אָמַ֣ר אֲ֭דֹנָי מִבָּשָׁ֣ן אָשִׁ֑יב אָ֝שִׁ֗יב מִֽמְּצֻל֥וֹת יָֽם׃
Rzekł Pan: z Baszanu sprowadzę ich; sprowadzę z nad głębin morza.
Eikhah Rabbah
“For these I weep, my eye, my eye sheds water; for a comforter, restorer of my soul, has grown distant from me; my children have become desolate, because the enemy has prevailed” (Lamentations 1:16).
“For these I weep.” Vespasian filled three ships with the prominent ones of Jerusalem, in order to place them in the brothels of Rome. They stood and said: ‘Is it not enough that we angered Him in His Temple, that [we shall do so] even outside of Israel?’ They said to the women: ‘Do you consent to this?’167The Jewish men, who were being brought to Rome for Roman men to engage with them in homosexual relations, asked the Jewish women, who were being transported to Rome for Roman men to engage with them in heterosexual relations. They said to them: ‘No.’ They said: ‘If those for whom it is the natural way are unwilling, for us, all the more so. Would you say that if we cast ourselves into the sea, we will come to life in the World to Come?’ Immediately, the Holy One blessed be He enlightened their eyes to this verse: “The Lord said: I will return them from Bashan; I will return them from the depths of the sea” (Psalms 68:23). “I will return them from Bashan,” from between the teeth of lions.168Bashan is a portmanteau of bein shinei—between the teeth. “I will return them from the depths of the sea,” in its plain sense.
The first group stood and said: “Had we forgotten the name of our God and stretched out our palms to a strange god” (Psalms 44:21), and they cast themselves into the sea. The second group stood and said: “For we are killed all day long for You” (Psalms 44:23), and they cast themselves into the sea. The third group stood and said: “Would not God have discovered it, as He knows the secrets of the heart” (Psalms 44:22), and they cast themselves into the sea. The Divine Presence was crying out and saying: “For these I weep.”
Hadrian, may his bones be crushed, deployed three garrisons, one in Ḥamat, one in Kefar Lekitaya, and one in Beit El of Judah. He said: ‘One who flees from here will be apprehended there, and one who flees from there will be apprehended here.’ He would dispatch heralds who would proclaim and say: ‘Wherever there are Jews, let them come, as the king wishes to give them his word.’ The heralds would announce it to them and they would capture the Jews. That is what is written: “Ephraim was like a foolish dove, without understanding…” (Hosea 7:11). To one who questioned, they would respond: ‘Come and request that you not be taken.’169The heralds told the Jews to request of Hadrian that they be allowed to stay in the Land of Israel and not be taken into captivity (Matnot Kehuna). Those who were discerning and observed, did not go out. And those who did not observe, they all entered into the Beit Rimon Valley. He said to the captain of his guard: ‘Until I eat the edge of this loaf and this thigh of a rooster, I will seek one of them and will not find.’170He commanded his officer to immediately kill them all. Immediately, he surrounded them with his legions and killed them, and their blood was bursting forth like a river until it reached Cypress. The Divine Presence was crying out and saying: “For these I weep.”
Those who remained in hiding, some of them would eat the flesh of those who had been slain. Each day, one of them would go out and bring [a corpse] to them and they would eat. One day, one said: ‘Let one of the people from among us go. If he finds something, he will bring it and we will eat.’ When he went out he found his father, who had been slain. He took him, concealed him, and placed a marker over him. He came back and said to them: ‘I did not find anything.’ They said: ‘Let another person go, if he finds something, he will bring it and we will eat.’ When that person went out, he followed the odor and found the one who was slain. He brought him and they ate him. Once they ate, [the first man] said to him: ‘From where did you bring this slain person?’ He said to him: ‘From such and such corner.’ He said to him: ‘And what marker was placed upon it?’ He said to him: ‘Such and such marker.’ His son responded and said: ‘Woe is it for this man, who ate of the flesh of his father,’ to realize what is stated: “Therefore, fathers will eat sons in your midst, [and sons will eat their fathers]” (Ezekiel 5:10).
The wife of Trajan, may his bones be crushed, gave birth on the night of the Ninth of Av and all Israel was mourning. The baby died on Hanukkah. The Israelites said: ‘Shall we kindle or shall we not kindle?’ They said: ‘We shall kindle, and anything that he seeks to inflict upon us, let him inflict.’ They kindled.
[People] went and slandered them to Trajan’s wife: ‘These Jews, when you gave birth they were mourning, and when the baby died they kindled lights.’ She sent a letter to her husband: ‘Instead of subduing the barbarians, come and subdue these Jews who have rebelled against you.’ He boarded the ship and calculated that he would arrive in ten days, but the wind brought him in five days. He arrived and found them, that they were engaged in this verse: “The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as the eagle will swoop” (Deuteronomy 28:49). He said to them: ‘I am the eagle, as I calculated that I would arrive in ten days and the wind brought me in five days.’ His legions surrounded them and killed them.
He said to the women: ‘Submit to my legions, and if not, I will do to you just what I did to the men.’171He threatened to have them killed if they would not submit to intercourse with his legions. They said to him: ‘Do to the inferiors what you did to the superiors.’172Do to us what you did to the men. Immediately, his legions surrounded them and killed them and the blood of these and the blood of those intermingled, and their blood was bursting forth like a river until it reached Cyprus. The Divine Presence was crying out and saying: “For these I weep.”
“For these I weep.” Vespasian filled three ships with the prominent ones of Jerusalem, in order to place them in the brothels of Rome. They stood and said: ‘Is it not enough that we angered Him in His Temple, that [we shall do so] even outside of Israel?’ They said to the women: ‘Do you consent to this?’167The Jewish men, who were being brought to Rome for Roman men to engage with them in homosexual relations, asked the Jewish women, who were being transported to Rome for Roman men to engage with them in heterosexual relations. They said to them: ‘No.’ They said: ‘If those for whom it is the natural way are unwilling, for us, all the more so. Would you say that if we cast ourselves into the sea, we will come to life in the World to Come?’ Immediately, the Holy One blessed be He enlightened their eyes to this verse: “The Lord said: I will return them from Bashan; I will return them from the depths of the sea” (Psalms 68:23). “I will return them from Bashan,” from between the teeth of lions.168Bashan is a portmanteau of bein shinei—between the teeth. “I will return them from the depths of the sea,” in its plain sense.
The first group stood and said: “Had we forgotten the name of our God and stretched out our palms to a strange god” (Psalms 44:21), and they cast themselves into the sea. The second group stood and said: “For we are killed all day long for You” (Psalms 44:23), and they cast themselves into the sea. The third group stood and said: “Would not God have discovered it, as He knows the secrets of the heart” (Psalms 44:22), and they cast themselves into the sea. The Divine Presence was crying out and saying: “For these I weep.”
Hadrian, may his bones be crushed, deployed three garrisons, one in Ḥamat, one in Kefar Lekitaya, and one in Beit El of Judah. He said: ‘One who flees from here will be apprehended there, and one who flees from there will be apprehended here.’ He would dispatch heralds who would proclaim and say: ‘Wherever there are Jews, let them come, as the king wishes to give them his word.’ The heralds would announce it to them and they would capture the Jews. That is what is written: “Ephraim was like a foolish dove, without understanding…” (Hosea 7:11). To one who questioned, they would respond: ‘Come and request that you not be taken.’169The heralds told the Jews to request of Hadrian that they be allowed to stay in the Land of Israel and not be taken into captivity (Matnot Kehuna). Those who were discerning and observed, did not go out. And those who did not observe, they all entered into the Beit Rimon Valley. He said to the captain of his guard: ‘Until I eat the edge of this loaf and this thigh of a rooster, I will seek one of them and will not find.’170He commanded his officer to immediately kill them all. Immediately, he surrounded them with his legions and killed them, and their blood was bursting forth like a river until it reached Cypress. The Divine Presence was crying out and saying: “For these I weep.”
Those who remained in hiding, some of them would eat the flesh of those who had been slain. Each day, one of them would go out and bring [a corpse] to them and they would eat. One day, one said: ‘Let one of the people from among us go. If he finds something, he will bring it and we will eat.’ When he went out he found his father, who had been slain. He took him, concealed him, and placed a marker over him. He came back and said to them: ‘I did not find anything.’ They said: ‘Let another person go, if he finds something, he will bring it and we will eat.’ When that person went out, he followed the odor and found the one who was slain. He brought him and they ate him. Once they ate, [the first man] said to him: ‘From where did you bring this slain person?’ He said to him: ‘From such and such corner.’ He said to him: ‘And what marker was placed upon it?’ He said to him: ‘Such and such marker.’ His son responded and said: ‘Woe is it for this man, who ate of the flesh of his father,’ to realize what is stated: “Therefore, fathers will eat sons in your midst, [and sons will eat their fathers]” (Ezekiel 5:10).
The wife of Trajan, may his bones be crushed, gave birth on the night of the Ninth of Av and all Israel was mourning. The baby died on Hanukkah. The Israelites said: ‘Shall we kindle or shall we not kindle?’ They said: ‘We shall kindle, and anything that he seeks to inflict upon us, let him inflict.’ They kindled.
[People] went and slandered them to Trajan’s wife: ‘These Jews, when you gave birth they were mourning, and when the baby died they kindled lights.’ She sent a letter to her husband: ‘Instead of subduing the barbarians, come and subdue these Jews who have rebelled against you.’ He boarded the ship and calculated that he would arrive in ten days, but the wind brought him in five days. He arrived and found them, that they were engaged in this verse: “The Lord will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as the eagle will swoop” (Deuteronomy 28:49). He said to them: ‘I am the eagle, as I calculated that I would arrive in ten days and the wind brought me in five days.’ His legions surrounded them and killed them.
He said to the women: ‘Submit to my legions, and if not, I will do to you just what I did to the men.’171He threatened to have them killed if they would not submit to intercourse with his legions. They said to him: ‘Do to the inferiors what you did to the superiors.’172Do to us what you did to the men. Immediately, his legions surrounded them and killed them and the blood of these and the blood of those intermingled, and their blood was bursting forth like a river until it reached Cyprus. The Divine Presence was crying out and saying: “For these I weep.”
Midrash Tehillim
"A Psalm of David. Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man; preserve me from the violent man; Solomon said (Proverbs 4:6), 'Do not forsake wisdom, and she will keep you.' (Proverbs 6:22) 'When you walk, they will lead you; when you lie down, they will watch over you.' So said the Lord to David, 'It is your desire that I preserve you; I will preserve you and keep you in the Torah,' as it says (Proverbs 4:13), 'Keep her, for she is your life.' Your desire is that I rescue you from the hand of the wicked; sing for joy before Me, and I will deliver you.' (Psalm 32:7) 'Sing for joy, O daughter of Zion; shout aloud, O Israel! Be glad and rejoice with all your heart, O daughter of Jerusalem!' Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man; who is he, but Esau the wicked? And what is his evil? Death. So said the Lord, 'When I redeem you from the hand of death, I will redeem you,' as it says (Hosea 13:14), 'I will ransom them from the power of the grave; I will redeem them from death.' Death is the evil that Esau has done. Therefore it is said, 'Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man,' (Psalm 140:1) and Jacob also said, 'Deliver me, O Lord, from the evil man.' (Genesis 32:12) 'And what kind of evil is it that a violent person does? Protect me from the hand of the oppressor.' And what was the oppression? (Genesis 32:14-15) 'He spent the night there, and from what he had with him he took a present for his brother Esau: two hundred female goats and twenty male goats, two hundred ewes and twenty rams.' This was not oppression. And so it says (Obadiah 1:10), 'Because of the violence done to your brother Jacob, shame shall cover you.'" Israel said, "The mountains will be cut off forever, and whatever was swallowed up will be swallowed up." Then the Lord said, "I will bring them out from between their teeth," as it is written (Psalm 68:23), "God said, 'I will bring them back from Bashan.'" Therefore, it is said, "Protect me from the hands of the wicked, who have thought evil thoughts in their hearts," etc. What does it mean to have evil thoughts in the heart? It does not mean that it is only hidden in one's heart and not spoken aloud. Rather, it means that one thinks evil thoughts in the heart. When they think of evil, they are not only thinking of themselves but also of others, as it is written (Obadiah 1:18), "The house of Jacob will be a fire," etc. This is also expressed in Daniel 7:7-8, "I looked at these horns and there was another horn, a little one, coming up among them, and it uprooted three of the horns with eyes like the eyes of a man, and a mouth uttering great boasts." Looking at God, one speaks harsh and reviling words. It is written (Daniel 7:11), "I watched until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire."