Sukkah

of the Bar-Yokani?1 — If one select the greater, one does not choose well, if one select the lesser, one does select well. Might it not be said that the face meant was one like that of a zipartha2 which is very small? — R. Aha b. Jacob answered, R. Huna draws an analogy between two expressions of ‘face’.3 It is written here, ‘[Upon the face of the ark-cover", and it is written elsewhere,4 From the face of Isaac his father.5 But why should we not deduce from the ‘face’ Above, concerning which it is written, As one seeth the face of God, and thou wast pleased with me?6 -If one selects the greater, one does not select well; if one select the lesser, one selects well. Then why should we not deduce from the cherub,7 concerning which it is written, Toward the face of the ark-cover shall the faces of the cherubim be?8 — R. Aha b. Jacob answered, We have a tradition that the face of the cherubim was not less than a handbreadth, and R. Huna too made his deduction from this verse.9 What is the derivation of cherub?- R. Abbahu said, ‘Like a child’, for in Babylon they call a child Rabia.10 Said Abaye to him: If so,11 how will you explain the Scriptural text, The first face was the face of the cherub and the second face the face of a man,12 seeing that the face of a cherub is the same as that of a man?13 — [One14 has] a large face and the other a small face.15 But whence do we know that the height of the interior space16 exclusive of the covering, must be ten [handbreadths] seeing that it might be said that the covering17 also is included? — The fact is that the deduction18 is made from the Temple covering of which it is written, And the house which King Solomon built for the Lord, the length thereof was threescore cubits, and the breadth thereof twenty cubits, and the height thereof thirty cubits,19 and it is written, The height of the one cherub was ten cubits and so was it of the other cherub,20 and it was taught, Just as we find in the Temple that the cherubim21 reached to a third of the height thereof22 so also in the Tabernacle23 they reached to a third of its height.24 Now what was the height of the Tabernacle? Ten cubits, as it is written, Ten cubits shall be the length of a board.25 How much is this? Sixty handbreadths. How much is a third? Twenty handbreadths. Deduct the ten of the ark and the ark-cover,26 and ten handbreadths remain; and it is written, And the cherubim shall spread out their wings on high, covering the ark-cover with their wings.9 [From which we see that] the Divine Law calls [the wings that were stretched] above a height of ten handbreadths27 a ‘covering’.28 But whence do we know that their wings were above their heads? Is it not possible that they were on a level with their heads.29 — R. Aha b. Jacob answered, It is written ‘On high’. But perhaps this means that the wings were raised very high?30 — Is it then written, ‘On high, on high’? This explanation is satisfactory according to R. Meir, who says that all the cubits [in the Sanctuary] were normal cubits,31 but according to R. Judah who says that the cubits of the edifice were six handbreadths, but of the vessels were five, what can be said? For how much [then] were the ark and cover?32 Eight and a half,33 so that eleven and a half handbreadths are left.34 Shall we [therefore] say that [according to R. Judah] a Sukkah must be [at least] eleven and a half [handbreadths high]? — The fact is that according to R. Judah the law35 was learnt as a tradition, for R. Hiyya b. Ashi citing Rab stated: The laws concerning [minima],36 standards, interpositions37 and partitions38 are [a part of the] halachah that was given to Moses on Sinai. But are not the laws relating to minima Pentateuchal, since it is written, A land of wheat and barley, and vines and fig-trees and pomegranates, a land of olive-trees and honey,39 and R. Hanin stated that all this verse was said in allusion to the prescribed minima. ‘Wheat’ is an allusion to the leprous house as we have learnt: He who enters a leprous house with his clothes on his shoulders, and his sandals and rings in his hand, both he and they become instantaneously unclean;40 [ ostrich. thickness of the wings. handbreadth. Pentateuchal law of ‘He that goeth into the house... shall be unclean’ (Lev. XIV, 46).