Midrash sa Exodo 19:17: Ein Yaakov (Glick Edition), Midrash Tehillim, Midrash Aggadah & Midrash Tanchuma

"The same will happen with all the other nations." Why did he enumerate the two and not the rest of the nations? Because the reign of these two lasted until the Messianic age. But why should the other nations enter after seeing the disappointment of the first two? Because they will think: "The first two enslaved Israel, but we did not enslave them." "Finally they will say before Him: 'Sovereign of the Universe! Didst Thou then give us the Torah and we did not accept it?' But how could they say so? Is it not written (Deut. 33, 2) The Lord came from Sinai, and rose from Sair unto them: He shined forth from Mount Paran. And again there is a passage (Habak. 3, 3) God cometh from Teman, and the Holy One from Mount Paran. And to the question, What has the Lord to do in Sair and Paran, R. Jochanan said: "From this it may be inferred that the Holy One, praised be He! has presented His Torah to every nation, but it was not accepted until He came to Israel [hence their claim]." Therefore, we must say that they will say to Him: "Have we then accepted the Torah, and not fulfilled its commandments?" But what answer is this? Could they not be accused because they have not accepted? We must therefore say that they will plead thus: "Sovereign of the Universe! Hast Thou then arched the mountain over us as Thou didst over the children of Israel; for the passage says (Ex. 19, 17) And they stood at the foot of the mountain, upon which R. Dimi b. Chasa of Chihah remarked: "From this we may infer that the Holy One, praised be He! arched the mountain over them like a tank and said to them: 'If you accept the Torah then it is well, but if not, there shall be your graves.' Finally, the answer will come, (Is. 43, 9) And announces to us former things, i.e., the Holy One, praised be He! will say to them: 'The seven commandmenst which were given to you, have ye observed them?' And whence do we know that they have not? From that which R. Joseph taught: "What is the meaning of the passage (Hab. 3, 6) He standeth and shaketh the earth; He beholdeth and maketh the nations to tremble. What did He behold? He beheld that the seven commandments accepted by the descendants of Noah, were not observed. And therefore He absolved the nations of them." Should they then have profited [by their disobedience]? Said Mar b. Rabbina: (Fol. 3) "It means that even should they fulfill them, they shall not be rewarded."

“Not so the wicked” (Psalms 1:4). This [relates to] that which the Scripture said, “I am a rose of the Sharon, [a lily of the valleys]” (Song of Songs 2:1). The Assembly of Israel said before the Holy One, blessed be He, “I am beloved, since you have loved me from [among] all the nations. A “rose” because I made shade for you [in the form of the Tabernacle] through the [work of] Bezalel [who was the main artisan behind the construction of the Tabernacle. The Midrash is playing on the Hebrew word for rose, chavatzelet, because it contains the phoneme, tzel, which means shade. This phoneme is also found in the name of Bezalel]. I am [of] the Sharon [a word which shares its root with the Hebrew word for song], because I uttered a song before [the Holy One, blessed be He] through the [instruction] of Moses [ – a reference to the song at the Sea, which Moses led].” Alternatively, [regarding the “rose of] the Sharon” (Song of Songs 2:1), I am beloved because I was hidden in the shade of Egypt [“hidden in the shade of” is rendered, in Hebrew, chavuya betzelan, which sounds like the Hebrew for a rose, chavatzelet], and yet within the blink of an eye, the Holy One, blessed be He, brought me before Ramses, and I became filled with the sap of good deeds, like a lily [ – the good deeds in question are likely circumcision and the Passover sacrifice. The Jews were commanded to bring the Passover sacrifice before they left Egypt, and according to Rabbinic tradition, this was accompanied by a mass embrace of the commandment of circumcision which had been neglected during the years of Egyptian slavery, and which is a necessary pre-requisite for any male who wants to take part in the Passover sacrifice], and I uttered a song before [the Holy One, blessed be He – the song in question is the hallel song that was, according to the Rabbis, sung over the Passover sacrifice]. As it is said, “For you, there shall be singing, as on a night when a festival is sanctified; [there shall be rejoicing as they march, with flute, with hand-drums, and with lyres; to the Rock of Israel on the Mount of God]” (Isaiah 30:29). Rabbi Yochanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak, “This verse comes to teach us that [hallel was sung at the victory over] Pharoah [on the first Passover, just as hallel was sung when Jerusalem was saved from] Sennacherib. [In other words: this verse serves as the basis for the teaching that hallel is sung on the night of Passover, and over the Passover sacrifice (Pesachim 95b; Jerusalem Talmud Pesachim 9:3:4)]. Alternatively, “I am a rose of the Sharon” (Song of Songs 2:1): That is me, and I am beloved because I was hidden at Sinai, as the mountain was held over me like a barrel [ – with the implicit threat that if I didn’t accept the Torah, the mountain would fall upon me and crush me to death (c.f., Shabbat 88a)], as it is written “and they stood at the bottom of the mountain” [ – creatively re-read to be saying, “and they stood underneath the mountain”] (Exodus 19:17); and yet within the blink of an eye, I became filled with the sap of good deeds, like a lily, and I said, “All that God has said, we shall do, and we shall heed” (Exodus 24:7). Alternatively, “I am a rose of the Sharon” (Song of Songs 2:1), I am beloved because I was hidden in the shade of [various] kingdoms [who ruled over me], and when the Holy One, blessed be He, will redeem me, I become filled with the sap of good deeds, and I utter a song before [the Holy One, blessed be He], as it is said, “Sing a new song to God, because of the wonders He has wrought” (Psalms 98:1). Rabbi Berechia said that the generation of the wilderness said [seemingly on behalf of the wilderness itself], “The [rose of the Sharon] is me, and I am beloved because all of the bounty of the world is concealed within me, as it is said, “I will plant cedars in the wilderness, acacias, myrtles, and oleasters” (Isaiah 41:19) [the Midrash is assuming that these plants are already there in the wilderness, in potential], and when the Holy One, blessed be He, requests it from me, I shall return His deposit to Him [by allowing that hidden potential to become manifest, as those plants finally come to blossom within me], and I become filled with sap, like a lily, and I utter a song before [the Holy One, blessed be He], as it is said, “The arid desert shall be glad, the wilderness shall sing with joy and shall blossom like a rose. It shall blossom abundantly. It shall also exult and shout” (Isaiah 35:1-2). And the Rabbis say that the earth says, “I am beloved because all of the dead of the world are hidden within me, and when the Holy One, blessed be He, will request it, I shall return His deposit to Him, and I become filled with sap like a lily, and I utter a song before [the Holy One, blessed be He],” as it is said, “From the end of the earth we hear singing: “Glory to the righteous!”” (Isaiah 24:16). Rabbi Yuden and Rabbi Elazar said, “Compare the righteous to the most praiseworthy species, and to the most praiseworthy variety of that species. The most praiseworthy species is the lily, and the most praiseworthy of that species is the lily of the valleys; not like a mountain lily which is quick to wither, but like a lily of the valley, which continues to stay moist. And compare the wicked to the most disgusting of species, and to the most disgusting variety of that species. And that is chaff, as it is said, “let them be as chaff in the wind” (Psalms 35:5); and say [along with our Psalm], “Not so the wicked, rather, they are like chaff that the wind blows away” (Psalms 1:4). And lest you say [that they are] like the chaff of the valley, which contains some moisture; no, they are like the windblown chaff of the mountains.” Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said that the assembly of Israel said before the Holy One, blessed be He, “I am a lily of the valleys, that has been given over to the valleys of despair, and when the Omnipresent One raises me up from the valleys of despair, I become filled with the sap of good deeds, like a lily, and I utter a song before [the Holy One, blessed be He], as it is said, “[I was lifted out of the miry pit... and] a new song was placed into my mouth” (Psalms 40:3-4). The Rabbis’ [opinions] accords with that of Rabbi Elazar HaModa’i: In the end of days, the idolatrous nations will come to accuse the [nation] of Israel before the Holy One, blessed be He, and [they will] say before Him, “Master of the universe! These [Gentiles] shed blood, and those [Jews] shed blood; these worship idols, and those worship idols; these engage in illicit sexual relations, and those engage in illicit sexual relations. Why [then] do these [Gentiles] go down to hell, while those [Jews] go down to the Garden of Eden? [God] says to them, “If that’s so, then let each and every nation go down to hell along with its [own] god, as it is said: “Though all the peoples walk, each in the names of its gods, [we will walk in the name of the Lord our God forever and ever]” (Micah 4:5) [The prophet is describing the end of days. In the Midrashic imagination, he is saying that at that time, each nation will follow its god to hell, and the Jews will follow their God, also to hell]. Rabbi Reuven said, in the name of Rabbi Channina, were it not written in Scripture, it would be impossible to say it, as it is said, “for God is judged in the fire” (Isaiah 66:16). [Although the verse, in context, clearly means that God will judge the wicked in fire, if you pay attention to the Hebrew wording] it isn’t [actually] written here that [God] judges. Rather, [the plain reading of the text tells us that] God is judged. And this [relates] to that which David said, “Although I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil [for You are with me; Your rod and Your staff; they comfort me.]” (Psalms 23:4). [The suggestion is that even as I walk through hellfire, I do so with God by my side]. “Your rod” – this refers to the afflictions [with which God punishes us for our sins], as it is said, “I will punish their transgressions with the rod” (Psalms 89:33). “Your staff” – this is the Torah, [since the word “staff” is juxtaposed, in the Biblical Song of the Well, with a sceptre,] as it is said, “[The well that the chieftains dug, that the nobles of the people started] with a spectre, and with their own staffs” (Numbers 21:18) [and the Hebrew word for “sceptre” is etymologically tied to the word for legislation; and thus, to God’s Torah]. “They comfort me” – you might have thought [that the Torah could comfort me] without the afflictions [with which God punishes us], but the [limitative particle] אך [in verse 6 of Psalms 23] comes to teach us [that the afflictions are necessary for the comfort that the Torah brings]. You might think that the [comfort is experienced] in this world, but the verse comes to teach us that, “Goodness and steadfast love shall pursue me all the days of my life,” to what end? So that [after I die] “I will dwell in the house of God for ever” (Psalms 23:6). Abba Tanchuma said, what are the righteous like, in this world? [They] are like a tray that is inlaid with gem stones and pearls, and [it has] holes [on either side so that] hands [can grip it to lift it up]. [It lies on the floor, full of sand, or other worthless materials, that obscure its beauty]. [When one] lifts it up, all that is inside of it spills [through the holes], and the beauty of the tablet is seen. Accordingly, the wicked shall be destroyed from the world like hay, as it is said, “Grass withers and flowers fade” (Isaiah 40:8), but the righteous will be seen forever, as [the verse continues], “But the word of our God stands forever” – this refers to the righteous who embody the word of our God.

"And they were gathered there." These are Israel, as it is stated, "And they stood at the foot of the mountain." (Exodus 19:17)