Theologically Provocative Sugyot from the Talmud - Lesson 3
Rosh Hashanah 16b - Top
This class focuses on a single sage, Rabbi Isaac, an Amora from Eretz Yisrael, who was a student of Rabbi Yohanan. His teaching on the subject of judgment were apparently preserved as a collection and brought as a package here in the Babylonian Talmud. Last class, we studied the first two of this collection, those immediately associated with Rosh Hashanah. This class, we will complete the rest of the collection.
Each teaching is a world (or a sugya) unto itself, so only a few of our sugyot will have "masa u'matan",Talmudic give and take. Most of them will consist of a short drasha where Rabbi Isaac draws some midrashic conclusions from his interpretation of Biblical verses.
Sources
#1
1. [מימרא]
ואמר רבי יצחק: כל שנה שרשה בתחלתה מתעשרת בסופה,
שנאמר (דברים יא:יב) מרשית השנה
מרשית כתיב, ועד אחרית – סופה שיש לה אחרית.
#2
1. [עוד מימרא של ר’ יצחק]
ואמר רבי יצחק: אין דנין את האדם אלא לפימעשיו של אותה שעה,
שנאמר (בראשית כא:יז) כי שמע אלקים אל קול הנער באשר הוא שם.
#3
1. [עוד מימרא של ר’ יצחק]
ואמר רבי יצחק: שלשה דברים מזכירין עונותיו של אדם,
אלו הן: קיר נטוי, ועיון תפלה, ומוסר דין על חבירו.
דאמר רבי (אבין) [חנן]: כל המוסר דין על חבירו הוא נענש תחלה.
שנאמר (בראשית טז:ה) ותאמר שרי אל אברם חמסי עליך,
וכתיב (בראשית כג:ב) ויבא אברהם לספד לשרה ולבכתה.
#4
1. [עוד מימרא של ר’ יצחק]
ואמר רבי יצחק: ארבעה דברים מקרעין גזרדינו של אדם, אלו הן: צדקה, צעקה, שינוי השם, ושינוי מעשה.
– צדקה – דכתיב (משלי י:ד) וצדקה תציל ממות,
– צעקה – דכתיב (תהלים קז:כח) ויצעקו אל ה’ בצר להם וממצקותיהם יוציאם,
– שינוי השם – דכתיב (בראשית יז:טו) שרי אשתך לא תקרא את שמה שרי כי שרה שמה,
וכתיב וברכתי אתה וגם נתתי ממנה לך בן,
– שינוי מעשה – דכתיב (יונה ג:י) וירא האלקים את מעשיהם,
וכתיב (שם) וינחם האלקים על הרעה אשר דבר לעשות להם ולא עשה.
– ויש אומרים: אף שינוי מקום, דכתיב (בראשית יב:א) ויאמר ה’ אל אברם לך לך מארצך,
והדר ואעשך לגוי גדול.
2. [שאלה]
ואידך
3. [תשובה]
ההוא זכותא דארץ ישראל הוא דאהניא ליה.
#5
1. [עוד מימרא של ר’ יצחק]
ואמר רבי יצחק: חייב אדם להקביל פני רבו ברגל,
שנאמר (מלכים ב ד:כג) מדוע את הולכת אליו היום לא חדש ולא שבת
מכלל דבחדש ושבת איבעי לה למיזל.
#6
1. [עוד מימרא של ר’ יצחק]
ואמר רבי יצחק: חייב אדם לטהר את עצמו ברגל,
שנאמר (ויקרא יא:ח) ובנבלתם לא תגעו.
2. [ברייתא התומכת המימרא]
תניא נמי הכי: ובנבלתם לא תגעו,
יכול יהו ישראל מוזהרין על מגע נבילה
תלמוד לומר (ויקרא כא:א) אמר אל הכהנים בני אהרן,
בני אהרן מוזהרין, בני ישראל – אין מוזהרין.
והלא דברים קל וחומר: ומה טומאה חמורה- כהנים מוזהרין, ישראלים אינן מוזהרין,
טומאה קלה – לא כל שכן!
אלא, מה תלמוד לומר ובנבלתם לא תגעו
ברגל.
עברית
#1
1. [Meimra]
And R. Isaac said: Every year which is poor at its opening becomes rich before it ends, as it says: From the beginning of the year (Deuteronomy 11:12) where the word is spelled "meroshith" (without an "alef") "unto the end" (Ibid.); such a year is destined to have a "latter end".
#2
1. [Meimra]
And R. Isaac said: Man is judged only according to his actions up to that hour time [of judgment], as it says, God hath heard the voice of the lad as he is there. (Genesis 21:17)
#3
1. [Meimra]
And R. Isaac said: Three things call a man’s iniquities to mind,
And these are they: a shaky wall, the scrutinizing of prayer, and calling for [Divine] judgment on one’s fellow man.
For R. (Abin) [Hanan] said: He who calls down [Divine] judgment on his neighbor is himself punished first [for his own sins], as it says, And Sarai said unto Abram, My wrong be upon thee (Genesis 16:5), and it is written: And Abraham came to mourn for Sarah and to weep for her. (Genesis 23:2)
#4
1. [Meimra]
And R. Isaac said: Four things cancel the decree against a man, and these are they: charity, crying out [supplication],change of name and change of conduct.
– Charity, as it is written: And charity delivers from death. (Proverbs 10:4)
– Supplication: as it is written, Then they cried unto the Lord in their trouble, and he delivered them out of their distresses. (Psalms 107:28)
– Change of name, as it is written: As for Sarai your wife, you shall not call her name Sarai, but Sarah shall her name be (Genesis 17:15); and it is written [further on]: And I will bless her and moreover I will give thee a son of her.
– Change of conduct, as it is written: And God saw their works (Jonah 3:10), and it written [further on]: and God repented of the evil which he said he would do unto them and he did it not. (Ibid.)
– Some say that change of place [also avails], as it is written : Now the Lord said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country (Genesis 12:1), and it proceeds: and I willmake of thee a great nation. (Ibid.)
2. [Shealah]
And the other [why does he not reckon this]?
3. [Teshuva]
In that case it was the merit of the land of Israel which availed him.
#5
1. [Meimra]
And R. Isaac said: It is incumbent on a man to go to pay his respects to his teacher on festivals, as it says: Wherefore will you go to him today? It is not the New Moon or the Sabbath (2 Kings 4:23) from which we infer that on New Moon and Sabbath one should go [to visit his teacher].
#6
1. [Meimra]
And R. Isaac said: A man should purify himself for the festival, as it says: and their carcasses ye shall not touch. (Leviticus 11:8)
2. [Baraita which supports the Meimra]
It has also been taught [in a baraita]: "And their carcasses ye shall not touch".
Is it possible that [ordinary] Israelites are cautioned not to touch carcasses?
Therefore Scripture says, Say unto the priests the sons of Aaron (Leviticus 21:1); [which shows that] the sons of Aaron are cautioned but ordinary Israelites are not cautioned. May we not then argue a fortiori (kal v'homer): Seeing that in the case of a serious impurity, the priests are cautioned Israelites are not cautioned, how much less [are they likely to be cautioned] in the case of a light impurity!
Rather, what is to be made of the words, "and their carcasses you shall not touch"?
On the festival.
Guide Questions and Issues
Sugya #1
The first meimra is based on Rabbi Isaac's interpretation of the verse:
דברים יא:יב
ארץ אשר ה' א-להיך דרש אתה תמיד עיני ה' אלקיך בה מרשית השנה ועד אחרית שנה:
It is a land which the Lord your God always keeps his eye, from year's beginning (מרשית) to year's end. (Deut. 11:12).
Note here how the word "beginning" is spelled in Hebrew. Normally, it is spelled with an “א” between the "ר" and "ש". Here it spelled in כתיב חסר, limited spelling. For the "midrashic mind", "רש" reminds the reader of the word for "poor" and thus provides the impetus for the drasha.
But what are we to make of this drasha? Is it to be taken literally or figuratively?
1. What would it mean, if taken literally?
2. Rashi takes this drasha figuratively. He says that if a person prays on Rosh Hashanah as if he is a poor man then he will be blessed at the end of the year. What are your thoughts on this interpretation? What led Rashi to interpret this way?
Sugya #2
This meimra uses as its basis the story about Ishmael being sent to the desert together with his mother, Hagar. In the story, God saves him from dying. The question is raised as to why he was saved since in the consciousness of the sages, Ishmael was destined to become a bitter enemy of Israel. Perhaps, God should have dealt with the problem before it occurred? Still, God saved Ishmael. From this story, Rabbi Isaac developed a philosophy regarding God's manner of punishment.
1. What are the theological advantages and disadvantages of this philosophy of punishment?
2. Is it fair? To whom?
Sugya #3
In this meimra, Rabbi Isaac cites three things that cause a person to come under greater divine scrutiny. Each of these three things has an element of what we might call "tempting fate" (in a religious sense, of course).
1. Identify what about each of these three things might tempt God to pay closer attention to a person's deeds.
2. "עיון תפילה" - "studies or careful prayer" might seem like a positive thing. How can it be turned into something negative which might cause God to scrutinize one's behavior more carefully?
3. Calling judgment down upon one's fellow is criticized not only by Rabbi Isaac but also by Rabbi Hanan who claims that Sarah's death was premature because of her treatment of Hagar. What do you think is the reason for their criticism?
Sugya #4
After listing three behaviors which cause special scrutiny, Rabbi Jacob recounts behaviors which can avert divine punishment. The Talmud records example from Scripture for each. The examples that Rabbi Isaac cites are familiar: Tzedakah, Tzaakah (tefillah - prayer) and Shinoi Maaseh (the equivalent of teshuva) are known to us from the High Holiday prayer - Unetaneh tokef. In addition, we are all familiar with cases of people who are seriously ill, who add a name in order to change the divine decree.
1. In what way does each of these behaviors influence the life of a person so that they might change the divine decree?
2. For each of these behaviors, describe how the biblical verses illustrate the case made by Rabbi Isaac.
3. What does Rabbi Isaac's approach here say about human beings? About God?
The Talmud brings another opinion which adds "change of place" to the things that change the divine decree against a person. It cites the case of Avram's journey to Canaan as an example where change of place changes a person's fate.
1. Do you agree? What about changing one's abode might change a person's fate?
2. Why, according to the Talmud, didn't Rabbi Isaac include it in his list?
Sugya #5
The last two of Rabbi Isaac's meimrot are thematically different from the previous examples. In these examples, Rabbi Isaac deals with how one must behave on festivals. In the first example, he decrees that a person is obligated to visit one's teacher (master) on festivals.
1. How is the verse from Kings used as proof for this practice?
Sugya #6
The last meimra in this Rabbi Isaac collection prescribes that a person must be ritually pure on festivals.It learns this law from a verse in Leviticus (11:8)
1. Does this verse teach explicitly what Rabbi Isaac wants to learn from it?
As you will not here, the Talmud brings a baraita to support Rabbi Isaac's opinion. This baraita quotes the verse used as proof by Rabbi Isaac but then goes on to further thrash out the issue since the verse quoted above seems inadequate to the task.
To further support the claim, the baraita brings another verse from Leviticus (21:1) which deals with the prohibition for priests (cohanim) to come into contact with the dead. From this verse it learns the people who are not priests are not prohibited from contact with the dead. (The verse is given a narrow reading which we call a "דיוק" - priest but not commoner.) Then by way of a "kal v'homer", an a fortiori reading, it notes that commoners would not prohibited from contact with lesser ritual impurity.
So then, what is the significance of the verse we cited earlier that commoners should not come into contact with ritual impurity? You got it! It must mean that they must be ritually pure on festivals!