Rosh Hashanah 16a (טז.) — the Talmud in English

Mishna:

In the previous Mishna we learned that the first of Tishrei is the New Year for years; and incidentally, all four New Years were mentioned in the Mishna.

Our Mishna explains what judgment the Holy One, blessed be He, conducts concerning the world on Rosh HaShana. And incidentally, the Mishna mentions four times at which the world is judged:

At four times

during the year

the world is judged:

a.

On Passover

the world is judged

concerning the grain,

as to how much will grow during that year.

b.

On Shavuot

the world is judged

concerning the fruit of the tree,

as to how much fruit will grow during that year.

c.

On Rosh HaShana—

all the inhabitants of the world pass before Him,

before the Holy One, blessed be He,

like members of the flock,

like sheep [and the Gemara will explain the intention of the Mishna’s statement].

As it is stated

[Psalms 33]:

“The Creator,

sees

together,

in a single survey,

their hearts.

And He

“understands all their deeds”

[and this too will be explained in the Gemara].

d.

And on Sukkot,

the festival of

they are judged concerning the water—

concerning the rains that will fall during that year.

Gemara:

We learned in the Mishna: On Passover [they are judged] concerning the grain.

And we raised a difficulty concerning it:

Which grain?

Which grain is being discussed here?

If you say it is the grain that is standing,

if it is referring to grain standing attached to the ground in the fields, now ready, during the season of Passover, to be harvested, then one must ask:

All these events that have befallen it—

when were they judged!?

All the events that have happened to the grain until now—when were they judged?

Rather,

necessarily, the judgment is concerning

grain that is to be sown,

which will be sown in the coming month of Cheshvan.

And we raised a difficulty concerning it:

Does this mean that it is judged by a single judgment!?

Can it be said that the grain is judged only once a year, on Passover alone?

But it was taught in a beraita: Grain in which an accident occurred,

a loss brought about by Heaven, such as hail or blight,

or

in which

a mishap

occurred, a loss caused by a person—

If the loss occurred

before Passover,

then necessarily it had already been

judged

concerning this loss

in the past,

before it was sown, on Passover of the previous year.

And if the loss occurred

after Passover,

then necessarily it was

judged for the future,

on the Passover after it was sown, namely, on the most recent Passover.

And likewise,

a person in whom an accident occurred,

damage caused by Heaven,

or a mishap,

caused by a person: if the matter occurred

before Yom Kippur,

it is known that he was

judged in the past; on the previous Yom Kippur, the damage was decreed upon him.

And if the matter occurred

after

Yom Kippur,

it is known that he was

judged for the future,

on the Yom Kippur that had just passed [at the recent time].

Rava said,

he answered:

Rava:

Indeed,

infer from it

from the words of the beraita that

it is judged by two judgments.

The grain is judged in two judgments: one judgment on the Passover preceding its sowing, and a second judgment on the Passover close to the time of its harvesting.

And this is the intention of our Mishna: On Passover the world is judged concerning the grain, both concerning grain that is about to be harvested and concerning grain that is about to be sown in Cheshvan.

There are two types of grain: seeds called “late,” which take a long time to ripen; they are sown in Cheshvan so that they will have enough time to grow until Nisan or Iyar. These are wheat and spelt.

And there are “early” seeds, which ripen quickly. They are sown close to Nisan, and they have enough time to grow until Nisan or Iyar.

Abaye said:

Since we have said that on Passover the world is judged both concerning grain that has already grown and concerning grain that is about to be harvested,

therefore, when a person sees that the late-sown seed is thriving,

when a person sees that the late seeds sown in Cheshvan are thriving and growing well, this is a sign that on the previous Passover a favorable judgment was decreed concerning the grain.

Therefore,

he should sow the early seed sooner, so that before the time of its judgment arrives—

it will already have grown!

He should sow the early seeds sooner [as they are customarily sown close to Nisan], and sow them as early as possible, so that by the time the next Passover arrives they will already have grown somewhat. Then, even if a harsh judgment is decreed concerning the grain in the following year, nevertheless grain that has already grown somewhat will not be quickly ruined.

The Gemara seeks to determine which tanna taught our Mishna, which states that the world is judged at four times.

And we raise an objection:

Who is the tanna of our Mishna?

Who is the tanna who taught our Mishna? For it must be shown that

it is not Rabbi Meir,

who is its author,

nor Rabbi Yehuda, nor Rabbi Yosei, nor Rabbi Natan.

As follows:

As it was taught in a beraita: Everything

[a person, grain, the fruit of the tree, and water]

is judged on Rosh HaShana.

And their verdict—

is sealed on Yom Kippur; this is the statement of Rabbi Meir.

Rabbi Yehuda says: Everything is judged on Rosh HaShana.

And their verdict—

each one is sealed at its appointed time,

the time designated for it:

On Passover—

it is sealed

concerning the grain.

On Shavuot—

it is sealed

concerning the fruit of the tree.

On Sukkot,

the festival of

they are judged concerning the water.

And a person is judged on Rosh HaShana, and his verdict is sealed on Yom Kippur.

Rabbi Yosei says: A person is judged every day,

day.

As it is stated

[Job 7]:

“You examine him every morning.”

You, God, judge a person every morning and every morning.

Rabbi Natan says: A person is judged every hour

[at every moment].

As it is stated

[later in the verse]:

“You test him every moment.”

The verse teaches that at every moment the Holy One, blessed be He, examines and judges a person.

The Gemara attempts to reconcile the statement of our Mishna:

And if you would say,

and if you would say that

indeed

our Mishna is in accordance with

Rabbi Yehuda. And when our Mishna teaches,

and when it teaches in our Mishna, “At four times the world is judged,” its intention is

the verdict,

that the judgment is sealed at those times.

This cannot be an adequate resolution. For:

If so,

if it is indeed so, that our Mishna was taught in accordance with Rabbi Yehuda and that the intention of the Mishna is not the judgment but the verdict—

it is difficult concerning “a person”!

For we learned in our Mishna that a person is judged on Rosh HaShana, whereas if the intention of the Mishna is the verdict, Rabbi Yehuda says that a person’s verdict is sealed on Yom Kippur!

He said,

he answered,

Rava: This tanna,

who taught our Mishna—

the tanna of the school of

the school of

Rabbi Yishmael is!

As the tanna of the school of Rabbi Yishmael taught: At four times the world is judged:

a.

On Passover, concerning the grain.

b.

On Shavuot, concerning the fruit of the tree.

c.

On Sukkot,

the festival of

they are judged concerning the water.

d.

And a person is judged on Rosh HaShana.

And his verdict is sealed on Yom Kippur.

And when our Mishna teaches,

and when our Mishna teaches “the world is judged,” it is referring to

the beginning of the judgment.

And the Gemara explains the reasoning of Rabbi Yosei, who said that a person is judged every day:

Rav Ḥisda said: What is Rabbi Yosei’s reason?

Before the Gemara finishes citing Rav Ḥisda’s statement, it immediately expresses surprise: there is no need to explain Rabbi Yosei’s reason, since his reason is

as he stated,

he himself, that

his reason

is because it is stated:

“You examine him every morning”!

And we explain Rav Ḥisda’s statement:

We are saying this;

this is what we asked:

Why did

Rabbi Yosei not state

like Rabbi Natan,

that a person is judged every moment, as it is stated, “You test him every moment”?

Necessarily, Rabbi Yosei’s reason is that

“testing”

is not a full judgment, but

merely an examination,

in which the Holy One, blessed be He, examines a person’s deeds.

And if so, it is difficult:

“Examination” too—

is merely an examination!

Even the examination mentioned in the verse [“You examine him every morning”] is not a full judgment, but only an examination of a person’s deeds!

Why, then, did Rabbi Yosei say that a person is judged every day?

Rather,

therefore,

Rav Ḥisda said

another reason:

Rabbi Yosei’s reason

is that he learned this matter

from here,

from this verse, which appears in Solomon’s prayer [I Kings 8]:

“To execute judgment upon His servant

[King Solomon]

and judgment upon His people Israel, each day’s matter on its day.”

From here it follows that a person is judged every day.

And incidentally, having cited the verse “to execute judgment upon His servant,” it brings another statement of Rav Ḥisda, who learned an additional matter from here:

And Rav Ḥisda said: A king and the community,

who come before God for judgment,

the king enters judgment first.

As it is stated: “To execute judgment upon His servant”

[King Solomon],

and afterward

and then it says

“and judgment upon His people Israel.”

The order of the verse indicates that the king is judged before the rest of the people.

What is the reason,

what is the reason for this?

If you wish, say

if you wish, you can say:

It is not proper conduct for a king to sit outside.

It is not proper conduct for a king to wait for the people outside the place of judgment.

And if you wish, say:

the king enters judgment

before the anger increases,

before

wrath

increases on account of the people’s sins.

Rav Yosef said: In accordance with whose opinion do we pray nowadays for the weak and the sick,

in accordance with which tanna do we act today when we pray every day for the health of Torah scholars [who are weak] and for the sick to recover?

In accordance with whose opinion—

in accordance with Rabbi Yosei’s,

who says that a person is judged every day.

And if you wish, say: Indeed,

we hold

in accordance with the Rabbis.

And

nevertheless, we pray for the sick day after day,

in accordance with Rabbi Yitzḥak:

As Rabbi Yitzḥak said: Prayer is effective

[supplication]

for a person, both before the verdict and after the verdict.

For prayer has the power to tear up the verdict.

The Gemara now cites a beraita that explains from where the Sages learned that the world is judged at the four times mentioned in our Mishna:

It was taught in a beraita: Rabbi Yehuda said in the name of Rabbi Akiva:

a.

Why did the Torah say: Bring the omer on Passover!?

As it is stated in Leviticus [chapter 23]: “And he shall wave the omer. On the day after the rest day [the first Festival day of Passover], the priest shall wave it.”

Because Passover is the time

when the judgment concerning the

grain takes place.

Therefore,

the Holy One, blessed be He, said

to Israel:

Bring the omer before Me on Passover,

from the grain,

so that there will be blessing for you

in the

grain in the fields.

b.

And why did the Torah say: Bring the two loaves on Shavuot?

As it is stated: “And you shall offer a new meal-offering to God, two loaves as a wave-offering. And you shall proclaim that very day a sacred occasion,” namely, the festival of Shavuot [Leviticus 23].

Because Shavuot is the time

when the judgment concerning

the fruit of the tree takes place.

Therefore,

the Holy One, blessed be He, said

to Israel:

Bring the two loaves before Me on Shavuot,

for they permit the offering of first fruits from the fruit of the tree,

so that there will be blessing for you in the fruit of the tree.

c.

And why did the Torah say

[as a halakha transmitted to Moses from Sinai]:

Pour water during Sukkot

on the altar?

Because Sukkot—

is the time of the rains of the year.

Therefore,

the Holy One, blessed be He, said

to Israel:

Pour water before Me during Sukkot, so that there will be blessing for you in the rains of the year.

d.

And

the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel:

Recite before Me on Rosh HaShana

verses of

Kingship,

in which God’s enthronement is mentioned, and verses of

Remembrances,

in which it is mentioned that God remembers and attends to everything,

and

verses of

Shofarot,

in which the sounding of the shofar is mentioned:

Kingship—

so that you will enthrone Me over you,

so that you will accept upon yourselves the yoke of My kingship.

Remembrances—

so that your remembrance will arise before Me

in judgment

for good.

And with what

will your remembrance arise for good?

With the shofar.

Since the Gemara said that the shofar causes Israel’s remembrance to arise favorably in judgment, it cites a related statement:

Rabbi Abbahu said: Why do they sound a shofar of a ram,

and not the shofar of another animal?

Because

the Holy One, blessed be He, said

to Israel:

Sound before Me a ram’s shofar, so that I will remember for you the binding of Isaac, son of Abraham,

in whose place a ram was slaughtered,

and

then

I will consider it as though you had bound

yourselves

yourselves

as an offering

before Me.

And the Gemara brings another statement related to the matter:

Rabbi Yitzhak said: Why do they sound the shofar on Rosh Hashanah?

And immediately the Gemara asks in bewilderment:

Why sound?!

Is this a question?! Surely

the Merciful One said

in the Torah

“Sound!”

Rather,

this is what Rabbi Yitzhak asked:

Why do they make a teru'a

on a shofar? And again the Gemara asks in bewilderment: Why

make a teru'a?!

Is this a question?! Surely

the Merciful One said

Leviticus 23:

“A remembrance of teru'a,”

and from this it follows that they make a teru'a!

Rather,

this is what Rabbi Yitzhak asked:

Why do they sound the shofar and make a teru'a

before the Musaf prayer of Rosh Hashanah,

when

the congregation

is seated.