Talmud do Liczb 29:13

GEMARA. ‘R. Meir said’: The Rabbis have taught:⁶⁴The story is not found elsewhere in Talmudic literature. R. Meir once went to a certain place where an old man asked him, ‘Why is it written, It is a sweet savour, an offering made by fire unto the Lord,⁶⁵e.g. Ex. 29, 18. [and elsewhere it is written, An offering made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the Lord]?’⁶⁶e.g. Num. 29, 13. The words within brackets are not in V but added by H. He was not in possession [of the answer], so he went to the Beth Hammidrash and inquired. They told him, ‘The one passage refers to those who occupy themselves with the study of the Torah for its own sake, and the other to those who occupy themselves not for its own sake’.⁶⁷Where the motive is disinterested the study of the Torah is a sweet savour first and an offering made by fire second; otherwise it is reversed. For the comparison of the Torah to fire, cf. Deut. 33, 2, a fiery law. As for R. Meir who taught: ‘Whoever occupies himself with the Torah for its own sake’, etc.,⁶⁸At the beginning of the Baraitha. was he not in possession of what R. Joḥanan⁶⁹This name varies in the sources, e.g. R. Isaac and R. Abba. said: [It is written,] And the Lord saith: Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, etc.⁷⁰Jer. 9, 12.: The Holy One, blessed be He, said [54b], ‘I have exiled Israel not because of idolatry, immorality and murder, but because they forsook My law; as it is stated, And have forsaken Me, and have not kept My law⁷¹ibid. XVI, 11.—if they forsook Me why did they not keep My law?’⁷²j.Ḥag. I, 7, 76C. Hence the Sages declared:⁷³Pes. 50b (Sonc. ed., p. 245). Let a man ever occupy himself with the Torah even not for its own sake; because from doing it not for its own sake, he will come to do it for its own sake.
[R. Meir] made his statement on the principle of R. ‘Aḳiba, for it has been taught: R. ‘Aḳiba said: Whoever reads [the Torah] not for its own sake, it were better for him that he had died at birth;⁷⁴lit. ‘it would have been better for him had the afterbirth been turned on his face’. for it is stated, And ye shall keep My commandments, and do them.⁷⁵Lev. 22, 31. The purpose of studying the precepts of the Torah is to do them. But whoever reads [the Torah] for its own sake, Scripture accounts it to him as though he had fulfilled [the precepts], as it is stated, And do them.⁷⁶Cf. Sanh. 99b (Sonc. ed., p. 675). The following was quoted in refutation of R. Joḥanan’s statement: What was the cause of the first destruction of Jerusalem? Idolatry. And of the second destruction? Causeless hatred;⁷⁷Tosiftha Men. XIII, 22 (ed. Zuckermandel, p. 533) cites this in the name of R. Joḥanan b. Torthah. so were there not two causes?⁷⁸R. Joḥanan gives only one cause for the first destruction and one for the second destruction. R. Joḥanan can reply: It is the Holy One, blessed be He, Who spoke thus: They have forsaken Me. Why? Because they have not kept My law;⁷⁹One cause was the effect of the other, and so there were not two causes. consequently if they had kept My law they would not have forsaken Me. And as to your question on [the destruction of] the Second Temple, causeless hatred is different because it is more grievous than idolatry.⁸⁰Hence one cause sufficed. Whence do we know this? For it is written, Ephraim is joined to idols; let him alone:⁸¹Hosea 4, 17. As long as they are joined together even [to worship] their idols, leave them alone;⁸²So long as there was unity among the people, even for a base purpose, God would not punish them. [and it is written,] Their heart is divided; now shall they bear their guilt.⁸³ibid. X, 2. Only when the people are divided through enmity they suffer divine punishment. If so, what [was the cause of] the first destruction? With the First Temple it was different; He deferred the punishment from the days of Rehoboam. Or if you wish I can say that the First Temple was also destroyed for the reason their heart is divided.
The Rabbis have taught:⁸⁴This statement is not found in the Talmudic sources. Whoever hates another is as though he were his murderer, as it is stated, But if any man hate his neighbour, and lie in wait for him, and rise up against him, and smite him mortally that he die⁸⁵Deut. 19, 11. Hatred may lead to murder. Cf. Sifrë, Deut., §§186f. (ed. Friedmann, p. 108b).—were it in his power he would kill him.