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Midrash RabbahBereshit Rabbah 11

Midrash Rabbah

Bereshit Rabbah 11

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

“God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it, because on it He rested from all His labor that God created to make” (Genesis 2:3). “God blessed the seventh day and sanctified it” – it is written: “The blessing of the Lord, it will enrich, without adding toil with it” (Proverbs 10:22). “The blessing of the Lord, it will enrich” – this is Shabbat, as it is stated: “God blessed the seventh day.” “Without adding toil [etzev] with it” – this is mourning, just as it says: “The king is in grief [ne’etzav] over his son” (II Samuel 19:3).

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

“God blessed the seventh day [and sanctified it]” – Rabbi Yishmael said: He blessed it with manna and He sanctified it with manna. He blessed it with manna in that all the days of the week one omer [of manna] would fall, while on the day before Shabbat two omers would fall. He sanctified it with manna, as it did not fall on it [on Shabbat] at all. Rabbi Natan says: He blessed it with manna and sanctified it with a blessing. Rabbi Yitzḥak said: He blessed it with manna and sanctified it through the gatherer. He blessed it with apparel. Rav Huna said: He should change his clothing. Rabbi Ḥiyya said in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan: He should mix [garments]. Avin bar Ḥisdai said: He should lower [his garments]. Rabbi Yirmeya and Rabbi Ze’eira were walking together [on Shabbat], and the outer garment of Rabbi Yirmeya was raised up, but Rabbi Ze’eira lowered his. This shows that one should lower [one’s garments for Shabbat]. Rabbi Elazar says: He blessed it with [the Shabbat] candle, and there was an incident involving me [that illustrates this]. One time I kindled a candle on Shabbat eve, and I came and found it burning at the conclusion of Shabbat, and nothing [of the oil] was diminished. He blessed it with the radiance of a person’s face, He sanctified it with the radiance of a person’s face. The radiance of a person’s face all the days of the week is not comparable to the way it is on Shabbat. He blessed it with the lights. Rabbi Shimon bar Yehuda of Kefar Akko says in the name of Rabbi Shimon: Even though the lights were cursed on the day before Shabbat, they were not stricken until the conclusion of Shabbat. This is in accordance with the opinion of the Rabbis, and not in accordance with the opinion of Rabbi Ami, as Rabbi Ami said: Adam the first man, his glory did not spend the night with him. What is the source? “Man [adam] will not go to rest in his splendor; he is like the beasts that perish” (Psalms 49:13). The Rabbis say: His glory did spend the night with him, and only at the conclusion of Shabbat was his radiance taken from him, as He expelled him from the Garden of Eden. That is what is written: “You alter his countenance and send him away” (Job 14:20). When the sun set on Shabbat eve, the Holy One blessed be He sought to put away the [primordial] light, but He accorded honor to Shabbat. That is what is written: “God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it” – He blessed it with light. When the sun set on Shabbat eve the [primordial] light continued to function. Everyone began praising [God]; that is what is written: “Under all the heavens they sing His praises, and His light is to the ends of the earth” (Job 37:3). Why was this? Because “His light is to the ends of the earth.” Rabbi Yehuda bar Rabbi Simon said: By the light that the Holy One blessed be He created on the first day, a person could look out and see from one end of the world to the other end. When the Holy One blessed be He looked at the people of the generation of the Flood and the people of the generation of the Dispersion, whose actions were to be corrupt, He arose and hid it away and designated it for the righteous in the future. From where is it derived that He hid it away? It is as it is stated: “Their light will be withheld from the wicked, and the upraised arm will be broken” (Job 38:15). And from where is it derived that He designated it for the righteous in the future? It is as it is stated: “But the path of the righteous is like a dawning light, growing brighter until the day is established” (Proverbs 4:18). Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Ze’eira: That [primordial] light functioned for thirty-six hours – twelve on the day before Shabbat, twelve on the night of Shabbat, and twelve on Shabbat. As the sun set at the conclusion of Shabbat, darkness began approaching, and Adam the first man became afraid, as it is stated: “And I said that darkness will envelop me [yeshufeni]; night for me is light,” (Psalms 139:11) – that one [the serpent] in whose regard it is written: “He will strike you [yeshufekha] with his head, and you will strike him [teshufenu] with your heel” (Genesis 3:15), is now coming to confront me. What did the Holy One blessed be He do? He prepared for him two flint stones and he struck them one against the other. Light emerged from them and he recited a blessing over it. That is what is written: “Night for me is light.” What blessing did he recite over it? [Blessed be God] Who creates the lights of fire. This is in accordance with the opinion of Shmuel, as Shmuel said: Why does one recite a blessing over light at the conclusion of Shabbat? It is because that time was the beginning of its creation. Rav Huna in the name of Rav and Rabbi Abahu in the name of Rabbi Yoḥanan said: One recites a blessing over it [light] at the conclusion of Yom Kippur, as well, because fire rested all that day.

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

He blessed it due to the expenditure. Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Rabbi Ḥanina: Every day on which there is reduction [among the creations of that day], blessing is written in its regard, and in fact it lacks nothing. On the fifth day, birds and fish were created, and people slaughter and eat birds and trap and eat fish, [reducing their number], but since blessing is written in its regard it lacks nothing. On the sixth day, man and animal were created, and people slaughter and eat animals, and people die, but since blessing is written in its regard it lacks nothing. But regarding the seventh day what can you say? Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Yosei ben Rabbi Ḥanina: It is for the expenditure.

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

Rabbi Elazar said in the name of Rabbi Yosei: For the sake of fastidious people, He blessed it with delicacies. Our master [Rabbi] once prepared a feast for Antoninus on Shabbat. He brought before him some cold cooked dishes. He ate them and enjoyed them. He [Rabbi] prepared another feast for him on a weekday. He brought before him some hot cooked dishes. He said to him: ‘Those [from Shabbat] pleased me more than these.’ He said to him: ‘They [the weekday foods] are missing a certain spice.’ He said to him: ‘Is it possible that the pantry of the king is lacking anything?’ He said: ‘They are lacking Shabbat. Do you have Shabbat?’ Rabbi Yishmael ben Rabbi Yosei asked Rabbi, he said to him: ‘The [Jewish] residents of Babylon, by what merit do they live?’ He said to him: ‘It is by the merit of the Torah [which they study diligently].’ ‘And the residents of the Land of Israel, by what merit [do they live]?’ He said to him: ‘It is by the merit of tithes [which they separate from their produce].’ ‘And the residents outside of the Land of Israel, by what merit [do they live]?’ ‘It is by the merit of the fact that they honor Shabbatot and the festivals.’ Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba said: One time a certain person in Laodicea invited me and brought before us a round tabletop borne on sixteen poles, and on it was every type of food that was created during the six days of Creation. There was a certain child sitting in the middle of the tabletop and proclaiming and saying: “The earth and all that it holds are the Lord’s, the world and all its inhabitants” (Psalms 24:1). And why did he go to such lengths? It was so the host should not become haughty [from all his wealth]. I said to him [the host]: ‘Son, from where did you merit all this honor?’ He said to me: ‘I used to be a butcher, and every time I saw a fine animal over the week days, I would set it aside for Shabbat.’ I said to him: ‘It is not for naught that you merited [all this].’ Rabbi Tanḥuma said: There was an incident in Rome on the day before the great fast [Yom Kippur]. There was a certain tailor there and he went [to the market] to purchase a fish. It happened that he and the child [servant] of the governor were vying for it. This one would offer a higher price and the other one would offer a still higher price, until it reached twelve dinars, and the tailor purchased it. At dinnertime, the governor said to the child: ‘Why did you not bring me a fish?’ He said to him: ‘My master, I will not conceal it from you, I went [to the market] and there was only one fish there and it happened that I and a certain Jew were vying for it. He offered a higher price and I offered a higher price until it reached twelve dinars. Would you have wanted me to bring you a fish for twelve dinars?’ he asked rhetorically. He said to him: ‘Who is it [who bought the fish]?’ He said to him: ‘A man named such-and-such.’ He sent for him and he came before him. He said to him: ‘What did you see, Jewish tailor, that led you to eat a fish that cost twelve dinars?’ He said to him: ‘My master, we have one day [each year] that atones for us for all the sins we have performed all the days of the year. When it arrives, should we not accord it honor?’ He said to him: ‘Because you adduced a justification for your position, you are exempt [from punishment].’ How did the Holy One blessed be He reward him? He went and cut it open and He brought it about for him that there was a fine gem inside it, and he supported himself from it all his days.

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

The wicked [governor] Tinneus Rufus asked Rabbi Akiva: ‘How is this day [Shabbat] different from the other days of the week?’ He said to him: ‘How is this man [Tinneus Rufus] different from other men?’ He said: ‘What did I say to you and what did you say to me?’ He said to him: ‘You said to me: How is this day different from the other days of the week, meaning, in what way is Shabbat different from every day? And I said to you: How is this man different other men, meaning, in what way is Tinneus Rufus different from other men?’ He said to him: ‘It is because the king wished to honor me.’ He said to him: ‘This [Shabbat], too, the Holy One blessed be He wished to honor it.’ He said to him: ‘From where can you prove it to me?’ He said to him: ‘The Sambatyon River proves it, as it flows with stones all the days of the week, but on Shabbat it rests.’ He said to him in astonishment: ‘Are you dragging me to a river?’ He said to him: ‘Necromancers, who raise the dead via the male organ, will prove it, as a dead man can be brought up all the days of the week, but on Shabbat he cannot be brought up. Let this man [Tinneus Rufus] test this out with his father.’ One time, he [Tinneus Rufus] needed to do so, and he tested it with his father. He was brought up all the days of the week, but on Shabbat he could not be brought up. On Sunday he brought him up again. He said to him in bewilderment: ‘Since you died, have you become a Jew? Why were you brought up all the days of the week, but on Shabbat you could not be brought up?’ He said to him: ‘Anyone who does not observe Shabbat willingly in your place, will observe it here perforce.’ He said to him: ‘Do you have labor there for which you exert yourselves all the days of the week, that you can experience rest on Shabbat?’ He said to him: ‘All the days of the week we are punished, but on Shabbat we rest.’ He [Tinneus Rufus] returned to Rabbi Akiva and said to him: ‘If it is as you say, that the Holy One blessed be He honors the Shabbat, let him not make the wind blow [on Shabbat], let him not make rain fall, let him not allow grass to grow.’ He said to him: ‘May the spirit of that man depart from him. I will tell you a parable: [It is analogous to] two people who resided in the same courtyard. If one does not contribute to the eruv and the other one contributes to the eruv, is it, perhaps, permitted to transport items in the courtyard? However, if one person resides in a courtyard alone, it is permitted for him [to transport items] in the entire courtyard. Here, too, the Holy One blessed be He, because there is no other power that co-exists with Him, and the entire world is His, it is permitted for Him [to transport items] throughout the entire world. Additionally, those who partook of the manna can attest to it, as all the days of the week it would fall, but on Shabbat it did not fall.’

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

A certain philosopher once asked Rabbi Hoshaya, saying to him: ‘If circumcision is so dear to Him [God], why was it not given to Adam the first man?’ He said to him: ‘Why does this man [the philosopher] shave the corner of [the hair on] his head but leave the corner of his beard?’ He replied: ‘It is because this [the head hair] grew with him in his period of foolishness.’ He said to him: ‘If so, he should put out his eye, sever his hands, and break his legs, because they too grew with him in his period of foolishness.’ He said to him: ‘Have we come to such [frivolous] arguments?’ This was a rhetorical question. He said to him: ‘It is not possible for me to dismiss you with no response at all. The explanation is that everything that was created during the six days of Creation requires some action [to bring it to its perfected state], e.g., mustard requires sweetening, lupines require sweetening, wheat requires grinding. And even man needs to be perfected.’

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

Rabbi Yoḥanan said in the name of Rabbi Yosei bar Ḥalafta: Abraham, in whose regard observance of Shabbat is not mentioned, inherited the world with a limited measure, as it is stated: “Arise, walk about in the land to its length and to its breadth, [as to you I will give it]” (Genesis 13:17). But Jacob, in whose regard observance of Shabbat is mentioned, as it is stated: “He encamped before the city” (Genesis 33:18) – he entered with the dimming of the sun and established Shabbat boundaries [for his camp] while it was still day – [he] inherited the world with no limited measure, as it is stated: “Your descendants will be as the dust of the earth, [and you shall spread out to the west, and to the east, and to the north, and to the south]” (Genesis 28:14).

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

Another interpretation: Why did He bless it [Shabbat]? Rabbi Berekhya and Rabbi Dostai and Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman, Rabbi Berekhya and Rabbi Dostai say: It is because it does not have a partner. Sunday has Monday [as its partner], Tuesday has Wednesday, Thursday has Shabbat eve. But Shabbat has no partner. Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman said: It [the blessing of Shabbat] is in that it cannot be postponed. Festivals may be postponed, Yom Kippur may be postponed, but Shabbat cannot be postponed. Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai taught: Shabbat said before the Holy One blessed be He: ‘Master of the universe, all of them [the other days] have partners, but I do not have a partner.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to it: ‘The congregation of Israel is your partner.’ When Israel stood before Mount Sinai, the Holy One blessed be He said to them: ‘Remember the matter that I said to Shabbat: The congregation of Israel is your partner.’ That is the meaning of the statement in the Ten Commandments: “Remember the Shabbat day to keep it holy” (Exodus 20:8).

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

Rabbi Levi said in the name of Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina: The Holy One blessed be He created three creations on each day. On the first day He created the heavens, the earth, and light; on the second day, the firmament, Gehenna, and angels; on the third day, trees, grasses, and the Garden of Eden; on the fourth day, the sun, the moon, and the constellations; on the fifth day, birds, fish, and Leviathan; on the sixth day, Adam, Eve, and crawling creatures. Rabbi Pinḥas said: On the sixth day, He created six things: Adam, Eve, crawling creatures, animals, beasts, and demons. Rabbi Benaya said: “That God created and made” is not written here, but rather, “that God created to make” – everything that the Holy One blessed be He was going to create on the seventh day, He created them early, on the sixth day.

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English · The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022)

Rabbi Pinḥas said in the name of Rabbi Hoshaya: Although it says: “Because on it He rested from all His labor,” from the labor of creating His world He rested, but he did not rest from the labor of the wicked nor from the labor of the righteous. Rather, he performs actions with these and with those. He shows to these the essence of what is their fate and to those the essence of their fate. From where is it derived that the punishment of the wicked is called labor? It is as it is stated: “The Lord opened His armory and took out the weapons of His fury, for it is labor [for the Lord]” (Jeremiah 50:25). And from where is it derived that the reward of the righteous is called labor? It is as it is stated: “How great is the goodness You have in store for those who fear You, which You have fashioned for those taking refuge in You, in the presence of people” (Psalms 31:20).

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English: The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022), CC BY. Hebrew: Torat Emet text, public domain. From Sefaria (sefaria.org). · Source ↗

English: The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah (2022), CC BY. Hebrew: Torat Emet text, public domain. From Sefaria (sefaria.org). · Source ↗

English translation: The Sefaria Midrash Rabbah, 2022, via Sefaria (sefaria.org). Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0/). Changes: footnotes and HTML formatting removed.

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