Eruvin 19a (יט.) — the Talmud in English

As it is written:

“And I shall make Samaria like a heap in the field”

and

“for planting a vineyard,”

and its neighbors will benefit, and this is praise for it, that it is mentioned favorably.

8. In accordance with the measure:

And Rabbi Yirmeya ben Elazar said: Come and see how unlike the measure of the Holy One, blessed be He, is the measure of flesh and blood!

The measure of flesh and blood is this: If a person is sentenced by the kingdom to execution, they place a gag in his mouth,

a piece of wood that holds his mouth open and causes him to be unable to speak,

so that he will not curse the king.

Because he questions his judgment, thinking that the court did not judge him correctly by sentencing him to death. He is also not afraid to curse the king, since after killing him the king can do nothing further to him — Maharsha. See also Ritva in the name of a midrash.

But

the measure of the Holy One, blessed be He, is this: When a person

is

sentenced to death by the Omnipresent—

he

remains silent!

As it is stated: “To You, silence—

is praise.”

For everyone is silent before You.

Moreover, he even praises

the Holy One, blessed be He, for exacting his punishment from him in this world, thereby granting him merit in the World-to-Come—Maharsha].

As it is stated:

“And to You, silence”

“is praise.”

Moreover, it is considered for him as though he is offering a sacrifice.

For he finds the suffering that comes upon him acceptable and accepts it with love.

As it is stated:

“To You, silence is praise, O God, in Zion,”

“and to You a vow shall be fulfilled,”

referring to offering a sacrifice: That silence in which he remains silent and suffers is considered for him like the fulfillment of a vow.

And

this is what Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “Those who pass through the Valley of Weeping make it a place of springs; even with blessings the early rain covers it”?

“Those who pass through”: These are people who transgress the will of the Holy One, blessed be He.

With regard to

“the valley”: Gehenna is deepened for them.

“The weeping”

“make it a place of springs”:

For they weep and shed tears like the spring of the Shitin,

which was a perforation in the structure of the altar, into which the wine libations poured into the bowls on the altar descended throughout the year.

“Even with blessings the early rain covers it”: They justify the judgment imposed upon them and say before Him: Master of the Universe, You judged well, You acquitted well, You convicted well. And You prepared well: Gehenna for the wicked,

and

the Garden of Eden for the righteous!

And we raise an objection to that which we said, that they justify the judgment imposed upon them:

But didn’t Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish say: The wicked do not repent even at the entrance to Gehenna, as it is stated: “And they shall go forth and look upon the carcasses of the men who rebel against Me,”

for “their worm” [the worm that eats their flesh—Rashi] shall not die, and “their fire” [their fire in Gehenna—Rashi] shall not be extinguished.

And we infer: The phrase “the men who

]]rebelled

against Me,” expressed in the past tense, which would indicate that they rebelled but are no longer rebelling—

was not stated.

Rather, it says: “Those who rebel against Me,”

in the present tense, indicating that they continue to rebel against Him even while subject to “their worm” and “their fire,” teaching us:

They continue rebelling forever [

for even after their death their souls do not care about themselves, because they are headed for destruction—the Ritba].

We see, then, that they do not justify the judgment imposed upon them?!

We answer:

This is not difficult:

This statement

that they justify the judgment imposed upon them—

is referring to Jewish transgressors.

That statement

that they continue rebelling forever—

is referring to gentile transgressors.

And we support this resolution:

It is also logical

that Reish Lakish did not interpret the verse, “And they shall go forth and look upon the men who rebel against Me,” as referring to Jewish transgressors.

For if so,

if this verse, in which it is written, “and their fire shall not be extinguished,” refers to Jewish transgressors,

there would be a difficulty

with

another statement of Reish Lakish,

another teaching of

Reish Lakish:

For

he

said: The fire of Gehenna does not

of

rule over Jewish transgressors

to burn them; it merely blackens their faces [Tosafot]. And we derive this by means of a

kal va-homer from the Golden Altar [

the inner altar]:

Just as the Golden Altar, upon which there was only a layer of gold the thickness of a dinar, stood for many years and the fire did not prevail against it

to diminish its gold, for a miracle occurred with it—Rashi, Hagiga 27a [although Tosafot there explain that the statement refers to the wood beneath the gold].

Jewish transgressors, who are filled with mitzvot like a pomegranate [

concerning whom it is stated: “More desirable than gold”—Maharsha, Hagiga, according to the interpretation of Tosafot]

as it is stated: “Your temple is like a split pomegranate.”

And

concerning this

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: Do not read “rakatֵkh” [your temple], but rather “reikateikh” [your empty ones],

an expression of emptiness,

for even the empty ones among you are filled with mitzvot like a pomegranate

which is full of seeds—

all the more so

that the fire will not prevail over them [for the mitzvot protect them—Maharsha there].

And since this is so, it is impossible to interpret the verse, “And they shall go forth and look, etc., upon those who rebel against Me,” in which it is written, “and their fire shall not be extinguished,” as referring to Jewish transgressors. Necessarily, it refers to gentile transgressors—as we said!

And now that we have cited this statement of Reish Lakish, that the fire of Gehenna does not prevail over Jewish transgressors, we ask:

But what of that which is written

in the earlier verse:

“Those who pass through the Valley of Weeping,”

meaning that Gehenna is deepened for them, which we interpreted as referring to Jewish transgressors—how can this be understood?!

We explain:

That

verse

refers to those who at that time are liable to Gehenna. And Abraham our forefather comes and brings

them up [

and removes them from there]

and receives them, except for a Jew who had relations with a gentile woman, whose foreskin was stretched [

Rabbi Makhir explains in his Alef-Bet: This refers to the foreskins of young boys who died before being circumcised, which are taken from them and attached to one who had relations with a gentile woman—Rabbeinu Peretz],

and he does not recognize

Makhir

him

as a Jew; since his foreskin was stretched, he appears to him as one who was never circumcised, and he does not remove him from Gehenna.

Rav Kahana challenges

the earlier interpretation of “those who rebel against Me,” that they continue to rebel:

Now that you have said that “those who rebel” means that they continue rebelling

even now.

If so,

what of

that which is written: “Who brought you out”

from the land of Egypt,

and

it is also written:

“Who brings you up”

from the land of Egypt, in the present tense—should

here too

we interpret it:

that He continues to bring up and bring out [

continues bringing up and bringing out]

them [

rhetorically]?!

Rather,

the meaning is certainly:

He brought up and brought out

in the past, and not now.

If so,

here too,

the fact that “those who rebel” is written in the present tense means:

that they rebelled

in the past;

that is all.

9. Three:

And Rabbi Yirmeya ben Elazar said: Gehenna has three entrances: one in the wilderness, one in the sea, and one in Jerusalem.

One

in the wilderness, as it is written

concerning Korah and his assembly in the wilderness: “The earth opened its mouth and swallowed them,”

“and they and all that was theirs descended alive into Sheol.”

And Sheol is Gehenna, as stated below.

One

in the sea, as it is written

concerning Jonah son of Amittai, when he called to the Holy One, blessed be He, from inside the fish:

“From the belly of Sheol I cried out; You heard my voice.”

The fact that Jonah used the term “Sheol,” meaning Gehenna, indicates that he was at the site of the entrance to Gehenna—Maharsha.

One

in Jerusalem, as it is written: “The declaration of the Lord, whose fire is in Zion and whose furnace is in Jerusalem.”

And the tanna of the school of Rabbi Yishmael taught:

“Whose fire is in Zion”—

this is Gehenna

itself.

“And whose furnace is in Jerusalem”—

this is the entrance to Gehenna.

We raise an objection:

And furthermore,

entrances

are there not

to Gehenna?!

For Rabbi Marion said in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi—and some say that Rabba bar Marion taught

a beraita arranged

in the school of Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai [

as we find a Tosefta arranged by Rabbi Hiyya and Rabbi Oshaya]:

“There are two palm trees [

palms]

in the Valley of Ben Hinnom [

near Jerusalem—Rashi, Sukka],

and smoke rises between them, and this is [

that is, these are the palm trees]

what we learned

in the Mishna in Sukka:

“The palms [

palms]

of Mount HaBarzel”—

are fit

to take a lulav from them,

and this is the entrance to Gehenna!

We see, then, that there is another entrance to Gehenna!

We reject this:

Perhaps

this entrance in the Valley of Ben Hinnom

is

the entrance to Gehenna

in

in

Jerusalem,

as it is written: “And the boundary ascended through the Valley of Ben Hinnom to the shoulder of the Jebusite from the south, which is Jerusalem”—Tosafot.

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Gehenna has seven names, and these are they:

1.

Sheol,

2.

and Abaddon,

3.

and the Pit of Destruction,

4.

and the Pit of Turmoil,

5.

and the Mire of Mud, [

which is mire in which one sinks, unlike ordinary mud, which is thick and suitable for construction; and

Darkness,

7.

and the Lower Earth!

1.

Sheol, as it is written

concerning Jonah inside the fish:

“From the belly of Sheol I cried out; You heard my voice” [

as we said above, that he intended Gehenna].

2.

Abaddon, as it is written: “Will Your kindness be recounted in the grave, Your faithfulness in Abaddon?”

3.

The Pit of Destruction, as it is written: “For You will not abandon my soul to Sheol; You will not allow Your pious one to see destruction.”

And “destruction” and “the Pit of Destruction” are one expression.

4–5.

“And the Pit of Turmoil and the Mire of Mud,” as it is written: “He brought me up from the Pit of Turmoil, from the Mire of Mud.”

6.

“And Darkness,” as it is written: “(Those who dwell in darkness and the shadow of death,”

“before I go—and do not return—to the land of darkness and ‘darkness’” [

Tosafot].

7.

“And the Lower Earth”: This is a tradition of the Gemara [

it is a received tradition].

We raise an objection:

And are there no more

names for Gehenna?

But there is “Gehinnom.”

As it is written in Joshua 18:16: “And the border descended to the edge of the mountain that is before the Valley of Ben Hinnom, which is in the Valley of Rephaim northward; and it descended to the Valley of Hinnom to the shoulder of the Jebusite southward.” And we interpret “and it descended to the Valley of Hinnom” as referring to “those who descend to Gehenna,” since at first it says the Valley of “Ben” Hinnom, whereas here it says “the Valley of Hinnom” next to “and it descended” — Maharsha.

We answer: This is not its name. Rather, it is called this because it is

a valley as deep as Gehenna

like the Valley of Ben Hinnom mentioned at the beginning of the verse.

Furthermore [Maharsha],

because everyone descends [

—]

to it on account of matters of “free” indulgence [

Bach: that is, forbidden sexual relations].

We raise another objection:

But there is also

another name there:

Tofete.

As it is written: [

Isaiah 30:33]

“For Tofete has been prepared from yesterday” [

Gehenna—Rashi on Isaiah], “it too has been prepared for the king [Sennacherib]; its pyre has been made deep and wide, with abundant fire and wood; the breath of the Lord burns in it like a stream of sulfur”?!

We answer: This is not its name. Rather,

that name—

because

everyone who is enticed by his evil inclination will fall there.

And where is the entrance to the

Garden of Eden? Reish Lakish said: If the Garden of Eden is in the Land of Israel,

the Garden of Eden’s

entrance is Beit She’an,

for its fruits are sweeter than those of anywhere else in the Land of Israel.

And if it is in Arabia,

it

has Beit Garem as its entrance.

And if it is between the rivers, its entrance is Dumaskanin.

Because the fruits in these places were exceptionally sweet and excellent — Maharsha.

And if

it is in Babylonia

it is:

Abaye would praise the fruits of the other side of

the Euphrates

on the right [

on the south side of the river, to the right of one facing east; they are sweet and fine, and there is the entrance to the Garden of Eden].

Rava would praise the fruits of Harpania,

and there is the entrance to the Garden of Eden.

We learned in the Mishna:

“And between them is the full measure of two

etc., bound and not loose”:

We ask:

It is obvious

that they are not loose, for

once the tanna taught us that they are bound, do we not know that they are not loose?!

We answer:

Lest you say: “Bound,”

as we learned, means

as though bound, but not actually—

no; it teaches us

through the repetition of the phrase

“and not loose”

that they must be genuinely bound.

We learned in the Mishna:

“One enters and one exits”:

And we explain:

The tanna taught:

Do not say that within the herd one cow enters and another exits, for if so, they are not bound.

Rather:

One herd enters and one herd exits—

for it is impossible for one herd to enter and another herd to exit unless there is space between them [the commentary of the Rambam’s Mishna].

The Sages taught: How much

is the measure of

the head and most of the body of a cow

with regard to what we learned in the Mishna, that the posts must be set this distance from the well?

Two cubits!

And how much is the width of a cow

with regard to what we learned concerning the space between the posts, which is determined by the width of a cow?