Talmud su Genesi 49:41

Rebbi Joshua ben Levi said, why is it called drawing festivity? For from there one was drawing the holy spirit, following you shall draw water in rejoycing from the fountains of salvation¹³Is. 12:3. Babli 50b.. An illustration¹⁴The following (up to Note 21) is from Gen. rabba 98(16) (M. Sokoloff, The Genizah fragments of Bereshit Rabba, Jerusalem 1982, p. 187 l. 21–30). There the statements of RR. Levi and Joḥanan are interchangend.. Rebbi Levi and Jehudah bar Naḥman were taking two tetradrachmas to assemble the congregation before Rebbi Joḥanan. Rebbi Levi went and preached, Jonah ben Amittai was from the tribe of Asher, for it is written¹⁵Jud. 1:31., Asher did not disinherit the inhabitants of Acco and the inhabitants of Sidon. And it is written¹⁶1K. 17:9. This quote presupposes that Jonah ben Amittai was the son of the widow from Sarepta., arise and go to Sarepta which belongs to Sidon. Rebbi Joḥanan came and preached, Jonah ben Amittai was from the tribe of Zevulun, as it is witten¹⁷Jos. 19:10., the third lot fell to the sons of Sevulun according to their families, and it is written¹⁸Jos. 19:13. The verse shows that Gat-Ḥepher belonged to Zevulun., from there it turned eastward to Gat Ḥepher and Et Qaṣin. And it is written¹⁹2K. 14:25., following the word of the Eternal, the God of Israel, which He spoke through His servant, Jonah ben Amittai the prophet from Gat Ḥepher. On the next Sabbath Rebbi Levi said to Jehudah bar Naḥman: you take the two tetradrachmas and go²⁰In Gen. rabba R. Levi gives the money to Jehudah bar Naḥman so that the latter lets him go and give the sermon, to harmonize his statement with R. Joḥanan’s. assemble the congregation before Rebbi Joḥanan. He went and said before them, Rebbi Joḥanan did teach us well, his mother from Asher and his father from Zevulun. And his hip from Sidon²¹Gen. 49:13, from Jabob’s blessing of Zevulun. The one prophet from the tribe of Zevulun came from a mother from Sidonian territory, which was Asher territory., the hip from which he came was from Sidon. And it is written²²Jonah 1:3. The following argument is the reason the preceding Midrash was quoted here, in connection with the water-drawing festivities., he descended to Yafo, when it should have been “he descended to Acco²³As a Galilean he could have used the nearest port.”! Rebbi Jonah said, Jonah ben Amittai belonged to the pilgrims²⁴Who came to Jerusalem in Jehudah, avoiding the Northern sanctuaries in Bethel and Dan., came to the water-drawing festivity and the holy spirit rested on him, to teach you that the holy spirit only rests on a happy heart²⁵Babli Šabbat 30b.. What is the reason? It was when the musical instrument played, God’s spirit was on him²⁶2K. 3:15.. Rebbi Benjamin bar Levi said, it is not written here “it was when he played on the musical instrument”, but it was when the musical instrument played, God’s spirit was on him²⁷This refers to a statement of R. Levi in Berakhot 1:1 (Note 97), that Elisha used David’s Aeolian lyre which played by itself in the wind..

One anoints kings only at a spring, as it was said²²1K. 1:33–34.: Let Solomon, my son, ride on my mule and take him down to the Giḥon; there Ṣadoq the priest and Nathan the prophet shall anoint him as king over Israel. One anoints (kings) [kings sons of kings]²³Corrector’s addition from B, not found in Yerushalmi sources. The mention of Jehu shows that the scribe’s text is the correct one. only because of disputes. Why was Solomon anointed? Because of the dispute of Adoniahu, Joash because of Athaliah, Jehu because of Joram. Is it not written¹⁹1S. 17:20., do anoint him, for this one is it, this one needs anointing, but the kings of Israel do not need anointing? But Joaḥaz because of his brother Joiakim who was two years his elder. But did not Josiah hide it²⁴The anointing oil. Therefore none of Josia’s sons could be anointed with the anointing oil.? That means that they anointed with balsamum. One anoints kings only from a horn. Saul and Jehu were anointed from a can because their kingdom was temporary; David and Solomon were anointed from a horn because their kingdom was permanent. One does not anoint priests as kings²⁵Text missing in B but implied by R. Ḥiyya bar Ada.. Rebbi Jehudah Antordiya said, because²⁶Gen. 49:10. the scepter shall not be removed from Jehudah. Rebbi Ḥiyya bar Ada said, because of²⁷Deut. 17:20. he shall have many days of his kingdom, he and his sons in the midst of Israel. What is written after that? The levitic Cohanim should not²⁸Deut. 18:1..

They [all] introduced [the same] thirteen alterations:¹⁶For a comparison of these variants with the Heb. text, cf. on Sof. I, 8. ‘God created in the beginning’; ‘I shall make a man in image and likeness’; ‘And He finished on the sixth [day] and rested on the seventh [day]’; ‘Male and female He created him’; ‘Come let Me go down’; ‘And Sarah laughed among her relatives, saying’; ‘For in their anger they slew oxen and in their self-will they digged up a stall’; ‘And Moses took his wife and his children and set them upon a carrier of men’; ‘Now the time that the children of Israel dwelt in the land of Canaan and in the land of Egypt was four hundred and thirty years’; ‘I have not taken one desirable thing from them’; ‘And the [beast] with small legs’; ‘Which the Lord thy God hath allotted unto all the peoples to give light under the whole heaven’; ‘And they offer sacrifices to the sun or the moon or any of the host of heaven which I commanded should not be served’.

It is written²¹²Num. 25:3–4. The rage of the Eternal was kindled against Israel. The Eternal said to Moses: Take all the heads of the people and hang them for the Eternal before the sun. What he told him was, install their heads as judges over them and let them execute the sinners²¹³Not the heads; cf. the Targumim. at daytime. That is what is written: Moses told the judges of Israel: each one should kill his men who cling to the Baˋal Peˋor²¹⁴Num. 25:5.. How many were the judges of Israel²¹⁵Halakhah 1:7, Note 356.? 78’600. Heads of thousands, 600. Heads of hundreds, 6'000. Heads of fifties, 12’000. heads of tens, 60’000. It turns out that the judges of Israel were 78’600. He told them, each of you should execute two. It turns out that the number of the killed was 157’200. Behold, a man from the Children of Israel came and introduced to his brothers the Midianite woman, to the eyes of Moses²¹⁶Num. 25:6.. What means to the eyes of Moses²¹⁷The text does not say before his eyes but in his eyes.? Like a man who says, that is in your eyes, Moses. He told him, is not Ẓippora a Midianite, and are not her hooves split²¹⁸The sign of a kosher animal.? This one is pure, that one is impure? There, Phineas was present. He said, is there nobody who would kill him or be killed? Where are the lions? A lion whelp is Jehudah²¹⁹Gen. 49:9.; Dan is a lion whelp²²⁰Deut. 33:22.; Benjamin a rapacious wolf²²¹Gen. 49:27.. When Phineas saw that nobody of Israel did anything, he immediately rose from his court, took the spear in his hand, and put its iron under his belt²²²Latin fascia “band, girdle”.. He was leaning on its wood until he arrived at his door. When he arrived at his²²³Zimri ben Salu’s. door, they²²⁴The tribe of Simon, protecting their head. asked him, where to, Phineas? He said to them, do you not agree that everywhere the tribe of Levi is with the tribe of Simeon? They said, let him, maybe the Pharisees permitted the matter²²⁵Echoing a popular opinion that the “oral law” can be made to adapt to all circumstances, moral or immoral.. When he entered, the Holy One, praise to Him, performed six wonders for him²²⁶Babli 82b, in the name of R. Johanan.. The first miracle: usually they would separate, but the angel glued the one to the other²²⁷If they were not killed in the act, the killing would have been murder.. The second miracle: He directed the spear into her belly to that his penis should be seen inside her belly because of the fault-finders, lest they say that he muscled himself in with them and satisfied himself²²⁸In the Babli: Thus Phineas had direct proof in court that the killing was justified. Phineas’s act established a rule of law which could never be used again.. The third miracle: the angel closed their mouths, so they could not cry. The fourth miracle: they did not slip from the weapon but stayed in place. The fifth miracle: The angel lifted the lintel so that both of them were carried out between his shoulders. The sixth miracle: When the plague started to destroy the people, what did he do? He threw them on the ground and prayed. That is what is written: Phineas stood and prayed; the plague was arrested²²⁹Ps. 106:30..

It is written²¹²Num. 25:3–4. The rage of the Eternal was kindled against Israel. The Eternal said to Moses: Take all the heads of the people and hang them for the Eternal before the sun. What he told him was, install their heads as judges over them and let them execute the sinners²¹³Not the heads; cf. the Targumim. at daytime. That is what is written: Moses told the judges of Israel: each one should kill his men who cling to the Baˋal Peˋor²¹⁴Num. 25:5.. How many were the judges of Israel²¹⁵Halakhah 1:7, Note 356.? 78’600. Heads of thousands, 600. Heads of hundreds, 6'000. Heads of fifties, 12’000. heads of tens, 60’000. It turns out that the judges of Israel were 78’600. He told them, each of you should execute two. It turns out that the number of the killed was 157’200. Behold, a man from the Children of Israel came and introduced to his brothers the Midianite woman, to the eyes of Moses²¹⁶Num. 25:6.. What means to the eyes of Moses²¹⁷The text does not say before his eyes but in his eyes.? Like a man who says, that is in your eyes, Moses. He told him, is not Ẓippora a Midianite, and are not her hooves split²¹⁸The sign of a kosher animal.? This one is pure, that one is impure? There, Phineas was present. He said, is there nobody who would kill him or be killed? Where are the lions? A lion whelp is Jehudah²¹⁹Gen. 49:9.; Dan is a lion whelp²²⁰Deut. 33:22.; Benjamin a rapacious wolf²²¹Gen. 49:27.. When Phineas saw that nobody of Israel did anything, he immediately rose from his court, took the spear in his hand, and put its iron under his belt²²²Latin fascia “band, girdle”.. He was leaning on its wood until he arrived at his door. When he arrived at his²²³Zimri ben Salu’s. door, they²²⁴The tribe of Simon, protecting their head. asked him, where to, Phineas? He said to them, do you not agree that everywhere the tribe of Levi is with the tribe of Simeon? They said, let him, maybe the Pharisees permitted the matter²²⁵Echoing a popular opinion that the “oral law” can be made to adapt to all circumstances, moral or immoral.. When he entered, the Holy One, praise to Him, performed six wonders for him²²⁶Babli 82b, in the name of R. Johanan.. The first miracle: usually they would separate, but the angel glued the one to the other²²⁷If they were not killed in the act, the killing would have been murder.. The second miracle: He directed the spear into her belly to that his penis should be seen inside her belly because of the fault-finders, lest they say that he muscled himself in with them and satisfied himself²²⁸In the Babli: Thus Phineas had direct proof in court that the killing was justified. Phineas’s act established a rule of law which could never be used again.. The third miracle: the angel closed their mouths, so they could not cry. The fourth miracle: they did not slip from the weapon but stayed in place. The fifth miracle: The angel lifted the lintel so that both of them were carried out between his shoulders. The sixth miracle: When the plague started to destroy the people, what did he do? He threw them on the ground and prayed. That is what is written: Phineas stood and prayed; the plague was arrested²²⁹Ps. 106:30..

One anoints kings only at a spring, as it was said: Let Solomon, my son, ride on my mule and take him down to the Giḥon; there Ṣadoq the priest and Nathan the prophet shall anoint him as king over Israel¹¹⁷1K. 1:33–34.. One anoints kings only because of disputes. Why was Solomon anointed? Because of the dispute of Adoniahu, Joash because of Athaliah, Jehu because of Joram. Is it not written, do anoint him, for this one is it, this one needs anointing, but the kings of Israel do not need anointing? ¹¹⁸In all other sources, this follows the quote about the sons of Josiah. If Josiah had buried the holy oil together with the ark, how could his son have been anointed? But did not Josiah hide it? That means that they anointed with balsamum. Joaḥaz because of his brother Joakin who was two years his elder. One anoints kings only from a horn. Saul and Jehu were anointed from a can because their kingdom was temporary; David and Solomon were anointed from a horn because their kingdom was permanent. One does not anoint priests as kings. Rebbi Jehudah Antordiya said, because of the scepter shall not be removed from Jehudah¹¹⁹Gen. 49:10.. Rebbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said, because of he shall have many days of his kingdom, he and his sons in the midst of Israel¹²⁰Deut. 17:20.. What is written after that? The levitic Cohanim should not¹²¹Deut. 18:1..

⁷⁷A parallel to the entire paragraph is in the Babli, Keritut 5b. One anoints kings only at a spring, as it was said⁷⁸1K. 1:33–34.: “Let Solomon, my son, ride on my mule and take him down to the Giḥon; there Ṣadoq the priest and Nathan the prophet shall anoint him, etc.” One anoints kings only because of disputes. Why was Solomon anointed? Because of the dispute of Adoniahu; Joash because of Athaliah, Jehu because of Joram. Is it not written⁷¹1Sam. 16:12.: “Do anoint him, for this one is it,” this one needs anointing, but the kings of Israel do not need anointing⁷⁹There is no indication that Yehu was anointed with the oil deposited in Jerusalem.! But Joaḥaz because of his brother Joakim who was two years his elder⁸⁰In 2K. 23:31,36 and 2Chr. 36:2,5 it is noted that Joaḥaz was 23 years old in the same year in which Joakim was 25. Cf. Seder ‘Olam, Chapter 24 (in the author’s edition, pp. 213–215); Babli Arakhin 12a.. But did not Josiahu hide it⁸¹As indicated in the previous paragraph. Then Josiah’s son could not have been anointed with the oil made by Moses. The explanation given here is in the Babli, Horaiot 11b, in the name of the later Amora Rav Papa.? That means, they anointed with balsamum. One anoints kings only from a horn. Saul and Jehu were anointed from a can because their kingdom was temporary; David and Solomon were anointed from a horn because their kingdom was permanent⁸²Quoted in Babli, Megillah 14a, Keritut 6a.. One does not anoint priests as kings⁸³The Maccabean kings were anointed as High Priests, not as kings.. Rebbi Yudan Antordiyya said, because of “the scepter shall not be removed from Jehudah⁸⁴Gen. 49:10.”. Rebbi Ḥiyya bar Ada said, because “he shall have many days of his kingdom, he and his sons in the midst of Israel⁸⁵Deut. 7:20, last verse in the chapter..” What is written after that? “The levitic Cohanim should not.⁸⁶Deut. 8:1.”

One does not ask two questions simultaneously¹⁰³Babli 73a.. If they were asked, there are Tannaim who state, He answers the first but does not answer the second; and there are Tannaim who state, He answers the second but does not answer the first; and there are Tannaim who state, He answers neither the first nor the second. He who says, He answers the first but does not answer the second; from the following: David said, Eternal, God of Israel, etc., would the people of Qeˋilah surrender me into his hand¹⁰⁴ISam. 23:11., etc.? ]Would Saul descend, David asked incorrectly. Was it not necessary, would Saul descend, and if he descended, would the people of Qeˋilah surrender me into his hand?]¹⁰⁵Corrector’s addition. The question asked in 23:11 was illogical since the first question was relevant only if the answer to the second question was positive. Therefore it was necessary for David to ask the first question a second time, 1Sam. 23:12. There is no reason to assume a corruption of the biblical text. He who said, He answers the second but does not answer the first; from the following: David said, would the people of Qeˋilah surrender me¹⁰⁶ISam. 23:12.., etc. He who said, He answers neither the first nor the last, David asked the Eternal as follows, shall I pursue this troop, shall I reach it¹⁰⁷ISam. 30:8.? David asked for mercy in this case, Eternal, God of Israel, please tell Your servant¹⁰⁴ISam. 23:11.. You should know, since he asked two [questions] and He answered three [answers]: He said, pursue, for catching you will catch and saving you will save¹⁰⁷ISam. 30:8.. There are Tannaim who state, he was hearing the voice; there are Tannaim who state, the writing was protruding. He who said, he was hearing the voice is understandable since it is written, he heard the voice¹⁰⁸Num. 7:89.. He who said, the writing¹⁰⁹Identifying Urim and Tummim with an oracle involving the breast plate of the High Priest on whose precious stones the names of the 12 tribes were engraved, Ex. 28:21. This seemed to be excluded since not the entire alphabet was occurring in these names. was protruding, but there is no ח for the tribes, and there is no צ [and no ק] for the tribes! Abraham, Isaac, Jacob was written on them. But there is no ט for the tribes! All these are the tribes of Israel¹¹⁰Gen. 49:28. was engraved on them.

BARAITHA. Subordinate your will to the will of Heaven; for so we find that Jacob did not kiss Joseph.
GEMARA. Why did he not kiss him? He thought that, since he was away from home, women may have led him astray because of his beauty; as it is written, And he presented himself unto him, and fell on his neck.¹²¹Gen. 46, 29, which does not mention Jacob kissing his son. [Joseph] wanted to kiss him but he would not let him do so, as it is written, And he wept on his neck a good while.¹²²ibid., a good while is explained that Joseph kept on weeping but Jacob still did not kiss him. That is to say, he [only] kissed him when he died, as it is written, And wept upon him, and kissed him.¹²³ibid. L, 1. Joseph said, ‘Thirty-nine years have [passed] before him¹²⁴i.e. it was thirty-nine years since Joseph left home. As Jacob lived in Egypt seventeen years (ibid. XLVII, 28), Joseph must have been separated from his father twenty-two years. and I have not kissed my father’s mouth, and now shall I bury him without kissing him?’ That is the meaning of what is written, And Israel beheld Joseph’s sons and said: Who are these?¹²⁵ibid. XLVIII, 8. Did he not know until then who they were? But [Jacob] inquired of him whether they had been born in wedlock,¹²⁶lit. ‘with a kethubah’, i.e. according to the Hebrew marriage law. and when he showed him the kethubah his mind became at rest and he kissed them for the sake of Joseph.
Raba said: Infer from this that [Joseph] was aroused sexually by her;¹²⁷viz. Potiphar’s wife (ibid. XXXIX, 7ff), otherwise Jacob would not have doubted Joseph’s moral purity. for should you say that he was not aroused by her, it has been taught:¹²⁸B.M. 83b (Sonc. ed., pp. 478f.). The reference is to the story of R. Eleazar b. Simeon, who had a man arrested because of his insolence towards him and subsequently hanged. R. Eleazar regretted his action, but was assured by his disciples that the man must have been guilty of a capital crime. On hearing this, he felt relieved and reassured that his own body would not decompose after his death. He laid his hand upon his heart¹²⁹lit. ‘his inwards’, and similarly in the continuation. and exclaimed, ‘Rejoice my heart, rejoice my heart! If matters about which you are doubtful are so,¹³⁰i.e. seem to be just. He was doubtful whether the man deserved hanging. how much more those about which you are certain! I am confident that neither worms nor decay will have power over you’. He applied to himself the verse, My flesh also dwelleth in safety.¹³¹Ps. 16, 9. Now he¹³²viz. R. Eleazar; and yet he felt assured that the worms would have no power over his body. is not mentioned among those [over whom the worms have no dominion],¹³³Cf. B.B. 17a (Sonc. ed., p. 86): ‘There are seven over whom the worms had no dominion, viz. Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, Moses, Aaron and Miriam, and Benjamin, son of Jacob’. how much more so Jacob who is mentioned!¹³⁴How could Jacob then doubt the innocence of Joseph, seeing that the sin of suspecting the innocent would have lost him that privilege? Therefore [we must say] that Jacob held back from kissing Joseph because of what he saw by means of the Holy Spirit.¹³⁵He was inspired by God to do so in order that Joseph should not communicate her moral impurity to him. And where is this¹³⁶Joseph’s moral impurity. alluded to? As it is written, But his¹³⁷i.e. Joseph’s. bow abode firm;¹³⁸Gen. 49, 24. The word bow is found in both the passages cited. On the exegetical rule of Gezerah Shawah, inference from analogous phraseology, what applies to one applies also to the other. In Hab. the bow is described as being bare, ‘eryah, which is equated with ‘erwah, ‘forbidden intercourse’. Consequently the use of bow in connection with Joseph indicates that there was an occasion when he was aroused sinfully. and it is written there, Thy bow is made quite bare.¹³⁹Hab. 3, 9. The Heb. maṭṭeh can mean ‘rod’ or ‘tribe’. The Rabbinic interpretation is that God swore to Jacob that the tribes descended from him would be pure. What caused him to be saved? Sworn are the rods of the word. Selah. What is the meaning of Selah?¹⁴⁰The word. Selah is by a process of analogy equated with the words the God of Jacob … Selah; that is to say, the word sworn by the God of Jacob to him. It is to be taken in the sense of The God of Jacob … Selah.¹⁴¹Ps. 46, 12. It was quoted in refutation, And it came to pass, when Laban heard the tidings of Jacob his sister’s son, that he ran to meet him, and embraced him, and kissed him¹⁴²Gen. 29, 13.—is not this a case where an inference from minor to major is to be drawn? If of Laban who kissed idols and harlots it is so written,¹⁴³That he kissed Jacob. Joseph who did not kiss these [yet did not kiss Jacob]! Perhaps the verse should not have written this, but it points to Jacob’s merit. [It indicates,] And he [Laban] ran to meet him, i.e. he wanted to kiss him but [Jacob] would not permit him; he then embraced him again to kiss him, whereupon he struck [Laban] on his cheek. This may be proved from the fact that it is written wayyenashsheḳ¹⁴⁴There are two Heb. roots with the same letters, one meaning ‘to kiss’ and the other ‘to be equipped with weapons’, and the verb in the verse is given the second sense, i.e. he attacked him. and not wayyishshaḳ. Hence it is proved; here it is written, And he kissed them¹⁴⁵Gen. 48, 10, where the verb is wayyishshaḳ and denotes an expression of love. and [continues], And embraced them.
What is the difference between wayyishshaḳ and wayyenashsheḳ? The latter¹⁴⁶Which is an intensive form of the verb. indicates [kissing] with the whole body, the former [only] with the mouth. Whence do we know that this is so? For it is written, He kisses [yishshaḳ] the lips that giveth a right answer.¹⁴⁷Prov. 24, 26. Wherever wayyishshaḳ occurs it denotes a [light] impress to be added to the count.¹⁴⁸A single gesture which may form part of a further display of affection subsequently. Come and hear: [It is stated,] And Esau ran to meet him, and embraced him, and fell on his neck and kissed him.¹⁴⁹Gen. 33, 4, the verb being wayyishshaḳ. Is not this [act of kissing] similar to what Laban did? The reply is: Go and see how many teeth were dug into him.¹⁵⁰In the Heb. text the word has dots over the letters, which are taken by the Midrash to indicate that Esau’s real intention was to bite Jacob. [Cf. ARN, p. 165.] And why? Because he [really] wanted to bite him, but at the time his teeth became as [soft as] wax and he knocked his jaws against Jacob’s neck and became weak. To that episode David alluded when he said, Arise, O Lord; save me, O my God; for Thou hast smitten all mine enemies upon the cheek, Thou hast broken the teeth of the wicked.¹⁵¹Ps. 3, 8.

Rebbi Onias said, Rebbi Ḥama bar Uqba raised a difficulty: If he wanted to deflect him to another subject³²⁴If R. Joshua’s intention only was to deflect R. Ismael’s inquiry there were many other questions to be asked., he should have removed him to the five indeterminate places in the Torah³²⁵In the absence of masoretic accents it may be difficult to parse a sentence. In Babli sources, this is called “verses that have no decision,” i. e., where to place the caesura. In our masoretic texts only Ex. 25:34 remains undecided in this sense. Parallel sources are Babli Yoma52a/b, Gen. rabba80(5) (Theodor-Albeck #957/958, Sokoloff Geniza Fragments p. 170), Midrash Cant. 1(18), Mekhilta dR. Ismael, Amaleq1, Mekhilta dR. Simeon ben Iohai Epstein-Melamed p. 121, Tanḥuma Bešallaḥ26.The list itself is attributed in most sources to Issy ben Jehudah. [A discussion in principle about this subject is found in ש. קוגוט, המקרא בין טעמים לפרשנות, י־ם תשנד; מ. ברויאר, מקראות שאין להם הכרע, לשוננו נח (תשנה) 189־199.], which are the following: “gift, cursed, tomorrow, almond shaped, rise”. Behold if you choose well the gift or the gift if you do not choose well³²⁶Gen.4:7. They must have read הֲלוֹא אִם־תֵּיטִ֔יב שְׂאֵ֕ת וְאִם֙ לֹא תֵיטִ֔יב but also in the masoretic text הֲלוֹא אִם־תֵּיטִיב֙ שְׂאֵ֔ת there is a stop between תֵּיטִיב֙ and שְׂאֵ֔ת.. For in their rage they killed a man and by their will castrated a cursed ox or cursed be their rage for it is strong³²⁷Gen.49:6–7. It is a question whether to read one or two sentences.. Moses said to Joshua . . go fight Amaleq tomorrow or tomorrow I shall stand on top of the hill³²⁸Ex. 17:9.. On the candelabra four cups almond shaped or almond shaped their knobs and their flowers³²⁹Ex. 25:34..The Eternal said to Moses, you will lie with your fathers and rise or rise will this people and whore³³⁰Deut. 31:16.. Rebbi Tanḥuma added the following: Jacob’s sons came from the field when they heard or when they heard the men were offended³³¹Gen. 34:7. Most translations follow the masoretic punctuation in choosing the first alternative but the German translation by Torczyner et al. (Berlin 1934) which opts for the second.. Rebbi La said, there are things about which one kisses the mouth, as it is said, may he kiss me with the kisses of his mouth³³²This answers R. Ḥama bar Uqba’s question. The verse Cant. 1:2 was chosen because its first part, quoted now, tells R. Ismael to be silent since a person who is kissed on his mouth cannot speak at that time. The first part clearly refers to a male; nevertheless R. Ismael had a point reading the second part as addressing a female since the sentence switches from third to second person, possibly indicating a change of speaker.. Rebbi Isaac said, and me did the Eternal command³³³Deut. 4:14. Here starts a rather defective Genizah fragment (Ginzberg pp. 276–277.). “Me, and me.” Things were said to me that were said to you. And things were said to me alone³³⁴Not everything has to be told to everybody..

Thirteen things they changed for King Ptolemy. They wrote for him, “God created the beginning³⁷⁶Gen. 1:1; change not found in LXX..” “I shall make man in stature and form³⁷⁷Gen. 1:26; change not found in LXX..” “Male and his openings He created them³⁷⁸Gen. 1:27; change not found in LXX..” “He finished on the Sixth and rested on the Seventh³⁷⁹Gen. 2:2; change found in LXX.” “Now I shall descend³⁸⁰Gen. 11:7; change found in LXX..” “Sarah laughed in her surroundings, saying.³⁸¹Gen. 18:12; LXX: “in herself”.” “For in their rage they slew a bull and in their will uprooted a trough³⁸²Gen. 49:6; change not found in LXX..” “Moses took his wife and his sons and let them ride on people-carriers³⁸³Ex. 4:20. LXX: “beast of burden”..” “The dwelling of the Children of Israel, which they dwelled in Egypt and other lands, was 430 years.³⁸⁴Ex. 12:40. LXX: “In the land of Egypt and the land of Canaan.”” And the hare³⁸⁵Lev. 11:6 (in LXX 11:5). LXX: “rough-foot”, a designation of the hare., “and the young of foot.” King Ptolemy’s mother was called “hare³⁸⁶The dynasty of the Ptolemies was called the Lagides, after an ancestor Lagos “hare”.”. “Not one precious thing I took from them³⁸⁷Num. 16:15; change found in LXX.” “Which the Eternal, your God, distributed them to give light to all peoples under all the heavens.³⁸⁸Deut. 4:19; change not found in LXX.” “Which I did not command peoples to worship them.³⁸⁹Deut. 17:3; change not found in LXX.
The comparisons with the LXX text was done on the basis of Rahlfs’s edition; the history of the text between the time of the Jewish translation in Alexandria and its adaptation by Christian editors in the Roman Empire is unknown. The same list is in the Babli 9a.”

Rebbi Meïr said: It is written²³⁰Eccl. 2:14., “the wise man’s eyes are in his head.” The stupid one’s are where? In his legs²³¹This parallels the German saying that one must have in one’s legs what he does not have in his head.. Rebbi Abba Mari said, the wise man knows what will be the final outcome when he starts something. “Gad, a troop will gang up on him²³²Gen. 49:19. The reference naturally is to the entire verse, “Gad, a troop will gang up on him but he will catch their heel.”.” A troop comes to rob him, and he robs them.

BARAITHA. One who enters the bath-house should not exercise himself,⁷⁹Have massage. In V this clause is attached to the next Baraitha but is more appropriate here. or scrape himself on the marble [slab], or have his limbs broken.⁸⁰A form of massage; cf. DER X, p. 560f. All these forms of exercise should not be undertaken in the public bath-house out of modesty.
GEMARA. What is the meaning of ‘exercise himself’? For example, pressing his head between his knees. ‘Or scrape himself’: but it is not so! For [we are informed that] the servant of Raba scraped him! It speaks of scraping with the hand. ‘Or have his limbs broken’; Rabban Gamaliel said: Whoever has his limbs broken on the marble is the companion of an ass.⁸¹Rabban Gamaliel must have had in mind the phrase a large-boned [garem] ass (Gen. 49, 14) and homiletically read the word as גרום, ‘with bones broken’. Hence the association of ‘the breaking of the bones’ with the ass.

Shemaya and Avatalyon received from them. Shemaya would say: Love work, hate power, and do not become too familiar with the authorities.
Love work.” How so? This teaches us that a person should love work, and not hate work. For just as the Torah was given in a covenant, so work was given in a covenant, as it says (Exodus 20:10), “For six days you shall labor and do all your work, and the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Eternal your God.” Rabbi Akiva would say: Sometimes a person labors and escapes death, and sometimes a person does not labor and becomes liable for death from Heaven. How so? Say a person sat around all week and did no labor, and then on the eve of the Sabbath he had nothing to eat. But he had money that had been designated [to the Temple] in his house. So he took from this and ate, and thus became liable to death from Heaven. However, if he had labored on the building of the Temple, then even though they paid him in money designated for the Temple and he took that money and used it for food, he would still escape the death penalty.
Rabbi Dostai would say: How do we know that if someone did no work all six days, he will end up doing work on the seventh? For, see, if he sat all the days of the week and did no work, and then on the eve of the Sabbath he had nothing to eat, he would then go out looking, and end up seized by conscription officers, who would grab him by the collar and force him to do on the Sabbath all the work that he did not do for six days.
Rabbi Shimon ben Elazar would say: Even Adam did not taste anything until he worked, as it says (Genesis 2:15–16), “And God placed him in the garden, to work it and guard it”; and then [it says (verse 17)], “From every tree of the garden you may certainly eat.”
Rabbi Tarfon would say: Even the Holy Blessed One did not rest His presence upon Israel until they had done work, as it says (Exodus 25:5), “Make Me a Sanctuary, and I will dwell among them.”
Rabbi Yehudah ben Beteira would say: If someone who has no work to do, what should he do? If he has a dilapidated yard or field, he should go and work on them, as it says (Exodus 20:10), “Six days you shall labor and do all your work.” What do we learn from the phrase, “do all your work”? That even someone who has dilapidated yards or fields should work on them.
Rabbi Yosei HaGalili would say: A person dies only because of idleness, as it says (Genesis 49:33), “And he expired [or: exhausted himself], and so was gathered to his people.”¹It does not say that Jacob “died,” only that he was “gathered to his people.” Rabbi Yosei is reading that as a reward for “exhausting himself,” i.e., not being idle. And see, if someone is pushed and falls over on his own craftwork and dies, we know his death was because of idleness. And if he was standing on the top of the roof, the top of a palace, or the top of any building, or at the edge of the river, and he fell and died, we know his death was because of idleness.
All this we know to be true for men. And how do we know it is also true for women? For it says (Exodus 36:6), “Let no man or woman do any more work for the donations to the Sanctuary.” And how do we know it is true also for children? For it says (there), “So the people stopped bringing.”
Rabbi Natan said: When Moses was carrying out the work of the Tabernacle, he did not want to take direction from the chiefs of Israel. So the chiefs of Israel sat there quietly and said: Perhaps now Moses will need our help. When they heard the announcement in the camp that said enough work had been done, they said: Alas, we have not participated at all in the work of the Tabernacle! So they got up and added a great thing by themselves, as it says (Exodus 35:27), “And the chiefs brought the shoham stones [for the breastplate of the high priest].”

The generation of the desert will not be granted eternal life, and will not even be given a trial, as it says (Numbers 14:35), “In this very desert they will die, there they will perish.” And it also says (Psalms 95:11), “Those who I swore, in My anger, would never come to My resting place.” These are the words of Rabbi Eliezer.
But Rabbi Yehoshua said: They will be given a trial! It is about them that the verses speak (Psalms 50:5), “Gather to Me My devotees, who made a covenant with Me over sacrifice.” [Rabbi Eliezer] said to him: Accept my interpretation. For if not, how can you explain the words, “Those who I swore, in my anger”? [Rabbi Yehoshua] replied: These are the spies, and (all) the wicked people of that generation.
Then Rabbi Yehoshua asked: So what do you do with the verse, “Gather to Me My devotees”? [Rabbi Eliezer] said to him: That refers to Moses and Aaron, and all the devotees of that generation from the Tribe of Levi.
Others responded: [But in Numbers 14:35, above,] how do you know the word “there” is referring only to the wicked, and not to the righteous? Didn’t it already say (Genesis 49:31), “There they buried Abraham, and Sarah his wife”? And it also says (Genesis 50:5), “In my grave, which I prepared for myself in the land of Canaan, there shall you bury me.” And it also says (Numbers 20:1), “And Miriam died there, and was buried there.” [And what’s more (Numbers 33:38), “Aaron the priest went up…and died there.”] And it also says (Deuteronomy 34:5), “And Moses, the servant of the Eternal, died there in the land of Moab, by the word of the Eternal.”
Rabbi Yosei HaGalili said: They will not be given a trial! For it says (Numbers 14:35), “In this very desert they will die, there they will perish.” And it also says (Deuteronomy 21:4), “There, by the stream, they shall break the calf’s neck.” Just as we have the word “there” in the case of the calf whose neck is broken, which dies and never leaves that place, so too, the word “there” in the case of those who died in the desert indicates that they will die and never leave that place.
(And others say: They will be given a trial! It is about them that the verse speaks (Jeremiah 2:2): “Go and call to the ears of Jerusalem and say…[I will remember as a kindness the devotion of your youth].”)

The lion has six names: Aryeh, Kefir, Lavi, Layish, Shakhal, and Shakhatz.