Pt2 Earthly and Divine Majesty: Encounters with Kings, Justice, and the Reflection of Heaven on Earth (Berakhot 58a)
Appendices: the principle that a non-Jew has no patrilineage (Yevamot 98a); Mar Zutra’s Prayer in Response to Tragedy (Berakhot 46b)
This is the second and final part of a two-part series. Part 1 is here; the outline for the series can be found at Part 1.
Part 3: Self-Defense Against a Threat (Ezekiel 23:20)
As R' Sheila was leaving, the man accused him of being a liar unworthy of miracles.
R' Sheila rebuked him, calling him “evil [one]!" (רשע), and citing a verse comparing non-Jews to donkeys: “Whose flesh is as the flesh of donkeys” (Ezekiel 23:20).1
Realizing the man intended to report him to the Persian authorities, R' Sheila deemed him a “pursuer” (rodef) and, following the principle “If one comes to kill you, kill him first,”2 struck and killed him with his staff.3
כי הוה נפיק,
אמר ליה ההוא גברא: עביד רחמנא ניסא לשקרי הכי?!
אמר ליה:
רשע!
לאו חמרי איקרו?!
דכתיב: ״אשר בשר חמורים בשרם״.
חזייה דקאזיל למימרא להו דקרינהו חמרי,
אמר:
האי רודף הוא.
והתורה אמרה: אם בא להרגך — השכם להרגו.
מחייה בקולפא וקטליה.
As he was leaving,
that man said to R' Sheila: Does God perform such miracles for liars?!
He replied:
Scoundrel!
Aren’t gentiles called donkeys?!
As it is written: “Whose flesh is as the flesh of donkeys” (Ezekiel 23:20).
R' Sheila saw that he was going to tell the Persian authorities that he called them donkeys.
He said:
This man has the legal status of a pursuer. He seeks to have me killed.
And the Torah said: If one comes to kill you, kill him first.
He struck him with the staff and killed him.
Part 4: R' Sheila’s Homiletic Interpretation of Divine Attributes in I Chronicles 29:11 — Past and future defeats of Israel's enemies
R' Sheila expounded the verse "Yours, YHWH, is the greatness..." from I Chronicles 29:11 (which he had quoted earlier), saying that “since a miracle was performed on my behalf with this verse that I cited, I will ‘interpret it homiletically’ (דרישנא ליה)”.
R’ Sheila linked each attribute to a biblical event—mainly past and future defeats of Israel's enemies—supported by a biblical prooftext:
Greatness (גדלה): Creation (מעשה בראשית)
Power (גבורה): The Exodus (יציאת מצרים - defeat of the Egyptians)
Glory (תפארת): the sun and the moon that stood still for Joshua (Joshua 10:12–14 - in the Battle of Gibeon against the Amorites)
Triumph (נצח): Rome’s downfall (מפלתה של רומי)
Majesty (הוד): The Battle of the Arnon Stream (מלחמת נחלי ארנון - Numbers 21:13-15)
All in heaven and earth: Sisera’s defeat.
Kingdom (ממלכה): Amalek’s war (מלחמת עמלק)
Exaltation (מתנשא): Gog and Magog’s battle (מלחמת גוג ומגוג)
As head above all (לכל לראש): “even [the most insignificant,] the one responsible for distributing water (ריש גרגיתא), is appointed by heaven.“
אמר:
הואיל ואתעביד לי ניסא בהאי קרא,
דרישנא ליה:
״לך ה׳ הגדלה״ — זו מעשה בראשית,
וכן הוא אומר: ״עשה גדלות עד אין חקר״.
״והגבורה״ — זו יציאת מצרים,
שנאמר: ״וירא ישראל את היד הגדלה וגו׳״.
״והתפארת״ — זו חמה ולבנה שעמדו לו ליהושע,
שנאמר: ״וידם השמש וירח עמד וגו׳״.
״והנצח״ — זו מפלתה של רומי.
וכן הוא אומר: ״ויז נצחם על בגדי וגו׳״.
״וההוד״ — זו מלחמת נחלי ארנון,
שנאמר: ״על כן יאמר בספר מלחמת ה׳ את והב בסופה וגו׳״.
״כי כל בשמים ובארץ״ — זו מלחמת סיסרא,
שנאמר: ״מן שמים נלחמו הכוכבים ממסלותם וגו׳״.
״לך ה׳ הממלכה״ — זו מלחמת עמלק,
וכן הוא אומר: ״כי יד על כס יה״.
״והמתנשא״ — זו מלחמת גוג ומגוג,
וכן הוא אומר: ״הנני אליך גוג נשיא ראש משך ותבל״.
״לכל לראש״ — אמר רב חנן בר רבא אמר רבי יוחנן: אפילו ריש גרגיתא מן שמיא מנו ליה.
R' Sheila said:
Since a miracle was performed on my behalf with this verse that I cited,
I will interpret it homiletically:
Yours, YHWH, is the greatness; that is the act of creation,
and so it says: “Who does great things past finding out” (Job 9:10);
And the power; that is the exodus from Egypt,
as it is stated: “And Israel saw the great work which YHWH did to the Egyptians” (Exodus 14:31);
And the glory; that is the sun and the moon that stood still for Joshua,
as it is stated: “And the sun stood still, and the moon stayed, until the nation had avenged themselves of their enemies” (Joshua 10:13);
And the triumph; that is the downfall of Rome,
and so it says describing the downfall of Edom, whom the Sages identified as the forefather of Rome: “Their lifeblood is dashed against My garments and I have stained all My raiment” (Isaiah 63:3);
And the majesty; this is the war of the valleys of Arnon,
as it is stated: “Wherefore it is said in the book of the Wars of YHWH: Vahev in Sufa, and the valleys of Arnon” (Numbers 21:14);
For all that is in the heaven and in the earth is Yours; this is the war of Sisera,
as it is stated: “They fought from heaven, the stars in their courses fought against Sisera” (Judges 5:20).
Yours is the kingdom, YHWH; this is the war of Amalek,
and so it says: “And he said: The hand upon the throne of YHWH: YHWH will have war with Amalek from generation to generation” (Exodus 17:16), as then God will sit on His throne.
And you are exalted; this is the war of Gog and Magog,
and so it says: “I am against you, O Gog, the chief prince of Meshekh and Tubal” (Ezekiel 38:3); and:
As head above all; Rav Ḥanan bar Rava said that R' Yoḥanan said: All leadership and authority, even the most insignificant, the one responsible for distributing water, is appointed by heaven.
R' Akiva’s Interpretation
R' Akiva provided alternative biblical associations for the same verse (homiletically interpreted in the previous section):
Greatness: Splitting of the Red Sea (קריעת ים סוף)
Power: Plague of the Firstborn (מכת בכורות)
Glory: Giving of the Torah (מתן תורה)
Triumph: Jerusalem.
Majesty: The Temple.
במתניתא תנא משמיה דרבי עקיבא:
״לך ה׳ הגדלה״ — זו קריעת ים סוף.
״והגבורה״ — זו מכת בכורות.
״והתפארת״ — זו מתן תורה.
״והנצח״ — זו ירושלים.
״וההוד״ — זו בית המקדש.
It was taught in a baraita in the name of R' Akiva:
Yours, YHWH, is the greatness; this is the splitting of the Red Sea;
the power; this is the plague of the firstborn;
the glory; this is the giving of the Torah;
the triumph; this is Jerusalem;
and the majesty; this is the Temple.
Blessings upon Observing Houses, Jewish and Non-Jewish, Inhabited and Ruined (Proverbs 15:25 ; Psalms 94:1)
A baraita states blessings for different scenarios:
Jewish Homes (בתי ישראל):
Non-Jewish Homes (בתי אומות העולם):
When inhabited, one recites a verse (Proverbs 15:25) emphasizing their eventual downfall;6
When in ruins, one recites a verse (Psalms 94:1) praising God as a God of vengeance (נקמות).
תנו רבנן:
הרואה בתי ישראל
בישובן, אומר: ״ברוך … מציב גבול אלמנה״.
בחורבנן, אומר: ״ברוך דיין האמת״.
בתי אומות העולם
בישובן, אומר: ״בית גאים יסח ה׳״.
בחורבנן, אומר: ״אל נקמות ה׳, אל נקמות הופיע״.
The Sages taught:
One who sees the houses of Israel
inhabited and tranquil recites: Blessed…Who establishes the border of the widow.
One who sees them in ruins he recites: Blessed…the true Judge.
One who sees the houses of the nations of the world
inhabited recites: “YHWH will destroy the house of the proud, but He will establish the border of the widow” (Proverbs 15:25).
And if he sees them in ruins he recites: “God of vengeance, YHWH, God of vengeance, shine forth” (Psalms 94:1).
Appendix 1 – Table Depicting Biblical Events Alluded To in I Chronicles 29:11 According to the Talmudic Homiletic Interpretations
Items #1-8 are R’ Sheila; #9-11 (highlighted yellow) are R’ Akiva:
Appendix 2 - the principle that a non-Jew has no patrilineage (Yevamot 98a)
Rava explains that the principle that a non-Jew has no patrilineage7 is not due to practical uncertainty about paternity caused by their being “steeped in promiscuity” (שטופי בזמה) but is rather a technical halakhic concept: Even when biological paternity is certain, Jewish law does not legally recognize paternal lineage for non-Jews.
The proof comes from the case of identical twin non-Jewish brothers, who are undeniably from the same father,8 yet they do not perform ḥalitza or yibbum, demonstrating that the Torah “nullifies”9 the paternal relationship of non-Jews, based on the afore-mentioned verse in Ezekiel 23:20.
אמר רבא,
הא דאמור רבנן: אין אב לגוי,
לא תימא משום דשטופי בזמה, דלא ידיע,
אבל ידיע — חיישינן,
אלא אפילו דידיע — נמי לא חיישינן.
דהא שני אחין תאומים,
דטפה אחת, היא ונחלקה לשתים,
וקתני סיפא: לא חולצין ולא מייבמין,
שמע מינה: אפקורי אפקריה רחמנא לזרעיה,
דכתיב: ״בשר חמורים בשרם וזרמת סוסים זרמתם״.
Rava said:
With regard to that which the Sages said, that a gentile has no patrilineage,
do not say that it is because they are so steeped in licentiousness that they do not know the identity of their fathers with certainty,
but if that identity is known, we are concerned that the paternity is recognized, with regard to the prohibition of intercourse with forbidden paternal relatives and other halakhic issues.
Rather, even when it is known, we are still not concerned.
The proof is from the case of two identical twin brothers,
who were one drop that was divided into two and obviously have the same father,
and yet it is taught in the latter clause of the baraita: They do not perform ḥalitza and they do not perform levirate marriage, although they certainly have the same father.
Learn from this that the Merciful One dispossesses the male gentile of his offspring,
as it is written with regard to Egyptians: “Whose flesh is the flesh of donkeys, and whose semen is the semen of horses” (Ezekiel 23:20), i.e., the offspring of a male gentile is considered no more related to him than the offspring of donkeys and horses.
The Talmud discusses whether a convert is subject to the prohibition of marrying his brother's widow (i.e. his former sister-in-law).
R' Yosei recounts an incident where a convert named Niftayim (ניפטיים הגר) married his maternal half-brother’s widow, and the Sages ruled that "there is no marriage for a convert" (אין אישות לגר), meaning that the prohibition of a brother’s wife does not apply to converts.
תא שמע,
דאמר רבי יוסי:
מעשה בניפטיים הגר
שנשא אשת אחיו מאמו,
ובא מעשה לפני חכמים,
ואמרו: אין אישות לגר.
[...]
Come and hear another proof,
as R' Yosei said:
An incident took place involving Niftayim the convert,
who married the wife of his maternal half brother,
and the incident came before the Sages,
and they said that there is no valid marriage for a convert.
[...]
Another proof is brought from an account of someone named Ben-Yasiyan,10 who met a convert in “coastal cities” (כרכי הים) who had married his maternal half-brother’s widow.
Ben-Yasiyan asked him who had permitted (הרשך) this, the convert cited R' Akiva, who ruled (when the case of “woman and her seven sons” ( אשה ושבעה בניה) came up) that a convert may marry such a woman.
תא שמע,
דאמר בן יאסיין:
כשהלכתי לכרכי הים
מצאתי גר אחד
שנשא אשת אחיו מאמו.
אמרתי לו:
בני!
מי הרשך?!
אמר לי:
הרי אשה ושבעה בניה,
על ספסל זה ישב רבי עקיבא
ואמר שני דברים:
גר נושא אשת אחיו מאמו
[…]
Come and hear another proof,
as ben Yasiyan said:
When I went to cities overseas,
I found one convert who married the wife of his maternal half brother.
I said to him:
My son!
who permitted this to you?!
He said to me:
There is a local woman and her seven sons to whom this was permitted.
On this very bench [safsal], R' Akiva sat and said two statements:
He said that a convert may marry the former wife of his maternal half brother
[…]
Appendix 3 - Mar Zutra’s Prayer in Response to Tragedy: Acknowledging Divine Justice and Seeking Restoration (Berakhot 46b)
Mar Zutra visited Rav Ashi’s home when “something (מלתא) happened (איתרע)” (i.e. something bad).
Mar Zutra consequently recited a lengthy prayer:11
His prayer emphasized God's justice and sovereignty, acknowledging Him as the true Judge who acts righteously and with justice.
He affirmed that all belongs to God, and the Jews are His people and servants, obligated to give thanks and blessings (even when bad things happen).
The blessing concluded with a plea for God to “repair the breaches” in Israel (including this particular loss).
מר זוטרא איקלע לבי רב אשי,
איתרע ביה מלתא,
פתח ובריך:
״הטוב והמטיב,
אל אמת,
דיין אמת,
שופט בצדק,
לוקח במשפט,
ושליט בעולמו לעשות בו כרצונו,
כי כל דרכיו משפט,
שהכל שלו
ואנחנו עמו ועבדיו,
ובכל אנחנו חייבים להודות לו ולברכו,
גודר פרצות בישראל
הוא יגדור את הפרצה הזאת בישראל לחיים״.
The Gemara recounts: Mar Zutra happened to come to Rav Ashi’s home
when an incident of mourning befell Rav Ashi.
Mar Zutra began a combined blessing and recited:
Who is good and does good,12
God of truth (אל אמת),
the true Judge,13
Who judges with righteousness,14
takes away with justice (לוקח במשפט),
and is the ruler (שליט) of His world to do in it as He wills,
as all His ways are just,15
that all is His
and we are His people and His servants,
and in everything we are obligated to thank (להודות) Him and bless Him (לברכו),
[He] Who repairs the breaches16 in Israel,
He will repair this breach in Israel for life.
In context, the verse is referring specifically to the Babylonians, see Wikipedia, “Ezekiel 23“, section “Contents“:
Knowing about her sister's punishment but disregarding it, Oholibah (Jerusalem, the capital city of the Southern Kingdom) continues her "whoring" with the Assyrians, and then with Babylonians as well (11-17).
God abandons her in disgust, but she continues her "whorings" with her lovers (18-21).
“Flesh“ in this verse is a euphemism for the male sexual organ, and is understood that way elsewhere in the Talmud. For example, see Berakhot.25b.11, where Rav Yehuda rules that it is forbidden to recite Shema (קריאת שמע) opposite a naked non-Jew. The Talmud questions why he specifies a non-Jew when it is also prohibited opposite a naked Jew. The answer is that while the prohibition regarding a Jew is obvious, one might think that a non-Jew’s nakedness is not considered significant, based on Ezekiel 23:20, which compares their flesh to that of donkeys. To counter this, Rav Yehuda says what he says, which the Talmud supports by citing Genesis 9:23, where Noah’s nakedness is acknowledged, proving that even a non-Jew’s nakedness constitutes a halakhic concern. The full passage:
אמר רב יהודה: גוי ערום אסור לקרות קריאת שמע כנגדו.
מאי איריא גוי? אפילו ישראל נמי!
ישראל פשיטא ליה דאסור,
אלא גוי איצטריכא ליה
מהו דתימא,
הואיל וכתיב בהו ״אשר בשר חמורים בשרם״,
אימא כחמור בעלמא הוא,
קא משמע לן דאינהו נמי איקרו ערוה,
דכתיב: ״וערות אביהם לא ראו״.
Rav Yehuda said: Opposite a naked gentile, it is forbidden to recite Shema.
The Gemara asks: Why did Rav Yehuda discuss particularly the case of a gentile? Even with regard to a Jew it is also prohibited.
The Gemara replies: Opposite the nakedness of a Jew, it is obvious that it is prohibited;
however, opposite the nakedness of a gentile, it was necessary for him to say.
Lest you say that
since it is written about gentiles: “Their flesh is the flesh of donkeys” (Ezekiel 23:20),
say that his nakedness is like that of a mere donkey and does not constitute nakedness.
Rav Yehuda taught us that their nakedness is also considered nakedness,
as it is written regarding the sons of Noah: “And their father’s nakedness they did not see” (Genesis 9:23). Although Noah predated Abraham and was consequently not Jewish, his nakedness is mentioned.
See also my Appendix 2 at the end of this piece regarding the Talmudic principle that a non-Jew has no patrilineage.
See Hebrew Wikipedia, “הבא להורגך השכם להורגו“, my translation:
In Judaism, ha-ba le-horgekha, hashkem le-horgo ("If someone comes to kill you, rise early to kill him first") is a moral principle meaning that a person is permitted to defend themselves and preserve their life at the cost of the life of the one endangering them, as an act of self-defense.
This applies when they perceive an emerging threat and do not need to wait until they are actually attacked.
The principle applies both to the person under threat and to a third party who may preemptively kill someone attempting to murder another person.
In the Babylonian Talmud, the source of this principle is found in the law of ba ba-maḥteret (הבא במחתרת - “one who comes in a tunnel” - i.e. a person who breaks in under the cover of night to steal; in modern parlance: a home invasion), about whom it is stated, “He has no blood” (Exodus 22:1).
The Talmud explains that the reason the Torah permits the intruder’s blood to be shed is that it is reasonable to assume that the burglar anticipates the homeowner will try to defend his property.
The fact that the intruder does not refrain from committing the burglary indicates his willingness to kill the homeowner if he attempts to stop him.
Therefore, the homeowner or a third party is permitted to act preemptively and kill the intruder, as the Torah states, “If someone comes to kill you, rise early to kill him first.”
קולפא - kolfa - This is the same staff (or: “whip”, see my note in Part 1) — denoted by the same uncommon term — that had been ceremoniously presented to him by the Persian authorities in the previous section as a symbol of his newly granted authority to judge.
מציב גבול אלמנה - literally: “Who establishes the border of the widow“. This is based on the second half of the verse in Proverbs 15:25 (cited in the next half of the baraita):
ויצב גבול אלמנה
He will set the border of the widow.
Analysis of the metaphor and symbolism, in usage of this blessing:
"אלמנה" (“widow”): In biblical language, Israel is often metaphorically depicted as a widow when in exile or distress (see Eikhah 1:1: "The city that was great among the nations has become like a widow"). The term "widow" conveys loss, displacement, and vulnerability, emphasizing the historical suffering of the Jewish people.
"מציב גבול" (“sets the boundary”): This phrase evokes divine restoration and stability, referencing a return to normalcy and the re-establishment of Israel's presence in its land. The notion of God as the one who "sets boundaries" is rooted in biblical passages, such as Deuteronomy 32:8 (יצב גבלת עמים - “He sets the borders of nations“), which emphasize divine governance over territorial inheritance.
This blessing appears in the Mishnah, see Mishnah_Berakhot.9.2:
על הגשמים, ועל הבשורות הטובות —
אומר: ברוך הטוב והמטיב
ועל שמועות רעות —
אומר: ברוך דין האמת
For rain and other good tidings (בשורות) —
one recites “Blessed…Who is good and Who does good”
for bad tidings (שמועות) —
one recites “Blessed…the true Judge”
See also my Appendix 3 at the end of this piece - Mar Zutra’s Prayer in Response to Tragedy: Acknowledging Divine Justice and Seeking Restoration (Berakhot 46b).
בית גאים יסח ה׳ - “God will destroy the house of the proud“.
אין אב לגוי - literally: “a non-Jew has no father”.
בן יאסיין - a Greek name, related to the name “Jason”.
Full of allusions to biblical verses and rabbinic blessings; I note these in footnotes ad. loc., on the translation.
הטוב והמטיב - from the rabbinic blessing on positive occurences, see my earlier footnote citing Mishnah Berakhot 9:2.
For more on this blessing, see Hebrew Wikipedia, ברכת הטוב והמיטיב.
דיין אמת - - from the rabbinic blessing on negative occurences, see my earlier footnote citing Mishnah Berakhot 9:2, and previous footnote.
שופט בצדק - the term description of God as שופט צדק appears multiple times in the Bible, see for example Jeremiah.11.20:
ויהוה צבאות
שפט צדק
YHWH of Hosts,
just Judge (שפט צדק )
כי כל דרכיו משפט - from the verse in Deuteronomy.32.4:
כי כל־דרכיו משפט
all God’s ways are just
גודר פרצות - this verbal phrase appears in Isaiah.58.12:
וקרא לך
גדר פרץ
And you shall be called
Repairer of fallen walls