Amidah sources - 2nd blessing

(6) And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, of those who had scouted the land, rent their clothes (7) and exhorted the whole Israelite community: “The land that we traversed and scouted is an exceedingly good land. (8) If the LORD is pleased with us, He will bring us into that land, a land that flows with milk and honey, and give it to us; (9) only you must not rebel against the LORD. Have no fear then of the people of the country, for they are our prey: their protection has departed from them, but the LORD is with us. Have no fear of them!” (10) As the whole community threatened to pelt them with stones, the Presence of the LORD appeared in the Tent of Meeting to all the Israelites. (11) And the LORD said to Moses, “How long will this people spurn Me, and how long will they have no faith in Me despite all the signs that I have performed in their midst? (12) I will strike them with pestilence and disown them, and I will make of you a nation far more numerous than they!” (13) But Moses said to the LORD, “When the Egyptians, from whose midst You brought up this people in Your might, hear the news, (14) they will tell it to the inhabitants of that land. Now they have heard that You, O LORD, are in the midst of this people; that You, O LORD, appear in plain sight when Your cloud rests over them and when You go before them in a pillar of cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night. (15) If then You slay this people to a man, the nations who have heard Your fame will say, (16) ‘It must be because the LORD was powerless to bring that people into the land He had promised them on oath that He slaughtered them in the wilderness.’ (17) Therefore, I pray, let my Lord’s strength be great, as You have declared, saying, (18) ‘The LORD! slow to anger and abounding in kindness; forgiving iniquity and transgression; yet not remitting all punishment, but visiting the iniquity of fathers upon children, upon the third and fourth generations.’ (19) Pardon, I pray, the iniquity of this people according to Your great kindness, as You have forgiven this people ever since Egypt.” (20) And the LORD said, “I pardon, as you have asked.

The Lord's strength. This is the name that is able to do wonders and powers, as we explained in KI Tisa, regarding the words "My Lord if You go among us". And this is the answer there "in front of all the people I will do wonders". And we make remember in the Tefilah 'You are mighty eternally my Lord' Moses meant there that the power of this name would overtake the power of judgment that the Holy One of Blessing had determined upon them, which was that they should have been destroyed immediately. And just as the strength of "Lord" overtakes the laws of nature that the Holy One of Blessing determined upon God's world, so too this power will overtake the power of the judgment that was stretched over them.

(24) “O Lord GOD, You who let Your servant see the first works of Your greatness and Your mighty hand, You whose powerful deeds no god in heaven or on earth can equal! (25) Let me, please, cross over and see the good land on the other side of the Jordan, that good hill country, and the Lebanon.”

Your greatness - this is HaEl HaGadol. And Your strong hand - This is You are mighty. That no god in heaven - that corresponds to You are Holy. Let me please cross over - a person should not ask for her/his [personal] needs in the first three [blessings of the Amidah]

Lord YHVH. These two names direct the world. The name HaVaYaH makes all things exist that is, the laws of nature. And the name Lord loosens up nature as a master who does whatever he wishes with what is his, as we explained in the Book of Shemot in a few places. And Moses requested to be able to enter in the land of Israel through whichever way [lit. characteristic] possible. If he didn't merit that this would come about through the aspect of tiferet [balance], as the right [ways] of Moshe in the desert, through the laws of nature, as was the case in the fortieth year as it is written in Parashat Chukat, that then [things] began to slowly change. And this is the unique quality of Tefilah, that makes remember the specific name for the thing we are requesting, as found in the midrash on Psalms, on the verse "because he knows My name" (91)

And so in the Tefilah we say "You are eternally mighty, Lord, you are reviving the dead - and regarding the revival of the dead it says "You revive the dead in great mercy" and see and understand this: Avraham established the Morning Prayer to raise those who did not go to the Impurity, and that is 'to the place where he stood'. Yitzchak calmed himself down and prayed the Afternoon Prayer and brought close even those dead that sleep under the filth. And just as the sacrifices atone for many types of sins and wrongdoings, large and small, the Holy One of Blessing said: 'justas My aspect works with the sacrifices, so too work you too with your mouths to raise up the fallen, as the sacrifices. And this is "God od Avraham" - Chesed/lovingkindness; "God of Yitzchak" - Pachad/Fear; "God of Yaakov" - Tiferet/Beauty/Balance,and Elohay could have a vav to include in it Yesod, and after that each one will be one with His Name and says "the great God, mighty and awesome": "the great God", lovingkindness is called Gedulah/greatness; "the mighty" is fear, that is called Gevurah/Might; "and the awesome" is Tiferet/balance...

And after in the Left Side [Sulam: that is Judgment], in the mystery of "You are Mighty". And what is the connection between "You" and "Mighty"? They are two judgements! But since we continue with blessings we combine/join them in Lovingkindness, and they are found in that side all as one, and this is "giving life to the dead, supporting the fallen and healing the sick, etc. [Sulam: they are all lovingkindness]

On lion and cobra you will walk. All the 12 months that Noach was in the ark he walked over snakes and they didn't hurt him, and this is 'on lion and cobra you will walk'. Because he desired Me. Rabi Yehoshua ben Levi said, in the name of Rabi Pinchas ben Yair: why does Israel pray in this world and are not answered? Because they do not know the Hidden Name. But in the future to come the Holy One will inform them, as it is said 'therefore My people will know My name' (Isaiah 52:6). At the moment they pray, at that very moment they will be answered, as it is said 'when he call me I answer him.' Said Rabi Yitzchak in the name of Rabbi Acha: if they ask for Me in the moment when trouble comes to them I answer them, as it is said 'when he call me I answer him.' Said Asaf to Israel: whoever that saves you, honor him with Tefilah; and He brings you out of trouble and He gives you honor - that is 'I will save him and give him honor'. 'I will satisfy him with long life [and I will show him My salvation] - this is one of the hard verses, that the salvation of Israel is the salvation of the Holy One of Blessing.

(23) They came to Marah, but they could not drink the water of Marah because it was bitter; that is why it was named Marah. (24) And the people grumbled against Moses, saying, “What shall we drink?” (25) So he cried out to the LORD, and the LORD showed him a piece of wood; he threw it into the water and the water became sweet. There He made for them a fixed rule, and there He put them to the test. (26) He said, “If you will heed the LORD your God diligently, doing what is upright in His sight, giving ear to His commandments and keeping all His laws, then I will not bring upon you any of the diseases that I brought upon the Egyptians, for I the LORD am your healer.”

Our Rabbis have taught : Who enters a bath-house says, "May it be Thy will, O Lord my God, to deliver me from this and anything similar, and may no disgrace or iniquity befall me; but should any disgrace or iniquity befall me, may my death be an atonement for all my sins." Abbai said : Let not a man speak thus, so as not to open his mouth to Satan. For said R. Simeon b. Lakish, and it has been similarly taught in the name of R. Jose : A man should never open his mouth to Satan. Rab Joseph said: What is the Scriptural authority? For it is written, "We should have been as Sodom, we should have been like unto Gomorrah" (Is, i. 9). What did the prophet answer them? "Hear the word of the Lord, ye rulers of Sodom" (ibid. v. 10). When he leaves [the bathhouse], what does he say? R. Aha said : "I give thanks before Thee, O Lord my God, because Thou hast delivered me from the fire." R. Abbahu entered a bath-house, and its floor gave way beneath him. A miracle occurred, and he stood upon a pillar and rescued a hundred and one men with one arm. He exclaimed, "This is what R. Aha meant." [As R. Aha said:] Who goes in to have himself cupped should say, "May it be Thy will, O Lord my God, that this operation be a cure for me, and do Thou heal me for Thou art a faithful Healer and Thy cure is certain, since it is not the way of human beings to cure, but thus are they accustomed." Abbai declared : Let not a man speak thus ; for there is a teaching of the school of R. Ishmael : [It is written,] "Only he shall pay for the loss of his time, and shall cause him to be thoroughly healed" (Exod. xxi. 19) ; from this [it follows] that a physician is given permission [by God] to cure. When he rises [from the cupping], what does he say? R. Aha declared, "Blessed be He Who heals without pay."

Se'orim, Raba's brother, while sitting at Raba's bedside saw him [Raba] going into sleep [dying],when he [the invalid] said

'But the dead know not anything' — this refers to the wicked who are called dead in their life-time; as it is said, 'And thou, O wicked one, thou art slain, the prince of Israel' (Ezek. xxi. 30)." Or if thou wilt, derive it from the following : "At the mouth of two witnesses, or three witnesses, shall the dead be put to death" (Deut. xvii. 6). But he is alive ! Nay, he is accounted as dead from the beginning. The sons of R. Hiyya went out on to the land; their studies had been difficult for them, and they had had considerable trouble to remember them. One said to the other, "Does our father know of this trouble?" The other replied, "How should he know ? Lo, it is written, 'His sons come to honour him, and he knoweth it not' (Job xiv. 21)!" The first said to him, "But does he not know ; for behold it is written, 'But his flesh grieveth for him, and his soul mourneth over him' (ibid. v. 22)? And R. Isaac has said : The worm is as painful to the flesh of the dead as a needle in the flesh of the living !" Some answer : The dead know of their own troubles, but not of the troubles of others. Do they not [know of the troubles of others]? Lo, there is a teaching : It once happened that a pious man gave a denarius to a beggar on the New Year's eve in a time of drought. His wife upbraided him ; so he went and spent the night in the cemetery. He heard two spirits conversing. One said to the other, "Come, friend, let us wander in the world and hear behind the curtain what visitation is to come upon the world." The other spirit replied, "I cannot, because I am buried in a matting of reeds; but go thou and report to me what thou hearest." She went, and having wandered about returned. The other asked, "What didst thou hear, friend, behind the curtain ?" She replied, "I heard that if one sows in the first rainfall, the hail will smite it." This man thereupon went and sowed in the second rainfall. [The hail] destroyed everybody's crops but not his. The following year, he again spent the [New Year's] night in the cemetery, and heard the same two spirits conversing. One said to the other, "Come, let us wander in the world and hear behind the curtain what visitation is to come upon the world." The other spirit replied, "Have I not told thee, friend, that I cannot, because I am buried in a matting of reeds? But go thou and come and tell me what thou hearest." She went, and wandered about and returned. The other spirit asked, "What didst thou hear behind the curtain ?" She replied, "I heard that if one sows in the second rainfall, it will be smitten by the blast." This man went and sowed in the first rainfall. What everybody else sowed was smitten by the blast, but not his. His wife asked him, "How is it that last year everybody's crop was destroyed by hail, but not thine ; and this year everybody's crop was blasted except thine ?" He told her the whole story. It is related that very soon afterwards a quarrel broke out between the wife of that pious man and the mother of the girl. The former said to the other, "Come, I will show thee that thy daughter is buried in reed-matting." The following year the same man went and spent the [New Year's] night in the cemetery, and he heard those spirits conversing. One said, "Come, friend, let us wander in the world and hear behind the curtain what visitation is to befall the world." The other replied, "Leave me alone, friend ; what has passed between me and thee has been overheard by the living." Infer from this that the dead do know ! [No ;] it is possible that Dumah went and informed them. Come and hear : Ze'iri left a sum of money in charge of his landlady. During the time he went to the school of his master and returned, she died. He followed her to the court of death and asked her, "Where is the money?" She replied, "Go and take it from beneath the door-socket in such and such a place ; and tell my mother to send me my comb and tube of eye-paint through so-and-so who will arrive here to-morrow," Conclude from this that the dead do know ! [No;] perhaps Dumah informed [the dead] beforehand. Come and hear : The father of Samuel was entrusted with some money belonging to orphans. At the time that he passed away, Samuel was not with him. People afterwards called him, "Son of the consumer of the orphans' money." He went after his father to the court of death and said to them, "I want Abba." They replied, "There are many of that name here." not translated. [He said to them] "I want Abba b. Abba." They answered, "There are also many of that name here." He said to them, "I want Abba b. Abba, the father of Samuel ; where is he?" They answered, "He has gone up to the heavenly seminary." In the meantime he noticed Levi who was seated apart. He asked him, "Why sittest thou apart? Why hast thou not gone up [to the heavenly seminary]?" He replied, "I was told, 'The number of years thou didst not attend the seminary of R. Aphes and didst grieve him on that account, we will not permit thee to ascend to the heavenly seminary'." In the meantime his father arrived ; and Samuel noticed that he wept and laughed. He said to him, " Why weepest thou?" He answered, "Because thou wilt soon come here." "And why dost thou laugh?" "Because thou art very highly thought of in this world." Samuel said to him, "If I am so esteemed, let them allow Levi to enter" ; and they permitted him to enter. He asked him, "Where is the orphans' money ?" He answered, "Go, take it from the enclosure of the mill. The upper and lower sums of money belong to us, the middle sum belongs to the orphans." He asked his father, "Why didst thou act in this manner?" He replied, "Should thieves come to steal, they would steal ours ; should the earth destroy, it would destroy ours." Conclude from this that the dead do know! [No ;] perhaps it was different with Samuel ; being a man so highly esteemed, it may have been announced in advance "Make way for him." R. Jonathan likewise retracted; for R. Samuel b. Nahmani said in the name of R. Jonathan : Whence do we learn that the dead converse one with the other? As it is said, "And the Lord said unto him, This is the land which I swore unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, saying" (Deut. xxxiv. 4). What means "saying"? The Holy One, blessed be He, spake to Moses, "Go, tell Abraham, Isaac and Jacob, The oath which I swore unto you have I fulfilled for your children."