R. Judah discoursed on the verse: It is a time to work for the Lord; they have made void thy law (Ps. 119, 126). It has been laid down that the term ‘eth (time) is a designation of the community of Israel. Why is the community of Israel designated “time” (‘eth)? Because all things with her are regulated by times and periods, when to come near the Deity, when to receive light (from above), and when to commune, as we read, “But as for me, let my prayer be unto thee, O Lord, in an acceptable time” (Ps. LXIX, I4).
Thus, “the community must be made unto the Lord”, that is, it must be prepared and fitted to commune with God (so the word “made” is used in the verse “and David made himself a name” (II Sam. 8, 13)), and this by means of those who labour in the study of the Torah. And why all this? Because “they have made void thy law”, for if “they had not made void thy law” there would never have been any estrangement between the Holy One and Israel.’
R. Jose said: ‘In this way is explained the verse: “I the Lord will in its time hasten it” (Is. 60, 22). The word b’itah (in its time) may be resolved into b’eth he (in the time of the letter He), i.e. “when the time arrives for the He to rise up from the dust I will hasten it”.’
Said R. Jose further: ‘Yet the community of Israel is to remain only one day in the dust and no more.’ Said R. Judah: ‘Tradition agrees with what you have said. But observe what we have learnt regarding this, namely, that when the community of Israel was exiled from its home, the letters of the Divine Name,became, if one may say so, separated, the He flying apart from the Vau. We can thus understand the sentence, “I was dumb with silence” (Ps. 39, 3), as through the separation of the Vau from the He there was no Voice, and thus Utterance was silenced.
She therefore lies in the dust all the day of the He, that is, the whole of the fifth thousand (although they were already in exile before the beginning of the fifth thousand, which is symbolised by the He);
and when the sixth thousand, which is symbolised by the Van, begins, the Vale will resuscitate the He at six times ten (an allusion to the sixty souls), which means the Vau repeated ten times. The Vau will ascend to the Yod and redescend to the He.
The Vau will be multiplied into the He ten times, making sixty, when it will raise the exiles from the dust. At every sixty years of the sixth thousand the He will mount a stage higher, acquiring greater strength. And after six hundred years of the sixth thousand there will be opened the gates of wisdom above and the fountains of wisdom below, and the world will make preparations to enter on the seventh thousand as man makes preparations on the sixth day of the week, when the sun is about to set. As a mnemonic to this we take the verse, “In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life… all the fountains of the great deep were broken up” (Gen. 7, 11).’
Said R. Jose to him: ‘Your calculations lay down a much longer period than that arrived at by the companions, according to whom the exile of the community of Israel was only to last one day (i.e. a thousand years), as it says, “He hath made me desolate and faint all the day” (Lam. 1, 13).’ R. Judah said in reply: ‘This is what I have learnt from my father concerning the mysteries of the letters of the Divine Name, and of the duration of the world as well as of the days of creation, all of which belongs to the same mystical doctrine.
At that time the rainbow will appear in the cloud in radiant colours, like a woman that decks herself out for her husband, in fulfilment of the verse, “and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant” (Gen. 9, 16), a passage already explained elsewhere. “I will see it” with all its bright colours,
and I will thus “remember the everlasting covenant”. Who is the everlasting covenant? It is the community of Israel. The Vau will join the He, and will resuscitate her from the dust.
When the Vau shall move to join the He, heavenly signs will appear in the world, and the Reubenites will make war against all the world; and so the community of Israel will be raised from the dust, for the Holy One will remember her.
In this way the Holy One will have dwelt with her in exile vears to the number of Vau times Yod, that is, six times ten, after which she will be raised, and vengeance will be executed on the world, and the lowly will be exalted.’
Said R. Jose to him: ‘All you say is right, being mystically indicated by the letters, and we need not enter upon any other calculations regarding the end (qets). For in the book of the venerable R. Yeba we find the same calculation. The verse, “Then shall the land satisfy her Sabbaths” (Lev. 26, 34) is an allusion to the mystical implication of the Vau, as indicated in a subsequent verse, “And I will remember my covenant with Jacob”1The name Jacob is in this verse exceptionally spelt plene, i.e. with a vau. v. infra, p. 369. (Ibid. 42), and then it says, “and I will remember the land” (Ibid.), indicating the community of Israel. The word “will satisfy” (tirzeh) signifies that the Holy One will be favourable to her.
As for the “one day” of which the companions have spoken, it is assuredly all hidden with the Holy One, and it is all found in the mystery of the letters of the Divine Name; for R. Jose here has revealed the end of the exile by means of these letters.’
Said R. Judah: ‘Observe that also when Sarah was visited, it was the grade of the divine essence symbolised by the Vau that visited her, as it is written, “And (Va) the Lord visited Sarah”, for all is contained in the mystery of the Vau, and through it all things are to be revealed.’
Said R. Jose: ‘We have still a long time to be in exile until the day arrives, but all depends on whether the people will repent of their sins, as appears from the passage, “I the Lord will hasten it in its time” (Is. 60, 22), i.e. if they will be worthy, “I will hasten it”, and if not, then “in its time”.’
The two then proceeded on their way. Suddenly R. Jose said: ‘It comes to my memory that in this place I was once sitting with my father and he said to me: “When you will reach the age of sixty years you are destined to find in this place a treasure of sublime wisdom.” I have lived to reach that age, and I have not found the treasure, but I wonder if the words spoken by us just now are not the wisdom that he meant.
He further said to me: “When the celestial flame reaches the spaces between your fingers, it will escape from you.” I asked him: “How do you know this?” He replied: “I know it by the two birds that passed over your head.”’
He brought it out and caught sight of seventy-two tracings of letters which had been given to Adam the first man, and by means of which he knew all the wisdom of the supernal holy beings, and all those beings that abide behind the mill with turns behind the veil among the supernal ethereal essences, as well as all that is destined to happen in the world until the day when a cloud will arise on the side of the West and darken the world.
R. Jose then called R. Judah and the two began to examine the book. No sooner had they studied two or three of the letters than they found themselves contemplating that supernal wisdom. But as soon as they began to go into the book more deeply and to discuss it, a fiery flame driven by a tempestuous wind struck their hands, and the book vanished from them. R. Jose wept, saying, ‘Can it be, Heaven forefend, that we are tainted with some sin? Or are we unworthy to possess the knowledge contained therein?’
When they came to R. Simeon they told him what had occurred. He said to them: ‘Were you, perhaps, scrutinising those letters which dealt with the coming of the Messiah?’ They answered: ‘We cannot tell, as we have forgotten everything.’ R. Simeon continued: ‘The Holy One, blessed be He, does not desire that so much should be revealed to the world, but when the days of the Messiah will be near at hand, even children will discover the secrets of wisdom and thereby be able to calculate the millennium; at that time it will be revealed to all, as it is written, “For then will I turn to the peoples a pure language, etc.” (Zeph. 3, 9), the term az (then) referring to the time when the community of Israel will be raised from the dust and the Holy One will make her stand upright; then “will I turn to the peoples a pure language, that they may all call upon the Lord, to serve him with one consent” (Ibid.).’
Observe that although it is said of Abraham that he “journeyed still toward the South” (Gen. 12, 9), he did not attain to his rightful grade until Isaac was born. But as soon as Isaac was born, he attained this grade, through the close association and union of the two.
For that reason he, and no other, called him Isaac, in order that water and fire should be merged together. Hence: AND ABRAHAM CALLED THE NAME OF HIS SON THAT WAS BORN UNTO HIM, WHOM SARAH BORE TO HIM, ISAAC: to wit, the son that was born to him as fire born from water.
רַבִּי יְהוּדָה פָּתַח וְאָמַר, (תהילים קי״ט:קכ״ו) עֵת לַעֲשׂוֹת לַיְיָ הֵפֵרוּ תוֹרָתֶךָ. עֵת לַעֲשׂוֹת לַיְיָ מַהוּ. אֶלָּא הָא אוּקְמוּהָ. אֲבָל עֵת, דָּא כְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל דְּאִקְרֵי עֵת. כְּמָה דְאַתְּ אָמֵר, (ויקרא ט״ז:ב׳) וְאַל יָבֹא בְכָל עֵת אֶל הַקֹּדֶשׁ. מַאי וְאַל יָבֹא בְכָל עֵת. כְּמָה דְאַתְּ אָמֵר, (משלי ז׳:ה׳) לִשְׁמָרְךָ מֵאִשָּׁה זָרָה. וְדָא הוּא (ויקרא י׳:א׳) וַיַּק1ְריבוּ לִפְנֵי יְיָ אֵשׁ זָרָה וְגו'. מַאי טַעְמָא עֵת. בְּגִין דְּאִית לָהּ עֵת וּזְמַן לְכֹלָּא לְקָרְבָא לְאִתְנַהֲרָא לְאִתְחַבְּרָא כְּדְקָא יְאוּת. כְּמָא דְאַתְּ אָמֵר, (תהילים ס״ט:י״ד) וַאֲנִי תְפִלָּתִי לְךָ יְיָ עֵת רָצוֹן.
R. Judah discoursed on the verse: It is a time to work for the Lord; they have made void thy law (Ps. 119, 126). It has been laid down that the term ‘eth (time) is a designation of the community of Israel. Why is the community of Israel designated “time” (‘eth)? Because all things with her are regulated by times and periods, when to come near the Deity, when to receive light (from above), and when to commune, as we read, “But as for me, let my prayer be unto thee, O Lord, in an acceptable time” (Ps. LXIX, I4).
לַעֲשׂוֹת לַיְיָ כְּמָה דִכְתִיב, (שמואל ב ח׳:י״ג) וַיַּעַשׂ דָּוִד שֵׁם. דְּכָל מַאן דְּאִשְׁתַּדַּל בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא כְּאִילוּ עָבִיד וְתַקֵּן הַאי עֵת לְחַבְּרָא לָהּ בְּקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא. וְכָל כָּךְ לָמָּה בְּגִין דְּהֵפֵרוּ תוֹרָתֶךָ, דְּאִילוּ לא הֵפֵרוּ תוֹרָתֶךָ לָא אִשְׁתַּכַּח פִּירוּדָא דְּקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל לְעָלְמִין.
Thus, “the community must be made unto the Lord”, that is, it must be prepared and fitted to commune with God (so the word “made” is used in the verse “and David made himself a name” (II Sam. 8, 13)), and this by means of those who labour in the study of the Torah. And why all this? Because “they have made void thy law”, for if “they had not made void thy law” there would never have been any estrangement between the Holy One and Israel.’
אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹסֵי כְּגַוְּונָא דָא כְּתִיב, (ישעיהו ס׳:כ״ב) אֲנִי יְיָ בְּעִתָּהּ אֲחִישֶׁנָּה. מַהוּ בְּעִתָּהּ. בְּעֵת ה'. דְּתָקוּם מֵעַפְרָא כְּדֵין אֲחִישֶׁנָּה.
R. Jose said: ‘In this way is explained the verse: “I the Lord will in its time hasten it” (Is. 60, 22). The word b’itah (in its time) may be resolved into b’eth he (in the time of the letter He), i.e. “when the time arrives for the He to rise up from the dust I will hasten it”.’
אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹסֵי וְעִם כָּל דָּא יוֹמָא חַד נֶאֱלַמְתִּי דוּמִיָּ"ה, בְּגִין דְּאִסְתַּלַּק וא"ו מִן ה"א, וְקוֹל לָא אִשְׁתַּכַּח, כְּדֵין דִּבּוּר אִתְאַלָּם.
Said R. Jose further: ‘Yet the community of Israel is to remain only one day in the dust and no more.’ Said R. Judah: ‘Tradition agrees with what you have said. But observe what we have learnt regarding this, namely, that when the community of Israel was exiled from its home, the letters of the Divine Name,became, if one may say so, separated, the He flying apart from the Vau. We can thus understand the sentence, “I was dumb with silence” (Ps. 39, 3), as through the separation of the Vau from the He there was no Voice, and thus Utterance was silenced.
וּבְגִין כָּךְ הִיא שְׁכִיבַת בְּעַפְרָא כָּל הַהוּא יוֹמָא (דנא) דְּה"א. וּמַאן אִיהוּ אֶלֶף חֲמִשָּׁאָה, וְאַף עַל גַּב דְּאַקְדִימַת בְּגָלוּתָא עַד לָא יֵיעוּל הַהוּא אֶלֶף חֲמִשָּׁאָה רָזָא דְּה"א,
She therefore lies in the dust all the day of the He, that is, the whole of the fifth thousand (although they were already in exile before the beginning of the fifth thousand, which is symbolised by the He);
וְכַד יֵיתֵי אֶלֶף שְׁתִיתָאָה דְּאִיהוּ רָזָא דְּוא"ו, כְּדֵין וא"ו יוֹקִים לְה"א. בְּזִמְנָא (שמות ט ב) שִׁית זִמְנִין עֶשֶׂר שִׁתִּין נֶפֶשׁ, כְּדֵין שְׁלִימוּ וא"ו עֶשֶׂר זִמְנִין, וא"ו שִׁית זִמְנִין עֶשֶׂר, (דוא"ו) וא"ו סָלְקָא (בעשר) בְּי', וא"ו נָחֲתָא בְּה"א.
and when the sixth thousand, which is symbolised by the Van, begins, the Vale will resuscitate the He at six times ten (an allusion to the sixty souls), which means the Vau repeated ten times. The Vau will ascend to the Yod and redescend to the He.
אִשְׁתְּלִים וא"ו גּוֹ עֶשֶׂר שִׁית זִמְנִין, כְּדֵין הֲווּ שִׁתִּין לְאָקְמָא מֵעַפְרָא, וּבְכָל שִׁתִּין וְשִׁתִּין מֵהַהוּא אֶלֶף שְׁתִיתָאָה אִתְתַּקַּף ה"א וְסַלְקָא בְּדַרְגּוֹי לְאִתְתַּקְּפָא. וּבְשִׁית מְאָה שְׁנִין לִשְׁתִיתָאָה יִתְפַּתְּחוּן תַּרְעֵי דְחָכְמְתָא לְעֵילָא וּמַבּוּעֵי דְחָכְמְתָא לְתַתָּא, וְיִתְתַּקַּן עַלְמָא לְאָעֳלָא בִּשְׁבִיעָאָה. כְּבַר נָשׁ דְּמִתְתַּקַּן בְּיוֹמָא שְׁתִיתָאָה מֵכִי עָרַב שִׁמְשָׁא לְאֲעָלָא בְּשַׁבַּתָּא. אוּף הָכִי נָמֵי. וְסִימָנִיךְ (בראשית ז׳:י״א) בִּשְׁנַת שֵׁשׁ מֵאוֹת שָׁנָה לְחַיֵּי נֹחַ וְגו' נִבְקְעוּ כָּל מַעְיְינוֹת תְּהוֹם רַבָּה.
The Vau will be multiplied into the He ten times, making sixty, when it will raise the exiles from the dust. At every sixty years of the sixth thousand the He will mount a stage higher, acquiring greater strength. And after six hundred years of the sixth thousand there will be opened the gates of wisdom above and the fountains of wisdom below, and the world will make preparations to enter on the seventh thousand as man makes preparations on the sixth day of the week, when the sun is about to set. As a mnemonic to this we take the verse, “In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life… all the fountains of the great deep were broken up” (Gen. 7, 11).’
אָמַר לֵיהּ רַבִּי יוֹסֵי כָּל דָּא אֲרִיכוּ זִמְנָא יַתִּיר מִכְּמָה דְאוּקְמוּהָ חַבְרַיָיא דְּאִיהוּ יוֹמָא חַד גָּלוּתָא דִּכְנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל וְלָא יַתִּיר דִּכְתִיב, (איכה א׳:י״ג) נְתָנַנִי שׁוֹמֵמָה כָּל הַיּוֹם דָּוָה. אָמַר לֵיהּ הָכִי אוֹלִיפְנָא מֵאַבָּא בְּרָזִין דְּאַתְוָון דִּשְׁמָא קַדִּישָׁא וּבְיוֹמֵי דִּשְׁנֵי עַלְמָא וּבְיוֹמֵי דִבְרֵאשִׁית וְכֹלָּא רָזָא חָדָא אִיהוּ.
Said R. Jose to him: ‘Your calculations lay down a much longer period than that arrived at by the companions, according to whom the exile of the community of Israel was only to last one day (i.e. a thousand years), as it says, “He hath made me desolate and faint all the day” (Lam. 1, 13).’ R. Judah said in reply: ‘This is what I have learnt from my father concerning the mysteries of the letters of the Divine Name, and of the duration of the world as well as of the days of creation, all of which belongs to the same mystical doctrine.
וּכְדֵין יִתְחֲזֵי קַשְׁתָּא בַּעֲנָנָא בִּגְוָונֵי (עב ב) נְהִירִין כְּאִתְּתָא דְמִתְקַשְּׁטָא לְבַעֲלָהּ דִּכְתִיב, (בראשית ט׳:ט״ז) וּרְאִיתִיהָ לִזְכֹּר בְּרִית עוֹלָם וְהָא אוּקְמוּהָ וְשַׁפִּיר הוּא. וּרְאִיתִיהָ, בִּגְוָונִין נְהִירִין כְּדְקָא יְאוּת.
At that time the rainbow will appear in the cloud in radiant colours, like a woman that decks herself out for her husband, in fulfilment of the verse, “and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant” (Gen. 9, 16), a passage already explained elsewhere. “I will see it” with all its bright colours,
וּכְדֵין לִזְכֹּר בְּרִית עוֹלָם. מַאן בְּרִית עוֹלָם. דָּא כְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל, וְיִתְחַבַּר וא"ו בְּה"א, וְיֵיקִים לָהּ מֵעַפְרָא, כְּמָא דְאַתְּ אָמֵר וַיִּזְכֹּר אֱלהִים אֶת בְּרִיתוֹ. דָּא כְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל דְּאִיהִי בְּרִית, כְּמָא דְאַתְּ אָמֵר וְהָיְתָה לְאוֹת בְּרִית וְגו'.
and I will thus “remember the everlasting covenant”. Who is the everlasting covenant? It is the community of Israel. The Vau will join the He, and will resuscitate her from the dust.
כַּד יִתְעַר וא"ו לְגַבֵּי ה"א, כְּדֵין אָתִין עִלָּאִין יִתְעָרוּן בְּעָלְמָא (רלו א) וּבְנוֹי דִרְאוּבֵן זְמִינִין דְּיִתְעָרוּן, קְרָבִין בְּכָל עַלְמָא, וּכְנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל יוֹקִים לָהּ מֵעַפְרָא וְיִדְכַּר לָהּ קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא.
When the Vau shall move to join the He, heavenly signs will appear in the world, and the Reubenites will make war against all the world; and so the community of Israel will be raised from the dust, for the Holy One will remember her.
וְיִשְׁתַּכַּח קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא לְגַבָּהּ גּוֹ גָּלוּתָא כְּחוּשְׁבַּן וא"ו שִׁית זִמְנִין י' (עשר). עֶשֶׂר זִמְנִין שִׁית שְׁנִין, וּכְדֵין תֵּיקוּם וְיִתְפַּקַד עַלְמָא לְמֶעְבַּד נוּקְמִין, וּמַאן דְּאִיהוּ מָאִיךְ יִתְרְמֵי.
In this way the Holy One will have dwelt with her in exile vears to the number of Vau times Yod, that is, six times ten, after which she will be raised, and vengeance will be executed on the world, and the lowly will be exalted.’
אָמַר לֵיהּ רַבִּי יוֹסֵי שַׁפִּיר קָאֲמַרְתְּ בְּגִין דְּאִיהוּ גּוֹ רָזָא דְּאַתְוָון. וְלֵית לָן לְאַתְעָרָא חוּשְׁבַּן וְקִצִּין אָחֳרָנִין, דְּהָא בְּסִפְרָא דְּרַב יֵיבָא סָבָא אַשְׁכְּחָן חוּשְׁבַּן דָּא דִּכְתִיב, (ויקרא כ״ו:ל״ד) אָז תִּרְצֶה הָאָרֶץ. וְהוּא רָזָא דְּוא"ו דִּכְתִיב, (ויקרא כ״ו:מ״ב) וְזָכַרְתִּי אֶת בְּרִיתִי יַעֲקוֹב וְדָא הוּא וא"ו כֹּלָּא כְּחֲדָא, וְעַל דָּא אֶזְכּוֹר, וּלְבָתַר וְהָאָרֶץ אֶזְכּוֹר, דָּא כְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל. תִּרְצֶה. תִּתְרְעֵי אַרְעָא לְגַבֵּי קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא.
Said R. Jose to him: ‘All you say is right, being mystically indicated by the letters, and we need not enter upon any other calculations regarding the end (qets). For in the book of the venerable R. Yeba we find the same calculation. The verse, “Then shall the land satisfy her Sabbaths” (Lev. 26, 34) is an allusion to the mystical implication of the Vau, as indicated in a subsequent verse, “And I will remember my covenant with Jacob”1The name Jacob is in this verse exceptionally spelt plene, i.e. with a vau. v. infra, p. 369. (Ibid. 42), and then it says, “and I will remember the land” (Ibid.), indicating the community of Israel. The word “will satisfy” (tirzeh) signifies that the Holy One will be favourable to her.
אֲבָל יוֹמָא חַד דְּאָמְרוּ חַבְרַיָיא וַדַּאי כֹּלָּא הוּא גָּנִיז קַמֵּי קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא וְכֹלָּא אִשְׁתְּכַח בְּרָזָא דְאַתְוָון דִּשְׁמָא קַדִּישָׁא, דְּהָא גָלוּתָא בְּאִנּוּן אַתְוָון גָּלֵי לוֹן רַבִּי יֵיסָא הָכָא, וְהַשְׁתָּא בְּאִנּוּן אַתְוָון אִתְגַּלְּיָין וְגָלֵי לוֹן.
As for the “one day” of which the companions have spoken, it is assuredly all hidden with the Holy One, and it is all found in the mystery of the letters of the Divine Name; for R. Jose here has revealed the end of the exile by means of these letters.’
אָמַר לֵיהּ תָּא חֲזֵי, דְּאָפִילּוּ כַּד אִתְפַּקְּדָא שָׂרָה, מֵהַאי דַרְגָא לָא פַּקִּיד לָהּ, אֶלָּא בְּרָזָא דְוא"ו, דִּכְתִיב וַיְיָ פָּקַד אֶת שָׂרָה וְגו'. בְּגִין דְּכֹלָּא בְּרָזָא דְוא"ו אִיהוּ, וּבְהָא כָּלִיל כֹּלָּא, וּבֵיהּ אִתְגַּלְּיָא כֹּלָּא, בְּגִין דְּכָל מִלָּה דְּאִיהִי סְתִימָא אִיהִי גַּלֵּי כָּל סָתִים. וְלָא אָתֵי מַאן דְּאִיהוּ בְּאִתְגַלְּיָא וִיגַלֵּי מַה דְּאִיהוּ סָתִים.
Said R. Judah: ‘Observe that also when Sarah was visited, it was the grade of the divine essence symbolised by the Vau that visited her, as it is written, “And (Va) the Lord visited Sarah”, for all is contained in the mystery of the Vau, and through it all things are to be revealed.’
אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹסֵי כַּמָּה אִית לָן לְאִתְמַשְּׁכָא גּוֹ גָּלוּתָא עַד הַהוּא זִמְנָא, וְכֹלָּא תָּלֵי לֵיהּ קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא כַּד יְתוּבוּן בִּתְיוּבְתָּא. אִי יִזְכּוּ וְאִי לָא יִזְכּוּ, כְּמָה דְאִתְמָּר בְּהַאי קְרָא דִּכְתִיב אֲנִי יְיָ בְּעִתָּהּ אֲחִישֶׁנָּה. זָכוּ אֲחִישֶׁנָּה לא זָכוּ בְּעִתָּהּ.
Said R. Jose: ‘We have still a long time to be in exile until the day arrives, but all depends on whether the people will repent of their sins, as appears from the passage, “I the Lord will hasten it in its time” (Is. 60, 22), i.e. if they will be worthy, “I will hasten it”, and if not, then “in its time”.’
אֲזְלוּ, עַד דְּהֲווּ אָזְלֵי, אָמַר רַבִּי יוֹסֵי אַדְכַּרְנָא הַשְׁתָּא דְּהָא בְּאֲתַר דָּא יָתִיבְנָא יוֹמָא חַד עִם אַבָּא, וְאָמַר לִי בְּרִי זַמִּין אַנְתְּ כַּד מָטוּן יוֹמָךְ לְשִׁיתִּין שְׁנִין לְאַשְׁכָּחָא בְּהַאי אֲתַר סִימָא דְּחָכְמְתָא עִלָּאָה, וְהָא זָכִינָא לְאִנּוּן יוֹמִין וְלָא אַשְׁכַּחְנָא, וְלָא יְדַעְנָא אִי הַנֵּי מִלִּין דְּקָאֲמָרָן אוֹ הַהִיא חָכְמְתָא דְּאִיהוּ אָמַר.
The two then proceeded on their way. Suddenly R. Jose said: ‘It comes to my memory that in this place I was once sitting with my father and he said to me: “When you will reach the age of sixty years you are destined to find in this place a treasure of sublime wisdom.” I have lived to reach that age, and I have not found the treasure, but I wonder if the words spoken by us just now are not the wisdom that he meant.
וְאָמַר לִי כַּד יִמְטוּן קוּלְפִין דְּנוּרָא גּוֹ טְהִירֵי יְדָךְ אִתְאֲבִיד מִינָךְ. אֲמִינָא לֵיהּ אַבָּא בַּמֶּה יְדַעְתְּ. אָמַר לִי בְּהַנֵּי תְּרֵין צִפּוֹרִין דְּאַעֲבָרוּ עַל רֵישָׁךְ יְדַעְנָא.
He further said to me: “When the celestial flame reaches the spaces between your fingers, it will escape from you.” I asked him: “How do you know this?” He replied: “I know it by the two birds that passed over your head.”’
אַדְּהָכִי אִתְפְּרַשׁ רַבִּי יוֹסֵי וְעָאל גּוֹ מְעַרְתָּא חָדָא וְאַשְׁכַּח סִפְרָא חַד דְּהֲוָה נָעִיץ גּוֹ נוּקְבָא דְּטִנָּרָא בִּסְיָיפֵי מְעַרְתָּא, נָפַק בֵּיהּ.
At this point R. Jose left him and entered a cavern, at at the farther end of which he found a book hidden in the cleft of a rock.
כֵּיוָן דְּפָתַח לֵיהּ חָמָא שִׁבְעִין וּתְרֵין גְּלִיפִין דְּאַתְוָון דְּאִתְמְסָרוּ לְאָדָם הָרִאשׁוֹן וּבְהוּ הֲוָה יָדַע כָּל חָכְמְתָא דְּעִלָּאִין קַדִּישִׁין וְכָל אִנּוּן דְּבָתַר רֵיחַיָא דְּמִתְגַּלְגְּלָן בָּתַר פָּרוּכְתָּא גּוֹ טְהִירִין עִלָּאִין וְכָל אִנּוּן מִלִּין דְּזַמִּינִין לְמֵיתֵי לְעָלְמָא, עַד יוֹמָא דְּיֵקוּם עֲנָנָא דְּבִסְטַר מַעֲרָב וְיַחְשִׁיךְ עָלְמָא.
He brought it out and caught sight of seventy-two tracings of letters which had been given to Adam the first man, and by means of which he knew all the wisdom of the supernal holy beings, and all those beings that abide behind the mill with turns behind the veil among the supernal ethereal essences, as well as all that is destined to happen in the world until the day when a cloud will arise on the side of the West and darken the world.
קָרָא לְרַבִּי יְהוּדָה וְשָׁרוּ לְמִלְעֵי בְּהַהוּא סִפְרָא, לָא סְפִיקוּ לְמִלְעֵי תְּרֵי אוֹ תְּלָתָא סִטְרִין דְּאִנּוּן אַתְוָון עַד דְּהֲווּ מִסְתַּכְּלִין בְּהַהִיא חָכְמָה עִלָּאָה, כֵּיוָן דְּמָטוּ לְמִלְעֵי בִּסְתִירוּ דְּסִפְרָא וּמִשְׁתָּעוּ דָּא עִם דָּא, נָפַק שְׁבִיבָא דְּאֶשָׁא וְעִלְעוּלָא דְּרוּחָא וּבָטַשׁ בִּידֵיהוֹן וְאִתְאֲבִיד מִנַּיְיהוּ. בָּכָה רַבִּי יוֹסֵי וְאָמַר דִּילְמָא חַס וְשָׁלוֹם חוֹבָה אִיהוּ גַּבָּן אוֹ דְּלָאו אֲנַן זַכִּין לְמִנְדַע לֵיהּ.
R. Jose then called R. Judah and the two began to examine the book. No sooner had they studied two or three of the letters than they found themselves contemplating that supernal wisdom. But as soon as they began to go into the book more deeply and to discuss it, a fiery flame driven by a tempestuous wind struck their hands, and the book vanished from them. R. Jose wept, saying, ‘Can it be, Heaven forefend, that we are tainted with some sin? Or are we unworthy to possess the knowledge contained therein?’
כַּד אָתוּן לְגַבֵּי דְרַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן אִשְׁתָּעוּ לֵיהּ עוֹבָדָא דָא, אָמַר לוֹן דִּילְמָא בְּקֵץ מְשִׁיחָא דְּאִנּוּן אַתְוָון הֲוֵיתוּן מִשְׁתַּדְּלֵי, אָמְרוּ לֵיהּ דָּא לָא יַדְעִינָן דְּהָא כֹּלָּא אִתְנְשֵׁי מִינָן. אָמַר לוֹן רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן לֵית רְעוּתָא דְקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא בְּדָא דְּיִתְגְּלֵי כָּל כָּךְ לְעַלְמָא, וְכַד יְהֵא קָרִיב לְיוֹמֵי מְשִׁיחָא אֲפִילּוּ רַבְיֵי דְעַלְמָא זְמִינִין לְאַשְׁכָּחָא טְמִירִין דְּחָכְמְתָא וּלְמִנְדַע בֵּיהּ קִצִּין וְחוּשְׁבְּנִין, וּבְהַהוּא זִמְנָא אִתְגַּלְּיָא לְכֹלָּא הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב (צפניה ג׳:ט׳) כִּי אָז אֶהְפֹּךְ אֶל עַמִּים וְגו'. מַהוּ אָז. בְּזִמְנָא דְּתֵיקוּם כְּנֶסֶת יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵעַפְרָא וְיוֹקִים לָהּ קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא כְּדֵין אֶהְפֹּךְ אֶל עַמִּים שָׂפָה בְרוּרָה לִקְרֹא כֻלָּם בְּשֵׁם יְיָ וּלְעָבְדוֹ שְׁכֶם אֶחָד.
When they came to R. Simeon they told him what had occurred. He said to them: ‘Were you, perhaps, scrutinising those letters which dealt with the coming of the Messiah?’ They answered: ‘We cannot tell, as we have forgotten everything.’ R. Simeon continued: ‘The Holy One, blessed be He, does not desire that so much should be revealed to the world, but when the days of the Messiah will be near at hand, even children will discover the secrets of wisdom and thereby be able to calculate the millennium; at that time it will be revealed to all, as it is written, “For then will I turn to the peoples a pure language, etc.” (Zeph. 3, 9), the term az (then) referring to the time when the community of Israel will be raised from the dust and the Holy One will make her stand upright; then “will I turn to the peoples a pure language, that they may all call upon the Lord, to serve him with one consent” (Ibid.).’
תָּא חֲזֵי, אַף עַל גַּב דְּאַבְרָהָם כְּתִיב בֵּיהּ וַיִּסַּע אַבְרָם הָלוֹךְ וְנָסוֹעַ הַנֶּגְבָּה. וְכָל מַטְלָנוֹי הֲווּ לְדָרוֹמָא וְאִתְקַשַּׁר בֵּיהּ, לָא סָלִיק לְדוּכְתֵּיהּ כְּדְקָא יְאוּת עַד דְּאִתְיְלִיד יִצְחָק, כֵּיוָן דְּאִתְיְלִיד יִצְחָק אִסְתַּלַּק לְאַתְרֵיהּ וְאִיהוּ אִשְׁתַּתַּף בַּהֲדֵיהּ וְאִתְקַשְּׁרוּ דָּא בְּדָא.
Observe that although it is said of Abraham that he “journeyed still toward the South” (Gen. 12, 9), he did not attain to his rightful grade until Isaac was born. But as soon as Isaac was born, he attained this grade, through the close association and union of the two.
בְגִין כָּךְ אִיהוּ קָרֵי לֵיהּ יִצְחָק וְלָא אָחֳרָא, בְּגִין לְשַׁתְּפָא מַיָא בְּאֶשָׁא, דִּכְתִיב וַיִּקְרָא אַבְרָהָם אֶת שֵׁם בְּנוֹ הַנּוֹלַד לוֹ אֲשֶׁר יָלְדָה לוֹ שָׂרָה יִצְחָק. מַאן הַנּוֹלַד לוֹ, אֵשׁ מִמַּיִם:
For that reason he, and no other, called him Isaac, in order that water and fire should be merged together. Hence: AND ABRAHAM CALLED THE NAME OF HIS SON THAT WAS BORN UNTO HIM, WHOM SARAH BORE TO HIM, ISAAC: to wit, the son that was born to him as fire born from water.