וְנָתַתִּ֤י שָׁלוֹם֙ בָּאָ֔רֶץ וּשְׁכַבְתֶּ֖ם וְאֵ֣ין מַחֲרִ֑יד וְהִשְׁבַּתִּ֞י חַיָּ֤ה רָעָה֙ מִן־הָאָ֔רֶץ וְחֶ֖רֶב לֹא־תַעֲבֹ֥ר בְּאַרְצְכֶֽם׃
I ustanowię pokój na ziemi, i spoczywać będziecie, a nikt nie wystraszy; wyplenię téż zwierzęta dzikie z ziemi, a miecz nie przejdzie po ziemi waszej.
Jerusalem Talmud Berakhot
A person should not sit on a low bench237Latin subsellium “bench”. on which a Torah scroll was placed. It happened that Rebbi Eliezer sat down on a low bench on which a Torah scroll was placed and he recoiled from it as one recoils before a snake238Cf. Massekhet Soferim 3:13, and Massekhet Sefer Torah 3:10 (where it says “he got up as if bitten by a snake”); also quoted in Babli Menaḥot 32b. The reason given is the verse (Lev. 26:6): “You shall fear My holy things.” This is then qualified that one may not sit on a bench on which there is a Torah scroll, but if the scroll is on a separate table or chair, there is no minimum distance to be kept.. If it was placed on something other, it is permitted. How far? Rebbi Abba in the name of Rebbi Ḥuna: One handbreadth. Rebbi Jeremiah in the name of Rebbi Zeïra: Anything.