{"collection":"scripture-revelation","full_text_available":true,"graph_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/api/page/gutenberg_8548/graph","html_url":"https://unchartedknowledge.5gfusion.net/v2/page/gutenberg_8548","id":"gutenberg_8548","license":"Public Domain (US)","rights_basis":"gutenberg_metadata_copyright_false","source":"gutenberg","source_url":"https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/8548","summary":null,"tags":["Category: Philosophy & Ethics","Category: Religion/Spirituality","Judaism","Mishnah. Avot"],"text":"Produced by Dan Dyckman\n\n\n\n\n________________________\n  TRANSCRIBER'S COMMENTS\n\nThe source book for this e-text included an Introduction, Preface,\nand extensive footnotes.  These are omitted in this text, which\nconsists of only the translation of the Pirkei Avot.  A full version\nof this e-text may be found as a different entry in the Gutenburg\nProject archives.\n\nSee the end of this e-text for Transcriber's Notes.\n\n\n\n\n\n     LIBRARY OF JEWISH CLASSICS-III.\n ________________________________________\n\n           The Sayings of the\n             Jewish Fathers\n\n             [pirkei avot]\n              \"PIRKE ABOT\"\n ________________________________________\n\n           Translated, with an\n         Introduction and Notes\n\n                  BY\n       JOSEPH I. GORFINKLE, Ph.D.\n\n               Author of\n \"The Eight Chapters of Maimonides on Ethics\"\n\n                _______\n\n           _SECOND EDITION_\n\n ________________________________________\n\n\n\nSAYINGS OF THE FATHERS\n\n_One of the following chapters is read on each Sabbath from the\nSabbath after Passover until the Sabbath before New Year._\n\nAll Israel have a portion in the world to come, and it is said, \"And\nthy people shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land for\never, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be\nglorified.\"\n\nCHAPTER I\n\n1. Moses received the _Torah_ from Sinai, and handed it down to\nJoshua, and Joshua to the elders, and the elders to the prophets, and\nthe prophets delivered it to the men of the Great Synagogue.  They\nsaid three things, \"Be deliberate in judgment; raise up many\ndisciples; and make a fence about the _Torah_.\"\n\n2. Simon, the Just, was of the last survivors of the Great Synagogue.\nHe used to say, \"Upon three things the world rests: upon the _Torah_,\nupon the Temple service, and upon the doing of acts of kindness.\"\n\n3. Antigonus of Soko received (the tradition) from Simon, the Just.\nHe used to say, \"Be not like hirelings who work for their master for\nthe sake of receiving recompense; but be like servants who minister to\ntheir master without any thought of receiving a reward; and let the\nfear of Heaven be upon you.\"\n\n4. Jose, the son of Joezer, of Zeredah, and Jose, the son of Jochanan,\nof Jerusalem received (the tradition) from them.  Jose, the son of\nJoezer, of Zeredah said, \"Let thy house be a meeting-place for the\nwise; cover thyself with the dust of their feet, and drink in their\nwords with thirst.\"\n\n5. Jose, the son of Jochanan, of Jerusalem said, \"Let thy house be\nopen wide; let the poor be members of thy household, and engage not in\nmuch gossip with woman.\"  This applies to one's own wife; how much\nmore, then, to the wife of one's neighbor?  Hence the sages say,\n\"Whoso engages in much gossip with woman brings evil upon himself,\nneglects the study of the _Torah_, and will in the end inherit\n_gehinnom_.\"\n\n6. Joshua, the son of Perachyah, and Nittai, the Arbelite, received\n(the tradition) from them.  Joshua, the son of Perachyah, said,\n\"Provide thyself with a teacher, and possess thyself of a companion;\nand judge every man in the scale of merit.\"\n\n7. Nittai, the Arbelite, said, \"Keep aloof from a bad neighbor;\nassociate not with the wicked, and abandon not the belief in\nretribution.\"\n\n8. Judah, the son of Tabbi, and Simeon, the son of Shatach, received\n(the tradition) from them.  Judah, the son of Tabbi, said, \"(In the\njudge's office) act not the counsel's part; while the litigants are\nstanding before thee, let them be regarded by thee as guilty, but when\nthey are departed from thy presence, regard them as innocent, the\nverdict having been acquiesced in by them.\"\n\n9. Simeon, the son of Shatach, said, \"Be very searching in the\nexamination of witnesses, and be guarded in thy words, lest through\nthem they learn to lie.\"\n\n10. Shemaiah and Abtalion received (the tradition) from them.\nShemaiah said, \"Love work; hate lordship; and seek no intimacy with\nthe ruling power.\"\n\n11. Abtalion said, \"Ye sages, be heedful of your words, lest ye incur\nthe penalty of exile and be exiled to a place of evil waters, and the\ndisciples who come after you drink thereof and die, and the Heavenly\nName be profaned.\"\n\n12. Hillel and Shammai received (the tradition) from them.  Hillel\nsaid, \"Be of the disciples of Aaron, loving peace and pursuing peace,\nloving mankind and drawing them night to the _Torah_.\"  13. He used to\nsay, \"A name made great is a name destroyed; he who does not increase\n(his knowledge) decreases (it); and he who does not study deserves to\ndie; and he who makes a worldly use of the crown (of the _Torah_)\nshall waste away.\"  14. He used to say, \"If I am not for myself, who\nwill be for me?  But if I care for myself only, what am I?  And if not\nnow, when?\"\n\n15. Shammai said, \"Set a fixed time for thy (study of) _Torah;_ say\nlittle and do much; and receive all men with a cheerful countenance.\"\n\n16. Rabban Gamaliel said, \"Provide thyself with a teacher; be quit of\ndoubt; and accustom not thyself to give tithes by a conjectural\nestimate.\"\n\n17. Simeon his son, said, \"All my days I have grown up amongst the\nwise, and I have found nothing better for man than silence; not\nlearning but doing is the chief thing; and whoso multiplies words\ncauses sin.\"\n\n18. Rabban Simeon, the son of Gamaliel said, \"By three things is the\nworld preserved; by truth, by judgment, and by peace, as it is said,\n'Judge ye the truth and the judgment of peace in your gates.'\"\n\nRabbi Chanania, the son of Akashia, said, \"The Holy One, blessed be\nHe, was pleased to make Israel worthy; wherefore He gave them a\ncopious _Torah_ and many commandments, as it is said, 'It pleased the\nLord, for his righteousness' sake, to magnify the _Torah_ and make it\nhonorable.'\"\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER II\n\nAll Israel have a portion in the world to come, and it is said, \"And\nthy people shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land for\never, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be\nglorified\".\n\n1. Rabbi said, \"which is the right course that a man should choose for\nhimself?  That which is a pride to him who pursues it and which also\nbrings him honor from mankind.  Be as scrupulous about a light precept\nas about a grave one, for thou knowest not the grant of reward for\neach precept.  Reckon the loss incurred by the fulfilment of a precept\nagainst the reward secured by its observance, and the gain gotten by a\ntransgression against the loss it involves.  Consider three things,\nthat thou mayest not come within the power of sin.  Know what is above\nthee--a seeing eye, and a hearing ear, and all thy deeds written in a\nbook.\"\n\n2. Rabban Gamaliel, the son of Rabbi Judah, the Prince, said,\n\"Excellent is the study of _Torah_ combined with some worldly pursuit,\nfor the effort demanded by them both makes sin to be forgotten.  All\nstudy of _Torah_ without work must at length be futile, and leads to\nsin.  Let all who are employed with the congregation act with them for\nHeaven's sake, for then the merit of their fathers sustains them, and\ntheir righteousness endures for ever.  And as for you (God will then\nsay), 'I account you worthy of great reward, as if you had wrought it\nall yourselves.'  3. Be on your guard against the ruling power; for\nthey who exercise it draw no man near to them except for their own\ninterests; appearing as friends when it is to their own advantage,\nthey stand not by a man in the hour of his need.\"  4. He used to say,\n\"Do His will as if it were thy will.  Nullify thy will before His\nwill, that He may nullify the will of others before thy will.\"\n\n5. Hillel said, \"Separate not thyself from the congregation; trust not\nin thyself until the day of thy death; judge not thy neighbor until\nthou art come into his place; and say not anything which cannot be\nunderstood at once, in the hope that it will be understood in the end;\nneither say, 'When I have leisure I will study'; perchance thou wilt\nhave no leisure.\"  6. He used to say, \"An empty-headed man cannot be a\nsin-fearing man, nor can an ignorant person be pious, nor can a\nshamefaced man learn, nor a passionate man teach, nor can one who is\nengaged overmuch in business grow wise.  In a place where there are no\nmen, strive to be a man.\"  7. Moreover, he once saw a skull floating\non the surface of the water.  He said to it, \"Because thou didst drown\n(others) they have drowned thee, and at the last they that drowned\nthee shall themselves be drowned.\"  8. He used to say, \"The more\nflesh, the more works; the more property, the more anxiety; the more\nwomen, the more witchcraft; the more maid-servants, the more lewdness;\nthe more men-servants, the more robbery; the more _Torah_, the more\nlife; the more schooling, the more wisdom; the more counsel, the more\nunderstanding; the more charity, the more peace.  He who has acquired\na good name has acquired it for himself; he who has acquired for\nhimself words of _Torah_ has acquired for himself life in the world to\ncome.\"\n\n9. Rabban Jochanan, the son of Zakkai received (the tradition) from\nHillel and Shammai.  He used to say, \"If thou hast learnt much\n_Torah_, ascribe not any merit to thyself, for thereunto wast thou\ncreated.\"\n\n10. Rabban Jochanan, the son of Zakkai, had five disciples, and these\nare they: Rabbi Eliezer, the son of Hyrcanus; Rabbi Joshua, the son of\nHananiah; Rabbi Jose, the Priest; Rabbi Simeon, the son of Nataniel;\nand Rabbi Eleazar, the son of Arach.  11. He used thus to recount\ntheir praise: \"Eliezer, the son of Hyrcanus, is a cemented cistern,\nwhich loses not a drop; Joshua, the son of Hananiah, happy is she that\nbare him; Jose, the Priest, is a pious man; Simeon, the son of\nNataniel, is a fearer of sin; Eleazar, the son of Arach, is like a\nspring flowing with ever-sustained vigor.\"  12. He used to say, \"If\nall the sages of Israel were in one scale of the balance, and Eliezer,\nthe son of Hyrcanus, in the other, he would outweigh them all.\"  Abba\nSaul said in his name, \"If all the sages of Israel were in one scale\nof the balance, and Eliezer, the son of Hyrcanus, also with them, and\nEleazar, the son of Arach, in the other scale, he would outweigh them\nall.\"  13. He said to them, \"Go forth and see which is the good way to\nwhich a man should cleave.\"  R. Eliezer said, \"A good eye\"; R. Joshua\nsaid, \"A good friend\"; R. Jose said, \"A good neighbor\"; R. Simeon\nsaid, \"One who foresees the fruit of an action\"; R. Eleazar said, \"A\ngood heart.\"  Thereupon he said to them, \"I approve of the words of\nEleazar, the son of Arach, rather than your words, for in his words\nyours are included.\"  14. He said to them, \"Go forth and see which is\nthe evil way that a man should shun.\"  R. Eliezer said, \"An evil eye\";\nR. Joshua said, \"A bad friend\"; R. Jose said, \"A bad neighbor\"; R.\nSimeon said, \"One who borrows and does not repay--it is the same\nwhether one borrows from man or the Omnipresent; as it is said, 'The\nwicked borroweth and payeth not again, but the righteous dealeth\ngraciously and giveth'\"; R. Eleazar said, \"A bad heart.\"  Thereupon he\nsaid to them, \"I approve of the words of Eleazar, the son of Arach,\nrather then your words, for in his words yours are included.\"\n\n15. They each said three things.  R. Eliezer said, \"Let thy friend's\nhonor be as dear to thee as thine own; be not easily excited to anger;\nand repent one day before thy death.\"  And (he further said), \"Warm\nthyself by the fire of the wise, but beware of their glowing coals,\nlest thou be burnt, for their bite is the bite of the fox, and their\nsting is the scorpion's sting, and their hiss is the serpent's hiss,\nand all their words are like coals of fire.\"  16. R. Joshua said, \"The\nevil eye, the evil inclination, and hatred of his fellow-creatures,\nput a man out of the world.\"  17. R. Jose said, \"Let the property of\nthy friend be as dear to thee as thine own; prepare thyself for the\nstudy of _Torah_, since the knowledge of it is not an inheritance of\nthine, and let all thy deeds be done in the name of God.\"  18. R.\nSimeon said, \"Be careful in reading the _Shema_ and the _Amidah_; and\nwhen thou prayest, consider not thy prayer as a fixed (mechanical)\ntask, but as (an appeal for) mercy and grace before the All-present,\nas it is said, 'For he is gracious and full of mercy, slow to anger,\nand abounding in loving-kindness, and repenteth him of the evil'; and\nbe not wicked in thine own esteem.\"  19. R. Eleazar said, \"Be diligent\nin studying _Torah_, and know what answer to give to the unbeliever;\nknow also before whom thou toilest, and who thy Employer is, who will\npay thee the reward of thy labor.\"\n\n20. Rabbi Tafron said, \"The day is short, the task is great, the\nlaborers are sluggish, the reward is much, and the Master of the house\nis urgent.\"  21. He also used to say, \"It is not thy duty to complete\nthe work, but neither art thou free to desist from it; if thou hast\nstudied much _Torah_, much reward will be given thee; and faithful is\nthy Employer to pay thee the reward of thy labor; and know that the\ngrant of reward unto the righteous will be in the time to come.\"\n\nRabbi Chanania, the son of Akashia, said, \"The Holy One, blessed be\nHe, was pleased to make Israel worthy; wherefore He gave them a\ncopious _Torah_ and many commandments, as it is said, 'It pleased the\nLord, for his righteousness' sake, to magnify the _Torah_ and make it\nhonorable'\".\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER III\n\nAll Israel have a portion in the world to come, and it is said, \"And\nthy people shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land for\never, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be\nglorified\".\n\n1. Akabia, the son of Mahalalel, said, \"Consider three things, and\nthou wilt not come within the power of sin: know whence thou camest,\nand whither thou art going, and before whom thou wilt in the future\nhave to give an account and reckoning.  Whence thou camest: from a\nfetid drop; whether thou art going: to a place of dust, worms, and\nmaggots; and before whom thou wilt in the future have to give an\naccount and reckoning: before the Supreme King of kings, the Holy One,\nblessed be He.\"\n\n2. R. Chanina, the Vice-High-Priest, said, \"Pray for the welfare of\nthe government, since but for the fear thereof men would swallow each\nother alive.\"\n\n3. R. Chananiah, the son of Teradion, said, \"If two sit together and\ninterchange no words of _Torah_, they are a meeting of scorners,\nconcerning whom it is said, 'The godly man sitteth not in the seat of\nthe scorners'; but if two sit together and interchange words of\n_Torah_, the Divine Presence abides among them; as it is said, 'Then\nthey that feared the Lord spake one with the other; and the Lord\nhearkened and heard, and a book of remembrance was written before Him,\nfor them that feared the Lord, and that thought upon His name.'  Now\nthe Scripture enables me to draw this inference in respect to two\npersons; whence can it be deduced that if even one person sedulously\noccupies himself with the _Torah_, the Holy One, blessed be He,\nappoints unto him a reward?  Because it is said, 'though he sit alone,\nand meditate in stillness, yet he taketh it (the reward) upon him.'\"\n\n4. R. Simeon said, \"If three have eaten at a table and have spoken\nthere no words of _Torah_, it is as if they had eaten of sacrifices to\ndead idols, of whom it is said, 'For all their tables are full of\nvomit and filthiness; the All-present is not (in their thoughts).'\nBut if three have eaten at a table and have spoken there words of\n_Torah_, it is as if they had eaten at the table of the All-present,\nfor Scripture says, 'And he said unto me, This is the table that is\nbefore the Lord.'\"\n\n5. R. Chanina, the son of Hakinai, said, \"He who keeps awake at night,\nand goes on his way alone, while turning his heart to vanity, such a\none forfeits his own life.\"\n\n6. R. Nechunya, son of ha-Kanah, said, \"Whoso receives upon himself\nthe yoke of the _Torah_, from the yoke of the kingdom and the yoke of\nworldly care will be removed, but whoso breaks off from him the yoke\nof the _Torah_, upon him will be laid the yoke of the kingdom and the\nyoke of worldly care.\"\n\n7. R. Chalafta, the son of Dosa, of the village of Chanania said,\n\"When ten people sit together and occupy themselves with the _Torah_,\nthe _Shechinah_ abides among them, as it is said, 'God standeth in the\ncongregation of the godly.'  And whence can it be shown that the same\napplies to five?  Because it is said, 'He hath found his band upon the\nearth.'  And whence can it be shown that the same applies to three?\nBecause it is said, 'He judgeth among the judges.'  And whence can it\nbe shown that the same applies to two?  Because it is said, 'Then they\nthat feared the Lord spake one with the other; and the Lord hearkened,\nand heard.'  And whence can it be shown that the same applies even to\none?  Because it is said, 'In every place where I cause my name to be\nremembered I will come unto thee and I will bless thee.'\"\n\n8. R. Eleazar of Bertota said, \"Give unto Him of what is His, for thou\nand thine are His: this is also found expressed by David, who said,\n'For all things come of Thee, and of Thine own we have given Thee.'\"\n\n9. R. Jacob said, \"He who is walking by the way and studying, and\nbreaks off his study and says, 'How fine is that tree, how fine is\nthat fallow,' him the Scripture regards as if he had forfeited his\nlife.\"\n\n10. R. Dostai, the son of Jannai, said in the name of R. Meir, \"Whoso\nforgets one word of his study, him the Scripture regards as if he had\nforfeited his life, for it is said, 'Only take heed to thyself, and\nkeep thy soul diligently, lest thou forget the things which thine eyes\nhave seen.'  Now, one might suppose (that the same result follows)\neven if a man's study has been too hard for him.  (To guard against\nsuch an inference), it is said, 'And lest they depart from thy heart\nall the days of thy life.'  Thus a person's guilt is not established\nuntil he deliberately and of set purpose removes those lessons from\nhis heart.\"\n\n11. R. Chanina, the son of Dosa, said, \"He in whom the fear of sin\nprecedes wisdom, his wisdom shall endure; but he in whom wisdom comes\nbefore the fear of sin, his wisdom will not endure.\"  12. He used to\nsay, \"He whose works exceed his wisdom, his wisdom shall endure; but\nhe whose wisdom exceeds his works, his wisdom will not endure.\"  13.\nHe used to say, \"He in whom the spirit of his fellow-creatures takes\nnot delight, in him the Spirit of the All-present takes not delight.\"\n\n14. R. Dosa, the son of Horkinas, said, \"Morning sleep, midday wine,\nchildish babbling, and attending the houses of assembly of the\nignorant waste a man's life.\"\n\n15. R. Eleazar ha-Mudai said, \"He who profanes things sacred, and\ndespises the festivals, and puts his fellow-man to shame in public,\nand makes void the covenant of Abraham, our father, and makes the\n_Torah_ bear a meaning other than the right; (such a one) even though\nknowledge of the _Torah_ and good deeds be his, has no share in the\nworld to come.\"\n\n16. R. Ishmael said, \"Be submissive to a superior, affable to the\nyoung, and receive all men with cheerfulness.\"\n\n17. R. Akiba said, \"Jesting and levity lead a man on to lewdness.  The\n_Massorah_ is a rampart around the _Torah_; tithes are a safeguard to\nriches; good resolves are a fence to abstinence; a hedge around wisdom\nis silence.\"  18. He used to say, \"Beloved is man, for he was created\nin the image (of God); but it was by a special love that it was made\nknown to him that he was created in the image of God, as it is said,\n'For in the image of God made he man.'  Beloved are Israel, or they\nwere called children of the All-present, but it was by a special love\nthat it was made known to them that they were called children of the\nAll-present, as it is said, 'Ye are children unto the Lord your God.'\nBeloved are Israel, for unto them was given the desirable instrument;\nbut it was by a special love that it was made known to them that that\ndesirable instrument was theirs, through which the world was created,\nas it is said, 'For I give you good doctrine; forsake ye not my\n_Torah_.'  19. Everything is foreseen, yet free will is given; and the\nworld is judged by grace, yet all is according to the amount of the\nwork.\"  20. He used to say, \"Everything is given on pledge, and a net\nis spread for all living; the shop is open; the dealer gives credit;\nthe ledger lies open; the hand writes; and whosoever wishes to borrow\nmay come and borrow; but the collectors regularly make their daily\nround, and exact payment from man whether he be content or not; and\nthey have that whereon they can rely in their demand; and the judgment\nis a judgment of truth; and everything is prepared for the feast.\"\n\n21. R. Eleazar, the son of Azariah, said, \"Where there is no _Torah_,\nthere are no manners; where there are no manners, there is no _Torah_:\nwhere there is no wisdom, there is no fear of God; where there is no\nfear of God, there is no wisdom: where there is no knowledge, there no\nunderstanding; where there is no understanding, there is no knowledge:\nwhere there is no meal, there is no _Torah;_ where there is no\n_Torah_, there is no meal.\"  22. He used to say, \"He whose wisdom\nexceeds his works, to what is he like?  To a tree whose branches are\nmany, but whose roots are few; and the wind comes and plucks it up,\nand overturns it upon its face, as it is said, 'And he shall be like a\nlonely juniper tree in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh;\nbut shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, a salt land\nand not inhabited.'  But he whose works exceed his wisdom, to what is\nhe like?  To a tree whose branches are few, but whose roots are many,\nso that though all the winds in the world come and blow upon it, they\ncannot stir it from its place, as it is said, 'And he shall be as a\ntree planted by the waters; and that spreadeth out its roots by the\nriver and shall not perceive when heat cometh, but his leaf shall be\ngreen; and shall not be troubled in the year of drought, neither shall\ncease from yielding fruit.'\"\n\n23. R. Eleazar Chisma said, \"The laws concerning the sacrifices of\nbirds and the purification of women are essential ordinances;\nastronomy and geometry are the after-courses of wisdom.\"\n\nRabbi Chanania, the son of Akashia, said, \"The Holy One, blessed be\nHe, was pleased to make Israel worthy; wherefore He gave them a\ncopious _Torah_ and many commandments, as it is said, 'It pleased the\nLord, for his righteousness' sake, to magnify the _Torah_ and make it\nhonorable'\".\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV\n\nAll Israel have a portion in the world to come, and it is said, \"And\nthy people shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land for\never, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be\nglorified\".\n\n1. Ben Zoma said, \"Who is wise?  He who learns from all men, as it is\nsaid, 'from all my teachers have I gotten understanding.'  Who is\nmighty?  He who controls his passions, as it is said, 'He that is slow\nto anger is better than the mighty, and he that ruleth over his spirit\nthan he that taketh a city.'  Who is rich?  He who rejoices in his\nportion, as it is said, 'When thou eatest the labor of thine hands,\nhappy art thou, and it shall be well with thee'; happy art thou in\nthis world, and it shall be well with thee in the world to come.  Who\nis honored?  He who honors others, as it is said, 'For them that honor\nme I will honor, and they that despise me shall be held in contempt.'\"\n\n2. Ben Azzai said, \"Hasten to do even a slight precept, and flee from\ntransgression; for one virtue leads to another, and transgression\ndraws transgression in its train; for the recompense of a virtue is a\nvirtue, and the recompense of a transgression is a transgression.\"  3.\nHe used to say, \"Despise not any man, and carp not at any thing; for\nthere is not a man that has not his hour, and there is not a thing\nthat has not its place.\"\n\n4. R. Levitas of Jabneh said, \"Be exceedingly lowly of spirit, since\nthe hope of man is but the worm.\"\n\n5. R. Jochanan, the son of Berokah, said, \"Whosoever profanes the Name\nof Heaven in secret will suffer the penalty for it in public; and\nthis, whether the Heavenly Name be profaned in ignorance or in\nwilfulness.\"\n\n6. R. Ishmael, his son, said, \"He who learns in order to teach, to him\nthe means will be granted both to learn and to teach; but he who\nlearns in order to practise, to him the means will be granted to\nlearn, and to teach, to observe, and to practise.\"\n\n7. R. Zadok said, \"Separate not thyself from the congregation; (in the\njudge's office) act not the counsel's part; make not of the _Torah_ a\ncrown wherewith to aggrandize thyself, nor a spade wherewith to dig.\"\nSo also used Hillel to say, \"He who makes a worldly use of the crown\n(of the _Torah_) shall waste away.\"  Hence thou mayest infer that\nwhosoever derives a profit for himself from the words of the _Torah_\nis helping on his own destruction.\n\n8. R. Jose said, \"Whoso honors the _Torah_ will himself be honored by\nmankind, but whoso dishonors the _Torah_ will himself be dishonored by\nmankind.\"\n\n9. R. Ishmael, his son, said, \"He who shuns the judicial office rids\nhimself of hatred, robbery, and vain swearing; but he who\npresumptuously lays down decisions is foolish, wicked, and of an\narrogant spirit.\"  10. He used to say, \"Judge not alone, for none may\njudge alone save One; neither say (to thy judicial colleagues),\n'Accept my view,' for the choice is theirs (to concur); and it is not\nfor thee (to compel concurrence).\"\n\n11. R. Jonathan said, \"Whoso fulfils the _Torah_ in the midst of\npoverty shall in the end fulfil it in the midst of wealth; and whoso\nneglects the _Torah_ in the midst of wealth shall in the end neglect\nit in the midst of poverty.\"\n\n12. R. Meir said, \"Lessen thy toil for worldly goods, and be busy in\nthe _Torah_; be humble of spirit before all men; if thou neglectest\nthe _Torah_, many causes for neglecting it will be present themselves\nto thee, but if thou laborest in the _Torah_, He has abundant\nrecompense to give thee.\"\n\n13. R. Elieser, the son of Jacob, said, \"He who does one precept has\ngotten himself one advocate; and he who commits one transgression has\ngotten himself one accuser.  Repentance and good deeds are as a shield\nagainst punishment.\"\n\n14. R. Jochanan, the sandal-maker, said, \"Every assembly which is in\nthe Name of Heaven will in the end be established, but that which is\nnot in the Name of Heaven will not in the end be established.\"\n\n15. R. Eleazer, the son of Shammua, said, \"Let the honor of thy\ndisciple be as dear to thee as thine own, and the honor of thine\nassociate be like the fear of thy master, and the fear of thy master\nlike the fear of Heaven.\"\n\n16. R. Judah said, \"Be cautious in study, for an error in study may\namount to presumptuous sin.\"\n\n17. R. Simeon said, \"There are three crowns: the crown of _Torah_, the\ncrown of priesthood, and the crown of royalty; but the crown of a good\nname excels them all.\"\n\n18. R. Nehorai said, \"Betake thyself to a home of the _Torah_, and say\nnot that the _Torah_ will come after thee; for there thy associates\nwill establish thee in the possession of it; and lean not upon thine\nown understanding.\"\n\n19. R. Jannia said, \"It is not in our power (to explain) either the\nprosperity of the wicked or the afflictions of the righteous.\"\n\n20. R. Mattithiah, the son of Heresh, said, \"Be beforehand in the\nsalutation of peace to all men; and be rather a tail to lions than a\nhead to foxes.\"\n\n21. R. Jacob said, \"This world is like a vestibule before the world to\ncome; prepare thyself in the vestibule, that thou mayest enter into\nthe hall.\"  22. He used to say, \"Better is one hour of repentance and\ngood deeds in this world than the whole life of the world to come; and\nbetter is one hour of blissfulness of spirit in the world to come than\nthe whole life of this world.\"\n\n23. R. Simeon, the son of Eleazer, said, \"Do not appease thy fellow in\nthe hour of his anger, and comfort him not in the hour when his dead\nlies before him, and question him not in the hour of his vow, and rush\nnot to see him in the hour of his disgrace.\"\n\n24. Samuel, the younger, used to say, \"Rejoice not when thine enemy\nfalleth, and let not thine heart be glad when he stumbleth: lest the\nLord see it and it displease him, and he turn away his wrath from\nhim.\"\n\n25. Elisha, the son of Abuyah, said, \"If one learns as a child, what\nis it like?  Like ink written in clean paper.  If one learns as an old\nman, what is it like?  Like ink written on used paper.\"\n\n26. R. Jose, the son of Judah, of Chefar Babli said, \"He who learns\nfrom the young, to what is he like?  To one who eats unripe grapes,\nand drinks wine from his vat.  And he who learns from the old, to what\nis he like?  To one who eats ripe grapes, and drinks old wine.\"\n\n27. Rabbi Meir said, \"Look not at the flask, but at what it contains:\nthere may be a new flask full of old wine, and an old flask that has\nnot even new wine in it.\"\n\n28. R. Eleazar ha-Kappar said, \"Envy, cupidity, and ambition take a\nman from the world.\"  29. He used to say, \"They that are born are\ndoomed to die; and the dead to be brought to life again; and the\nliving to be judged, to know, to make known, and to be made conscious\nthat He is God, He the Maker, He the Creator, He the Discerner, He the\nJudge, He the Witness, He the Accuser; He it is that will in future\njudge, blessed be He, with Whom there is no unrighteousness, nor\nforgetfulness, nor respect of persons, nor taking of bribes; and know\nalso that everything is according to the reckoning; and let not thy\nimagination give thee hope that the grave will be a place of refuge\nfor thee; for perforce thou wast formed, and perforce thou wast born,\nand thou livest perforce, and perforce thou wilt die, and perforce\nthou wilt in the future have to give account and reckoning before the\nSupreme King of kings, the Holy One, blessed be He.\"\n\nRabbi Chanania, the son of Akashia, said, \"The Holy One, blessed be\nHe, was pleased to make Israel worthy; wherefore He gave them a\ncopious _Torah_ and many commandments, as it is said, 'It pleased the\nLord, for his righteousness' sake, to magnify the _Torah_ and make it\nhonorable'\".\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V\n\nAll Israel have a portion in the world to come, and it is said, \"And\nthy people shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land for\never, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be\nglorified\".\n\n1. With ten sayings the world was created.  What does this teach us?\nCould it not have been created with one saying?  It is to make known\nthe punishment that will befall the wicked who destroy the world that\nwas created with ten sayings, as well as the goodly reward that will\nbe bestowed upon the just who preserve the world that was created with\nten sayings.  2. There were ten generations from Adam to Noah, to make\nknown how long-suffering God is, seeing that all those generations\ncontinued provoking him, until he brought upon them the waters of the\nflood.  3. There were ten generations from Noah to Abraham, to make\nknown how long-suffering God is, seeing that all those generations\ncontinued provoking him, until Abraham, our father, came, and received\nthe reward they should all have earned.  4. With ten trials our father\nAbraham was tried, and he stood firm in them all, to make known how\ngreat was the love of our father Abraham.  5. Ten miracles were\nwrought for our fathers in Egypt, and ten at the Sea.  6. Ten plagues\ndid the Holy One, blessed be He, bring upon the Egyptians in Egypt,\nand ten at the Sea.  7. With ten temptations did our fathers tempt the\nHoly One, blessed be He, in the wilderness, as it is said, \"And they\ntempted me these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice.\"  8.\nTen miracles were wrought for our fathers in the Temple; no woman\nmiscarried from the scent of the holy flesh; the holy flesh never\nbecame putrid; no fly was seen in the slaughter-house; no unclean\naccident ever befell the high-priest on the Day of Atonement; the rain\nnever quenched the fire of the wood-pile on the altar; neither did the\nwind overcome the column of smoke that arose therefrom; nor was there\never found any disqualifying defect in the omer (of new barley,\noffered on the second day of Passover) or in the two loaves (the first\nfruits of the wheat-harvest, offered on Pentecost), or in the\nshewbread; though the people stood closely pressed together, they\nfound ample space to prostrate themselves; never did serpent or\nscorpion injure any one in Jerusalem; nor did any man ever say to his\nfellow, \"the place is too strait for me to lodge over night in\nJerusalem.\"  9. Ten things were created on the eve of Sabbath in the\ntwilight: the mouth of the earth; the mouth of the well; the mouth of\nthe ass; the rainbow; the manna; the rod; the shamir; the shape of\nwritten characters; the writing, and the tables of stone: some say,\nthe destroying spirits also, and the sepulchre of Moses, and the ram\nof Abraham our father; and others say, tongs, also, made with tongs.\n\n10. There are seven marks of an uncultured, and seven of a wise man.\nThe wise man does not speak before him who is greater than he in\nwisdom; and does not interrupt the speech of his companion; he is not\nhasty to answer; he questions according to the subject-matter; and\nanswers to the point; he speaks upon the first thing first, and upon\nthe last, last; regarding that which he has not understood he says, \"I\ndo not understand it;\" and he acknowledges the truth.  The reverse of\nall this is to be found in an uncultured man.  11. Seven kinds of\npunishment come into the world for seven important transgressions.  If\nsome give their tithes and others do not, a dearth ensues from drought\nand some suffer hunger while others are full.  If they all determine\nto give no tithes, a dearth ensures from tumult and drought.  If they\nfurther resolve not to give the dough-cake, an exterminating dearth\nensures.  Pestilence comes into the world to fulfil those death\npenalties threatened in the _Torah_, the execution of which, however,\nis within the function of a human tribunal, and for the violation of\nthe law regarding the fruits of the seventh year.  The sword comes\ninto the world for the delay of justice, and for the perversion of\njustice, and on account of the offence of those who interpret the\n_Torah_, not according to its true sense.  Noxious beasts come into\nthe world for vain swearing, and for the profanation of the Divine\nName.  Captivity comes into the world on account of idolatry,\nimmortality, bloodshed, and the neglect of the year of rest for the\nsoil.  12. At four periods pestilence grows apace: in the fourth year,\nin the seventh, at the conclusion of the seventh year, and at the\nconclusion of the Feast of Tabernacles in each year: in the fourth\nyear, for default of giving the tithe to the poor in the third year;\nin the seventh year, for default of giving the title to the poor in\nthe sixth year; at the conclusion of the seventh year, for the\nviolation of the law regarding the fruits of the seventh year, and at\nthe conclusion of the Feast of Tabernacles in each year, for robbing\nthe poor of the grants legally assigned to them.\n\n13. There are four characters among men: he who says, \"What is mine is\nmine and what is thine is thine,\" his is a neutral character; some\nsay, \"This is a character like that of Sodom\"; he who says, \"What is\nmine is thine and what is thine is mine,\" is a boor; he who says,\n\"What is mine is thine and what is thine is thine,\" is a saint; he who\nsays, \"What is thine is mine and what is mine is mine,\" is a wicked\nman.  14. There are four kinds of tempers: he whom it is easy to\nprovoke and easy to pacify, his loss disappears in his gain; he whom\nit is hard to provoke and hard to pacify, his gain disappears in his\nloss; he whom it is hard to provoke and easy to pacify is a saint; he\nwhom it is easy to provoke and hard to pacify is a wicked man.  15.\nThere are four qualities in disciples: he who quickly understands and\nquickly forgets, his gain disappears in his loss; he who understands\nwith difficulty and forgets with difficulty, his loss disappears in\nhis gain; he who understands quickly and forgets with difficulty, his\nis a good portion; he who understands with difficulty and forgets\nquickly, his is an evil portion.  16. As to almsgiving there are four\ndispositions: he who desires to give, but that others should not give,\nhis eye is evil toward what appertains to others; he who desires that\nothers should give, but will not give himself, his eye is evil against\nwhat is his own; he who gives and wishes others to give is a saint; he\nwho will not give and does not wish others to give is a wicked man.\n17. There are four characters among those who attend the house of\nstudy: he who goes and does not practise secures the reward for going;\nhe who practises but does not go secures the reward for practising; he\nwho goes and practises is a saint; he who neither goes nor practises\nis a wicked man.  18. There are four qualities among those that sit\nbefore the wise: they are like a sponge, a funnel, a strainer, or a\nsieve: a sponge, which sucks up everything; a funnel, which lets in at\none end and out at the other; a strainer, which lets the wine pass out\nand retains the dregs; a sieve, which lets out the bran and retains\nthe fine flour.\n\n19. Whenever love depends upon some material cause, with the passing\naway of that cause, the love, too, passes away; but if it be not\ndepending upon such a cause, it will not pass away for ever.  Which\nlove was that which depended upon a material cause?  Such was the love\nof Ammon and Tamar.  And that which depended upon no such cause?  Such\nwas the love of David and Jonathan.\n\n20. Every controversy that is in the Name of Heaven shall in the end\nlead to a permanent result, but every controversy that is not in the\nName of Heaven shall not lead to a permanent result.  Which\ncontroversy was that which was in the Name of Heaven?  Such was the\ncontroversy of Hillel and Shammai.  And that which was not in the Name\nof Heaven?  Such was the controversy of Korah and all his company.\n\n21. Whosoever causes the multitude to be righteous, over him sin\nprevails not; but he who causes the multitude to sin shall not have\nthe means to repent.  Moses was righteous and made the multitude\nrighteous; the righteousness of the multitude was laid upon him, as it\nis said, \"He executed the justice of the Lord and his judgments with\nIsrael.\"  Jeroboam, the son of Nebat, sinned and caused the multitude\nto sin; the sin of the multitude was laid upon him, as it is said,\n\"For the sins of Jeroboam which he sinned and which he made Israel to\nsin.\"\n\n22. Whosoever has these three attributes is of the disciples of\nAbraham, our father, but whosoever has three other attributes is of\nthe disciples of Balaam, the wicked.  A good eye, a humble mind, and a\nlowly spirit (are the tokens) of the disciples of Abraham, our father;\nan evil eye, a haughty mind, and a proud spirit (are the signs) of the\ndisciples of Balaam, the wicked.  What is the difference between the\ndisciples of Abraham, our father, and those of Balaam, the wicked?\nThe disciples of Abraham, our father, enjoy this world and inherit the\nworld to come, as it is said, \"That I may cause those that love me to\ninherit substance, and may fill all their treasuries\"; but the\ndisciples of Balaam, the wicked, inherit _Gehinnom_, and descend into\nthe pit of destruction, as it is said, \"But thou, O God, wilt bring\nthem down into the pit of destruction; bloodthirsty and deceitful men\nshall not live out half their days; but I will trust in thee.\"\n\n23. Judah, the son of Tema, said, \"Be bold as a leopard, swift as an\neagle, fleet as a hart, and strong as a lion, to do the will of thy\nFather who is in Heaven.\"  24. He used to say, \"At five years (the age\nis reached for the study of the) Scripture, at ten for (the study of)\nthe _Mishnah_, at thirteen for (the fulfilment of) the commandments,\nat fifteen for (the study of) the _Talmud_, at eighteen for marriage,\nat twenty for seeking (a livelihood), at thirty for (entering into\none's full) strength, at forty for understanding, at fifty for\ncounsel, at sixty (a man attains) old age, at seventy the hoary head,\nat eighty (the gift of special) strength, at ninety, (he bends\nbeneath) the weight of years, at a hundred he is as if he were already\ndead and had passed away from the world.\"\n\n25. Ben Bag Bag said, \"Turn it, and turn it over again, for everything\nis in it, and contemplate it, and wax grey and old over it, and stir\nnot from it, for thou canst have no better rule than this.\"\n\n26. Ben He He said, \"According to the labor is the reward.\"\n\nRabbi Chanania, the son of Akashia, said, \"The Holy One, blessed be\nHe, was pleased to make Israel worthy; wherefore He gave them a\ncopious _Torah_ and many commandments, as it is said, 'It pleased the\nLord, for his righteousness' sake, to magnify the _Torah_ and make it\nhonorable'\".\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\nCHAPTER VI\n\nTHE ACQUISITION OF THE TORAH\n\nAll Israel have a portion in the world to come, and it is said, \"And\nthy people shall be all righteous; they shall inherit the land for\never, the branch of my planting, the work of my hands, that I may be\nglorified\".\n\nThe sages taught (the following) in the language of the\n_Mishnah_--blessed be He that made choice of them and their _Mishnah_.\n 1. R. Meir said, \"Whosoever labors in the _Torah_ for its own sake\nmerits many things; and not only so, but the whole world is indebted\nto him: he is called friend, beloved, a lover of the All-present, a\nlover of mankind: it clothes him with meekness and reverence; it fits\nhim to become just, pious, upright, and faithful; it keeps him far\nfrom sin, and brings him near to virtue; through him are enjoyed\ncounsel and sound knowledge, understanding and strength, as it is\nsaid, 'Counsel is mind, and sound knowledge; I am understanding; I\nhave strength.'  It gives him sovereignty and dominion and discerning\njudgment; to him the secrets of the _Torah_ are revealed; he is made\nlike a never-failing spring and like a river that flows on with\never-increasing vigor; he becomes modest, long-suffering, and\nforgiving of insults; and it magnifies and exalts him above all\nthings.\"\n\n2. R. Joshua, the son of Levi, said, \"Every day a _bat-kol_ goes forth\nfrom Mount Horeb, proclaiming and saying, 'Woe to mankind for contempt\nof the _Torah_, for whoever does not occupy himself in the _Torah_ is\nsaid to be under the divine censure, as it is said, 'As a ring of gold\nin a swine's snout, so is a fair woman who turneth aside from\ndiscretion'; and it says, 'And the tables were the work of God, and\nthe writing was the writing of God, graven upon the tables.'  Read not\n_charut_, but _cherut_, for no man is free but he who occupies himself\nin the learning of _Torah_.  But whosoever labors in the _torah_,\nbehold he shall be exalted, as it is said, 'And from _Mattanah_ to\n_Nachaliel_, and from _Nachaliel_ to _Bamot_.'\"\n\n3. He who learns from his companion a single chapter, a single rule, a\nsingle verse, a single expression, or even a single letter, ought to\npay him honor, for so we find with David, King of Israel, who learned\nonly two things from Ahitophel, and yet regarded him as his master,\nhis guide, and familiar friend, as it is said, \"But it was thou, a\nman, mine equal, my guide, and my familiar friend.\"  Now, is it not an\nargument from minor to major, that if David, the King of Israel, who\nlearned only two things from Ahitophel, regarded him as his master,\nguide, and familiar friend, he who learns from his fellow a chapter,\nrule, verse, expression, or even a single letter, is bound to pay him\nhonor.  And \"honor\" is nothing but _Torah_, as it is said, \"The wise\nshall inherit honor and the perfect shall inherit good.\"  And \"good\"\nis nothing but _Torah_, as it is said, \"For I give you good doctrine,\nforsake ye not my _Torah_.\"\n\n4. This is the way that is becoming for the study of the _Torah_: a\nmorsel of bread with salt thou must eat, \"and water by measure thou\nmust drink,\" thou must sleep upon the ground, and live a life of\ntrouble the while thou toilest in the _Torah_.  If thou doest thus,\n\"Happy shalt thou be, and it shall be well with thee,\" \"happy shalt\nthou be\" in this world, and \"it shall be well with thee\" in the world\nto come.\n\n5. Seek not greatness for thyself, and court not honor; let thy works\nexceed thy learning; and crave not after the table of kings; for thy\ntable is greater than theirs, and thy crown is greater than theirs,\nand thy Employer is faithful to pay thee the reward of thy work.\n\n6. The _Torah_ is greater than the priesthood and than royalty, for\nroyalty demands thirty qualifications, the priesthood twenty-four,\nwhile the _Torah_ is acquired by forty-eight.  And these are they: by\naudible study; by a listening ear; by distinct pronunciation; by\nunderstanding and discernment of the heart; by awe, reverence,\nmeekness, cheerfulness; by ministering to the sages, by attaching\none's self to colleagues, by discussion with disciples; by sedateness;\nby knowledge of the Scripture and of the _Mishnah;_ by moderation in\nbusiness, in intercourse with the world, in pleasure, in sleep, in\nconversation, in laughter; by long suffering; by a good heart; by\nfaith in the wise; by resignation under chastisement; by recognizing\none's place, rejoicing in one's portion, putting a fence to one's\nwords, claiming no merit for one's self, by being beloved, loving the\nAll-present, loving mankind, loving just courses, rectitude, and\nreproof; by keeping one's self far from honor, not boasting of one's\nlearning, nor delighting in giving decisions; by bearing the yoke with\none's fellow, judging him favorably, and leading him to truth and\npeace; by being composed in one's study; by asking and answering,\nhearing and adding thereto; by learning with the object of teaching,\nand by learning with the object of practising; by making one's master\nwise, fixing attention upon his discourse, and reporting a thing in\nthe name of who said it.  So thou hast learned, \"Whosoever reports a\nthing in the name of him that said it brings deliverance into the\nworld,\" as it is said, \"And Esther told the king in the name of\nMordecai.\"\n\n7. Great is the _Torah_, which gives life to those that practise it in\nthis world and in the world to come, as it is said, \"For they are life\nunto those that find them, and health to all their flesh\"; and it\nsays, \"It shall be health to thy navel, and marrow to thy bones\"; and\nit says, \"It is a tree of life to them that grasp it, and of them that\nuphold it every one is rendered happy\"; and it says, \"For they shall\nbe a chaplet of grace unto thy head, and chains about thy neck\"; and\nit says, \"It shall give to thine head a chaplet of grace, a crown of\nglory it shall deliver to thee\"; and it says, \"For by me thy days\nshall be multiplied, and the years of thy life shall be increased\";\nand it says, \"Length of days is in its right hand; in its left hand\nare riches and honor\"; and it says, \"For length of days, and years of\nlife, and peace shall they add to thee.\"\n\n8. R. Simeon, the son of Judah, in the name of R. Simeon, the son of\nYohai, said, \"Beauty, strength, riches, honor, wisdom, old age, a\nhoary head, and children are comely to the righteous and comely to the\nworld, as it is said, 'The hoary head is a crown of glory, if it be\nfound in the way of righteousness'; and it says, 'The glory of young\nmen is their strength, and the adornment of old men is the hoary\nhead'; and it says, 'A crown unto the wise is their riches'; and it\nsays, 'Children's children are the crown of old men, and the adornment\nof children are their fathers'; and it is said, 'Then the moon shall\nbe confounded and the sun ashamed; for the Lord of hosts shall reign\nin Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before his elders shall be\nglory.'\"  R. Simeon, the son of Menasya, said, \"These seven\nqualifications which the sages enumerated as becoming to the righteous\nwere all realized in Rabbi Judah, the Prince, and in his sons.\"\n\n9. R. Jose, the son of Kisma, said, \"I was once walking by the way,\nwhen a man met me and saluted me, and I returned the salutation.  He\nsaid to me, 'Rabbi, from what place art thou?'  I said to him, 'I come\nfrom a great city of sages and scribes.'  He said to me, 'If thou art\nwilling to dwell with us in our place, I will give thee a thousand\nthousand golden dinars and precious stones and pearls.'  I said to\nhim, 'Wert thou to give me all the silver and gold and precious stones\nand pearls in the world, I would not dwell anywhere but in a home of\nthe _Torah';_ and thus it is written in the book of Psalms by the\nhands of David, King of Israel, 'The law of thy mouth is better unto\nme than thousands of gold and silver'; and not only so, but in the\nhour of man's departure neither silver nor gold nor precious stones\nnor pearls accompany him, but only _Torah_ and good works, as it is\nsaid, 'When thou walkest it shall lead thee; when thou liest down it\nshall watch over thee; and when thou awakest it shall talk with thee';\n'when thou walkest it shall lead thee'--in this world; and 'when thou\nawakest it shall talk with thee'--in the world to come.  And it says,\n'The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.'\"\n\n10. Five possessions the Holy One, blessed be He, made especially His\nown in His world, and these are they, the _Torah_, heaven and earth,\nAbraham, Israel, and the house of the sanctuary.  Whence know we this\nof the _Torah?_  Because it is written, \"The Lord possessed me as the\nbeginning of his way, before his works, from of old.\"  Whence of\nheaven and earth?  Because it is written, \"Thus saith the Lord, the\nheaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: what manner of\nhouse will ye build unto me? and what manner of place for my rest?\";\nand it says, \"How manifold are thy works, O Lord!  In wisdom hast thou\nmade them all: the earth is full of thy possessions.\"  Whence of\nAbraham?  Because it is written, \"And he blessed him, and said,\n'Blessed be Abram of the Most High God, possessor of heaven and\nearth.\"  Whence of Israel?  Because it is written, \"Till thy people\npass over, O Lord, till the people pass over which thou hast\nacquired\"; and it says, \"As for the saints that are in the earth, they\nare the noble ones in whom is all my delight.\"  Whence of the house of\nthe sanctuary?  Because it is written, \"The place, O Lord, which thou\nhast made for Thee to dwell in, the sanctuary, O Lord, which Thy hands\nhave prepared\"; and it says, \"And he brought them to the border of his\nsanctuary, to this mountain which his right hand had acquired.\"  11.\nWhatsoever the Holy One, blessed be He, created in His world He\ncreated but for His glory, as it is said, \"Everything that is called\nby my name, it is for my glory I have created it, I have formed it,\nyea, I have made it\"; and it says, \"The Lord shall reign for ever and\never.\"\n\nRabbi Chanania, the son of Akashia, said, \"The Holy One, blessed be\nHe, was pleased to make Israel worthy; wherefore He gave them a\ncopious _Torah_ and many commandments, as it is said, 'It pleased the\nLord, for his righteousness' sake, to magnify the _Torah_ and make it\nhonorable'\".\n\n\n\n\n\n_____________________\n  TRANSCRIBER'S NOTES\n\nCHAPTERS II through VI:\n\nThe source text included the following lines:\n          \"All Israel,\" etc., p. 29\nand\n          \"Rabbi Chanania,\" etc., p. 38.\n as the first and last line of each chapter, the page numbers referring\nto the beginning and ending of Chapter I.  Rather than reference these\ntwo sentences in this manner, this text version copies the two\nsentences to their intended locations.  The transcriber believes this\nbetter captures the intent and functionality of the text.\n\n\n\nChapter III:\n\nR. Meir\n     umlaut over the i, wherever this name appears\n\n\n\nCHAPTER IV:\n\nhappy art thou in this world, and\n     in the source text, the comma after 'worls' was a period.  This\n     was corrected for this electronic text.\n\n\n\nCHAPTER V:\n\ntables of stone\n     are as written in the source text as a translation of the Hebrew\n     \"luchot\"; modern readers may better recognize the phrase 'tablets\n     of stone'.","title":"Pirke Avot: The Sayings of the Jewish Fathers","tradition":"scripture-revelation","translated_text":null,"word_count":9536}