אָמַר רַב הוּנָא אָמַר רַב מִשּׁוּם רַבִּי מֵאִיר, וְכֵן תָּנָא מִשְּׁמֵיהּ דְּרַבִּי עֲקִיבָא: לְעוֹלָם יְהֵא אָדָם רָגִיל לוֹמַר: ״כׇּל דְּעָבֵיד רַחֲמָנָא לְטָב עָבֵיד״. כִּי הָא דְּרַבִּי עֲקִיבָא דַּהֲוָה קָאָזֵיל בְּאוֹרְחָא. מְטָא לְהַהִיא מָתָא, בְּעָא אוּשְׁפִּיזָא לָא יָהֲבִי לֵיהּ. אֲמַר: ״כׇּל דְּעָבֵיד רַחֲמָנָא — לְטָב״. אֲזַל וּבָת בְּדַבְרָא, וַהֲוָה בַּהֲדֵיהּ תַּרְנְגוֹלָא וַחֲמָרָא וּשְׁרָגָא. אֲתָא זִיקָא כַּבְיֵיהּ לִשְׁרָגָא. אֲתָא שׁוּנָּרָא אַכְלֵיהּ לְתַרְנְגוֹלָא. אֲתָא אַרְיָה אַכְלֵיהּ לַחֲמָרָא. אֲמַר: ״כׇּל דְּעָבֵיד רַחֲמָנָא — לְטָב״. בֵּיהּ בְּלֵילְיָא אֲתָא גְּיָיסָא, שַׁבְיַיהּ לְמָתָא. אֲמַר לְהוּ: לָאו אֲמַרִי לְכוּ כׇּל מַה שֶּׁעוֹשֶׂה הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא
Rav Huna said that Rav said that Rabbi Meir said; and so it was taught in a baraita in the name of Rabbi Akiva: One must always accustom oneself to say: Everything that God does, He does for the best. The Gemara relates: Like this incident, when Rabbi Akiva was walking along the road and came to a certain city, he inquired about lodging and they did not give him any. He said: Everything that God does, He does for the best. He went and slept in a field, and he had with him a rooster, a donkey and a candle. A gust of wind came and extinguished the candle; a cat came and ate the rooster; and a lion came and ate the donkey. He said: Everything that God does, He does for the best. That night, an army came and took the city into captivity. It turned out that Rabbi Akiva alone, who was not in the city and had no lit candle, noisy rooster or donkey to give away his location, was saved. He said to them: Didn’t I tell you? Everything that God does,
הַכֹּל לְטוֹבָה. וְאָמַר רַב הוּנָא אָמַר רַב מִשּׁוּם רַבִּי מֵאִיר: לְעוֹלָם יִהְיוּ דְּבָרָיו שֶׁל אָדָם מוּעָטִין לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״אַל תְּבַהֵל עַל פִּיךָ וְלִבְּךָ אַל יְמַהֵר לְהוֹצִיא דָבָר לִפְנֵי הָאֱלֹהִים כִּי הָאֱלֹהִים בַּשָּׁמַיִם וְאַתָּה עַל הָאָרֶץ עַל כֵּן יִהְיוּ דְבָרֶיךָ מְעַטִּים״.
He does for the best. And Rav Huna said that Rav said in the name of Rabbi Meir: One’s words should always be few before the Holy One, Blessed be He, as it is stated: “Be not rash with your mouth and let not your heart be hasty to utter a word before God; for God is in heaven, and you upon earth. Therefore, let your words be few” (Ecclesiastes 5:1).
חַיָּיב אָדָם לְבָרֵךְ כּוּ׳: מַאי ״חַיָּיב לְבָרֵךְ עַל הָרָעָה כְּשֵׁם שֶׁמְּבָרֵךְ עַל הַטּוֹבָה״? אִילֵּימָא כְּשֵׁם שֶׁמְּבָרֵךְ עַל הַטּוֹבָה ״הַטּוֹב וְהַמֵּטִיב״, כָּךְ מְבָרֵךְ עַל הָרָעָה ״הַטּוֹב וְהַמֵּטִיב״, וְהָתְנַן עַל בְּשׂוֹרוֹת טוֹבוֹת אוֹמֵר ״הַטּוֹב וְהַמֵּטִיב״, עַל בְּשׂוֹרוֹת רָעוֹת אוֹמֵר ״בָּרוּךְ … דַּיַּין הָאֱמֶת״! אָמַר רָבָא: לֹא נִצְרְכָה, אֶלָּא לְקַבּוֹלִינְהוּ בְּשִׂמְחָה.
We learned in the mishna: One is obligated to recite a blessing for the bad that befalls him just as he recites a blessing for the good that befalls him. The Gemara asks: What does it mean: One is obligated to recite a blessing for the bad just as for the good? If we say this means that just as one recites a blessing for a positive event with the formula: Who is good and does good, so too one recites a blessing for a calamity with the formula: Who is good and does good, didn’t we learn in our mishna that over good tidings one recites: Who is good and does good, while over bad tidings one recites: Blessed…the true Judge? Rather, Rava said: The mishna’s statement was only necessary to instruct us to accept bad tidings with the same joy with which we accept good tidings, not to instruct with regard to which blessing to recite.