Chullin 92a (צב.) — the Talmud in English

And we answer:

“Blessed”

is not said by the angels, but

by the Ofanim,

who are from the very Throne of Glory;

it is they who say it to Him, and

when we say that the ministering angels do not mention the Name until after three words, we are speaking of ordinary angels.

And if you wish, say instead: Since permission was granted

to the angels to mention the Name after they had said the three words “Holy,”

permission was granted

to them, once they had mentioned it, from that point onward, to mention it even without the preceding three words.

It is written in the Book of Hosea concerning Jacob’s struggle with the angel:

“And he contended with an angel and prevailed; he wept and entreated him.”

I do not know who became a minister over whom.

Does the meaning entail: “And he contended with an angel”—that Jacob became a minister over the angel, and Jacob prevailed over him?

Or does the meaning entail: “And an angel contended with Jacob”—that the angel became a minister over Jacob, and the angel prevailed over him?

When it says, “For you have striven with God,

and have prevailed,”

you must say: Jacob became a minister over the angel!

And similarly, regarding that which is written,

“He wept and entreated him”: I do not know who wept to whom.

When it says, “And he said: Let me go,” you must say: The angel wept to Jacob!

It is written:

“For you have striven with God and with men.”

Rabba said: The angel hinted to him

to Jacob

that two ministers would descend from him: the Exilarch in Babylonia and the Nasi in Eretz Yisrael!

For the Nasi in Eretz Yisrael is semukh, authorized to adjudicate cases involving monetary penalties, and he is called “God,” as it is stated: “The matter of both of them shall come before God.” And “with men” refers to the Exilarch, who is not semukh.

From here he hinted to him—

exile!

For he mentioned the Exilarch to him.

It is written in the dream of Pharaoh’s cupbearer:

“And in the vine were three branches.” Rabbi Hiyya bar Abba said in the name of Rav: These are three prominent ministers

who are wealthy and close to the royal court,

who emerge from Israel in every generation. [

For the vine alludes to Israel, who are compared to a vine.]

At times two

of them are

here,

in Babylonia,

and one is in Eretz Yisrael. At times two are in Eretz Yisrael and one is here.

The Sages focused their attention on Rav Ukva and Rav Nehemiah, the son of Rav’s daughter,

for they were the two “prominent ministers” in Babylonia.

Rava said:

The three branches—

these are three ministers of the nations,

who are angels

that argue favorably on behalf of Israel in every generation.

It was taught in a beraita: Rabbi Eliezer says:

“The vine”—

this is the world.

“The three branches”—

these are Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

“And it was blossoming; its blossom came out”—

these are the Matriarchs,

for a blossom is not as significant as a branch, which is a sturdy bough.

“Its clusters ripened into grapes”—

these are the Tribes!

Rabbi Yehoshua said

to Rabbi Eliezer:

Can a person be shown

in a dream

what has already happened? Surely a person is shown only what is destined to happen!

But all these events had already occurred.

Rather, “the vine”—

this is Torah.

“The three branches”—

these are Moses, Aaron, and Miriam.

“And it was blossoming; its blossom came out”—

these are the Sanhedrin.

“Its clusters ripened into grapes”—

these are the righteous in every generation,

who are destined to be.

Rabban Gamliel said: We still require the

words of Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i,

who interprets all of it

the verse

in a single place.

For

Rabbi Eliezer HaModa’i says:

“The vine”—

this is Jerusalem.

“The three branches”—

this is the Sanctuary, the king, and the High Priest.

“And it was blossoming; its blossom came out”—

these are the young members of the priesthood who serve in the Sanctuary.

“Its clusters ripened into grapes”—

these are the libations,

as wine is made from grapes.

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi interprets it

the verse

as referring to the gifts

that the Holy One, blessed be He, gave to Israel.

For Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: “The vine”—this is

Torah.

“The three branches”—this is the well, the pillar of cloud, and the manna.

“And it was blossoming; its blossom came out”—

these are the first fruits!

For He gave them a land rich in produce from which first fruits are brought.

“Its clusters ripened into grapes”—

these are the libations,

which are brought from the grapes of Eretz Yisrael.

Rabbi Yirmeya bar Abba said:

“The vine”—

these are Israel, and so it says: “You brought a vine out of Egypt,”

for He brought Israel out of Egypt.

“The three branches”—

these are the three Pilgrimage Festivals, on which Israel goes up each and every year.

“It was blossoming”—

their time had arrived

for Israel to leave Egypt and

to be fruitful and multiply. And so it says: “And the children of Israel were fruitful and swarmed.”

“Its blossom came out”—

the time had arrived for Israel to be redeemed. And so it says,

concerning the calamity that the Holy One, blessed be He, would bring upon Babylonia,

“And I will spatter their blood [

their blood—for blood is a person’s strength and triumph

upon My garments, and I will stain all My clothing,”

which will be stained with blood. Similarly, the meaning of “its blossom came out” is that the time had arrived to sprinkle the blood of Egypt’s triumph.

“Its clusters ripened into grapes”—the time had arrived for Egypt to drink the cup of retribution.

And this is what Rava said: Why are there three cups mentioned in connection with Egypt

in the dream of the cupbearer?

One is the cup that he drank in the days of Moses, and one is the cup that he drank in the days of Pharaoh Neco,

in the time of Nebuchadnezzar.

And one is the cup that Egypt is destined to drink together with all the idolaters

in the future.

Rava bar Abba said to Rabbi Yirmeya bar Abba: When Rav expounded these verses

of the dream of the cupbearer

as aggada, he expounded them in accordance with your interpretation.

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: This nation

Israel

is compared to a vine,

as above, as it is stated: “You brought a vine out of Egypt”:

Its branches—these are the householders.

Just as the branches are the principal part of the vine, so too the householders: Israel endures through them, for they perform acts of kindness, support the poor, and use their wealth to bribe the authorities.

Its clusters—these are the Torah scholars. Its leaves—these are the unlearned.

Just as the leaves protect the clusters so that they will not be harmed by sun and wind, so too the unlearned plow and sow for the needs of Torah scholars.

Its tendrils,

unripened grapes that have no benefit,

these are the worthless people among Israel.

And this is what they sent from there

from Eretz Yisrael:

Let the clusters plead for mercy for the leaves,

the clusters should plead for mercy for the leaves,

for were it not for the leaves, the clusters would not endure.

And so all parts of the Jewish people support the Torah scholars.

It is written:

“And I bought her for fifteen pieces of silver

and a homer of barley and a letekh of barley.”

Rabbi Yohanan said in the name of Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak:

“And I bought her”—

“buying” means nothing other than a sale, as it is stated: “In the grave that I bought for myself,”

for Jacob bought the grave from Esau.

“For fifteen”—this is the fifteenth of Nisan, on which Israel was redeemed from Egypt. “Silver”—these are the righteous, and so it says: “He took the silver purse in his hand,” [

see Rashi] for the Holy One, blessed be He, says that He bought the people of Israel on the fifteenth of Nisan on account of the righteous.

“A homer of barley,”

which is thirty se’a,

“and a letekh of barley,”

which is fifteen se’a—

these are the forty-five righteous people through whose merit the world endures. And I do not know whether thirty are here

in Babylonia

and fifteen in Eretz Yisrael,

or

whether thirty are in Eretz Yisrael and fifteen are here. When it says: “And I took the thirty pieces of silver and cast them into the House of the Lord, to the smith,” you must say: Thirty are in Eretz Yisrael,

where the House of the Lord is,

and fifteen are here.

Abaye said: And most of them

of the righteous in Eretz Yisrael

are found in the synagogue beneath the platform

under the gallery in the synagogue.

And this is what is written: “And I said to them: If it is good in your eyes, give Me My wage; and if not, refrain.”

For the Holy One, blessed be He, said to them: If you sin, return to Me the righteous on whose account you would receive reward.

“And they weighed out My wage, thirty pieces of silver”

The verse teaches that there will always be thirty righteous people among Israel.

Rav Yehuda says: These are the thirty righteous among the nations of the world, through whose merit the nations of the world endure.

Ulla said: These are the thirty mitzvot that the descendants of Noah accepted upon themselves, but they fulfill only three.