Berakhot 10a (י.) — the Talmud in English

Every passage that was beloved by David, he opened with “Happy” and concluded with “Happy”

—not specifically with the word “Happy,” but rather he concluded the chapter with a verse reflecting its opening.

He opened with “Happy,” as it is written

Psalms 1:1

“Happy is the man.” And he concluded with “Happy,” as it is written

Psalms 2:12

“Happy are all who take refuge in Him.”

Thus, the first two chapters are in fact one chapter.

There were these hooligans,

violent men,

who were in the neighborhood

of

Rabbi Meir, and they would

torment him greatly. Rabbi Meir would pray for mercy concerning them, so that they would die.

The death of the wicked of Israel is beneficial for them, so that they will not become entrenched in sin; moreover, their death is their atonement, and they will not receive their reward in this world, so that they may receive it in the World to Come.

Beruriah, his wife, said to him

—Rabbi Meir’s wife:

What is your reasoning

in praying that they die?

Is it because it is written

Psalms 104:35

“May sinners be eradicated”,

and you interpret the intention of the verse as referring to the sinful men dying?

But in truth, that is not the intention! For

is it written, “May

[men

who sin]] be eradicated”?

It is written, “May

sins be eradicated”!

The intention is that sinful deeds should no longer be committed.

Furthermore

Beruriah, his wife, argued to him:

“Go down”

—continue further—and see

the end of the verse.

Its conclusion is

“And the wicked shall be no more,”

and surely, if the sinful men were to die, there would be no more wicked people. Necessarily, then, the intention of the verse is that when sinful deeds cease, those same people will no longer be in the category of the wicked.

Rather, seek

request

mercy concerning them, that they return

that they should return

in repentance,

and consequently—

“And the wicked shall be no more!”

Rabbi Meir sought

Rabbi Meir

mercy concerning them,

and they repented.

A certain Sadducee said to Beruriah: It is written

Isaiah 54:1, concerning Jerusalem during its desolation:

“Sing, barren one who has not given birth,

but

because she has not given birth

does the verse tell her

“Sing”?!

She said to him: Fool! Go down to the end of the verse, as it is written

at its end:

“For the children of the desolate woman are more numerous than the children of the married woman,

Edom,

says the Lord,”

which proves that the “barren woman” is a mother of children.

Rather, what is the meaning of “barren, who has not given birth”?

Sing, Congregation of Israel, which resembles a barren woman who has not given birth to wicked children

whose fate is

Gehinnom, like you

—like you, children of Edom.

A certain Sadducee said to Rabbi Abbahu: It is written

Psalms 3:1

“A psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son.” And it is written

later, there, 57:1:

“For David, a mikhtam, when he fled from Saul in the cave.”

Which event occurred first

first?

Since,

surely,

the event involving Saul occurred first,

and if so,

let him write

the psalm about fleeing from Saul

first?!

Rabbi Abbahu said to him

Rabbi Abbahu:

You

—you Sadducees—

who do not expound the juxtaposition of passages,

who do not expound the juxtaposition of chapters,

have a difficulty.

But

we, who expound juxtapositions, have no difficulty.

For Rabbi Yoḥanan said

the method by which the Sages derive from verses the

“juxtaposition”

of one to another:

From where is it derived from the Torah?

As it is stated

Psalms 111:8:

“They are juxtaposed forever and ever, made in truth and uprightness.”

That is, the juxtaposition of all the commandments of the Holy One, blessed be He, is made in truth and uprightness, and is not meaningless.

Why was the passage of Absalom

mentioned in Psalms (3:1)

juxtaposed to the passage of Gog and Magog

mentioned in the preceding psalm (2:1), in the verse “Why do the nations rage”? It was so

that if a person says to you: Is there really a servant who rebels against his master?!

and comes to deny the statement of the verse that says (there, verse 2), “And rulers conspired together against the Lord and against His anointed.”

You should likewise say to him: Is there really a son who rebels against his father?! Rather,

the fact is that such a thing

did occur—

here too, it will occur,

it will eventually come to pass, despite this not being the way of the world. If so, it is likewise possible that Gog will rebel against the Holy One, blessed be He.

Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai: What is the meaning of that which is written

Proverbs 31:26:

“She opens her mouth with wisdom, and the teaching of kindness is on her tongue.” In reference to whom did Solomon say this verse?

For the entire chapter concerns Torah, and if this verse too discusses the excellence of Torah, what is the significance of saying, “She opens her mouth with wisdom”? Is not the entire Torah filled with words of wisdom?

They said

this verse of Solomon

only in reference to David his father, who dwelled in five worlds,

as explained below,

and sang a song

in reference to all of them, when the Divine Spirit rested upon him.

These are the “five worlds” in which he dwelled, and the songs that he recited corresponding to them:

A.

He dwelled in his mother’s womb and sang a song, as it is stated

Psalms 103:1:

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all my innermost parts, the Name of His holiness,”

referring to his mother’s innermost parts, within which he dwelled.

B.

He emerged into the air of the world,

and gazed at the stars and constellations,

and understood that the stars and constellations have no power either to bring down abundance or to prevent it; their sole function is to do the will of their Creator.

And he recited

concerning this

a song. As it is stated

Psalms 103:20–21:

“Bless the Lord, His angels, mighty in strength, who do His word, obeying His word; bless the Lord, all His hosts.”

C.

He nursed at his mother’s breasts, gazed at her breasts, and sang a song, as it is stated

Psalms 103:2:

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and do not forget all His benefits.”

The Gemara clarifies:

What is the meaning of “all His benefits”?

The Gemara explains:

Rabbi Abbahu said: That He made breasts for her in the place of understanding.

All her benefits and her nursing are a kindness of God: He made breasts for a human being in the place of understanding, that is, opposite the heart, in which understanding resides.

The Gemara asks:

What is the reason

that He made them specifically in the place of understanding, and not as with other living creatures?

The Gemara explains:

Rav Yehuda said: So that he would not gaze

while the infant was nursing

at the place of nakedness.

Rav Mattana said: So that he would not nurse from the place of filth.

D.

He saw the downfall of the wicked and sang a song. As it is stated

Psalms 104:35:

“May sinners be eradicated from the earth, and the wicked be no more; bless the Lord, O my soul, Hallelujah,”

and this is a kindness of God, for we learned: “The death of the wicked is good for them and good for the world.”

E.

He contemplated the day of death and sang a song. As it is stated

Psalms 104:1:

“Bless the Lord, O my soul; Lord my God, You are greatly exalted; You have donned glory and majesty”.

The Gemara clarifies:

What indicates

that this verse was said concerning the day of death?

The Gemara explains:

Rabba bar Rav Shila said: From the end of the passage, as it is written

Psalms 104:29:

“You hide Your face, they are terrified; You gather their spirit, they perish.”

Rav Shimi bar Ukva—and some say Mar Ukva—would frequently sit before Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi, and Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi would

Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi

arrange aggadic material before Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi.

He said to him

Rav Shimi bar Ukva [or Mar Ukva] said to Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi:

What

is the explanation of that

which is written

Psalms 103:1:

“Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all my innermost parts, the Name of His holiness”?

Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi understood that he was asking why the soul and the innermost parts praise God more than all the other limbs, and therefore

he said to him

to Rav Shimi bar Ukva:

Come and see how the attribute of the Holy One, blessed be He, differs from the attribute of flesh and blood. In the case of flesh and blood, a person draws a form on a wall, but he cannot place within it a spirit, a soul, innermost parts, and intestines, whereas

if

the Holy One, blessed be He, is not so. He draws a form within a form and places within it a spirit, a soul, innermost parts, and intestines.

That is, the soul and the innermost parts are distinctive in that they are a “form within a form”: they are inside the person and are not visible from outside.

And this is what Hannah said

the mother of Samuel (I Samuel 2:2):

“There is none holy like the Lord, for there is none besides You, and there is no rock like our God.”

The Gemara explains:

What is the meaning of “there is no rock like our God”?

The ordinary meaning of “rock” is an expression of strength. Surely, however, she did not mean that there is another strong rock that is not as strong as our God, since there is no basis whatsoever for comparing them. Rather, her intention was to say:

There is no artist like our God!

For although there are human artists, none is like our God.

The Gemara clarifies:

What is the meaning of “for there is none besides You”?

For the verse has already said, “There is none holy like the Lord.”

Rabbi Yehuda ben Menasya said: Do not read, “For there is none besides You,” but rather, “There is none who can wear You out.” The attribute of the Holy One, blessed be He, differs from the attribute of flesh and blood: In the case of flesh and blood, his creations wear him out,

they live longer than their creators,

whereas

if

the Holy One, blessed be He, wears out His creations,

for He lives and endures forever.

He said to him

Rabbi Shimi bar Ukva said to Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi:

This is what I meant to say to you: These five instances of “Bless the Lord, O my soul”

mentioned above,

in reference to whom did David say them?

Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi explained to him:

He said them only in reference to the Holy One, blessed be He, and in reference to

the

soul.

There is an analogy between the manner in which the soul gives life to a person and the manner in which the Holy One, blessed be He, gives life to the world.

Just as the Holy One, blessed be He, fills the entire world—

so does the soul fill the entire body,

and concerning this it says (there, verse 22), “Bless the Lord, all His works, in all the places of His dominion.”

What the Holy One, blessed be He, sees but is not seen -

so too the soul sees but is not seen,

and concerning this he said [Psalms 103:1], “Bless the Lord, O my soul, and all that is within me, bless His holy Name,” for the soul is in his “innermost parts” and is not seen.

What the Holy One, blessed be He, sustains the entire world -

so too the soul sustains the entire body,

and a hint of this is found in the verse [Psalms 103:2–5]: “And forget not all His benefits, Who satisfies your adornment with goodness.”

What the Holy One, blessed be He, is pure -

so too the soul

enters a person's body

pure,

and concerning this David said [Psalms 104:35]: “May sinners disappear from the earth, and may the wicked be no more; bless the Lord, O my soul.” His intention was to give thanks to the Lord for having distinguished his soul from the souls of the wicked, which had become impure.

What the Holy One, blessed be He, dwells in the innermost chambers -

so too the soul dwells in the innermost chambers,

and this is alluded to in the verse [Psalms 104:1–2]: “You have clothed Yourself with majesty and splendor, wrapped Yourself in light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a curtain,” which are appellations for the hidden aspects of God.

Let one who possesses these five things

the soul,

praise the

Holy One, blessed be He, who is

the One who possesses

these five things.

Rav Hamnuna said:

What is the meaning of that which is written [

Ecclesiastes 8:1]

“Who is like the wise man, and who knows the interpretation of a matter?” -

Who is like the Holy One, blessed be He, who knows how to make a compromise between two righteous men -

between Hezekiah and Isaiah,

Hezekiah said: Let Isaiah come to me,

so that he may rebuke me for not having taken a wife. For one must not slight the honor of royalty,

for thus we find -

for so we find

in the case of Elijah, who went to Ahab.

Isaiah said: Let Hezekiah come to me!

to ask whether he was acting properly by not taking a wife; and I will not slight the honor of prophecy,

for thus we find in the case of Jehoram son of Ahab

king of Israel,

who went to Elisha

the prophet.

What did the Holy One, blessed be He, do -

He brought suffering upon Hezekiah

because he was liable to death at the hands of Heaven for not engaging in procreation,

and He said to Isaiah: Go and visit the sick! As it is stated [

II Kings 20:1; Isaiah 38:1]

“In those days Hezekiah became mortally ill, and Isaiah son of Amoz the prophet came to him.”

And since he had the mitzva of visiting the sick, this was not a slight to the honor of prophecy, for the prophet too is obligated in the mitzva of visiting the sick.

And he said to him

Isaiah to Hezekiah:

“So said the Lord: Set your house in order, for you shall die and shall not live.”

The Gemara clarifies:

What is the meaning,

why did the verse need to repeat itself and say,

“For you shall die, and shall not live”?

Is it not obvious that if he dies he will not live again?!

The Gemara explains:

“You shall die” -

in this world. “And shall not live” -

in the World-to-Come.

He said to him

Hezekiah:

“Why all this?”

What have I done that such a severe punishment was decreed upon me?

He said to him: Because you did not engage in procreation!

For Hezekiah had not taken a wife.

He said to him

Hezekiah: I had a good reason for not taking a wife,

because I saw through ruaḥ ha-kodesh that unworthy sons would issue from me -

that descendants who were not proper would come from me.

He said to him

Isaiah:

“Why do you concern yourself with the hidden matters of the Merciful One?”

What have you to do with the hidden matters of the Holy One, blessed be He?

“What you have been commanded” -

you must do!

What you were commanded, you are obligated to fulfill.

“And what is pleasing before the Holy One, blessed be He” -

let Him do!

He said to him

Hezekiah:

“Now give me your daughter,

give me your daughter as a wife, because

perhaps my merit and yours will cause

that our combined merits will result in

worthy sons issuing from me.”

He said to him

Isaiah:

“A decree has already been issued against you”

that you will die, so what benefit will it bring you if I give you my daughter as a wife?

He said to him: Son of Amoz, bring your prophecy to an end -

and leave !

For

this is what I have received from the house of my grandfather,

King David, who saw the angel with his sword drawn in his hand and did not hold himself back from seeking mercy -

even when a sharp sword is placed upon a person's neck,

he should not hold himself back from seeking mercy.

It was also stated: Rabbi Yohanan and Rabbi Elazar both said: Even when a sharp sword is placed upon a person's neck -

he should not hold himself back from

asking

for mercy. As it is stated [

Job 13:15]

“Though He slay me,

even when the Holy One, blessed be He, wishes to kill me -

in Him I will hope!”