Sanhedrin 95b (צה:) — the Talmud in English

As it is written: “And Jacob went out from Beersheba and went toward Haran,”

this implies that he reached Haran.

But

on the other hand,

it is written: “And he encountered the place and lodged there, for the sun had set,”

and that place was Beth-El. This implies that he had not reached Haran, but lodged on the way, in Beth-El!

Rather, this is what happened: Jacob truly reached Haran.

When he arrived

when he reached

Haran, he said

in his heart:

Is it possible

could such a thing be, that

I passed by

the

place where my forefathers prayed,

Beth-El,

and I did not pray there?

He wished to turn back

he wanted to retrace his steps and go to Beth-El.

Once he merely considered turning back

once he had only contemplated returning in his mind—

the earth sprang toward him. Immediately—

“And he encountered the place.”

The expression “and he encountered the place” implies that he immediately encountered and found the place, and it came near to him.

Alternatively: the term “encounter”

means nothing other than prayer, as it is stated: “And you, do not pray on behalf of this people, and do not raise up on their behalf song and prayer, and do not entreat Me” .

“And he lodged there, for the sun had set.” After he prayed—

he wished to turn back

after Jacob had completed his prayer, he wished to resume his journey and go to Haran.

The Holy One, blessed be He, said: “This righteous man has come to My lodging-place; shall he depart without lodging?”

Immediately the sun set.

This is what is stated: “And he lodged in the place, for the sun had set.” For if the sun had set at its proper time, it should have written, “And the sun set.” Rather, it implies that Jacob had intended to return to Haran, since it was still broad daylight. Once he saw that the sun had set suddenly, before its proper time, he resolved to sleep there.

And this is what is written

later, after Jacob wrestled with the angel:

“And the sun rose for him.”

And this is difficult:

Did it rise only for him? Surely it rose for the entire world!

Rather, Rabbi Yitzḥak said,

this is the meaning of the verse:

the sun that had set for his sake,

which had set earlier especially for him, so that he would remain to sleep in Beth-El—

also rose for his sake.

The Gemara now returns to what we said above: David reversed his prayer and prayed that he be punished by the annihilation of his descendants, in accordance with Avishai’s counsel.

And from where do we know that David’s descendants were annihilated?

As it is written

in the Book of Kings:

“And Athaliah, the mother of Ahaziah, saw that her son was dead, and she arose and destroyed all the royal offspring.”

And we raise a difficulty:

But Joash remained alive

after all, as is related there; if so, all of David’s descendants were not annihilated!?

And we answer:

There, too,

when Saul killed all the men of Nob, the city of the priests,

Ebiathar remained, as it is written: “And one son escaped to Ahimelech, son of Ahitub, and his name was Ebiathar.”

And since David’s punishment—that his descendants be annihilated—was on account of the killing of the men of Nob, measure for measure, therefore, just as one remained in Nob and they were not all destroyed, so too one of David’s descendants remained.

Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav: Had Ebiathar, son of Ahimelech, son of Ahitub, not remained

in the incident of Nob, the city of the priests,

not a remnant or survivor would have remained of David’s descendants.

For it was only because Ebiathar remained that David was not punished by the complete annihilation of his descendants.

The Gemara now returns to discussing Sennacherib.

Rav Yehuda said in the name of Rav: The wicked Sennacherib came against them with forty-five thousand sons of kings seated in golden carriages, and with them royal women

royal women

and prostitutes

and eighty thousand

mighty warriors clad in armor covered with plates , and sixty thousand sword-bearing men ran before him, while the rest were cavalry.

They likewise came against Abraham when he fought the four kings .

And likewise they are destined to come with Gog and Magog .

It was taught in a baraita: The length of his camp

of Sennacherib

was four hundred parasangs

a parasang.

The width of the necks of his horses

was

forty parasangs. The total

of all the soldiers in

his camp

was

two hundred sixty myriad thousands less one

one fewer.

Abaye raised a question:

Does the baraita mean that of the two hundred sixty myriad thousands there was

one myriad missing

one myriad,

or

perhaps the baraita means that there was

one thousand missing

one thousand,

or

that there was

one hundred missing, or

that there was

one

only

one?

And we conclude:

The question remains unresolved.

It was taught:

The

first

of Sennacherib’s soldiers

crossed

the Jordan

by swimming

by swimming—the horses swam across the Jordan and crossed—and thereby the water began to diminish.

As it is stated: “He shall pass through Judah; he shall overflow and pass.”

And because the water diminished through the passage of the first group of soldiers, the

middle group crossed

already on foot,

upright,

standing erect, for the water reached only up to their necks and they did not need to swim.

As it is stated: “It shall reach up to the neck.”

And the

last—

they raised dust with their feet.

For because of the multitude of soldiers who crossed before them, the Jordan dried up completely, and there was no water in it at all.

And they found no water in the river to drink, until they brought water from elsewhere and drank. As it is stated: “I dug and drank water . . .” [“

I dug”] is an expression of a spring. They had to bring water from another spring.

And we raise a difficulty: Were Sennacherib’s armies really so numerous?

But it is written: “And an angel of the Lord went out and struck the camp of Assyria, one hundred eighty-five thousand; and they arose early in the morning, and behold, they were all dead corpses!”

How, then, can we have learned in the baraita that there were two hundred sixty myriad thousands?

Rabbi Abbahu said: These—

those one hundred eighty-five thousand mentioned in the verse as having died—

were the commanders of the armies .

In truth, there were many more soldiers, and they all died.

Rav Ashi said: The language is also precise, as it is written

in the prophecy concerning the downfall of Assyria: “Therefore the Lord, the Lord of Hosts, shall send

leanness among his stout ones.”

This implies:

among the stout ones who were among them

among the distinguished ones among them.

Ravina said: The language is also precise, as it is written: “And the Lord sent an angel and annihilated every mighty warrior, leader, and officer in the camp, and so on; and he came into the house of his god, and those who came forth from his own body felled him there by the sword.”

This proves that those mentioned as having died were the commanders of the armies, mighty warriors, and so on.

And we conclude:

Learn from this.

With what did he strike them

in what manner did the angel strike the camp of Assyria?

Rabbi Eliezer says: He struck them with a hand

as it is stated: “And Israel saw the great hand.”

It does not say “a great hand,” but “the great hand.” This implies a יד הידועה, a known hand. And it is

the hand that is destined to exact punishment from Sennacherib.

Rabbi Yehoshua says: He struck them with a finger, as it is stated: “And the magicians said to Pharaoh: It is the finger of God.” It is the finger that is destined to exact punishment from Sennacherib.

Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei HaGelili, says: The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Gabriel: “Your sickle is sharpened”

is your sickle already honed and sharpened to kill these people?

He said before Him: “Master of the Universe,

already

sharpened and ready

it is

since the six days of Creation, as it is stated: “Because of swords they wandered . . .”

and the end of the verse is: “Because of the sharpened sword.”

Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai says: That period was the season when fruit ripens. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Gabriel,

who is the angel appointed over the ripening of fruit:

“When you go out to ripen fruit—

at the same time

deal with them

Sennacherib’s army, to kill them.

As it is stated: “As often as it passes through, it shall take you; for morning by morning it shall pass, by day and by night, and it shall be only terror to understand the report, and so on.” “

As often as it passes through” means, incidentally, as he passes there .

Rav Pappa said: This is what people say: “Incidentally, as you travel on your way”—

make yourself heard to your enemy”

when you go on your way without special intent, at the same time show yourself to your enemy—and frighten him.

And some say: He breathed upon them through their nostrils—

and they died, as it is stated: “And He also breathed upon them, and they withered.”

Rabbi Yirmeya bar Abba said: He clapped his hands at them—

and they died, as it is stated: “I too shall clap My hands against My hands, and I shall cause My wrath to rest.”

Rabbi Yitzḥak Nappaḥa said: He uncovered their ears

he opened their ears,

and

thereby

they heard song from the mouths of the living creatures—

and they died

as it is stated: “From Your exaltation nations scattered.”

And how many of them remained

from Sennacherib’s army?

Rav said: Ten

people.

As it is stated: “And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few in number, and a child shall write them.”

This proves that the remnant of Sennacherib’s army was a number that a child could write.

How many can a child write—

ten.

For even a small child who does not know how to write can place a drop of ink , thereby making the letter yod, whose numerical value is ten.

And Shmuel said: Nine

remained of them.

As it is stated: “And what remains in it shall be like the gleanings of an olive tree: two or three berries at the top of the uppermost branch, four or five on its fruitful boughs.”

That is, just as when an olive tree is beaten [in order to knock down its olives], two or three berries remain on it, so too only a small number would remain of Sennacherib’s army: four or five. And four and five together are nine.

Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Fourteen

remained.

As it is stated: “Two, three, and so on; four, five.”

The sum of all the numbers mentioned in the verse—two, three, four, and five—is fourteen.

Rabbi Yoḥanan said: Five

remained of them. And they were

Sennacherib and his two sons, Nebuchadnezzar, and Nebuzaradan.

And from where do we know that these remained?

Nebuzaradan—

it is a tradition

this is what the Sages received .

Nebuchadnezzar—

as it is written

when he saw Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah in the fiery furnace:

“And the appearance of the fourth is like that of a son of the gods”

and there was a fourth one with them who resembled an angel.

And had he not seen him, how would he have known

and if Nebuchadnezzar had never seen the angel, from where would he have known that he resembled an angel!? Rather, it is proven that he had been among Sennacherib’s soldiers and had seen the angel Gabriel when he struck them .

Sennacherib and his two sons—

as it is written: “And while he was worshipping in the house of Nisroch his god, Adrammelech and Sharezer, his sons, struck him with the sword.”

It is proven that they remained alive at that time, and only afterward did Sennacherib’s sons strike their father.

Rabbi Abbahu said: Were it not for the

the

verse

below

that is written—

it would be impossible to say it

it could not have been said:

As it is written: “On that day the Lord shall shave with a hired razor, beyond the River, with the king of Assyria, the head and the hair of the legs

and shall also sweep away the beard.”

That is, the Holy One, blessed be He, Himself would shave Sennacherib, king of Assyria , as follows.

The Holy One, blessed be He, came and appeared to him as an old man

the Holy One, blessed be He, came and revealed Himself to Sennacherib as an old man.

He said to him

to Sennacherib:

“When you go to

when you go to

the kings of the East and West, whose sons you brought

whom you brought in order to wage war against Jerusalem ,

and

now

you have killed them

they were killed,

what will you say to them

what will you say to them, and how will you escape from them?

He said to him: “That man is also sitting in that very fear”

indeed, I too am afraid of this, as I do not know what to say to them.

He said to him

Sennacherib:

“What shall we do?”