Sanhedrin 221:1

מאי אמן א"ר חנינא אל מלך נאמן

What is the meaning of Amen?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' When one responds 'Amen' after a benediction, how does it suggest ascent thereto and the acceptance of God's yoke? ');">¹</span> — R. Hanina said: God, faithful, King.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' [H] is an abbreviation of [H]. ');">²</span> Therefore hell hath enlarged herself, and opened her mouth without measure:<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Isa. V, 15. ');">³</span>

(ישעיהו ה, יד) לכן הרחיבה שאול נפשה ופערה פיה לבלי חוק אמר ר"ל למי שמשייר אפי' חוק אחד א"ר יוחנן לא ניחא למרייהו דאמרת להו הכי אלא אפי' לא למד אלא חוק אחד

Resh Lakish said: [It means] for him who leaves undone even a single statute.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Giving [H], translated 'measure', its usual meaning. Maharsha softens the severity of this statement by referring it to one whose evil deeds would be exactly counterbalanced by good deeds — in which case he would be saved from Gehenna — had he but fulfilled one more precept. But R. Johanan observed that even this is too harsh. ');">⁴</span> R. Johanan said to him: It is not pleasing to their Master<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Israel's. ');">⁵</span> that you say thus to them. But [say], who has not studied even a single statute.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' But the study of a single statute saves one from Gehenna. ');">⁶</span>

(שנאמר) (זכריה יג, ח) והיה בכל הארץ נאם ה' פי שנים בה יכרתו ויגועו והשלישית יותר בה אמר ר"ל שלישי של שם א"ל רבי יוחנן לא ניחא למרייהו דאמרת להו הכי אלא אפי' שלישי של נח

And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die,' but the third shall be left therein.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Zech. XIII, 8. ');">⁷</span> Resh Lakish said: [This means] a third of the descendants of Shem.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Mankind is descended from Noah and his three sons, Shem, Ham and Japheth. By a 'third' Resh Lakish understands the original number divided and again divided by three. Therefore a third of the first three gives Shem (since he was the ancestor of Israel, and it is assumed that Israel must be included amongst those saved) and then a further third of Shem. ');">⁸</span> Said R. Johanan to him: Their Master is not pleased that you say so of them. But [say thus:] a third even of all the descendants of Noah.

(ירמיהו ג, יד) כי אנכי בעלתי בכם ולקחתי אתכם אחד מעיר ושנים ממשפחה אמר ר"ל דברים ככתבן א"ל ר' יוחנן לא ניחא ליה למרייהו דאמרת להו הכי אלא אחד מעיר מזכה כל העיר כולה ושנים ממשפחה מזכין כל המשפחה כולה יתיב רב כהנא קמיה דרב ויתיב וקאמר דברים ככתבן א"ל רב לא ניחא ליה למרייהו דאמרת להו הכי אלא אחד מעיר מזכה כל העיר ושנים ממשפחה מזכין כל המשפחה

For I am married unto you: and I will take you one of a city, and two of a family.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Jer. III, 14. ');">⁹</span> Resh Lakish said: This is meant literally.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'the words are as they are written.' ');">¹⁰</span> Said R. Johanan unto him: Their Master is not pleased that you say so of them.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For that is too pessimistic. ');">¹¹</span>

חזייה דהוה קא חייף רישיה וסליק ויתיב קמיה דרב א"ל (איוב כח, יג) ולא תמצא בארץ החיים א"ל מילט קא לייטת לי א"ל קרא קאמינא לא תמצא תורה במי שמחיה עצמו עליה

But [say thus:] 'one of a city' [means that his virtues] shall benefit an entire city;<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For the sake of a single righteous man in a city I will bring the whole to Zion. ');">¹²</span> and 'two of a family' will benefit the entire family.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. preceding note. ');">¹³</span> R. Kahana sat before Rab and stated: This is meant literally. Rab said to him: Their Master is not pleased that you say so of them. But [say thus:] 'one of a city' — shall benefit an entire city, and 'two of a family' — will benefit the entire family. He [Rab] then observed him dress his hair [instead of paying attention to his studies] and come and sit before Rab. Said he to him, And it shall not be found in the land of the living.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Job XXVIII, 13. ');">¹⁴</span>

תניא רבי סימאי אומר נאמר (שמות ו, ז) ולקחתי אתכם לי לעם ונאמר והבאתי אתכם מקיש יציאתן ממצרים לביאתן לארץ מה ביאתן לארץ שנים מס' ריבוא אף יציאתן ממצרים שנים מס' ריבוא אמר רבא וכן לימות המשיח שנא' (הושע ב, יז) וענתה שמה כימי נעוריה וכיום עלותה מארץ מצרים

He exclaimed, 'You curse me!'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' For the Hebrew [H] may also mean, 'thou shalt not', and he understood it in this sense. ');">¹⁵</span> He replied, 'I but cite a verse, [which teaches,] The Torah shall not be found in one who attends to his own wants whilst studying it.'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'over it'. ');">¹⁶</span> It has been taught: R. Simai said: It says, And I will take you to me for a people,'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ex. VI, 7. ');">¹⁷</span>

תניא אמר ר' אלעזר ברבי יוסי פעם אחת נכנסתי לאלכסנדריא של מצרים מצאתי זקן אחד ואמר לי בא ואראך מה עשו אבותי לאבותיך מהם טבעו בים מהם הרגו בחרב מהם מעכו בבנין ועל דבר זה נענש משה רבינו שנא' (שמות ה, כג) ומאז באתי אל פרעה לדבר בשמך הרע לעם הזה

and it is also said, And I will bring you in [unto the land etc.].<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. ');">¹⁸</span> Their exodus from Egypt is thus likened to their entry into the [promised] land: just as at their entry into the [promised] land there were but two out of six hundred thousand,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Only Caleb and Joshua, out of the 600,000 who left Egypt, entered Palestine. ');">¹⁹</span> so at their exodus from Egypt there were but two out of six hundred thousand.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The rest perished in Egypt (as stated anon), yet that small fraction amounted to 600,000. ');">²⁰</span>

אמר לו הקב"ה חבל על דאבדין ולא משתכחין הרי כמה פעמים נגליתי על אברהם יצחק ויעקב באל שדי ולא הרהרו על מדותי ולא אמרו לי מה שמך אמרתי לאברהם (בראשית יג, יז) קום התהלך בארץ לארכה ולרחבה כי לך אתננה בקש מקום לקבור את שרה ולא מצא עד שקנה בד' מאות שקל כסף ולא הרהר על מדותי

Raba said: It shall be even so in the days of the Messiah, for it is said, And she shall sing there, as in the days of her youth, and as in the days when she came up out of the land of Egypt.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Hos. II, 17. ');">²¹</span> It has been taught: R. Eleazar son of R. Jose said: I once visited Alexandria of Egypt and found an old man there, who said to me, 'Come, and I will shew thee what my ancestors did to thine: some of them they drowned in the sea, some they slew by the sword, and some they crushed in the buildings.'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' V. p. 688, n, 11. ');">²²</span> And for this Moses was punished,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., for losing faith in God through this. ');">²³</span>

אמרתי ליצחק (בראשית כו, ג) גור בארץ הזאת ואהיה עמך ואברכך בקשו עבדיו מים לשתות ולא מצאו עד שעשו מריבה שנאמר (בראשית כו, כ) ויריבו רועי גרר עם רועי יצחק לאמר לנו המים ולא הרהר אחר מדותי

as it is said, For since I came to Pharaoh to speak in thy name, he hath done evil to this people,' neither hast thou delivered thy people at all.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ex. V, 23. ');">²⁴</span> Thereupon the Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, 'Alas for those who are gone and no more to be found! For how many times did I reveal Myself to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob by the name of El Shaddai,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' God Almighty. ');">²⁵</span> and they did not question my character,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'my attributes', 'my dealings' with man. Whether my promises were reliable. ');">²⁶</span>

אמרתי ליעקב (בראשית כח, יג) הארץ אשר אתה שוכב עליה לך אתננה ביקש מקום לנטוע אהלו ולא מצא עד שקנה במאה קשיטה ולא הרהר אחר מדותי ולא אמרו לי מה שמך ואתה אמרת לי מה שמך בתחלה ועכשיו אתה אומר לי (שמות ה, כג) והצל לא הצלת את עמך (שמות ו, א) עתה תראה (את) אשר אעשה לפרעה במלחמת פרעה אתה רואה ואי אתה רואה במלחמת שלשים ואחד מלכים

nor say to Me, What is Thy name? I said to Abraham, Arise, walk through the land in the length of it, and in the breadth of it,' for I will give it unto thee:<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Gen. XIII, 17. ');">²⁷</span> yet when he sought a place to bury Sarah, he did not find one, but had to purchase it for four hundred silver <i>shekels</i>; and still he did not question My character. I said to Isaac, Sojourn in this land, and I will be with thee, and will bless thee:<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. XXVI, 3. ');">²⁸</span> yet his servants sought water to drink, and did not find it without its being disputed, as it is said, And the herdmen of Gerar did strive with Isaac's herdmen saying, The water is our's;<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. 20. ');">²⁹</span>

(שמות לד, ח) וימהר משה ויקוד ארצה וישתחו מה ראה משה

still he did not question My character. I said to Jacob, The land whereon thou liest, to thee will I give it, and to thy seed:<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. XXVIII, 13. ');">³⁰</span> yet he sought a place to pitch his tent and did not find one until he purchased it for an hundred kesitah;<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. XXXIII, 19. R.V.; 'piece of money'. ');">³¹</span> nevertheless he did not question My character; nor did they say to me, What is Thy name?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' The emphasis laid here upon the name of God, the virtue ascribed to the Patriarchs for refraining to ask it, and the reproach that Moses had wished to know it, are due to the fact that God's name was regarded as more than a mere title of distinction. It represented His character, His Attributes, and the relationship in which He stood to His people. Consequently, to refrain from asking after God's name was the equivalent of displaying complete confidence in Him, without examining his character closely to see whether His promises were reliable; whilst to ask it was to betray a lack of confidence. ');">³²</span>

ר' חנינא בן גמלא אמר ארך אפים ראה ורבנן אמרי אמת ראה: תניא כמ"ד ארך אפים ראה דתניא כשעלה משה למרום מצאו להקב"ה שיושב וכותב ארך אפים אמר לפניו רבונו של עולם ארך אפים לצדיקים אמר לו אף לרשעים א"ל רשעים יאבדו א"ל השתא חזית מאי דמבעי לך

And now thou sayest to Me, Neither hast thou delivered thy people at all. [Therefore] Now shalt thou see what I will do to Pharaoh:<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. VI, 1. ');">³³</span> thou shalt behold the war against Pharaoh, but not the war against the thirty one kings.'<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' I.e., the conquest of Palestine. V. Josh. XII, 24. ');">³⁴</span> And Moses made haste, and bowed his head toward the earth, and worshipped.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ex. XXXIV, 8. ');">³⁵</span>

כשחטאו ישראל אמר לו לא כך אמרת לי ארך אפים לצדיקים

What did Moses see?<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' This verse follows the enumeration of God's thirteen Attributes. Which of these did he see, that he hastened to bow and worship? ');">³⁶</span> — R. Hanina b. Gamala<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Var. lec. 'Gamaliel.' ');">³⁷</span> said: He saw long-suffering [as one of His attributes].<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. 7. ');">³⁸</span> The Rabbis say: He saw [His attribute of] truth.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Ibid. 7. ');">³⁸</span> It has been taught in agreement with the one who holds that 'he saw long-suffering,' viz.,<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' Lit., 'For it has been taught.' ');">³⁹</span> When Moses ascended on high, he found the Holy One, blessed be He, sitting and writing 'long-suffering'. Said he to Him, 'Sovereign of the Universe! Long-suffering to the righteous?' He replied, 'Even' to the wicked.' He urged, 'Let the wicked perish!' 'See now what thou desirest,' was His answer.<span class="x" onmousemove="('comment',' It is an ill-advised request, which thou wilt revoke at a future occasion, viz., at the sin of the Golden Calf. ');">⁴⁰</span> 'When Israel sinned,' He said to him, 'didst thou not urge Me, [Let Thy] long-suffering be for the righteous [only]?'