Мидраш к Эйха 3:9
גָּדַ֤ר דְּרָכַי֙ בְּגָזִ֔ית נְתִיבֹתַ֖י עִוָּֽה׃ (ס)
Он заключил мои пути обтесанным камнем, Он изогнул мои пути.
Eikhah Rabbah
“He fenced me in that I will not emerge; He made my fetters heavy” (Lamentations 3:7).
“He fenced me in that I will not emerge” – Rabbi Aivu said: This is the enclosure of the Arabs. Rabbi Berekhya said: This is the fortress of the Persians.12The “enclosure of the Arabs” and the “fortress of the Persians” were locations where Jews were imprisoned. The Rabbis say: This is the strip of land of the Cuthites.13The Cuthites inhabited a strip of land in the Land of Israel that separated between the Jewish communities of Judea and the Galilee, and they would not permit Jews to travel between the two Jewish areas (see Ḥagiga 25a). “He made my fetters heavy” – He burdened me with land tax, state tax, and poll tax.
“Even when I cry and plead, He blocks my prayer” (Lamentations 3:8).
“Even when I cry and plead” – Rabbi Aḥa said: Anyone who prays with the congregation, to what is he comparable? It is to people who crafted a crown for the king. A poor man comes and donates his portion of it. What does the king say? Shall I not accept it because of this poor person?14The translation is in accordance with the Hebrew textual emendation of Rabbi David Luria. Immediately, the king accepts it and places it on his head. Likewise, if there were ten righteous men standing in prayer and there is a wicked man standing in their midst, what does the Holy One blessed be He say? Shall I not accept their prayer because of this wicked person? The Rabbis said: One who comes after the congregation, his actions are scrutinized. To what is he comparable? It is to a king whose sharecroppers and the members of his household entered to honor him. One came late. The king said: ‘Let his barrel be sealed.’15He brought a barrel of wine or other goods for the king, but the king does not accept the gift (Matnot Kehuna). What caused this for him? It is because he came late. So too, anyone who prays after the community, his actions are scrutinized. That is why it is stated: “Even when I cry and plead, He blocks [satam] my prayer.” Satam is written with a sin,16It is not written here with a samekh, which would have been the conventional spelling. Thus, the word can be vocalized shetam, which means “because it has concluded.” because the prayer of the congregation has concluded.
“He fenced my ways with hewn stone, distorted my paths” (Lamentations 3:9).
“He fenced my ways with hewn stone” – the daughters of Lod would knead their doughs, ascend and pray [in Jerusalem], and descend before they leavened. The daughters of Tzippori would ascend and praise [God] in the Temple, and there was no one who harvested the fig tree before them.17They would leave early in the morning and return early in the morning as well. Some assert that the text should state that they would stay for Shabbat [shavtan] rather than that they would praise God [shabḥan]. Nonetheless, they were able to return home so early on Sunday morning that they were the first to harvest the figs (Matnot Kehuna). The scribe of Migdal would prepare his lamps every Friday, would ascend [to the Temple], praise, and descend and kindle them. Some say that every Friday the scribe would ascend, review his [Torah] portion in the Temple, descend, and observe Shabbat in his home.
There was an incident involving a certain person who was standing and plowing. His ox fled. He went and told people what [had occurred]. They said to him: ‘On which thoroughfare did you come?’18Apparently, he had lost his way and did not know how to get home. Alternatively, they asked him which way his ox had taken so that they could help him find it. He began showing them but could not find the way. They applied to him the verse: “He fenced my ways with hewn stone, distorted [iva] my paths.” He rendered [the paths] ruins, just as it says: “A ruin [ava], a ruin, a ruin I will render it” (Ezekiel 21:32).
“He fenced me in that I will not emerge” – Rabbi Aivu said: This is the enclosure of the Arabs. Rabbi Berekhya said: This is the fortress of the Persians.12The “enclosure of the Arabs” and the “fortress of the Persians” were locations where Jews were imprisoned. The Rabbis say: This is the strip of land of the Cuthites.13The Cuthites inhabited a strip of land in the Land of Israel that separated between the Jewish communities of Judea and the Galilee, and they would not permit Jews to travel between the two Jewish areas (see Ḥagiga 25a). “He made my fetters heavy” – He burdened me with land tax, state tax, and poll tax.
“Even when I cry and plead, He blocks my prayer” (Lamentations 3:8).
“Even when I cry and plead” – Rabbi Aḥa said: Anyone who prays with the congregation, to what is he comparable? It is to people who crafted a crown for the king. A poor man comes and donates his portion of it. What does the king say? Shall I not accept it because of this poor person?14The translation is in accordance with the Hebrew textual emendation of Rabbi David Luria. Immediately, the king accepts it and places it on his head. Likewise, if there were ten righteous men standing in prayer and there is a wicked man standing in their midst, what does the Holy One blessed be He say? Shall I not accept their prayer because of this wicked person? The Rabbis said: One who comes after the congregation, his actions are scrutinized. To what is he comparable? It is to a king whose sharecroppers and the members of his household entered to honor him. One came late. The king said: ‘Let his barrel be sealed.’15He brought a barrel of wine or other goods for the king, but the king does not accept the gift (Matnot Kehuna). What caused this for him? It is because he came late. So too, anyone who prays after the community, his actions are scrutinized. That is why it is stated: “Even when I cry and plead, He blocks [satam] my prayer.” Satam is written with a sin,16It is not written here with a samekh, which would have been the conventional spelling. Thus, the word can be vocalized shetam, which means “because it has concluded.” because the prayer of the congregation has concluded.
“He fenced my ways with hewn stone, distorted my paths” (Lamentations 3:9).
“He fenced my ways with hewn stone” – the daughters of Lod would knead their doughs, ascend and pray [in Jerusalem], and descend before they leavened. The daughters of Tzippori would ascend and praise [God] in the Temple, and there was no one who harvested the fig tree before them.17They would leave early in the morning and return early in the morning as well. Some assert that the text should state that they would stay for Shabbat [shavtan] rather than that they would praise God [shabḥan]. Nonetheless, they were able to return home so early on Sunday morning that they were the first to harvest the figs (Matnot Kehuna). The scribe of Migdal would prepare his lamps every Friday, would ascend [to the Temple], praise, and descend and kindle them. Some say that every Friday the scribe would ascend, review his [Torah] portion in the Temple, descend, and observe Shabbat in his home.
There was an incident involving a certain person who was standing and plowing. His ox fled. He went and told people what [had occurred]. They said to him: ‘On which thoroughfare did you come?’18Apparently, he had lost his way and did not know how to get home. Alternatively, they asked him which way his ox had taken so that they could help him find it. He began showing them but could not find the way. They applied to him the verse: “He fenced my ways with hewn stone, distorted [iva] my paths.” He rendered [the paths] ruins, just as it says: “A ruin [ava], a ruin, a ruin I will render it” (Ezekiel 21:32).
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