Sanhedrin 109a (קט.) — the Talmud in English

They said: With whom

shall we send

[They said: With whom shall we send the gift]?

Let us send it with

[Let us send it with]

Nahum איש Gam Zu,

for he is learned in miracles.

When he arrived at that lodging

[When Nahum arrived at that inn],

he wished to lodge

[he wished to spend the night].

They said to him: What do you have with you

[The members of the household said to him: What did you bring with you]?

He said to them: I am carrying the tribute for the emperor

[I am carrying a tax for the emperor].

The members of the household arose

and

at night opened his chest

[they opened the box],

and took everything that was with him

[and took everything that had been inside it],

and filled it with earth

[and filled it with earth].

When he arrived there—

earth was found

[when Nahum איש Gam Zu arrived at the emperor’s palace, it was discovered that he had brought earth in the chest ].

The emperor said

the emperor:

The Jews are mocking me

[The Jews are making fun of me]!

They took him out to execute him

[They took Nahum out to kill him, because he had insulted the king].

Nahum said

as was his custom:

“This too is for the good.”

Elijah came and appeared to them as one of their own

[Elijah came and appeared to those sitting before the king as one of them].

He said to them: Perhaps this earth

is not ordinary earth, but

is from the earth of Abraham our father, who would cast earth—

they became swords, stones—

did they become arrows?

They tested it—

and found that this was indeed so

[and found that it was indeed such earth].

There was a province that the king’s armies could not conquer

[There was a province that the king’s armies were unable to subdue].

They threw some of that earth upon it

[They cast some of the earth upon that province]—

and conquered it.

They brought him into the treasury

[They brought Nahum into the king’s treasury],

and said

[they said to him]:

Take whatever you like

[Take whatever you desire].

He filled the chest with gold

[Nahum filled the chest with gold].

When he returned

[When Nahum returned to Eretz Yisrael, he again passed through that same inn],

the residents said to him

[the members of the place said to him]:

What did you bring to the king’s palace

[What did you bring to the king’s palace]?

He said to them: Whatever I took from here—

I brought there

[Whatever I took from here, I brought there, to the king’s palace].

They too took

[They too took earth from that place],

and brought it there

[and brought it to the king’s palace].

The king’s men examined the earth and saw that it was merely ordinary earth!

They killed those residents

[They killed those same inhabitants].

We learned in our Mishna:

“The generation of the Dispersion has no share in the World-to-Come, and so on.”

What did they do

—what did the people of the generation of the Dispersion do?

The school of Rabbi Sheila said:

The people of that generation said:

“Let us build a tower, ascend to the firmament, and strike it

[the firmament]

with axes, so that its waters will flow out” .

They mocked this in the West

[They ridiculed their words in Eretz Yisrael], because

if so,

if the people of that generation wished to reach the heavens, why did they build the tower in a valley?

Let them build it on a mountain

[Let them build the tower on one of the mountains]!

Rabbi Yirmeya bar Elazar said: They divided

the people of the generation of the Dispersion

into three groups:

One group

said: Let us ascend

to the firmament

and settle there.

And

one group

said: Let us ascend and worship idolatry.

And

one group

said: Let us ascend and wage war .

As for the group that said, “Let us ascend and settle there”—

the Lord scattered them

and dispersed them throughout the world.

And as for the group that said, “Let us ascend and wage war”—

they became apes

886, and spirits

[without body or form],

and shedim

[they have human form and eat and drink like human beings],

and lilin

[they have human form, but also have wings].

And as for the group that said, “Let us ascend and worship idolatry”—

“For there the Lord confused the language of the entire earth.”

The Holy One, blessed be He, confused their language so that one could not understand his fellow’s intention in worshipping idolatry.

It was taught in a beraita: Rabbi Natan says: They all intended to worship idolatry.

The proof is that

it is written here,

concerning the tower:

“Let us make a name for ourselves,” and it is written there,

concerning idolatry:

“And the name of other gods you shall not mention.”

Just as there—

idolatry, so too here,

concerning the generation of the Dispersion—

idolatry. Rabbi Yohanan said:

That

same

tower:

the

upper third

of it

was burned. The

lower third,

its

foundation,

was swallowed

by the earth. And the

middle third

still

exists.

Rav said: The air of the tower

that is, one who stands around that tower, sees its air, and observes its height—

causes forgetfulness.

For it was decreed concerning that place that it would cause forgetfulness . Therefore, the people of the generation of the Dispersion forgot their language .

Rav Yosef said: Babylon and Bורסיף

[these are places]—

are a bad sign for Torah.

For these places cause learning to be forgotten, since they stand in the air of the tower .

What is the meaning of Bורסיף

[What does this name, “Bורסיף,” mean]?

Rabbi Asi said:

It means: an empty pit [a pit whose waters have drained away]. That is, a person who is there forgets all his learning.

We learned in our Mishna:

“The people of Sodom have no share in the World-to-Come, and so on.”

The Sages taught: The people of Sodom have no share in the World-to-Come, as it is stated: “And the people of Sodom were evil and sinful toward the Lord, exceedingly.” Evil

in this world, and sinful

with regard to the World-to-Come.

Rav Yehuda said: “Evil”—

in their bodies,

for they were steeped in sexual immorality.

And “sinful”—

with regard to their money,

for they did not give charity.

That they were

evil in their bodies

is derived from

as it is written

here, that the people of Sodom were “evil,” while concerning Joseph, when Potiphar’s wife sought to seduce him, he said to her:

“How then can I commit this great evil and sin against God?”

Thus, “evil” means sexual immorality.

And

that they were

sinful with regard to their money

is derived from

as it is written

here, “and sinful,” while concerning charity it is written: “And your eye be evil against your poor brother, and so on,

and there shall be sin in you.”

“Toward the Lord”—

this refers to cursing the Name

[in euphemistic language; that is, blasphemy].

“Exceedingly”—

that they intentionally sinned

[that they acted deliberately ].

In a baraita it was taught

the opposite:

“Evil”—

with regard to their money, and “sinful”—

in their bodies.

“Evil with regard to their money,” as it is written: “And your eye be evil against your poor brother.”

“And sinful in their bodies, as it is written

concerning Joseph and Potiphar’s wife:

“And I would sin against God.”

“Toward the Lord”—

this refers to cursing the Name.

“Exceedingly”—

this refers to bloodshed. As it is stated: “And Manasseh also shed very much innocent blood, and so on.”

The Sages taught: The people of Sodom became arrogant—

only because of the goodness that the Holy One, blessed be He, bestowed upon them .

And what is written concerning them? “A land from which bread emerges

[for it was a prosperous and good land],

and beneath it is overturned as fire

[and afterward it was overturned],

a place whose stones are sapphires and which contains gold ore; a path unknown to the bird of prey, unseen by the eye of the vulture; the proud have not trodden it, nor has the lion passed over it.”

The people of Sodom said

the people of Sodom:

“Since

our land is

‘a land from which bread emerges and which contains gold ore,’

for we have an abundance of bread,

why do we need passersby? They come to us only to diminish our wealth!

Let us eliminate the passage of travelers from our land,

so that wayfarers will not pass through our land.

As it is stated: “A torrent breaks forth from the place of the sojourner; forgotten by the foot, they are diminished, they move away from man

and wander.”

This means: “A torrent breaks forth”—the Holy One, blessed be He, broke forth with a torrent of sulfur and fire. “From the place of the sojourner”—from the place where the torrent flowed above, and He cast it down upon “forgotten by the foot”—these are those who sought to eliminate the passage of human feet from their land. “They are diminished, they move away from man and wander”—they were diminished from their land and wandered to disgrace.

Rava expounded: What is the meaning of that which is written: “How long will you devise mischief against a man? You will murder all of you, like a leaning wall, like a tottering fence”?

This teaches that they would

the people of Sodom

cast their eyes upon wealthy men and seat him beside a leaning wall

that was about to fall,

and push it upon him

so that he would die,

and then come and take his money .

This is the meaning of “devise mischief”—you seek deceptions and pretexts; “you will murder all of you” by means of a “leaning wall.”

Rava expounded: What is the meaning of that which is written: “They dig through houses in the dark; by day they seal themselves in; they do not know the light”?

This teaches that they would

the people of Sodom

cast their eyes upon wealthy men

894, and entrust them with balsam,

whose fragrance spreads greatly,

and

the wealthy men would

place it in their treasuries.

For it is the practice of watchmen to place a deposit in their treasuries so that it will be guarded היטב.

In the evening they would come

those who had entrusted the balsam,

and smell it like a dog. As it is stated: “They return at evening, they howl like a dog and go around the city.”

Then they would come and dig there,

in the place where the wealthy men had concealed the balsam,

and take that money

that was found there, in their treasuries.

This is the meaning of “They dig through houses in the dark; by day they seal themselves in”: the people of Sodom would close and seal their balsam so that they could entrust it to the wealthy men .

“They go naked, without clothing; and there is no covering in the cold. They drive away the donkey of the orphan; they take the widow’s ox as collateral; they encroach upon boundaries; they seize the flock and pasture it. And he is led to the grave, and over the heap he keeps watch” .

Rabbi Yosei expounded in Sepphoris

the verse “They dig through houses in the dark, and so on,” and explained the conduct of the people of Sodom, who entrusted balsam to wealthy men.

That night, three hundred tunnels were dug

[three hundred tunnels were dug that night, after he delivered his exposition]

in Sepphoris.

For the thieves did as the people of Sodom had done: They entrusted balsam, and through this they knew where the wealthy men deposited their money.

They came and distressed him

[the people of the place came and distressed him].

They said to him: You have taught the thieves their way

[You showed the thieves the way]!

He said to them: Did I know that thieves would come

[How could I have known that thieves would come] ?

When Rabbi Yosei’s soul departed

[when Rabbi Yosei died],

the gutters of Sepphoris flowed with blood

[the gutters of his city, Sepphoris, flowed with blood] .

Further,

the people of Sodom said

the people of Sodom:

“One who has a single ox—

shall pasture for one day”

[One who has a single ox shall pasture all the animals of the city for one day].

One who has none—

shall pasture for two days”

[And one who has no oxen at all shall pasture the animals of the city for two days] .

There was a certain orphan, the son of a widow

[there was among them an orphan who was the son of a widow].

They gave him oxen to pasture

[they gave him oxen to pasture],

and he went, took them, and slaughtered them

[he went, took them, and slaughtered them].