Зехарья 13:2 Мидраш: Midrash Tanchuma, Bamidbar Rabbah, Midrash Tanchuma Buber & Midrash Tehillim

(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.’”

A certain idolater asked Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakai: ‘These actions that you perform seem to be a type of sorcery. You bring a heifer, burn it, crush it, and take its ashes. One of you becomes impure from a corpse, one sprinkles upon him two or three drops, and you say to him: You are purified.’ He said to him: ‘Has a spirit of insanity never entered you?’ He said to him: ‘No.’ ‘Have you seen a person into whom a spirit of insanity has entered?’ He said to him: ‘Yes.’ He said to him: ‘And what do you do to him?’ He said to him: ‘We bring roots, smoke them beneath him, and sprinkle water on it, and it flees.’ He said to him: ‘Let your ears hear what you express from your mouth. The same is true of this spirit, this spirit of impurity, as it is written: “I will remove the prophets and the spirit of impurity from the land” (Zechariah 13:2). We sprinkle upon it the water of sprinkling, and it flees.’
After he left, his students said to him: ‘You rebuffed this one with a reed.⁴⁴It was not a particularly compelling response. What do you say to us?’ He said to them: ‘As you live, it is not the corpse that impurifies, and it is not the water that purifies. Rather, the Holy One blessed be He said: I instituted a statute, issued a decree; you are not permitted to violate My decree, as it is written: “This is the statute of the Torah.”’
Why are all the offerings male and this is female? Rabbi Aivu said: This is analogous to the son of a maidservant who defecated in a king’s palace. The king said: Let his mother come and wipe the excrement clean. So, the Holy One blessed be He said: Let the heifer come and atone for the act of the calf.

A certain star worshiper questioned Rabban Johanan ben Zakkay: These things which you do seem like a kind of sorcery.¹²⁹Tanh., Numb. 6:8; Numb. R. 19:8; PRK 4:7; PR 14:14. You bring a heifer, burn it, pound it, and take its ashes. Then <when> one one of you is defiled by a corpse, they sprinkle two or three drops on him, and someone says to him: You are clean. He said to him: Have you ever had the spirit of madness enter you? He told him: No. He said to him: Perhaps you have seen someone into whom the spirit of madness 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 star worshiper> had left, <Johanan's> disciples said to him: 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 water purify. Rather, [as a decree of the Supreme King of Kings], the Holy One 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. For what reason are all the sacrifices male, while that one is female?¹³⁰PRK 4:8. R. Ayyevu said: It is comparable to the son of a female slave who defiled a king's palace.¹³¹Lat.: praetorium Gk.: praitoriom. The king said: Let his mother come and clean up the excrement. Similarly has the Holy One said: Let a heifer come and atone for the incident of the <golden> calf.