Sanhedrin 26a — the Talmud in English

And the townspeople understood the hint,

and everyone hid

and all hid.

When he came,

when the city official arrived,

he said to him

Rabbi Zeira’s father said to the city official:

From whom should we collect?!

From whom shall money be collected? After all, the residents of the city are few. And the city official was satisfied with a small amount.

When his soul was at rest,

at the time of Rabbi Zeira’s father’s death,

he said to them

he instructed his household:

Take

take

thirteen ma’ot

thirteen coins

that I tied for myself in my sheet

which I tied for myself in my sheet and safeguarded,

and return them

and return them

to so-and-so

to so-and-so,

for I took them from him

for I took them from him,

and I did not need them

and I did not need to give them to the city official.

And this was his righteousness and uprightness.

We learned in our Mishna:

Rabbi Shimon said: At first they would call them Gatherers of Sabbatical produce,

when the extortionists became numerous, they went back to calling them Merchants of Sabbatical produce.

And the Gemara explains:

What is he saying

Rabbi Shimon? What is “at first” and what is “at the end”; who are the extortionists; whom did they call Gatherers of Sabbatical produce and Merchants of Sabbatical produce; and what practical difference is there in what they call them?

It is permitted to gather Sabbatical produce for the purpose of eating. And when the time of removal arrives, when they are no longer found in the fields—each species at its time—they must remove it [according to Rashi, Pesachim 52b, the intention is that they render it ownerless in a place where wild animals and beasts pass]. And it is forbidden to trade in Sabbatical produce, as it is stated: “And the Sabbatical produce of the land shall be yours to eat,” and we expound: “to eat,” and not for commerce.

Rav Yehuda said: This is what he is saying

Rabbi Shimon:

At first

the Sages

would say: Gatherers of Sabbatical produce

for the purpose of eating

are fit.

Merchants are disqualified.

When they became numerous

the extortionists, who were

providing money to the poor, and the poor would go and gather for them,

paying the poor so that they would gather the Sabbatical produce for them,

and bring it to them,

and bring them the produce in exchange for the money, and through this they are “Merchants of Sabbatical produce.”

They went back to saying

that those who had previously been called Gatherers would be called Merchants,

and both this one and that one,

both the gatherers and the merchants—

are disqualified.

But the Gemara raises a difficulty against this from the wording of the Mishna.

The sons of Reḥava

had difficulty

with it

with this interpretation:

the sons of Reḥava

Is it so that

these

providers of money to the poor are

“when the extortionists became numerous”?

After all,

“when the merchants became numerous”

the traders,

he should have said

it would have been fitting for Rabbi Shimon to say?

And the Gemara explains another interpretation.

Rather,

also

at first they would say: Both this one and that one

both actual merchants and those who gathered for themselves—

are disqualified,

because they provided money to the poor.

But

when the extortionists became numerous—and what are they? Arnonah,

the king compelled the landowners to give a certain number of kor annually from the produce of the field as a tax, and it turns out that they did not gather Sabbatical produce with the intention of transgressing a prohibition, but for the sake of the king’s taxes; therefore they are not suspected of giving false testimony.

Before the Gemara finishes explaining Rabbi Shimon’s words, it brings proof that they had dealings with arnonah, on account of which they permitted a prohibition of Sabbatical produce.

As

in the case

where Rabbi Yannai announced: Go out

go out to the fields

and sow during the Sabbatical year, because of arnonah.

And now the Gemara returns to explain Rabbi Shimon’s words.

Therefore—

they went back to saying: Gatherers—

are fit. Merchants

actual ones

are disqualified. [The interpretation of the Mishna is: They went back to calling them, the disqualified witnesses, Merchants of Sabbatical produce. That is, only they are disqualified].

And the explanation of the Mishna is: They went back to calling those who are disqualified from bearing witness merchants of produce of the Sabbatical Year. That is, only they are disqualified.]

The Gemara relates a story concerning the Sabbatical year.

Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak were going

they went

to intercalate a year in Asia .

Reish Lakish encountered them

he met them

and joined them,

he accompanied them, because

he said, I will go

I will go

and see

and see

how they perform the procedure,

how they conduct their affairs concerning intercalating the year.

He saw

Reish Lakish saw

a certain man

a certain man

who was plowing,

plowing his field during the Sabbatical year. Reish Lakish protested

and said to them

to Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak:

A priest—and plowing!

This is a priest who is plowing during the Sabbatical year [and the Gemara will explain that priests were suspected concerning the Sabbatical year].

They said to him

Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak said to Reish Lakish:

He can

the plower can explain himself

and say: I am a hired laborer on it.

I am merely a hired worker, and the land belongs to a non-Jew. Or, he is hired by the landowner, who works his land for arnonah, as explained above, that they permitted it because of arnonah.

Again

again

he saw

Reish Lakish saw

a certain man

a certain man

who was pruning in my vineyards,

cutting dry vine branches, which is forbidden during the Sabbatical year, as it is a derivative of sowing, since it benefits the growth of the vines.

Reish Lakish protested,

and said to them

to Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak:

A priest—and pruning!

This is a priest who is pruning during the Sabbatical year.

They said to him

Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak said to Reish Lakish:

He can

the pruner can explain himself, and

say

that he is not pruning for the purpose of working the land, but

I need it for the ring of the olive press

I need the branches for the work of the olive press, to make ropes from them to bind the gathered olives when a beam is placed upon them to press them. This is not a derivative of sowing, and it is permitted during the Sabbatical year.

Reish Lakish responded to their words and

said to them: The heart knows whether

he is doing this

for the ring,

or

for crookedness

to transgress the prohibition of the Sabbatical year. [That is, they went too far in finding merit for transgressors].

Before the Gemara continues the story, it clarifies the order of events, and likewise why he said to them “priest.”

Which

which of the two

did he say to them first

at the beginning: concerning the one who plowed or concerning the one who pruned?

If you say

if it is said

the first one

this first one, “A priest—and plowing,”

he said to them first

and afterward he said “A priest—and pruning,” as related,

this one too

also concerning the pruner

they could say

they could have found merit and said:

I am a hired laborer on it?

Rather,

the order of the events must be changed:

this one

the pruner

he said to him first

this was first,

and afterward he said to them this

“A priest—and plowing,” since it was impossible to say that he needed the wood, or a similar explanation; therefore they said a new thing, that he could say, “I am a hired laborer on it.”

And the Gemara explains:

Why specifically a priest,

why did he tell them that he was a priest? After all, the prohibition of the Sabbatical year applies to every Israelite?

Because

priests

are suspected concerning the Sabbatical year,

concerning the prohibition of the Sabbatical year. Since they grant themselves permission, thinking that just as teruma and sacrificial sanctities were permitted to them, so the Sabbatical year, which possesses the sanctity of the Land of Israel, was permitted to them.

And the Gemara proves that priests are suspected concerning the Sabbatical year—and therefore the Sages imposed stringency upon them.

For it was taught:

Teruma “rises” with one hundred. That is, if a se’a of teruma fell into one hundred se’ah of non-sacred produce, and the teruma is not discernible, it is nullified by the majority, and all one hundred se’ah are permitted for Israelites to eat. But if it fell into fewer than one hundred, it is not nullified and is forbidden to Israelites. Then all the se’ah are sold [with the teruma among them] to priests. The sale is at a cheap price, that is, below their market price, because their purchasers are few, only priests, and they obtain teruma for free.

And the beraita discusses teruma that fell into Sabbatical produce while it is still permitted to eat it, that is, before the time of removal.

A se’a of teruma that fell into one hundred se’ah of Sabbatical produce—

rises,

that is, it is nullified. And all the se’ah are permitted for non-priests to eat. But if it fell

into fewer than this,

than one hundred se’ah, in which case it is not nullified—

they shall rot.

They shall leave them until they rot, and it is forbidden to eat them.

And we discussed it,

and when we were in that discussion, we raised the difficulty:

Why shall they rot!?

After all, there is another solution, that

he should sell it to a priest for the price of teruma

at a cheap price, and the owner of the produce will receive a cheap price for the non-sacred Sabbatical produce. For it is permitted to sell Sabbatical produce [occasionally ], if it will be eaten before the time of removal,

apart from the value of that se’a

of teruma, which is forbidden to sell, because the mitzva of giving teruma to a priest is giving it for free. So why should they rot?

And Rabbi Hiyya said in the name of Ulla: This means,

this has been newly established here,

priests were suspected concerning the Sabbatical year,

to keep it until after the time of removal ].

Therefore he said, “A priest—and plowing,” “A priest—and pruning.”

Now the Gemara returns to relate:

They said

Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak said about Reish Lakish:

This one is a troublemaker!

He is argumentative and troubles us with his words. And therefore,

when they arrived there,

when they reached the upper room where the year was intercalated, and they did not want Reish Lakish to trouble them,

they went up to the roof,

they went up to the upper room,

they pulled up the ladder from beneath them,

they lifted the ladder up, so that Reish Lakish could not climb up to them.

Reish Lakish came

Reish Lakish

before

before

Rabbi Yohanan, he said to him

Reish Lakish said to Rabbi Yohanan:

People suspected concerning the Sabbatical year,

that is, those who advocate on behalf of the wicked who work their fields during the Sabbatical year—are they

fit to intercalate the year?!

He went back

he retracted and

said: It is not difficult for me,

because

just as it is

this matter resembles

the three cattle herders

as related in the second chapter [18b], that the Sages heard them say: The spring season has not yet arrived.

And the Rabbis relied upon their calculations.

They relied upon their expertise in the seasons and their calculations. And just as there they relied upon the three cattle herders, so one can rely upon Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak.

And he went back,

and again retracted and

said: It is not comparable

this case to that case. For

there,

there the Sages heard their opinion [and even without their opinion they would have intercalated the year, as explained there]

and afterward the Sages counted,

the Sages again convened and counted in the requisite number—three, five, or seven—for intercalating the year—

and intercalated that year

that year. But here,

here

in the incident of Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak, how can one rely upon them for intercalating a year? After all,

it is a conspiracy of wicked people, and a conspiracy of wicked people is not included in the count;

they are not reliable, and a court requires reliable people.

Rabbi Yohanan said: That is the problem,

this is the trouble—that you call them wicked.

When they came,

when Rabbi Hiyya bar Zarnoki and Rabbi Shimon ben Yehotzadak arrived

before

before

Rabbi Yohanan, they said to him

to Rabbi Yohanan: Reish Lakish

calls us ‘cattle herders,’ and the Master said nothing at all!?

And you did not protest against him?!

He said to them

Rabbi Yohanan said to them:

And if he had called you

if he had called

shepherds,

who are inferior to cattle herders,

what could I have said to him,

what could I have said to him?

And now the Gemara explains:

What is a conspiracy of wicked people?

Where do we find that a conspiracy of wicked people is not included in the count?

During the siege that Sennacherib, king of Assyria, laid against Jerusalem in the days of King Hezekiah, in the Book of Kings [chapter 18, verse 20] and in the Book of Isaiah [chapter 36, verse 9], Rabshakeh came as the emissary of the king of Assyria and blasphemed and cursed the God of Israel, His holy people, and His inheritance. It is related there that he wished to speak with King Hezekiah, “and Eliakim son of Hilkiah, who was over the household, and Shebna the scribe, and Joah son of Asaph the recorder, came out to him.” And it is written there several times that they were the ones who went back and forth for King Hezekiah.

And in the Book of Isaiah [chapter 22] it is written that God sent Isaiah the prophet to Shebna, who was over the household, and cursed him with severe curses, and transferred his office to Eliakim son of Hilkiah. It is not stated there for what he cursed him, what his sin was, or what caused his sin.

The Gemara explains his actions here and expounds some of the verses, as well as that “a conspiracy of wicked people is not included in the count.”

Shebna

the official in charge of the king’s household

would lecture

he would lecture

before thirteen myriads,

before one hundred and thirty thousand people. Whereas

Hezekiah

the king

would lecture

he would lecture

before eleven myriads

before one hundred and ten thousand people.

When

when

Sennacherib came and besieged Jerusalem, Shebna wrote a note

a note,

cast it

and sent it

with an arrow

with an arrow to Sennacherib, and written in it was:

“Shebna and his faction

and his men [who were more numerous than Hezekiah’s men]

have submitted

to you and wish to serve you. But

Hezekiah and his faction have not submitted.”

And it is expounded from what is stated in the Book of Psalms:

“For behold, the wicked bend the bow; they prepare their arrow upon the string.”

That is, through an arrow he displayed his wickedness, for he informed against his master, King Hezekiah.

Hezekiah was afraid

he was afraid

of him

of Shebna,

he said: Perhaps, Heaven forbid, the inclination

inclines

His will

His desire

of the Holy One, blessed is He, is after

Shebna, because he is the

majority,

for most of the people are with Shebna, and he thought that one must yield to the majority; and

since the majority is surrendering

they wish to surrender to Sennacherib,

they

he and his faction

will also surrender

must surrender.

The prophet came

Isaiah, chapter 6,

and said

to him:

“You shall not call everything this people calls a conspiracy a conspiracy”

Do not think that the number of Shebna’s supporters is considered a majority,

that is, it is a conspiracy of wicked people

a joining together of wicked people,

and a conspiracy of wicked people is not included in the count

they are not considered a majority .

Shebna went

to

hew out a grave for himself in the graves of the House of David,

In his great arrogance, he wanted to rebel against the monarchy and be buried in the graves of the kings.

A prophet came

and met him at the burial site

and said to him: “What do you have here, and who do you have here, that you have hewn out a grave for yourself here?”

You do not belong to the royal family, and your relatives are not buried here.

It is further written there that the prophet said to him:

“Behold, God

will hurl you with a mighty hurling.”

Rav said: The upheaval of a man is more difficult

more severe

than that of a woman

than the upheaval of a woman .

It is further written there:

“And your covering shall cover you”

[According to its plain meaning, Rashi explained there that this is from the language of “a bird of prey”: they will make you fly into exile like a bird.] And we derive:

Rabbi Yosei bar Rabbi Ḥanina said

The verse

teaches

us

, that leprosy erupted on him. It is written here: “And your covering shall cover you,” and it is written there

in the passage concerning one afflicted with leprosy:

“And he shall cover his upper lip”

And we derive: Just as there, the reference is to leprosy, so too here, the reference is to leprosy.

It is further written there:

“He will surely wrap you in a wrapping; like a ball he will hurl you to a broad land,

There you will die, and there the chariots of your glory will be the disgrace of your master’s house.” “Wrapping” is related to the word for a turban, meaning that the armies of Sennacherib will surround you like a ball, like a wall , to exile you to a broad land. There you will die, and there, instead of being the chariots of his glory, he will be the disgrace of his master’s house.

A tanna

we learned in a beraita, a tannaitic source not included in the Mishna:

He sought

the

disgrace of his master’s house

and wanted to rebel against Hezekiah,

therefore his honor was transformed

He had thought that if he made peace with Sennacherib, he would gain honor,

into disgrace.

But how?

When he was going out

when Shebna came out of the city with his faction, going ahead of them, and when he was outside,

Gabriel came

the angel,

and seized

the door

and closed the city gates

before his faction

so that they could not leave.