Rosh Hashanah 11a (יא.) — the Talmud in English

7.

On Rosh HaShana, the servitude of our forefathers in Egypt ceased.

8.

In Nisan they were redeemed

from Egypt, and

in Tishrei they are destined to be redeemed

in the future.

Rabbi Yehoshua says:

1.

In Nisan the world was created.

2.

In Nisan were born

the

Patriarchs,

Abraham and Jacob.

3.

In Nisan died

the

Patriarchs,

Abraham and Jacob.

4.

Isaac was born on Passover.

5.

On Rosh HaShana, Sarah was remembered favorably

and it was decreed that she would conceive. And on it

Rachel and Hannah

were also remembered. 6.

On Rosh HaShana, Joseph emerged from prison.

7.

On Rosh HaShana, the servitude of our forefathers in Egypt ceased.

8.

In Nisan they were redeemed

from Egypt, and

in Nisan they are destined to be redeemed

in the future.

The Gemara now brings a beraita containing the sources for the statements of Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua:

It was taught: Rabbi Eliezer says: From where is it derived that the world was created in Tishrei?

As it is stated

on the third day of the creation of the world [Genesis 1:11]:

“And God said: Let the earth sprout vegetation

[the earth should become covered with vegetation],

herb yielding seed, fruit tree

[a tree filled with fruit].”

Which is the month in which

the earth

is full

of

vegetation, and

the

tree is full

of

fruit?

You must say: This is

the month of

Tishrei!

There is further support for the view that the world was created in Tishrei, since

that season,

the time when the world was created, was

the time of rainfall

[the descent of rain].

And rain fell and caused

the plants to sprout

the vegetation.

As it is stated

[there, 2:6]:

“And a mist rose from the earth,

and watered the entire surface of the ground.”

And the month of Tishrei is the time when rain is needed to water the plants.

Rabbi Yehoshua says: From where is it derived that the world was created in Nisan?

As it is stated

on the third day of the creation of the world [Genesis 1:12]:

“And the earth brought forth vegetation, herb yielding seed, and tree producing fruit.”

Since it is stated, “And the earth brought forth,” and it is not stated, “And the earth sprouted vegetation,” we understand that the month in which the world was created was the month in which the earth had already finished bringing forth its vegetation.

By contrast, since that verse states “tree producing fruit,” and does not state “fruit tree,” we understand that it refers to a month in which the tree had not yet finished producing its fruit.

Which is

the

month in which the earth

has already

brought forth

vegetation,

while

the

tree

is still

producing fruit

[and has not finished producing it]?

You must say: This is

the month of

Nisan!

There is further support for the view that the world was created in Nisan: At that time, the animals and beasts needed to mate for the first time, and if we say that the world was created in Nisan, this is the appropriate time for that, since

that season

[that time] is

the season when animals, beasts, and birds mate with one another.

As it is stated

[Psalms 65]:

“The sheep’s folds are clothed”.

The Gemara already proved above [8a] from this verse that the time when sheep mate is in the month of Nisan.

We have learned that Rabbi Eliezer proved his view that the world was created in Tishrei from God’s command to the earth to bring forth vegetation and a fruit tree. Rabbi Yehoshua, by contrast, proved his view that the world was created in Nisan from the actual bringing forth of the vegetation and trees.

And we raise an objection against Rabbi Eliezer:

But the other one,

Rabbi Eliezer,

also—

isn’t it written: “tree producing fruit,”

which indicates that the tree had not yet become filled with fruit? And why did Rabbi Eliezer say that this month was Tishrei, when at that time the tree was full of fruit?

And we answer: According to Rabbi Eliezer, that verse

itself—

was written as a blessing for future generations.

The tree was then blessed that it would produce fruit for future generations. But the tree itself that was created then was created as a tree that had already finished producing its fruit, since it was created in the month of Tishrei.

And we raise an objection against Rabbi Yehoshua:

But the other one,

Rabbi Yehoshua,

also—

isn’t it written: “fruit tree,”

which indicates that the tree had already become filled with fruit? And why did Rabbi Yehoshua say that this month was Nisan, when in Nisan the trees are not yet full of fruit?

And we answer: According to Rabbi Yehoshua, that verse

itself

comes to teach us

in accordance with the words of

the words of

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi:

As Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: All the acts of Creation

were created at their full stature,

the completed state

in which they were created.

They were created according to their intention,

as God asked them whether they wished to be created, and they answered yes.

They were created according to their form,

in their form and taste,

they were created.

As it is stated

[Genesis 2]:

“And the heavens and the earth and all their hosts were completed.”

Do not read “their hosts” (tzva’am), but rather “their forms” (tzivyonam).

But they had not yet produced fruit, as it is written, “a tree producing [in the future] fruit.” Rather, they were already at their full stature and were fit to produce fruit immediately. Therefore it is stated, “fruit tree.”

The beraita continues by bringing the source for Rabbi Eliezer’s statement that the Patriarchs [Abraham and Jacob] were born in Tishrei:

Rabbi Eliezer says: From where,

do I say

that the Patriarchs were born in Tishrei,

the

Patriarchs?

As it is stated

[I Kings 8]:

“And all the men of Israel assembled before King Solomon in the month of Eitanim, on the Festival

[of Sukkot], which is the seventh month [Tishrei].”

And why was the seventh month called “the month of Eitanim”? Because it is

the month

of

the month in which were born

the Patriarchs, who are

“the mighty ones of the world.”

And we interpret:

What is the indication?

From where do we know that “the mighty ones” refers to the Patriarchs?

Because

this term “eitan”

is an expression of strength.

It is a term denoting strength.

As it is written

[Numbers 24]:

“Your dwelling place is firm.”

And the Patriarchs are the strength of the nation.

And

the proof that “the mighty ones” refers to the Patriarchs is:

For the verse

says

[Micah 6]:

“Hear, mountains, the quarrel of the Lord, and the mighty ones, the foundations of the earth.”

From here it follows that “the mighty ones” are the mountains.

And the mountains are the Patriarchs, since

the

verse

says

[Song of Songs 2:8]:

“The voice of my beloved

[the Holy One, blessed be He]

behold, he comes

[before the end of the Egyptian exile].

Leaping

[hastening the redemption]

over the mountains, skipping over the hills.”

“Leaping over the mountains”—

by the merit of

the

Patriarchs

who are called “mountains.”

“Skipping over the hills”—

by the merit of

the

Matriarchs

who are called “hills.”

Accordingly, “the month of Eitanim” is the month in which the Patriarchs were born, since “the mighty ones” are the mountains, and the Patriarchs were called mountains.

The beraita brings the source for Rabbi Yehoshua’s statement that the Patriarchs [Abraham and Jacob] were born in Nisan:

Rabbi Yehoshua says: From where,

do I say

that the Patriarchs were born in Nisan,

the

Patriarchs?

As it is stated

[I Kings 6]:

“And it came to pass in the four hundred and eightieth year after the Children of Israel had left the land of Egypt, in the fourth year, in the month of Ziv

[Iyyar], which is the second month, in the second year of Solomon’s reign over Israel. And he built the House for the Lord.”

What is the meaning of “in the month of Ziv”?

In the month in which the luminaries of the world were born.

For when the month of Iyyar became new, the Patriarchs [who are the radiance of the world] had already been born, since they were born in Nisan.

And we raise an objection against Rabbi Yehoshua’s view:

But isn’t it written

[I Kings 8]:

“In the month of Eitanim,

on the Festival [of Sukkot], which is the seventh month.” And “the mighty ones” are the Patriarchs, as Rabbi Eliezer explained above; from here it follows that the Patriarchs were born in Tishrei!

And we answer: Rabbi Yehoshua holds that the verse’s intention there

there

[in that passage] is

that it is strong in mitzvot,

for the month of Tishrei is strong [abundant] in many mitzvot: the mitzva of the shofar, Yom Kippur, sukkah, lulav, arava, and the water libation.

And we raise an objection against Rabbi Eliezer’s view:

But the other one,

Rabbi Eliezer,

also—

isn’t it written, “in the month of Ziv

[Iyyar], which is the second month of King Solomon”? And the month of Iyyar is called “Ziv” because the Patriarchs were born when Iyyar became new, as Rabbi Yehoshua explained above; from here it follows that the Patriarchs were born in Nisan!

And we answer: Rabbi Eliezer holds that the verse’s intention

itself is

to say

that it contains radiance for the trees.

For in Iyyar there is radiance for the trees.

And this is like

Rabbi Yehuda said: One who goes out during the days of Nisan

during the season of Nisan

and sees trees blossoming,

and sees blossoming trees,

says:

“Blessed is He who has not left anything lacking in His world, and who created in it good creatures and good trees for the enjoyment

[to benefit from]

of human beings.”

The Gemara now explains the source for the statements of Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua, who disagree about when the Patriarchs died [according to Rabbi Eliezer, in Tishrei, and according to Rabbi Yehoshua, in Nisan]:

The one who says,

Rabbi Yehoshua,

that the Patriarchs were born in Nisan

holds also that

in Nisan

they

died.

The one who says,

Rabbi Eliezer,

that they were born in Tishrei

holds that they also

died in Tishrei.

This is based on what

is stated

in the book of Deuteronomy [chapter 31]:

“And he said to them

[Moses said to the Children of Israel on the day of his death]:

‘I am one hundred and twenty years old today.’”

It is not necessary for the verse to state,

there is no need to say

“today,”

since even had he said that he was “one hundred and twenty years old,” it would have been self-evident that he meant his present age.

And

if so,

what does the verse teach by stating,

why was

“today”

said?

Rather, Moses said this to Israel:

“Today my days and years have been completed”

[for he died on the same date on which he was born].

And the verse

comes to teach you that the Holy One, blessed be He, completes the years of the righteous from day to day and from month to month,

so that they die on the same day of the month on which they were born.

As it is stated

in the verse [Exodus 23:26], in which the Holy One, blessed be He, blessed Israel [if they fulfill His will]:

“I will fill the number of your days.” Therefore, according to the one who says that the Patriarchs were born in Nisan, they also died in Nisan; and according to the one who says that the Patriarchs were born in Tishrei, they also died in Tishrei.

We learned in a beraita:

Isaac was born on Passover,

according to everyone.

And we inquire:

From where do we know

that Isaac was born on Passover?

And we answer:

As it is written

[Genesis 18:14], that the angel announced to Abraham:

“At the appointed time

[at the forthcoming Festival]

I will return to you,

when this season comes around, and Sarah shall have a son.” From here it follows that Isaac was born on the Festival closest to the time when Abraham was informed of his birth.

Since the entire period of Sarah’s pregnancy passed between the announcement and the birth, we therefore place the announcement at the Festival preceding the birth [and it is impossible to place it earlier, since Isaac was born at the first appointed time following the announcement].

When did this take place,

when was the Festival at which Abraham was informed of Isaac’s birth?

If you say,

that the angel came to Abraham

on Passover and told him

that Isaac would be born

on Shavuot

[the Festival of Weeks],

this is impossible.

For

in fifty days—

could she give birth?!

It is impossible to give birth after a pregnancy of only fifty days!

Rather,

perhaps you will say

that it took place,

that the angel stood before Abraham

on Shavuot and told him

and informed him that Isaac would be born

in Tishrei,

on Sukkot? This too is impossible.

For

still

[there is yet reason to wonder: Is it possible that

in five months she could give birth?

Is it possible to give birth in the fifth month of pregnancy? The fourth month of her pregnancy would have ended approximately a week before Sukkot, meaning that on Sukkot she was at the beginning of the fifth month of her pregnancy?!

Rather,

necessarily,

it took place,

that the angel stood before Abraham

on the Festival

of Sukkot,

and told her

that Isaac would be born

in Nisan,

since the period from Sukkot to Passover is the longest interval between two Festivals.

The Gemara immediately wonders: But

still,

there is yet reason to wonder: Is it possible that

in six months she could give birth?!

Is it possible to give birth after a pregnancy of six months? A pregnancy lasts only seven or nine months!

And we answer:

A tanna,

we learned in a beraita:

That year—

was a leap year!

It follows that there were seven months from Sukkot to Passover, which is the length of a pregnancy.

And we raise an objection: We learned [Bava Metzia 87a] that Sarah our mother, on the very day on which she was informed of Isaac’s birth, became impure with the impurity of menstruation.

If so, although that year was a leap year,

ultimately, when you subtract

seven

days of impurity

of menstruation,

they are lacking!

When the seven days of menstruation before Sarah could conceive are subtracted from the seven-month period, the period of pregnancy was less than seven complete months! The difficulty remains: How could Sarah give birth after a pregnancy of less than seven complete months?

Mar Zutra said

to resolve this:

Even according to the one who says

that a woman

gives birth after nine

months,

she does not give birth

to a viable child

after incomplete months

[months that are not complete, but only after nine complete months],

a woman who

gives birth after seven—

gives birth

even

after

months

that are incomplete,

which are not complete, and the child is viable and not a miscarriage.

As it is stated

[I Samuel 1:19–20]: “And Elkanah knew Hannah.

And it came to pass after the cycles of days

that Hannah conceived and bore a son, and she named him Samuel.”

The minimum of “cycles”

is

two

cycles. Each cycle is three months.

And the minimum of “days”

is

two

days.

Since it is stated, “after the cycles of days,” we learn that Hannah gave birth to Samuel after six months and two days. That is, only two days of the seventh month had passed!

We learned in a beraita:

On Rosh HaShana, Sarah, Rachel, and Hannah were remembered

[according to everyone].

And we were examining it:

From where do we know this?

Rabbi Elazar said: It is derived

through a gzera shava

“visitation, visitation.”

And

it is derived

also through a gzera shava

“remembrance, remembrance.”

As follows:

It is written concerning Rachel [

Genesis 30]:

“And God remembered Rachel.”

And it is written concerning Hannah [

I Samuel 1:19]:

“And Hashem remembered her.”

And it is derived,

and we learn the remembrance mentioned concerning Rachel and Hannah through a gzera shava of

“remembrance, remembrance” from Rosh Hashanah.

As it is written [

Leviticus 23] concerning Rosh Hashanah:

“A sabbath-rest, a remembrance of the sounding of the shofar.”

And just as the remembrance mentioned here is on Rosh Hashanah, so too the remembrance mentioned concerning Rachel and Hannah was on Rosh Hashanah.

And from where is it known that Sarah too was visited on Rosh Hashanah?

This matter is learned through a gzera shava

“visitation, visitation”:

It is written concerning Hannah [

I Samuel 2]:

“For Hashem visited Hannah.”

And it is written concerning Sarah [

Genesis 21]:

“And Hashem visited Sarah.”

And just as Hannah was visited on Rosh Hashanah [as above], so too Sarah was visited on Rosh Hashanah.

We learned in a beraita:

On Rosh Hashanah Joseph went out from the prison [

according to all].

And we were examining it:

From where do we know this?

And we answer:

As it is written [

Psalms 81]:

“Sound in the month [

at the New Moon]

the shofar, when it is covered, on the day of our festival” [

at the festival of Rosh Hashanah, in which the moon is covered].

For it is a statute for Israel,

a judgment for the God of Jacob.”