Gittin 57b — the Talmud in English

Rabbi Hiyya bar Avin said that Rabbi Yehoshua ben Korḥa said: He related [said]

told

to me that an elderly man from among the people of Jerusalem [who had received a tradition concerning what had happened during the time of the First Temple]:

In this valley [the Beit Yadayim Valley]

the Beit Yadayim Valley,

Nebuzaradan, chief executioner, killed 2,110,000 people.

And in Jerusalem

Nebuzaradan

killed 940,000 people on one stone.

until the blood

of those killed

flowed and touched the blood of Zechariah

son of Jehoiada the kohen, a member of the priestly family who served in the Temple, whom the princes of Judah killed in the Temple courtyard at the command of Joash, when they bowed to Joash and made him into a deity.

This fulfilled what is stated in the prophecy [Hosea 4:2]: “

in the prophecy [Hosea 4:2]: “

and blood touched blood.”

Nebuzaradan found [found]

Nebuzaradan found

the blood of Zechariah, which was boiling and giving off vapor [his blood was bubbling and producing steam].

his blood was seething and giving off vapor.

Nebuzaradan said:

Nebuzaradan:

What is this!? Blood does not ordinarily behave in this manner; surely there is some special matter here that causes the blood to change from its natural state.

Blood does not ordinarily behave in this manner; certainly there is something unusual here that causes the blood’s nature to change.

They said to Nebuzaradan:

to Nebuzaradan:

It is the blood of sacrifices

it

that was spilled [and was not used as prescribed],

and that is why it is boiling.

He brought blood [the blood of animals]

they brought the blood of animals

but it did not resemble it [it did not resemble] the blood that was boiling in the Temple courtyard. This proves that human blood, and not animal blood, had been spilled there.

they did not resemble the blood that was boiling in the Temple courtyard. It can therefore be inferred that human blood had been spilled there, and not animal blood.

He said to them: If you tell me [if you tell me what this blood is],

if you tell me what this blood is

it will be better.

But if not, I will rake your flesh with iron combs. [If you do not tell me, I will rake your flesh with iron combs until you are forced to explain this blood.]

If you do not tell me, I will comb your flesh with iron combs until you are forced to explain to me the meaning of this blood.

They said to him: What can we say to you? We must admit the truth: he was a prophet, our son, who rebuked us for our deeds in the name of Heaven.

They said to him: What shall we tell you? We must acknowledge the truth: he was a prophet, our son, who rebuked us for our deeds in the name of God.

We rose against him and killed him,

we rose up against him and killed him,

and many years

had passed,

yet his blood had not ceased

boiling.

He said to them: I will appease him, by expounding and avenging his blood.

by delivering a homily and avenging his blood.

He brought

the Great Sanhedrin

a

Great Sanhedrin [of seventy-one judges],

and

the Lesser Sanhedrin

a

lesser Sanhedrin [of twenty-three judges],

and killed them because of Zechariah’s blood,

and killed them because of Zechariah’s blood,

but

and it still

did not cease

boiling.

He

brought

young men and young women, and

and

killed them [killed them],

and killed them,

but

and it still

did not cease

boiling.

He brought schoolchildren, killed them because of it, and it still did not cease.

He said to it [Nebuzaradan said to Zechariah’s blood]:

Nebuzaradan said to Zechariah’s blood:

Zechariah, Zechariah,

behold,

I have destroyed the best of them,

and is it

satisfactory to you that I destroy them all!?

is it pleasing to you that I destroy them all?!

When he said this to it [when Nebuzaradan said this to Zechariah],

when Nebuzaradan said this to Zechariah:

the blood ceased

boiling.

At that moment,

at that time,

Nebuzaradan contemplated

Nebuzaradan

repentance in his mind.

For

he said

in his heart:

If, because of one soul

that Israel killed,

such

punishment came upon them,

that man [he was speaking about himself]

that man—and he was referring to himself

who killed all these souls,

who killed so many souls,

all the more so

that he will receive his punishment.

He fled, went away, sent a document to his household detailing what should be done with his possessions, and converted. [ Nebuzaradan fled, sent a will to specify what should be done with his property, and converted.]

Навузардан бежал, отправил завещательное письмо с указаниями, что делать с его имуществом, и принял гиюр.

A tanna—a sage of the Mishnaic era—taught:

a.

Naaman was a resident convert [he accepted upon himself not to worship idolatry, but did not accept the other commandments].

he did not accept upon himself the other mitzvot, but undertook not to worship idolatry.

b.

Nebuzaradan was a righteous convert.

c.

Some of Haman’s descendants studied Torah in Bnei Brak.

d.

Some of Sisera’s descendants taught children in Jerusalem.

e.

Some of Sennacherib’s descendants taught Torah publicly;

and

and

who are they?

Shemaiah and Avtalyon.

?

Shemaya and Avtalion. The Gemara now returns to Zechariah’s blood, which they would cover, but which would reappear, in order to avenge him.

This is what is written [Ezekiel 24:7–8]: “For her blood is in her midst; she placed it upon the bare rock; she did not pour it upon the ground to cover it with dust, to arouse wrath and take vengeance,”

Ezekiel 24:7–8: “For her blood was in her midst; she placed it upon the bare rock; she did not pour it upon the earth to cover it with dust, to arouse wrath and take vengeance;

“I have placed her blood upon the bare rock [a smooth stone]

a smooth stone,

so that it would not be covered.”

The Gemara now returns to expounding the matters of the destruction during the time of the Second Temple:

It is written [Genesis 27:22]: “

The voice is the voice of Jacob, but the hands are the hands of Esau”: “

The voice”:

this is the sound of shouting and weeping that Isaac saw in his prophecy would arise from Jacob’s descendants, during the time of

is the voice of outcry and weeping that Isaac saw prophetically would arise from the descendants of Jacob during the time of

the emperor Hadrian, who killed Jews

Jews

in Alexandria of Egypt, 600,000 over 600,000,

which is

twice the number of those who left Egypt. “

The voice of Jacob”:

this is the weeping of Jacob’s descendants during the time of

is the weeping of the descendants of Jacob during the time of

the emperor Vespasian,

who killed 4,000,000 in the city of Beitar; and some say:

there are those who say:

40,000,000. “

But the hands are the hands of Esau”:

this is the kingdom of

Edom,

the wicked kingdom, which destroyed our houses, burned our Sanctuary, and exiled us from our land.

Alternatively [another exposition of the same verse]: “

another exposition of that same verse: “

The voice is the voice of Jacob”:

no prayer is effective unless it contains something from the descendants of Jacob [“voice” refers to prayer; it is effective only when it is “the voice of Jacob”]. “

“voice” is an expression of prayer; it is effective only when it is “the voice of Jacob.” “

But the hands are the hands of Esau”:

no war achieves victory [there is no victory in war] through natural means

there are no victors in a war by natural means

unless

there participate

some of Esau’s descendants, since Esau received Isaac’s blessing [Genesis 27:40]: “You shall live by your sword.”

for Esau received Isaac’s blessing [Genesis 27:40]: “And by your sword you shall live.”

The Gemara now returns to what we said above: because of malicious speech, the Temple was destroyed and many tens of thousands were killed.

And this is what Rabbi Elazar said, meaning that with regard to this matter Rabbi Elazar cited the following verse [Job 5:21]: “

meaning, concerning this matter, Rabbi Elazar cited the following verse [Job 5:21]: “

You shall be hidden from the scourge of the tongue, and you shall not fear destruction when it comes,” meaning:

and you shall not fear destruction when it comes”—that is,

at

during a time of

tongue-provoked quarrels [quarrels caused by malicious speech]

quarrels caused by evil speech

you should hide, lest the scourge strike you.

lest the scourge strike you.

Rav Yehuda said that Rav said: What is the meaning of that which is written [Psalms 137:1]: “

Psalms 137:1: “

By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat; we also wept when we remembered Zion”?

This teaches that the Holy One, blessed be He, showed David, through prophecy,

in prophecy

the destruction of the First Temple and the destruction of the Second Temple.

The destruction of the First Temple, as it is stated: “

By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat” —

when we were exiled there after the destruction of the First Temple —

“we also wept.”

The destruction of

the Second Temple,

which was brought about by Edom:

as it is written [ibid., verse 7]: “

there, verse 7: “

Remember, O Lord,

the children of Edom on the day of Jerusalem, who said: ‘Destroy it, destroy it, down to its very foundation.’”

обитателей Эдома в день Иерусалима, говоривших: разрушайте, разрушайте до основания его».

Rav Yehuda said that Shmuel said; and some say it was Rabbi Ami who said it; and some say that it was taught in a beraita, a tannaitic source not included in the Mishna:

There was an incident involving 400 boys and girls who were taken captive for disgraceful purposes [the boys for sexual abuse and the girls as concubines].

boys for pederasty, and girls as concubines.

The children realized

themselves what was being sought from them [why they had been taken captive and what would be done to them].

for what purpose they were being sought

why they had been captured and what would be done with them.

They said [they asked one another]:

they asked one another:

If we drown in the sea,

will

we enter the World-to-Come?

The oldest of them expounded to them the verse [Psalms 68:23]: “

the verse [Psalms 68:23]: “

The Lord said,

‘I will bring back from Bashan; I will bring back from the depths of the sea.’” “

I will bring back from Bashan”:

from between the teeth of the lion.” [“Bashan” is an abbreviation for “from between a tooth.”] “

“Bashan” is an acronym for “from between a tooth.” “

I will bring back from the depths of the sea”:

these are those who drown in the sea, and all of them will enter the World-to-Come, even though their flesh has been digested in the lion’s stomach and they are not buried on dry land.

and all of them will enter the World-to-Come, even though their flesh was digested in the lion’s stomach and they were not buried on dry land.

When the girls heard this, they all jumped and fell into the sea,

giving up their lives so that the gentiles would not defile them.

The boys made an a-fortiori inference themselves and said: “If these

girls,

whose usual role is this [sexual relations], and whose disgrace is not as great as ours,

for sexual use, and whose disgrace is not as great as ours,

nevertheless

gave up their lives,

we, whose usual role is not this, all the more so

should be worthy to sacrifice our lives, and

we should give up our lives,” and they too jumped into the sea.

And concerning them the verse states [Psalms 44:23]: “

Psalms 44:23: “

For because of You [for the sanctification of Your name]

for the sanctification of Your Name,

we are killed all day long; we are considered like sheep for slaughter.”

And Rav Yehuda said: This [verse refers to]

verse was said concerning

the incident involving a woman and her seven sons;

and this is what happened:

They brought

the

the first son before the emperor,

and

and

Привели первого сына перед императором и сказали ему: поклонись идолу!

He said to them: It is written in the Torah

Exodus 20:2: “

I

[They brought the first son before the emperor and said to him: Worship idolatry!]

He said to them: It is written in the Torah [Exodus 20:2]: “ I am the Lord your God,” and I believe in Him and will not worship idolatry.

and I believe in Him and will not worship idolatry.

They took him out and killed him.

They took him out and killed him.

They brought the next one [the second]

the second one

before the emperor,

and

and

also

said to him: Worship idolatry!

He said to them: It is written in the Torah [Exodus 20:3]: “

Exodus 20:3: “

You shall have no other gods before Me.”

They took him out,

also the second one,

and killed him.

They brought the next one [the third],

the third one, and

and

also

said to him: Worship idolatry!

He said to them: It is written in the Torah [Exodus 22:19]: “

Exodus 22:19: “

One who sacrifices to a god [other than God]

other than God

shall be put to death.”

They took him out,

also the third one,

and killed him.

They brought the next one [the fourth],

the fourth one,

and said to him: Worship idolatry!

He said to them: It is written in the Torah [Exodus 34:14]: “

Exodus 34:14: “

You shall not bow down to another god.”

They took him out and killed him.

They brought the next one [the fifth],

the fifth one,

and said to him: Worship idolatry!

He said to them: It is written in the Torah [Deuteronomy 6:4]: “

Deuteronomy 6:4: “

Hear, Israel: the Lord

is our God, the Lord

is One,”

and there is no other.

They took him out and killed him.

They brought the next one [the sixth],

the sixth one,

and said to him: Worship idolatry!

He said to them: It is written in the Torah [Deuteronomy 4:39]: “

Deuteronomy 4:39: “

Know this day and take it to your heart that the Lord

is God in heaven above and on the earth below; there is no other.”

They took him out and killed him.

They brought the next one,

the seventh,

and said to him: Worship idolatry!

He said to them: It is written in the Torah [Deuteronomy 26:17–18]: “

Deuteronomy 26:17–18: “

The Lord

you have designated today to be your God, to walk in His ways, to observe His statutes, commandments, and laws, and to heed His voice;

today to be your God, to walk in His ways, to observe His statutes, commandments, and ordinances, and to heed His voice;

and the Lord

has designated you today to be His treasured people, as He spoke to you, and to observe all His commandments.”

to be His treasured people, as He promised you, and to observe all His commandments.”

And he explained to them:

We have already sworn to the Holy One, blessed be He, that we will not exchange Him for another god,

and this is what is stated: “You have designated the Lord”—meaning that you set Him apart and separated yourselves from the gods of the nations.

And He too swore to us that He would not exchange us for another nation,

and this is what is stated: “And the Lord has designated you,” for He set us apart from the nations “to be His treasured people.”

The emperor said to him: I will throw my seal

of mine,

and

and you

will bend down and pick it up, so that they will say: He has accepted the king’s authority. [The emperor said to him: I will throw my seal onto the ground. Bend down and pick it up, and from a distance it will appear as though you are bowing to the image engraved on it, and they will say that you have accepted the king’s rule.]

Император сказал ему: я брошу свою печать на землю, ты наклонишься и возьмёшь её, и тогда издали будет казаться, будто ты кланяешься моему изображению, отчеканенному на ней, и скажут, что ты принял на себя исполнение царской власти.

The seventh son

said to him:

Pity you, emperor! Pity you, emperor!

If

for your own honor

you

take such

trouble to make it appear that I obey you,

with regard to the honor of the Holy One, blessed be He, all the more so

one must make every effort and give up one’s life.

They took him out to kill him [they removed him from before the king in order to kill him].

they took him out from before the king in order to kill him.

His mother said to them: Give him to me so that I may kiss him a little. [His mother said to them: Give him to me so that I can kiss him a little.]

Его мать сказала им: отдайте его мне, чтобы я могла немного его поцеловать.

They returned him to his mother, and she

said to him [and to his brothers]:

and to his brothers:

My sons,

from the place where you are now in Heaven:

Go and say to your father Abraham: You bound one altar

your son Isaac,

but I have bound seven altars,

all seven of my sons. When the mother saw that they wished to force her to worship idolatry,

she too climbed to the roof, fell, and died.

A Divine voice went forth and said concerning this woman: “

about this woman: “

A joyful mother of children.” [This is the wording of the verse in Psalms 113:9: “He makes the barren woman of the house,” who remains childless, and nevertheless she is “a joyful mother of children.”]

This is the language of the verse in Psalms 113:9: “He makes the barren woman of the house sit,” who remained barren without children, and nevertheless, “a joyful mother of children.”

And this is what the verse means: “For because of You we are killed all day long”—these are the sons; “we are considered like sheep for slaughter”—this is the mother of the sons.

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: “

For because of You we are killed all day long”

refers to circumcision, which was given

to be performed

on

the

on the eighth day,

for the baby’s blood is spilled, and sometimes he dies; nevertheless, all Israel circumcise their sons.

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: These are Torah scholars, who

Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: This refers to Torah scholars who, in order to clarify the laws of ritual slaughter thoroughly,

demonstrate the laws of ritual slaughter on themselves [on their own necks], even though this is dangerous.

on their own necks, even though it is dangerous.

As Rava said: A person may demonstrate anything on himself, except ritual slaughter and another matter [leprosy]. [One may demonstrate anything on oneself, except ritual slaughter with a knife, lest one insert it into his throat, and except examination of the signs of leprosy, because this places him in danger, lest leprosy break out upon him.]

leprosy. A person may demonstrate anything on himself, except slaughtering with a knife, lest he drive it into his throat, and except examining the manifestations of leprosy, because by doing so he endangers himself, lest leprosy erupt upon him.

Человек может показать на себе любую вещь, кроме забоя ножом, чтобы случайно не воткнуть его себе в горло, и кроме осмотра поражений проказой, поскольку этим он подвергает себя опасности: возможно, на него вскочит проказа.

Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak said: [The phrase “For because of You we are killed all day long” refers to]

“For Your sake we are killed all day long” was said concerning

Torah scholars, who devote themselves completely to the words of Torah,

for only in this way do they merit that the words of Torah endure in them, in accordance with the statement of Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish.

As Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: the words of Torah endure only in one who mortifies himself over them.

For, so that a person may be attached to the Torah consistently, he must “mortify his body,” that is, cast away from himself the excess of desire and his material desires.

As it is said [

Numbers 19:14 ]: “

This is the Torah: when a person dies in a tent.”

Now the Gemara returns to the destruction of Betar.

Rabba bar bar Hanna said in the name of Rabbi Yohanan: