Moral Accounting and Divine Judgment: A Homiletic Reading of the Poetic Account of the Conquest of Moab in Numbers 21:27–30 (Bava Batra 78b-79a)

Sihon, Heshbon, and the Evil Inclination: A Talmudic Homily on Numbers 21

This sugya begins with a brief clarification of the laws of sale and then develops into an extended homiletic reading of Numbers 21:27–30.¹ The transition depends on the word sayaḥ (סיח), the term for a young donkey. Rav Pappa explains that when a seller specifies that he is selling a nursing donkey, the donkey’s foal is included in the sale. Unlike a cow, whose nursing status may be relevant because of its milk, a donkey is not ordinarily purchased for milk. The seller’s reference to nursing therefore indicates that he is selling both the mother and its young. The foal is called a sayaḥ because it follows pleasant speech (siḥah na’ah), rather than requiring force.

This linguistic observation introduces R. Yoḥanan’s elaborate homiletic interpretation of the poetic account of Sihon’s conquest of Moab (in the modern-day country of Jordan) in Numbers 21:27–30. The biblical poem begins, “Therefore the moshlim say: Come to Heshbon.” The sugya reads moshlim, “poets” or “parable-makers,” as “those who rule over their inclination.” Their call to “come to Heshbon” becomes an invitation to make a moral calculation (ḥeshbon): one should weigh the immediate cost of performing a mitzvah against its ultimate reward, and the immediate benefit of committing a transgression against its ultimate loss.

Each successive phrase of the biblical passage is interpreted through similar wordplay. “Let it be built and established” means that one who makes this calculation will be built in this world and established in the World-to-Come. “The city of Sihon” is associated with the young donkey that follows pleasant speech,² representing a person who passively follows the enticements of the evil inclination. The fire that emerges from Heshbon becomes the punishment issuing from those who calculate their actions and consuming those who do not. The righteous are described as siḥin, trees, while “Ar of Moab” represents the person who follows his inclination like a young donkey. The “lords of the high places of Arnon” are identified with the arrogant, who are destined for Gehenna.

The interpretation of Numbers 21:30 presents the outlook of the wicked and God’s response. “We shot at them” (va-niram) is divided into the claim ein ram, “there is no higher power.” “Heshbon has perished” expresses the denial that the world is governed by moral accounting. “Until Dibon” is read as God’s warning to wait until judgment comes (yavo din). “Until Nophah” refers to the fire of Gehenna, which needs no fanning, and “until Medeba” refers either to the pain inflicted upon the sinners’ souls or to the point at which God does with them as He wishes.

The homily’s central theme is that human conduct must be governed by calculation, discipline, and continued adherence to Torah, because immediate pleasure or apparent freedom conceals ultimate judgment.

Numbers 21:27–30

Numbers 21:27–30:

על כן יאמרו המשלים:

באו חשבון

תבנה ותכונן עיר סיחון

Wherefore they who speak in similes say:

Come to Ḥeshbon,

let the city of Siḥon be built and established:

כי אש יצאה מחשבון

להבה מקרית סיחן

אכלה ער מואב

בעלי במות ארנן

for there is a fire gone out of Ḥeshbon,

a flame from the city of Siḥon:

it has consumed Ar of Mo’av,

and the lords of the high places of Arnon.

אוי לך מואב

אבדת עם כמוש

נתן בניו פליטם

ובנתיו בשבית

למלך אמרי סיחון

Woe to you, Mo’av!

you are undone, O people of Kemosh!

he has given his sons as fugitives,

and his daughters, as captives

to Siḥon king of the Emori.

ונירם

אבד חשבון עד דיבן

ונשים עד נפח

אשר עד מידבא

We have shot at them;

Ḥeshbon is perished even to Divon,

and we have laid them waste to Nofaḥ,

which reaches to Medeva.

Outline

Intro

Numbers 21:27–30

The Passage

1. A foal is called seyaḥ because it follows pleasant speech (siḥa)

2. R’ Shmuel bar Naḥman citing R’ Yoḥanan - Numbers 21:27

3. “Therefore the moshlim say”- Moshlim = those who rule (moshel) over their inclination (i.e. the teaching is addressed to people who exercise self-control)

4. “Come to Heshbon” - Heshbon = calculation - Calculate the ultimate loss and reward of every act: the cost of a mitzvah against its reward, and the gain of a sin against its loss

5. “Let it be built and established” - Two stages of enduring success - One who makes this calculation is “built” in this world and “established” in the World-to-Come

6. “The city of Sihon” - Ir is read as ayir, “young donkey”; Sihon evokes siḥah, pleasant speech (i.e. a person who follows temptation as readily as a young donkey follows coaxing speech is vulnerable to punishment)

7. “A fire went out from Heshbon” - Heshbon = those who calculate - Fire proceeds from those who examine their deeds and consumes those who do not

8. “A flame from the city of Sihon” - Sihon is linked to siḥin, “trees” - The flame comes from the community of the righteous, metaphorically called “trees”

9. “It consumed Ar of Moab” - Ar again evokes ayir, a young donkey - It consumes the person who follows his inclination as easily as a donkey follows pleasant speech

10. “The lords of the heights of Arnon” - “Heights” suggests haughtiness - This refers to the arrogant, who fall into Gehenna

11. “We shot them” (va-niram) - Read as ein ram, “there is no High One” - The wicked deny that a supreme power governs the world

12. “Heshbon is destroyed” - Heshbon = moral accounting - The wicked claim that there is no ultimate reckoning for human conduct

13. “Until Dibon” - Dibon = yavo din, “judgment will come” - God answers that they must wait until judgment arrives

14. “Until Nophah” - Nophah evokes nippuaḥ, fanning - Punishment comes through a fire that needs no fanning (i.e. the fire of Gehenna)

15. “Until Medeba” - Medeba evokes tadiv, “it will cause pain”

    1. Alternative explanation - mai de-va’ei, “what He wishes” - Their souls will suffer, or God will deal with them as He chooses

Appendix - The divine punishments for abandoning Torah (Bava Batra 79a)

1. Rav Yehuda citing Rav - Anyone who separates himself from Torah is consumed by fire

   1. Prooftext - Ezekiel 15:7

2. Rav Dimi citing R’ Yonatan - Anyone who separates himself from Torah falls into Gehenna - Proverbs 21:16; Proverbs 9:18

The Passage

Bava_Batra/78b#11 thru 79a#1

A foal is called seyaḥ because it follows pleasant speech (siḥa)

ואמאי קרי ליה ״סיח״?

שמהלך אחר סיחה נאה.

The Talmud adds tangentially:

And why does the Mishnah call a donkey foal a seyaḥ?

It is because it follows after and obeys pleasant talk [siḥa],

whereas an old donkey must be led forcibly.

R’ Shmuel bar Naḥman citing R’ Yoḥanan - Numbers 21:27

אמר רבי שמואל בר נחמן, אמר רבי יוחנן,

מאי דכתיב:

״על כן יאמרו המשלים וגו׳״?

The Talmud cites a related discussion.

R’ Shmuel bar Naḥman says that R’ Yoḥanan says:

What is the meaning of that which is written:

“Therefore they that speak in parables [hamoshlim] say:

Come to Heshbon! Let the city [ir] of Sihon be built and established! For a fire is gone out of Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon;

it has devoured Ar of Moab, the lords of the high places of Arnon” (Numbers 21:27–28)?

“Therefore the moshlim say”- Moshlim = those who rule (moshel) over their inclination (i.e. the teaching is addressed to people who exercise self-control)

״המשלים״ –

אלו המושלים ביצרם.

The Talmud interprets these verses homiletically.

“Ha-moshlim”;

these are the people who rule over [ha-moshlim] their evil inclination.³

“Come to Heshbon” - Heshbon = calculation - Calculate the ultimate loss and reward of every act: the cost of a mitzvah against its reward, and the gain of a sin against its loss

״בואו חשבון״ –

בואו ונחשב חשבונו של עולם;

• הפסד מצוה כנגד שכרה,

• ושכר עבירה כנגד הפסדה.

They will say: “Come to Heshbon,”

meaning: Come and let us calculate the account of [ḥeshbono] the world,

• i.e., the financial loss incurred by the fulfillment of a mitzva in contrast to its reward,

• and the reward for committing a transgression, i.e., the pleasure and gain received, in contrast to the loss it entails.⁴

“Let it be built and established” - Two stages of enduring success - One who makes this calculation is “built” in this world and “established” in the World-to-Come

״תבנה ותכונן״ –

אם אתה עושה כן --

• תבנה

  • בעולם הזה

• ותכונן

  • לעולם הבא.

“Let it be built and established”

means that if you make this calculation,

• you will be built

  • in this world

• and you will be established

  • in the World-to-Come.

“The city of Sihon” - Ir is read as ayir, “young donkey”; Sihon evokes siḥah, pleasant speech (i.e. a person who follows temptation as readily as a young donkey follows coaxing speech is vulnerable to punishment)

״עיר סיחון״

אם משים אדם עצמו כעיר זה,

שמהלך אחר סיחה נאה

The phrase “city [ir] of Sihon”

means that if a person fashions himself like this young donkey [ayir]

that follows after pleasant talk [siḥa],

i.e., if one is easily tempted to listen to his inclination,

“A fire went out from Heshbon” - Heshbon = those who calculate - Fire proceeds from those who examine their deeds and consumes those who do not

מה כתיב אחריו?

״כי אש יצאה מחשבון וגו׳״

• תצא אש

  • ממחשבין,

• ותאכל

  • את שאינן מחשבין.

what is written after it?

“For a fire is gone out of Heshbon…it has devoured,”

i.e.,

• a fire will go out

  • from those who calculate the effect of their deeds in the world,

• and will consume

  • those who do not calculate and examine their ways but instead do as they please.

“A flame from the city of Sihon” - Sihon is linked to siḥin, “trees” - The flame comes from the community of the righteous, metaphorically called “trees”

״ולהבה מקרית סיחן״ –

מקרית צדיקים

שנקראו ״שיחין״.

A similar interpretation applies to the continuation of the verse:

“A flame from the city of Sihon”;

this means that a flame will come from the city of righteous people,

who are called trees [siḥin].

“It consumed Ar of Moab” - Ar again evokes ayir, a young donkey - It consumes the person who follows his inclination as easily as a donkey follows pleasant speech

״אכלה ער מואב״ –

זה המהלך אחר יצרו,

כעיר זה שמהלך אחר סיחה נאה.

“It has devoured Ar of Moab”;

this is referring to one who follows after his inclination

like this young donkey [ayir] that follows after pleasant talk.

“The lords of the heights of Arnon” - “Heights” suggests haughtiness - This refers to the arrogant, who fall into Gehenna

״בעלי במות ארנן״ –

אלו גסי הרוח,

דאמר מר:

כל אדם שיש בו גסות הרוח --

נופל בגיהנם.

“The lords of the high places of Arnon”;

this is referring to the arrogant (גסי הרוח).

As the Master says:

Every person who has arrogance in him --

will fall into Gehenna.

“We shot them” (va-niram) - Read as ein ram, “there is no High One” - The wicked deny that a supreme power governs the world

״ונירם״

אמר רשע:

אין רם,

The Talmud interprets a subsequent verse: “We have shot at them [va-niram], Heshbon is perished, even until Dibon, and we have laid waste even until Nophah, which reaches until Medeba” (Numbers 21:30).

“Va-niram”;

this indicates that the wicked person says:

There is no higher [ein ram] power governing the world.

“Heshbon is destroyed” - Heshbon = moral accounting - The wicked claim that there is no ultimate reckoning for human conduct

״אבד חשבון״

אבד חשבונו של עולם;

“Heshbon is perished”

means: The account [ḥeshbon] of the world has perished,

i.e., the wicked claim there is no accountability for one’s actions.

“Until Dibon” - Dibon = yavo din, “judgment will come” - God answers that they must wait until judgment arrives

״עד דיבן״

אמר הקדוש ברוך הוא:

המתן עד שיבא דין,

“Even until Dibon [divon]”;

God says:

Wait until judgment comes [yavo din].

“Until Nophah” - Nophah evokes nippuaḥ, fanning - Punishment comes through a fire that needs no fanning (i.e. the fire of Gehenna)

״ונשים עד נפח״

עד שתבא אש שאינה צריכה ניפוח,

“And we have laid waste even until Nophah,”

meaning until the fire comes that does not require fanning [nippuaḥ],

i.e., the fire of Gehenna, which will consume them.

“Until Medeba” - Medeba evokes tad’iv, “it will cause pain”

״עד מידבא״

עד שתדאיב נשמתן.

“Until Medeba [Medeva]”;

this means until their souls are pained [תדאיב - tad’iv].

Alternative explanation - mai de-va’ei, “what He wishes” - Their souls will suffer, or God will deal with them as He chooses

ואמרי לה:

עד דעביד מאי דבעי.

And some say an alternative explanation:

It means until God does what He wishes [mai de-va’ei] with them and punishes them as they deserve.

Appendix - The divine punishments for abandoning Torah (Bava Batra 79a)

Bava_Batra/79a#2 thru #3

The sugya concludes with two related teachings about abandoning Torah. Rav Yehuda in the name of Rav states that anyone who separates from Torah is consumed by fire, based on Ezekiel 15:7. R. Yonatan similarly teaches that one who strays from “the way of understanding” falls among the ‘refa’im’, understood through Proverbs 9:18 as the inhabitants of the depths of Sheol.

Rav Yehuda citing Rav - Anyone who separates himself from Torah is consumed by fire

אמר רב יהודה אמר רב:

כל הפורש מדברי תורה –

אש אוכלתו,

Rav Yehuda says that Rav says:

With regard to anyone who separates himself from matters of Torah --

a fire consumes him,

Prooftext - Ezekiel 15:7

שנאמר:

״ונתתי [את] פני בהם,

מהאש יצאו

והאש תאכלם״.

as it is stated:

“And I will set My face against them;

out of the fire they come forth,

and the fire shall devour them” (Ezekiel 15:7).

The Torah is likened to fire in the verse: “Is not My word like fire?” (Jeremiah 23:29). The verse in Ezekiel teaches: “Out of the fire they come forth,” referring to those who separate themselves from the fire of Torah; “and the fire shall devour them,” i.e., they are consumed by the fire of Gehenna.

Rav Dimi citing R’ Yonatan - Anyone who separates himself from Torah falls into Gehenna - Proverbs 21:16; Proverbs 9:18

כי אתא רב דימי, אמר רבי יונתן:

כל הפורש עצמו מדברי תורה –

נופל בגיהנם,

When Rav Dimi came from Eretz Yisrael to Babylonia, he said that R’ Yonatan says:

Anyone who separates himself from the matters of Torah --

falls into Gehenna.

שנאמר:

״אדם תועה מדרך השכל --

בקהל רפאים ינוח״.

ואין רפאים אלא גיהנם –

שנאמר:

״ולא ידע כי רפאים שם,

בעמקי שאול קראיה.

As it is stated:

“The man who strays out of the way of understanding --

shall rest in the congregation of the spirits” (Proverbs 21:16).

“The way of understanding” is the way of the Torah.

And one who departs from the Torah arrives in the place of the “spirits” (רפאים),

which is nothing other than Gehenna,

as it is stated:

“But he does not know that the spirits are there;

that those whom she has called are in the depths of the netherworld (שאול - Sheol)” (Proverbs 9:18).

1. Compare a similar style of elaborate homiletic interpretation of the five Stations of the Exodus listed in Numbers 21:18-20, in my “Pt2 “If a person makes himself like [X], his study will endure”: Metaphors for the Character Traits Essential to Remembering Torah (Eruvin 54a-b)”, section “Rava: “And from the wilderness to Mattanah; and from Mattanah to Nahaliel; and from Nahaliel to Bamoth; and from Bamoth to the valley” (Numbers 21:18-20) - Metaphor: A progression: wilderness → gift → inheritance of God → heights → valley → exaltation - Meaning: If one is humble like wilderness, Torah is given as a gift; then one inherits God and rises to heights; but if one becomes haughty, God lowers him; if he repents, God raises him again”.

2. As earlier; for the same wordplay between “Sihon” and ‘siyah’, see the Talmud elsewhere, quoted in my “Pt1 Etymologies and Identifications of Biblical Figures in the Talmud: A Literary Analysis”, section “The Canaanite King: Sihon = Arad = Canaan (Rosh Hashanah 3a)”:

[He was called] Sihon because he was similar [in his wildness] to a foal [seyyaḥ] in the desert.

3. Playing on the different senses of the root ‘MŠL” (משל).

Compare the Mishnah in Avot, in my “Tannaitic Aphorisms (Avot 3:13-4:4)“, section “Ben-Zoma - Wisdom is learning from all; strength is self-control; wealth is contentment; honor is giving respect - Psalms 119:99, 128:2, Proverbs 16:32, I Samuel 2:30 (4:1)“, list item #2:

איזהו גבור?

הכובש את יצרו,

שנאמר (משלי טז):

טוב ארך אפים מגבור,

ומשל ברוחו מלכד עיר

Who is mighty?

He who subdues his [evil] inclination,

as it is said:

“He that is slow to anger (ארך אפים) is better than the mighty;

and he that rules (משל) his spirit than he that takes a city” (Proverbs 16:32).

4. This line is taken from the Mishnah in Avot, see my “Pt2 Tripartite Aphorisms: From The Men of the Great Assembly to Rabban Gamaliel’s Dynasty (Mishnah Avot 1:1-2:4)“, section “R’ Yehuda HaNasi (2:1)“, sub-section “Choose the path that brings personal and public honor; weigh mitzvah loss/gain“, list item #3:

והוי מחשב

• הפסד מצוה כנגד שכרה,

• ושכר עברה כנגד הפסדה

Also, reckon (מחשב)

• the loss (הפסד) [that may be sustained through the fulfillment] of a commandment against the reward [accruing] thereby,

• and the gain [that may be obtained through the committing] of a transgression against the loss [entailed] thereby.