עמד רבי יהושע על רגליו ואמר (דברים ל, יב) לא בשמים היא מאי לא בשמים היא אמר רבי ירמיה שכבר נתנה תורה מהר סיני אין אנו משגיחין בבת קול שכבר כתבת בהר סיני בתורה (שמות כג, ב) אחרי רבים להטות אשכחיה רבי נתן לאליהו א"ל מאי עביד קוב"ה בההיא שעתא א"ל קא חייך ואמר נצחוני בני נצחוני בני
Said they, 'Who shall go and inform him?' 'I will go,' answered R. Akiba, 'lest an unsuitable person go and inform him, and thus destroy the whole world.'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., commit a great wrong by informing him tactlessly and brutally.
');"><sup>9</sup></span> What did R. Akiba do? He donned black garments and wrapped himself in black,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' As a sign of mourning, which a person under the ban had to observe.
');"><sup>10</sup></span>
Tosafot on Bava Metzia
It is not in heaven: And that which it said in the first chapter of Yevamot (Yevamot 14a; and see Tosafot on Yevamot 14a, s.v. Rabbi) that the law is like the House of Hillel because a Divine Voice emerged - it is different here; since it is coming to disagree with words of the Torah, as it is written (Exodus 23:2), "After a majority to incline." Whereas there it is just the opposite, the House of Hillel is the majority [such that the law would follow them even without the Divine Voice], if it were not that we were in doubt if we follow the majority, because the House of Shammai is very sharp. And also (another answer) is that here the Divine Voice only emerged on account of the honor of Rabbi Eliezer, who said, "Heaven will prove [it]." And that which it said over there that [disregarding the Divine Voice] is [always the position of] Rabbi Yehoshua, who said that we do not pay attention to a Divine Voice - yet we do not hear it from Rabbi Yehoshua except in this incident of Rabbi Eliezer from here - it is making an exact inference there: Since he says, "It is not in heaven, the Torah was already given from Sinai," it is implied that we do not pay attention [to it] in any place.
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Tosafot on Bava Metzia
He, smiled and said, "My children have triumphed over Me": And that which it said at the beginning of Avodah Zarah (3b), "There is no more laughter in front of the Holy One, blessed be He, since the Temple was destroyed" - that is fixed [laughter], whereas here it is just [regarding] a joke that He said.