] and makes matches: the daughter of this one to that one, the wife [i.e. widow] of this one to that one, the money of this one to that one," responded R. Yosi. "And for merely this you believe in Him!" she said. "Even I can do that. I have many slaves, both male and female. In no time at all, I can match them for marriage." R. Yosi, "Though this may be an easy thing for you to do, for God it is as difficult as splitting the Sea of Reeds." Whereupon, Rabbi Yosi took his leave. What did she do? The Matron lined up a thousand male and a thousand female slaves and said you marry you, and married them all off that night. The next day, one slave had his head bashed in, another had lost an eye, while a third hobbled because of a broken leg. She said to them: "What happened to you?" and they each said to her: "I don't want this one" [with whom you matched me]." Immediately, she sent for and summoned R. Yosi and she said: "There is no God like your God, and your Torah is true, pleasing and praiseworthy. You spoke wisely." He said to her, "Didn't I tell you, if it appears easy in your eyes, it is difficult for the Holy One Blessed Be He like splitting the sea." "What do you think? That The Holy One Blessed Be He, is marrying them against their will but not for their benefit?!?" This is why it states "God returns the solitary ones homeward, and brings out the chained ones with their bindings" (Psalms 58:7) What is binding (Kosharot), Crying (Bechi) and sing (Shirot). The one who wants [their spouse] sings, the one who doesn't want their spouse cries. Rabbi Brekhya said, like this R' Yosi bar Tahlafta responded, "the Holy One Blessed Be He sits and makes ladders, lowers for this and raises for that one, lowers this one raises that one. As it says 'God judges - this one laid low, this one raised (Psalms 75, 8)', there are those who walk to their partner and those whose partner walks to them: Yitzchak's partner came to him, as it says, 'Isaac went out to speak in the field' (Genesis 24, 63) and Yaakov went to his partner, as it says 'Yaakov went out from Be'er Sheva' (Genesis 28, 10)"

[(Psalms 75:9) "For the (poisoned) cup is in the hand of the L-rd — strong wine, fully admixed (for all of the nations). And from this He poured. Only (the wicked) will drain its dregs. All the wicked of the earth will drink (of it.)"] (Devarim 32:34) "Is it (this cup of retribution) not laid up with Me?" R. Yossi Haglili says: A cup that was "laid up" and lacking (its full strength) — I might think it "weakened" (in potency); it is, therefore, written "strong wine." I might think that only half of it remains; it is, therefore, written "fully admixed." I might think that it never lacked even one drop; it is, therefore, written "and from this He poured from this." From that drop there drank: the men of the generation of the flood, the men of the generation of the tower of Bavel, the men of Sodom and Amorah, Pharaoh and all his army, Sisra and all his host, Nevuchadnezzar and all his army, Sancheriv and all his ranks. And from that drop there are destined to drink all the (wicked) comers to the world until the end of all the generations. And thus is it written (Isaiah 25:6) "And the L-rd of hosts will make — for all the peoples (who come to war) in this mountain (Mount Zion, who thought to have) a feast of oils (i.e., an easy victory) — a feast of lees. (He will convert an intended feast of) marrowed oils (into one of) drained dregs." (All this in the war of Gog and Magog). I might think (that they would drink) lees which serve some purpose; it is, therefore, written "drained dregs" — lees which are nothing but empty froth. And thus is it written (Jeremiah 51:7) "A golden cup was Bavel in the hand of the L-rd." And (Ezekiel 23:32) "The cup of your sister will you drink, the deep and the wide. You will be (the object of) laughter and scorn, too much to contain (i.e., to bear)." Just as with gold, after it breaks, it can be "healed," so, when punishment curses the nations, it is destined to return to them. But, with respect to Israel, what is written (Ibid. 34) "And you will drink it and drain it, and its shards will you crunch." Just as with earthenware, after it breaks, it cannot be healed, so, when punishment ceases from Israel, it is not destined to return to them.