Quotation for Niddah 61:55
והיינו דאמר רבי אלעזר
It teaches that the Holy One, blessed be He, sits and counts the stock of Israel. 'When [He wonders] will appear the drop from which a righteous man could be fashioned'? Moreover, it is for this reason that the eye of the wicked Balaam was blinded. He said, 'Would He who is pure and holy and whose ministers are pure and holy look upon such a thing?' His eye was forthwith blinded, for it is written, And the saying of the man whose eye is closed.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. XXIV, 3. E.V., 'is opened'. ');"><sup>49</sup></span>
Or HaChaim on Genesis
יששכר חמור גרם, "Issachar is a bony donkey, etc." We learn in Nidah 31 that the meaning of the verse is that G'd had a hand in the conception of Issachar having guided Jacob's donkey to the tent of Leah on that night (Genesis 30,16). Just as Jacob had not remained in his regular abode that night, so Issachar, the son who had been conceived during that night, would be "crouching between boundaries." Inasmuch as Issachar is the model of a person who devotes his life to Torah study, Jacob alluded to the phenomenon that Yeshivah students have a habit of moving from place to place. Every action which is not proper produces consequences which reflect that impropriety. Leah's action appeared too forward for the conduct associated with the traditional way of life of Jewish women, even though her intention was wholly honourable. In spite of the discomfort associated with the lifestyle of the Yeshivah student, he does not let this diminish the effort he lovingly devotes to Torah study.
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