Berakhot 6b — the Talmud in English

And all of them are written on its arm,

and all these verses are written in one compartment in the hand tefillin.

Furthermore,

Ravin bar Rav Adda said in the name of Rav Yitzhak: Whoever is accustomed to come to the synagogue

every day,

and did not come one day, the Holy One, blessed be He, inquires about him

asking about him why he did not come.

As it is stated [

Isaiah 50:10 ]:

“Who among you fears the Lord, obeys the voice of His servant, who walks in darkness and has no brightness

let him trust in the name of the Lord and rely upon his God.” And this verse is expounded as follows: “Who among you fears the Lord”—the Lord asks: Where is that one who fears the Lord, who was accustomed to rise early to the synagogue for prayer, and now did not come, but went on a dark road, meaning, to an optional matter; therefore, “he has no brightness,” the day will not shine for him. And the matter depends on why he refrained from coming, as it continues to explain. “

And if

he did not rise early to the synagogue because he

went

for a mitzva matter,

then

there is brightness for him. And if he went for an optional matter, there is no brightness for him.”

And the verse concludes,

“Let him trust in the name of the Lord,”

that is,

what is the reason,

what is the reason that one who goes for an optional matter has no brightness? —

Because he ought to have trusted in the name of the Lord

that He would give him his livelihood even if he rose early to the synagogue,

but he did not trust.

Rabbi Yohanan said: When the Holy One, blessed be He, comes to the synagogue and does not find ten there,

but fewer,

immediately He becomes angry. As it is stated [

there 50:2 ]:

“Why did I come and there was no man; I called and there was no one to answer?”

Rav Helbo said in the name of Rav Huna.

Whoever establishes

a place for his prayer,

that he always prays in the same place,

the God of Abraham

who established a place for his prayer will be

his help

just as He helped Abraham our father,

And when

the one who establishes a place for his prayer

dies, they say to him [

about him ]

alas,

woe for the

pious man

who has been lost,

alas,

woe for the

humble man

who has been lost,

of the disciples of Abraham our father,

for he followed his ways.

The Gemara asks:

And Abraham our father, from where do we know [

from where do we know ]

that he established a place

for his prayer?

The Gemara answers:

For it is written [

Genesis 19:27 ]:

“And Abraham rose early in the morning to the place where he had stood,”

that is, he had already stood there previously;

and

the intention

of standing is only

in

prayer, for

behold, it is

stated [

Psalms 106:30 ]:

“And Phinehas stood up and prayed.”

And

further

Rabbi Helbo said in the name of Rav Huna: One who leaves the synagogue should not take a broad stride

because he thereby shows that sitting in the synagogue was a burden for him.

Abaye said: We said this

this prohibition is

only upon leaving,

only when he leaves the synagogue;

but

upon entering,

when he walks to the synagogue,

it is a mitzva to run,

it is a mitzva to hurry,

as it is stated [

Hosea 6:3 ]:

“Let us pursue knowledge of the Lord,”

and pursuit is an expression of running.

Rabbi Zeira said: At first, when I would see the Sages

at first, when I would see the Torah scholars

running to the lecture on Shabbat,

running on Shabbat to hear the lecture,

I would say: The Sages are desecrating Shabbat,

I would say that they were desecrating Shabbat, for taking a broad stride on Shabbat is prohibited.

Once I heard this that

Rabbi

Nahum said in the name of Rabbi Joshua ben Levi: A person should always run

for a matter of halakha

even on Shabbat, as it is stated [

Joshua 11:10 ]:

“After the Lord they shall go; like a lion He shall roar,”

I too began to run,

I too began to run.

Rabbi Zeira said: The reward for the lecture is the running,

the principal receipt of reward by those who run to hear a lecture from the Sage is for the running.

Abaye said: The reward for the kallah,

the reward of those who come to hear the lecture on the laws of the festival on the preceding Shabbat,

is the pressing,

it is for the pressing that is there.

Rava said: The reward of a halakhic teaching is reasoning,

the reward of one who engages in a matter of halakha is the exertion and labor to understand the reasoning of the matter.

Rav Pappa said: The reward of the house of mourning,

the reward of those who go to the house of the mourner is

silence,

for their silence.

Mar Zutra said: The reward of a fast,

the reward for the fast is

charity,

for the charity that they give to provide for the poor who fasted on that day.

Rav Sheshet said: The reward of a eulogy,

the reward of those eulogizing the dead is

raising the voice,

for raising the voice in an expression of sorrow and distress, so that the listeners will weep.

Rav Ashi said: The reward of the house of celebration,

the reward received by one who participates in a wedding is

words

for making the groom happy with words.

Rav Huna

said: Anyone who prays behind a synagogue

appears like one who denies the One to whom the congregation prays, and therefore

is called wicked.

As it is stated

[Psalms 12:9]:

“The wicked walk around.” “Around”

[that is, outside the synagogue]; the wicked walk.

Abaye said: We said this,

we did not say that he is called wicked

except when he does not turn his face toward the synagogue,

only if he does not turn his face toward the synagogue;

but if he turns his face toward the synagogue, there is nothing to it.

If he turns his face toward the synagogue, he is not called wicked.

There was a certain man who was praying behind a synagogue,

an incident involving a man who prayed behind a synagogue

and did not turn his face toward the synagogue,

and did not turn his face during the prayer toward the synagogue.

Elijah passed by and saw him,

Elijah the prophet passed there and saw him,

he appeared to him as an Arab merchant,

he appeared before him as an Arab merchant,

he said to him

Elijah:

“Are you standing thus before your Master,

you are standing before your Master as though there are two authorities, for you are praying outside in a direction different from those praying inside the synagogue.

He drew a sword and killed him,

Elijah drew a sword and killed him.

A certain one of the Sages said

[one of the Sages]

to Rav Bibi bar Abaye, and some say

and some say that

Rav Bibi

said this

to Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak:

the verse that was mentioned, “The wicked walk around,” concludes, “When vileness is exalted among the sons of men”;

what is the meaning of “When vileness is exalted among the sons of men”?

He said to him: “These are matters that stand at the height of the world,

like prayer, which rises upward,

and people treat them lightly.”

The Gemara brings another explanation:

Rabbi Yohanan and Rabbi Elazar both said

[they both said]:

Once a person requires the

help of

creatures,

for example, when he borrowed money from them, they treat him lightly until

his face changes like a kerom.

As it is stated, “When vileness is exalted among the sons of men.” What is

[what is]

“a kerom”?

When Rav Dimi came, he said: There is one bird in the cities of the sea, and kerom is its name, and when the sun rises its color changes

its color

its color into several hues.

So the face of one who requires the help of creatures changes, because they treat him lightly.

Rav Ami and Rav Asi both said,

they both said that one who requires the help of creatures is

as though he is judged by two judgments: fire and water!

As it is stated

[Psalms 66:12]:

“You set a man over our heads; we came through fire and water,”

if you set a creditor over us, who lent us money and demands it back, it is as though we came through fire and water.

And

further

Rabbi Helbo said in the name of Rav Huna: A person should always be careful with the afternoon prayer

to pray at the beginning of its time,

for Elijah was answered only through the afternoon prayer,

as it is stated

[I Kings 18:36]:

“And it came to pass at the time of the afternoon offering that Elijah the prophet drew near and said, etc., ‘Answer me, O Lord, answer me.’”

And he said “Answer me” twice because he intended to request two things:

“Answer me, that fire may descend from heaven; and answer me, that they should not say it is an act of sorcery.”

Thus, Elijah prayed “at the time of the afternoon offering,” implying immediately at the beginning of its time.

Rabbi Yohanan said: Also with the evening prayer

one must be careful to pray at the beginning of its time ,

as it is stated

[Psalms 141:2]:

“Let my prayer be established as incense before You, the lifting of my hands as the evening offering.” “The evening offering” is the evening prayer, and it teaches that it should be adjacent to the incense of twilight.

“The evening offering” refers to the evening prayer, and this teaches that it should be adjacent to the afternoon incense.

Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said: Also the morning prayer

one must be careful to pray early,

as it is stated

[Psalms 5:4]:

“O Lord, in the morning You shall hear my voice; in the morning I shall arrange it for You and I shall wait.”

And the repetition of the word “morning” teaches that it must be prayed early.

And

further

Rabbi Helbo said in the name of Rav Huna: Anyone

who benefits from a groom’s banquet and does not make him happy, transgresses

[treats lightly]

five “voices”

with which the Holy One, blessed be He, blessed Israel.

As it is stated

in Jeremiah [33:10], where he said in the name of the Lord, there will yet be heard in Judah and Jerusalem,

“The voice of joy and the voice of gladness,

the voice of the groom and the voice of the bride, the voice of those saying, ‘Give thanks to the Lord of Hosts.’”

And if he makes him happy

the groom,

what is his reward?

Rabbi Joshua ben Levi said: He merits the Torah that was given with five voices. As it is stated

in the section of the giving of the Torah [Exodus 19:16], five “voices”:

“And it came to pass on the third day, when it was morning, that there were voices and lightning and a thick cloud upon the mountain

[the minimum of “voices” is two],

and the voice of the shofar,” etc.

[And there, 19:]

“And the voice of the shofar

grew stronger and stronger; Moses spoke,

and God answered him with a voice.”

The Gemara asks:

Certainly not!

For the Torah was given with more than five voices,

but it is written

later in the section [there, 20:15]:

“And all the people saw the voices,”

implying that additional voices were there.

The Gemara answers:

Those “voices”

mentioned in this verse are those same voices

that existed before the giving of the Torah.

That is, they are the voices that had already been mentioned in the preceding verses, such as “the voice of the shofar.”

Rabbi Abbahu said:

one who gladdens the groom

is as though he had offered

an offering

of thanksgiving,

as it is stated at the conclusion of the verse of the five voices: “A voice saying, Give thanks to the Lord ...

bringing a thanksgiving offering to the House of the Lord.”

Rabbi Nahman bar Yitzhak said:

one who gladdens the groom

is as though he had built one of the ruins of Jerusalem, as it is stated

at the conclusion of the verse of the five voices that was mentioned:

“For I will restore the captivity of the land as at the beginning, said the Lord.”

And

further

Rabbi Helbo said that Rav Huna said: Every person

who possesses fear of Heaven, his words are heard,

accepted,

as it is stated

Ecclesiastes 12:13]

“The end of the matter, everything is heard: Fear God, and observe His commandments, for this is the whole of man.”

And it was expounded thus: At the end of his words, everything is heard. And by whom? By one who fears God!

What

is the meaning of the conclusion of the verse,

“for this is the whole of man”?

Rabbi Elazar said: The Almighty said: The entire world was created only so that

this one who

is

fearful of Heaven would be created.

Rabbi Abba bar Kahana said: This person is equivalent to the entire world.

Rabbi Shimon ben Azzai says, and some say [

there are those who say]

Rabbi Shimon ben Zoma says: The entire world was created only to accompany this one,

to be of assistance to the one who fears Heaven.

And

further

Rabbi Helbo said that Rav Huna said: Whoever knows about his fellow that he is accustomed to give him a greeting

should precede him,

should take care to precede him with the greeting of

peace, as it is stated [

Psalms 34:15]:

“Seek peace and pursue it.”

And if he greeted him

with peace

and he did not return it,

and did not greet him in return,

he is called a robber. As it is stated [

Isaiah 3:14]

“And you have consumed the vineyard; the plunder of the poor is in your houses.”

But is not even the plunder of a rich person plunder? Rather, the intention is plunder from a poor person, from whom there is nothing to plunder except failing to return his greeting.