Rabbis Encounter Theodicy

R. Isaac said : Whoever reads the Shema' upon his bed is as though he holds a two-edged sword in his hand; as it is said, "Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand" (Ps. cxlix. 6). How is this inferred ? Mar Zotra (another version : Rab Ashe) said : From what precedes ; for it is written, "Let the saints exult in glory, let them sing for joy upon their beds" (ibid. v. 5), and this is followed by "Let the high praises of God be in their mouth, and a two-edged sword in their hand." R. Isaac also said : Whoever reads the Shema' upon his bed, the evil spirits flee from him ; as it is said, "And the sons of Reshef fly upwards ['uf] " (Job v. 7). 'Uf means nothing else than Torah ; as it is said, "Wilt thou set [hata'if] thine eyes upon it? It is gone" (Prov. xxiii. 5). And Reshef means nothing else than "evil spirits"; as it is said, "The wasting of hunger, and the devouring of the fiery bolt [Reshef] and bitter destruction" (Deut. xxxii. 24). R. Simeon b, Lakish said : Whoever occupies himself with Torah, sufferings depart from him ; as it is said, "And the sons of Reshef fly upwards ['uf]." 'Uf means nothing else than Torah; as it is said, "Wilt thou set thine eyes upon it? It is gone." And Reshef means nothing else than "sufferings"; as it is said, "The wasting of hunger, and the devouring of the fiery bolt." R. Johanan said to him : Why, even school-children know that; as it is stated, "And He said, If thou wilt diligently hearken to the voice of the Lord thy God, and wilt do that which is right in His eyes, and wilt give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases upon thee, which I have put upon the Egyptians ; for I am the Lord that healeth thee " (Exod. xv. 26) ! But, everyone who is able to occupy himself with Torah and does not do so, the Holy One, blessed be He, brings upon him dreadful sufferings to stir him ; as it is said, "I was dumb with silence, I held my peace, had no comfort [tob] ; and my pain was stirred" (Ps. xxxix. 3). "Comfort" means nothing else than Torah; as it is said, "For I give you good [tob] doctrine; forsake ye not My teaching " (Prov. iv. 2). R. Zera (another version : R. Hannina b. Pappa) said : Come and see that the attribute of a human being differs from that of the Holy One, blessed be He. What is the attribute of a human being ? When a man sells a valued article to his fellow, the seller grieves and the purchaser rejoices. But with the Holy One, blessed be He, it is not so. He gave the Torah to Israel and rejoiced; as it is said, "For I give you good doctrine ; forsake ye not My teaching." Raba (another version : Rab Hisda) said : Should a man see sufferings come upon him, let him scrutinise his actions ; as it is said, "Let us search and try our ways, and return unto the Lord" (Lam. iii. 40). If he has scrutinised his actions without discovering the cause, let him attribute them to neglect of Torah; as it is said, "Happy is the man whom Thou chastenest, and teachest out of Thy law" (Ps. xciv. 12). If he attributed them to neglect of Torah without finding any justification, it is certain that his sufferings are chastenings of love ; as it is said, "For whom the Lord loveth He correcteth" (Prov. iii. 12). Raba stated that Rab Sahorah said in the name of Rab Huna : Him in whom the Holy One, blessed be He, delighteth He crusheth with sufferings ; as it is said, "Yet it pleased the Lord to crush him by disease" (Is. liii. 10). It is possible to think that this is so even with one who does not receive the chastenings in a spirit of love : therefore there is a teaching to say, "To see if his soul would offer itself in restitution" (ibid.). Just as the trespass-offering is brought voluntarily, so are the sufferings voluntarily received. If he accept them, what is his reward? "He will see his seed, prolong his days" (ibid.). More than that, his study [of Torah] will endure with him; as it is said, "The purpose of the Lord will prosper in his hand" (ibid.). R. Jacob b. Iddi and Rab Aha b. Hannina [differ in opinion]. One of them says : Those are to be considered chastenings of love which do not involve neglect of Torah; as it is said, " Happy is the man whom Thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of Thy law " (Ps. xciv. 12). The other declares : Those are to be considered chastenings of love which do not involve neglect of prayer; as it is written, "Blessed be God, Who hath not turned away my prayer, nor His mercy from me" (Ps. lxvi. 20) R. Abba the son of R. Hiyya b. Abba said to them : Thus declared R. Hiyya b. Abba in the name of R. Johanan : Both of them are to be considered chastenings of love ; as it is said, "For whom the Lord loveth He correcteth" (Prov. iii. 12). But what does the phrase "and teachest him out of Thy law" (Ps. xciv, 12) intend to convey to us ? Read not telammedennu "and teachest him" but telammedennu "and teachest us"; i.e., Thou teachest us this matter out of Thy law as a deduction from the ordinance concerning "the tooth and eye. " Should the tooth or eye of a slave be injured, which is only one of the members of a man's body, he thereby obtains his freedom, how much more so with the sufferings which afflict the whole body of a man ! This is in accord with the statement of R. Simeon b. Lakish who said: The word berit "covenant" is mentioned in connection with salt and also with chastenings. With salt, as it is written, "Thou shalt not suffer the salt of the covenant of Thy God to be lacking" (Lev. ii. 13); and with chastenings, as it is written, "These are the words of the covenant" (Deut. xxviii. 69). As with the "covenant" mentioned in connection with salt, it is salt which sweetens meat, so with the "covenant" mentioned in connection with chastenings, they are chastenings which purge all the iniquities of man. There is a teaching : R. Simeon b. Johai said : Three precious gifts did the Holy One, blessed be He, give to Israel, and all of them He gave only through the medium of suffering ; they are : Torah, the land of Israel, and the world to come. Whence is it deduced that Torah [was given through the medium of suffering]? As it is said : "Happy is the man whom Thou chastenest, O Lord, and teachest him out of Thy law " (Ps. xciv. 12). And the land of Israel ? For it is written, "As a man chasteneth his son, so the Lord thy God chasteneth thee" (Deut. viii. 5), which is followed by "For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good land" (ibid. 5:7). And the world to come ? For it is written, "For the commandment is a lamp, and the teaching is light, and reproofs of instruction' are the way of life" (Prov. vi. 23). A Tanna taught in the presence of R. Johanan : whoever occupies himself with Torah and benevolent acts,

or who buries his children, all his sins are forgiven him. R. Johanan said to him : It is quite right with Torah and benevolent acts ; for it is written, "By mercy and truth iniquity is expiated" (Prov. xvi. 6) "mercy" means benevolent acts, as it is said, "He that followeth after righteousness and mercy findeth life, prosperity and honour" (ibid. xxi. 21), and "truth" means Torah, as it is said, "Buy the truth, and sell it not" (ibid, xxiii. 23); but how know we that this is true of one who buries his children? A certain Elder taught in the name of R. Simeon b. Johai : It is to be derived from the occurrence of the same word 'awon "iniquity" in the following passages : "By mercy and truth iniquity is expiated" (ibid. xvi. 6) and "Who recompensest the iniquity of the fathers into the bosom of their children" (Jer. xxxii. 18). R. Johanan said : Plagues and childlessness are not to be considered chastenings of love. Are not plagues to be so considered? Lo, there is a teaching : Whoever is afflicted with any of four plague-symptoms is to regard them as nothing but an altar of atonement ! Yes, they may be considered an altar of atonement, but not chastenings of love. Or if thou wilt, I can say this is our teaching and that is theirs. Or if thou wilt, I can say the latter teaching refers to when the plague affects a hidden part of the body and the other to the case where an exposed part is affected. Is not childlessness to be considered [chastenings of love] ? What is meant [by childlessness] ? Is it to be supposed to refer to a man who had children but they died ? Lo, R. Johanan himself said, "This is the bone of my tenth son!" Nay, the latter teaching refers to one who never had children, the other to one who has been bereft of his children. R. Hiyya b. Abba was ill and R. Johanan went in to visit him. He said to him, "Are thy sufferings dear to thee ?" "No," he replied, "neither they nor the reward they bring." R. Johanan said to him, "Give me thy hand." He gave him his hand and R. Johanan raised him. R. Johanan was ill and R. Hannina went in to visit him. He said to him, "Are thy sufferings dear to thee?" "No," he replied, "neither they nor the reward they bring." R. Hannina said to him, "Give me thy hand." He gave him his hand and R. Hannina raised him. Why? Why did not R. Johanan raise himself ? They answer : A prisoner does not release himself from the dungeon. R. Eleazar was ill and R. Johanan went in to visit him. He saw that he was lying in a dark room, so he bared his arm and a brightness was radiated therefrom. He then noticed that R. Eleazar was weeping. He said to him, "Why weepest thou? Is it because thou hast not applied thyself sufficiently to the study of Torah ? We have learnt that it matters not whether one does much or little, so long as he directs his heart to Heaven ! Is it because of [the lack of] food? Not everyone has the merit of two tables! Is it because of childlessness? This is the bone of my tenth son!" R. Eleazar answered him, "I weep because of this beauty which will decay in the earth." R. Johanan said to him, "Well dost thou weep on that account" ; and they both wept. After a while, he said to him, "Are thy sufferings dear to thee?" He replied, "Neither they nor the reward they bring." He said to him, "Give me thy hand." He gave him his hand and R. Johanan raised him. It happened to Rab Huna that four hundred flasks of wine turned sour. There visited him Rab Judah the brother of Rab Sala Hasida and other Rabbis. (Another version : Rab Adda b. Ahaba and other Rabbis.) They said to him, "The master should look into his actions." He answered them, "Have I aroused suspicion in your eyes?" They retorted, "Is the Holy One, blessed be He, to be suspected of passing an unjust judgment?" He said to them, "If there be anyone who has heard aught against me, let him speak out." They replied, "Thus have we heard, that our master has not given the vine-tendrils to his labourer." He said to them, "Has he left me any of them ? He has stolen the lot!" They replied, "That is what the proverb tells : 'Steal from a thief and thou also hast a taste of it'." He said to them, "I undertake to give him what is due." Some declare that thereupon the vinegar turned back into wine, but others say that vinegar became very dear and was sold at the price of wine.

Rab and R. Hanina; R. Johanan and R. Habiba taught [the following] (In the whole of the Order Mo'ed whenever this pair occur some substitute R. Jonathan for R. Johanan) Anyone who is able to influence the people of their home, and does not, is punished for the sins of the people of their home. Their city, are punished for the sins of their city. The whole world, are punished for the sins of the whole world. Said R. Papa: "These, the rulers of the kingdom in exile, are punished for the sins of the whole world." For this R. Hanina said: "Why is it written: 'Hashem will enter into judgment with the elders of his people, and the princes thereof'? (Isaiah 3:14) - if the princes sinned,

how did the elders sin? But say, [He will bring punishment] upon the elders because they do not forbid the princes.

Rab Judah was sitting before Samuel. [when] a woman came and cried before him, but he ignored her. Said he to him, Does not the Master agree [that] 'whoever stops his ears at the cry of the poor, he also shall cry, but shall not be heard'? 'O keen scholar!' he replied. 'Your superior [will be punished] with cold [water]. but your superior's superior [will be punished] with hot. Surely Mar 'Ukba, the Av-Beit Din is sitting!' For it is written, O house of David, thus saith the Lord. Execute judgement in the morning, and deliver the spoiled out of the hand of the oppressor, lest my fury go forth like fire, and burn that none can quench it, because of the evil of your doing, etc.R. Zera said to R. Simeon, Let the Master rebuke the members of the Resh Galutha's suite. They will not accept it from me, was his reply. Though they will not accept its returned he, yet you should rebuke them. For R. Aha b. R. Hanina said: Never did a favourable word go forth from the mouth of the Holy One, blessed be He, of which He retracted for evil, save the following, where it is written, And the Lord said unto him, Go through the midst of the city, through the midst of Jerusalem, and set a mark [tav] upon the foreheads of the men that sigh and that cry for all the abominations that be done in the midst thereof, etc. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Gabriel, Go and set a tav of ink upon the foreheads of the righteous, that the destroying angels may have no power over them; and a tav of blood upon the foreheads of the wicked, that the destroying angels may have power over them. Said the Attribute of Justice before the Holy One, blessed be He, 'Sovereign of the Universe! Wherein are these different from those?' 'Those are completely righteous men, while these are completely wicked,' replied He. 'Sovereign of the Universe!' it continued, 'they had the power to protest but did not.' 'It was fully known to them that had they protested they would not have heeded them.' 'Sovereign of the Universe!' said he, 'If it was revealed to Thee, was it revealed to them?' Hence it is written, [Slay utterly] the old man, the young and the maiden, and little children and women; but come not near any man upon whom is the mark; and begin at my Sanctuary [mikdashi]. Then they began at the elders which were before the house. R. Joseph recited: Read not mikdashi but mekudashay [my sanctified ones]: this refers to the people who fulfilled the Torah from alef to tav. And straightway, And behold, six men came from the way of the upper gate, which lies toward the north, every man with his slaughter weapon in his hand; and one man in the midst of them clothed in linen, with a writer's inkhorn by his side. And they went in, and stood beside the brazen altar. Was then the brazen altar [still] in existence? — The Holy One, blessed be He, spake thus to them; Commence [destruction] from the place where song is uttered before Me. And who were the six men? — Said R. Hisda: Indignation [Kezef], Anger [Af], Wrath [Hemah], Destroyer [Mashhith] Breaker [Meshabber] and Annihilator [Mekaleh]. And why taw? — Said Rab: Taw [stands for] tihyeh [thou shalt live], taw [stands for] tamuth [thou shalt die]. Samuel said: The taw denotes, the merit of the Patriarchs is exhausted [tamah]. R. Johanan said: The merit of the Patriarchs will confer grace [tahon]. While Resh Lakish said: Taw is the end of the seal of the Holy One, blessed be He. For R. Hanina said: The seal of the Holy One, blessed be He, is emeth [truth]. R. Samuel b. Nahmani said: It denotes the people who fulfilled the Torah from alef to tav. And since when has the merit of the Patriarchs been exhausted? — Rab said, Since the days of Hosea the son of Beeri, for it is written, [And now] will I discover her lewdness in the sight of her lovers, and none shall deliver her out of mine hand. Samuel said. Since the days of Hazael, for it is said, And Hazael king of Syria oppressed Israel all the days of Jehoahaz; and it is written, But the Lord was gracious unto them, and had compassion upon them, and had respect unto them, because of the covenant with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and would not destroy them, neither cast he them from his presence until now. R. Joshua b. Levi said: Since the days of Elijah, for it is said, And it came to pass at the time of the offering of the evening oblation, that Elijah the prophet came near, and said, O Lord, the God of Abraham, of Isaac, and of Israel, let it be known this day that thou art God in Israel, and that I am thy servant, and that I have done all these things at thy word. R. Johanan said: Since the days of Hezekiah, for it is said, Of the increase of his government and of peace there shall be no end, upon the throne of David, and upon his kingdom, to establish it, and to uphold it with judgement and with righteousness for henceforth even for ever. The zeal of the Lord of hosts shall perform this.

R. Ammi said: There is no death without sin, and there is no suffering without iniquity. There is no death without sin, for it is written, The soul that sinneth, it shall die: the son shall not bear the iniquity of the father, neither shall the father bear the iniquity of the son, the righteousness of the righteous shall be upon him, and the wickedness of the wicked shall be upon him, etc., There is no suffering without iniquity, for it is written, Then will I visit their transgression with the rod, and their iniquity with stripes.

An objection is raised: The ministering angels asked the Holy One, blessed be He: 'Sovereign of the Universe! Why didst Thou impose the penalty of death upon Adam?' Said He to them, I gave him an easy command, yet he violated it.' 'But Moses and Aaron fulfilled the whole Torah,' they pursued — 'yet they died'. 'There is one event to the righteous and to the wicked; to the good, etc., He replied. — He maintains as the following Tanna. For it was taught: R. Simeon b. Eleazar said: Moses and Aaron too died through their sin, for it is said, Because ye believed not in me[...therefore ye shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them]: hence, had ye believed in Me, your time had not yet come to depart from the world.

An objection is raised: Four died through the serpent's machinations, viz., Benjamin the son of Jacob, Amram the father of Moses, Jesse the father of David, and Caleb the son of David. Now, all are known by tradition, save Jesse the father of David, in whose case the Writ gives an explicit intimation. For it is written, And Absalom set Amasa over the host instead of Joab. Now Amasa was the son of a man whose name was Ithra the Israelite, that went in to Abigail the daughter of Nahash, sister to Zeruiah Joab's mother. Now, was she the daughter of Nahash? Surely she was the daughter of Jesse, for it is written, and their sisters were Zeruiah and Abigail? Hence it must mean, the daughter of one who died through the machinations of the nahash [serpent]. Who is [the author of this]? Shall we say, the Tanna [who taught] about the ministering angels? — Surely there were Moses and Aaron too! Hence it must surely be R. Simeon b. Eleazar, which proves that there is death without sin and suffering without iniquity. Thus the refutation of R. Ammi is [indeed] a refutation.