-•*<*^£« W«^ U'iL'i.^-U^ 4<^^- :^of Pr//?^ AY 16 f))Yi9i- . IBs 1 66 S THE YALKUT ON ZECHAKIAH, \* Cambrilige : PRINTKI) IJY C. J. CLAY, M.A. & SON, AT THE CNIVERSITY I'UESS. / THE YALKUT ON ZECHARIAH TEANSLATED WITH NOTES AND APPENDICES BY EDWARD G. KING, B.D., IIEHREW LECTURER AT SIDNEY SUSSEX COLLEGE AND VICAR OF MADINGLEY. CAMBRIDGE: DEIGHTON, BELL AND CO. LONDON: G. BELL AND SONS. LEIPZIG: P. A. BROCKHAUS. 1882 TO MY FRIEND AND TEACHER Dr SCHILLER-SZINESSY, M.A. Cantab., &c., liEADER IN RABBINIC AND TALMUDIC LITERAXUIiE IN THE UNIVERSITY OF CAMBRIDGE, THIS LITTLE BOOK. COMMENCED AT HIS SUGGESTION, AND COMPLETED UNDER HIS INSTRUCTION, IS AFFECTIONATELY DEDICATED. INTRODUCTION. The name Yalkut literally signifies a bag, or purse. The Yalkut Shim^oni, from which the following specimen has been selected for translation, is a compilation from Tal- mud and Midrash in illustration of the Bible. Part I em- braces the Pentateuch, which is treated at such length as to take up nearly two-thirds of the whole work ; Part II includes the remaining Books of the Old Testament. This compila- tion was made in the Xlth century, and consequently dates from the time of Raslii. The principal editions are as follows: (a) Editio princeps on Ezra, Neh. and Chronicles, printed in the first Rabbinic Bible, Venice, 1517. Yalkut, Part II. Salonika, 1521. A copy of this valuable edition exists in the Library of Clare College (B. 6, 12). I regret to say that I was not aware of its existence until it was too late to avail myself of it. The editio princeps of Part I. was printed at Salo- nika, 152G— 27. Folio. (6) The Second Edition of the whole work appeared at Venice, 1566. Folio. (c) Third Edition, Cracow, 1595—96. Folio. {d) Fourth Edition, Lublin, 1643. Folio. (c) Fifth Edition, with tlie DHins nnn, Livorno, 1650 — 52, 55 — 57. This edition is rare. Einnianiicl College Lilirary possesses a complete copy (i. 2. llj, 17), ) (resented by Archbishop Sancroft. VIU INTRODUCTION. {/) Sixtli Edition, Frankfort on the Main, 1(187. This is the edition I have used; ;i coi)y is also found in the Canib. Univer. Library. {(j) The Zai/ith Kafpian can scarcely be reckoned as an edition of the Yalkut, since it contains only selec- tions. Dessau, 1704. Folio. {h) Seventh Edition, Frankfort on tJu: Oiler, 17UU. (0 The nx:'?1D edition, 180G. (j) Another edition at Livorno, 1813. (k) At Koniysberg, 185G. (/) An edition, 8vo., Zolkiew, 1858, 9. {in) There is also a Warsaw edition, 187C-7; and an edi- tion, probably Polish, but without indication of time or place ; this last has been w^rongly ascribed to Livorno because, on the title-page, allusion is made to the fact that the work wa.s formerly printed at Livorno. Though the edition I have used may be considered one of the best, the text is by no means in a satisfactory condition; the marginal references, which are supposed to refer to the passage quoted, are quite untrustworthy. Thanks however to Dr Schiller-Szinessy I have been enabled to trace thcni all, with the exception only of one or two which arc probably derived from some Midrash not now extant. On comparing the Yalkut text with the passage which it professes to quote I have found in almost every case considerable divergence. I have not however attempted to correct the Yalkut text even when it seemed to me to be decidedly inferior, except in one or two passages where I have called attention to the fact in the notes. .MaULSOLEV VlCAUA(iK, Camiihidoe, September 19«/i, 1882. YALKUT PART II. HINT 568. 3 " Return unto Me, is the saying of the Zech. cli. i. Eternal of Hosts and I will return unto you . . ." Rav Yeliudah says that Rav used* to say, What is this T. B. Yoma* which is written "Return unto Me... and I will return..."? ^ The marginal reference here refers to Yoma 81, where no such pas- sage is to he found. The passage which comes nearest to our text is T. B. Yoma 86*, where, according to Rashi's note, a reading existed agreeing with the Yalkut. Eav Yehudah's difficulty seems to he that, of two passages in Scripture where we read "Eeturn unto Me," the first seems to imply that Israel must_/ics< turn to God, " Return unto Me that I may return unto you," whereas the second makes God's overmastering election the reason of His people's return even while they were yet sinners, " Return backsliding children for I have mastered you..." {.Jer. iii. 14). R. Yehudah wishes to point out that the pronouns are here emphatic in the original, D32 Tlpyi ''3JK ''3 " For it is 7 that have mastered you.'"' The E. V. " married" is scarcely correct, for ?y3 when construed with 3, seems to have the stronger sense of mastery, or even of spurning, loathiny. Kimchi tells us that his father took it in this latter sense in the only two biblical passages in which it is found, viz. Jer. iii. 14 and Jer. xxxi. 32, and that he considered it kindred with ?n3, with 3, in Zech. xi. 8, " And also their soul loathed me." It was in this sense also tliat the LXX. translated D3 "'n?U3 ""DIXI (Jer. xxxi. 32) by Kal iyw rjixiXijaa avrdu, a rendering which is adopted by the Author of the Epistle to the Hebrews (Heb. viii. 9). There is a similar passage in Sanhed. 97'^, where Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua are disputing on this same question, the former maintaining that Israel's repentance is the condition of God's return, the latter that God's grace will overmaster Israel's ingratitude, and that if tliey are not ripe for the blessing, God will bring upon them such chastisements as will render them fit for His time; — The discussion is continued as follows : — * See next page. . 7^. V. 1 2 YALKUT. (Zech. I. o), and it is also written (" Return unto Me) for I have mastered (E. V. mamed) you"? (Jer. iii. 14.) There is no real difficulty ; the one (passage) refers to love, the other to chastisements. 5 " Your fathers where are they ? " " And the Prophets do they live for ever?" •Rabbi Eliezer said, If Israel do worlcs of repentance they are redeemed, for it is said, " Return backsliding children"; (and then) " I will heal their backslidings" (Hos. xiv. 4). Rabbi Tehoshua replied, But is it not already said, "Ye have been sold for naught, and not with silver shall ye be redeemed" (Isai. Hi. 3)? "Ye have been sold for naiipht'' — this means for your idolatry; — '' And not with ailver shall ye be redeemed"; — this means not with repentance and qood vorka. Rabbi Eliezer said to Rabbi Yehoslma, But has it not already been said, "Return unto Me that I may return unto you" (Zech. i. and Mai. iii.)? R. Yehoshua replied. And has it not already been said, "...for I have mastered you : and I will take you one from a city, and two from a family, and will bring you to Zion" (Jer. iii. 14)? R. Eliezer said to him. But is it not also said, " By repentance and rest shall ye be saved" (Is. xxx. 15) ? R. Yehoshua replied to R. Eliezer, And is it not also said, "Thus saith the Eternal, the Redeemer of Israel, his Holy One, to the utterly despised by every creature and abominated by nations, to the slave of tyrants: Kings shall see and arise, princes shall prostrate themFclves, &c." (Is. xlix. 7)? R. Eliezer replied, And is it not also said, " If thou wilt return, Israel, saith the Eternal, unto Me thou shalt return" (.Ter. iv. 1)? R. Yehoshua replied, Is it not also said, "And I heard the Man who was clothed in linen, who was over the waters of the River, and he raised his right hand and his left unto Heaven, and sware by Him that livcth for ever that it (i e. ihe Redemption) was for a set time of times, and a half; and when the scattering of the power of the Holy People shall have been accom- plished, then all these tilings (i.e. the Redemption) shall be accomplished" (Dan. xii. 7). Rabbi Eliezer was silr-nccd. • The formula 3'T ItDN X'1 Ifi^N "Rabbi A said that Rabbi B said," always imjilios tbat Rabbi A had himself heard the saying quoted, from the mouth of Rabbi B. Whereas 31 DCS N'l irsx "Rabbi A said in the name of Rabbi B," implies tliat Rabbi A had received by tradition the saying of Rablii B, wlio may therefore have lived some centuries earlier. This rule is of great importance in the inteiTiretation of the Talmud. Enr example, there are many R. Ycbudabs mentioned, but the formula of quota- tion shews us that the R. Ycbudah liere mentioned was a contemporary' and disciple of the great Babylonian tearlirr Rav : wo therefore know that Iw was tlu' R. Vfbiidab who liverl from Ihe middle (o tlir end of tbe .^rd century. ZECHARIATI I. 3 [See Yalkut on Jer. viii, 5, where Rav plays on the words M'shuvah nitzdchath, "a complete backsliding," changing them to T'shuvdh nitzdchath, " a complete' or " victorious answer," as follows : — ] Rav* said, It was a [seemingly] victorious answer that the T. B. Sanho- congrcgation of Israel returned to the Prophet. 1 Abba Arika, better known by bis title Rav (a.d. 175 — 247), was born in Babylonia. On tbe death of his father he followed his famous nncle, R. Chiyya, to Palestine, to study in the School of the Patriarch R. Juda I. (also called Rabbi, or Rabbenu Ha-kadosh, " the Holy "). In this school he became the most distinguished scholar. He returned to Babylonia and humbly undertook the lowly office of Mrthorgcman under R. Schila at Nahardea. On R. Schila's death Rav would naturally have succeeded him, but again he shewed his humility, and resigned his right in favour of his younger friend Sh'muel, whose birth-place Nahardea was. Soon after this, Rav, through the influence of the Besli Gclutha (Prince of the Captivity), obtained the appointment of Agoranomos, in which capacity he had to visit the markets throughout Babylonia. He thus became known to Artaban HI., the Parthian king, and a close friendship was formed be- tween them. On these visits Rav was much sui-prised and pained at the ignorance of Law and the loose morality of the Jewish community. He determined to effect a reformation ; and for this purpose founded the School of Sura (a.d. 219), which under him became the centre of Jewish teaching. In this school he had as many as twelve hundred disciples. He also gave public lectures for the unlearned at the time of the greater Festivals. He was l^ossessed of considerable wealth, and employed it in assisting needy scholars. His fame extended not only throughout Babylonia, but even to Palestine ; and, in spite of the small esteem in which the Palestinian Teachers com- monly held their Babylonian brethren, the most distinguished of them (11. Yochanan) was not ashamed to write to him as " our Teacher in Babylon." The Babylonian title Eav soon became applied to him as the Teacher, kot' i^oxv", even as the Palestinian title Rahhi had been applied to his teacher R. Juda I., the editor of the Mishnah. Rav was unfortunate in his marriage. His wife was a thorough scold ; — he bore this misfortune with patience, though, as he says (T. B. Shnhhath \1^) "...any pain rather than heart-imin, any ache rather than head-ache, and any evil rather an evil wife." After the fall of his friend Artaban HI. (a.d. 221), the Jewish community suffered persecution from the Persians ; thus the hopes of Rav became directed towards Rome ; it was from thence that he expected the Messiah. Rav died in peace, and the Babylonian Jews mourned for hira for the space of a whole year. The Talmud contains a large number of his sayings, which would well repay the trouble of collection. The following specimens may serve to sliew his knowh^dgc of human nature, his piety and liberality of heart : — 1—2 See below' under Hint * YALKUT. The Prophet said to Israel, " Turn yourselves to repent- ance ; your fathers who sinned where are they ?" They replied, "And the Prophets, who did [not] sin, where are they ?" (i.e. are not they dead too ?) As it is said, "Your fathers where are they?" "And the Prophets?— Do they live for ever?" Nevertheless they were obliged to turn and confess that he was right, as it is said : " But My words and My decrees with which I encharged My servants the Prophets (i.e. all My threaten- ings) did they not overtake yotir fathers? so that they turned and confessed, &c.'" (Zech. i. 5, G). [Eud of quota- tion from Yalkut on Jeremiah.] 8 " I saw the night and behold a Man." ^^^- (N.B. The passage referred to in the margin will be found on page 38), 8 " I saw the night and behold a Man riding upon a Red Horse and lie was staying among the myrtles which were in the M'tziillah (depth)." "Rav said, All the appointed limits (for Messiah'.s eoniint,') arc already passed, and the matter depends only on Repentance and Good Works" (T. B. Sanhedrin 97''). " It was a frequent saying in the mouth of Rav that, The Worhl to come is not like this world:— In the World to Come there is neither eating nor drinking, no increasing and multiplying, no trading, no envy, no hatred and no heart-bnruings ; but the Righteous sit with their crowns upon their heads and feed upon the splendour of the Shekinah " (T. B. Herakolh 17"). " A man will liave to give an account for everything which his eye hath seen without enjoyment" {Jenishalmi, Kiddii.^hiii, eud). "Rav said, Never let a man bring himself into the jiower of temptation " (T. B. Snnhedrin 101"). There is also a noble saying of his in T. B. B'rahoth Gl» as follows :— "Learned men have no rest either in this World or in the World to Come ; for, as it is said, ' They will go from School to School, each one appears before God in Zion ' (Ps. Ixxxiv. 8)." The Rabbinic student will here observe a piny ujmn the word 7'n strevfjth ; for, in tcchnirnl langunge, the Vn was the walledin space, be- tween the "Mountain of the House" and Ihe "Court of the women," and which contained the School-House. ' This interpretation is also adopted by the Targum. * [D*3D7 is here used in the unusual sense of "below" or " forwards" as in .Ter. vii. 24 : see T)r Scbilbr-Szinessy'B note on page 220 of his " Catalogue of Heb. MSS." Vol. i.) ZECHARIAH I. Kabbi Yochai' said "I saw Night" (i.e.) the Holy One T. B. Sanhed. blessed be He was about to turn the whole universe into Night ^ wdien however He bethought Himself of Chana- nyah, Misael and Azaryah, He was appeased, as it is said, " He was staying TOij^] among the Myrtles' which were in the M'tzuUah (depth)." Now Myrtles (Hadassim), mean (here) nothing else than Saints, as it is said (Esth. ii. 7), "And he was bringing up Hadassah" (i.e. Esther) and the M'tzulah (depth) means notliing else than Babylon as it is said (Is. xliv. 27), "Who saith to the Tzulah (depth) be thou dry." 8 "And after him were horses Red, Reddish, and White." Forthwith (i.e. as soon as He Avas appeased) the Red ones that were (before) filled with anger became Reddish, and finally they were turned to White ^ ^ The Yalkut reads Rabbi Yochai, but the more probable reading, as given in the Talmud, is Rabbi Yochanan. This E. Yochanan lived from the middle to the end of the 3rd century: he was the editor of the Yerushalmi in the same sense that B. Judah I. was the editor of the Mishnah, and was the brother-in-law of the Rabbi Shimeon ben Lakish mentioned on page 8. 2 The Talmud has here the following lines which are not quoted in the Yalkut: — '^^And behold a man riding upon a red horse." — The word Ish, "a man,'" means nothing else than the Holy One, blessed be He; As it is said, " The Eternal is a man of war, the Eternal is His Name " (Exod. xv. 3). " Upon a red horse'" — The Holy One, blessed be He, was about to turn the whole universe into blood, but when however He bethought himself, &c.' [as in text]. 3 "He xcas staying among the myrtles" — R. Yochanan wishes to call attention to the word lipiy standing or staying; for tlie Man was "riding,'^ but now that the prophet says " He was standing " it may imply that he had desisted from liis purpose which was punishment : The reason for this is the merit of the saints who are typified by myrtles. We must not however suppose that Hadassim, tnyrtles, were regarded as the emblems of the saints (D^pn^*) merely because Esther's name was Hada?sah —this is only a peg on which to hang an accepted interpretation for which indeed another reason is assigned on page 38. * The above interpretation is, I fully believe, the right one, though as far as I liavo read, it will be quite new to Christian Commentators. There is some little confusion in the text of the Yalkut which differs here from the Talmud; — a comparison of the two will I tbink shew that the above transla- tion represents the original text. t) YALKUT. T. B.Bera- Rav Papa says, Hence you may learn that a White horse is (a) lucky (thing to see) in a dream. 20 "And the Eternal shewed nie four work- men." T. B. Sukkali What are these four workmen ? 52" Rav Chama, son of Bizna reports that Rabbi Shimeon Ch'sida used to say, (They are) Messiah son of David, Messiah son of Joseph^ Elijah and the Righteous Priest. Rav Shesheth propounds a weighty difficulty against this view (viz.), How then are we to understand that which is written, "These are the horns which scattered Judah, Israel, &C." ? Why ; these are the very ones tliat restore and establish Judah ! He said to him. Look on further to the end of the verse, where it is read, " And these are come to put them in fear to cast down the horns of the heathen that lift the horn ag-ainst the land of Judah to scatter it." Rav Shesheth'"' said, I am no match for Chama in Agada. Zocb. ch. ii. 2 "And I said, AYliither goest thou? and he said unto me To measure Jerusalem." T. B. Biiva Rabbi Ch'nina held the following discourse, The Holy One, blessed be He, souglit to measure Jerusalem by mea- sure, a.s it is said, "And he said unto me To measure Jerusalem to see how great its length shall be and how great its width." Then the minibteriug angels saitl before the Holy One, blessed be He, Lord of the universe, how many fortified cities hast Thou given to the nations of the world and Thou hast not given (them) unto them by measure ! Jerusalem then ! — in which is Thy name", and the saints ^ For Messiah son of Joseph, Elijah, aiid the Riijhtcotix Piient, ecc Appen- dix A. In Pesikta Kabbatlii, Bcct. xv. fol. 31", Babhi Yitscliak intorprcta the four smiths to fiignify Elijah and King McsKiah and JItlchizcdck and Messiah (anointed) for war. 2 We know from the Talnnid {flcraholh 5H") tliat Bav bhchhcth wan blind ; — this must account for his " difliculty." ' "Jerusalem in which is Thy Name'' — This is founded upon E/.ck. xlviii. 35, where we read "And the name of the city from that day nhall bo ZECHARIAH II. 7 [are therein], — wilt Thou give unto them by measure* ? — Immediately [we read], " Then He said unto me, Run, speak unto yonder youth as follows : Jerusalem shall be inhabited village-fashion [i.e. without walls] by reason of the multi- tude of men and cattle in the midst of her" (Zecb. ii. 4), Resli Lakish said, The Holy One, blessed be He, is going (in Messianic times) to add unto Jerusalem a thousand^ 7l3p of Towers ; a thousand ftSD of Glnnaoth ; The-Lord-is-There." But by an "Al tikii" we may interpret not The-Lord-is- There (nSi:'), but The Lord is her Name (rlOC'). In T. B. Bava Bathra To'', shortly before the jmssage quoted in the text, we read as follows: "Eabbah said that R. Yochanan said, The Jerusalem of the world to come is not hke the Jerusalem of this world. With regard to the Jerusalem of this world any one who wishes to go up (to it) goes up ; but ^ith regard to that (i. e. the Jerusalem) of the world to come none go up but those who are invited thither. And Rabbah says (also) that E. Yochanan used to say, The righteous will in future time (actually) be called by the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He ; — As it is said, "Every one who is called by My Name for My Glory I have created him, formed him, yea made him " (Is. xliii. 7). And Eab Sh'muel bar Nachmani says that E. Yochanan used to say. Three there are that are called by the Name of the Holy One, blessed be He ; and these are they; — The Righteous, Messiah, and Jerusalem: — The Eifjhteous ; as we have already mentioned ; Messiah ; — because it is written, " This is His Name whereby He shall be called, The Eternal our Eighteousness " (Jer. xxiii. 6) ; — Jerusalem; — because it is written, "Eound about eighteen thousand (measures) ; and the name of the city from that day shall be HO'J' 'n [The- Ete mat -is -there, or, The-Eternal-is-her-name) " Ezek. xlviii. 35. Do not interpret it as if it were HDC there but HtDC^, her name.'''' The same idea of the three-fold Name is expressed in Eevelation iii. 12, '0 vikQv, iroirjacj avrbv (TTvXov iv Tij} vat2 TOv Geou /xou, Kal ^f w ov /xri e'^A^?; ^rt, Kal ypd\{/(0 iw avrbv t6 dvofia TOV Qeov fiov, Kal t6 ivojxa rrjs TroXews tov Oeov fiov, ttJs KaLvi}^ 'lepov- cra\rifx, -q Karafiaivovaa e'/c tov ovpavov dwo tov Ofoi7 /Uoc, Kal to dyofxci jxov Tb Kaivbv. 1 The Yalltut reads: m»3 Urh \r\7\ D''P^^V1 "...and the saints, wilt Thou give unto them by measure?" But the reading of the Talmud ia better HTO .12 jniJ nnx H^ina D''pnV1 "...and the saints are thereiu, art Thou assigning a limit imto her (i.e. to Jerusalem)?" ^ I leave these words untranslated, since the Jewish Commentators them- selves do not know their meaning. Some have sujjposcd them to be Greek, Persian or Arabic words, but Eashi (or rather Rnshbam, who completed Eashi's work) is perhaps nearer to the truth in supposing them to be alge- braical or arithmetical terms. The whole passage is discussed at some length in Appendix B. 8 YALKUT. a thousand *1Vv oi Birneoth (i.e. Palaces) ; a thousand and H/^ OCJ' of Taphtareoth ; and the very meanest of them all will be like Sephoris in the height of its prosperity. There is a tradition that Rabbi Yose said, I myself saw Sephoris in its prosperity, and there "were therein one hundred and eighty' thousand streets of pastry-cooks. 5 " And I, I will be unto her, saith the Eternal, a wall of fire round about." T. B. Bava Rav Yitschak Napcha [said as follows] ; — The Holy One, Kamma GO' blessed be He, said, I it was that kindled a fire in Jerusalem ; as it is said, " And He kindled a fire in Zion" (Lam, iv. 11), (and) I am going to build lier up again with tire; as it is said, "I will be unto her, saith the Eternal, a wall of fire round about" (Zech. ii. 5), "He that kindled the fire shall surely make restitution" (Exod. xxii. 9). The Holy One, blessed be He, said, It is incumbent upon Me to make restitution for that which I have kindled. HINT 5G9. PesiktaRab- And R-. Shimeon'^ ben Lakish says, All My family will ^tion 35 become unto Jerusalem a wall in time to come, and I will Breslau Edi- command the Angels to keep her, as it is said, "Over thy ion, o. o. ^g^^g^ Q Jerusalem, I have appointed watchmen'" (Is, 1 The niunber 180,000 is 18,000 x 10, but 18000 is the measurement given for the Jerusalem of the World to Come in Ezek. xlviii. See Appendix B, ■^ liabbi Shimcon ben Lakisb, more commonly called RcHli-Liikish (born about A.D. 200, died about A,r>. 27'j), was the dear friend aiul lirotlier-in-law of R. Yocbanau, by whom he was induced to give up a roving lif(3 to devote himself to the study of the Law. He was a man of great wit and readiness, and became famous as a teacher of the Agada. ' God's family, the l''maUa (i.e. familia) xlul mnJah, consists of the Holy Angels ; and the Targum supposes that, in the present passage, watch- men or icatchcrx signify the Angels, Ho also Ewald and Cheyne, See Chcyne's note on la. Ixii, 0, where he refers to a similar use of the word in Daniel, Enoch, and The Tentamentii of (he Twelve Patriarrh", ZECHARIAH II. 9 Ixii. 6) ; but perhaps you may object that "the fire girds her round, who then would be able to enter within her" ? — but [the fact is] in the future time the saints will be able to walk in the fire as a man walks in the sunshine on account of the cold, and it is pleasant to him ; and if thou art surprised at this, come and consider [the case of] Chananyah, Misael and Azaryah ; for, when Nebuchadnezzar cast them into the liery furnace, they walked about in it as a man walks in the sunshine on a cold day ; as it is said (Dan. iii. 35), " He answered and said, Lo, I see four men loose, walking in the midst of the fire, and they have no hurt'" What is this " And for a Glory I AM in tlie midst of her"? Is it not the case that the Glory of the Holy One, blessed be He, is none other than on High — as it is said, "Above the Heavens is His Glory" (Ps. cxiii. 4) ? R Joshua^ Ben Levi says. It is in order to indicate to 1 Here about ten lines of tlie Pesikta are omitted. 2 E. Yehoshua ben Levi, a famous Kabbalistic Teacher, was born in Palestine in the latter half of the second century. He became President of the School of Lydda in the south of Palestine, and enjoyed a reputation for working miracles. In his teaching he set himself to oppose the extravagancies of the Agada. He was himself a mystic ; and of the many sayings of his which have been handed down to us in the Talmud, the greater part are upon the favourite Kabbalistic themes, God, Creation, Hell, Paradise, &c. But though tlie natural bent of his mind thus inclined to Mysticism, he strongly opposed those who would fix the time of Messiah's coming. The disappointment of the expectations raised by Bar Kokba doubtless influenced his teaching on this latter point, for we find him careful to explain that the coming of the Messiah will depend upon the merits of Israel. The beautiful legend of Messiah sitting among the lazars at the gates of Rome (see p. 49) is intended to enforce this point. The form of this legend may well have been suggested to R. Joshua ben Levi during a visit that he is known to have paid to Rome. But see note on p. 50. There is a noble saying of his (in T. B. Venachim 118") on tlie dignity and blessing of labour, as follows : — " R. Yehoshua ben Levi said. In tlic hour wlicn the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Adam, 'Thorns and thistles shall it bring forth to thee,' his eyes were suffused with tears : ho replied, Lord of the Universe, I and the ass, 10 YALKUT. every creature in the universe the superior excellence of Israel, since it is on their account (i.e. Israels) that the Holy One, blessed be He, brings down His Shekinah from the highest heavens and lets it dwell in the earth ; — there- fore it is written — "And for a Glory I AM' in the midst of her." David'* said, A wall of fire outside! and for a Glory luitiiin ! — who then could rest within her ? This is that which is written, " Lord, who can dwell in Thy tents" (Ps. xv. 1). 10 "For like the four winds of heaven I have spread you abroad." T. B. Ta'uith It is taught that the Sages do not make the mention of Yalkut^on'° *'^® ^^^^^ ^^^^ *'^^ winds compulsory (i.e. in reciting the Ezek., Hint 373_ shall we (both) cat out of one crib ? But when He said to him, ' In the sweat of thy brow thou shalt eat broad,' (immediately) he was appeased." B. Joshua taught that the puiiishmeut of Hell was only to purify the wicked, and that they themselves would sec the mercy of it. He illustrates Lis teaching on this point by quoling Ps. Ixxxiv. C, "...who going through the deep-vale of tears account it as a (place of) fountains, &c." His contemporary, R. Shimeon ben Lakish, does not agree to this, but maintains that the wicked will not repent in Hell, because the present parti- ciple, D^yC'Sj is used in Isaiah Ixvi. 24, and not the past tense -irK'S. (See the whole discussion, T. B. 'Aynivin 19*.) 11. Joshua lived respected, and died a hai>py death : but so great was his reputation for Kabbala that the late IMidrashim fable him to have taken the sword from the Angel of Death, and to have entered alive into Heaven, Paradise and Hell. (Sec the Article in Hamburger's Itcitl-Encijclopadie fur Bibcl und Talmud.) ' There is, I believe, an allusion here to the most holy name of God (sec Exod. iii. 15), but if the reader object, let him read without the capitals and the argument remains the same. 2 I do not find these words in my cojiy of the Pcsikta Rabbathi, the Yalkut seems to have taken them from ihe Midrash T'hillim, though it is of course possible that they may be derived from some earlier Midrash. The Midra.sh T'hiUim on Ps. xv. 1, has the following; — " [Thus] sailh the Eternal who hath His Fire (IIX) in Zion and His furnace ("1130) in Jerusalem" (Is. xxxi. 9). David said, If He has His Fire in Zion ! and His furiuice in Jerusalem! "who then can dwell in Thy Tent?" This is that which tlic Scripture says, "And I, I will be unto them (?) saith the lUernal, a wall of lire roundabout" — (i.e.) outride, "and for a Glory I will bo in the midst of her " — i.c irithin : — David said. If a wall cf fire outside, and Glory witliin ! who then could dwell within her? '• Eternal, who can dwell in Thy tent?" ' ZECHARIAH II. 11 Second Benediction). What is the reason ? It is because the winds are not restrained'. Whence have you learned that ? Because it is written " For like the four winds of heaven [I have spread you abroad.]" Wliat could be the meaning of this? Shall it be said that God (lit. the Merciful One) meant by this to say to Israel, " I have scattered you to the four quarters of the world"? If so "like the four..."? Surely "Into the four..." He ought to have said ? But do you suppose He meant to say that I will gather you from the four quarters of the world ? If so "From the four..." He ought to have said. But the fact is that even as it is impossible for the world to exist without winds so it is impossible for the world to exist without Israeli 1 According to Jewish tliougbt the Eain of the whole world is only given in answer to the prayers of Israel ; but with regard to the Wind and the Dew it is not so; they are "not restrained," i.e. they are given whether men pray for them or whether they do not pray. For the wind {Riiach) is the very type of freedom, " it bloweth where it listeth" (St John iii. 8). And, of the Dew too, Micah has said that " it waiteth not for man, and tarrieth not for the children of men" (Mic. v. 6). During the Winter half-year, i.e. from the Musaph of the Eighth Day of Solemn Assembly to the Shacharith of the First Day of Passover (inclusive), all Jews make mention of God's gift of IViitd and Itain in the following words; — " ...Masshiv ha-ruach umorid ha-geshem" " ...lllto maketli the icind to blow and brhigeth down the rain.'" In the Summer half-year, i.e. from the Musaph of the First Day of Passover to the Shacharith of the Eighth of Solemn Assembly (inclusive), the special gift commemorated is that of the Dew—''...morid ha-tal,^' " ...Who hringcth down the dew." The Ashkeuazic Jews however are not so particular on this latter point, and, in the daily recitation of the "Second Benediction," during the Summer half-year they omit the mention of the wind and the dew, their practice being grounded on the ruling of the Rabbis mentioned in the text. For a further note on the great Water Festival, the Eighth Day of Solemn Assembly, and the New Test, passages illustrated thereby, see Appendix C. - The argument is here made to depend upon the 3 of comparison. The four winds are the four quarters of the globe. The world cannot exist without them.— Israel is "as the four winds," therefore the world cannot exist without Israel. ball, 75. 12 YALKUT. seeYaikutou 12 " FoF evei'V oiiG that touchctli you is as if Samuel, Hint i i i .i n tt. 99, and ou llC tOUChecl tllC pUJDll 01 HlS Cje. Judges, Hint ^**- It does not say "pupil of an eye" but " pupil of His eye" Cf. Deut. /• r>( i> \ xxxii. 10. (i e. God s). 17 "Be silent all flesli before the Eternal, for He has roused Him from His holy dwelling- place." B'rasliitliEab Rabbi Pin'chas in the name of Rabbi Reuben [says], Five times David rouses iqy (i.e. applies the expression "Arise" to) the Holy One, blessed be He, in the First^ Book of the Psalms, [viz.] : "Arise, O Lord ; help me, O my God" (Ps. iii. 7). "Arise, O Lord, in Thine anger" (Ps. vii. 6). "Arise, O Lord ; O God, lift up Thine hand" (Ps. x. 12). "Arise, O Lord; let not man have the upper hand" (Ps. ix. 19). "Arise, Lord, prevent him" (Ps. xvii. 18). (but) the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him : David my son, although thou should'st bid me arise a thousand times, I will not arise. And when will I arise ? When I see the afflicted and the wronged and the poor uttering their moan: for this is that which is written ; " By reason of the oppres- sion of the afflicted and on account of the groaning of the poor,— now I will arise, saith the Eternal" (Ps. xii. 5). In a deeper sense also this is true, for wliilc other nations have repre- sented the body and the suul, it has boon left to Israel to represent the s2)iiit (nuich) of the great human family. ^ In the B'rashith Itabbah we read "in the Book of the Psalms" instead of "in the First Book." The expression Arise is really applied to God ten times in the Psalms, but R. Pin'chas probably intended to confine his remarks to the cases in which the Most Holy Name (nin'') is used in direct connexion with the verb, thus *"* HDIp which occurs five times in the First Book, and once only in all the other Books, viz. Ps cxxxii. 8. A very similar saying is ascribed to "Rabbi Pin'chas the Priest in the name of Rav Hoshca", see Penktn liabhalhi, section HI (Breslau Edition, fol. 58'). ZECHARIAH II. III. 13 HINT 570. Kabbi Sliimeon, son of Rabbi Jonah, says — (on the words) B'rashith "Now will I arise"— All the time that she (i.e. Jerusalem) ^^^^^^ 75 . , ^ ' continued, was depressed in the dust (the Shekinah itself was depressed), if it were possible so to speak ; (But) when that day shall The words come of which it is said, ["Shake thyself from the dust!"] '^^lare Arise, sit, Jerusalem (Is. lii. 2)— in that hour (He too brackets are XT- if\ «T> •! i ti n 1 1 f 11 1-11 1.. omitted in the rouses Himselt) Be Silent all flesh before the Eternal Yaikut, bi;t [Why? "Because He hath roused' Him from His holy ^j^^ liX^^"^ dwelling-place." R. Acha says], Like the hen that shakes and are herself from tho .dies. Z'SS.'°' 2 "And the Eternal said unto Satan . . ." Zech. ch. ill. Rabbi Joshua ben Levi says — The Angel of Death told t. B. B'rakoth me — Never do you stand before the women when they are ^^^' returning from a funeral, because I go leaping before them and I (then) have permission to injure. But suppose one has met him (i.e. the Angel of Death)? what must be his resource ? Let him spring four cubits from his place, or if there be a river let him cross over it, or if there be another road let him turn into it, or if there be a wall let him stand behind it, but if not let him turn his face and say, "And the Eternal' said unto Satan [The Eternal rebuke thee Satan-"] ' The argnmont turns upon the words '''}y5r>i!' "shake thyself" (Is. lii. 2) and "liW "roused" (Zech. ii. 17). The writer of course knew that the former word was Hiihpael of "lyj, while the latter was Niphal of "l-iy, but his object is to call attention to the fact that the roots "IIJ? and lyj are kindred, and, ns a Niphal has sometimes almost the signification of a Hithpael, the passage in Zechariah might be interpreted as if it were "He hath shaken Himself, &c." - He must not venture to say " The Eternal rebuke thee," for that would he Kpiaiv iireueyKuv p\aa given in the stick be made ; its shaft, and its branches, its bowls, its Pesikta knops and its flowers"— What do these signify ? The fact is, Sed'in'ihe "its shaft",— this is the Frince: and "its branches", — these Yaikut. are the disciples: "its flowers", — these are the little children who learn in the School-house — "shall be (all) of it" (i.e. of gold), " Thou art altogether beautiful my Love."] Another interpretation of "V'Gullah al Roshah" (is that suggested l)y the words) " And their King passes over before them [and the Eternal at their head" Mic. ii. 13'J. 1 Cf. Dan. iii. 17, " Ho will deliver us out of thine hand, king." 2 The whole passage from Micah is as follows ; — "I will certainly gatlier Jacob, oven the whole of thee; I will certainly fold the Remnant of Israel; I will unite them as sheep in the fold, as a flock in the midst of its pasture — The busy-hum of men ! The Breaker (i.e. one who forcibly clears the way, I'DSH) goes before them, they break through and pass on, they enter in by the gate, and their King passes on before them, and the Eternal at their head." This passage is undoubtedly Messianic and is so taken by the Jews. Tlie "Breaker" is Elias, or Messiah himself (see IVnishiHi Rahhah Ho, on Genesis xxxviii. 29). I think it probable that the Lord had tlicsc words in His mind when Ho spoke of tlic Kingdom of Heaven suffering violence (^lai^cTai) and the violent IG YALKUT. 2 "And its seven lamps upon it." This alludes to the merit of the Snbbath' which Israel observes, once every seven days. 2 "Seven and seven are the pipes." " Seven" corresponding to the seven '^ days of creation : " She (i.e. Wisdom considered as the Creator of the World) hath hewn out her seven pillars" (Prov. ix. 1): — "and Words in scvcn" — corresponding to the Fathers up to Moses [viz. brackets are Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Levi, Koath, Amram, Moses]. see Pesikta ' (i^"*"''''*') taking it by force (JIatt. xi. 12). And again, "From that time Rabbathi, (i-e. from the time of John) the Kingdom of God is preached, and evei-y one forces his way (^la^eTai) into it" (Luke xvi. 1()). In another sense, All that came before Christ were (hy comparison) D^VIQ thieves and robbers (St John x. 8), but " when He putteth forth His sheep He goeth before them, and the sheep follow Him" (St John x. 4), as it is written, ' ' Their King passes on before them and the Eternal at their head " (Mic. ii. 13). He is "the door" of the sheep (St John x. 7, 9), and it is written " they enter in by the gate" (Mic. ii. 13). The sheeii also will not only be safe in this fold, but it will find pasture there, 5t' ifj-ov kav rts elcriXdyj, audrifferai, Kal eicreXfiKxeTai Kai i^eXevaerai, Kal vofxrjv evp-q^ei (St John x. 9). In Micah also we find the same thought, " I will make them altogether as sheep in the fold, as a flock in the micht of its paxture"" (ii. 12). From the two interpretations of F' GiiUnh al liushali, mentioned aliove, we see 1st, That the Jews acknowledged that God must suffer with the sufferings of His People ; 2ndly, That the Gullah (the lou-l which supplied the seven-branched Candlestick with oil), was regarded by them as a type of the Eternal, the Giver of all Spiritual Gifts to the Church ; 3rdly, The Christian interpretation alone reconciles the above, and also accounts for the use made of the Messianic passage, Mic. ii. 13. Compare also Rev. i. 13 fif. koL iirLaTpi\pa.s eWov iirTO. \vxvi-a.% xpvcM, Kal €v ixiaip Ti2u iiTTa. \vxvi-ijiiv Hholov vlifi dvOpuTrov k. t. \. 1 Compare George Herbert's Poem ow Sundai/. 2 " The seven days of creation.'''' When the Jewish writers speak of the " days of creation" as the pattern for human work, we always find " the six days." But when they consider creation from the Ktcrnal stand-point of God's action, it is a present tense only tlmt can define it (see N'^^3, Is. xlv. 7: Amos iv. 13: Is. xliii. 1, Ac). Therefore we read also of "the seven days of creation" (see VuiiiiUrd Jiahhah, sect. 11 on the words "And it came to pass on the eighth day"; also, on Is. xxx. 20, " As the light of the seven days," it is said, "these were the seven days of creation." (See li'rashith Jiahhah 3.) This will explain the argument respecting the Sabl)ath in St John v. 17, '0 irarrjp fj.o\' ?wt dpri ^fiyd^'frai k.t.X, ZECHARIAH IV. 17 Another explanation of "her seven lamps" is that they correspond to the seveti^ commandments which are mentioned in the Pentateuch, (viz.) Heave-offerings, and Tithes, Sabbati- cal years, and Years of Jubilee, and Circumcision, and the Honouring of father and mother, and the Study of the Law, which is more than all the rest put together, Lo, we have here three times over (the word seven) ; "Her seven lamps", "seven and seven were the pipes"— these make 21; and seven times seven (are 49), and 49 + 21 (i.e. 70) correspond to the 70 Elders. 3 "And two olive (trees) were above it." These are the two Messiahs ; one the Messiah (anointed) See Appendix for war, and one the Messiah (anointed) for King over Israel. 3 "And two olive (trees) were above it." see Yaikut on ^ ' Judges, Hint 7 " Who art thou ? The great Mountain, be- ^^• fore Zerubbabel in equity." This is King Messiah. Why does it call him "The great Midrash mountain"? Because he is greater than the Fathers*; as it xoVdoth, end. 1 "The seven commandments, Ac." The Jews do not speak of " The ten commandments" but of " The ten words" (Ex. xxxiv. 28, &c.); see ''Sayings of tlie Jewish Fathers," by Dr C. Taylor, page 135. 2 According to the Rabbinic writers the Mountains represent the Fathers and the Hills the Mothers of Israel. (See T. B. Bosh Ha-Shanah 11».) There is a diificult passage in Genesis (xlix. 26) which seems to lend itself to this view ; nin nb-13 hv -"n^i ^^nx nbna .oViy hjjna r\]iin iv Here the parallelism seems to require us to take ^"IIH as the archaic plural for D'''lin "mountains,'" and to translate " The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of (the) mountains, Even to the utmost longing of the Eternal hills." Indeed I suspect that the parallelism was originally still more complete, and that the proper reading should be IV nin " Eternal mountains", cor- responding with dViJ? ^V2i "everlasting hills." (Cf. Hab. iii. 6.) But the Jewish commentators from the earliest timnr, have taken nin K. V. 2 18 YALKUT. is said, " Behold my servant shall deal prudently, he shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be high exceedingly" (Is. Hi. 13). He shall be exalted^ (above) Abraham, for it is said, "I have exalted my hand unto the Lord" (Gen. xiv. 22). And he shall be lifted vp above Moses, since it is said with respect to him (i.e. Moses) "Lift him up" (Numb. xi.l2). And he shall be hic/her than the ministering angels, concerning whom it is written, "And their heights were high and terrible" (Ezek. i. IS). From whom does he spring ? From David — because it is said, " And the son of Solomon was Rehoboam, Abia his son, Asa his son, Jehoshaphat, &c." up to "And the sons of Elioenai (were) Hodaiah, and Eliashib, and Pelaiah, and Akkub, and Jonathan, and Dalaiah, and Anani, seven" (1 Chron. iii. 10, 24). So far the Scripture expressly names up to Anani (OJ^) ; Who is Anani^ ? This is the Messiah, for it is said, "I beheld to signify "my Fathers," thougli, according to the strict derivation, ^"lin would rather signify " those that conceived me" than " those that begat me." This interpretation was however established before the days of the Targum Onkelos. If then the Mountains sij^niify the Fathers, the IMidrash Tanchiuna argues that " the great mountain" (ynin "IPI) must signify one who is greater than the Fathers. 1 The three-fold mention '' pj-aUcd... lifted up... him early times have received attention. The Targum (see MS. Ee. in Cambridge University Library) translates it " Messiah." l{ashi, too, distinctly says, " this is Messiah," and quotes Pan. vii. This impression gained strength from the evidently Messianic passage Zech. iv. 10, which ends " Zerubbabul, seven." Therefore, placing these two passages together, the Tanchuma argues that "Anani, seven" and " Zerubbabel, seven" must both refer to the Messiah ben David. This interpretation is therefore inde- pendent of Dan. vii., but it was doubtless materially strengthened by the early interpretation of that passage (see T. B. Sanhed. flC^, where Bar Naphle ZECHARTAH IV. 19 in the visions of the night, and lo! with the clouds {i'e((>^Xr]) is used as a name of King Messiah) which is so important in its Ijearing on the New Testament, that we must consider it somewhat in detail. The title " Son of Man," as api^lied to an individual, is first used of the Prophet Ezekiel, to whom it is applied about ninety times. Why was this title, which before was only used of man as a Jntman being, specially applied to Ezekiel ? Kimchi's note on Ezek. ii. 1 supplies, I believe, the correct answer. He says : — " The commentators have explained that he is called Ben Adam (son of man) that he might not grow proud and reckon himself as one of the Angels, because he had seen this wonderful (lit. great) vision. But my own opinion is, that because he had seen ' the face of a man ' in the Vision of God {Merkavah), God made known to him that he is good and acceptable in His sight, inasmuch as he is a man (lit. son of man) and not ' a lion ' (lit. son of a lion) and not 'an ox' (lit. son of, &c.) and not 'an eagle' {so7i of, &c.), even as we have explained above. Therefore Jonathan targumizes it by bar Adam, and not by bar Enasha (Xt^'^X 13); and though he targumizes DIX '':Q (the face of a man) by NC'JN ''DX {^ee chap. i. 10), he only does so for an anthropomorphic reason." These words of Kimchi's are very suggestive. — For Ezekiel had seen the four Living- Creatui'cs (nVIl) that represented the Universality of God'a Providence, and from the first had recognized in that Vision of God, though vaguely, the Humanity that underlay the form (see ch. i. 5, "this was their appearance, they had the semblance of a man"). Looking closer into this awful Activity of Providence he saw the traces of a kindly (see T. B. P^sachim IIQ*) Human hand (v. 8, " And the hands of a man were under their wings"). Thus emboldened he raised his eyes to behold the Face. And lo ! though there were other faces, of a lion, ox and eagle, yet the face that was turned to him (see the Hebrew, v. 10) was "the face of a Man." What wonder then, if, at the end of the Vision, he sees, even upon the Throne of God, "the semblance of the likeness of a Man" (v. 26). Now before we pass on to consider the effect of this Vision upon the Vision of Daniel vii., it will be well to notice that in the four instances above quoted where Ezekiel sees God, if one maj' so saj', under human form (vv. 5, 8, 10, 26), the Targum has translated Adam by X"'3''S (-sjc, in the definite state, or, as we may say, with def. article), but wherever Ezekiel himself is called " Son of Man," tlie Targum reads for hen Adam simply bar Adam. This Vision of God in Imman form, coupled with the ascendency (if I may so say) of the Man over the Livimi Creatures, must have deeply im- pressed Ezeldel : and when God called him "Son of Man," he must have felt that lowly name to be full of promise for himself and his nation. Indeed he never ventures to apply that name Adam to himself; it is God's name for the Prophet, and in one rcnuiikable passngo it is ajiplitd by God to the Nation : " .\nd yc, My flock, the flock of My pasture, arc Adam (D~IX) ; I am your God, saitli the Lord God" (Ezok. xxxiv. .31). •? 9 20 YALKUT. C^^H]^, Anani) of heaven" (Dau. vii. 13). Why should this The Talmudic interpretation of this passage is very interesting, and we shall have occasion to refer to it when we come to discuss the omission of the (Iff. article from the name " Son of Man " in the Vision of Daniel. The Vision in Daniel (chap, vii.) is manifestly founded upon that of Ezekiel. As, in Ezekiel, we have seen the Adam (Man) and the Chaiyoth ("living creatures"), so in Daniel we find 2Ian and the Chaiyoth. And though, in Daniel, the Chaiyoth have become fierce betistx, it is only because they represent the inscrutable dealings of God in the power given to the fierce World-Empires over Israel. As, in Ezekiel, the Man, dimly seen at first in the Merkavah, comes out more and more clearly in his ascendency over the Chaiyoth, till at last he is seen seated upon the very Throne, so too in Daniel we find tlie Chaiyoth have their power taken away (v. 12) while the Man (the Coming One) obtaining dominion over them all, draws near even unto the Throne: — "lo, with the clouds of heaven one like a man (lit. .son of man) coming! and he reacheth even to the Ancient of days, and they presented him before Him, lioril the Stone of Israel" (Gen. xlix.) the Targum "Jonathan" reads, "And tlicnco he became wortliy to l)e a Ruhr and to be united in the engraving of the Kames upon the Stones of Israel." 2 The point of the quotation is in the verse which follows: — "And the ZECHARIAH IV. 23 10 "For who hath despised (or spoiled) the day ? Small things (or Smallness)." Rabbi Elazar said, What hath caused the righteous to '^■^- Sotah . . 48°. spoil their table (i.e. to lose part of their reward) in the Time to come ? The smallness (viz. of faith) that was in them, that they could not trust the Holy One, blessed be He. (But) Rava* said, These are the little children of wicked Israelites who spoil (i.e. deprive of its sting) the judgment on their fathers in the Time to come. They (i.e. the children) say before Him, O Lord of the Universe, seeing that Thou art (now) about to exact punish- ment of them (i.e. of our fathers), why shouldst Thou have smitten their teeth through us^ ? (read 13!l for W2 in Talmud text). There is a tradition (Tosefta) that R. Eliezer' the Elder Ti^is passage ^ ' occurs before the preceding stone that smote the image became a great mountain and filled the whole '^^ in the earth." These words are quoted in the text of the Tanchuma. The Tanchuma gives another reason for connecting Messiah with Mountain, because He " comes by the way of the mountains ; as it is said, ' How beautiful uiwn the mountaius, &c.' (Is. lii. 7)." 1 Eava (born a. d. 299, died 352) was a learned and wealthy teacher at Machuza in Babylonia, but he belonged to a degenerate age, and Machuza bore a bad name even in Babylonia for pride, luxury and corruption. If Graetz is to be trusted liava would seem to have cared more for his own popularity than for the morality of his people. He was hard and not always honest in his dealings, but as a Lecturer he was decidedly popular. I cannot think, however, that Graetz has done him justice. The words in which he addressed his own congregation (see p. 73) are scarcely tliose of a man who courted popularity. * The meaning is not quite clear in the Yalkut, but if we turn to the text of the Talmud the sense seems to be as follows : — Our fathers sinned, the consequences fell upon us and they suffered in seeing our sufferings — Wilt Thou not then now forgive them? God Himself tells us that the six score thousand infants in Nineveh were a mute ajipeal to Him for mercy on their fathers (Jonah iv. 11), ^ Eliezer ben Horkanos, more commonly called R. Eliezcr, was a Mishnah- teacher who lived in the First Century. He was related to the Trincely House having married Imma Shalom the sister of the Patriarch llabban Gam'hel II. K. Eliezer, though he was a man of great originality, objected to the developcmcnt of the Traditions, and could never V)c induced to give a 24 TALKUT. used to say, Any one who has a morsel in his basket and says, What shall I eat to-morrow ? is nothing less than one of the men of little faith, decision unless he had heard it directly from his teachers. After the destruction of Jerusalem he went with the Sanhedrin to Jamnia, where however he was excommunicated because he would not conform his views to the opinion of the majority. The sentence was im2:>osed by his own brother-in-law Eabban Gam'liel, and when all shrank from making it known to him, his favourite scholar R. Akiva undertook the office, and performed it with the greatest respect and consideration. R. Eliezer then left Jamnia and betook himself to Lydda and Caesarea ; at this latter place he was thrown in contact with many Jewish Christians, especially with one James (Jacob) who had been a disciple of Jesus, and whose teaching was approved by R. Eliezer. Eliezer himself was suspected of being a Christian and was obliged to clear himself by a formal denial in the Tjaw Courts. After R. Eliezer's death a reaction set in in his favour. R. Joshua who, with R. Akiva, had come to visit him in his last illness, kissed the dead body and removed the Excommunication. R. Akiva pronounced the funeral oration. Though R. Eliezer was never a Christian yet the whole bent of his mind and the circumstances in which he was placed laid him peculiarly open to Christian influences. It was through men like R. Eliezer that Judaism was unconsciously leavened by Christianity. In his teaching he ever strove to lighten the burden of the traditions. Many of his sayings, besides the one in our text, remind us of the New Testament ; e. g. " Let the honour of thy friend be as dear to thee as thine own." (Avoth n.) The following short Prayer wliich R. Eliezer composed for use on a journey is moulded on the pattern of the Lord's Prayer. " Do Thou Thy will in heaven above, and give peace to him that fcareth Thee on earth, and do what is good in Thine eyes. Blessed be Thou Lord that hearest prayer." (T. B. Berakotk 29\) " There is a tradition (Boraitha) that R. Eliezer used to say. The souls of the Righteous are treasured up beneath the Throne of Glory" (cf. Rev. vi. 9), (T. B. Shabbath loS"'.) R. Eliezer saw, even in God's anger, love disguised, and as an instance he maintains that "The Holy One, blessed be He, only led Israel into captivity among the nations in order that converts might in addition be gathered in— As it is said, ' I will sow you for Myself in the earth' (Hos. ii.) — But a man only BOWS a bushel in order to gatlier in ever so many quarters." (T. B. P'mchim 87''.) R. Eliezer was a friend of the Jewish proselyte Aqnila (or Onkelos), and was one of the three Teachers before whom Aqnila laid his new translation of the Holy Scriptures into Greek. R. Eliezer is the reputed author of the Pirhny Ii. I'lirzrr. ZECHARIAH IV. V. 25 14 "These are the two sons of oil that stand (or remam) by the Lord of the whole earth." Rabbi Judah said, This refers to Aaron and David, who Torath were anointed in this world, and have no need to be anointed sifrd), Tzav, (lit. to anoint) in the Time' to come (i.e. in the days of the I'erek 18. Messiah); as it is said ; — " This is the Anointing of Aaron^" (Lev. vii. 35), 2 " And he said to me, What seest thou ? And Zech. ch. v. I said, I see a flying roll." What means this flying" (HSy)? Floating; as thou say est, "And there flew (tij^^l) unto me one of the Seraphim" (Is. vi. 6). Rabbi Abbuhu^ said, Even if it had been the skin of an ^ According to the Talmud, anointing was not practised in the case of Kings, unless there was a break in the succession, or a disputed title to the throne. (See T. B. Karethoth 5^.) The argument in the text turns upon the word "stand'" or " remain", as though he said, "These are two anointed ones who remain..." i.e. their kingly and priestly office is undisputed and eternal. We may here remark that the expression N137 TTlJ? "The Time to come" is almost always used of the Messianic Age, whereas the X3n D?"iy "The world to come" mostly denotes the Age which lies beyond the general Resurrection. 2 In that the Scripture says, " This is the anointing of Aaron and the anointing of his sons," the inference is naturally drawn that the anointing of the priesthood was once for all. As with the Kings so with the Priests, anointing denotes a change in the order : When then God promised a Messiah (an Anointed One) He indicated by the very name a change in the Priesthood (compare also Hebrews vii.) ^ R. Abbuhu (or Abbahu) (a.d. 279 — 320 about) was a wealthy and accom- plished Agada-teacher. He lived at Caesai'ea and enjoyed the friendship of the Roman Proconsul ; so great indeed was his popularity that " the ladies of Caesar's household " used to greet him with a song as he returned from his lectures (see T. B. Sanhed. 14^). He was reproved by one of his col- leagues for teaching his daughter Greek, but justified himself by solemnly declaring that his own teacher, R. Yochanan, had permitted it. As a justi- fication of R. Abbuhu's Greek studies the verse was quoted, "It is good that thou should'st take hold of this (i.e. Jewish studies); yea also from this other (i. e. Greek learning) not withdraw thine hand ; for he that feareth God shall come forth of them all " (Eccles. vii. 18) (see Midrash Koheleth on the verse). R. Abbuhu was much involved in controversy with the Jewish Christians (the so-called Miniw). 26 YALKUT. Elephant or the skin of a Camel, it would not have been of such a size as this, and thou sayest thus ; — 3 " This is the curse that goeth forth over the face of the whole earth." From the Temple it was that it came forth, from the porch of the Temple, for we have learnt in the Mishnah that He endeavoured to prove from the verse "I am the First and I am the Last and beside Me there is no God " (Is. xliv. 6) that there could be no Father and no Son in the Godhead (Sh'i)ioth liabhah 29). On another occasion a Jewish Christian, who probably intended to argue with R. Abbuhu respecting the Ascension of Christ, maintained that Enoch had gone to Heaven without dying because it is written, "Enoch walked with God and was not, for God took (Pip?) him," and it is also written, " God will take away thy Master from thy head to-day," — where the same word (np?) " take" is known to signify Ascension into Heaven. But R. Abbuhu met the argument by quoting the verse "Behold I take from thee the desire of thino eyes, &c." (Ezek. xxiv. IG) where {Up?) " take " is used respecting the death of Ezekiel's wife. I think we must confess that the answer was at least as good as the argument. R. Abbuhu endeavoured to found an argument against Christianity from the words of the verse (Numbers xxiii. 19) : nnM ha li'^a ah DmriM mx pi R. Abbuhu of course knew that the literal meaning of these words is, " God is not a man that He should lie, Or a son of man that He should repent; Hath He promised and shall He not perform? Or hath Ho spoken and shall not make it good?" but, in accordance with the custom of his time, he felt himself justified in seeking for a secondary meaning, and, since his object was to attack Christianity he changes the words thus ; — ' If a man shall say unto you "I am God," he is a "liar", "I am the Son of Man (D1X p) " — his end will be " to repent of it," "I ascend to Hea- ven" — "Such an one Kayx but he cannot perform it "(nL''y* iast rqnnlly prohalile. 3Q YALKUT. cause it is said, "This shall be the law of the Leper'" (Levit. xiv. 2). Thus thou findest in the case of Miiiam that she was taken"'* with leprosy. And " On false witness" ? Because the Israelites jrave false witness against the Holy One, blessed be He, and said, " These be thy gods, Israel . . ." (Exod. xxxii. 8). And then it is written, that it (i.e. the People) was disordered (^nS)" (Exod. xxxii. '23). And "On a judge that perverts judgment"? Because it is said, "Therefore as the tongue of fire consumeth the stubble' [their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust" (Is. v. 24)]. This is Leprosy, for it is said, "... the leprosy shall blossom out" (Lev. xiii. 12). And "On* one that enters on a province that is not his own"? From (the case of) Uzziah (see 2 Chron. xxvi. 19). 1 Read " M'tzora, ', " leper,'" as if it wcro a contraction of Motze (shem) ra, " that publisheth a slander." * Because she had published a slander apainst Moses. According to the Jewish interpreters there is a distinct warning on this point in Dent. xxiv. 8, 9. — They translate as follows; — "Beware of the plague of leprosy Remember what the Eternal thy God did to Miriam in the way, as ye were coming forth from Egypt." But this would seem to me to require "lOtJ'n riSP; I therefore prefer to read, with the English Version, "Take heed in the plague of leprosy to observe, Ac." ^ The words in square brackets are not given in the Yalkut, though the argument turns wholly upon them. The reader is 8U)qiosed to be so familiar with the whole text of the Bible, that wluae two or three words arc given, he must be able to supply the context. If then we turn to the context (Is. v. 23) we shall see that this curse is pronounced against tliose who "justify the wicked for reward, &c." and therefure the passage apjilies to the case of " a judge that perverts judgment." * " On one that enters on a province that is mil his oini." Tlie Jews from very early times liavc given a truly spiritual interpretation to the command "Thou shalt not remove thy neighbour's landmark" (Deut. xix. 11 and Prov. xxii. 2H), which they understand as a command from Ciod not to enter upon another man's sphere of labour. It was doubtless in consequence of St Paul's Rabbinic training that lie made it a point of honour "to preacli, not where Christ was named, that he niiglit not build on the foundntioTi of another" (P>onians xv. 20). Compare the well-known saying of Ililiel, "In the place where there are no men there do tliou strive to lie tiif man" (Pirh> .troth). Also T. B. lierakoth f)3\ ZECHARIAH V. 31 And "On one that sets strife betwixt brethren"? From Pharaoh : — Because it is said, " And the Eternal plagued Pharaoh" (Gen. xii. 17). And "On an evil eye*"? Whence (can you prove it)? Rabbi Yitzchak said, When the eye of a man is grudging (lit. narrow) a man comes to him and says to him, Lend me thine axe : And he says, I have not got one : — And the Holy One, blessed be He, smites him with Leprosy. And it is written, "And the priest shall command, and they shall turn the house upside down" (Lev. xiv. 3G) and sweep out its vessels and it becomes exposed. And so (too) it says ; "The increase of his house shall become exposed, flow- ing away in the day of His anger" (Job xx. 28). And some say even " On proud men." From the case of Naaman. And " On one that speaks a word against his fellow." Because it is written, "But they will not believe me" (Exod. iv. 1). And what answer did he receive? "Put now thy hand into thy bosom^" (Exod. iv. G). HINT 573. Our Rabbis have learned by tradition that it too (i.e. the T.B. ShVuotb oath required by the judges in a suspected case) may be pronounced in any language', [This that follows is the warning given to the man before the oath is imposed.] One says, Know thou that the whole world shook witli fear when the Holy One, blessed be He, spake on Sinai (the ' " On an evil eye"--'Here agaiu tlie proof, though not specially men- tioned, is probably founded upon the similarity of the names Tzar-aln (" evil of eye") and Tzaraeth ("leprosy"). ' The leprosy of Moses is here supposed to have been the direct conse- quence of the charge that he brought against his People. ^ The discussion in the Talmud is on certain things which may onlj* be pronounced in the sacred Language. 32 YAl.KUT. words), " Thou shalt not take up the Name of the Eternal thy God [in vain] " (Exod. xx. 7). And with respect to all the other transgressions which are mentioned in the Law, it is said, "And He clears'/' hut with respect to this^ "He will not clear" (Exod. xx. 7). And for all the other transgressions [in the Law] ven- geance is taken on the man himself; hut, in this case, it is ^ "And he clears^' — Perhaps it will be asked, Where does the Scrip- ture say this? The answer is that this doctriue depends on an old Jewish traditional interpretation of the Thirteen Middoth, or Attributes of God, mentioned in Exod. xxxiv. 6 and 7 : we there read nxtini v'^'^'i py XL"J From the first clause the Jews maintain that God's method of "for- giving^' (Kl^'J) " iniquity and transriression and sin" consists, not in letting a man off from the consequences of his actions, but, in lifting iip (Nt'J) the punisJnncnt {])]}) so that it might not fall with a crushing weight upon the sinner. The second clause then becomes clear, — " A]td he will by no memis acquit." Here again the words admit of a D'rash or additional interpreta- tion, for they may, consistently with the literal meaning, be taken thus ; "And He clears (but) He does not clear," i.e. He clears the sinner from his sin, but in such a merciful way as not to clear him out of life (For this use of rip^, see Zech. v. 3) ; or again, He clears bj' forgiveness, but He does not clear by neglecting to punish. That this interpretation is, in the main, the right one, may be seen from Numb. xiv. 17 — 23, where the whole argument turns upon the fact that /org ivenexs does not consist in letting off. We have also an interesting comment in Jeremiah xxx. 11, "For I am with thee, saith the Eternal, to help thee; when I make a full end of all the heathen, whitlicr I have scattered you, yet of thee I will not make a full end, but I will chastise thee with judgement and will by no means acquit thee" ("Ip3X iw np31). Nahum also tells us (i. 3) that though the Eternal is " long-suffering" because of His strength, yet " Jle never acquits" (N? T^p2) r\py). There can, I think, be no doubt that this is the right interpretation, and, if so, the Jews are justified in saying that God clears and yet Jle does not clear — He clears,— in that He forgives sin ; — He does not clear, — in that the consequences of wrong-doing sooner or later, always follow. In other words, punishment is the means of forgiveness. The above-mentioned passage in Exodus, containing the Thirteen Attri- butes of God, is appointed in the Jewish I'rnyer-Book to be recited on the Great Festivals, but the Jews always stop short at the word HpJI, i.e. "And He clears." This is the tradition to which our text refers when it states that of all the transgressions mentioned in the Law it is written " And He clears." ' The sin against God's Name, i.e. His Nature, is the sin ngninst the Holv Ghost. ZECHARIAH V. 33 on the man himself and on his kindred : — As it is said, "Permit not thy mouth to bring guilt upon thy flesh" (Eccles. V. 6). Now a man's Flesh signifies his kindred ; As it is said, — "And hide not thyself from thine own flesh," (Is. Iviii. 7),. And for all the (other) transgressions (mentioned) in the Law, vengeance is taken of the man himself, but in this case, vengeance is taken of him and of the whole world ; As it is said ;—" Swearing and lying, &c. . . ." and it goes on to say, "therefore the Earth mourneth, and all the dwellers therein languish" (Hos. iv. 3). Also, for all the (other) transgressions in the Law, if a man has (any) merit they (i.e. God and the Angels) suspend judgment upon him for two and three generations'; but in this (other) case they exact vengeance from him immediately, As it is said, "I bring' it forth, saith the Eternal"— i.e. immediatebj. 4 "And it shall enter into the house of the thief." This means one that imposeth upon men {lit. that stealeth the thought of the creatures), when he (really) has no money owed him by his neighbour, and yet he accuses him, and induces him to take an oath. 4 "And into the house of him that swearetli falsely by My Name." (This is to be taken) according to its natural meaning. 4 " And it shall dwell in the midst of his house and consume it with its timber and its stones." Lo ; here thou seest that things which fire and water had been powerless to destroy, a false oath destroys ! ' See also Pirke Avoth, in. 2'>, where R. Akiva compares God to a broker who gives credit, but keeps the ledger open. Also T. B. Kiddushiin 10* (quoted by Dr Taylor, SayiDfjif of the Jfirhh Fathers, p. 73), "They give no credit in the case of the profanation of the Name." * Lit. "I have brought it fortli." The argument in the text depfiida )il>on this Tise of the pn^t teiixf. K. Y. 3 34. YALKUT. And if he say, I do not swear, they exempt him (from the oath'). But if he say, I do swear, — those tliat stand by say, " Depart now from the tents of these wicked men, &C." (Numb. xvi. 26). [See also Yalkut on Josh. Hint 18, as follows : — ] Pir'kay Eabbi Rabbi Akiva says, that a Charem is an oath, and an oath Ehezer. Cap. ^g ^^ chareiii ; and every one that breaks an oath it is all the XXXVIII. ' *' same as if he broke a charem, and he that breaks the charem, breaks the oath — and if any one knows of the matter and does not tell, the charem comes upon him, and consumes him, and his timber, and his stones ; as it is said, (Zeeh. v. 4), "And I will bring it forth, saith the Eternal; and it shall enter into the house of the thief, and into the house of him that sweareth falsely by My Name, and it shall lodge in the midst of his house, and consume it and its timber and its stones." If you want to understand the power of tlie charem, come and see from the case of Joshua the son of Nun, who devoted Jericho, and all that was therein, to the curse. Now Achan was there, and he saw the teraphim and the silver which they kept bringing before it (i.e. the image) and the garment that was spread out before it and a certain tongue of gold that was in its mouth, and he coveted them in his heart and took them and went and hid them in the midst of his tent ; and on account of the trespass that he trespassed there died thirty-six [righteous] men. Then Joshua went and rent his garments, and fell upon his face to the earth before the Ark of the Covenant of the Eternal and .sought repentance ; and the Holy One, blessed be Ho, ac- cepted him, and said to Joshua, " The children of Israel have trespassed in the accursed thing" (Josh. vii. 1), as it is said, "Israel hath sinned" (Josh. vii. 11). Joshua looked upon the twelve stones which were upon tlie High Priest (and) which corresponded to the twelve tribes ; and the stone of each individual tribe that was working righteous- ' A man is not obliged to take an oath in a Jewish Court of Law. Tlie teaching of Christ on this point (Matt. v. 33—37) is as definite rb language cnn make it, and ought to be interpreted in the lip-lit of the old Jewish leaching; an indeed the early Fathers understood it. ZECHARIAH V. 35 ness emitted her light ; and the stone of each tribe that was committing transgression dimmed her light; — And he saw that the stone of Judah was dimming her light and he knew that the tribe of Judah had trespassed in the accursed thing (charem). And he cast lots among them, and Achan was taken. And Joshua took Achan and the silver and the (purple) garment and the tongue and his sons and his daugh- ters and all that he had and brought them to the valley of Achor. — But it is written, "Fathers shall not be put to death for children, nor children for fathers" (Deut. xxiv. 16). — But it was because they knew of the matter and did not tell — "And he stoned them and burnt them" — If stoning, why burning ? and if burning, why stoning ? But the stoning was because they knew of the matter and did not tell, the hurning, because for his sake thirty six righteous men had been killed. But because he gave glory to the great name of the Holy One, blessed be He, he has a portion in the world to come. As it is said, " The Eternal shall trouble thee this day" — (i.e.) thou art (now) troubled but thou shalt not be troubled in the world to come. [End of quotation from Yalkut on Joshua.] Rabbi Sh'mual son of Nachmani said; — The angels ofPesiktaEab destmction have no joints', as it is said (of Satan), " From 22, (£0^4;"!'''^ roaming in the earth, and from walking up and down Bresiau E.ii- in it" (Job ii. 2), but here (it is said), "And it shall lodge in the midst of his house." 8 "And he said, This is wickedness." seeYaiicuton Ezra, Hint 9 " And I lifted up mine eyes, and I saw, and t. b. yoiZ behold two women..." Ten measures of Pride came down into the world, Elam t. R. Sanliod. received nine of them, and all the rest of the world (had) the (remaining) one. 1 The same exproRsion is used of good angels in the YeruBhalmi 1. 1 l^^'^Dp ]Tv> pX "they have no joints." From this passage we see that the idea originated from Ezek. i. 7, where it is said of the Angels " and their feet were straight feet " ; also in Daniel (vii. 16) the Angela are called K^^Op " the Slanders," cf. DnDyn in Zech. iii. 7. See also the TO^'M nn3?3 on Ezok. i. 3—2 36 YALKUT. What ? Do you mean to say Pride did not descend upon Babylon ? For surely it is written, " And I lifted up mine eyes and I saw, and behold two women going forth . . . and I said unto the Angel that spake in me, Whither are these carrying the Ephah? And he said. To build for it a house in the land of Shinar"? And Rabbi Yoclianan iu the name of Eabbi Shimeon ben Yochai said, This (i.e. this vision of the two women) is Hypocrisy and Pride which descended upon Babylon ; to Elam it came first and spread thither, even as it is ex- pres.sly implied (in the words of the verse) "To build for it a house'." But surely my lord {Mar) says that the sign of Pride is Poverty ? And Poverty was surely in Babylon ? What (then) is Poverty (here) ? Poverty of Torah ; as it is written, "We have a little sister [and she has no breasts"] (Song of Songs viii. 8). Rabbi Yochanan said, This is Elam, which attained the merit of learning, but not the merit of teaching^ Zech. cii. vi. 1 " And I lifted up mine eyes, and I saw, and lo four chariots Pesikta 2 In the first chariot red horses," — corresponding to the camp of Judah, of whom it is said, "... eyes red with wine" (Gen. xlix. 12). Of David (too) who sprang from Judah, it is said (that he was), "ruddy, with beautiful eyes" (1 Sam. xvi. 12). 2 "And in the second chariot were black horses," — corresponding to the camp of lieuhen and Synieon who wrought a deed of darkness ; — ' As it is said of the niidwives that Clod " made them houses," i.e. increased them (Ex. i. 21). ' The text of the Yalknt differs here considorahly from tliat of the Talmud. The passage is taken from the middle of a discussion in wliich tl>o Palestinian Rabbis are depreciating the Babyloiiiiin Talmud; see below, page f)2. ^ This passage is not now found in Pesiktn Itabbatlii. It'; preservation \« due to the Yalknt. ZECHARIAH VI. 37 Reuben, — in that he profaned his father's bed, &c. And it says, "Then thou didst profane— to my bed he went up" (Gen. xlix. 4). Simeon, — (as it is said) "Into their secret come not my soul!" (Gen. xlix. 6) — in the matter of Zimri. 3 "And in the third chariot were white horses"; — corresponding to Ephraim, Benjamin and Manasses, who were blessed with choice fruits (megadim) ; as it is said, "Of the choicest products of the sun" (Deut. xxxiii. 14). And the greater part of choice fruits {megadim) are white. And it says, "Before Ephraim Benjamin and Manasses stir up Thy strength . . ." (Ps. Ixxx. 2). 3 "And in the fourth chariot were horses spotted mighty ones," (D^^I^DX DH"!^)— corresponding to the camp of Dan, who were strong and mighty; as it is said, "Dan is a lion's whelp" (Deut. xxxiii. 24). And it is written, "Let Dan be a serpent by the way side" (Gen. xlix. 17). And the "four chariots" are (also)^ those of the four World-Powers (lit. kingdoms) which correspond to the four bannered camps (of Israel), so that when they (i.e. Israel) do works that are not right, they fall these to those and this to that and God (thus) brings it about that they may fear before Him. "Red horses"— This is the Kingdom of Babylon which shed much blood in Israel : — "Thou art that head of Gold" (Dan. ii. 38). "Black horses" This is the Kingdom of Persia and 1 Having explained the "four chariots" with respect to Israel, he now proceeds to explain them with respect to the World-Powers ; thus, for example, the " White horse" may signify either victory or shame. But these two interpretations are really one. In so far as Israel comes up to the ideal of the four camps of God, each colour is, as it were, a separate banner of victory ; but when Israel, by sin, falls short of that ideal, each camp creates a camp of Satans. The vision therefore is for all time -it represents the nilnal passing into the ideal. 38 YALKUT. Media; — "The second is like to a bear" (Dan. vii. 5) — since they darkened the face of Israel by the decrees of Haman. "White horses" — This is the Kingdom of Greece — since they made ivhite the face of Israel with reproaches and blas- phemies. "Horses spotted and powerful"— This is the fourth Kingdom, — since they decreed decrees of ever so many^ colours different one from the other. [And'^ the Camp of the Priests and Levites — with respect to these too (it was that) Zechariah saw ; as it is said, " I saw the nig-ht, and behold a Man riding upon a Red horse, and he was staying among the myrtles" (Zech. i. 8). "A Man"— This is "the Holy One, blessed be He," as it is said, " The Eternal is a Man of war." — " Red^' — because the Shekinah was resting between the two Cheru- bim' — and so it says, "My Beloved is White and Red" (Cant. V. 10). "Among the myrtles" — These are the saints, as it is said, — "Instead of the brier shall spring up the Myrtle'" (Is. Iv. 13). — And the Angel that interpreted between the Shekinah and the Prophet corresponds to Moses and Aaron who interpreted^ the Law to Israel. For it is said, "And the 1 From this we see that tlie author of Pesikta Rabbathi understood the difficult word Dn"l3 to signify " many-coloitred" or "spotted." * I have enclosed this passage in square brackets because it is here out of place, referring as it does to Zech. chap. i. and not to cJuip. vi. 3 The Cherubim are the emblems not of mercy, but of wrath, they are as it were the storm-clouds of God's vengeance ; when then the Shekinah is said to be resting between the two Cherubim, it implies that Mercy is resting upon Punishment; therefore also it is said of God that He is "White" (mercy) and "Red" (justice) (Cant. v. 10). * See note on page 5. » "Who interpreted the Law"— litirally, "Who were the Methorgema- nim..." The meaning is best illustrated by the following story ; "Eabbi Sh'muel bar Rav Yilzchak went to the Synagogue; lie saw the Minister standing up and interpreting, and he had no man under him (as his Methorgeman). He said to him, This is forbidden— Even as it (the Law) was given by the hands of a Mediator ("IIDID) so are we bound to use it by the hands of a Mediator" (Yerwhalmi, Megillah iv. 1). Although Moses is never mentioned by the name of Mediator in llie Old ZECHARIAH VI. 39 Angel that spake in me said unto me"; — And Moses too is called an Angel, as it is said, "And. He sent an Angel and brought us forth out of Egypt" (Numb. xx. 16). And so too Aaron, "For the Angel of the Eternal of Hosts is he" (Mai. ii. 7). "And after him were horses, Red, Tawny, White" (Zech. i. 8). "Red" — corresponding to the sons of Kohath; — for their charge was of the gilt vessels, which are red, and their charge was of the Ark and the Candlestick and the Altars. "Tawny" (serukim), — As thou say est, "Workers in tawny '(?) {serikoth) flax" (Is. xix. 9) — These are the sons of Gershom, since the greater part of their charge was of things made of flax and the tabernacle and the tent and its integument and the braided hangings of the yard and the veil. "And White" — corresponding to the sons of Merari ; for the greater part of their charge was of White (things), (i.e.) the boards of the tabernacle and its bars, its pillars and it« sockets.] And whence can you prove that the four Kingdoms were messengers of the Holy One, blessed be He ? — Because it is said, "Go and walk through the earth" (Zech. vi. 7). And he says too, "And they walked through the earth" and they executed their commission by leading Israel captive Testament, yet his mediatorial ofiQce is distinctly recognized, especially in the giving of the Law. Thus, for example, he says, — "I was standing between the Eternal and you at that time to tell to you the word of the Eternal" (Deut. v. 5). But in the first centm-y the name "mediator" was frequently applied to Moses. Thus, in a fragment of the very early Apocry- phal work, the Assumption of Moses, he is made to say of himself. .." et invenit me qui ab initio orbis terrarum praeparatus sum ut sim arbiter {ixecTirTju) testamenti illius " (cap. i.). So too St Paul says of the Law that it was 5iaTa7eis 5t' 077^0;;' ii> x^'-P^ ixecrirov (Gal. iii. 12). Cf. also Hebrews viii. 6; Acts vii. 52. Schoettgcn and Wetstein (on Gal. iii. 19) have collected several Rabbinical passages in which Moses is spoken of as the Mediator (IIDID), there is therefore no need to repeat them here, ' Context is nin D*3~lX1, " weavers of wbitr works." 40 YALKUT. from out of their land ; and the Chariots subdued the four Camps. " And four Chariots going forth from between the two mountains" (Zech. vi. 1) — (i.e.) from between the Kingdoms of Judah and of Israel who dwell between the two lands, the (land) beyond the Jordan, and the Land of Israel ; and they (i.e. the 2| tribes) went forth between them, and they (i.e. the enemies) led them captive; and so he says, "If ye shall dwell between the two shores" (Ps. Ixviii. 13), (i.e.) if ye shall be willing to fulfil the positive and negative command- ments (alluding to sephathdim) — (then) ye shall "dwell be- tween the two shores" {shephathdim), viz. Judah, and the land beyond the Jordan — But if not ye shall go about from nation to nation. "And the mountains were mountains of brass" — This (refers to) the Kingdom of Judah and of Israel which (became) hard as brass so as not to listen to the words of the Prophets. Another interpretation is that their Kingdom was strong as brass, as it is said, "Thy shoes (shall be) iron and brass" (Deut. xxxiii. 25). Zech. c. viii. 4 " Tlius saltli the Eternal, There shall dwell old men and old women..." T. B. Pesa- Rabbi Sh'muel, son of Nachmani said, that Rabbi Jona- "^ ™ than said, There will in future time be rigiitcous men who will raise the dead ;— as it is said, " Thus saith the Eternal, There shall yet dwell in the streets of Jerusalem old men and old women, each with his staff in his hand"— And it is also written, "And thou shalt put my staff on the face of the child" (2 Kings iv. 29). 10 "For before these days there was no hire for man, nor any hire for beast ; neither was there any peace to comer or to goer." T. B. Sanhe- Rablji Eliczar [? Elazar] says, You cannot have a clearer firm 08». indication (of Messianic times) than that. What means this "To comer and to goer there is no peace"? Rav said, Thosp are the discipl'^s r.f the wise men, of ZECHARIAH VIII. 41 whom it is written, "Great peace have they that love Thy Law" (Ps. cxix. 165). And Sh'muel said, [Messiah will not come] until all markets be alike. And so (also) taught Chaiya bar Rav, " And to goer and to comer there is no peace by reason of distress'." 10 "And to goer and to comer there is no peace." Rav said. When a man leaves (the study of) Halakah T. B. Ch'gigah [for the (study of) Scripture] he no more finds rest". gee Talmud And Sh'muel said, This means one who separates him- self from Talmud for Mishna. And Rabbi Yochanan said, This includes one who separates himself from Talmud for Talmud (i.e. from the Jerusalem Talmud for the Babylonian). 11 "But now not as in the former days There is an out growth of peace, the vine shall yield her fruit." Six things were taken from the first Adam. gee Yalkut ou [The following is from the Yalkut on Haggai.] of Haggai"^"** Hint 567. 1 This passage is loosely quoted from T. B. Sanhed. 98", where the discussion is wholly on the signs of Messiah's coming. First it is proved (in a passage already translated, see p. 1 in note) that the time of Eedemption is fixed and does not depend upon Israel's repentance or good works — Then the question arises. What will be the signs of His coming? E. Abba main- tains that the clearest possible indication of " the end" will be the exceeding fruitfulness of the Land, quoting Ezek. xxxvi. 8, "But ye, O mountains of Israel, ye shall shoot forth yoiir branches, and yield your fruit to my people of Israel; for they (? the days of Eedemption) are nigh at hand to come" (cf. Luke xxi. 29—31). But E. Eliezar [or Elazar] on the other hand, makes the very opposite the sign — There must be great distress first (cf. Luke xxi. 25 — 27). This is the general opinion. Amongst other signs, A fish (the commonest sort of food) will be sought for a sick person but not be found. 2 Eav wishes to prove that safety and peace of mind can only be found by keeping to the Traditions. A man must walk in the old paths and not be a "goer and a comer"; therefore he applies this text from Zechariah by way of D'rash, "To comer and to goer there is no peace." 42 YALKUT. Midrash'. "Eating, but not for satiety" (Hag. i. 6). This is what the Scripture says, "But now not as in the former days ... for there is an out-growth of peace, and the vine shall yield her fniit." What means this, "As in the former days"? Thou wilt find that when the Israelites came out of Egypt (God) brought down for them the Manna, and He collected for them the Quails; and He caused the "Well to spring up for them, and each individual Tribe used to make . for itself an aqueduct and draw (the Avater) from the Well, and draw it to itself And a man planted for himself fig- trees, pomegranates, and vines, and apples ; and they used to yield their fruit when one day old, even as it was at the creation of the world. But when the first Adam sinned, the ground was cursed ; as it is said, " In the sweat of thy brow tbou shalt eat bread . . ." And when the Well de- parted from them, all Good departed. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, Go, and tell them that when they enter the Land of Israel, I am going to bring back (all) for them ; — as it is said, " For the Lord thy God bringeth thee into a good Land, a Land of streams of water, &c." (Deut. viii. 7). When they came to the Land, they com- menced sinning ; — as it is said, " Ye no sooner came, than ye polluted My Land" (Jer. ii. 7). Then they commenced " Sowing much, and bringing in little" (Hag. i. 6). Why ? Because they caused first-fruits to cease. There was "eating without satiety" (Hag. i. G) from the time when the Shewbread ceased. There was "drinking without being filled" (Hag. i. G) from the time when the libations of wine ceased. There was "clothing without warmth" (Hag. i. 6) from the time when the priestly garments ceased. "And he that earneth wages earneth it into a purse with holes" (Hag. i. G) — from the time when Almsgiving ceased. • I have not been able to trace this actual quotation in any t'xtant MiflraRh, but there is a very similar passage in the Midrash Tanchuma, Section HlVn, (p. 11.5, Warsaw edition). ZECHARIAH YIII. 43 "There was no wage for man" (Zech. viii. 10) from the time when the pilgrims to the Festivals ceased. "There was no wage for beast" (Zech. viii. 10) from the time when the Offerings ceased. But* in the Time to come (i.e. the Messianic Age), the Holy One, blessed be He, brings it (all) back ; as it is said, "But now not as in the former days" (Zech. viii. 11). [End of quotation from Yalkut on Haggai]. 16 "Truth and judgment of peace judge ye in your gates." Rabbi Yehoshua son of Korchah'^ says, Arbitration is a T. B. Sanbed. duty — For it is said, " Truth and judgment of peace ..." ^'^^ But is it not the case that where Judgment comes there Peace is not, and where Peace comes there Judgment is not? Where then is there a Judgment that has in it Peace ? Thou mayest say. In Arbitration. Thus of David (the Scripture) says; "And David was executing judgment (tDfiSJ^;!:) and kindness' (Hpnv) for all his people" (2 Sam. viii. 15). ^ Sin delays, but cannot frustrate tbe purpose of God, therefore, in Messianic times, tbe promise is without condition; it is now " 7iot as in the former days.'^ 2 Korchah — " the bald" is a name for E. Akiva. 2 Tbe root pTV signifies not merely that which is just and right OC'') in itself but that which is eventually seen to be just and right in the sight of God and man. Unfortunately the English word Righteousness is a very feeble substitute for pTV or HpTV. plV and npTV ^^^ applied both to God and man, but since the applica- tion to man is only indirect we may, for our present purpose, leave it out of Bight. What then is the Righteousness (HpTV) of God? Or, in other words, how are His ways shewn to be right in the sight of His worlds ? Now it ia quite true that God may shew Himself to be just by punishing those that have sinned, and in this sense the word is sometimes used, e.g. ripi'ii c'npj U)i\)r\ "pxni (is. v. lO). But it is God's merry that needs most justification. — By what right can He forgive sin at all ? Therefore the " Rightrousucss " of God most frequently signifies that 4i YALKL'T. And surely ; where Kindness comes, Judgment is not ? And where Judgment comes, Kindness is not ? Where then is there a Judgment that has in it Kindness ? Thou raayest say, In Arbitration. Rabbi Shimeon son of Menassya says ; — Two men come before thee for judgment; before thou hast heard their cases, or, after tliou hast heard their cases but dost not know to which side the judgment will incline, thou art at liberty to say to them, Go and decide by arbitration ; as it is said, " One may let off waters (of strife) at the commencement of the judgment, and before the case becomes' embittered Mystery ■which is "waiting to be revealed" (Is. Ivi. i. &c.) which will rise upon the dark world like a Sun (Mai. iv. 2 ; Is. Ixii. 1 ; Ps. xxxvii. 6), to convince it (St John xvi. 8) and flood it with growth (PIDV) as an Eastern Spring (Is. xxxii. ; Jer. xxxiii. 15). God's kindness will then be seen to be reconciled with justice and right, " Righteousness and Peace will kiss each other" (Ps. Ixxxv. 10). By the Righteousness of God then I understand the justification of His forbearance and merry before the Universe; and in this sense St Paul uses the word (Romans iii. 25, 26) when he speaks of Christ being set forth to be a propitiation,... "to shew his (God's) righteousness, because of the passing over of the sins done aforetime, in the forbearance of God ; for the shewing (I say) of his righteousness at this present season : that he might himself be just, and the justifier of him that hath faith in Jesus." (See Revised Version.) If then the liighteomness of God be kindness justified it follows that the Righteousness of man must err, if I may say so, on the side of kindness : — for Kindness must ever be justified of her children. Thus, while in the earlier forms of the languaj,'e pTV or HpTV may have been used almost as synonymous with DD5i*D, there arose little by little a more clearly marked differentiation between them until the foi nicr came to signify mercy, kindness, and the latter jws^(Vt'. The singular use of pT^ ("victorious mercy") by the Second Lsaiah deserves more attention than it has at present received. Before the times of the New Testament npTV {8tKaio This interpretation of tTltOJ Tin y"?Jnn ^3d'?1 is at least as near to the original as that of the E. V., '•Therefore leave off contention before it be meddled with.'' It is also more suitable to the context which is as follows; "lie that justifteth the wicked and he tliat condemneth the just, even thfy both are ahnmin/ition to thr Lord." It is not so much tlie duty of the private individual in ceasing from stiife that is here contemplated, ZECHARIAH VIII. 45 stop it" (Prov. xvii. 14). Before the case becomes embit- tered thou art at liberty to dismiss it; but after the case has become embittered thou art not at liberty to dismiss it. Rav said, The Halakah goes with R. Yehoshua ben Kor- chah ; — viz. That arbitration is a duty, so that one should say to them, Will ye have judgment or Arbitration ? Rabban Shimeon ben Gam'liel says, Upon three things Avoth I. the World stands, — upon Torah, upon Judgment and upon *^° '' Peace, as it is said, " Truth and Judg-ment of Peace judge ye in your gates." 19 "Thus saith the Eternal... ;— The fast of the fourth (month?), the fast of the fifth, the fast of the seventh, and the fast of the tenth shall become to the house of Juclah joy and gladness." R. Chanina bar Bizna said that R. Sh'meon Chasida said, T. B. Rosh It (the Scripture) calls it " a fast " and it calls it "joy and f^t.^^''"'*^ gladness." (How can this be ?) But is not this really what it means, (viz.) that, in a time of peace then they "become joy and gladness"; but, if there be not peace, then they are "fasts"? Rav Papa said, Tliis is what it means, (viz.) that, in a time of peace they shall "become joy and gladness"; but, if there be not peace, then if people please to fast they may, if they do not please, they need not. But, if so, the Ninth of Av^ would come under this rule? Rav Papa said, (No.) — The case of the Ninth of Av is quite different : for on that day troubles were doubled (and doubled again) : for my lord says that on the Ninth of Av the First Temple was destroyed, and the Second, Botlior was taken, and the City was ploughed. but rather the duty of a judge in appeasing it. R. Shimeon prohalily wished also to convey to his licarers a play on the words n/>3nn and y?3nn Thus, "Before the case becomes ^^^^"(Je^'^j stop »*•" * The Fast of the Ninth of Av is much more strictly observed than the other fasts mentioned in the text. It is, indeed, as strictly kept as the " Dav of .\tonemcnt." 46 YALKUT. There is a Boraitha (to the effect) that R. Shimeon ben Yochai said, There are four things which Rabbi Akiva expounded, which I do not' expound as he did (These are they). ''The fast of the fourth"— This is (in his opinion) the seventeenth day of Tammuz, on which the city (Jerusalem) was broken through, as it is said ; — " In the fourth (month), in the seventeenth' (?) of the month, the famine prevailed in the city . . . and the city was broken throug-h" (Jer. lii. G, 7). And why does it call it "the fourth"? (Because Tammuz is) the fourth of months. "The fast of the fifth"— This is the ninth of Av on which the Temple of our God was burnt. And why does it call it "the fifth"? (Because Av is) the fifth of months. " The fast of the seventh"— This is the third (day) of Tishray on which Gedaliah the son of Achikam was slain. And who killed him ? Ishmael, the son of Nethanyah killed him, which proves to thee that the death of the saints is as weighty a matter as the burning of the Temple of God. And why does it call it "the seventh"? (Because Tishray is) the seventh of months. "The fast of the tenth" — This is the tenth of Taveth on which the king of Babylon strengthened himself against Jern>alem ; as it is said, — "And the word of the Eternal came unto me in the ninth year, in the tenth month, and on the tenth day of the month, saying", Son of man, ' R. Shimeon ben Yocliai was a pupil of R. Akiva. * The Talmud toxt here reads "This is the ninth day of Tammuz on wliich the city (.Jerusalem) was broken throngii; as it is said: — "In the fonrth (month) in the ninth of the month the famine prevailed in the city and there was no food for the common people and the city was broken throufrh." But in the Yalkut text the '• nfvinitcfntU" is substituted for the " ninth' because of the old .Jewish tradition that though the famine began to be felt on the ninth it was not until the seventeenth that the breach was actually made in the city. This question is discussed in T.B. Ta'nith 28\ where it is stated that the earlier date refers to the First destruction, and the latter to the Second. Probably some scribe substituted "nei'enteenth" for " ninth " because this tradition was in his mind while he was writing the verse from Jeremiah. ZECHARTAH VIII. IX. 47 write the name of the day, this very self-same day, the king of Babylon hath strengthened himself against Jeru- salem" (Ezek. xxiv. 1, 2). But I do not say so, for (in my opiQion) "the fast of the tenth" means the ninth of Av, «fec. 23 "Thus saith the Eternal..., in those days ten men shall lay hold, &c." Resh Lakish says, Every one who pays heed to the t. b. Shab- commandments respecting^ fringes is worthy of being served * by two thousand eight hundred servants ; as it is said, — "Thus saith the Eternal of Hosts, in those days ten men of all the languages of the families of the nations shall lay hold, and lay hold on the skirt of a man that is a Jew." HINT 575. 1 " The burden of the word of the Eternal in Zech. ch. ix. the land of (^had-rak and Damascus is his rest." Rabbi Judah expounded (as follows). This means the sifre Sect. Messiah, for He is sharp (Chad) to the nations of the world ^'*"^''"" ^• and gentle (Rak) to Israel. Rabbi Jose the Damascene said to him, O Judah, how long wilt thou pervert for us the Scriptures ! I call heaven and earth to witness that I am a man of Damascus and that there is there a place whose name is Chad-rak. But how am I to establish the meaning of (the words) "And Damascus is His rest"? (They mean that) Jerusalem will in future be reaching as far as Damas- cus, for it is said, "And Damascus is His rest," and this ' The Commandment with respect to fringes is given in Numbers xv. 37 — 41. It involves every command, see v. 40 " That ye may remember and do all my commandinents and be holy unto your God." The meaning of Resh Lakish, though quaintly expressed, is none other than that of our own beautiful Prayer, "Dens cui servire regnare est." Bcsh Lnkisli obtained his " 2800 servants" as follows:^ The number of lianguagcs in the world, according to .lewisli belief was 70; The skirt had 4 fringes; hence 70 ■ 10 x 4 =2800. 43 YALKUT. expression "His rest" means nothing else than Jerusalem, for it is said, "This shall be My rest for ever" (Ps. cxxxii. 14). He said to him, And how am I to establish (the meaning of the words) " And the city shall be built upon its own heap" (Jer. xxx. 18) ? He answered him, That it is not going to remove from its place. But how am I to establish the meaning of " And it widened and went up and up . . ." (Ezek. xli. 7) ? That the land of Israel will in future be widening and I'ising on all its sides like this fig- tree, whose width is upwards and her narrow part below ; and the gates of Jerusalem will in future be reaching as far as Damascus, as it is said, " Thy nose is like the tower of Lebanon that looketh toward Damascus" (Song of Songs vii. 4). And exiles come and encamp in the midst of her, as it is said, "And Damascus is His rest." This is in breadth'. 9 " Rejoice greatly O daughter of Zion": — He who sees an ass in a dream, let him look out for (the) Redemption, for it is said, "Rejoice greatly daug'hter of Zion, behold thy King cometh unto thee meek and riding upon an ass." 9 "Meek and riding upon an ass": — Chapters of This is the ass, the foal of that she-ass which was created EHezer ^^ ^^^^ twilight. This is the ass which Abraham our father Cap. xxxi. saddled for the binding of Isaac his son. This is the a.ss T. B. Bera- koth set. ' This papsage is found almost word for word in Pcsikatha Sect. HlpV ^JT (p. 143 in Buber's edition), also in Shir Ha-Shirim Kabbah on Cant. vii. 4, where the following derivation of Chad-rak is given ; " this is King Messiah, because he is going to load (IJadrck) every creature in the universe to re- pentance, d'C." " "Created in the twilipht"—]it. ''between the suns," i.e. immediately before the Sabbath on which God rested. In Aroth v. 9 we read of ten things which were thus potentially created, one of which is " the month of the aijt," alluding, as it would seem, to the miracle of Balaam's ass. The object there Beems to be to shew that everything was created in the six days, and that, if we seem to read of any new thing which docs not come under the ordinary laws of nature, still even this was potentially created: this they express by saying that it was created *' between the xvns" i.e. at a point of time which was neither Friday nor Saturday. (Sen also Dr Taylor's Saying* nf the .Jewiuli Father!*, p. !)7, note.) ZECHARIAH IX. 49 (too) upon which Moses our teacher rode when he came to Egypt, as it is said, "And he made them ride upon the ass" (Ex. iv. 20). This is the ass (too) upon which the Son of David shall ride. HINT 576. Rabbi Yehoshuah ben Levi met Elijah who was sit- T. B. Sanhe- tmor at the entrance of the cave of Kabbi bnimeon ben Yochai. He said to liim. When will Messiah come ? He (Elijah) replied, Go and ask Him Himself, He said to him, And where does He dwell ? He replied, At the entrance of Rome, He said to him, And what are His marks (whereby He may be distinguished) ? He replied, He is sitting among the poor and those burdened with sicknesses, and they all of them unloose their bandages and bind them up again all at once, but He unbinds one and binds up one, for He says, Perhaps I may be wanted, and I must not delay. He went to Him and said to Him, Peace be to Thee my Teacher and my Lord. He (the Messiah) replied. Peace be to thee son of Levi. He said to Him, When will my Lord come ? He replied. To-day. On the morrow he met Elijah, he came to him and said to him. What did he say to thee ? He replied. He told me false. He (i.e. Elijah) said to him. What did He tell thee ? He replied, I said to Him, Peace be unto Thee my Teacher and my Lord. He said to me. Peace be unto thee son of Levi. Moreover He said to me, I saw that they (i.e. the Family above) have secured unto thee and to thy father that ye are of those that inherit the future world. Tlien I said to Him, When will Messiah come ? He replied, To-day. He (Elijah) said to him, "To-day— if ye will hear His voice" (Ps. xcv.)'. ^ This passage is interesting in many ways, it may therefore be worth while to translate it also from the Tahnud text, partly because it is a fair specimen of the way in which the Yalkut text varies from the Talmud, but chiefly because certain ditliculties will thereby be explained more con- cisely than bv many notes. The Talmud reads as follows : — K. V. 4 50 YALKUT. Alexandri said, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi propounded a difficulty. It is written, "And lo, with the clouds of "E. Tehosliua ben Levi met Elijah [and R. SLimeon ben Yocbai] wbo were sitting at the entrance of the cave of 11. Shimeon ben Yochai. He sai 1 to him, ' Shall I attain to the World to Come ?' He (Elijah) replied, ' (Yes) if this lord pleases.' 11. Yehoshua ben Levi said, ' I see two (viz. Elijah and R. Shimeon Ben Y'ochai) but the voice of three I hear (implying, as Rashi thinks, the voice of God). He said to him (Elijah), 'Wlien will Messiah come?' He replied, 'Go and ask Him Himself.' 'And where does He dwell?' *At the Entrance of the City.' 'And what are His marks (whereby He may be known)?' 'He sits among the poor that are burdened with sicknesses; and they all of them unbind all (their wounds) at the same time and bind them up again ; but He looses and binds (only) one (wound) at a time ; for He says 'Perhaps I may be wanted and I must not delay.' He went to Him (and) said to Him, ' Peace be upon Thee my Teacher and my Lord.' He replied, 'Peace be upon thee son of Levi.' He said to Him, 'When will my lord (Mar) come?' He rephed, ' To-day.' He came (back) to Elijah (who) said to him, 'What did He say to thee?' He replied (Wliat He said was) ' Peace be upon thee son of Levi.' He (Elijah) replied, ' He (thereby) gave an assurance to thee and to thy father with respect to the World to Come ' [i.e. by calling him "(Son of Levi "]. He replied, ' He told me utterly false, for He said to me " To-day I come " and He is not come.' He (Elijah) replied, ' This is what He (really) said to thee, To-day if ye will hear His voice.' " In the first place we notice that the Talmud text makes no mention of Rome: and although the commentators understand "the City" in this sense, I doubt whether they are correct. The whole scene is laid in Gan Eden (or Paradise), for there was the Cave of R. Shimeon ben Yochai; now, since all things are double one against another, therefore as Gan Eden corre- sponds to the whole upper world even bo it may be supposed to have a City corresponding to Jerusalem; just as the Hebrew poet speaks of the Gates of Jerusalem corresponding to and opening into the Gates of Heaven: and this seems to me to be what Rashi means in his commentary where he gives us the view of his teacher, though I am aware that he is interpreted othenvise. If this view be correct we see Messiah sitting in that part of Paradise which immediately corresponds with the entrance of Jerusalem, ready, that is, to be revealed; standing, as it were, at the door. I am further confirmed in this view by a fact (mentioned in tlic ^pHpT DHDID al loc.) viz. tliat wherever " the city" is found in the Manuscripts of Rashi the printed editions have replaced it by " Rome." In the Jerusalem Targum on Exod. xii. 42 we read that I\Iosc3 will come forth from the Wilderness and Messiah from Rome; ; but licre again the very forna of the sentence seems to suggest that, as Moxcn comes from the wilderneim so Messiah comes from the city : this I believe to have been the original reading; if so the contrast will be brou^;ht out between Elijah the man of the desert and Christ the Man of the World. With the exception of these two doubtful passages I have not been able to find any early trace of an expectation of Messiah from Rome. Wiinscho indeed quotes Tal. Yeruslialnii Tanith ZECHARIAH IX. 51 heaven" (Dan. vii. 13); but it is also written, "Meek and riding' upon an ass" (Zech. ix. 9). If they (i.e. Israel) are meritorious then, "With the clouds of heaven"; if they are not meritorious then, " Meek and riding upon an ass." Shabor-Malka said to Shemuel (his court physician), Ye say that Messiah comes "Riding upon an ass"; I would lend Him that lightning steed of mine. He answered him, Hast thou got one of so many shining* colours ? HINT 577. 9 "Rejoice greatly O daughter of Zion... behold thy King cometh unto thee righteous and saved is He." Rabbi Abbuhu said : Redemption is both Thine and ours ; Tanclmma, as it is written, "Before Ephraim Benjamin and Manasses n"«3°nrS-'*'" rouse up thy might and come for our salvation" (Psalm Ixxx. 3). Rabbi^ Mair said : It is written, " And the Eternal saved in that day" (Exodus xiv. 80), (i.e.) "The Eternal was' 64. 1 {sic, should be 3. 1) ; — "R. Yehoshua ben Levi said, If a man say to thee, Where is thy God? say thou to him, In the great City, in Eome: What is the proof (of it)? • "ITJ'D H^^p ''Sx ' (Is. xxii. 11)." But it is evident that the reference is here to God and not to the Messiah. It is however possible that such a belief may have existed in early times, and, if so, its origin would probably be found in the words of Isaiah (Ixiii. 1) " Who is he that cometh from Edom?" 1 It has been suggested that the words ^3"l"l3 "IVH "13 "[? n\S, "hast lliou got one of so many shining colours ? " ought to bo read thus ; — "ISD "]? n\s' N313 1]T\, " Hast thou an ass of a thousand qualities?" In this ease "1XD, ^*n and S313 are Persian for ' a-ss,' ' thousaiuV and 'qualities.' See Wiinsche die Leiden des Messias, p. 121. 2 R. Mair was a Mishnah Teacher, the saying is therefore very old. ^ yt^'V1 might signify either saved or was saved. The beautiful thought of God suffering in and with the afllictions of His People is of frequent occurrence in the old Jewish writings as may be seen from tlie following examples ; — " So beloved arc Israel th:it, even when they arc unclonn the SlicUinab is 4—2 52 YALKUT. saved" it is written, for, if it were possible so to say, when Israel are in trouble He too is along with them (in trouble) ; as it is said, "In all their affliction there was affliction for Him" (Isaiah Ixiii. 9). And it is written, "Let him call Me and I will answer him, I am along- with him in trouble" (Psahn xci. 15). And it is written, "And him that ordereth his way aright, I will shew him the sal- vation of God" (Ps. 1. 23). He does not say, "the salva- tion of Israel," but " the salvation of God." Rabbi Berakyah the priest, the son of Ilibi(?) said, See what is written, "Rejoice greatly daughter of Zion, shout Jerusalem, behold thy King shall come to thee, righteous and saved"... He does not say "saving" but among them. For so it says (Levit. x\i. 16) ' ...that dueUeth %cith them in the midst of their impurity' " (Sifrl, Sect. SIJ'3; p. 2 in Friedmann's edition). Also in T. B. B'rakoth 3*, there is a story of one who heard the voice of God moaning like a dove amid the ruins and saying, Alas for the children who are driven from their Father's table, Alas for the Father who has driven away His children! The Yalkut, on Ps. cix, ^^Lo I am tvitli him in trouble,'' quotes the following beautiful parable; — " R. Yudan said, A parable, — Unto what is it like ? It is like unto a woman that was with child, who had a quarrel with licr mother; and her jnother went up (to her own room). But when she (the daughter) was giving birth she cried out in her room below; and when her mother up above, heard ber voice down below she too began crying out with answering cries. Her neighbours say unto her. What is the matter with tliee? Art tbou too giving birth along with her? She answers them, My daughter ia giving birth in anguish; although she lias vexed me I am not equal to bearing her cries but am crying out along with her. Thus too said the Holy One, blessed be He, My House is desolated and My children spoiled ami in cliajns, and I, sliould I not grieve? And so too thou findest that when the Holy One. blessed be He, revealed Himself to Moses it was out of the Senih (a lowly thorn bush) and not out of any other tree; (for) the Holy One, blessed be He, saiil, Tiiey (i.e. My People) are set in bondage, and /, shall I reveal Myself from any other tree? Therefore it was from the midst of the Sendh which is all filled with thorns. " With length of days will I satisfy him and will shew him My Salvation " (Ps. xci. 16). li, Abbiihu says. This is one of the hard verses (wliich signify) that the Salvation of Israel is tlie Salvation of the Holy One, blessed be lie." The old custom of putting dust and ashc.^ on the Sacred Ark in the Synagogues on fast days was nlso intended to convey tlie samp lesson, that (ioA suffered with Hi^ People. See T. P>. Tn'iiith Id". ZECHARIAH IX. 53 "and saved"; and so too he says, "Tell the daughter of Zion, behold, thy Salvation cometh" (Is. Ixii. 11). Lo, it is not written "thy Saviour", but, "thy Salvation." Eabbi Ammi says ; Moses praises Israel as follows ; — "Blessed art thou, Israel: who is like unto thee, a people saved by the Eternal" il)n''^ ^tJ^iJ (Deut. xxxiii. 29). It is not written "for the Eternal" but "by the Eternal." It is like the case of a man who had a measure of Second* tithes; what did he do? He took money and redeemed it ; so, if one may so speak, it is with Israel : By what are they redeemed ? By the Holy One, blessed be He, "people saved by the Eternal." The Holy One, blessed be He, said, In this world ye have been saved by means of men, — in Egypt, by Moses and Aaron ; — in the days of Sisera, by Deborah and Barak ; — and from the Midianites, by the Judges ; but since they were only flesh and blood ye were again brought in bondage, but in the Time to come (i.e. Messianic days) I am going to redeem you by Myself and then shall ye never more be brought in bondage ; as it is said, " Israel saved by the Eternal, a Salvation for all Eternity" (Is. xlv. 17). HINT 578. 14 " The Lord God shall sound with a trumpet (ram's-liorn);" — ' The first tithe was the property of the Priests and Levites; it is therefore the law relating to the Second tithe which is given in Deut. xiv. 22 — 26. Suppose then that a Jew living at a distance from Jerusalem owes a second tithe amounting to a thousand bushels of wheat; according to the Law (Deut. xiv. 23) this must be eaten by him in Jerusalem ; but since it might be difficult if not impossible for him to convey his tithe to Jerusalem in such a bulky form, he is allowed (see verse 25) to sell it provided only that he takes the money so obtained to Jerusalem and spends it there in feasting before God. We can now understand the parable in our text. Israel is such a second tithe — It cannot be brought b.fore God as it is — It must be exchanged for a price — God Himself is that Price, — " Ji y what arc they redeemed? By the Holy One, blessed be He." 54- YALKUT. B'rasliith Rabbah 56. See also Pesi- katha, fol. 154. Sifrfi. NiDii- bers, Baha- lothka (TV). Rabbi Yudan says ; After all the works Israel were again involved in transgressions and entangled in troubles, but on the New Year they take a (ram's-horn) trumpet and sound a blast, but finally they will be redeemed with the horns of the ram ; as it is said, " The Lord God will sound with the trumpet (ram's-horn)". Rabbi Chanina, the son of Yitzchak said, All the days of the year Israel are laid hold on by transgressions and entan- gled in troubles, yet finally they will be redeemed through the horns of the ram, for it is said, "The Lord God will sound with the trumpet (ram's-horn)". Rabbi Abba, the son of Rav Pajipi, Rabbi Joshua of Siknin, in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi (came to this conclusion) : — Because Abraham saw the ram escaping from one thicket and entangled in another thicket, therefore the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him. So are thy children destined to be entangled among the kingdoms, from Babylon to Media, from Media to Greece, and from Greece to Edom (Rome) ; but finally they shall be re- deemed by the horns ^ of the ram; as it is said, "The Lord God shall sound with the trumpet." As it is said, "And it shall come to pass in that day that a blast shall be blown on the great trumpet." But I do not know who will blow the blast? — Therefore he goes on to say, " And the Lord God will sound a blast on the trumpet," But I do not know whence He will sound the blast ? — Therefore he goes on to say, " A voice of din from the city, a voice from the temple " (Is. kvi. G). 14 "And the Lord God will sound a blast with the trumpet (ram's-horn)." PeHikta Even as the trumpet of the Holy One, ble-ssed be He, 18 Cap. Harninu. perfect. So mu.st the trumpet of (used for) New Year be per- ^ The SItophar, a, ram's liorn (trumpet), Ih thus in itself a type of the final Redemption — a Itedemption obtained, be it noted, by the deatli of another. Does not this suggest a new meaning for the words, "And the Lord God shall sound with the trumpet"? ZECHARIAH IX. 55 feet; for on (the Festival of) New Year (men) are redeemed from the Angel of Deaths And we have learned by tradition that a chink or a stoppage which interferes with the blast renders the trumpet worthless. 15 " They are filled as the bowls, as the corners of the Altar":— Rav Koh'na said, The stones of the Altar were perfo- T. B. Z'va- rated ; as it is said, " They shall be filled as the bowls, as ^ ^"^ ^^ • the corners of the Altar." (But if so, how do you get over the difficulty that) the stones of the Altar were whole^ stones (see Exod. xx. 25) ? (The answer is) that he puts something under it and takes it away. ^ New Year's Day, or the Feast of Trumpets, was the preparation for the Great Day of Atonement which followed it within ten days. During these ten days sinners are supposed to hang in the balance (see p. 73). It is the time to which the verse is applied, " Seek ye the Lord while He may be found" (Is. Iv. G). In Mishnah i. 2 of Rosh Ha-Shanah it is stated that On New-Year's Day men pass before God for judgment hke a flock of sheep before the Shepherd. Thus in each year there is a Day of Judgment, a Judgment in Time which has its counterpart or i-ather its completion in Eternity. It is necessary to bear this tradition in mind in order that we may understand the connexion in the New Testament between the Day of Judgment and the last Trump : Thus, in 1 Cor. xv., we read ; — " We shall not all sleep, but ivc shall all b'e changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet shall sound (traXTr/o-et ydp, cf. Zech. ix. 14) and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and u-e shall be changed.^' Here we find the " redemption from the Angel of Death " associated with the last (? seventh) blast on the Great Feast of Trumpets, the Judgment Day : for, on New Year's Day the Trumpet did not merely sound once, as on other New Moon Festivals, but it was a nmn JHST (Lev. xxiii. 24), or a nynn DI'* (Numb. xxlx. 1), a day of blowing of trumpets; even so the Day of Judgment will be a day of blowing of trumpets (cf. Rev. viii. and ix.). See also Wetstein on 1 Cor. xv. - This obscure passage may be paraphrased as follows ; -The altar-stones evidently have holes in them, for they are compared to bowls (Zech. ix. 15). How is this to be reconciled with Exod. xx. 25, where we find that the stones must not be hewn ? A reconciliation is found by supposing the stones (pN, cf. root nJ2, to build, i.e. building materials) were really bricks, made, as our perforated bricks arc now, by placing something under the mduld and removing it after the brick is baked. omitted in boards" (Ex. xxvii. 8 E. V,)] is translated in the Targum by 56 YALKUT. 17 "New wine makes virgins eloquent"; — T. B. Bava Rav Huua, son of Rav YeLosliua said ; Anyone who accustoms himself to the use of wine, even though his heart were closed up like a virgin, wine opens it', even as it is said, "New wine makes virgins eloquent" (lit. opens, sets All in square them free) '. [And the passage JlPl 7 11^^ " hollow with brackets is , , ,, /-p omitted in boards (1 the Yalkut. ♦^>-(^U ^>^} Zech. ch. X. 1 " Ask from the Eternal rain, &c." T. B. Ta'nith Resli Lakish said, Whence can you prove, with respect to rain, that it is (given) for the sake of a single individual ? Because it is said, " Ask of the Eternal rain in the time of the latter rain; The Eternal maketh chazizim (E. V. bright clouds), and the rain of showers He will give to them [to each (man?) the herb in the field]". But one might have thought (that this implied that it was given) for the sake of all ? (No) for he goes on to say "to each." But one might have thought that "to each" meant to all his fields ? (No) for he goes on to say, " in the field." But one might have thought that "in the field" meant that it was for all (No) for he goes on to say " that maketh chazizim " [stress being laid upon the plural form]. And indeed Rav Daniel bar Rav K'tinas' case is to tlie point. He liad a garden ; each day he went out and 1 For innpDO, read, with Tal. Bab. inpSD y. ' The Talmud is as follows; — "Before a man cats and drinks he has two hearts, but after eating and drinking he has only one heart; as it is said, ' ith navuv yillardv' (Job xi. 12). And it is also written ' nei'uv hichoth' (Ex. xxvii. 8), and this is translated in the Targum by 1^117 7vn. Ruv Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua said, Anyone who accustoms himself to the use of wine, (to." The idea of "two liearts" is supposed to bo implied in the reduplication of the form 337^ {yUhivav, as if it were lev lev, " heart heart "), and since 3133 (navuv) evidently signifies empty or hollow in Ex. xxvii. 8, therefore it is argued that the words in Job xi. 12 will bear the meaning hero given, viz. "an empty man has two hearts." But tlie chief object of the pas- f»agc in the Yalkut is to shew that the word 3313' y'nnvfiv (Zech. ix. 17) is to bo translated (as if from the root 333) " rmptict," or " npevf." ZECHARIAH X. 57 inspected it: — He used to say, This bed wants rain, or This bed does not want rain. Then, on the morrow, to the one tlie rain came, and to the other the rain did not come. What means this — "The Eternal maketli chazizim"? R. Yose, the son of Chanina said. It teaches that for every single pious man, the Holy One, blessed be He, makes a chaziz on his own account. And what is a chaziz ? Rav Yehudah says, Porachoth. And what is Porachoth ? Rava said, A thin cloud under a thick cloud. R. Yochanan said that the sign of rain is Porachoth. Ulla came to Pumbaditha ; he saw Porachoth, he said, Arise, let us go, for now rain is coming ; but in the end the rain did not come ; he said, Even as the Babylonians are liars, so their very skies are liars. 2 "For the Teraphim have spoken lies" — What are these " Teraphim"? Chapters of mi • 1 \ 1 • ^' Eliezer. They (i.e. people) slay a man (who is) a first-born and Cap. xxxvi. scald (the hair off) his head and cure it (i.e. the head) with chuma^ Seut' salt and spices and write the name of the unclean spirit upon ^^*^1 «<^ ^oc. a plate of gold and place it under his tongue; (then) they fix him in the wall and burn lamps before him and he talks with them. 2 " Dreams speak falsehood." Sh'muel when he had a bad dream used to say, "Dreams T.B. B'rakoth speak falsehood"; but when he had a good dream he used ^^^' to make a query of it and said, "Dreams speak falsehood"? Surely it is written, "In a dream I will speak with him" (Numb. xii. 6). Rava propounded a difficulty (as to these verses). It is written, "Dreams speak falsehood"; but it is also written, "In a dream I will speak with him"? There is no real difficulty ; — the one is when it comes through a demon, the other throufTfli an anjiel. 4 " From it is the corner-stone, from it is the nail..." 58 YALKUT. T. B. Chulliu There is a Boraitlia that R. Miiir used to say, " He made thee (Israel) and firmly established thee" (Deut. xxxii. G). (This means that Israel is) a place in which everything is to be found — From it are its Priests ; from it are its Prophets, from it are its Kings and Princes ; as it is written, "From it is the corner-stone', from it is the nail, &c." 8 "I will hiss (npnCJ'N) for them and I will gather them." T.B. Chulliu The Racham:— This is the Sh'rak'ruk (? wood-pecker). And why is it named Recham ? R. Yochanan replies. Because when the Racham comes then Iiachamim^ (mercies) come into the world. Abbaiyi said, This is only the case when it sits upon something and makes a ' sh'rik'inlc' Abbaiyi said, It is a received tradition that if it sits on the ground and makes a ' sliri/c'rik' then immediately^ Mes- siah comes ; as it is said, " I will hiss (Eshrkah) for them and I will gather them, for I have redeemed them." Rav Idi bar Simi said to my lord the son of Rav Idi, But surely there was a case of one that sat on a jiloughed- field and made a sh'rik'rik, and there came a round stone and knocked out its brains ? He replied, That (bird) was a liar. 11 "And he shall pass through the sea with affliction..." ' A very similar passage occurs in Sh'moth Rabbah 37, where it is further stated of the corner-stone — " This is King David ; as it is said, " The stone which the builders rejected is become the chief corner-stone" (Ps. cxviii. 22). - The word liacJuimim, "morcy," was used in a special sense of rain and so it is transhited here by Xlashi. When the wood-pecker comes tlicn the Spring rain comes. But the Spring lias always liecn closely associated with Him whose Name is Tsemnch (Spring: E. V. , badly, "Branch"); it is easy therefore to see how the Jiacham came to be considered as a Sign of Messiah's advent (cf. Matt. xvi. 1 — 3 ; xxiv. 32, S.'J.) ' The sense of "immediately" is got from the 1 in DV3pK1 which ac- cording to Hebrew grammar would imply a very close connexion in point of time with the preceding' verb, i.e. " I will no sooner hiss for them than I will gather thtin. ' ZECHARIAH X. XI. 59 Rabbi Yochanan says, Tliis^ refers to the imafje of Micah. T. B. Sauhed. We learn in a Boraitha that R. Nathan used to say, From Garav to Shiloh is three miles ; and the smoke of the sacri- fice (at Shiloh) and the smoke of Micah's image (at Garav) mingled one with the other. The Angels of the Presence wanted to exclude him (Micah) [from the life of the World to Come], but the Holy One, blessed be He, said, Let him alone, for his crust is ever ready for those that come and go. And this (the toleration of idolatry ?) is the reason why the men (in the matter of) the concubine at Gibeali were punished. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to them, It was not for My honour that ye struck, but ye struck^ for (mere) human honour. And why did they not also count Micah (among those that have no share in the World to Come) ? Because his crust was ever ready' for those that came and went. 1 " Open thy gates, O Lebanon, and a fire Zech. ch. xi. shall consume thy cedars." Our Rabbis have learnt by tradition that forty years t. B. Yoma before the destruction of the Temple, the Lot never used to ^^ '" fall to the right* hand but (always) to the left ; And the 1 "This refers, dc." — The word which we have translated ^^ affliction" in the text is, in Hebrew, Tzarah which may also signify " a rival " (1 Sam. i. 6), hence God's rival, an image. The legend runs, that when Israel "passed through the sea," Micah was with them with his image, therefore the verse is made to say, "He (Israel) passes through the sea with God's rival." 2 When God's honour was outraged by idolatry they sat still, but when man was outraged their zeal was roiiscd. 3 The duty and rewards of hospitality (cf. Hebrews xiii. 2) are frequently alluded to in the old Jewish writings : thus ; — Hospitality is as important, or even moi'C so than study; It is greater even than entertaining the Face of the Shekinah; It is the first of the six things of which a man enjoys the interest in the present life but of which the principal (]'^\>) remains for him in the World to Come (T. B. Shahhath 127% &c.). So in Avoth 1. 5 we read, "Let thy house be open wide; and let the needy be thy household." Again it is said that anyone who entertains a learned man in his house it is reckoned to him as though he had ofTcrcd the daily Offering (Berakoth 10''). ■• On the Day of .\tonement, when the lots were cast upon the two goats, for God, and for Azazel, it was considered always a good omen when the 60 YALKUT, scarlet thread used not to whiten but to redden*; and the lamp of the evening light" would not burn, and the doors of the Temple used to open of their own accord', until Rabban Yochanan* the son of Zakkai rebuked them : He said to it, lot for God foil to the right hand, shewing that the sin-bearer was accepted by Him. 1 "We read of this scarlet thread in the Mishnah on Yoma, but there is a Boraitha (T. B. Yoma 67") which gives us a still earlier tradition and which runs as follows:- — " There is a Boraitha that at first, they (the priests) used to bind the scarlet thread upon the door of the (Temple) porch outside; if it whitened then people rejoiced; if it did not whiten then they grieved and were ashamed. Then they made a rule of binding it on the door of the Porch inside, but still people used to peep and look ; if it whitened they rejoiced, if it did not whiten they grieved. Then they made a rule of binding it half on the rock, and half between its (the goat's) horns. K.Nachum bar Papa said in the name of E. Elazar Hakkappar, In early times (lit. at ftrst) they used to bind the scarlet thread on the door of the Porch inside and, when the goat an-ived at the wilderness, it (the thread) used to turn white 60 that they knew that its function had been performed, as it is said, ' Though your si}is be as scarlet, as snow shall they become white ' (Is. 1.)." 2 The lamp of the evening light was the central lamp of the Menorah or Candlestick. This lamp was always kept burning night and day, and from it the other lamps were lighted. Since the Candlestick represented the Jewish Church (see p. 15) it will easily be understood that the evening lamp refusing to burn must have been taken as an omen of the gravest import. ' The reader will remember that, among the portents indicating the destruction of the Temple, mentioned by Josophus (Book VII. ch. xii.), one was that " the eastern gate of the inner temple, whicli was of brass, and very ponderous, and had been with difficulty shut by twenty men, rested upon a basis armed with iron, and had bolts fastened very deep into the firm floor, which was there made of one entire stone, was seen to open of itself about the sixth hour of the night, &c." * Ilabban Yochanan ben Zakkai was one of the younger pupils of Iliiiel I. According to Talmud tradition he lived 120 years, the first forty of which he spent as a merchant, the second forty as a learner, and the third as a teacher : It is obvious that this must not be taken too literally, partly because the number 40 is often used as a round number for any period of probation, and partly because the hundred and twenty years of Moses' life with its three periods of 40 years (sec Acts vii. 23, 30, 30) must have formed a tempting precedent for Jewish biographers. Still we may assume that he did not take any leading part as a Teacher until somewhat late in life, and this may account for tlie fact that we find no mention made of him in the New Testament. During the siege of Jerusalem Ilabban Yochanan ben Zakkai was the earnest advocate of peace, finding however that ho could accomplish nothing against the Zelots, he resolved to leave ZECHARIAH XT. 61 O Temple, Temple, why art thou terrifying thyself? I know well that thy end is to be destroyed, for already Zechariah the son of Iddo hath prophesied, " Open thy doors, Leba- non, and a fire shall consume thy cedars." R. Yitzchak, the son of Tavlai, said; — Why is its (i.e. the Temple's) name called Lebanon'} (root p? White) Be- cause it makes white the transgressions of Israel. 2 "HoAvl O fir-tree, for the cedar has fallen" — This refers to the Temple ; as it is said, " And a fire Avotli of E. 1 11 ,1 1 )) Nathan Per^fc shall consume thy cedars. iv. the City and go over- to the Eoman Camp ; this was not easy, as the gates were jealously watched by the Zelots ; Ben Zakkai therefore had recourse to a stratagem; feigning himself to be dead, he requested his disciples to carry him out of the city in a cof3Qn. This was accomplished chiefly through the connivance of a relative of Ben Zakkai's who was a man of great authority among the Zelots. On arriving at the Eomjin Camp, Eabban Yochanan was kindly received by Titus (?), and was, by him, allowed to settle peaceably at Jamnia. Here he soon afterwards received the news of the destriiction of Jerusalem and of the Temple. He was deeply moved, but set himself to adajit Judaism to its new conditions. Thus the Jewish historian Graetz compares him to Jeremiah as the advocate of peace and to Zerubbabel as the founder of the new Community. At Jamnia, Ben Zakkai was President of the Sanhedrin; he does not seem however to have enjojed this honour long ; in all probability he died about ten years after the destruction of Jerusalem. The question now arises, How are we to understand the assertion of T. B. Yonia 39^, that the portents there mentioned occurred forty years before the destruction of Jerusalem, i.e. about the commencement of Christ's ministry ? This evidently cannot be taken literally : for no unprejudiced person can read the Gospels without seeing that the slightest allusion to a destruc- tion of the Temple was reckoned almost as blasphemy by the Jews. Still, after comparing the statements of Josephus, we cannot doubt that, before the final siege, strange portents were witnessed, whether ' objective ' or ' subjective ' I leave for philosophers to determine. Hence I conclude that the period "forty years" is again to be taken as a round number, so that the passage might read "Some time before the destruction, &c." Certainly the whole policy of E. Yochanan during the siege well agrees with the assumption that he perceived from prophecy that the Temple must fall. According to T. B. Gittin .'JG* and SO"" Eabban Yochanan interpreted tlie words, "and Lebanon shall fall by a mi^'htyonc" (Is. x. 34) as indicating the destruction of the Temple by a mighty king, and he is said to have; quoted this verse to the Eonian (icncral Vespasian licforc lie became Emperor. 62 YALKUT. 2 " For the mighty ones are robbed." This refers to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and tlie twelve Tribes who were weeping and beating the breast. 2 " Howl ye oaks of Bashan," — This refers to Moses, Aaron antl IVIiriam. 2 " For the forest of the vintage is fallen," — This refers to the Holy of Holies. 3 " The voice of the wailing of the shepherds, because their proud beauty is spoiled," — This refers to David and Solomon. 3 "The voice of the roaring of young lions, because the pride of the Jordan is spoiled." This refers to Elijah and Elisha. 7 " And I took unto myself two staves ; the one I called Noam {pleasantness) and the other Chov'lim " (E. V. "bands," but here taken by the Yalkut as from '^iPI, to wound, destroy or torture). T. B. Sanbed. Rabbi Oshaya said, "Noam" — Those are the Learned men (lit. disciples of the wise men) in the Land of Israel who pleasantly-agree one with another in Halakah. " Cho- v'lim" — These are the Learned men in Babylon who wound (or tortnre) one another in Halakah. "And he said, These are the two sons of oil" (Zech. iv. 14); — R. Yitzchak said, These are the Learned men (in the land of Israel) who agree as smoothly one Avith another as uil. "And two olives stood above it" (Zech. iv. 3) ; — These are the Learned men in l^abylon who are as bitter in (their) Halakah one against another as olives\ ' This is one of the paHsnges in which the Kiibhis pour their contompt upon the Babylonian teaching,'. It is, they Bay, a mem confusiou, (|)la.>inR iipoji t}ir' iiatiie linhi'l). Olio Hahhi (Yirnifyah) oven Rons sn fur as to (|Mot(,' 24 ZECHARIAH XI. Go 8 "And I cut off the three shepherds in one month." Did they then actually die in one month ? For did not T. B. Ta'nith Miriam die in Nisan, and Aaron in Av, and Moses in Adar ? But the fact is the good gifts, which had been given to Israel by their means, ceased in one month. R. Yose, son of E. Yehudah, said, Three good Guides were given to Israel and three good gifts were given by their means : These are they : — The Manna, the Well, and the Pillar of Cloud. The Well — for the merit of Miriam ; The Pillar of Cloud — for the merit of Aaron ; And the Manna — for the merit of Moses. Miriam died : — then the Well departed ; as it is said, "And Miriam died there" (Numb. xx. 1), and it is written (immediately) afterwards, " And there was no water for the Congregation" (Numb. xx. 2). But it came back again through the merit of Moses and Aaron. Aaron died' ; — then the Pillar of Cloud departed. As it is said, "And all the Congregation saw that Aaron had expired " (Numb. xx. 29). R. Abbuhu said, Do not interpret !|K"1*1, "and they saw" but Jixn*)^ "and they feared." But both of them (i.e. the Well and the Pillar of Cloud) came back through the merit of Moses. Moses died : — (then) all three departed ; and thus wc may interpret that Scripture which says, And I cut oflf the three Shepherds in one month." In the Time to come they will all three come back, as it yiam'dami. is said ; — the verse "He hath made me sit in dark jihices as men that have been long dead" (Lam. iii. 6). "This," says he, "is tlie P.ahyloniau Talmud." The Babylonian Jews, it is true, were more learned tlian their rivals, but the traditions remained with Die Palestinian Toacho'-s. J See Numb. xx. 28. C4 YALKUT. "They shall not hunger" (Is. xlix. 10). — This means the Manna. "And they shall not thirst" (Is, xlix. 10). — This means the Well. "Neither shall the glare nor the sun smite them" (Ls. xlix. 10).— This means the Pillar of Cloud. " But by fountains of waters He shaU lead them " (Is. xlix. 10). It is not said "a fountain" but "fountains." In the Time to Come there Avill go forth for Israel twelve fountains corresponding to the twelve Tribes. Another interpretation of "And I cut off the three shepherds" is that it means Rabbenu*, and Antoninus, and Artaban, King of Persia, who (all) died in one month, and to them they applied the saying, " And I cut off the three shepherds, &c." 12 "And I said unto them, If it seem j2^ood in your eyes pay me my hire, and, if not, forbear. And they weighed out my hire, thirty pieces of silver." T. B. ChuUin R. Judah said, These are the thirty righteous men of the ^*'' nations of the world for whose sake (alone) the nations of the world exist. Rava (Talm. text reads Ulla) said, These are the thirty commandments which the children of Noah (i.e.non-Jews) re- ceived and of which they have kept only three : — (viz.) One, not to make marriage contracts with males. One, not to sell the flesh of a corpse in the shambles (JvlpD^, " in macello," ' Thoro is some diflicnlty in reconciling this statement with tlic facts of chronology. R. Juda I. (' Hahbenu ') was born about l.'5fl a.d., and died 210 K.i>.: it is therefore probable that R. Juda II. is here intended. Hee (Iraetz, Geschichte der Juden, B. iv. Note 2.H, Patriarch Juda II. und AntoTiinun. Dean Milman says: "The Jews confounded the best and first with the last and worst of the Antonines. Lightfoot and Helden were misled by David Ganz. The chronology makes any intercourse between Antoninus Pius and Jehuda the Holy (Rabbcnu) impossible." I fist, of tlir Jeifg. Vol. II. p. ■17<'>. in note. ZECHARIAH XII. 65 cf. St Paul's use of the word in 1 Cor. x. 25). And One, That they should reverence the Law. 1 "...And that formeth ("i^^) the spirit within Zeck ch. xii. him." The soul of man is bound vp in him : for otherwise when B'rashith trouble came it (i.e. the soul) would give it (the body) its dismissal and cast it forth. "And the Lord God formed (l^"*^") written with a double Yod) the Man" (Gen. ii. 7). — (This implies) two Yetzers {i.e. natures or dispositions, lit. formations), the good yetzer and the evil yetzer. *Aud seeing that it is hound up in him he is not able to cast him forth*'. But the beast has only one yetzer ; for, if the beast had two yetzers then when it saw the knife in the hand of the man ready to slay it, it would so fear that it would die forthwith (and therefore become unfit for food). "In that day I will make Jerusalem a saf raal " (howl or cup of reeling). (Yalkut has combined verses 2 and 3.) What is saf raal ? It means that He is going to make Midrash*. the nations drink the trembling (or reeling) cup of blood. For saf raal means nothing else than blood, as it is said, " And ye shall take a bunch of hyssop and dip it in the blood that is in the saf" (i.e. howl) (Exod. xii. 22). Three ^ The words enclosed thus * * are evidently out of place: they ought to follow the words " and cast it forth ;" all then becomes plain ; we have two interpretations of the word Yotzer one deriving its meaning from "l"1V to bind, and the other from 1V^ tn form, fraync or fashion. See B'rn.so. 8 "And the very weakest (/««. the one that stum- bleth) among them in that day (shall be) as David." Khirlla- This is that which the Scripture saith, "Thy head J{'"bb"l 7 (understanding a play upon the words \y^\ 'head' and tJ'l, 'poor ') upon thee as Carmel " (Cant. vii. 5). The Holy One, blessed be He, (lieruj says. The 2^oor ones {W^^^) that are among yon are beloved by Me even as P^lijah, who went up to the top ^CJ'S'^) of Carmel and cast himself down ' CompaiP Zetli xii. 6. ZECHARIAH XII. 67 upon the earth" (1 Kings xviii. 42). "And the hair of thy head as purple " (Cant. vii. 5, but with a play on the words *1tJ^X1 rhi, "the hair of thy head" as if it were "ItJ^^l *?"7 "the poorest of thy poor'"), (meaning) your very poorest are beloved by Me even as David; As it is said, "And the very weakest, in that day shall he as David." And some say 'as Daniel/ since it is written of him, "And they clothed Daniel in purple" (Dan. v. 29). 9 And it shall come to pass in that day that I will enquire to destroy all the heathen. " I will enquire " — From whom ? Rabbi Alexandri said, T. B. ATOdah I will enquire of my note-book* about them; If they have (any) merit I leave them alone, but if not, I destroy them. * "My tiote-book" — ''JJO is, I believe, only found in this passage; in the Aruk it is written ''33J, and in the Yalkut "TIJ'"! If any reliance could be placed upon the latter spelling we might possibly derive it from the root n33 used in its later meaning of admonition, hence memoranda. The doctrine originated in Dan. vii. 10 (compare 2 Esdras vi. 18 — 20 and Eev. xx. 12—15) ; it plays an important part, as might be expected, in all Apocalyptic litera- ture. The Eabbis, however at times they might seem to materialize this doctrine, were not without a deep spiritual insight into the truth, which Science has brought home to a later age, that the whole material Universe is God's Book, which, day by day, writes its own record of all things that are done, whether good or evil. This may be seen from the following passage from Pesikta Rabbathi, Parasliah 8 : — " ' The soul of a man is (rod's lamp which searcheth all the chambers of his being ' (Prov. xx. 27). H. Acha said. Even as human kings have their iuteUigence officers (□''DVT'p) who give them information of every single thing, so there are intelligence officers before the Holy One, blessed be He, who tell Him every single thing that a man does in the most secret places, whether in the dark or in the light. And these are the intelligence officers of the Holy One, blessed be He, tlie Soul (Xephesh) tells it to the Angel, and the Angel to the Cherubim, and the Cherub to the Holy One, blessed be He. Whence can you prove it ? Because Solomon saith thus ; ' A bird of heaven shall carry the sound, and a winged creature shall tell the matter^ (Eccles. X. 20). Parchments (niXinDn, 5i(f>9^pa) are written before the Holy One, blessed be He, of evtry thing which the children of men aro doing ; in the time to come He will convince (HOID, like Gk. iX^yxt^, convince, conricl) every single man of his deeds so that he stands wonder-stricken. It is like the case of a man who had married a king's daughter and he used to rise betimes every day and pay his respects to the king. And the king used to say unto him, 'You did so and so in your house'; 'You lost your temper (about) so and so'; 0—2 68 YAI.KIT. HINT 581. 10 "And I will pour out upon the house of David and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem the spirit of grace." Aikah Eab- Four outpourings there were for good and four outpour- bah on Lam. • ^j^^j.^ ^^ere for evil. 11. 4. *= For evil : — "And He hath poured upon him His furious anger" (Is. xlii. 25) ; ['* 'When Thou didst pour out Thine anger upon Jerusalem" (Ezek. ix. 8)] ; "Upon the tent of the Daughter of Zion He hath poured out His anger like fire (Lam. ii. 4) ; " The Eternal hath consummated His wrath ; He hath poured out the heat of His anger " (Lam. iv. 11). For good : — " And I will pour out upon the house of David, &c." (Zech. xii. 10); "And it shall come to pass that afterward I will pour out My Spirit upon all flesh ..." (Joel ii. 28) ; " And even on the servants and on the hand- maidens will I pour out My Spirit" (Joel ii. 20); "And I will not hide My face... when I shall have poured out My Spirit" (Ezek. xxxix. 29). *" 11 " In that day great shall be the mourning in Jerusalem ..." T. B. Megillah Rav Yo.seph said, Except it had been for the Targum on that verse I should not have knf)wn what it meant (for the Targum reads) "In that time great shall be the lamen- tation in Jerusalem like the lamentation for Ahab the son of Omri, when Hadad-Rimmon the son of Tav- Rimmon killed him in Ramoth Gilead, and like the ' About such and such a matter you Htriick your sluvc ' : and 8o witli ovory single thing. Then he goes out and says to the courtiers, Who said that I did 80 and so; and whence does he know it? Tliey said to liim, () fool ! his daughter it is thou art married to, and thou sayest Whence docs he know? His daughter it is that tells him. Ho is the case with man, Ac." Tlie king is God ; the Soul (Nepliesh) is Tlis daugliler. ' Not in Yalkut. 2ECHARIAH XII. 69 mourning for Josiah the son of Amon when Pharaoh Chag-ira killed him in the plain of Megiddo'." 12 "And the Land shall mourn the family of the house of Nathan apart and their Avives apart..." Is it uot a case of Kal Va-Chomer (i.e. an a /or^to W T. B. Sukkah argument) seeing that, (even) in Messianic times, (and that too) when men are engaged in mourning, and when (there- fore) the Evil Yetzer would not (naturally) have power over them, (yet still) the Law" says, " women by themselves and men by themselves"; how much more then now, in the joy of the water-drawing Festival^ and while the Evil Yetzer has power over them, ought the men and the women to be separated*. That mournincr ? What was it all about ? R. Yose^ and the (non-named) Rabbis differ on the point. The one says. It is for Messiah the son of Josejah when he is killed ; and the other says, It is for the Evil Yetzer [Desire) (ynn ")V^) when it is killed. All is clear in the case of him that says. It is for Messiah the son of Joseph when he is killed, for then we can under- 1 The Hebrew text reads ; "In that day great shall be the mourmng in Jerusalem as the mourning of Hadad-Rimmon in the plain of 3Iegiddon." The Targum, after its usual method of interpretation, has caught at the words "Hadad-Rimmon '" and " Megiddon," and has thus made two mourn- ings out of one, associating the former with an imaginary Hadad-IUmmou King of Syria (cf. Ben-Hadad), though no such name is mentioned in the Bible, and the latter with Megiddo the scene (?) of Josiah's death (see 2 Kings xxiii. 29 and 2 Chron. xxxv. 24). - The word "Law" is frequently used, as here, to denote the Prophets or any other portion of the Scriptures. See Dr Westcott's note on St John X. 34. 3 See Appendix (C). * The argument is in defence of the custom of separating the women from the men in the Temple. 5 The Talmud text reads R. Dom. If this be the correct reading it carries back the story of Messiah bon Joseph even to New Testament times, for 1\. Dosa was blind tliiougb old age while the Temple was yet standing. See .\ppcndix A. 70 YALKUT. stand what is written, "And they shall look unto him whom they pierced and they shall lament for him, &c." (Zech. xii. 10). But, in the case of him that says, It is for the Evil Yetzer when it is killed ? Would it be mourning that would be needed ? Surely rejoicing would be needed ? Thus (however) expounded R. Judah of the House of the West (i.e. of Palestine) ; — In time to come (Messianic times) the Holy One, blessed be He, is going to bring forth the Evil Yetzer and slay him in the presence of the righteous and the wicked ; Unto the righteous he (the Evil Yetzer) appears like a high mountain, and unto the wicked he appears like a thread of hair. These (the righteous) weep; and those (the Avicked) weep. The righteous say, How did we ever get the better of this high mountain ? And the wicked weep and say, How is it we did not get the better of this hair thread?* And even the Holy One, blessed be He, wonders with them, as it is said ; — " Is it wonderful in the eyes of the remnant of this people ? saith the Lord God, surely also in Mine own eyes it is wonderful" (Zech. viii. 6). Zech.ch.xiii. G " AVliat are these stripes between thy hands?" ' If we regard this passage merely as a specimen of exegesis, to account for the mourning at the death of the Evil Yetzer, we must pronounce it forced ; but, if we regard it on its own merits it certainly contains a deep truth; for, even in this life, it is only those who have conquered a temptation who know its might — those who swim with the stream cannot estimate its force. Numberless passages might be collected to show that the Rabbis were keenly alive to the value of the Evil Yetzer as afTording, not merely a test, but a means of growth in virtue ; the following parable (from Vaiyikra Rabhah 24) may suflice : " It is like to the case of a king who had a cellar of wine, and the king set watchmen over it, some of them were Nazarites and some of them were drunkards : at cventime ho came to give them their hire ; he gave to the drunkards two portions and to the Nazarites one portion : They said to him, Our lord, king, have we not all watched together? Why then hast thou given to these two portions and to us one portion ? The king replied, Tlicsc are drunkards, and it is their nature to drink wine, therefore it is that I give to them two portions and to you one portion." — The Parable is applied to shew that Angels, among whom the Evil Yetzer has no existence, will receive a smaller reward than men among whom it has such power. ZECHARIAH XIII. 71 He who does not understand how to inflict stripes strikes Midi-ash T'hil- (the man) with the rod upon his hands or upon his head, J^.^'see abo but he who knows how to inflict stripes binds (the man) Vaiyikra Rab- 1-11 1 1-1 1 bah 32 (be- and strikes him upon his back, and not upon his head nor ginning): and upon his eyes, so as not to blind him, but on a part where m/^-^f-^^ there is no danger. Ps. xxxviii. 6 "What are these stripes between thy hands?" ..."Those wherewith I was wounded in the house of them that made me to be beloved" (^^Ht^p). Theso stripes (that is) have caused me to be beloved by my Father in Heaven. What hast thou done that they are going to stone thee ? It is because I kept the Sabbath, What hast thou done that they are going to burn thee ? It is because I ate the Passover cakes. What hast thou done that they are going to slay thee (with the sword) ? It is because I circumcised my son. What hast thou done that they should scourge thee ? Because I have done the will of my Father that is in Heaven. 6 "What are these stripes between thy hands?" How many stripes do they give him ? T. B. Mak- koth 22''. Forty minus ^ one: If it had been written "forty in num- ber" then I should have thought that it meant actually "forty," but now that it is written )^y D^J^l'lX, "Forty they shall smite him " (Deut. xxv. 3), (I see that it means) "within the number"; (i.e.) a number that is just close upon forty. Rava said, How foolish men are in that they will rise up before the Book of the Law but will not rise up before a learned man ! The Law says, " Forty they shall smite him," but the Rabbis came and diminished it by one. 1 Cf. 2 Cor. xi. 24, " Of the Jews, five tiinen, I received forty stripes minus one." If it were not for this reference in the New Testament (and in Josephus Ant. iv. 8 n) we shouM probably have been told that .since the tradition is mentioned ' in the Babylonian Gemara ' it is therefore not older than the 3rd or 4th century. Surely it is time that such arguments were at an end. 72 YALKLT. Tanchuma Shophatim. Rabbi Yehudah says, (it means) " the clear forty." And where does he inflict the additional stripe ? — Between the shoulders ; as it is written, " What are these stripes between thy hands?" But the Rabbis maintain that this is only written with respect to school children. 8 "And it shall come to pass in that day, saith the Eternal, that in all the earth there shall be two parts that shall be cut oft' [and die | and the Third Part (Sh'lishith) shall be left therein." These (i.e. the Third Part) are the Children of Israel since they are all sons of the three patriarchs ; (and) the sons of Jacob who was the thircV of the patriarchs. Another interpretation of the words, "And the Third (Part) shall be left therein " is, that these are Israel since they would not be (finally) settled in their own Land except at the Third redemption. The first redemption is the redemption from Egypt ; The second redemption is the redemption of Ezra; The third redemption is unending. T. B. Rosh Ha-Shanah HINT 582. 9 " And I will bring the third (Part) through the fire and will purify it as silver is purified." R. K'rospadai says that R. Yochanan used to say, Three books are opened on New Year's Day ; one book of the absolutely righteous, and one of the absolutely wicked, and one of the intermediate (i.e. neither good nor bad). The absolutely righteous, are written and sealed forthwith for ' There is a similar passaRC in Tanchuma, Section Bnatotlika, where a still better reason is given for applying the name Sh'lishUh or Sh'lishiyah to Israel, viz. Isaiah xix. 24, "In that day Israel shnll be the Third (Sh'lithiyah) to Egypt and to Aonyria, even a blessing in the midst oj the E firth." ZECHARIAH Xlll. 73 life ; The absolutely wicked are written aud sealed forthwith for death ; And the intermediate are held in suspense and stand over from New Year's Day * till the Day of Atonement, then, if they are worthy they are written for life, if they are not worthy they are written for death. There is a tradition that the School of Shammai says, There are three companies on the Day of Judgment, one of the absolutely righteous, one of the absolutely wicked and one of the intermediate. The absolutely righteous are written and sealed forthwith for the life of the World to come ; The absolutely wicked are written and sealed forth- with for Gehinnora as it is said, "And many that sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, these to eternal life and those for reproach and an eternal g-azing-stock " (Dan. xii. 2) ; The intermediate go down to Gehinnom and they well up and up (like a bubble in boiling water) and they rise (out of it), As it is said; — "And I will bring the third part through the fire, &c." And of them it is that Hannali saitli ;— " The Eternal killeth and bringeth to life, He bringeth down to hell and bringeth up" (1 Sam. ii. 0). E,. Yitzchak the son of Abbin says that their faces are like the bottom of pots (blackened by the fire). Rava said, (Yes) and these (i.e. the fire-blackened ones) are the very pick {lit. the choicest of the choice) of the inhabitants of Machuza (i.e. of his own congregation). And he calls them Children of Gehinnom. But the School of Hillel say with respect to the inter- mediate that (the expression) "Great in Mercy" (Exod. xxxiv.) means that He (just) bends the scale towards mercy; and that concerning them (the intermediate) David says, " I love because the Eternal hath heard " (Ps. cxvi. 1). And of therri indeed he uttered the whole stanza, (viz.) "I was very weak (i.e. in merits) but he helped me " (ver.se 6). And how does he do it? (i.e. how is God able to forgive sins). Rabbi Eliezer said, He treads them under, as it is said ; — ' Ten dftv.s inclusive Srr al.'io note on p. !Jo. 74 YALKUT. " He will turn, and be merciful unto us, He will tread down our iniquities, and will cast into the depths of the sea all our sins'" (Micah vii. lU). Rabbi Yose, the son of Chanina, says that " Forg'iving iniquity " (means that) He passes over transgression. It was taught in the house of Rabbi Yishmael (that God) takes away the first (transgression) first, and such is the Quahty'* (in the Attributes, see Exod. xxxiv.) of God. But Rava said, The iniquity itself is not blotted out for if a man goes on increasing his iniquities this is reckoned back to him. The transGfressors of Israel in their bodies and the transgressors of the nations of the world in their bodies go down to Gehinnom, and they are judged therein for twelve months, their bodies are consumed and their souls are burnt up and a wind scatters them so that they become ashes under the soles of the feet of the righteous, as it is said ; — "And ye shall tread down the wicked ; and they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet (Malachi iii. 21). But informers and epicureans and those that deny the resurrection of the dead and those who have caused their terror to fall upon the land of the living and those that have not only sinned (themselves) but made the many to sin, as for instance Jeroboam and his companions, shall go down to Gehinnom and shall be judged therein for gouorations of generations; as it is said, "And they shall go forth and look on the carcases of the men, etc." (Isaiah Ixvi). Gehin- nom is consumed but they arc not consumed as it is said, "And their form wears out hell" (P.salm xlix. 15), and this is because they stretched forth their hands to the ZevM (habitation) as it is said, " MizzeviXl lo " (" From His habi- tation" Psalm xlix. 14), and this word ZeviXl means nothing else than the Sanctuary, as it is said ; — " I have* indeed * Our present Hebrew text in Micah vii. 19, reads DriNDri " thrir sins" but there can be little doubt that the Yalkut has lierc preserved the correct reading, especially as the IjXX. also reads tAj a/xaprlaf yjixCiv. ' On the Jewish belief with respect to the forgiveness of sins see above pp. 32 and ij"), in not^ ZECHARIAH XIII. 75 built the house of thy habitation" (Zevul) (1 Kings viii. 13). Surely my lord^ said, that Beth Hillel used to say, that "abundant in mercy " (meant) that He just bends the (scale of justice) towards mercy. But surely it is written And I will bring the third part through the fire " ? (The answer is) that there it refers to the transgressors of Israel in their bodies. But surely it says (see above) that there is no chance for them ? (Yes), in the case when the transgressions predomi- nate, but here (a case is pre-supposed in which) half are transgressions and half merits ; and what he means is this, that when the man has half transgressions and half merits and yet has a (single) transgression which comes under the head of "transgressors of Israel in their bodies" then it is not enough (for him to be saved). (Then applies) "And I will bring the third (part) through the fire " ; but if not (i.e. if he have not sinned against his own body) then (He who is) "Abundant in Mercy " just bends the scale towards mercy. " The transgressors of Israel " (against their bodies), — who are they ? Rav said, They are the brows that have never put on tephillin. And "the transgressors of the nations of the world in their bodies " ? — Rav said, It means those that sin in the transgression I "And those that have caused their terror to fall upon the land of the living " ? Rav said. Such an one is a president'' of a congregation who causes ^ The term Mar, " my lord" is often used in the Talmud to denote a previous speaker. ^ " T/ie transgression " is impurity. St Paul may well have had some such tradition as this in his mind when he wrote the words (1 Cor. vi. 18). TToi' afjApTttfia 6 iav voirjari avdpuiroi iKToi rod (Tu/jLaros ianv, 6 S^ Tropvfvuv eh rh tStov ffufxa a/xapTavei. 2 The word Parnds (DJ")D, pciKcere), which is used in the Targum for the Heb. nyi, is evidently adopted fronr the Greek wvpvoi (see Aruk). The Parnas was, in ancient times, probably identical with the Sliliach Tzibbur [compare "Angel of the ChurcW (Rev. ii. 1, &c.)] the Chief Rabbi or Presi- dent of the Synagogue; such must not "lord it over their charge" (1 Pet. V. 3). According to an old Boraitha mentioned in T. B. Ch'gigoli S**., one ib YALKUT. excessive fear to fall upon the congregation but not for God's sake {lit. for the name of Heaven). HINT 583. Zech.ch.xiv. 3 " And the Eternal will go forth and fight Tancbnma against tliosc nations." sect. Amhr. See also Mid- R. Levi Said, Woe to the wicked for they take deep on Ps. ii.' '™ counsel against Israel. Each single one of them says, my counsel is better than thy counsel. Esau said, Cain was a fool in that he killed Abel in the lifetime of his father, he did not understand that his father would multiply and increase ; but as for me I am not going to do so, but, "the days of the mourning for my father are at hand." (Gen. xxvii. 41). Pharaoh said, Esau was a fool, he did not understand that his brother would increase and multiply in his father's lifetime, but as for me I am not going to do so, but when tbey are very little, at the birth, I am going to strangle them ; As it is said;— "Every male child, etc." (Exod. i. 16). Haman said, Pharaoh was a fool, he did not understand that the daughters would be married to husbands and would increase and multiply, but as for me I am not going to do so, but, "to destroy and to kill and to exterminate" (Esth. iii. 13 ; vii. 4, &c.). Rabbi Levi said, So too Gog and Magog will say thus; Those that went before us were fools, they did not consider that they (i.e. Israel) had a Patron in Heaven but I am not going to do so, but first of all I am going to measure myself with (lit. ' close luith ') their Patron and after- wards I measure myself with them ; This is that which is written, " The kings of the earth stand up and the rulers take counsel together against the Eternal and against His Anointed" (Ps. ii. 2). Tlie Holy One, blessed be He, said uutu him, Oh wicked one! comest thou to measure thyself with Me ! as thou livest surely I will make war' with of the three thinRB over wliich God wccpa every day is this, — " Over a i^astor CD31D) who lordH it over (nXintDH) his con^rrgation." ' The war with Ciog and Magog is a favourite .subject with Midrasbic Writers. The usual form of the tradition is, that Messiah ben Joseph is ZEOHAETATI XIV. 77 tliee ; As it is said, " the Eternal shall go forth like a warrior" (Is. xlii. 13), and it also says, "And the Eternal shall go forth and shall fight . . ." 4 "And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives." [See Yalkiit on Kings, Hint 225, where we read as follows ;] "And Elijah went up in a tempest unto Heaven" (2 Kings ii. 11). There is a tradition that R. Yose said, The Shekinah never T. B. Sukkah 5*. (actually) came down here below nor did Moses and Elijah go up to the Height : As it is said, " The Heavens are the Lord's Heavens, and the Earth hath He given to the Children of men" (Ps. cxv. IG). But surely it is written, "And the Eternal came down upon Mount Sinai" (Exod. xix. 20) ? [Yes, but this means] ten (spans) higher. But surely it is written, "And His feet shall stand in that day upon the Mount of Olives " (Zech. xiv. 4) ? [This means] ten (spans) higher. But surely it is written, "And Moses went up unto God" (Exod. xix. 3)? [This means] ten (spans) lower. But surely it is written, "And Elijah went up in a tempest unto Heaven " (2 Kings ii. 11) ? [This means] ten lower. But surely it is written (of Moses), "Taking hold on the face of (the) Throne, spreading His Cloud upon him " (Job xxvi. 9) ? And R. Tanchum says, This shews that the Almighty separates' off some of the splendour of His Shekinah and killed in battle by Gog and Magog, and then, immediately, Messiah ben David appears and slays the wicked one with the breath of his mouth : but in the present passage we see that the Eternal Himself goes forth to the battle. Here, as often, the contradiction is reconciled by the Christian doctrine. ' As if the word TKHD in Job xxvi. 9, were compounded of "ft ti*1D. It will be seen that the whole verse is taken out of its context and applied to Moses. 78 YAI.KUT. covers him witli it (lit. clouds it over him), so that Ho can let His Throne down within ten (spans) and he (Moses) takes hold of it. "And it shall come to pass in that day there shall not be light (of) yharoth and Vippabn. [E. V. '^ clear nor dark": margin, " j^recious," "thick- ness."] T.B.P'sachim Rabbi Eliezer saitl, This is the light which is m'ecious for, weic/hti/j in this world but is vile^ [or light] in the World to Come. And R. Yochanan says, These are (the questions relating to) Plagues^ and Tents which are weightf/ in this world but light (i.e. easy) in the World to Come. ^*This is that which is written, "And I will bring" the blind by a way they have not known [. . . I will make the dark place light before them . . . these thing's I have done and have not forsaken them" (Is. xlii. IG)]. It is not written thus, "These thing-s I will do," l»ut, "These things I have done" — i.e. for Rabbi Akiva and his com- panions. "And every precious thing his eye hath seen" (Job xxviii. 10. — This means the eye of R. Akiva.* ' This pas.sage is quoted by Biixtorf snl) voc. ""-ISp, nnd is translated by liim "Est lux, quae pietiosa est in niundo vel seculo hoc, et est vili.s in Beculo altero, Glossa *1Dp id est ?p Levis, et ouinis res levis vocatur *1Dp, quia leve natat in aqua, et Hebraeuni C]1V in Targum redditur NDp." R. Eliezer probaljly meant to imply that the Light of the World to Come "should be sevenfold, as the light of the seven days" and should thus make all that is most valued now, by comparison seem vile. It is also probable that he intended by the word *"lDp (cf. MD"'p condcruation, coaguUX' tion) to hint at "the terrible crystal" in Ezek. i. 22. Compare Chapters of R. Eliezer, cap. 3, where it is stated that the Earth was created from the snow (or ire) beneath the Throne of Cilory. See also Wrnnhith liuhbah. God, in creating all beautiful things, reveals only a glimpse in this life. He stores up the reality, for the Righteous, beneath His Throne of Glory. ' These questions were recognized as the most difficult problems in the Law and are treated at length in the Srdrr Tah'roth. ' The passage enclosed thus; " *, is not found in the Talmud, but has been taken from iVsikatha Sect. Parah (p. 39'" in Ruber's Edition) where the words y'karolh and kijipuhn nrc discussed. ZECHARIAII XIV. 79 And R. Yehoshua says, These are the children of men who are honoured in this world but are of light esteem in the World to Come : As the story goes of Rav Yoseph, the son of R. Yehoshua ben Levi, who was sick and fell in a trance ; his father said to him, What hast thou seen ? He said, I saw a world all topsy-turvey, men that should be upper- most were below and those that should be lowest were above. He said to him, My son, thou hast seen the World as it (actually) is ; — but what about ourselves ? He replied, Even as we are accounted here so are we accounted there. (And) what didst thou hear them (i.e. the Angels) say ? I heard them say. Blessed is he that cometh here with his learning in his hand : and also. That no created being can stand in the appointed home of martyrs. Who are they (i.e. these martyrs) ? Shall it be said that they are R. Akiva and his companions ? [Is this reward destined for them] simply because they were martyrs and nothing more ? [For surely they were saints before they were martyrs ?~\ No ; it is so even in the case of the martyrs of Lud* [i.e. Laodicea]. 7 " And it shall come to pass that at eventide there shall be light." Rabbi Eliezer said the dominion of the four World- Chapters of Kingdoms will only last one day of the days of the Holy q gg' One, blessed be He, (i.e. 1000 years). Whence do you learn that ? Because it is written, " And the birds came down upon the carcases and Abram scared them away. And the sun was setting . . ." (Gen. xv. 11, 12). • According to T. B. Td'nith 18^' it would seem that suspicion had fallen upon the Jews of Laodicea owing to the sudden death of a lady of high rank: Persecution being feared two brothers, named Luliauus and Pappos, gave themselves up declaring that they had caused her death. These men died to save their brethren and are thus accounted martyrs, yet so far were they from being saints that by their own confession they deserved death though innocent of the special crime for which they suffered. Hence the "Martyrs of Lud " became a proverb for the lowest order of martyrs. Such then is the honour of martyrdom that even the lowest in the white-robod throng has a special mansion in Heaven. " Tlip Martyr first..." so YALKUT. R. Elazar the son of Arak said, It is even as thou sayest ; for it is written, " He hath made me desolate (and) faint all the day" (Lam. i. 13). (This means) witli the excep- tion of two-thirds* of an hour. Take note then that it is so : When the sun dips down to set in the West, then for two- thirds of an hour his light is ceasing, and he has no (visible) rays ; so, just before the (shades of) evening come the Sun (lit. the Light) of Israel springs forth ; As it is said, "And it shall come to pass that at eventide there shall be light." 8 "And it shall be, in that day, that living waters shall go forth from Jerusalem." B'rashith j^ Joshua of Siknin in the name of R. Levi says, The Eabbah 70. •' Holy One, ble.ssed be He, takes the common talk of the Fathers and makes it a key for the redemption of their children. The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Jacob, Thou didst say, (THI, "And the Lord shall be my God" (Gen. xviii. 21) ! As thou livest, all the good things, and blessings, and consolations, which I give to thy cliildren, I will give with none other than this same word (^^TI)^ As it is said, "And it shall be (n\Tl) in that day that living waters shall come forth, &c." (Zech. xiv. S). "And it shall be (HMD in that day that a man shall keep a heifer, &c." (Is. vii. 21, see context which is Messianic). "And it shall be (-THT) in that day that the Lord shall set His hand the second time, &c." (fs. -xi. 11). ' Day may be rpckonod eithor from sunriso to sun^ot, or as the period of light, in which case the morninp; anrl evening twilight mtist be added. This twilight is supposed to last for 40 minutes or two-thirds of an hour; R. Elazar therefore intends to imply that i\\o desolation of Israel lasts aU the day, from sunrise to sunset, but the twilight hour is the hour of deliver- ance " at eventide there is light." ' The pa»t teme with Tan Convemive is the language of realization and therefore the language of Prophecy : — not T}^_T\^) but iTni, pant ma^p futurr, or rather made prfnrnt, on man's part by trust in Him who is n^ri\ Past, Present and Future in One Eternity: While fiod on His part, in giving His proraiseH with n*ni, promifleR (or swoais) by Himself (Hiri'i. ZECHARIAH XIV. 81 "And it shall be OTHI) in that day that the moun- tains shall drip with sweet wine, &c." (Joel iii. is). "And it shall be (n\"I1) in that day that the great blast shall be sounded on the trumpet" (Is. xxvii. 13). "And the Eternal shall be King- over all the Earth : in that day the Eternal shall be One, and His Name one." But is He then i^ot One now ? T.B.Pesachim Rabbi Aclia bar Chanina said ['that R. Yose said tliat he bad heard R. Yochanan say], Not like this world is the World to Come ; In this world when a man receives bad news he says, Blessed be the faithful Judge : and when he receives good news, he says, Blessed be He who is Good and the cause of Good : but, in the World to Come He is altosrether " The Good and the Cause of Good." "And His Name One":— But is it then not one now ? Rav Nachman says, Not like this world is the World to Come : in this world It (the most holy name) is written Avith ri* but is read^ with "IX ; but, in the World to Come, it is altogether One. Rava wished to expound the Passage (i.e. to explain the Most Holy Name) then that Aged one (viz. Elijah) said to him, It is written u7y7, " hide it ^" R. Avina said, It is written ; " This is My Name " (Exod. iii. 15), and it is also written, "This is My 1 Not in Talmud. ^ It is written niH* but read ^ilX Adoitai, i.e. " Lord." ' " It is wrilten a7]h, hide it." The passage here alluded to is Exod. iii. 15, which concludes thus m "n"? nDT "Tl rhv\> ''Ki'C' HT, " This is My Name for ever {ai]}'^), and this is My memorial from generation to generation " — but, instead of reading cVy?, "for ever," an imaginary in- finitive mood D?y? or D?tv is supposed to be read, which is consequently translated " liidr (It)," or " (il) must //c liiddni." K. Y. 6 82 YALKUT. memorial" (Exod. Hi. lo). [How can it be both?] The Holy Uuc, blessed be He, said to him, Not as I am written am I read ; I am written with PT* but am read with "IJ^. In this world, where idolatry is found, men say, "The Eternal Cnh He is God (Elohim)," but in the World to Come, when the Holy One, blessed be He, is Kiiii^ over us, then will apply the text, " And the Eternal is King" over all the Earth : in that day the Eternal shall be One and His name One." 10 "All the Land sbtill be encompassed as the plain, from Geba to Rimmon south of Jerusalem." Midrasb. But is not the suiith of Jevusaleui a level spot and from Geha to Rimmon a place of stones and rocks ? But the fact is that even as Geba and Rimmon are going to be made level south of Jerusalem so all the lands are Sfoinij to be made level south of Jerusalem', 10 "And it shall be lifted up, and inhabited in its place." llava said, The Holy One, blessed be He, is going to raise Jerusalem, &c. 12 "And this shall l)c the plague therewith the Internal shall smite all the nations ... its flesh shall rot." Tancluuna. The Holy One, blessed be He, says, I am going to smite Sect. ynrn. w^q^^-^ ■v\'ith leprosy: And thus it saitli, "A man when there shall be in the skin of his flesh, &c." (Lev. xiii. 2). ' I li.'ivc not been able to ideutify tbis quotation ; it is possibly derived from some lost Midrasb. Tbo meaning of tbc passage seems to be to caution us against translating (as certain commcntatorH bavc done), "As the plain from (icba to Jilmmon,"— for, as a matter of fact, tbo district from (jcba to lUnmion, so far from being a plaiu, wan cxccHsiv«'ly rugged, and for tbis very reasou it is mentioned, tbat, even as "(ieba to Jtininion " is to be levelled, so every bigb place will be levelled, and Jerusalem alone exalted. ZECHARIAH XIV. 83 And why ? Simply because they set themselves against Israel (for the passage goes on to say) : 12 "Who have fought against Israel." And thus thou wilt find that the Holy One, blessed be He, when He exacts punishment of the fourth Empire (Rome), will smite it with leprosy ; as it is said, " Why are thy mig"hty ones leprous-stricken?" (ftHDJ, Jer. xlvi. 15). And it is also written ; — "And for a swelling" and for a burning" boil (DnSD) and for a burning sore " (Lev. xiv. i3G). And so thou findest that, in this world, He (ever) smote their enemies with leprosy. And wdio was this Naaman ? As it is said, " A mighty man... but a leper" (2 Kings v. 1). And why was he smitten with leprosy ? Because he had carried captive out of the land of Israel a little maid. C— 2 APPENDIX A. MESSIAH BEN JOSEPH. It is commonly assumed by Christian scholars that the Jewish belief in a Messiah ben Joseph is of late date ; thus Schoettgen, Vol. iii. 365, goes so far as to suppose that the Jewish Rabbis originated the story with the deliberate intention of perverting the Christian belief ! Wunsche, Die Leiden des Jfessias, maintains that it cannot be traced earlier than the Second Century of the Christian Era; while Drunimond in his interesting book The Jewish Messiah (page 356), seems to consider that the whole question is settled because "even Gfrorer grants that it is most improbable that this doctrine of ,1 second Messiah was pre-Christian." I hope however to shew that the germ of this belief exists even in the Book of Genesis, and that it runs through the whole of Jewish history, disappearing at times but always breaking out again with increased vividness. Prophecy is, if I mistake not, the inspired interpretation of the Past. Thus, in the Prophecy of Jacob respecting the future of his descendants (Gen. xlix), the Tribe is expected to repeat the history of the Founder from whom it derives its name. If a scholar, entirely free from the preconceived notions of either Jew or Christian, were set to interpret this Prophecy of Jacob, he would, I think, infer that while there was a promise of a Messiah to Judah (verses 8 — 12) there was at least an equally clear one to Joseph (verses 22 — 26), especially in tlio words '■'■from thence is tlie Shepherd the Stone of Israel." It is indeed evident that the Author of this Prophecy expected a Great Ruler (i^yi) to arise from the Tribes of Joseph, i.e. either from Ephraim or Manassch. 86 TALKUT. He gives liowcver the preference to Epliraim (xxxviii. 14 —20). The blessing on Joseph involves also an allusion to the name Fphraim {/ndtfuJ) in the expression ms p (" « fruitful bough") (verse 22). The blessing professes to be a prophecy of ' ivhat should happen in the latter da>/s' (verse 1); it there- fore must relate to the history, not of the individual, but of the Tribe. This is seen however to be a repetition of their Father's history ; As Joseph was persecuted and hated by his brethren and by strangers, so shall Israel (i.e. the Ten Tribes under the name of Ephraini) be (see verse 23) : As Joseph was " separated from his brethren " and as good as dead, so shall Ephraim be in the Captivity (see verse 2G) : as Joseph came forth from suffering to a throne and became the means of saving his brethren alive, so will the Ten Tribes (Ephraim) be in the latter' days (verses 24 — 26). It would be strange indeed if the sons of Leah should inherit all the blessings and none be reserved for the sons of Rachel. Can the children of Joseph peri«h? The rrophets from first to last refuse to regard the Ten Tribes as lost; they fully realize that their Restoration will involve a mii-acle like the resurrection from the dead; yet they expect it to take place, [e.g. in the vision of the dry bones (Ezek. xxxvii. 1 — 14)]. That this involves the restoration of the House of Jo.seph is seen from verses 16, 17, ^^ Moreover, thou son of man, taka thee one stick, and icrite upon it, For Judah, and for the children of 1 Thi.s idea is tlistiuctly oxpresscd iu a Jewish writing of the auvuii- tecnth century, called the ^NICJ''' mpD, as follows: — " We may indeed say that for this reason he is called ^ Ben Ephraim' because lie will be born from the Tribe of Ephraim, and will become tho head of tlie Ten Tribes who are called by the name of Ki>lir