ותאמר אל אישה הנה נא ידעתי כי איש אלקים קדוש הוא אמר רבי יוסי ברבי חנינא מכאן שהאשה מכרת באורחין יותר מן האיש
Regarding the woman from Shunem: “And she said to her husband: Behold now, I perceive that he is a holy man of God who passes by us continually” (II Kings 4:9). Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said: From here, where the woman from Shunem perceived the prophet’s greatness before her husband did, derive that a woman recognizes the character of her guests more than a man does.
עובר עלינו תמיד אמר רבי יוסי ברבי חנינא משום רבי אליעזר בן יעקב כל המארח תלמיד חכם בתוך ביתו ומהנהו מנכסיו מעלה עליו הכתוב כאילו מקריב תמידין
With regard to the phrasing of the verse: “He is a holy man of God who passes by us continually,” Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, said in the name of Rabbi Eliezer ben Ya’akov: From this verse we derive that one who hosts a Torah scholar in his home and lets him enjoy his possessions, the verse ascribes to him credit as if he is sacrificing the daily [tamid] offering, as the verse states: “Passes by us continually [tamid].”
כי הא דאמר רבי יוחנן משום רבי שמעון בן יוחי בעל הבית בוצע ואורח מברך בעל הבית בוצע כדי שיבצע בעין יפה ואורח מברך כדי שיברך בעל הבית
The Gemara answers: Rabbi Abbahu holds in accordance with that halakha that Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: The host breaks bread and a guest recites Grace after Meals. The host breaks bread so that he will break bread generously, whereas a guest might be embarrassed to break a large piece for himself and other guests; and the guest recites Grace after Meals so that he may bless the host in the course of reciting Grace after Meals, as the Gemara proceeds to explain.
הוא היה אומר אורח טוב מהו אומר כמה טרחות טרח בעל הבית בשבילי כמה בשר הביא לפני כמה יין הביא לפני כמה גלוסקאות הביא לפני וכל מה שטרח לא טרח אלא בשבילי אבל אורח רע מהו אומר מה טורח טרח בעל הבית זה פת אחת אכלתי חתיכה אחת אכלתי כוס אחד שתיתי כל טורח שטרח בעל הבית זה לא טרח אלא בשביל אשתו ובניו
Ben Zoma would say: A good guest, what does he say? How much effort did the host expend on my behalf, how much meat did the host bring before me. How much wine did he bring before me. How many loaves [geluskaot] did he bring before me. All the effort that he expended, he expended only for me. However, a bad guest, what does he say? What effort did the host expend? I ate only one piece of bread, I ate only one piece of meat and I drank only one cup of wine. All the effort that the home owner expended he only expended on behalf of his wife and children.
כי הא דרבי עקיבא דהוה קאזיל באורחא מטא לההיא מתא בעא אושפיזא ולא יהבי ליה אמר כל דעביד רחמנא לטב אזל ובת בדברא והוה בהדיה תרנגולא וחמרא ושרגא אתא זיקא כבייה לשרגא אתא שונרא אכליה לתרנגולא אתא אריה אכליה לחמרא אמר כל דעביד רחמנא לטב ביה בליליא אתא גייסא שבייה למתא אמר להו לאו אמרי לכו כל מה שעושה הקדוש ברוך הוא
The Gemara relates: Like this incident, when Rabbi Akiva was walking along the road and came to a certain city, he inquired about lodging and they did not give him any. He said: Everything that God does, He does for the best. He went and slept in a field, and he had with him a rooster, a donkey and a candle. A gust of wind came and extinguished the candle; a cat came and ate the rooster; and a lion came and ate the donkey. He said: Everything that God does, He does for the best. That night, an army came and took the city into captivity. It turned out that Rabbi Akiva alone, who was not in the city and had no lit candle, noisy rooster or donkey to give away his location, was saved. He said to them: Didn’t I tell you? Everything that God does,
תנו רבנן כשנכנסו רבותינו לכרם ביבנה היו שם רבי יהודה ורבי יוסי ורבי נחמיה ורבי אליעזר בנו של רבי יוסי הגלילי פתחו כולם בכבוד אכסניא ודרשו
The Sages taught: When our Rabbis, the Sages of the Mishna, entered the vineyard, the academy, in Yavne, Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Yosei, Rabbi Neḥemya, and Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei HaGelili, were there presiding over the Sages. They all began to speak in honor of their hosts, the local population hosting them and their students as guests, and they taught.
פתח רבי נחמיה בכבוד אכסניא ודרש מאי דכתיב ויאמר שאול אל הקיני לכו סרו רדו מתוך עמלקי פן אוספך עמו ואתה עשיתה חסד עם כל בני ישראל והלא דברים קל וחומר ומה יתרו שלא קרב את משה אלא לכבוד עצמו כך המארח תלמיד חכם בתוך ביתו ומאכילו ומשקהו ומהנהו מנכסיו על אחת כמה וכמה:
The Gemara returns to the homilies offered by the Sages in the vineyard of Yavne. Rabbi Neḥemya began to speak in honor of the hosts and taught: What is the meaning of that which is written: “And Saul said unto the Kenites: Go, depart, get you down from among the Amalekites lest I destroy you with them, for you showed kindness to all the Children of Israel when they came up out of Egypt” (I Samuel 15:6)? Isn’t this an a fortiori inference: Just as Jethro, the forbearer of the Kenite tribe, who only befriended Moses for his own honor, is treated in this way and rewarded that his merit would protect his descendants; all the more so should one who hosts a Torah scholar in his home, providing him with food and drink and availing him of his possessions, be rewarded with that protection.
הַמְקַבֵּל עָלָיו לִהְיוֹת חָבֵר, אֵינוֹ מוֹכֵר לְעַם הָאָרֶץ לַח וְיָבֵשׁ, וְאֵינוֹ לוֹקֵחַ מִמֶּנּוּ לַח, וְאֵינוֹ מִתְאָרֵח אֵצֶל עַם הָאָרֶץ, וְלֹא מְאָרְחוֹ אֶצְלוֹ בִּכְסוּתוֹ. רַבִּי יְהוּדָה אוֹמֵר, אַף לֹא יְגַדֵּל בְּהֵמָה דַקָּה, וְלֹא יְהֵא פָרוּץ בִּנְדָרִים וּבִשְׂחוֹק, וְלֹא יְהֵא מִטַּמֵּא לְמֵתִים, וּמְשַׁמֵּשׁ בְּבֵית הַמִּדְרָשׁ. אָמְרוּ לוֹ, לֹא בָאוּ אֵלּוּ לַכְּלָל:
One who takes it upon himself to be a Chaver [one who scrupulously observes tithes and purity laws] may not sell to an ignorant person wet or dry [produce], nor buy from him wet [produce], nor be the guest of an Am HaAretz nor host him as a guest [when he is clothed] in his [own] garments. Rabbi Yehudah says, “He may not even raise small animals, nor be unrestrained regarding vows and entertainment, nor become defiled by [contact with] a corpse, and frequent the house of study.” They said to him, “These are not included in the general principle.”
אבל אורח טוב אומר ברוך בעל הבית זכור בעל הבית לטובה...
ושימש תלמידי חכמים הרבה מפני מה מת בחצי ימיו ולא היה אדם מחזירה דבר פעם אחת נתארחתי אצלה והיתה מסיחה כל אותו מאורע ואמרתי לה בתי בימי נדותך מה הוא אצלך אמרה לי חס ושלום אפילו באצבע קטנה לא נגע [בי] בימי לבוניך מהו אצלך אכל עמי ושתה עמי וישן עמי בקירוב בשר ולא עלתה דעתו על דבר אחר ואמרתי לה ברוך המקום שהרגו שלא נשא פנים לתורה שהרי אמרה תורה ואל אשה בנדת טומאתה לא תקרב כי אתא רב דימי אמר מטה חדא הואי במערבא אמרי אמר רב יצחק בר יוסף סינר מפסיק בינו לבינה:
and served Torah scholars extensively, why did he die at half his days? Where is the length of days promised him in the verse? No one would respond to her astonishment at all. Eliyahu said: One time I was a guest in her house, and she was relating that entire event with regard to the death of her husband. And I said to her: My daughter, during the period of your menstruation, how did he act toward you? She said to me: Heaven forbid, he did not touch me even with his little finger. And I asked her: In the days of your white garments, after the menstrual flow ended, and you were just counting clean days, how did he act toward you then? She said to me: He ate with me, and drank with me, and slept with me with bodily contact and, however, it did not enter his mind about something else, i.e., conjugal relations. And I said to her: Blessed is the Omnipresent who killed him for this sin, as your husband did not show respect to the Torah. The Torah said: “And to a woman in the separation of her impurity you should not approach” (Leviticus 18:19), even mere affectionate contact is prohibited. The Gemara relates that when Rav Dimi came from Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia, he said: That student did not actually sleep with her with bodily contact; rather, it was in one bed that they slept without contact. In the West, in Eretz Yisrael, they say that Rav Yitzḥak bar Yosef said: When they would sleep together in one bed, she wore a belt [sinar] from the waist down that would separate between him and her. Nevertheless, since the matter is prohibited, that student was punished.
מכלל דביצים מצומקות מצטמקות ויפה להן נינהו אין דאמר רב חמא בר חנינא פעם אחת נתארחתי אני ורבי למקום אחד והביאו לפנינו ביצים מצומקות כעוזרדין ואכלנו מהן הרבה:
The Gemara is surprised: From this statement it can be inferred that eggs shriveled from overcooking shrivel and improve when left on the fire for a long time, and that is the reason that Rabbi Yosei made a distinction between hot water, which he permitted leaving on the stove, and eggs, which he prohibited leaving on the stove. The Gemara replies: Yes, overcooking improves the eggs. As Rav Ḥama bar Ḥanina said: One time Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi and I were guests in the same place, and they brought before us overcooked eggs that shriveled to the size of crab apples [uzradin] and we ate many of them. Apparently, extended cooking improves eggs. Therefore, when they are left on the fire on Shabbat there is room for concern lest one stoke the coals in order to shrivel them more.
אמר רב יהודה בר שילא אמר רבי אסי אמר רבי יוחנן ששה דברים אדם אוכל פירותיהן בעולם הזה והקרן קיימת לו לעולם הבא ואלו הן הכנסת אורחין וביקור חולים ועיון תפלה והשכמת בית המדרש והמגדל בניו לתלמוד תורה והדן את חברו לכף זכות
Rav Yehuda bar Sheila said that Rabbi Asi said that Rabbi Yoḥanan said: There are six matters a person enjoys the profits of in this world, and nevertheless the principal exists for him for the World-to-Come, and they are: Hospitality toward guests, and visiting the sick, and consideration during prayer, and rising early to the study hall, and one who raises his sons to engage in Torah study, and one who judges another favorably, giving him the benefit of the doubt.
אמר רבי יהושע בן חנניה מימי לא נצחני אדם חוץ מאשה תינוק ותינוקת אשה מאי היא פעם אחת נתארחתי אצל אכסניא אחת עשתה לי פולין ביום ראשון אכלתים ולא שיירתי מהן כלום שנייה ולא שיירתי מהן כלום ביום שלישי הקדיחתן במלח כיון שטעמתי משכתי ידי מהן
Having discussed the clever speech of various Sages, the Gemara relates that Rabbi Yehoshua ben Ḥananya said as follows: In all my days, no person defeated me in a verbal encounter except for a woman, a young boy, and a young girl. What is the encounter in which a woman got the better of me? One time I was staying at a certain inn and the hostess prepared me beans. On the first day I ate them and left nothing over, although proper etiquette dictates that one should leave over something on his plate. On the second day I again ate and left nothing over. On the third day she over-salted them so that they were inedible. As soon as I tasted them, I withdrew my hands from them.
יתיב רב ברונא וקאמר להא שמעתא אמר ליה רבי אלעזר בר בי רב אמר שמואל הכי אמר ליה אין אמר ליה אחוי לי אושפיזיה אחוי ליה אתא לקמיה דשמואל אמר ליה אמר מר הכי אמר ליה אין
Rav Beruna sat and recited this halakha stated by Shmuel, that an alleyway containing one house and one courtyard can be rendered permitted for carrying by means of a side post or a cross beam. Rabbi Elazar, a student of a Torah academy, said to him: Did Shmuel really say this? Rav Beruna said to him: Yes, he did. He said to him: Show me his lodging and I will go and ask him myself, and he showed him. Rabbi Elazar came before Shmuel and said to him: Did the Master actually say this? Shmuel said to him: Yes, I did.
חנות אין בהן משום זוגות נמלך אין בהן משום זוגות אורח אין בו משום זוגות אשה אין בה משום זוגות ואי אשה חשובה חיישינן
Furthermore, a store does not contain the element of danger associated with pairs. If one eats there, there is no danger, as this is not his regular place. If one changed one’s mind after drinking an odd number of cups and added one more, his drinking does not contain the element of danger associated with pairs, as he did not initially intend to drink an even number. The behavior of a guest who eats or drinks in someone else’s house does not contain the element of danger associated with pairs, as his host determines how much he will eat and drink. The behavior of a woman does not contain the element of danger associated with pairs, as demons are not particular with regard to how much a woman eats or drinks. But if she is an important woman, we are concerned.
ועוד עתידה מצרים שתביא דורון למשיח כסבור אינו מקבל מהם אמר לו הקדוש ברוך הוא למשיח קבל מהם אכסניא עשו לבניי במצרים מיד יאתיו חשמנים מני מצרים
And furthermore, Rabbi Yishmael sent another of his father’s teachings to Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi: In the future, Egypt will bring a gift to the Messiah when all of the nations gather before him, as the verse says: “Out of Your temple at Jerusalem, where kings shall bring presents to you” (Psalms 68:30). The Messiah will think it appropriate not to accept gifts from them, as the Egyptians abused Israel. The Holy One, Blessed be He, will say to the Messiah: Accept their gifts from them, as they granted lodging to My children in Egypt. They lived there for many years before being enslaved. Immediately, “Nobles shall come out of Egypt” (Psalms 68:32).
והאי תנא סבר ירושלים לא נתחלקה לשבטים דתניא אין משכירין בתים בירושלים לפי שאינה שלהן ר' אלעזר בר (צדוק) אומר אף לא מטות לפיכך עורות קדשים בעלי אושפזיכנין נוטלין אותן בזרוע אמר אביי שמע מינה אורח ארעא למישבק איניש גולפא ומשכא לאושפיזיה
And this tanna holds: Jerusalem was not divided among the tribes at all, as it was taught in a baraita: Homeowners did not let their houses in Jerusalem because the houses were not actually theirs. Residents of Jerusalem did not own their residences, as the city belonged to the entire Jewish people. Rabbi Elazar bar Tzadok says: Even beds were not rented. Therefore, with regard to hides of consecrated animals of the Festival peace-offerings, which the pilgrims to Jerusalem would give as gifts to their hosts, the hosts were not really entitled to them. This is why the hosts would take them by force. Abaye said: Learn from it that it is customary for a guest to leave his empty wine jug and hides from sacrificial animals and give them to his host.
אמר רב גידל אמר רב אכסנאי לא יאכל ביצים ולא יישן בטליתו של בעל הבית רב כי מקלע לדרשיש מכריז מאן הויא ליומא רב נחמן כד מקלע לשכנציב מכריז מאן הויא ליומא
Rav Giddel said that Rav said: A guest should neither eat eggs, because they lead to a seminal emission, nor sleep in a garment belonging to the homeowner, his host, because if he experiences a seminal emission and it gets on the garment, he will be diminished in the estimation of his host. Apropos conduct of a guest, theGemara relates: When Rav would happen to come to Darshish he would declare: Who will be married to me for the day that I am here so that I will not be unwed in this place, after which I will divorce her? Similarly, when Rav Naḥman would come to Shekhantziv he would declare: Who will be married to me for the day that I am here?
אמר רבא בתחלה קראו הלך ולבסוף קראו אורח ולבסוף קראו איש שנאמר (שמואל ב יב, ד) ויבא הלך לאיש העשיר ויחמול לקחת מצאנו ומבקרו לעשות לאורח וכתיב ויקח את כבשת האיש הרש ויעשה לאיש הבא אליו
Rava said: Initially, the verse called the evil inclination a traveler coming from afar. Subsequently, the verse calls it a guest, as one welcomes it. Ultimately, the verse calls it man, indicating significance, as it became the homeowner. As it is stated in the parable of the poor man’s lamb that Nathan the prophet said to David: “And there came a traveler to the rich man, and he was reluctant to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to prepare for the guest” (II Samuel 12:4). And it is written in the same verse: “And he took the poor man’s lamb, and prepared it for the man that was come to him.” In other words, the evil inclination that began as a traveler gradually rose in prominence.
[אמר רבי יהודה כל שלא ראה בדפלסכיון של אלכסנדריא של מצרים לא ראה כבוד לישראל מימיו כמין בסלקי גדולה היתה סטיו לפנים מסטיו פעמים היה שם כפלים כיוצאי מצרים ושבעים ואחת קתדראות של זהב היו שם כנגד ע' וא' זקן כל אחת מעשרים וחמש ריבוא ובימה של עץ באמצע וחזן הכנסת עומד והסודרין בידו החל לקרות והלה מניף בסודרין והיו עונין אמן על כל ברכה וברכה ולא היו יושבין מעורבבין אלא זהביים בפני עצמן וכספיים בפני עצמן וגרדיים בפני עצמן וטרסיים בפני עצמן ונפחיים בפני עצמן וכל כך למה כדי שיהא אכסניא בא ונטפל לאומנתו ומשם פרנסה יוצאה].
Rabbi Yehudah said: Whoever has not seen the basilica-synagogue of Alexandria has never seen the great glory of Israel. It is something like a large colonnade, with porches within porches, and accommodating sometimes double the number of those that followed Moses from Egypt. There were seventy-one golden chairs there, corresponding to the seventy-one elders, and each of the chairs was worth twenty-five myriad talents of gold. In the center was a wooden dais, and the sexton stood upon it with a scarf (as a flag) in his hand. At the close of each benediction he waved the scarf, and all the people answered “Amen”. The people were not seated together, but the goldsmiths were by themselves, the blacksmiths by themselves, the embroiderers by themselves, so that when a poor man came in he joined his fellow tradesmen, and in this way was enabled to obtain a means of livelihood.
מצרי ולא מצרית שאני הכא דמפרש טעמא דקרא (דברים כג, ה) על אשר לא קדמו אתכם בלחם ובמים דרכו של איש לקדם ולא דרכה של אשה לקדם היה להם לקדם אנשים לקראת אנשים ונשים לקראת נשים אישתיק
Doeg retorted: If so, say that it is prohibited for only an Egyptian man to enter into the congregation, but not an Egyptian woman. Abner answered: Here it is different, as the reason for the prohibition recorded in this verse with regard to Ammonites is explicit: “Because they did not meet you with bread and with water on the way, when you came forth out of Egypt” (Deuteronomy 23:5). Since it is the way of a man to go forth to meet guests but it is not the way of a woman to go forth, females were not included in this prohibition. Doeg countered: Still, the men should have gone forth to meet the men, and the women to meet the women. Abner was silent, as he did not know how to respond to this objection.
שתים אינה מבשלת ואינה מניקה וכו': הא שארא עבדא ותימא ליה עיילית לך איתתא אחריתי דטרחה לדידי ולדידה וחדא לדידך ולדידה משום דאמר לה קמי אורחי ופרחי מאן טרח:
The mishna further said that if she brought him two maidservants, she does not need to cook and does not need to nurse her child. The Gemara infers: She must nevertheless perform the other tasks. The Gemara asks: Let the wife say to him: I brought you another woman who can toil for me and for herself, and one who can toil for you and for herself. Consequently, I do not need to do any work at all. The Gemara answers: This is also not a valid argument because he can say to her: Who is going to toil for the guests and wayfarers who will come because we are a large household? There are still other tasks that need to be performed.
והא חנה דבעלה עמה הואי אכסנאי שאני דאמר רב הונא מנין לאכסנאי שאסור בתשמיש המטה שנאמר (שמואל א א, יט) וישכימו בבקר וישתחוו לפני ה' וישובו ויבאו אל ביתם הרמתה וידע אלקנה את חנה אשתו ויזכרה ה' השתא אין מעיקרא לא
The Gemara raises a difficulty: But the case of Hannah was one in which her husband was with her, and yet this episode is cited as a source for the halakha that a woman should not drink wine. The Gemara answers: The case of a guest is different, as Rav Huna said: From where is it derived that a guest is prohibited from engaging in conjugal relations? As it is stated: “And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the Lord, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah; and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the Lord remembered her” (I Samuel 1:19). This verse indicates that now, after they returned home, yes, they engaged in relations; at the outset, when they were still in Shiloh, no, they did not. Therefore, Hannah did not drink wine in Shiloh.
והא חנה דבעלה עמה הואי אכסנאי שאני דאמר רב הונא מנין לאכסנאי שאסור בתשמיש המטה שנאמר (שמואל א א, יט) וישכימו בבקר וישתחוו לפני ה' וישובו ויבאו אל ביתם הרמתה וידע אלקנה את חנה אשתו ויזכרה ה' השתא אין מעיקרא לא
The Gemara raises a difficulty: But the case of Hannah was one in which her husband was with her, and yet this episode is cited as a source for the halakha that a woman should not drink wine. The Gemara answers: The case of a guest is different, as Rav Huna said: From where is it derived that a guest is prohibited from engaging in conjugal relations? As it is stated: “And they rose up in the morning early, and worshipped before the Lord, and returned, and came to their house to Ramah; and Elkanah knew Hannah his wife; and the Lord remembered her” (I Samuel 1:19). This verse indicates that now, after they returned home, yes, they engaged in relations; at the outset, when they were still in Shiloh, no, they did not. Therefore, Hannah did not drink wine in Shiloh.
(בראשית כא, לג) ויטע אשל בבאר שבע אמר ריש לקיש מלמד שעשה פרדס ונטע בו כל מיני מגדים
The Gemara discusses Abraham’s house: It is written: “And he planted an eshel in Beersheba, and called there on the name of the Lord, the Everlasting God” (Genesis 21:33). Reish Lakish says: This teaches that Abraham made an orchard and planted in it all kinds of sweet things.
כל יומא הוה מלוה רבי חייא בר אבא לרבי אבהו עד אושפיזיה משום יקרא דבי קיסר ההוא יומא אלויה רבי אבהו לרבי חייא בר אבא עד אושפיזיה ואפילו הכי לא איתותב דעתיה מיניה
The Gemara relates that every day Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba would escort Rabbi Abbahu to his lodging place [ushpizei] out of respect for the house of the emperor, with which Rabbi Abbahu was associated. On that day, Rabbi Abbahu escorted Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba to his lodging place, and even so, Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba’s mind was not at ease with Rabbi Abbahu and he felt insulted.
אושפזיכניה דרב אדא בר אהבה גיורא הוה והוה קא מנצי איהו ורב ביבי מר אמר אנא עבידנא סררותא דמתא ומר אמר אנא עבידנא סררותא דמתא אתו לקמיה דרב יוסף אמר להו תנינא (דברים יז, טו) שום תשים עליך מלך מקרב אחיך כל משימות שאתה משים לא יהיה אלא מקרב אחיך
The Gemara relates: Rav Adda bar Ahava’s host was the son of a convert, and he and Rav Beivai were quarreling. One said: I will perform the service of the city, i.e., I will be appointed to a position of authority, and one said: I will perform the service of the city. They came before Rav Yosef to decide between them. Rav Yosef said to them: We learned: “You shall set him king over you, whom the Lord your God shall choose; one from among your brothers” (Deuteronomy 17:15). The repetition of the verb “set” in the verse [som tasim] indicates: All appointments that you appoint may be only from among your brothers. Therefore, a convert may not serve in any official position.
אמר רבי שמואל בר נחמני אמר ר' יונתן השב אשת האיש מכל מקום ודקא אמרת (בראשית כ, ד) הגוי גם צדיק תהרוג הלא הוא אמר לי אחותי היא והיא גם היא אמרה אחי הוא נביא הוא וכבר לימד אכסנאי שבא לעיר על עסקי אכילה ושתיה שואלין אותו או על עסקי אשתו שואלין אותו אשתך היא אחותך היא
The Gemara answers. Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥmani says that Rabbi Yonatan says: This is how the verse should be understood: “Restore the wife of the man” in any case, since she is his wife. And with regard to that which you, Abimelech, said: “Will you slay even a righteous nation? Did he not say himself to me: She is my sister, and she, even she herself, said: He is my brother?” (Genesis 20:4–5), the answer is that you, Abimelech, are not so righteous, since the reason Abraham said that Sarah was his sister is that he is a prophet, and he already learned how to conduct himself based on your behavior. As with regard to a guest [akhsenai] who comes to town, does one ask him about matters concerning eating and drinking, or does one ask him about matters concerning his wife? Does one ask a guest: Is she your wife? Is she your sister? Abimelech was to be blamed, since Abraham thought that he intended to steal his wife.
כתיב (בראשית יח, ו) קמח וכתיב סלת א"ר יצחק מכאן שהאשה צרה עיניה באורחים יותר מן האיש
The verse states: “Make ready quickly three measures of flour, fine flour” (Genesis 18:6). The Gemara questions the apparent redundancy. It is written: “Flour,” and it is also written: “Fine flour.” Rabbi Yitzḥak says: From here we learn that a woman is more stingy with guests than a man. Sarah wanted to use merely flour, and Abraham persuaded her to use fine flour.
רבי יוסי ברבי חנינא אמר כדי לשגר לה כוס של ברכה תני משום רבי יוסי למה נקוד על איו שבאליו לימדה תורה דרך ארץ שישאל אדם באכסניא שלו והאמר שמואל אין שואלין בשלום אשה כלל על ידי בעלה שאני
Rabbi Yosei, son of Rabbi Ḥanina, says: They inquired about her in order to send her the cup of blessing. It is customary to recite Grace after Meals over a cup of wine, which is then distributed to those present. It is taught in the name of Rabbi Yosei: Why are there dots in the Torah scroll upon the letters alef, yod, and vav in the word “to him [eilav]”? These letters spell ayo, which means: Where is he? The Torah is teaching the proper etiquette, which is that a person should inquire of his hostess about his host, just as he should inquire about the welfare of his hostess from the host. The Gemara asks: But doesn’t Shmuel say: One may not inquire about the welfare of a woman at all, as this is immodest? The Gemara answers: A greeting by means of her husband is different. Asking a husband about his wife is not considered immodest.
אכסניא לפי בני אדם מתחלקת או לפי פתחים מתחלקת אמר ליה לפי בני אדם מתחלקת תניא נמי הכי זבל שבחצר מתחלקת לפי פתחים אכסניא לפי בני אדם
Rav Huna further asked: When a king issues a billeting order to the residents of a courtyard, obligating them to house his soldiers in their homes, is the burden divided according to the number of people in each household, or is it divided according to the number of entrances that each house has opening into the courtyard? Rabbi Ami said to him: It is divided according to the number of people in each household. The Gemara comments: That opinion is also taught in a baraita: The dung in a courtyard which the residents wish to use is divided among them according to the number of entrances that open into the courtyard, whereas billeting is divided according to the number of people in each household.
רשב"ג אומר נותן לו דמי בושתו ודמי בושת אורחיו וכן היה רבן שמעון בן גמליאל אומר מנהג גדול היה בירושלים המוסר סעודה לחברו וקלקלה נותן לו דמי בשתו ודמי בושת אורחיו
The baraita continues: Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: If the owner had invited guests to eat the food and due to the worker’s actions he was unable to serve them, then the worker must give him compensation for his humiliation and compensation for the humiliation of his guests. And similarly, Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel would say: There was a great custom in Jerusalem that if one gives raw materials for a meal to another to prepare the meal for him, and that person spoils it, that person gives the former compensation for his humiliation and compensation for the humiliation of his guests.
עוד מנהג גדול היה בירושלים מפה פרוסה על גבי הפתח כל זמן שמפה פרוסה אורחין נכנסין נסתלקה המפה אין האורחין נכנסין:
The baraita continues: Another great custom that was followed in Jerusalem was that when one made a feast, there would be a cloth [mappa] spread over the entrance to the hall. As long as the cloth was spread, the guests would enter, as the presence of the cloth indicated that there was food for more guests. When the cloth was removed, the guests would not enter any more.
כדכתיב בספר בן סירא הכל שקלתי בכף מאזנים ולא מצאתי קל מסובין וקל מסובין חתן הדר בבית חמיו וקל מחתן אורח מכניס אורח וקל מאורח משיב דבר בטרם ישמע שנאמר (משלי יח, יג) משיב דבר בטרם ישמע אולת היא לו וכלמה:
Support for this is as it is written in the book of ben Sira: I have weighed everything in the pan of a balance scale and I have not found anything inferior to bran; but inferior to bran is a son-in-law who lives in his father-in-law’s house; and inferior to a son-in-law is a guest who brings in a guest; and inferior to a guest is one who answers a matter before he listens. As it is stated: “He that gives an answer before he listens, it is folly for him and a disgrace” (Proverbs 18:13).
אושפיזכניה דרב אתא לקמיה לדינא אמר לו לאו אושפיזכני את אמר לו אין אמר ליה דינא אית לי אמר ליה
Rav’s host [ushpizekhaneih], with whom he would stay occasionally, came before him for a judgment. Rav said to the host: Are you not my host? He said to him: Yes, I am. The host then said to him: I have a dispute with another that needs a judgment. Rav said to him:
מה אותו היום בלבד או אותו היום בכל שנה. והתני תגלחתו ותגלחת בנו אסורה תיפתר שגילחו שניהן כאחת. והתני משתהו ומשתה בנו אסורה תיפתר שגילחו שניהן כאחת שנשאו נשים. והתני לידתו ולידת בנו אסורה אית לך מימר שנולדו שניהן כאחת. תיפתר בההוא דלא אספיק מיעבר ביומיה עד דאיתיליד ליה בר ועבד כחדא. תני לא ישלח לו חביות מכורות לחנווני מפני שהוא כטוענו טענת חנם לא יסרב אדם בחבירו לארחו בשעה שאינו רוצה לא ירבה לו בתקרובת בשעה שהוא יודע שאינו מבקש. מהו בתקרובת רחוץ בזווי אוחרי. ובירושלם היה הופך
יוֹסֵי בֶן יוֹחָנָן אִישׁ יְרוּשָׁלַיִם אוֹמֵר, יְהִי בֵיתְךָ פָתוּחַ לִרְוָחָה, וְיִהְיוּ עֲנִיִּים בְּנֵי בֵיתֶךָ, וְאַל תַּרְבֶּה שִׂיחָה עִם הָאִשָּׁה. בְּאִשְׁתּוֹ אָמְרוּ, קַל וָחֹמֶר בְּאֵשֶׁת חֲבֵרוֹ. מִכָּאן אָמְרוּ חֲכָמִים, כָּל זְמַן שֶׁאָדָם מַרְבֶּה שִׂיחָה עִם הָאִשָּׁה, גּוֹרֵם רָעָה לְעַצְמוֹ, וּבוֹטֵל מִדִּבְרֵי תוֹרָה, וְסוֹפוֹ יוֹרֵשׁ גֵּיהִנֹּם:
Yose ben Yochanan, man of Jerusalem, says, "May your home be open wide, may the poor be members of your household and do not increase conversation with the woman." They so stated with his wife; all the more so with the wife of his friend. From this, the sages said, "Any time that a man increases conversation with the woman, he causes evil to himself and neglects the words of Torah; and, in his end, he inherits Geihinam."
ר"נ בר יצחק אמר מאי לא נסתלקה לא נסתלקה לבטלה מאי היא רבנן אמרי שביבא הוה משדרא רב פפא אמר אושפיזא הוה נקט וזימנין הכא וזימנין הכא
Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak says there is an alternative answer: What is the meaning of the statement in the baraita that the fire did not depart until the days of Solomon? It means that it did not depart in a manner in which it was nullified; it was still somewhat present in Shiloh on the copper altar, which stood together with the stone altar. The Gemara asks: What is it, i.e., what does it mean that the fire did not depart a manner in which it was nullified? The Gemara answers: The Rabbis say: The fire on the copper altar would emit sparks toward the stone altar when the priests would sacrifice offerings on the stone altar. Rav Pappa says: The fire was as a guest; sometimes it was here, on the copper altar, and sometimes it was there, on the stone altar.
ואין האורחין רשאין ליתן ממה שלפניהם לבנו ולבתו של בעה"ב אא"כ נטלו רשות מבעה"ב ומעשה באחד שזמן ג' אורחין בשני בצורת ולא היה לו להניח לפניהם אלא כשלש ביצים בא בנו של בעה"ב נטל אחד מהן חלקו ונתנו לו וכן שני וכן שלישי בא אביו של תינוק מצאו שעוזק א' בפיו ושתים בידו חבטו בקרקע ומת כיון שראתה אמו עלתה לגג ונפלה ומתה אף הוא עלה לגג ונפל ומת
The baraita continues: And guests are not permitted to give some of the food that is placed before them to the son or to the daughter of the host unless they first receive permission from the host. And there was an incident involving a certain individual who invited three guests during years of famine, and he had enough to place only three eggs before them. The son of the host came, and one of the guests took his portion and gave it to the son. And similarly the second guest gave his portion to the son, and similarly the third guest. The father of the child came and found that his son was holding one egg in his mouth and two in his hand. The father became so angry with his son for taking all the food that he hit the son to the ground, and the son died. When his mother saw what had happened, she ascended to the roof and fell down to the ground and died. And when the father saw that both his son and his wife were dead he also ascended to the roof and fell down to the ground and died.
אמר רב יהודה אמר רב מנין שלא ישנה אדם באכסניא שלו מן התורה שנאמר {בראשית י״ג:ג׳ } (אל) המקום אשר היה שם אהלו בתחלה
Rav Yehuda says that Rav says: From where in the Torah is it derived that a person should not change his place of lodging? As it is stated when Abraham returned from Egypt: “And he went on his journeys from the South to Beth El, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Beth El and Ai” (Genesis 13:3). Abraham took pains to revisit the same places he had stayed on his journey to Egypt.
וכל כך למה דאמר מר אכסנאי פוגם ונפגם
And why is it so important that one should remain in the same lodging until he is forced to leave? It is as the Master says: A guest has the potential to degrade and to be degraded. If he moves from one place of lodging to another, people will assume that his host is unpleasant to him and that he is not a well-behaved guest, as the two of them cannot get along with one another, and the reputations of both of them will be tarnished.
דבר אחר: וכי ימוך, הדא הוא דכתיב (שם יא): גומל נפשו איש חסד, זה הלל הזקן שבשעה שהיה נפטר מתלמידיו היה מהלך והולך עמם. אמרו לו תלמידיו: רבי, להיכן אתה הולך? אמר להם: לעשות מצוה! אמרו לו: וכי מה מצוה זו? אמר להן: לרחוץ בבית המרחץ. אמרו לו: וכי זו מצוה היא? אמר להם: הן. מה אם איקונין של מלכים שמעמידים אותו בבתי טרטיאות ובבתי קרקסיאות, מי שנתמנה עליהם הוא מורקן ושוטפן והן מעלין לו מזונות. ולא עוד, אלא שהוא מתגדל עם גדולי מלכות. אני שנבראתי בצלם ובדמות, דכתיב (בראשית ב): כי בצלם אלהים עשה את האדם עאכ"ו! דבר אחר: גומל נפשו איש חסד, זה הלל הזקן שבשעה שהיה נפטר מתלמידיו היה מהלך והולך עמם. אמרו לו תלמידיו: רבי, להיכן אתה הולך? אמר להם: לגמול חסד עם הדין אכסניא בגו ביתא. אמרו לו: כל יום אית לך אכסניא? אמר להם: והדין נפשא עלובתה לאו אכסניא הוא בגו גופא יומא דין היא הכא, למחר לית היא הכא. דבר אחר: גומל נפשו איש חסד (משלי יא): ועוכר שארו אכזרי. אמר רבי אלכסנדרי: זה, שמגעת לו שמחה ואינו מדביק את קרוביו עמו משום עניות. אמר רבי נחמן: כתיב (דברים טו): כי בגלל הדבר הזה, גלגל הוא שחוזר בעולם, לפיכך משה מזהיר את ישראל: וכי ימוך אחיך:
Another Thing: 'But if he is impoverished', here it is written, "The merciful man does good to his own soul (Proverbs 11:17)," this [refers to] Hillel the Elder, who, at the time that he was departing from his students, would walk with them. They said to him, "Rabbi, where are you walking to?" He said to them, "To fulfill a commandment!" They said to him, "And what commandment is this?" He said to them, "To bathe in the bathhouse." They said to him: "But is this really a commandment?" He said to them: "Yes. Just like regarding the statues (lit. icons) of kings, that are set up in the theaters and the circuses, the one who is appointed over them bathes them and scrubs them, and they give him sustenance, and furthermore, he attains status with the leaders of the kingdom; I, who was created in the [Divine] Image and Form, as it is written, "For in the Image of G-d He made Man (Genesis 9:6)," even more so!...
ובשעה שא"ל הקדוש ברוך הוא למשה ועתה לכה ואשלחך אל פרעה אמר ליה משה רבון העולם איני יכול מפני שקבלני יתרו ופתח לי את פתח ביתו ואני עמו כבן, ומי שהוא פותח פתחו לחבירו נפשו הוא חייב לו, וכן את מוצא באליהו בשעה שהלך אצל צרפית האלמנה מת בנה התחיל מתחנן ואמר הגם על האלמנה אשר אני מתגורר עמה הרעות להמית את בנה, וישמע ה' בקול אליהו ותשב נפש הילד על קרבו ויחי (מלכים א יז).
At the time the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses: Come now, therefore, and I will send thee unto Pharaoh (Exod. 3:10), Moses replied: “Master of the Universe, I cannot leave, for Jethro welcomed me and opened his home unto me, and I am like a son unto him.” If one opens his door to his fellowmen, the latter owes him his very life. You find this occurred at the time Elijah visited the widow in Zarephath. After her son’s death, he began to plead: O Lord my God, hast Thou also brought evil upon the widow with whom I sojourned, by slaying her son? (I Kings 17:20). Whereupon, The Lord harkened unto the voice of Elijah; and the soul of the child came back into him, and he revived (ibid., v. 22).