Pisqa’ 43¹

1

“And I will provide grass in your fields for your cattle” (Dt.11:15)—

so that you shall not be troubled

to seek grazing in the desert.

You claim that the point of the verse is

so that you shall not be troubled

to seek grazing in the desert!

But, perhaps:

“And I will provide grass in your fields for your cattle”

means just that?²

The Teaching goes on to state:

“And you shall eat to satisfaction” (Dt.11:15).

So how do I explain

“and I will provide grass in your fields for your cattle?”

So that you shall not be troubled

to seek grazing in the wilderness.

2

R. Judah b. Bava says:

“And I will provide grass in your fields for your cattle” (Dt.11:15)—

even between the boundaries of each field.

R. Shimon b. Yohai says:

“And I will provide grass in your fields for your cattle” (Dt.11:15)—

so that you shall cut it

and throw it before your cattle during the entire rainy season.

And you should be able to neglect it

for thirty days prior to the harvest,

yet it shall be productive and not diminish its yield.

Rabbi says:

“And I will provide grass in your fields for your cattle” (Dt.11:15)—

this refers to flax.

And similarly He says:

“Who causes the grass to sprout for the cattle, and herbs from the labors of man,

to bring forth bread from the earth” (Ps.104:14).

“And you shall eat to satisfaction” (Dt.11:15)—

it is a good omen for a person when his beast eats to satisfaction.

And similarly He says:
”A righteous person understands the hunger of his beast” (Prov.12:10).

Another word:

“And you shall eat to satisfaction” (Dt.11:15)—

when your beast eats to satisfaction,

she works the earth powerfully,

for it is said:

“Abundant produce comes through the power of an ox” (Prov.14:4).

Another word:

“And you shall eat to satisfaction” (Dt.11:15)—

from the herd’s offspring.

Even though there is no proof of this interpretation,

there is a hint of it—

“And they shall be radiant with the bounty of HASHEM—

for the grain, the must, and the oil,

and the young of the flock and the herd.” (Jer.31:11-12)

3

“And you shall eat to satisfaction.

Be careful lest (pen) your heart seduce you” (Dt.11:15-16).

He said to them:

Be cautious, lest (shema’) you rebel against the All-Present.

For a person only rebels against the All-Present out of satisfaction,³

as it is said:

“Lest (pen) you eat to satisfaction, and build fine homes to dwell in,

and your cattle and herds increase, and your silver and gold accumulates for you” (Dt.8:13-14).

What does He say thereafter?

“Then your heart will become haughty,

and you will forget HASHEM, your God” (Dt.8:14).

And similarly, you say:

“When I’ll have brought him to the soil that I pledged to his ancestors,

   dripping with milk and honey” (Dt. 31:20).

What does He say thereafter?

“And he will turn to foreign gods” (Dt.31:20).

And similarly, you say:

“And the people sat to eat and drink” (Ex.32:6).

What does He say thereafter?

“They made for themselves a molten calf” (Ex.32:8).

4

And so do you find that

the people of the Deluge generation

rebelled against the All-Present

only out of satisfaction.

What is said of them?

“Their homes are at peace, free of fear . . . , they send their children off in flocks . . . they while away their days in satisfaction” (Job21:9-14).

 

And [this comfort] caused them to rebel:

“For they said to God, leave us be!

What is the Self-Sufficient that we should serve Him” (Job21:14-15)?

They declared:

We don’t need Him for so much as a drop of rain,

“for a mist will arise from the earth” (Gn.2:6).

The All-Present replied:

With the very well-being I have shown you,

you now flatter yourselves before Me—

through it will I exact punishment from you!

“And the rain fell upon the earth for forty days and forty nights” (Gn.7:12).⁴

R. Yose b. Dormasqit says:

They cast their eyes upward and downward

in order to satisfy their desires.

So the All-Present opened upon them

the springs of the upper and lower waters to destroy them,

for it is said:

“On that day, all the fountains of the great depths were split,

and the portals of Heaven were opened” (Gn.7:11).

5

And so do you find that

the people of the Tower rebelled against the All-Present

only out of satisfaction.

What is said of them?

“Now all the earth had one language and uniform speech.

And they traveled to the East, and found a plain in the land of Shinar,

and they settled (yeishvu) there” (Gn.11:1-2).

Now the word, settled (yeshivah), in this context

implies over-eating and over-drinking,

in accord with this usage:

“Now the people settled down to eat and drink, and they arose to frolic” (Ex.32:6).

And this [eating and drinking] caused them to rebel—⁵

for they said:

“Let us build ourselves a city”(Gn.11:4).

Now, what is stated of them?

“And HASHEM scattered them from there” (Gn.11:8).

6

And so do you find that

the people of Sodom rebelled against the All-Present

only out of satisfaction.

What is said of them?

“From the earth comes bread . . . its stones are mines of sapphire . . .

its roads are unknown to the vulture . . . the prideful have not marred it (Job28:5-8).

Said the people of Sodom:

Look—we have food!

We have silver and gold!

Let us resolve to blot out from our land

the memory that hospitality is due to pilgrims!

The All-Present replied:

With the very well-being I have shown you,

you intend to blot out among yourselves

the memory that hospitality is due to pilgrims?

But with it I will blot out all memory of you from the world!⁶

What is said of them?

“They are uninhabited oases . . . neglected by the pilgrim ” (Job28:4).

And:

“The tents of bandits prosper in preparation for the pilgrims,

while those who provoke God are safe” (Job12:5-6).

And this [satisfaction] caused them to rebel—

“With whatever God placed in his hands” (Job12:6).

And, similarly, He says [of Sodom]:

“As I live, says the Master, HASHEM,

this was the transgression of your sister, Sodom . . .

She and her daughters had plenty of bread and untroubled tranquility . . .

yet, in arrogance, they did not strenthen the hand of the poor and oppressed!” (Ezek.16:48-49).

7

And, similarly, you say:

“And Lot lifted his eyes and saw that the entire plain of the Jordan was irrigated”

(mashqeh; Gn.13:10).

And then what does He say?

“They watered (tishqeinah) their father with wine” (Gn.19:33).⁷

Now, where did they find wine in a cave?

In fact, it appeared for this very occasion.

For in the same vein, He says:

“And it shall be, on that day, that the mountains shall drip sweet wine” (Joel 4:18)—

if He acts this way

towards those, who provoked Him,

it is reasonable to infer that

He will reward those who do His will!

R Meir says:

Look at what He says:

“Hangings of white, fine cotton, and blue wool” (Es.1:6).

Now, why does the verse come to teach us

about the wealth of Ahasueros?

Surely, if He is so generous towards those who provoke Him,

it is reasonable to infer that

He will reward those who do His will!⁸

8

Now, one time—

Rabban Gamliel, R. Joshua,

R. Elazar b. Azariah, and R. Akiva

were entering Rome.⁹

They heard the noise of the city

from the port of Puteoli, a distance of 120 mil.

They began to weep, but R. Akiva laughed.

They said to him:

Akiva! Why are we in tears while you laugh?

He replied to them: But why are you in tears?

They said to him: Why shouldn’t we weep?

A nation serving a foreign cult,

which offers sacrifice to gods,

and prostrates itself to wood,

somehow dwells securely, in tranquility and placidity—

whereas, the Abode of the Footstool of our God

is given over to fire and to dens of wild animals!

He replied to them:

But that’s why I’m laughing!

Surely, if He acts this way towards those who provoke Him,

it is reasonable to infer that

He will reward those who do His will!¹⁰

Further, another time—

they were ascending to Jerusalem.

When they reached Tzofim, they tore their garments.

When they reached the Mount of the Abode,

they saw a fox leaving the Most Holy Domain.

They began to weep, but R. Akiva laughed.

They said to him:

Akiva! You are always a puzzle!

For we are in tears, while you laugh!

He replied to them: But why are you in tears?

They said to him: Shouldn’t we weep

for the place of which it is written:

“And the foreigner who draws near will be put to death” (Nu.1:51)—

yet now a fox emerges from it?

Through us has the meaning of this verse become clear:

“For this our heart is pining away . . .

for the ruin of Mt. Zion, in which foxes run” (Lam.5:17-18).

He replied to them:

That’s why I’m laughing!

Look at what He says:

“I will bring testimony from reliable witnesses—

Uriah the Priest and Zechariah b. Yevorachiah . . .

I was intimate with the Prophetess, who conceived and bore a son . . .

And before that boy can say ‘Mother’ or ‘Father’,

the wealth of Damascus and the spoils of Samaria . . .

will be carried off before the king of Assyria!” (Is.8:2).

Now, you might ask:

What does Uriah have to do with Zechariah?

What did Uriah say?—

“Zion will be plowed like a field, Jerusalem shall be in ruins,

and the Mount of the Abode like forested hills (Jer.26:18).

What did Zechariah say?

“Thus says HASHEM of Retinues!

Elders and wise women will sit in the boulevards of the city” (Zekh.8:4).

Said the All-Present:

These are my two witnesses!

If the predictions of Uriah come true,

the predictions of Zechariah will also come true,

and if the predictions of Uriah are foiled,

the predictions of Zechariah will also be foiled.

I am laughing because the prediction of Uriah came true.

Ultimately, then, the prediction of Zechariah will also come true!

With this phrase, they replied:

Akiva,! You have consoled us!

9

Another word:

“And you shall eat to satisfaction. Be careful lest (pen) your heart seduce you” (Dt.11:16).

He said to them:

Take care lest (shema’) the compulsion to evil lead you astray,

and you depart from the Torah.

For as soon as a person departs from the Torah

he will go and join a foreign cult,

as it is stated:

“They have turned quickly from the path in which I commanded them,

making for themselves a molten calf” (Ex.32:5).

And He says

[of David, who sought to appease Saul]:

“If HASHEM has turned you against me, let Him sniff an offering!

But if people have done so, may they be cursed before HASHEM,

for today they have exiled me,

so I shall not grow in the heritage of HASHEM.

They said: Go, serve other gods!” (1 Sam26:19).

Now, can you imagine that

King David would serve a foreign cult?

Rather:

When he paused from words of Torah,

he felt like he had joined a foreign cult!¹¹

“To turn away” (Dt.11:16)—

from the way of life to the way of death.

10

“And you shall serve other gods” (Dt.11:16).

Now, are they indeed gods?

Hasn’t it already been stated:

“And they have thrown their gods into the fire, for they were no gods” (Is.37:19)?

So, why are they called “other (‘akherim) gods?”

Because they postpone (me’akherim)

the coming of well-being into the world!¹²

Another word:

“Other gods” (Dt.11:16)—

because they treat their worshipers like foreigners (‘akherim).¹³

Another word:

“Other gods” (Dt.11:16)—

because foreigners refer to them as divinities.

Another word:

“Other gods” (Dt.11:16)—

because they are alien (‘akheirim) to their worshippers.

And so He states:

“Even if one cries out to him, he does not answer;

from his troubles he cannot save him” (Is.46:7). ¹⁴

11

R. Yose says:

Why are they referred to as “other gods?”

So as to deny the world’s creatures a chance to claim that

if [the gods] had been called by His epithet [“God”]

they, too, would have been effective.

And, see?

They were called by His epithet,

and they still proved to be ineffective!

When were they first called by His epithet?

In the days of Enosh b. Seth,

for it is said:

“Then they began to call upon the Name of HASHEM” (Gn.4:26).

At that very moment, Okeanos¹⁵ arose

and drenched a third of the world.

The Blessed Holy One said to that [generation]:

By initiating on your own this call

[upon the gods by the Name of God],

you have been unprecedented.

I, too, will do something unprecedented,

by calling upon Okeanos

[by My Name]!

[For it is said:

“He calls forth the waters of the Sea, and pours them out . . .

HASHEM is His Name!” (Am.5:8).¹⁶

12

R. Isaac says:

If the names of the [objects venerated by] foreign cults were all listed,

the world would not last long enough to punish them all!¹⁷

R. Eliezer says:

Why are they referred to as “other gods?”

Because every day their servants make a new divinity.

If he had one of gold, and he [later] needed the gold,

he’d replace it [with another one] of silver.

If he needed the silver one,

he’d replace it [with another one] of copper.

If he needed the copper one,

he’d replace it [with another one] of iron.

If he needed the one of iron,

he’d replace it [with another one] of tin.

If he needed the one of tin,

he’d replace it [with another one] of lead.

If he needed the one of lead,

he’d replace it [with another one] of wood.¹⁸

R. Hanina b. Antigonos says:

Go and examine the expression the Torah chooses

—Molekh—

implying that whatever you permit to rule over you (tamlikheihu)¹⁹

for even a single hour [is your god].²⁰

Rabbi says:

Why are they referred to as other gods?

Because they are the penultimate acts of creation.

And the one creature who was

the ultimate creative act

[namely, the descendants of Adam,]

called them gods.²¹

13

“And to prostrate yourselves before them” (Dt.11:16)—

to them you prostrate yourselves,

but to me— you don’t prostrate yourselves?

And so does He say:

“So they prostrated themselves to it and offered sacrifice to it, and said:

these are your gods, O Israel!” (Ex.32:8)

Others say:

Had Israel not associated the name of the All-Present

with service to a foreign cult,

they would have been destroyed from the world.²²

Rabban Shimon b. Gamliel says:

Isn’t it the case that

whoever associates the name of the All-Present with service to a foreign cult

is, indeed, bound for destruction?

For it is stated:

“One who offers sacrifice to the gods shall be utterly destroyed” (Ex.22:19).

What does the Teaching state?

“Other gods” (Dt.11:16)—

this teaches that

they made for themselves many molten calves.

And, similarly, He states:

“They also shut the doors of the porch²³, and put out the lamps,

and have offered neither incense nor a Holocaust-offering²⁴

in the Holy Domain²⁵ to the God of Israel” (2Chron.29:7):

to an unmentionable thing (davar ‘akher),²⁶ they offered incense—

but not to Heaven!

Nor a Holocaust-offering—

to an unmentionable thing they offered Holocaust-offerings—

but not to Heaven!

In the Holy Domain—

they did not offer Holocaust-offerings;

but on the profane altars

they did offer Holocaust-offerings.

“To the God of Israel”—

they did not offer Holocaust-offerings,

but they did offer them to an unmentionable thing.

14

If you behave in this way—

“Then HASHEM’s fierce anger will flare up against you” (Dt.11:17).

There is an analogy—

A king sent his son to represent him at a wedding feast.

Before hand, the king sat and instructed him, saying:

My son!

Don’t eat more than you need to,

and don’t drink more than you need to,

so that you may return home spotless.

That son paid no attention.

He ate more than he needed to,

and drank more than he needed to.

Then he vomited and soiled the party guests.

They took him by his hands and feet

and threw him behind the palace.

Thus said the Blessed Holy One to the children of Israel:

I have brought you into a good and broad Land,

to a Land dripping with milk and honey,

to eat of its fruit, to be satisfied with its bounty,

and to bless My Name over it.

You were oblivious to the bounty,

but may notice the retribution!

“Then HASHEM’s fierce anger will flare up against you” (Dt.11:17).

“Then HASHEM’s fierce anger will flare up against you” (Dt.11:17).

Shall I infer that

Israel is to be annihilated from the world?

The Teaching states:

“And He will shut the Heavens” (Dt.11:17)—

no, the retributions themselves

will be exhausted but Israel will abide.

And similarly He says:

“My arrows will be exhausted against them” (Dt.32:23)—

my arrows may be exhausted,

yet Israel will not be annihilated.

And similarly He says:

“HASHEM has exhausted his fury,

has poured out his fierce anger” (Lam.4:11).²⁷

15

Fierce anger is mentioned here (Dt.11:17),

and fierce anger is mentioned elsewhere (Ex.22:23).

Just as the fierce anger mentioned elsewhere

refers to the sword,

can the fierce anger mentioned here

also refer to the sword?²⁸

Just as the fierce anger mentioned elsewhere (Lv.26:16)

refers to cattle plague and wild beasts,

can the fierce anger mentioned here (Dt.11:17)

also refer to cattle plague and wild beasts?

Just as the fierce anger mentioned here (Dt.11:17)

refers to drought and exile,

can the fierce anger mentioned elsewhere (Ex.22:23)

refer to drought and exile.?

 

We turn out to have learned that

wherever fierce anger is mentioned,

five types of retribution are included:

the sword, cattle plague, wild beasts, drought,

and exile.²⁹

Another word:

“Then HASHEM’s fierce anger will flare up against you” (Dt.11:17)—

but not against the nations of the world!

For the nations of the world bask in bounty,

while Israel wallows in retribution.

The nations of the world do not

bury their sons and daughters,

yet Israel buries its sons and daughters.³⁰

16

“And He will shut the heavens” (Dt.11:17).

For the clouds will be laden and ready,

but will not release even a drop of rain.

How do we know that

dew and winds will fail as well?

The Teaching states:

“And I will transform your heavens into iron” (Lv.26:19).

Will irrigated fields, at least, bear fruit?

The Teaching states:

“And your fields into brass” (Lv.26:19).

“And the earth will not release its yield” Dt.11:17)—

not even the fruit fallen [of its own].

“And the earth will not release its yield” (yevulah; Dt.11:17)—

not even what you bring to it (meivi’ lah)³¹

Will a tree, at least, bear fruit?
The Teaching states:

“And the tree of the field will not yield its fruit” (Lv.26:20)

Will trees, at least, yield wood

for kindling the oven and stove?

The Teaching states:

“And the tree of the field will not yield its fruit.”

Will they depart the Land to bask abroad in bounty?

The Teaching states:

“And the Heavens above your head will become as brass,

and the Land beneath you shall become as iron” (Dt.28:23)—

anywhere you may flee!

17

Another word:

“Then HASHEM’s fierce anger will flare up against you” (Dt.11:17).

After all the struggles I’ll bring upon you,

I will finally exile you!

Exile is harshest, for it outweighs them all,

as it is stated:

“And HASHEM will drive them from their Land

in anger, and rage, and with great indignation.

And He shall send them off to a different land,

as on this very day” (Dt.29:27).”

And He also says:

“And when they say to you: Where shall we go?

You should tell them:

Thus says HASHEM—those destined for death, to death;

and those destined for the sword, to the sword;

and those destined for hunger, to hunger;

and those destined for captivity, to captivity” (Jer.15:2).

And He says:

“Thus says HASHEM—your wife in the city will become a whore,

and your sons and daughters will fall to the sword,

and your territory will be apportioned by measure.

And as for you—

on polluted ground will you die.

And Israel will indeed be exiled from its territory” (Amos 7:17).

And He says:

“Do not weep for the dead, and do not lament for him!

But wail for the one departing to Exile, for he will never return

to see the Land of his birth” (Jer.22:10).

Do not weep for the dead—

this refers to Jehoiakim, king of Judah, [who died in Jerusalem].

What is said about him?

“The burial of an ass is his burial” (Jer.22:19).

But wail for the one departing to exile (Jer.22:10)—

this refers to Jehoiakhin, king of Judah, [who died in exile].

What is said about him?

“So he changed his prisoner’s clothing, and ate bread before him” (Jer.52:33).

We turn out to learn that

the carcass of Jehoiakim, king of Judah—

which was exposed to the heat by day

and to the cold by night—

was more precious than

the life of Jehoiakhin, king of Judah,

whose throne was above the throne of kings,

and who ate and drank in the banquet halls of kings.

19

“And you will quickly perish” (Dt.11:17)—

I will immediately exile you,

and I’ll grant no amelioration of the decree!

If you should say:

but, He gave an extension of a hundred and twenty years

to the generation of the Deluge!

I’ll respond:

The generation of the Deluge

had no example to learn from—

but, as for you, you have someone to learn from,

[namely, Moses]!

Another word:

“And you will quickly perish” (Dt.11:17)—

from expulsion after expulsion!

And, similarly, you also find that

the fate of expulsion after expulsion

befell the ten Tribes of Israel.

And you also find that

the fate of expulsion after expulsion

befell the Tribes of Judah and Benjamin.

For they were exiled in the seventh year of Nebuchadnezzar,

and again in the eighteenth year,

and again in the twenty third year.

R. Joshua b. Qorhah says:

An analogy—

A certain bandit entered a householder’s field.

He cut down a bin-full and the owner didn’t object.

He cut down his standing grain and the owner didn’t object.

The bandit continued

until his own bin overflowed, and then he left.

And so He says:

“There is no gloom for her who held steadfast.

Now the former king has lightly afflicted

the land of Zebulun and Naftali.

But the latter king would have dealt a crushing blow” (Is.8:23).³²

20

R. Shimon b. Yohai says:

if those of whom it was said: quickly (Dt.11:17)

were in fact exiled only after a lapse of time,

it is only reasonable to infer that

a lapse of time is granted to those of whom quickly was not said!

Another word:

“And you will quickly perish . . . and place these words” (Dt.11:17-18)—

even though I am expelling you

from the Land itself to beyond the Land,

may you excel in the commandments,

so that upon your return, they will not be unfamiliar to you.

There is an analogy—

a king of flesh and blood grew angry at his wife,

and sent her back to her father’s household.

He said to her:

keep wearing your jewelry,

so that upon your return it will not be unfamiliar to you.

Just this did the Blessed Holy One say to Israel:

My children!

May you excel (metzuyanim) in the commandments, (­mitzvot)³³

so that upon your return, they will not be unfamiliar to you.

21

This is the point of what Jeremiah said:

“Erect for yourself milestones (tziyyunim; Jer.31.20)—

these are the commandments (mitzvot) by which

Israel is singled out (metzuyanim).³⁴

“Memorialize your bitterness” (Jer.31:21)—

by recalling the destruction of the Holy Abode.

And similarly He says:

“If I forget you, Jerusalem . . . let my tongue stick to the roof of my mouth”

(Ps.137:5-6).

“Fix your mind on the road, the way you have come” (Jer.31:21).

Said the Blessed Holy One to Israel:

Observe those paths you have trod and turn in repentance.

Immediately, you shall return to your cities,

For it is said:

“Return you maiden, Israel!! Return, to these, your cities.” (Jer.31:20).

22

Another word:

“And you will quickly perish from the good Land” (Dt.11:17)—

you are expelled from an excellent Land,

and you will not enter another nearly as excellent.

R. Judah says:

“Good” (Dt.11:17)—this refers to Torah.

And so He says:

“Indeed, a good Teaching have I given you;³⁵

My Torah—do not abandon it” (Prov.4:2)—

[for it will preserve you in the Land,]³⁶

and even beyond the Land.³⁷

1. H:86-88; JN1:132-135.
2. When the cattle eat you shall starve.
3. On the same point, cf. Pisqa’ 318.1ff.
4. //T. Sotah 3:6-8. Cf. Pisqa’ 313.1
5. //Sifre Nu, 131.
6. Cf. T. Sotah 3:6-8.
7. The root, sh-q-h, means to irrigate, and thus lends itself to the word-play associated with Lot’s daughters.
8. F:94, n.7 regards this passage as an interpolation based on the midrash, Esther Rabbah 3:9. Both passages conclude with the identical coda:”If He acts this way towards those who provoke Him, it is reasonable to infer that He will reward those who do His will!”
9. This is the full version of the story subjected to scribal abbreviation at Pisqa’ 318.4
10. // B. Mak.24b and other Amoraic sources.
11. Cf. T. AZ. 4 (5):5.
12. //Mechilta Ishmael, bakhodesh 6. The exegeses of Pisqa’ 43:10-12 all depend upon word-plays with the root, `-kh-r, which conveys the sense of “otherness.”
13. //Mechilta Ishmael, wayehi 5.
14. //Mechilta Ishmael, bakhodesh 6.
15. Literally, “Ocean.” “Okeanos” is the mythologized form of Amos’ mei hayam (Am.5:8), and a close relative of Tiamat (tehom; Gn.1:2).
16. =Mechilta Ishmael, bakhodesh 6.
17. =Mechilta Ishmael, bakhodesh 5.
18. //Mechilta Ishmael, bakhodesh 6. The value of the material diminishes with each iteration of the idol.
19. The root, m-l-ch underlies the name, Molech and the verb, “to coronate.”
20. =Mechilta Ishmael, bakhodesh 6.
21. //Mechilta Ishmael, bakhodesh 6.
22. =Mechilta Ishmael, neziqin 17. The text is difficult, for one would expect an association of the Name with foreign gods to inflame divine anger, rather than to prevent the destruction of Israel. Cf. Hammer:93: “Had Israel not associated God’s name with the idols, they would have been destroyed.”
23. Heb: ‘ulam. The gathering place just before the entrance to the Sanctuary.
24. Heb: `olah. “Holocaust” represents the Septuagint’s Greek for “burnt-offering consumed in fire”
25. Heb: baqodesh; the Sanctuary.
26. Perhaps a euphemism for a pig. But any idolatrous image suits the context.
27. F:99, n.3, notes that this material is poorly attested in the textual tradition.
28. = Mechilta Ishmael, neziqin 18.
29. Although there are few vebal correspondences between other tannaitic traditions and those of 43.32, there are enough structural similarities to regard them as parallel formulations.
30. Cf. Mechilta Shimon, neziqin, Nelson p. 350.
31. Assonance alone is sufficient to link the verse and its application.Cf. F:100, n.4.
32. Translation follows Neusner, JN1:146.
33. See following note re: tz-w-h, “commandment.
34. The commandments (mitzwot) are the milestones (tziyyunim) for distinguished living (metzuyanim).
35. The Torah is crucial to life in the Land.
36. F:102, n.15 finds no attestation in mss for this bracketed clause, but regards it as crucial to the overall sense.
37. Cf. M. Avot 6:3