Sodom and Gomorrah's destruction in the background of Lucas van Leyden's Lot and his Daughters (1520)
(יא) וַיִּבְחַר־ל֣וֹ ל֗וֹט אֵ֚ת כׇּל־כִּכַּ֣ר הַיַּרְדֵּ֔ן וַיִּסַּ֥ע ל֖וֹט מִקֶּ֑דֶם וַיִּפָּ֣רְד֔וּ אִ֖ישׁ מֵעַ֥ל אָחִֽיו׃ (יב) אַבְרָ֖ם יָשַׁ֣ב בְּאֶֽרֶץ־כְּנָ֑עַן וְל֗וֹט יָשַׁב֙ בְּעָרֵ֣י הַכִּכָּ֔ר וַיֶּאֱהַ֖ל עַד־סְדֹֽם׃ (יג) וְאַנְשֵׁ֣י סְדֹ֔ם רָעִ֖ים וְחַטָּאִ֑ים לַיהֹוָ֖ה מְאֹֽד׃
(11) So Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan, and Lot journeyed eastward. Thus they parted from each other; (12) Abram remained in the land of Canaan, while Lot settled in the cities of the Plain, pitching his tents near Sodom. (13) Now the inhabitants of Sodom were very wicked sinners against the LORD.
(א) ואנשי סדום רעים. וְאַף עַל פִּי כֵן לֹא נִמְנַע לוֹט מִלִּשְׁכֹּן עִמָּהֶם. וְרַבּוֹתֵינוּ לָמְדוּ מִכָּאן (יומא ל"ח) וְשֵׁם רְשָׁעִים יִרְקָב (משלי י'): (ב) רעים. בְּגוּפָם: (ג) וחטאים. בְּמָמוֹנָם (סנה' ק"ט): (ד) לה' מאד. יוֹדְעִים רִבּוֹנָם, וּמִתְכַּוְּנִים לִמְרֹד בּוֹ:
(1) ואנשי סדום רעים BUT THE MEN OF SODOM WERE WICKED, and yet Lot did not refrain from living with them. Our Rabbis learned from here how the text (Proverbs 10:11) “and the name of the wicked shall rot” should be applied (Yoma 38b). (2) רעים WICKED in their persons (3) וחטאים AND SINNERS with their wealth (Sanhedrin 109a) (4) לה' מאד BEFORE THE LORD, EXCEEDINGLY — They knew their Master and yet intentionally rebelled against Him (Sifra, Bechukotai, Section 2 2).
(א) וַ֠יָּבֹ֠אוּ שְׁנֵ֨י הַמַּלְאָכִ֤ים סְדֹ֙מָה֙ בָּעֶ֔רֶב וְל֖וֹט יֹשֵׁ֣ב בְּשַֽׁעַר־סְדֹ֑ם וַיַּרְא־לוֹט֙ וַיָּ֣קׇם לִקְרָאתָ֔ם וַיִּשְׁתַּ֥חוּ אַפַּ֖יִם אָֽרְצָה׃ (ב) וַיֹּ֜אמֶר הִנֶּ֣ה נָּא־אֲדֹנַ֗י ס֣וּרוּ נָ֠א אֶל־בֵּ֨ית עַבְדְּכֶ֤ם וְלִ֙ינוּ֙ וְרַחֲצ֣וּ רַגְלֵיכֶ֔ם וְהִשְׁכַּמְתֶּ֖ם וַהֲלַכְתֶּ֣ם לְדַרְכְּכֶ֑ם וַיֹּאמְר֣וּ לֹּ֔א כִּ֥י בָרְח֖וֹב נָלִֽין׃ (ג) וַיִּפְצַר־בָּ֣ם מְאֹ֔ד וַיָּסֻ֣רוּ אֵלָ֔יו וַיָּבֹ֖אוּ אֶל־בֵּית֑וֹ וַיַּ֤עַשׂ לָהֶם֙ מִשְׁתֶּ֔ה וּמַצּ֥וֹת אָפָ֖ה וַיֹּאכֵֽלוּ׃ (ד) טֶ֘רֶם֮ יִשְׁכָּ֒בוּ֒ וְאַנְשֵׁ֨י הָעִ֜יר אַנְשֵׁ֤י סְדֹם֙ נָסַ֣בּוּ עַל־הַבַּ֔יִת מִנַּ֖עַר וְעַד־זָקֵ֑ן כׇּל־הָעָ֖ם מִקָּצֶֽה׃
(1) The two angels arrived in Sodom in the evening, as Lot was sitting in the gate of Sodom. When Lot saw them, he rose to greet them and, bowing low with his face to the ground, (2) he said, “Please, my lords, turn aside to your servant’s house to spend the night, and bathe your feet; then you may be on your way early.” But they said, “No, we will spend the night in the square.” (3) But he urged them strongly, so they turned his way and entered his house. He prepared a feast for them and baked unleavened bread, and they ate. (4) They had not yet lain down, when the townspeople, the men of Sodom, young and old—all the people to the last man—gathered about the house.
(מט) הִנֵּה־זֶ֣ה הָיָ֔ה עֲוֺ֖ן סְדֹ֣ם אֲחוֹתֵ֑ךְ גָּא֨וֹן שִׂבְעַת־לֶ֜חֶם וְשַׁלְוַ֣ת הַשְׁקֵ֗ט הָ֤יָה לָהּ֙ וְלִבְנוֹתֶ֔יהָ וְיַד־עָנִ֥י וְאֶבְי֖וֹן לֹ֥א הֶחֱזִֽיקָה׃ (נ) וַֽתִּגְבְּהֶ֔ינָה וַתַּֽעֲשֶׂ֥ינָה תוֹעֵבָ֖ה לְפָנָ֑י וָאָסִ֥יר אֶתְהֶ֖ן כַּאֲשֶׁ֥ר רָאִֽיתִי׃ {ס}
(49) Only this was the sin of your sister Sodom: arrogance! She and her daughters had plenty of bread and untroubled tranquillity; yet she did not support the poor and the needy. (50) In their haughtiness, they committed abomination before Me; and so I removed them, as you saw.
(א) ונדעה אותם כוונתם לכלות את הרגל מביניהם כדברי רבותינו (סנהדרין קט) כי חשבו שבעבור טובת ארצם שהיא כגן ה' יבאו שם רבים והם היו מואסי הצדקה אבל לוט בעשרו וממונו בא אליהם או שבקש מהם רשות או שקבלוהו לכבוד אברהם והכתוב מעיד שזאת כוונתם שנאמר (יחזקאל טז מט) הנה זה היה עון סדום אחותך גאון שבעת לחם ושלות השקט היה לה ולבנותיה ויד עני ואביון לא החזיקה ומה שאמר (בראשית י״ג:י״ג) רעים וחטאים לה' מאד שהיו מכעיסים ומורדים בשלותם ובענוי האביונים והוא שאמר (יחזקאל טז נ) ותגבהינה ותעשינה תועבה לפני ואסיר אתהן כאשר ראיתי ועל דעת רבותינו (עיין סנהדרין קט) היו בהם כל מדות רעות אבל נגמר דינם על אותו העון מפני שלא החזיקו יד עני ואביון כי היו תדירים באותו עון יותר מכולם וגם כי כל העמים עושים צדקות עם ריעיהם ועם ענייהם לא היה בכל הגוים כסדום לאכזריות ודע כי משפט סדום היה למעלת ארץ ישראל כי היא מכלל נחלת ה' ואינה סובלת אנשי תועבות וכאשר תקיא את הגוי כלו מפני תועבותם הקדימה וקאתה את העם הזה שהיו רעים מכולם לשמים ולבריות ושממו עליהם השמים והארץ והושחתה הארץ בלא רפואה לעולם מפני שבעבור טובה נתגאו וראה הקב"ה שיהיה לאות לבני מרי לישראל העתידים לירשה כאשר התרה בהן גפרית ומלח שרפה כל ארצה כמהפכת סדום ועמורה אדמה וצבויים אשר הפך ה' באפו ובחמתו (דברים כט כב) כי יש באומות רעים וחטאים מאד ולא עשה בהם ככה אבל למעלת הארץ הזאת היה הכל כי שם היכל ה' ועוד אני עתיד לבאר זה בסדר אחרי מות (ויקרא יח כד) אם יחייני הממית והמחיה:
(1) AND WE SHALL KNOW THEM. Their intention was to stop people from coming among them, as our Rabbis have said, for they thought that because of the excellence of their land, which was as the garden of the Eternal, many will come there, and they despised charity. Lot, however, came to them with his riches and wealth [and was given permission to live in Sodom because] he either asked permission of them, or that they accepted him in honor of Abraham.
Now Scripture testifies that this was the intent of the people of Sodom, as it is said, Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom: pride, fullness of bread, and careless ease was in her and in her daughters; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. The verse stating, And the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against the Eternal exceedingly, really means that they continued provoking and rebelling against Him with their ease and the oppression of the poor. It is this thought which Scripture expresses by saying, And they were haughty, and committed abomination before Me; therefore I removed them when I saw it.
In the opinion of our Rabbis, all evil practices were rampant among them. Yet their fate was sealed because of this sin — i.e., they did not strengthen the hand of the poor and needy — since this sin represented their usual behavior more than any other. Besides, since all peoples act righteously towards their friends and their poor, there was none among all the nations who matched Sodom in cruelty.
Know that the judgment of Sodom was due to the superiority of the Land of Israel since Sodom is part of the inheritance of the Eternal, and it does not suffer men of abominations. And just as it later vomited out a whole nation on account of their abominations, so it now anticipated and saw that this entire people behaved worse than all nations towards Heaven and mankind. It thus laid waste heaven and earth for them, and the land was destroyed forever, never to be restored, since they became haughty on account of the goodness that was bestowed on them. The Holy One, blessed be He, thus made Sodom a token against the rebellious children, that is, against the children of Israel who were destined to inherit it, even as He warned them: The whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and a burning… like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Eternal overthrew in His anger, and in His wrath. For there have been among nations those who were evil and exceedingly sinful, and yet He did not do to them as He did to Sodom. However it was all on account of the superiority of this land for there is the temple of the Eternal. I plan to explain this in Seder Achrei Moth, if He Who taketh life and giveth life will sustain me in life.
Now Scripture testifies that this was the intent of the people of Sodom, as it is said, Behold, this was the iniquity of thy sister Sodom: pride, fullness of bread, and careless ease was in her and in her daughters; neither did she strengthen the hand of the poor and needy. The verse stating, And the men of Sodom were wicked and sinners against the Eternal exceedingly, really means that they continued provoking and rebelling against Him with their ease and the oppression of the poor. It is this thought which Scripture expresses by saying, And they were haughty, and committed abomination before Me; therefore I removed them when I saw it.
In the opinion of our Rabbis, all evil practices were rampant among them. Yet their fate was sealed because of this sin — i.e., they did not strengthen the hand of the poor and needy — since this sin represented their usual behavior more than any other. Besides, since all peoples act righteously towards their friends and their poor, there was none among all the nations who matched Sodom in cruelty.
Know that the judgment of Sodom was due to the superiority of the Land of Israel since Sodom is part of the inheritance of the Eternal, and it does not suffer men of abominations. And just as it later vomited out a whole nation on account of their abominations, so it now anticipated and saw that this entire people behaved worse than all nations towards Heaven and mankind. It thus laid waste heaven and earth for them, and the land was destroyed forever, never to be restored, since they became haughty on account of the goodness that was bestowed on them. The Holy One, blessed be He, thus made Sodom a token against the rebellious children, that is, against the children of Israel who were destined to inherit it, even as He warned them: The whole land thereof is brimstone, and salt, and a burning… like the overthrow of Sodom and Gomorrah, Admah and Zeboiim, which the Eternal overthrew in His anger, and in His wrath. For there have been among nations those who were evil and exceedingly sinful, and yet He did not do to them as He did to Sodom. However it was all on account of the superiority of this land for there is the temple of the Eternal. I plan to explain this in Seder Achrei Moth, if He Who taketh life and giveth life will sustain me in life.
(י) אַרְבַּע מִדּוֹת בָּאָדָם. הָאוֹמֵר שֶׁלִּי שֶׁלִּי וְשֶׁלְּךָ שֶׁלָּךְ, זוֹ מִדָּה בֵינוֹנִית. וְיֵשׁ אוֹמְרִים, זוֹ מִדַּת סְדוֹם. שֶׁלִּי שֶׁלְּךָ וְשֶׁלְּךָ שֶׁלִּי, עַם הָאָרֶץ. שֶׁלִּי שֶׁלְּךָ וְשֶׁלְּךָ שֶׁלָּךְ, חָסִיד. שֶׁלִּי שֶׁלִּי וְשֶׁלְּךָ שֶׁלִּי, רָשָׁע:
(10) There are four types of character in human beings: One that says: “mine is mine, and yours is yours”: this is a commonplace type; and some say this is a sodom-type of character. [One that says:] “mine is yours and yours is mine”: is an unlearned person (am haaretz); [One that says:] “mine is yours and yours is yours” is a pious person. [One that says:] “mine is mine, and yours is mine” is a wicked person.
There are four types of character in human beings:
One that says: “mine is mine, and yours is yours”: this is a commonplace type; and some say this is a sodom-type of character.
[One that says:] “mine is yours and yours is mine”: is an unlearned person (am;
[One that says:] “mine is yours is yours is yours” is a pious person.
[One that says:] “mine is mine, and yours is mine” is a wicked person.
The Mishnah now begins to list things that come in fours.
One that says: “mine is mine, and yours is yours”: this is a commonplace type: a person who acts in this way is not pious, for he does not give of his own to others, but neither is he wicked for he is careful not to take others property.
And some say this is a sodom-type of character: Some say that this is the way that the people of Sodom acted. When the angelic visitors visited Lot in Sodom, the people of Sodom were angered by Lot’s generosity (Genesis 19:5). Ezekiel states, “Only this was the sin of your sister Sodom: arrogance! She and her daughters had plenty of bread and untroubled tranquility; yet she did not support the poor and the needy” (Ezekiel 16:49). We see that one of the cardinal crimes of the people of Sodom was their lack of generosity, especially when contrasted with the generosity and hospitality of Abraham.
The commentators also point out that one who does not want to give of himself to others will eventual never want to give anything to others, even if it costs him nothing.
[One that says:] “mine is yours and yours is mine”: is an unlearned person (am haaretz): One explanation is that this literally refers to the “am haaretz”, which literally translates as the “people of the land”, who live in partnership on the land. There is no concept of ownership amongst this type of people, and therefore they don’t recognize any border between what is theirs and what belongs to others. In a positive manner, we could state that they share everything equally. Others explain this as having a negative connotation, and “am haaretz” refers to an uncivilized, unlearned, almost barbaric people.
[One that says:] “mine is yours is yours is yours” is a pious person: A person who does not want to ever take of others’ property but does want to give to others is truly pious, for he gives without expecting anything in return.
[One that says:] “mine is mine, and yours is mine” is a wicked person: He is wicked for he wishes to take and not give anything in return.
One that says: “mine is mine, and yours is yours”: this is a commonplace type; and some say this is a sodom-type of character.
[One that says:] “mine is yours and yours is mine”: is an unlearned person (am;
[One that says:] “mine is yours is yours is yours” is a pious person.
[One that says:] “mine is mine, and yours is mine” is a wicked person.
The Mishnah now begins to list things that come in fours.
One that says: “mine is mine, and yours is yours”: this is a commonplace type: a person who acts in this way is not pious, for he does not give of his own to others, but neither is he wicked for he is careful not to take others property.
And some say this is a sodom-type of character: Some say that this is the way that the people of Sodom acted. When the angelic visitors visited Lot in Sodom, the people of Sodom were angered by Lot’s generosity (Genesis 19:5). Ezekiel states, “Only this was the sin of your sister Sodom: arrogance! She and her daughters had plenty of bread and untroubled tranquility; yet she did not support the poor and the needy” (Ezekiel 16:49). We see that one of the cardinal crimes of the people of Sodom was their lack of generosity, especially when contrasted with the generosity and hospitality of Abraham.
The commentators also point out that one who does not want to give of himself to others will eventual never want to give anything to others, even if it costs him nothing.
[One that says:] “mine is yours and yours is mine”: is an unlearned person (am haaretz): One explanation is that this literally refers to the “am haaretz”, which literally translates as the “people of the land”, who live in partnership on the land. There is no concept of ownership amongst this type of people, and therefore they don’t recognize any border between what is theirs and what belongs to others. In a positive manner, we could state that they share everything equally. Others explain this as having a negative connotation, and “am haaretz” refers to an uncivilized, unlearned, almost barbaric people.
[One that says:] “mine is yours is yours is yours” is a pious person: A person who does not want to ever take of others’ property but does want to give to others is truly pious, for he gives without expecting anything in return.
[One that says:] “mine is mine, and yours is mine” is a wicked person: He is wicked for he wishes to take and not give anything in return.
À faut esperer q'eu se jeu la Finira bentot. Date de création: 1789. Numéro d’object: CARG023829.
We must hope that the Finira bentot will be played.