Shabbat 33b (לג:) — the Talmud in English

The Sages taught: Diphtheria comes to the world

for the

sin of one who does not

tithe

his produce and eats it as untithed produce. Therefore he is punished in his throat, because it is through it that he eats.

Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei, says: For malicious speech.

Rava said, and some say Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi

said it:

What is the verse?

As it is written in Psalms [63]:

“And the king shall rejoice in God; everyone who swears by Him shall glory, for the mouth of

those who speak falsehood shall be stopped.”

“Shall be stopped” is from the same expression as “diphtheria.”

They raised a dilemma before them:

Was the intention of

Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei,

that diphtheria occurs only

for malicious speech

, and not for eating one’s produce while it is still untithed, and this is what he

said: “

for malicious speech”?

Or perhaps:

Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei,

also said that it is for malicious speech as well

, meaning that the punishment of diphtheria comes for this sin too.

Come and hear: When our Sages entered the

beit-midrash in which they sat in rows, like a

vineyard

,

in Yavne,

Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei, and Rabbi Shimon were there.

And

this question was posed to them: This affliction

of diphtheria—

why does it begin

in the intestines,

and

it

end in the mouth?

Rabbi Yehuda, son of Rabbi Ilai, the foremost speaker, responded,

as he was the first to speak

everywhere,

because so the king had decreed.

And he said

in answer:

Although the kidneys

are

give counsel

to a person,

and the heart

is

understands, and the tongue

is

articulates,

but the

mouth

is

completes

the utterance of malicious speech, from which the voice emerges. Therefore diphtheria begins in the intestines and ends in the mouth.

Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei, responded and said:

The reason it ends in the mouth is

because people eat through it—

impure things

.

Impure things, is that conceivable?!

Is the punishment for one who eats impure things death?

And we explain:

Rather,

this is what he is saying:

Because people eat through it things that are not prepared

, while they are still untithed produce; and one who eats untithed produce is liable to death.

Rabbi Shimon responded and said: For the sin of neglecting Torah study .

They said to him,

the Sages:

Women prove otherwise,

as they are not commanded to study Torah, as it is written: “And you shall teach them to your sons,” and yet they too die from diphtheria.

He said to them: They too are punished for the sin of neglecting Torah study, because

they

prevent their husbands

from studying Torah.

They said to him:

Gentiles prove otherwise,

for although they have no connection to Torah, they too die from diphtheria.

He said to them: They are punished because

they

prevent the

people of

Israel

from studying Torah.

They said to him:

Children prove otherwise,

as they do not neglect Torah study, and nevertheless they die from diphtheria.

He said to them: Because

they prevent their fathers

from studying.

They said to him:

Schoolchildren

who study Torah and do not neglect it

prove

that the punishment does not come for the sin of neglecting Torah study.

And we explain:

There,

with regard to schoolchildren, it is

in accordance with Rabbi Guryon.

For Rabbi Guryon said, and some say Rabbi Yosef, son of Rabbi Shemaya,

said it:

When the righteous

are present

in the generation,

the

righteous are apprehended

and punished

for

the sin of

the generation.

But

when there are no righteous people in the generation,

then

schoolchildren are apprehended for

the sin of

the generation. Their death from diphtheria is not on account of their own sin.

Their death from diphtheria is therefore not because of their own sin.

Rabbi Yitzhak bar Zeiri said, and some say Rabbi Shimon ben Nezira said: What is the verse?

As it is written:

“If you do not know, O fairest among women,—

go forth in the footsteps of the sheep

and pasture your young goats beside the shepherds’ dwellings.”

And this is the meaning of this verse: “If you do not know, O fairest among women”—to observe My mitzvot properly. “

Go forth,” and seek mercy by the merit of “the footsteps of the sheep,” which are the holy forefathers, who were the feet of the sheep. “

And pasture,” by the merit of the forefathers, “

your young goats,” these are your children, “beside the shepherds’ dwellings.”

And we say: These are

the

young goats, held as pledges

, like a pledge

for the shepherds,

so that they will not be apprehended for the sin of the shepherds and leaders of the generation.

And we conclude from this:

Conclude from it

, since Rabbi Eliezer, son of Rabbi Yosei, said: “Because people eat through it things that are not prepared,”

also for

the sin of

malicious speech as well, he said it; conclude from it.

We inquire concerning this:

And why did they call him

Rabbi Yehuda, son of Rabbi Ilai,

the foremost speaker everywhere?

And we explain: There was an incident in which

Rabbi Yehuda, Rabbi Yosei, and Rabbi Shimon

bar Yohai were sitting.

And Yehuda ben Gerim was sitting with them [and he was called this because his father and mother were converts].

Rabbi Yehuda began and said: How beautiful

are the deeds of this nation

[Rome]. For they

established

marketplaces,

and

established bridges,

and

established bathhouses.

Rabbi Yosei

when he heard Rabbi Yehuda’s words

was silent.

Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai responded and said: Everything that

the Romans

established, they established only for the sake of

the benefit of

themselves.

They

established marketplaces—

in order

to install prostitutes in them.

They

established bathhouses—

in order

to indulge

their

own bodies.

They

established bridges—

in order

to collect from them

, from those who crossed them,

a toll.

Rabbi

Yehuda

ben Gerim went and recounted

at home

their words

of the Sages.

And

as a result,

they were heard by the Roman government

.

They said

the authorities: Rabbi

Yehuda, who praised

and lauded the government, he

will be elevated

as a reward for this, to be the foremost speaker everywhere.

Rabbi

Yosei, who was silent

and neither praised nor protested Rabbi Shimon’s words, he

will be exiled to Tzippori.

Rabbi

Shimon, who denigrated

the government, he

will be killed.

He went

—Rabbi Shimon—

and his son

—Rabbi Elazar.

They hid

in the

beit-midrash.

Every day his wife would bring them

Rabbi Shimon’s wife,

bread

to eat,

and a jug

of

water, and they would eat

.

When the decree grew severe,

as they searched intensely for him, Rabbi Shimon

said to

Rabbi Shimon

his son:

Since

women are easily influenced

, I fear

perhaps

the Romans

will torment her

with harsh tortures that she will not withstand,

and she will reveal to us

where we are hiding.

They went and hid

in

a cave.

And

a miracle occurred for them,

and

there grew for them

a

carob tree

from which they ate fruit ,

and a spring of water

from which they drank.

And

Rabbi Shimon and Rabbi Elazar were

removing their garments,

taking off their clothes,

so that they would not wear out.

And they would sit buried up to their necks in sand

[in sand].

All day

they would

study,

and

at the time of prayer,

when they stood for prayer, they

put on

their garments,

covered themselves and prayed, and

when they finished their prayer,

they again removed their garments so that they would not wear out.

They remained twelve years in the cave.

After twelve years,

Elijah came,

the prophet,

and stood at the entrance of the cave and said: Who will inform

—who will inform

the son of Yohai that the emperor has died

of Rome

and his decree has been annulled?

When they heard his words,

they emerged

Rabbi Shimon and his son, and left the cave.

And as they emerged,

they saw people plowing and sowing

who were occupied with plowing and sowing.

Rabbi Shimon said:

These people

are abandoning eternal life and engaging in temporal life

, whereas they should have performed these tasks through gentiles; and the Holy One, blessed be He, apportions food and sustenance to those who do His will.

Wherever

they

cast

their

eyes upon it, immediately

it would

be burned.

A Divine voice went forth and said to them: Is it possible that

you went out

to destroy

My

world?

Return to your cave!

They returned

to the cave,

and remained

there for another

twelve months.

They said:

Behold,

the judgment of the wicked in Gehinnom

is

twelve months,

and surely we may emerge.

A Divine voice went forth and said

to them:

Leave your cave! Emerge!

Wherever Rabbi Elazar would strike

[strike],

Rabbi Shimon would heal

[heal]

it.

He said to him,

Rabbi Shimon to Rabbi Elazar:

My son, the world is sufficiently served

by those who engage in Torah,

by me and you.

Toward evening on the eve of Shabbat,

on Friday late afternoon,

they saw a certain old man who was carrying two bundles of myrtle

, two bundles of myrtle,

and

he was

running

,

between sunset and nightfall.

They said to him: These

myrtle branches

why do you need them?

He said to them: In honor of Shabbat,

I bought them to smell their fragrance.

They asked him:

And

why not

would one suffice for you?

He said to them: One bundle

is one corresponding to “Remember,” and

one bundle

is one corresponding to “Keep.”

He said to him,

Rabbi Shimon

to his son: Look!

See

how beloved mitzvot are to Israel. Their minds were settled

upon this.

Heard

Rabbi Pinhas ben Yair,

who was

his son-in-law,

that Rabbi Shimon and his son were coming,

and went out to meet them

to receive them.

He brought him into the bathhouse

and had him enter the bathhouse.

He was tending

and cleaning

his flesh. He saw

that there were fissures in his body,

cracks that had formed from his having remained in the sand.

Rabbi Pinhas

was

was crying, and the tears of his eyes fell

of Rabbi Pinhas over Rabbi Shimon,

and they stung him

Rabbi Shimon, as the tears burned his wounds.

Rabbi Pinhas ben Yair said to him:

Rabbi Pinchas ben Yair said to Rabbi Shimon:

Woe is me that I have seen you in such a state!

In such suffering.

Rabbi Shimon said to him:

Rabbi Shimon said to him:

Fortunate are you that you have seen me in such a state!

Because

if you had not seen me in such a state, you would not have found me as I am.

And we explain: Because

originally, when Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai would raise a difficulty, Rabbi Pinhas ben Yair would resolve

[answer]

it with twelve resolutions.

In the end,

after his return,

when Rabbi Pinhas ben Yair would raise a difficulty, Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai would resolve it with twenty-four resolutions.

Rabbi Shimon said:

Rabbi Shimon

Since a miracle has occurred

for

me, I will go and make an improvement,

as Jacob our forefather did when he was saved from Esau,

as it is written: “And Jacob came whole,” and Rav said: Whole in his body

—for he was healed of his lameness—

whole in his property, whole in his Torah

—for it had not been forgotten by him during his long journey.

And it is written:

“And he encamped before the city.” Rav said: He instituted a coin for them

[and the expression “and he encamped” is interpreted as referring to grace and improvement; Rashi offers another explanation, that this is learned from the continuation of the verse: “And he bought the parcel of land,” an expression of improvement].

And Shmuel said: He instituted marketplaces for them.

And Rabbi Yohanan said: He instituted bathhouses for them.

Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai said:

Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai: Is there

something that requires improvement?

They said to him:

Yes,

there is a place in which there is a doubt concerning impurity.