Pt2 R’ Shimon’s Flight from the Romans, Hiding, and Return: A Story of Persecution, Miracles, and Retribution (Shabbat 33b-34a)

This is the second and final part of a two-part series. Part 1 is here, the outline for the series can be found there.

A Fragrant Testament: An Elderly Man’s Myrtle Bundles in Honor of Shabbat Reaffirm R’ Shimon’s Faith in the Jewish People

On late Friday afternoon¹ they saw an elderly man carrying two bundles (מדאני) of myrtle.

When he explained that it was for Shabbat decoration, and that one was for “Zachor” and the other for “Shamor”,² R' Shimon was reassured about the Jewish people's love for mitzvot.

בהדי פניא דמעלי שבתא,

חזו ההוא סבא

דהוה נקיט תרי מדאני אסא

ורהיט בין השמשות.

אמרו ליה: הני למה לך?

אמר להו: לכבוד שבת.

ותיסגי לך בחד!

חד כנגד ״זכור״,

וחד כנגד ״שמור״.

אמר ליה לבריה: חזי כמה חביבין מצות על ישראל!

איתיבה דעתייהו.

As the sun was setting on Shabbat eve,

they saw an elderly man

who was holding two bundles of myrtle branches

and running at twilight.

They said to him: Why do you have these?

He said to them: In honor of Shabbat.

They said to him: And let one suffice!

He answered them:

One is corresponding to: “Remember the Shabbat day, to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8),

and one is corresponding to: “Observe the Shabbat day, to keep it holy” (Deuteronomy 5:12).

R' Shimon said to his son: See how beloved the mitzvot are to Israel.

Their minds were put at ease and they were no longer as upset that people were not engaged in Torah study.

The Price of Greatness: R’ Pineḥas ben Ya’ir’s Tears and R’ Shimon’s Painful Path to Mastery

Part 1: R’ Pineḥas ben Ya’ir’s Tearful Tending to R’ Shimon’s Cracked Skin

R' Pineḥas ben Ya’ir, R' Shimon ben Yoḥai’s son-in-law, greeted him and tended to his body in the bathhouse (בי בני), where he saw cracks (פילי) in R' Shimon’s skin (due to his years of living in the cave).

Crying, his tears caused R' Shimon to scream (קמצוחא - in pain).

שמע רבי פנחס בן יאיר חתניה

ונפק לאפיה.

עייליה לבי בני,

הוה קא אריך ליה לבישריה.

חזא דהוה ביה פילי בגופיה.

הוה קא בכי

וקא נתרן דמעת עיניה

וקמצוחא ליה.

R' Pineḥas ben Ya’ir, R' Shimon’s son-in-law, heard

and went out to greet him.

He brought him into the bathhouse

and began tending to his flesh.

He saw that R' Shimon had cracks in the skin on his body.

He was crying,

and the tears fell from his eyes

and caused R' Shimon pain.

Part 2: The Cost of Scholarly Greatness: R’ Pineḥas ben Ya’ir’s Lament and R’ Shimon’s Rise to Intellectual Mastery Through Suffering

R' Pineḥas ben Ya’ir cried and lamented (אוי) seeing him in such a state, but R' Shimon reassured him, saying that his suffering had led to his current intellectual greatness:

As initially, R' Pineḥas would answer (מפרק) R' Shimon’s questions (מקשי) with twelve responses, but eventually, R' Shimon far surpassed him: not only was he now the one answering the questions, but he would respond with twice as many responses as R’ Pineḥas previously would—responding with twenty-four answers to R' Pineḥas’s questions.³

אמר לו: אוי לי, שראיתיך בכך!

אמר לו:

אשריך, שראיתני בכך!

שאילמלא לא ראיתני בכך, לא מצאת בי כך.

דמעיקרא --

כי הוה מקשי רבי שמעון בן יוחי קושיא,

הוה מפרק ליה רבי פנחס בן יאיר תריסר פירוקי.

לסוף --

כי הוה מקשי רבי פנחס בן יאיר קושיא,

הוה מפרק ליה רבי שמעון בן יוחי עשרין וארבעה פירוקי.

R' Pineḥas said to R' Shimon, his father-in-law: Woe is me, that I have seen you like this!

R' Shimon said to him:

Happy are you that you have seen me like this!

As had you not seen me like this, you would not have found in me this prominence in Torah,

as the Gemara relates: At first,

when R' Shimon ben Yoḥai would raise a difficulty,

R' Pineḥas ben Ya’ir would respond to his question with twelve answers.

Ultimately,

when R' Pineḥas ben Ya’ir would raise a difficulty,

R' Shimon ben Yoḥai would respond with twenty-four answers.

R’ Shimon’s Miraculous Gratitude: Resolving Ritual Impurity, Confronting Skepticism, and Enforcing Scholarly Unity with Lethal Authority

Part 1: R’ Shimon’s Grateful Response to Divine Miracles: Seeking to Alleviate the Priests’ Burden by Resolving a Site’s Uncertain Impurity Status

R’ Shimon, appreciative of the great miracles that had been performed for him,⁴ wished to express his gratitude through an act of public service. He sought out something in need of repair.

He was informed of a location where uncertainty regarding ritual impurity troubled the priests. Due to the possible presence of a buried corpse, they were forced to avoid the area.⁵ However, the impurity status of the site was uncertain, preventing a clear ruling.

אמר: הואיל ואיתרחיש ניסא, איזיל אתקין מילתא.

[...]

אמר: איכא מילתא דבעי לתקוני?

אמרו ליה:

איכא דוכתא דאית ביה ספק טומאה

ואית להו צערא לכהנים לאקופי.

R' Shimon said: Since a miracle transpired for me, I will go and repair something for the sake of others in gratitude for God’s kindness

[...]

He said: Is there something that needs repair?

They said to him:

There is a place where there is uncertainty with regard to ritual impurity

and the priests are troubled by being forced to circumvent it, as it is prohibited for them to become ritually impure from contact with a corpse.

There was suspicion, but no certainty, that a corpse was buried there. Therefore, they were unable to definitively determine its status.

Part 2: R’ Shimon’s Methodical Investigation into the Site’s Ritual Purity: Unearthing Historical Testimony, Examining the Soil, and Restoring Clarity for the Priests

R’ Shimon sought historical evidence of the site's presumed ritual purity. An elder recalled that Yoḥanan ben Zakkai (a priest), had once planted and harvested lupines⁶ there that had a status of teruma, proving the area was once pure.

Using this information, R’ Shimon examined the ground: he declared hard soil pure, as no corpse could be buried there, and marked soft soil as potentially impure.

Through this process, he clarified the area's status, allowing priests to navigate it safely.⁷

אמר: איכא איניש דידע דאיתחזק הכא טהרה?

אמר ליה ההוא סבא: כאן קיצץ בן זכאי תורמסי תרומה.

עבד איהו נמי הכי:

כל היכא דהוה קשי — טהריה,

וכל היכא דהוה רפי — צייניה.

R' Shimon said: Is there a person who knows that there was a presumption of ritual purity here? Is there anyone who remembers a time when this place was not considered ritually impure, or that at least part of it was considered to be ritually pure?

An Elder said to him: Here ben Zakkai planted and cut the teruma of lupines. In this marketplace R' Yoḥanan ben Zakkai, who himself was a priest, once planted lupines that were given to him as teruma. On that basis, the conclusion can be drawn that it was definitely ritually pure.

R' Shimon also did so:

Everywhere that the ground was hard, he pronounced it ritually pure as there was certainly no corpse there,

and every place that the ground was soft, he marked it indicating that perhaps a corpse was buried there. In that way, he purified the marketplace so that even priests could walk through it.

Part 3: R’ Shimon’s Confrontation with the Skeptical Elder: Defending His Ruling, Emphasizing Scholarly Cooperation, and Delivering a Fatal Rebuke

An elder⁸ mockingly said that R' Shimon bar Yoḥai's ruling had “purified a cemetery” (בית הקברות).

R' Shimon rebuked the elder, saying that had the elder not been involved in the ruling, his skepticism would be understandable. However, since the elder had participated and been “counted”,⁹ his public criticism would make it seem as though sages do not cooperate.

R' Shimon invoked an aphorism, which reasoned that if even competing prostitutes assist each other in applying makeup,¹⁰ then Torah scholars should certainly support one another.

R’ Shimon then “placed his eye on him”,¹¹ killing him.

אמר ההוא סבא: טיהר בן יוחי בית הקברות!

אמר ליה:

אילמלי לא היית עמנו, ואפילו היית עמנו, ולא נמנית עמנו — יפה אתה אומר.

עכשיו שהיית עמנו, ונמנית עמנו,

יאמרו:

זונות מפרכסות זו את זו,

תלמידי חכמים לא כל שכן?!

יהב ביה עיניה

ונח נפשיה.

A certain Elder said in ridicule and surprise: Ben Yoḥai purified the cemetery!

R' Shimon got angry and said to him:

Had you not been with us, and even had you been with us and were not counted with us in rendering this ruling, what you say is fine.

You could have said that you were unaware of my intention or that you did not agree or participate in this decision.

Now that you were with us and were counted with us in rendering this ruling, you will cause people to say that Sages are unwilling to cooperate with one another.

They will say:

If competing prostitutes still apply makeup to each other to help one another look beautiful,

all the more so that Torah scholars should cooperate with each other.

He directed his eyes toward him

and the Elder died.

Fatal Revenge on Yehuda “Descendant of Converts”

Upon going out to the marketplace, he R’ Shimon saw Yehuda “Descendant of Converts”, the informer who initially caused his need to flee,¹² R' Shimon “placed his eye on him”,¹³ killing him and turning him into a “pile (גל) of bones”.

נפק לשוקא

חזייה ליהודה בן גרים.

אמר: עדיין יש לזה בעולם?!

נתן בו עיניו,

ועשהו גל של עצמות.

R' Shimon went out to the marketplace

and he saw Yehuda, son of converts, who was the cause of this entire incident.

R' Shimon, said: This one still has a place in the world?!

He directed his eyes toward him

and turned him into a pile of bones.

Appendix: Five Divine Punishments of Twelve Months' Duration (Mishnah Eduyot 2:10)

Mishnah_Eduyot.2.10

The Mishnah states that R’ Akiva states that there are five punishments¹⁴ of twelve months duration (the first four are biblical):

1. The generation of the Flood¹⁵

2. Job (i.e. his period of suffering lasted for twelve months)

3. The Egyptians (of the Exodus)

4. The nations of Gog and Magog in the future messianic period¹⁶

5. The wicked in Gehenna, based on Isaiah 66:23.

R’ Yohanan ben Nuri disagrees with the final item, and states that the duration of the punishment of the wicked in Gehenna in fact lasts from Passover to Shavuot,¹⁷ based on that same verse (Isaiah 66:23).

אף הוא היה אומר:

חמשה דברים של שנים עשר חדש:

1. משפט דור המבול -- שנים עשר חדש.

2. משפט איוב -- שנים עשר חדש.

3. משפט המצריים -- שנים עשר חדש.

4. משפט גוג ומגוג לעתיד לבא -- שנים עשר חדש.

5. משפט רשעים בגיהנם -- שנים עשר חדש,

   1. שנאמר (ישעיה סו): "והיה מדי חדש בחדשו"

רבי יוחנן בן נורי אומר:

מן הפסח ועד העצרת,

שנאמר: "ומדי שבת בשבתו"

Also he [=R’ Akiva] used to say that

there are five things that last twelve months:

1. The judgment of the generation of the flood [continued] twelve months;

2. The judgment of Job [continued] twelve months;

3. The judgment of the Egyptians [continued] twelve months;

4. The judgment of Gog and Magog in the time to come [will continue] twelve months;

5. The judgment of the wicked in gehinom [continues] twelve months,

   1. for it is said, and “It will be from one month until its [same] month” (Isaiah 66:23).

R' Yohanan ben Nuri says:

“[As long as] from Passover to Shavuoth,

for it is said, “And from one Sabbath until its [next] Sabbath” (ibid.).

1. פניא דמעלי שבתא. See my previous piece in a footnote on this Talmudic trope.

2. The opening words of the Shabbat commandment in the two versions of the Ten Commandments—one in Exodus and the other in Deuteronomy—differ, with one stating "Remember" and the other "Observe."

According to rabbinic tradition, God pronounced both simultaneously. "Remember" emphasizes the positive aspects of Shabbat, such as sanctifying it with Kiddush, festive meals, and joy, while "Observe" refers to its prohibitions and restrictions.

3. See the similar talmudic trope said elsewhere about R’ Yohanan vs Resh Lakish, and R’ Yohanan vs. Rav Kahana.

4. Presumably referring in general to his rescue from the Romans, and all the associated miracles. However, this exact phrase—”a miracle occurred” (איתרחיש ניסא)— was used earlier in the story to refer specifically to the miracle of their being provided with a carob (חרובא) tree and a spring (עינא דמיא) for sustenance:

איתרחיש ניסא --

איברי להו חרובא ועינא דמיא,

A miracle occurred

and a carob tree was created for them as well as a spring of water.

This phrase is common in the Talmud. For an extreme example, see “Three Charges, Many Miracles: The Trial of R’ Elazar ben Perata (Avodah Zarah 17b)“, where it appears three times in the course of the story, and the high incidence of miracles is explicity pointed out by Elijah at the end of the story:

איתרחיש ליה ניסא —

אתיא זיבוריתא, אותיבא על דשתיא,

ואתאי זיבורא, ויתיב על דערבא

[…]

אתרחיש ניסא —

ההוא יומא אירמס חד סבא

[…]

אתא אליהו, אידמי ליה כחד מחשובי דמלכותא

א"ל:

מדאתרחיש ליה ניסא בכולהו,

בהא נמי אתרחיש ליה ניסא,

וההוא גברא בישותיה הוא דקא אחוי

A miracle occurred —

as a female hornet (זיבוריתא) came and sat on the coil of warp (שתיא)

and a male hornet came and sat on the coil of woof (ערבא)

[…]

A miracle occurred —

and on that day, one old man was trampled (אירמס )

[…]

Elijah came disguised as one of the of the Roman noblemen,

and he said to that individual:

From the fact that miracles occurred for R' Elazar ben Perata in every other case,

in this instance as well a miracle will occur for him,

and that man, i.e., you, is only demonstrating his wickedness, since you cannot succeed in your aim and are merely showing yourself to be desperate to cause harm.

See also “Righteousness or Witchcraft? Rav Naḥman’s Daughters And The Captivity and Miraculous Escape of Rav Ilish (Gittin 45a)“, section “Escape and Consequences“:

קם, ערק,

אתא איהו וההוא גברא.

לדידיה איתרחיש ליה ניסא, עבר במברא

Rav Ilish arose and escaped.

He and that man who knew the language of the birds came to a river crossing.

A miracle happened for him and he crossed the river on a ferry (מברא)

5. As priests are halachically prohibited from contracting impurity from the dead. See Wikipedia, “Corpse uncleanness“, section “Priestly laws“:

A Jew who is descended from a line of the priestly stock known as Kohen is not allowed to intentionally come into contact with a dead body, nor approach too closely to graves within a Jewish cemetery.

6. תורמסי, from Greek thermós, meaning “lupine”, a kind of bean. On it as food in Eretz Yisrael, see Hebrew Wikipedia, תורמוס, section התורמוס כמאכל.

7. Compare my previous piece on R’ Benaa marking graves, where the same verb is used - ציין - for presumably the same reason: the allow priests to walk in the area, and avoid only those specific spots where someone is buried.

8. It's ambiguous as to whether this is referring to the same elder as the one in the previous section, who had told R’ Shimon the anecdote about Yohanan ben Zakkai. The only thing that's clear from the continuation is that the elder in this section was actively involved in the halachic ruling stating that priests could now walk in parts of the area.

9. נמנית - i.e. this elder had been counted as one of the halachic authorities in favor of the decision.

10. מפרכסות.

Compare the idea cited in my piece here, section “Intragroup Dynamics: Eight Groups Marked by Mutual Hatred or Love Among Members”, where prostitutes and (Babylonian) Torah scholars are juxtaposed one after the other in a list of “Groups Marked by Mutual Hatred Among Members”, presumably due to intra-group competition:

שלשה שונאין זה את זה,

אלו הן:

[...]

ויש אומרים: אף הזונות.

ויש אומרים: אף תלמידי חכמים שבבבל.

Members of three groups hate other members of the same group.

These are:

[...]

And some say: Also prostitutes (זונות)

And some say: Also Torah scholars (תלמידי חכמים) in Babylonia.

11. I.e. gave him the evil eye. See also the similar phenomena in the first of the story, where this happens twice.

12. See my previous piece, cited earlier on him and his surname.

13. I.e. gave him the evil eye, as in the previous section.

14. משפט - literally: “judgement” (in Biblical Hebrew).

15. מבול.

On their punishment, see also my previous piece on tractate Sanhedrin, that they have no share in the world to come.

16. לעתיד לבא - see Hebrew Wikipedia, מלחמת גוג ומגוג.

17. עצרת - i.e. the 49-day period of the counting of the omer. So significantly shorter than the year-long duration of punishment according to R’ Akiva.