Мидраш к Шмуэль А 21:7

(Numb. 33:1:) THESE ARE THE STAGES <BY WHICH> OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL <WENT FORTH FROM THE LAND OF EGYPT>. Let our master instruct us: When a person is being pursued by robbers and brigands,¹Gk.: lestai. is it permissible for such a one to profane the Sabbath. Thus have our masters taught: When a person is being pursued by robbers and brigands, such a one does profane the Sabbath to save his life.²Tanh., Numb. 10:1; Numb. R. 23:1; see RH 2:5; ‘Eruv 45a; Ta‘an. 14a. We therefore find in the case of David, that when Saul sought to kill him, he fled from him and was saved.³According to Men. 95b, David’s eating of the consecrated bread (I Sam. 21:7 [6]) on the day of his flight (vs. 11 [10]) took place on the Sabbath. Our masters have said: Once upon a time evil documents came from the Empire for the leading citizens of Sepphoris.⁴The traditional Tanhuma, Numb. 10:1, adds, “On the Sabbath.” <The citizens> came to R. Eliezer ben Parta <and> said to him: Evil documents have come to us from the Empire. What do you say? Shall we flee? Since he was afraid to tell them to flee on the Sabbath, he said to them: Are you asking me? Go and ask Jacob, Moses, and David. With reference to Jacob, it is written (in Hos. 12:13 [12]): THEN JACOB FLED. With reference to Moses, it is written (in Exod. 2:15): BUT MOSES FLED FROM PHARAOH. With reference to David, it is written (in I Sam. 19:18) NOW DAVID FLED AND ESCAPED. It also says (in Is. 26:20): GO, MY PEOPLE, ENTER YOUR CHAMBERS…. But where is it shown that the saving of life overrides the Sabbath? Where it is written (in Lev. 18:5): YOU SHALL KEEP MY STATUTES AND ORDINANCES, FOR IT IS THROUGH PERFORMING THEM THAT A PERSON SHALL LIVE and not die through them. It is also written, with reference to circumcision (in Lev. 12:3): AND ON THE EIGHTH DAY THE FLESH OF HIS FORESKIN SHALL BE CIRCUMCISED, even on the Sabbath. Now are not < these > words <an argument> qal wahomer? If circumcision, which concerns <but> one out of the 248 [human] members, overrides the Sabbath, how much the more in the case of the whole body. The Holy One said [to Israel]: My children, be mindful of my ordinances and keep the Torah, for how many miracles and wonders have I done for you from the day that you went forth from Egypt! I cast down those who hated you, I had you pass through the sea, I cast fear and trembling on your enemies, I destroyed the Amorites along with Sihon and Og, and during the whole forty years that you were in the wilderness I did not forsake you for a single hour. Moreover, how many snakes and scorpions did I exterminate in your presence. It is so stated (in Deut. 8:15): (GOD) WHO LED YOU THROUGH THE GREAT AND TERRIBLE WILDERNESS WITH ITS FIERY SERPENTS AND SCORPIONS. Therefore, the Holy One said to Moses: Write down the stages by which Israel journeyed in the wilderness, so that they will know how many miracles I performed for them during each and every stage. {Thus it is stated (in Numb. 33:1–2):} [Where is it shown? From what they read on the matter (in Numb. 33:1–2):] THESE ARE THE STAGES <BY WHICH> THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL <WENT FORTH FROM THE LAND OF EGYPT>…. AND MOSES WROTE DOWN THEIR STARTING POINGS, STAGE BY STAGE, ACCORDING TO THE COMMAND OF THE LORD.

Let our master instruct us: When a person is being pursued by troops and brigands,¹Gk.: lestai. is it permissible for such a one to profane the Sabbath? Thus have our masters taught: When a person is being pursued by troops and brigands, such a one does profane the Sabbath to save his life.²Numb. R. 23:1; see RH 2:5; ‘Eruv 45a; Ta‘an. 14a. We therefore find in the case of David, that when Saul sought to kill him, he fled from him and was saved.³According to Men. 95b, David’s eating of the consecrated bread (I Sam. 21:7) on the day of his flight (vs. 11) took place on the Sabbath. Our masters have said, “There is a story about a time when evil documents came from the empire for the leading citizens of SepphorIs on the Sabbath. [The citizens] came to R. Eliezer ben Parta [and] said to him, ‘Evil documents have come to us from the empire. What do you say? Shall we flee?’ Since he was afraid to tell them to flee, he said to them. ‘Are you asking me? Go and ask Jacob, Moses, and David.’” With reference to Jacob, it is written (in Hos. 12:13), “Then Jacob fled.” With reference to Moses, it is written (in Exod. 2:15), “but Moses fled from Pharaoh.” With reference to David, it is written (in I Sam. 19:18) “Now David fled and escaped.” It also says (in Is. 26:20), “Go, My people, enter your chambers […].” But where is it shown that the saving of life overrides the Sabbath? Where it is written (in Lev. 18:5), “You shall keep My statutes and ordinances, for it is through performing them that a person shall live,” and not that he die through them. It is also written, with reference to circumcision (in Lev. 12:3), “And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.” It shall be circumcised, and even on the Sabbath. Now are not [these] words [an a fortiori argument] qal wahomer? If circumcision, which concerns [but] one out of the 248 [human] members, overrides the Sabbath, how much the more in the case of the whole body. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, “My children, be mindful of My ordinances and keep the Torah, for how many miracles and wonders have I done for you from the day that you went forth from Egypt! I cast down those who hated you, I had you pass through the sea, I cast fear and trembling on your enemies, as stated (in Exod. 15:15), ‘Then were the chiefs of Edom bewildered....’ I destroyed the Amorites [along with] Sihon and Og, and during the whole forty years that you were in the wilderness I did not forsake you for even a single hour. Moreover, how many snakes and scorpions did I exterminate for your sake, as stated (in Deut. 8:15), ‘(God) who led you through the great and terrible wilderness with its fiery serpents and scorpions,’ and I did not let them hurt you.” Therefore, the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “Write down the stages by which Israel journeyed in the wilderness, so that they will know how many miracles I performed for them during each and every stage.” Where is it shown? From what they read on the matter (in Numb. 33:1-2), “These are the stages [by which] the Children of Israel [went forth from the land of Egypt]…. And Moses wrote down their starting points, stage by stage, according to the command of the Lord.”

MENACHOTH (Fol. 28b) Samuel said: "The height of the candle-stick was eighteen hand-breadths; the stem with the ornaments extended up to three hand-breadths; two hand-breadths were plain [without ornament], etc." (Fol. 29) (II Chr. 4, 21) And the flowers and the lamps of gold, of gold, and that perfect gold; why is the word Kaloth used here for 'perfect'? Said Rab: "Because they consumed all the closed gold of Solomon"; for R. Juda said in the name of Rab: "Solomon made ten candlesticks, and each one consumed one thousand gold talents. They applied it a thousand times into the smelting-furnace until it was refined and reduced to the weight of one talent." Is it then possible that the smelting-furnace should reduce such a quantity? Behold we are taught that R. Jose b. R. Juda says: "It happened that the candlestick of the Temple was heavier than that of Moses with one golden dinar; it was applied eighty times into the smelting-furnace until it was reduced to the weight of a talent." [Hence the smelting-furnace does not reduce to a quantity as stated above.] After it had been reduced [by Solomon] it was indeed hard to reduce it much more. R. Samuel b. Nachmeni said in the name of R. Jonathan: "What is the meaning of the passage (Lev. 24, 4) Upon the pure candlestick? This means that the manner of its workmanship came down directly from heaven. (Ib.) Upon the pure table, i.e., infer from this that the priests would lift up the show-bread and show them to those who came to Jerusalem during the holidays, saying to them: "See how beloved ye are before the Holy One, praised be He!" In what was such love visible? As R. Joshua b. Levi said, for R. Joshua b. Levi said: "A great miracle happened in connection with the show-bread that at the time of their removal they were [just as fresh and warm] as when they were placed upon the table, for it is said (I Sam. 21, 7) So as to put down hot bread on the day it was taken away."