Horayot 14a (יד.) — the Talmud in English

And Rabbi Meir answered him: The eleventh is not a substitute for the tenth; rather, it is a shelamim offering.

For

if the eleventh had been

an offering

a substitute

for the tenth,

it could not have been sacrificed.

For a substitute for an animal tithe may not be sacrificed! And Rabbi would teach in place of “the words of Rabbi Meir”: “Others say”!

Rabban Shimon, son of Rabbi, said

to his father:

Who are these

who are called “Others,”

whose waters we drink, yet whose names we do not mention?

Rabbi said

to his son: These are

people who sought to uproot your honor and the honor of your father’s house! Rabban Shimon said

to Rabbi, his father: Since so much time has passed, the verse [Ecclesiastes 9] should be applied to this: “

Both their love and their hatred and their jealousy have already perished!”

Rabbi said

to him: Another verse is appropriate to cite here [Psalms 9]: “

The enemy is finished

despite the fact that the enemy has ended, still

ruins endure forever.”

For the destruction of the enemy must remain forever; likewise here, they should not again be mentioned by name.

Rabban Shimon said

to him:

That applies

when they have no lasting restoration, only

where their deeds were effective;

but what the

Sages,

Rabbi Meir and Rabbi Natan, did

was not effective!

And indeed,

Rabbi then repeated

this Mishna to Rabban Shimon, his son, and amended its wording:

“They said in the name of Rabbi Meir: If it had been a substitute, it could not have been sacrificed!”

Rava said: Even Rabbi, who was humble,

did not conduct himself with excessive humility in this matter. Rather, he

taught

in this Mishna: “

They said in the name of Rabbi Meir,”

but

“Rabbi Meir said,” he did not say

in his Mishna!

Rabbi Yohanan said:

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel and the Sages disagreed

about which Torah scholar is superior to the other.

One said:

Sinai is superior!

For his Mishna is arranged for him as it was given at Sinai.

And one said:

an uprooter of mountains,

who is sharp and pilpulistic in Torah,

is superior!

Rav Yosef

was called

“Sinai,”

because the Mishnayot and beraitot were arranged for him as they had been given at Sinai, but he was not as pilpulistic as Rabba.

Rabba

was called

“an uprooter of mountains,”

because he was pilpulistic, but the Mishnayot and beraitot were not arranged for him as they were for Rav Yosef.

They sent

to ask

there [in the Land of Israel]:

which of them

should be given precedence

[Rav Yosef, who possessed knowledge, or Rabba, who was pilpulistic]

to

appoint him head of the academy?

They sent them the answer: Sinai is superior

! Because the master said: “Everyone requires the master of wheat.”

Everyone needs to purchase from the owner of the wheat, to buy wheat from him in order to bake bread from it. And Rav Yosef was “the master of wheat,” since the Mishnayot and beraitot, which are the sources of the halakha, were arranged for him. And therefore everyone required him.

And even so,

although they ruled that Rav Yosef was superior to Rabba,

Rav Yosef did not accept

the authority upon himself.

Therefore,

Rabba reigned for twenty-two years, and afterward,

after him,

Rav Yosef reigned.

And throughout all the years that Rabba reigned,

Rav Yosef did not conduct himself with any practice of authority,

even

when Rav Yosef wished to have bloodletting performed. The practice of distinguished people was to summon the bloodletter to them instead of going to him, but Rav Yosef did not exercise this form of authority; rather,

“The bloodletter to his house—he did not go!”

Abaye, Rava, Rabbi Zeira, and Rabba bar Rav Mattana were sitting, and they needed

to appoint one of them as

head

over them all.

They said: Whoever states a matter and it is not refuted

by the others, he

shall be head!

They all stated their opinions.

All of them were refuted, whereas Abaye was not refuted.

Rabba saw that Abaye’s head was raised,

for he lifted his head and rejoiced that his words had not been refuted.

Rabba said

to Abaye:

Nahmani!

[This was Abaye’s name]

Open and recite

a discourse, for Heaven has decreed greatness for you!

A dilemma was raised before them: Between Rabbi Zeira and Rabba bar Rav Mattana, which of them is superior?

Is

Rabbi Zeira

superior because he is

sharp,

and because of his sharpness he

raises difficulties

and resolves them?

Or perhaps

Rabba bar Rav Mattana

is superior, for he studies

deliberately,

pausing and examining the matter thoroughly, and through his deliberation he arrives at the conclusion in accordance with the halakha.

What

is the ruling—which of them is superior?

And we conclude:

Teyku!

We shall return to you, chapter “Anointed Priest,” and the tractate Horayot is concluded.