Sukkah

evil all the day.1 R. Simeon b. Lakish stated, The Evil Inclination of a man grows in strength from day to day and seeks to kill him, as it is said, The wicked watcheth the righteous and seeketh to slay him;2 and were it not that the Holy One, blessed be He, is his help, he would not be able to withstand it, as it is said, The Lord will not leave him in his hand, nor suffer him to be condemned when he is judged.3 The school of R. Ishmael taught, If this repulsive wretch4 meets thee, drag him to the Beth Hamidrash.5 If he is of stone, he will dissolve, if of iron he will shiver into fragments. ‘If he is of stone he will dissolve’,for it is written, Ho, every one that thirsteth come ye to the water6 and it is written, The waters wear the stones.7 ‘If he is of iron, he will shiver into fragments’, for it is written, Is not my word like as fire? Saith the Lord, and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? 8 R. Samuel b. Nahmani citing R. Johanan stated, The Evil Inclination entices man in this world and testifies against him in the world to come, as it is said, He that delicately bringeth up his servant from a child shall have him become a manon9 at the last,10 for according to the Atbah11 of R. Hiyya a witness12 is called13 manon.14 R. Huna pointed out an incongruity: It is written, For the spirit of harlotry hath caused them to err,15 but is it not also written, [For the spirit of harlotry] is within them?16 First it only causes them to err, but ultimately it enters into them. Raba observed, First he17 is called a passer-by, then he is called a guest, and finally he is called a man,18 for it is said, And there came a passer-by17 to the rich man, and he spared to take of his own flock and of his own herd, to dress for the guest17 and then it is written, but took the poor man's lamb and dressed it for the man17 that was come to him.19 R. Johanan remarked, There is a small organ in man which satisfies him when in hunger and makes him hunger when satisfied,20 as it is said, When they were starved21 they became full etc.22 R. Hana b. Abba stated: It was said at the schoolhouse, There are four things of which the Holy One, blessed be He, repents that He had created them, and they are the following: Exile, the Chaldeans, the Ishmaelites and Evil Inclination. ‘The Exile’, since it is written, Now, therefore, what do I here, saith the Lord, seeing that My people is taken away for naught etc.;23 ‘the Chaldeans’, since it is written, Behold the land of the Chaldeans — this is the people that was not;24 ‘the Ishmaelites’, since it is written, The tents of the robbers25 prosper, and they that provoke God are secure since God brought them with His hand;26 ‘the Evil Inclination’, since it is written, [And I will gather her that is driven away] and her that I have afflicted. 27 R. Johanan remarked, Were it not for [the declarations in] the following three Scriptural verses,28 the feet of the enemies of Israel29 would have sunk. One is the verse, And her that I have afflicted;30 the other is the verse, Behold, as the clay in the potter's hand, so are ye in My hand, O House of Israel;31 and the third, And I will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh.32 R. Papa observed, [This may be derived] from the following verse also, And I will put My spirit into you.33 And the Lord showed me four craftsmen.34 Who are these ‘four craftsmen’? — R. Hana b. Bizna citing R. Simeon Hasida replied: The Messiah the son of David, the Messiah the son of Joseph, Elijah and the Righteous Priest.35 R. Shesheth objected,36 If so, was it correct to write, These37 are the horns which scattered Judah,38 seeing that they came to turn [them] back?39 — The other answered him, Go to the end of the verse: These then are come to frighten them, to cast down the horns of the nations, which lifted up their horns against the Land of Judah, to scatter it40 etc. Why, said R. Shesheth to him, should I argue with Hana in Aggada?41 And this shall be peace: when the Assyrian shall come into our land, and when he shall tread in our palaces, then shall we raise up against him seven shepherds and eight princes among men.42 Who are the ‘seven shepherds’? — David in the middle, Adam, Seth and Methuselah43 on his right, and Abraham, Jacob and Moses44 on his left. And who are the ‘eight princes among men’? — Jesse, Saul, Samuel, Amos, Zephaniah, Zedekiah, the Messiah, and Elijah.45 FOUR LADDERS etc. A Tanna taught, the height of a candlestick was fifty cubits. AND FOUR YOUTHS DRAWN FROM THE PRIESTLY STOCK IN WHOSE HANDS WERE HELD JARS OF OIL CONTAINING ONE HUNDRED AND TWENTY LOG. It was asked: Were there one hundred and twenty log for46 all of them or one hundred and twenty log for each? — Come and hear: With jars of oil in their hands, each of thirty log making a total of one hundred and twenty log. A Tanna taught, And they47 were superior48 to the son of Martha the daughter of Boethus.49 It was said of the son of Martha the daughter of Boethus, that he50 could take51 two sides of a huge ox which cost one thousand zuz and walk with them,52 heel to toe,53 but the Sages would not permit him to do so because In the multitude of the people is the King's glory.54 In what respect, however, were they55 superior? If you will say because of the weight do not those56 weigh more?57 — The fact is that in that case there was an ascent every four [cubits length of which rose only to a height of about one cubit]58 so that it was far from being perpendicular, while here there were ladders which were almost perpendicular.59 AND THERE WAS NOT A COURTYARD IN JERUSALEM. A Tanna taught, breaketh; the Evil Inclination being compared to an iron hammer and the Beth Hamidrash to a granite rock, v. Tosaf.]. value of ten (e.g. y"t,v"c) or a hundred (e.g. m"h, p"f) while nun which in the tens has no corresponding letter is grouped with he which in the units has no corresponding letter. Monotheist of the non-Jewish race]. in Palestine, and who with her wealth bribed Agrippa II to appoint him High Priest, c. 64. She was a widow when she married Joshua and the reference here may be to a son of her first marriage.