Elisha ben Abuya

§ The Sages taught: Four entered the orchard [pardes], i.e., dealt with the loftiest secrets of Torah, and they are as follows: Ben Azzai; and ben Zoma; Aḥer, the other, a name for Elisha ben Avuya; and Rabbi Akiva. Rabbi Akiva, the senior among them, said to them: When, upon your arrival in the upper worlds, you reach pure marble stones, do not say: Water, water, although they appear to be water, because it is stated: “He who speaks falsehood shall not be established before My eyes” (Psalms 101:7).

Rav Yosef said: Had Aḥer, literally Other, the appellation of the former Sage Elisha ben Avuya, interpreted this aforementioned verse: “That it may go well with you” (Deuteronomy 5:16), homiletically, as referring to the World-to-Come, as did Rabbi Ya’akov, son of his daughter, he would not have sinned. The Gemara asks: And what caused Aḥer to sin? There are those who say he saw a case like this, where a son went up to the roof on his father’s command, dispatched the mother bird, and then died. It was witnessing this episode that led Elisha ben Avuya astray.

There are three Torah scholars who, despite their greatness in Torah, were never given the title Rabbi, and whose appearance in a dream is significant: One who sees Ben Azzai in a dream should anticipate piety; one who sees Ben Zoma should anticipate wisdom; and one who sees Aḥer, Elisha ben Avuya, should be concerned about calamity, as he strayed from the path of righteousness.

Rebbi Jehudah bar Pazi in the name of Rebbi Yose ben Rebbi Jehudah: Three lectured their teachings in front of their teachers: Rebbi Joshua in front of Rabban Joḥana ben Zakkai, Rebbi Aqiba in front of Rebbi Joshua, Ḥananiah ben Ḥakhinai in front of Rebbi Aqiba. From there on their mind was not pure. Four entered the Garden, One peeked and was hurt; one peeked and died; one peeked and cut saplings, one entered in peace and left in peace. Ben Azzai peeked and was hurt; about him the verse says, if you found honey, eat your fill. Ben Zoma peeked and died, about him the verse says, dear in the Eternal’s eyes is the death of his pious. Aḥer peeked and cut saplings. Who is Aḥer? Elisha ben Abuya, who killed the children of Torah. They said, if he saw a student excelling in Torah he killed him. Not only this, but he went to the school house and saw children in front of their Bible teacher. He said, what are these sitting doing here? The profession of this one is builder, the profession of this one is carpenter, the profession of this one is hunter, the profession of this one is tailor. When they heard this, they left him and went away. About him the verse says, do not let your mouth make your flesh sin, etc.; for he destroyed the deeds of himself. Also in the time of religious persecution they made them carry loads. They intended that two together should carry one load, because of two persons who performed one work. He said, make them carry singly. They went and made them carry singly. They intended to unload in karmelit, in order not to carry from a private to a public domain. He said to them, let them carry flasks; they made them carry flasks. Rebbi Aqiba entered in peace and left in peace; about him the verse says, draw me, I shall run after you, etc.

Rebbi Meïr was sitting and preaching in the House of Study of Tiberias when his teacher Elisha passed by riding on a horse on the Sabbath. They came and told him, your teacher is outside. He stopped his sermon and went out to him. He asked him, what did you preach today? He told him, and the Eternal blessed the end etc. He asked him, what did you explain about this? He answered him, and the Eternal added double all that Job had owned; that he doubled his money. He said, woe for those who are lost and not found, your teacher Aqiba did not preach this but, the Eternal blessed the end of Job from his beginning, by the merit of commandments and good works which were in his hand from his beginning. He asked him, and what did you preach further? He told him, the end of a matter is better than the beginning. He asked him, what did you explain about this? For example, a man who had children in his youth but they died, and in his old age they lived; that is the end of a matter is better than the beginning. For example, a man who traded in his youth and lost, and in his old age and gained; that is the end of a matter is better than the beginning. For example, a man who studied Torah in his youth and forgot, in his old age he remembered; that is the end of a matter is better than the beginning. He said, woe for those who are lost and not found, your teacher Aqiba did not preach this but, the end of a matter is good from the beginning, in case it is good from the start, and this applies to me. My father Abuya was one of the leading Jerusalemites. On the day he came to circumcise me he invited all the leading Jerusalemites and sat them in one room, and Rebbi Eliezer and Rebbi Joshua in another room. After they ate and drank they started to clap with their hands and dance. Rebbi Eliezer and Rebbi Joshua said, while they are occupied in theirs let us be occupied with ours. They sat occupied with words of the Torah, from the Torah to Prophets, from Prophets to Hagiographs. Fire descended from Heaven and surrounded them. Abuya told them, my teachers! Why do you come to burn down my house? They told him, Heaven forbid! But we were sitting reviewing the words of the Torah, from the Torah to Prophets, from Prophets to Hagiographs, and the words were joyful as at their giving on Sinai. And was the main giving on Sinai not in fire? And the Mountain burns in the fire up to the heart of Heaven. My father Abuya told them, my teachers! If that is the power of Torah, if this son of mine survives I dedicate him to Torah. Because his intent was not for Heaven, it did not succeed with this man. He asked him, and what did you preach further? He told him, it cannot be valued by gold or glass. He asked him, what did you explain about this? He told him, the words of the Torah are as difficult to acquire as golden vessels, and as easy to lose as glass vessels. And like golden and glass vessels when they are broken he can make them vessels as before, also the student of the Sages who forgot his learning can learn it anew. He said to him, this is enough, Meïr, up to here is the Sabbath domain. He asked him, how do you know? He told him, from the horse’s hooves which I continuously counted for 2’000 cubits. He said to him, all that wisdom is in you and you do not repent? He told him, I cannot. He asked him, why? He told him, once I was passing by the Holiest of Holies riding on a horse on the Day of Atonement which fell on a Sabbath and I heard an unembodied voice coming from the Holiest of Holies, saying, return, erring children, except for Elisha ben Abuya who knew My power and rebelled against Me. And all that came to him because he was sitting memorizing in the valley of Genezareth and saw a man climbing to the top of a date palm taking the mother with the chicks and descending safely. The next day he saw another man climbing to the top of a date palm, taking the chicks and sending away the mother. When climbing down he was bitten by a snake, and he died. He said, it is written, sending away you shall send the mother, but the chicks you may take for yourself, so it will be good for you and prolong your days. Where is the good for this one? Where is the prolongation of days of this one? He did not know that Rebbi Jacob had explained it preceding him, so it will be good for you in the future world which is all good, and prolong your days, in the future which is all long. But some are saying, because he saw the tongue of Rebbi Jehudah the baker in the mouth of a dog, oozing blood. He said, is this the Torah and this is its reward? This is the tongue which was delivering the words of the Torah correctly; this is the tongue which occupied itself with Torah all its days; [is this the Torah and this is its reward?] It appears that there is no reward and no resurrection of the dead. But some are saying, when his mother was pregnant with him she passed by pagan temples and smelled of this kind. And this smell was bubbling in her body like the poison of a viper. Later Elisha fell sick. They came and informed Rebbi Meïr, your teacher is sick. He went to visit him and found him sick. He asked him, are you not repenting? He asked, and if one repents, is one accepted? He told him, is it not written, man shall repent up to extinction, one receives up to the extinction of the breath. At that moment Elisha cried, passed away, and died. Rebbi Meïr was happy internally and said, it seems that my teacher passed away repentant. After they buried him, fire descended from Heaven and burned his grave. They came and informed Rebbi Meïr, your teacher’s grave is on fire. He went to visit it and found it burning. What did he do? He took his kaftan and spread it over it. He said, stay for the night, etc. Stay for this world which compares to the night, and it will be in the morning, this is the Future World which is all morning, if the Good One will redeem, this is the Holy One, praise to Him, who is Good, as it is written, the Eternal is good to all, and His mercies are on all His creatures. And if He does not want to redeem you I shall redeem you, living is the Eternal, and it was extinguished. They asked Rebbi Meïr, if they ask you in that World, whom do you want to visit, your father or your teacher? He told them, I shall visit my teacher first and afterwards my father. They said, will they listen to you? He told them, did we not state, “one saves the case of a scroll with the scroll, and the case of phylacteries with the phylacteries”? One saves Elisha Aher by the merit of his Torah. Later his daughters went to take charity from Rebbi. Rebbi decided and said, nobody shall show him grace nor be friendly to his orphans. They told him, Rebbi. Do not look at his deeds, do look at his Torah. At this moment Rebbi cried and decided for them that they be provided for. He said, if this one who toiled in Torah not for Heaven’s sake, see what he produced; one who toils in the Torah for itself not so much more?

Elisha ben Abuya says: One who learns as a child is compared to what? To ink written on new parchment. And one who learns as an elder is compared to what? To ink written on scraped parchment. Rabbi Yose bar Yehuda, man of Kfar HaBavli, says: One who learns from young ones is compared to what? To one who eats unripe grapes and drinks wine from its press. And one who learns from elders is compared to what? To one who eats ripe grapes and drinks aged wine. Rebbi says: Do not look at the jug but rather at what is in it. For there are new jugs full of old, and old that do not have even new within them.

There are three Torah scholars [who appear in dreams]. One who sees Ben Azzai in a dream should expect to acquire piety. One who sees Ben Zoma in a dream should expect to receive wisdom. One who sees Elisha ben Abuya in a dream should worry about punishments.

Elisha b. ’Abuya said: A man who has good deeds to his credit and has also studied much Torah, to what is he like? To one who builds [a structure and lays] stones below [for the foundation] and bricks above, so that however much water may collect at the side it will not wash it away.

But a man who has no good deeds to his credit, though he has studied Torah, to what is he like? To one who builds [a structure and lays] bricks first [for the foundation] and then stones above, so that even if only a little water collects it at once undermines it.

He used to say: A man who has good deeds to his credit and has also studied Torah, to what is he like? To a coating of lime spread on stone, so that however much rain falls on it, it will not wash it away. But a man who has no good deeds to his credit, though he has studied much Torah, is like a coating of lime spread on bricks, so that even if the lightest rain falls on it, it will immediately dissolve and fall away.

He used to say: A man who has good deeds to his credit and has also studied much Torah is like a cup which has a square base to it, so that when it is set down, though it is turned on its side, all its contents will not be split. But a man who has no good deeds to his credit, though he has studied much Torah, is like a cup which has not a square base, so that when it is set down it will at once turn on its side and all its contents will be spilt.He used to say: A man who has good deeds to his credit and has also studied much Torah is like a horse with a bridle; but he who has no good deeds to his credit, though he has studied much Torah, is like a horse without a bridle, and as soon as a man attempts to mount it he is thrown headlong.He used to say: He who learns Torah in his youth, its words are absorbed in his blood and issue from his mouth with clarity; but he who learns Torah only in his old age, its words are not absorbed in his blood and do not issue from his mouth with clarity. Accordingly the proverb runs, ‘If thou hadst no delight in them in thy youth, how canst thou attain them in thy old age?’

He used to say: The words of the Torah are hard to acquire as vessels of gold, and are easily destroyed as glassware; as it is stated, Gold and glass cannot equal it. A comparison is drawn between gold and glass: a golden vessel can be repaired when it is broken, but vessels of glass cannot be repaired when broken unless they are reduced to their original element. And how am I to interpret, Neither shall the exchange thereof be vessels of fine gold? It teaches that he who toils in [the words of the Torah] and fulfils them, his face shines like fine gold; but he who toils in them and does not fulfil them, his face is dark like glass.

He used to say: A man may study the Torah for twenty years and forget it in two years. How can this be? If he sits idle for six months and does not revise his studies, he will in consequence pronounce the unclean to be clean and the clean to be unclean. [If he continues idle for] twelve months without revision, he will then confuse [the names of] the Sages; if for eighteen months without revision, he will forget the opening words of the chapters; and if twenty-four months without revision, he will forget even the titles [27a] of the Tractates. And so, having pronounced the unclean to be clean and the clean to be unclean, having also confused [the names of] the Sages, and forgotten the chapter headings and even the titles of the Tractates, he will eventually sit in silence. Of him Solomon said, I went by the field of the slothful, and by the vineyard of the man void of understanding; and, lo, it was all grown over with thistles, the face thereof was covered with nettles, and the stone wall thereof was broken down. When the wall of a vineyard collapses the entire vineyard is soon destroyed.

He used to say: He who causes another to perform a commandment is regarded by Scripture as if he had performed it himself…. This may be illustrated by a parable. To what can it be compared? To a human king who caught a bird and gave it to one of his servants saying, ‘Be careful with the bird. If you guard it, well and good; but if not I will take your life for it’. So, too, did the Holy One, blessed be He, say to Israel, ‘I have entrusted the words of the Torah to you. If you guard them, well and good; but if not I will take your lives for them’. For it is stated, Only take heed to thyself, and keep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes saw. [And it is also stated,] For it is no vain thing for you, because it is your life.

"Stay the night", this night you stay without a husband, but this is the last night you spend without a husband. "Then, in the morning, if he will redeem you, very well; let him redeem you; but if he will not redeem you, then I will redeem you (Ruth 3:13)". Rabbi Meir was sitting and expounding and expounding the law in Tiberias and Elisha, his rabbi, passed by on the street riding a horse on Shabbat. And they said to Rabbi Meir: "Look! Elisha is passing by in the street!" Rabbi Meir greeted him and Elisha said: "what are you up to expounding?" Rabbi Meir said "and Hashem blessed the end of Job's life more than the beginning (Job 42:12)". And Elisha responded: "What are you saying about it?" And he replied: ""blessed" that is he doubled his wealth for him". And Elisha said to him "Akiva your teacher did not used to say that, but rather "And Hashem blessed the end of Job's life more than the beginning": because of his mindful repentance and good deeds which were in his hand at the beginning. What else?" And Rabbi Meir responded: "the end of a matter is better than its beginning (Ecclesiastes 7:8)". And Elisha said "What did you say about that"? And Rabbi Meir replied "you have the example of a man who buys merchandise in his youth and he has a loss, and he profits from it in old age. Another interpretation: "the end of a matter is better than its beginning" you have the example of a man who does evil deeds in his youth but good deeds in his old age. Another interpretation: "the end of a matter is better than its beginning": a man can learn Torah in his youth and forget it, but in his old age he can renew it, and so "the end of a matter is better than its beginning". And Elisha said to him: "Akiva your teacher did not say this, but rather "the end of a matter is good" that is when it is good "from its beginning". And for me there is this example: Avuyah, my father, was a great man of his generation and when the time came for my circumcision he invited all the great men of Jerusalem, and he invited Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Joshua among them. And when they ate and drank some sang songs and others alphabetic acrostics. Rabbi Eliezer said to Rabbi Joshua, these men are busying themselves on pointless things, and we are neglecting to pursue our affairs. So they began with the Torah and from the Torah the Prophets and from the Prophets to the writings and they rejoiced in these words as when they were given from Sinai surrounded by flaming fire. And were they not given from Sinai in fire, as it is said "And the mountain burned with a fire reaching up to the heart of the sky (Deuteronomy 4:11)"? And Avuya said "So great is the power of the Torah, this son of mine, if he survives, I will offer to give him to the Torah." And so because the intention of my thought was not for the sake of Heaven, my Torah did not continue in me. And what further did you discuss, Meir?" Rabbi Meir responded to him: "Gold or glass cannot match its value, Nor vessels of fine gold be exchanged for it (Job 28:17)". And he said: "What did you say about that?" And Rabbi Meir said: "These are words of the Torah which are difficult to buy as vessels of gold and easy to destroy like glass". Elisha responded: "Akiva your teacher did not speak this way, but rather as vessels of gold and glass if they are broken, it is possible to repair them, so a wise disciple that has lost his Mishnah is able to renew it". And then Elisha said: "return". And Rabbi Meir said: "Why?". And he responded: "because this is the edge of the Shabbat boundary". He responded: "How do you know?" Elisha said: "From the footsteps of my horse which has gone across 2,ooo amot. And Meir said: "And with all this wisdom of yours you will not return?" And Elisha responded: "That is not in my power". And he asked: "Why?". And Elisha explained to him "I was riding on a horse and while passing behind a synagogue on Yom Kippur that fell on Shabbat I heard a voice from Heaven break forth saying: "Turn back, O rebellious children (Jeremiah 3:22). Turn back to Me, and I will turn back to you (Malachi 3:7), except for Elisha the son of Avuya because he knows my strength and has rebelled against me". How did this thing happen to him? They said that one time he was sitting and reciting in the Valley of Geinosar and he saw that one man went to the top of a palm tree and took the mother bird with her young and descended without trouble, and on the day after Shabbat he saw another man go to the top of the palm tree and he took the young and sent away the mother and when he came down a snake bit him and he died. He said: "As it is written: "Let the mother go, and take only the young, in order that you may fare well and have a long life (Deuteronomy 22:7), but how is it good for this man and how is there a long life for this man?" And he did not know that it had been interpreted by Rabbi Akiva in public: "that you may fare well (tov)" in the world that is entirely good () and "have a long life (ha'arakhta)" that is in the length ('arokh) of eternity". And some were saying because he saw the tongue of Rabbi Judah the baker given to the mouth of a dog. And Elisha said: "If the tongue which occupied itself every day in Torah [is treated] thus, how much more the tongue of the one who knows nothing and is not occupied in Torah!" and thus he said "If so then there is no reward for the righteous and no resurrection of the dead!" And some were saying it is because his mother while pregnant was passing by the idolatrous temples and she smelled [the sacrifices] and they gave to her from the sacrificial meat and she ate it and it was poison spreading in her belly like the venom of a large snake. After many days Elisha the son of Avuya became sick and they said to Rabbi Meir: "Elisha your teacher is sick." He went to greet him and said "Repent again". And Elisha responded: "After this they would accept me?" And Rabbi Meir said: "You return man to dust (Psalm 90:3)”; until the crushing of the soul". As soon as he heard this Elisha son of Avuya wept and died. And Rabbi Meir was rejoicing and said: "my teacher was taken as he repented!". And when they buried Elisha, a light descended to burn his grave and they said to Rabbi Meir: "the grave of your teacher is burning". And he went and spread his tallit over it. And he said to Elisha: "Stay this night, and it shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well (tov); let him do the kinsman's part but if he be not willing to do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as Hashem lives; lie down until the morning.' (Ruth 3:13)". "Stay this night" in this world that is all night. "It shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well": "It shall be in the morning" that is in the world that is all good"; "that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman" that is the Holy One, blessed be He, as it is said "Good is Hashem to all (Psalm 145:9)". "If he be not willing to do the part of a kinsman to thee, then will I do the part of a kinsman to thee, as Hashem lives; lie down until the morning.'" and the fire stopped. And they said to him: "Our teacher, in the world to come if they say to you: 'would you rather see your father or your teacher', what would you say?" Rabbi Meir said: "my father and only then my teacher". And they said to him "Did they hear you or not?" And he replied: "Is it not the tradition that the case of the Torah with the Torah and the case of tefillin with tefillin may be saved? They save Elisha because of the merits of his Torah". After many days his daughters came seeking charity from Rabbi and he said: "May no one show him mercy; may none pity his orphans (Psalm 109:12)". They said to him "Do not consider his actions but his Torah!" And as soon as he heard that Rabbi began weeping and decreed that they should be given help, saying: "if he whose Torah was not for the name of Heaven stands thus, how much more so for he whose Torah was for the name of Heaven!" Rabbi Yose: "these are the three to whom the yetzer came to attack and they each strengthened themselves with an oath. And these are they: Joseph, David, and Boaz". Joseph, as it is written: "How then could I do this most wicked thing (Genesis 39:9)". Rabbi Chunya said in the name of Rabbi Idei: "Is the scripture ever mistaken? "And I sin against God (Genesis 39:9)"; but here "I sin against Hashem" is not written but "against God" and Joseph said "I will not sin and not do this most wicked thing". From where David? As it is said: "And David went on, “As Hashem lives, Hashem Himself will strike him down, or his time will come and he will die, or he will go down to battle and perish (1 Samuel 26:10)". To whom did he swear? Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Samuel the son of Nachman: Rabbi Eliezer said: "He swore to his yetzer". Rabbi Samuel son of Nachman: "He swore to Abishai son of Zeruah and he said: "As Hashem lives if you touch him I will mix your blood with his blood". From where Boaz? As it is said: "As Hashem lives lie down until the morning (Ruth 3:13)". Rabbi Yehudah and Rabbi Chunya: Rabbi Yehudah says "all that very night his yetzer fought with him and said: "You are unmarried and seek a wife, and she is unmarried and seeks a husband; stand up man and become the master of this woman!" And Boaz swore to his yetzer: "As Hashem lives I will not touch her!" And to the woman he said: "Stay this night. It shall be in the morning, that if he will perform unto thee the part of a kinsman, well". And Rabbi Chunya says: "It is written: "A wise man is strength (ba'oz) (Proverbs 24:5)"; [rather read] "A wise man is Boaz; a knowledgeable man exerts power" when he strengthened himself against his yetzer with an oath.

Even heretical wisdom has its own melody and music, and this explains the Talmudic description of Elisha ben Abuya, "Greek songs flowed continuously out of his mouth, and as he rose from the house of study, several books of heresy would drop off of him." (Chagigah 15b) - this particular song was associated with this particular heresy.