(יב) וַיְהִ֥י דְבַר־יְהוָ֖ה אֵלַ֥י לֵאמֹֽר׃
(יג) בֶּן־אָדָ֗ם אֶ֚רֶץ כִּ֤י תֶחֱטָא־לִי֙ לִמְעָל־מַ֔עַל וְנָטִ֤יתִי יָדִי֙ עָלֶ֔יהָ וְשָׁבַ֥רְתִּי לָ֖הּ מַטֵּה־לָ֑חֶם וְהִשְׁלַחְתִּי־בָ֣הּ רָעָ֔ב וְהִכְרַתִּ֥י מִמֶּ֖נָּה אָדָ֥ם וּבְהֵמָֽה׃
(יד) וְ֠הָיוּ שְׁלֹ֨שֶׁת הָאֲנָשִׁ֤ים הָאֵ֙לֶּה֙ בְּתוֹכָ֔הּ נֹ֖חַ דנאל [דָּנִיֵּ֣אל] וְאִיּ֑וֹב הֵ֤מָּה בְצִדְקָתָם֙ יְנַצְּל֣וּ נַפְשָׁ֔ם נְאֻ֖ם אֲדֹנָ֥י יְהוִֽה׃
(12) The word of the L-RD came to me:
(13) O son of man, if a land were to sin against Me, acting with treachery, and I stretch My hand against it and break its staff of bread, and send famine against it and cut off man and beast from it,
(14) even if these three men—Noah, Daniel, and Job—should be in it, their tzedek would only save themselves—declares the L-RD G-d.
Discussion Questions:
(1) Who are Noah, Daniel, and Job and what is their significance to the two passages? (Hint: If you're not sure, look up the books of Daniel and Job in the Tanakh.)
(2) How does Abraham disagree with Ezekiel? Why?
(3) What is the role of righteous people in our community?
"Amalek" by Adolf Fenyes (public domain)
(17) Remember what Amalek did to you on your journey, after you left Egypt— (18) how, undeterred by fear of G-d, he surprised you on the march, when you were famished and weary, and cut down all the stragglers in your rear. (19) Therefore, when the L-RD your G-d grants you safety from all your enemies around you, in the land that the L-RD your G-d is giving you as a hereditary portion, you shall blot out the memory of Amalek from under heaven. Do not forget!
סדור גניזה
למלשדים אל תהי תקוה ומלכות זדון מהרה תעקר בימינו והנצרים והמינים כרגע יאבדו ימחו מספר החיים ועם צדיקים אל יכתבו. ברוך אתה ה' מכניע זדים.
על גירי הצדק יהמו רחמיך ותן לנו שכר טוב עם עושי רצונך. ברוך אתה ה' מבטח לצדיקים.
Cairo Genizah Prayer Book
May there be no hope for apostates, and may You quickly uproot the insolent reign in our day, and may the Christians and heretics instantly perish. May they be erased from the book of life, and may they not be written with the righteous. Blessed are You, L-RD, who humbles the insolent.
Show compassion to righteous converts, and give us a good reward with those who do Your will. Blessed are You, L-RD, who is the trust of the righteous.
-My People's Prayer Book
Compare the Geniza fragments of the blessing to that included in a modern siddur.
Maimonides, Letter to Ovadiah the Proselyte
Greater is the obligation that the Torah lays down regarding converts than our obligation to [our own] father and mother, for whom [only] respect and honor [are required]... but with converts, we are commanded to love them greatly in our hearts.
Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism, by Howard Schwartz
#578 - The Evil Inclination
The Evil Inclination grows in strength from day to day, and were it not for G-d's help, no one would be able to withstand it. The rabbis said: "If you meet this repulsive wretch, drag him to the House of Study. If he is of stone, he will dissolve; if of iron, he will shiver into fragments."...
The Evil Inclination is one of the four things that G-d repented of having created. The others are Exile, the Chaldeans, and the Ishmaelites.
Tree of Souls: The Mythology of Judaism, by Howard Schwartz
#494 - Pharaoh's Army Lured to its Death
When the Egyptians were drowning in the Red Sea, the angels wished to sing a hymn in praise of G-d, but G-d silenced them, saying: "Do not sing today. How can I listen to singing when the works of My hands are drowning in the sea?"