Pesachim 54a — the Talmud in English

Rav Yosef applied to him

the verse:

“Deep waters are counsel in the heart of a man. ![](pamud.bmp "

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but a man of understanding will draw it out.”

“Deep waters are counsel in the heart of a man” —

this is Ulla,

who understood from the words of Rabbi Abba that Rabba bar bar Ḥana had misled him, and he looked at him with an angry expression. This is the meaning of “counsel in the heart of a man”: he kept the matter in his heart and said nothing to him.

“But a man of understanding will draw it out” —

this is Rabba bar bar Ḥana,

who understood from Ulla’s facial expression what he was thinking about him.

And we raised a question about this:

But they,

Ulla and Rabba bar bar Ḥana, who did not agree with Rabbi Abba’s statement that the reason for the blessing over fire at the conclusion of Shabbat is that this is the time when fire was first created —

according to whose opinion did they hold?

And we answer:

They held

in accordance with that which Rabbi Binyamin bar Yefet said in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan: One recites a blessing over fire both at the conclusion of Shabbat and at the conclusion of Yom Kippur!

And this is the common practice

among the people.

They raise an objection from a source:

From that which was taught in a

beraita: One recites a blessing over fire only at the conclusion of Shabbat, since

the time of

its first creation

was

».

And as soon as one sees

the fire at the conclusion of Shabbat,

he recites the blessing immediately,

and he should not wait until he recites the havdala ceremony over a cup of wine.

Rabbi Yehuda says: He arranges

all the blessings

over the cup.

That is, he recites the blessing over fire together with the blessings of havdala.

And Rabbi Yoḥanan said: The halakha is in accordance with Rabbi Yehuda!

In any event, it is taught that one recites a blessing over fire only at the conclusion of Shabbat. This is difficult for Rabbi Yoḥanan and Ulla, who hold that one recites the blessing both at the conclusion of Shabbat and at the conclusion of Yom Kippur.

And we answer:

This is not difficult.

Here,

in Rabbi Yoḥanan’s statement,

it is referring to fire that rested!

That is, it is referring to a lamp that burned throughout the day while refraining from any prohibited labor.

For example, it was lit on the eve of Yom Kippur, or it was even lit on Yom Kippur for the needs of a woman in childbirth or a sick person.

One recites a blessing over a flame in such a lamp at the conclusion of Yom Kippur because one refrained from benefiting from its use throughout the day, and at night a renewed benefit from it becomes possible, as one can use it for lighting. Therefore, one recites a blessing over this renewed benefit.

And here,

in the

beraita,

it is referring to fire that emerges from wood and stones at the conclusion of the day. Since it was created only now and did not rest throughout the day, this is not a renewed benefit but a new fire. Therefore, one recites a blessing over it only at the conclusion of Shabbat, because that was the time when fire was created during the six days of Creation.

One source teaches

in a

beraita that even

fire that emerges from wood and stones

at the conclusion of the day,

one recites a blessing over it; it is not necessary to have a lamp that rested.

And another source teaches

in a different

beraita that fire emerging from wood and stones

does not have a blessing recited over it; rather, one recites a blessing only over fire that rested. These two beraitot contradict one another.

And we answer:

This is not difficult.

Here,

in the first

beraita,

it is referring to

the conclusion of Shabbat. Since this is the time of its creation, one recites a blessing even over fire created at the conclusion of Shabbat.

And here, in the latter

beraita,

it is referring to

the conclusion of Yom Kippur. Since this is not the time of its creation, and the blessing is recited for the renewed benefit provided by the lamp, one recites a blessing only over a lamp that rested. Rabbi

would

separate

the blessings recited at the conclusion of Shabbat. As soon as he saw fire, he would recite the blessing over it. And when he encountered spices, he would recite a separate blessing over them.

And Rabbi Ḥiyya

would

combine

all these blessings and recite them over the cup of havdala.

Rabbi Yitzḥak bar Avdimi said: Even though

Rabbi

would separate them,

afterward he would

return and arrange them over the cup in order to fulfill the obligation of his sons and members of his household

with regard to the blessings over the spices and the fire.

We learned above: One recites a blessing over fire at the conclusion of Shabbat because that is the time of its first creation!

And we raised a question about this:

But

if

fire was created at the conclusion of Shabbat, was it? It was created on the eve of Shabbat!

[was it created then]? Was it not created on the eve of Shabbat?

But it was taught: Ten things were created on the eve of Shabbat at twilight. And these are they:

1.

The well

of Miriam. This was the rock from which water came forth for the Children of Israel in the wilderness. It was round, like a sieve, and it rolled along with them wherever they went.

2.

The manna,

which descended for them for forty years in the wilderness.

3.

And

the

rainbow

in the cloud.

4. And the engraving of the form of

the writing

of the Tablets of the Covenant.

5.

And

the

writing instrument —

the pen and stylus with which the engraving of the Tablets was written.

6.

And the Tablets.

7.

And the grave of Moses.

8.

And

the place of

the cave in which Moses stood,

which was the cleft in the rock where Moses stood when God passed before him and showed him His glory.

And

also

Elijah

went there and spent the night in it.

9.

And the opening of the mouth of the she-donkey

of Balaam.

10.

And the opening of the mouth of the earth to swallow

Korah and his assembly,

the wicked.

Rabbi Neḥemya said in the name of his father: Even the fire

and

the mule

were created on the eve of Shabbat at twilight!

Although the mule is produced through the crossbreeding of a horse and a donkey, “there is nothing new under the sun.” The first mule was created from the earth and was not produced through crossbreeding.

Rabbi Yoshiyya said in the name of his father: Even the ram

of Abraham, which he offered as a burnt offering in place of Isaac, was created on the eve of Shabbat.

And

at that time the worm called

the shamir was also created. Nothing hard can withstand it. They used it to split the stones of the altar and to engrave the letters on the stones of the breastplate.

was also created, before which nothing hard can stand. With it they split the stones of the altar and engraved the letters on the stones of the ephod-breastplate.

Rabbi Yehuda says: Even the first pair of tongs

made of iron was created on the eve of Shabbat.

Because

he would say: A pair of tongs,

the iron tongs that blacksmiths make today, is

made with another pair of tongs

that

is made

by holding the new tongs with the tongs in his hand and striking them with a hammer until their form is complete.

And since a pair of tongs can be made only with the aid of the iron tongs in the blacksmith’s hand —

the first pair of tongs, who made it

?

Rather,

indeed,

it must be that the first pair of tongs

was created by Heaven,

and was created on the eve of Shabbat at twilight.

Rabbi Yoshiyya said to him: There is no necessity to say that tongs can be made only with another pair of tongs.

There is no necessity to say that the tongs must be made only by means of another pair of tongs.

For

it is possible to make them in a mold,

by pouring the hot iron into a mold shaped like tongs

and fixing it all at once,

in the same way that silver and copper vessels are cast.

Indeed,

the tongs

were created by man.

They were not created at all during the six days of Creation.

It is proven from this beraita that fire was created on the eve of Shabbat at twilight. How, then, could you say that it was created at the conclusion of Shabbat?

And we answer:

This is not difficult. One statement is referring to our fire, and the other is referring to the fire of Gehenna.

Our fire

was created

at the conclusion of Shabbat.

But the fire of Gehenna

was created

on the eve of Shabbat.

And we raise another difficulty:

But

if

the fire of Gehenna was created on the eve of Shabbat, was it? It was created before the world was created.

was it not created before the creation of the world?

As it was taught: Seven things were created before the world was created. And these are they: Torah, repentance, the Garden of Eden, Gehenna, the Throne of Glory, the Temple, and the name of the Messiah!

And the source proceeds to explain them.

Torah —

as it is written,

in it: “The Lord

acquired me at the beginning of His way.”

This indicates that it preceded the other things in the creation of the world.

Repentance —

as it is written: “Before the mountains were born”,

You created the attribute of repentance,

and it is written

after it:

“You return man to dust,

until he subdues his heart before You,

and You say: Return, children of man.”

Thus, repentance preceded Creation.

The Garden of Eden —

as it is written: “And the Lord God planted a garden in Eden, in the east.”

“In the east” implies that it was established early, before the creation of the world.

Gehenna —

as it is written: “For a Topheth is prepared from yesterday.”

The Topheth of Gehenna was prepared from “yesterday,” meaning before the creation of the world. Gehenna is called “Topheth” because anyone who allows himself to be enticed by his inclination falls there.

The Throne of Glory and the Temple —

as it is written: “The Throne of Glory, exalted from the beginning, the place of our Sanctuary.”

And this is the explanation of the verse:

The Throne of Glory — “exalted” in the firmament called Aravot, which is the highest place among all the heavens.

And it is “from the beginning,” meaning from before the world.

Likewise, the place of our Sanctuary was created “from the beginning,” before the creation of the world.

And the name of the Messiah —

as it is written: “May his name endure forever;

before the sun, may his name be Yinnon.”

“Yinnon,” which is the name of the Messiah, preceded the creation of the sun.

In any event, it is taught that Gehenna was created before the world. How, then, could you say that the fire of Gehenna was created on the eve of Shabbat?

And we answer:

They say: It is the hollow

of Gehenna

that was created before the world was created.

But

its fire

—

its own fire

was created

on the eve of Shabbat.

And we raise another difficulty:

But

if

its fire was created on the eve of Shabbat, was it? It was created on the second day.

Но он был создан во второй день.

But it was taught: Rabbi Yosei says: The fire that the Holy One, blessed be He, created on the second day of the week,

which is the fire of Gehenna,

will never be extinguished. As it is stated: “And they shall go forth and see the corpses of the men who rebelled against Me. For their worm shall not die, and their fire shall not be extinguished.”

And

likewise

Rabbi Bana’a, son of Rabbi Ulla, said: Why was “that it was good” not stated on the second day of the week

of the six days of Creation?

Because the fire of Gehenna was created on it.

And Rabbi Eliezer said: Although “that it was good” was not stated on it

on the second day,

He later included it

in the word “good” that is written

on

the

sixth day. As it is stated

about that day:

“And God saw all that He had made, and behold, it was very good!”

For in the end He also called Gehenna “good,” because the wicked are judged in it.

In any event, it is taught that Gehenna was created on the second day, and not on the eve of Shabbat.

And we answer:

Rather, the hollow

of Gehenna was created

before

the world was created, and its fire

was created

on the second day of the week. And our fire

[fire]

was

created at the conclusion of Shabbat.

And regarding what is difficult for you from the beraita that states that fire was created on the eve of Shabbat at twilight, both statements are true. Indeed,

it arose in thought that it should be created on the eve of Shabbat.

But in fact

it was not created until the conclusion of Shabbat.

And as it was taught: Rabbi Yosei says: Two things arose in thought to be created on the eve of Shabbat, but were not created until the conclusion of Shabbat.

They are fire and the mule.

And

at the conclusion of Shabbat the Holy One, blessed be He, granted Adam the first man a measure of knowledge resembling

the knowledge

above. And he brought

the man

two stones and rubbed them

against one another,

and fire emerged from them.

And he likewise brought

the man at that time

two animals

of two different species

and mated them with one another, and a mule emerged from them.

Rabban Shimon ben Gamliel says: The mule existed in the days of Anah.

He was the first to mate two species of animals and cause the creation of the mule.

As it is stated: “He is Anah who found the mules in the wilderness!”

This refers to mules born from the crossbreeding of a horse and a donkey. They are called “mules” because their appearance inspires fear in people.

Those who interpret obscure verses

were saying:

Anah was illegitimate

and

,

as will be explained below.

Therefore, he brought an illegitimate creature

created through crossbreeding

into the world forever.

As it is stated: “These are the sons of Seir the Horite

who dwelled in the land: Lotan, Shobal, Zibeon, and Anah.” Thus, Zibeon and Anah were brothers.

And it is written

afterward:

“These are the sons of Zibeon: Aiah and Anah.”

Thus, Anah was the son of Zibeon.

How can this be?

Rather, this teaches that Zibeon had relations with his mother, and Anah was born from her.

It follows that Zibeon was Anah’s father and also his maternal brother.

And we raised a question about this:

Perhaps there were two people named Anah,

one of whom was Zibeon’s son and the other his brother.

Rava said: I will say a matter

to prove that the verse is speaking about one person:

that Shapur the king

did not say it.

And who

is this “Shapur the king”?

Shmuel!

He was called this because he was expert in civil law, and the halakha follows him in monetary matters; everything that came from his mouth was like something that came from the mouth of the king. Shapur the king was the king of Persia in Rava’s time.

Some say

that this is what

Rav Pappa said: I will say a matter about it, which Shapur the king did not say. And who

was Shapur the king? He was

Rava!

The halakha follows him, like a law issued from the mouth of the king.

And this is what he said: It is impossible to say that there were two Anahs, since

the verse states: “He is Anah.”

And this implies

“he is Anah”

who is mentioned

at the beginning,

as a son of Seir.

The Sages taught: Ten things were created on the eve of Shabbat at twilight. And these are they: The well, the manna, the rainbow, the writing, the writing instrument, the Tablets, the grave of Moses, the cave in which Moses and Elijah stood, the opening of the mouth of the she-donkey, and the opening of the mouth of the earth to swallow the wicked!

And all of them were explained above.

And some say: Even Aaron’s staff,

with

its almonds and blossoms, was created on the eve of Shabbat! Aaron’s staff blossomed and produced flowers and buds. It served as a sign that God had chosen him for the priesthood.

was created on the eve of Shabbat! Aaron’s staff blossomed and produced flowers and buds. It served as a sign that God had chosen him for the priesthood.

And some say: Even the destructive spirits

were created then!