(א) ...כָּל הַמִּסְתַּכֵּל בְּאַרְבָּעָה דְּבָרִים, רָאוּי לוֹ כְּאִלּוּ לֹא בָּא לָעוֹלָם, מַה לְּמַעְלָה, מַה לְּמַטָּה, מַה לְּפָנִים, וּמַה לְּאָחוֹר. וְכָל שֶׁלֹּא חָס עַל כְּבוֹד קוֹנוֹ, רָאוּי לוֹ שֶׁלֹּא בָּא לָעוֹלָם:
(1) ...Whoever looks at four matters, it would have been better for them had they never entered the world: Anyone who reflects upon what is above the firmament and what is below the earth, what was before Creation, and what will be after the end of the world. And anyone who has no concern for the honor of their Maker, who inquires into and deals with matters not permitted to them, deserves to have never come to the world.
Maimonides: Introduction to Perek Helek
...Gehennam is a name for the pain and the punishment which will come upon the wicked. No specific description of this punishment is contained in the Talmud. One teacher says that the sun will come so close to the wicked that it will burn them. He finds proofs for this belief in the verse: “For behold, the day comes, it burns as a furnace; and all the proud and all that work wickedness shall be stubble; and the day that comes shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch” (mal. 3:19). Others say that a strange heat will be produced within their own bodies to incinerate them. They find support for this position in the Scriptural words: “Your own spirit is a fire which will consume you” (Is. 33:11)...
...Gehennam is a name for the pain and the punishment which will come upon the wicked. No specific description of this punishment is contained in the Talmud. One teacher says that the sun will come so close to the wicked that it will burn them. He finds proofs for this belief in the verse: “For behold, the day comes, it burns as a furnace; and all the proud and all that work wickedness shall be stubble; and the day that comes shall set them ablaze, says the Lord of hosts, that it shall leave them neither root nor branch” (mal. 3:19). Others say that a strange heat will be produced within their own bodies to incinerate them. They find support for this position in the Scriptural words: “Your own spirit is a fire which will consume you” (Is. 33:11)...
וּפְלִיגָא דְּרַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן לָקִישׁ דְּאָמַר אֵין גֵּיהִנָּם לָעוֹלָם הַבָּא אֶלָּא הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מוֹצִיא חַמָּה מִנַּרְתִּיקָהּ צַדִּיקִין מִתְרַפְּאִין בָּהּ וּרְשָׁעִים נִידּוֹנִין בָּהּ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְזָרְחָה לָכֶם יִרְאֵי שְׁמִי שֶׁמֶשׁ וְגוֹ׳ וְלֹא עוֹד אֶלָּא שֶׁמִּתְעַדְּנִין בָּהּ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וִיצָאתֶם וּפִשְׁתֶּם כְּעֶגְלֵי מַרְבֵּק וְהָרְשָׁעִים נִידּוֹנִין בָּהּ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר הִנֵּה הַיּוֹם בָּא בֹּעֵר כַּתַּנּוּר וְגוֹ׳:
The Gemara comments: Abaye disagrees with the opinion of Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish, who said: There is no Gehenna in the World-to-Come. Rather, the Holy One, Blessed be He, will remove the sun from its sheath [minartika], and the righteous will be healed by it and the wicked will be punished by it. The righteous will be healed by it, as it is stated: “But to you that fear My name shall the sun of righteousness arise with healing in its wings”; and moreover, not only will they be healed by it but they will even be rejuvenated by it, as it is stated: “And you shall go forth and leap as calves of the stall.” And the wicked will be punished by the same sun, as it is stated: “For behold, the day is coming, it burns as a furnace; and all the proud, and all that work wickedness, shall be stubble; and the day that comes shall set them ablaze” (Malachi 3:19). Consequently, Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish holds that the sun heals only in the World-to-Come, whereas Abaye interprets the verse as referring to this world.
תַּנְיָא בֵּית שַׁמַּאי אוֹמְרִים שָׁלֹשׁ כִּתּוֹת הֵן לְיוֹם הַדִּין אַחַת שֶׁל צַדִּיקִים גְּמוּרִין וְאַחַת שֶׁל רְשָׁעִים גְּמוּרִין וְאַחַת שֶׁל בֵּינוֹנִיִּים צַדִּיקִים גְּמוּרִין נִכְתָּבִין וְנֶחְתָּמִין לְאַלְתַּר לְחַיֵּי עוֹלָם רְשָׁעִים גְּמוּרִין נִכְתָּבִין וְנֶחְתָּמִין לְאַלְתַּר לְגֵיהִנָּם שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְרַבִּים מִיְּשֵׁנֵי אַדְמַת עָפָר יָקִיצוּ אֵלֶּה לְחַיֵּי עוֹלָם וְאֵלֶּה לַחֲרָפוֹת לְדִרְאוֹן עוֹלָם בֵּינוֹנִיִּים יוֹרְדִין לְגֵיהִנָּם וּמְצַפְצְפִין וְעוֹלִין שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְהֵבֵאתִי אֶת הַשְּׁלִישִׁית בָּאֵשׁ וּצְרַפְתִּים כִּצְרוֹף אֶת הַכֶּסֶף וּבְחַנְתִּים כִּבְחוֹן אֶת הַזָּהָב הוּא יִקְרָא בִשְׁמִי וַאֲנִי אֶעֱנֶה אוֹתוֹ וַעֲלֵיהֶם אָמְרָה חַנָּה ה׳ מֵמִית וּמְחַיֶּה מוֹרִיד שְׁאוֹל וַיָּעַל בֵּית הִלֵּל אוֹמְרִים וְרַב חֶסֶד מַטֶּה כְּלַפֵּי חֶסֶד וַעֲלֵיהֶם אָמַר דָּוִד אָהַבְתִּי כִּי יִשְׁמַע ה׳ אֶת קוֹלִי וַעֲלֵיהֶם אָמַר דָּוִד כׇּל הַפָּרָשָׁה כּוּלָּהּ דַּלּוֹתִי וְלִי יְהוֹשִׁיעַ פּוֹשְׁעֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּגוּפָן וּפוֹשְׁעֵי אוּמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם בְּגוּפָן יוֹרְדִין לְגֵיהִנָּם וְנִידּוֹנִין בָּהּ שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר חֹדֶשׁ לְאַחַר שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר חֹדֶשׁ גּוּפָן כָּלֶה וְנִשְׁמָתָן נִשְׂרֶפֶת וְרוּחַ מְפַזַּרְתָּן תַּחַת כַּפּוֹת רַגְלֵי צַדִּיקִים שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְעַסּוֹתֶם רְשָׁעִים כִּי יִהְיוּ אֵפֶר תַּחַת כַּפּוֹת רַגְלֵיכֶם אֲבָל הַמִּינִין וְהַמָּסוֹרוֹת וְהָאֶפִּיקוֹרְסִים שֶׁכָּפְרוּ בַּתּוֹרָה וְשֶׁכָּפְרוּ בִּתְחִיַּית הַמֵּתִים וְשֶׁפֵּירְשׁוּ מִדַּרְכֵי צִבּוּר וְשֶׁנָּתְנוּ חִיתִּיתָם בְּאֶרֶץ חַיִּים וְשֶׁחָטְאוּ וְהֶחְטִיאוּ אֶת הָרַבִּים כְּגוֹן יָרׇבְעָם בֶּן נְבָט וַחֲבֵירָיו יוֹרְדִין לְגֵיהִנָּם וְנִידּוֹנִין בָּהּ לְדוֹרֵי דּוֹרוֹת שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְיָצְאוּ וְרָאוּ בְּפִגְרֵי הָאֲנָשִׁים הַפּוֹשְׁעִים בִּי וְגוֹ׳ גֵּיהִנָּם כָּלֶה וְהֵן אֵינָן כָּלִין שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר וְצוּרָם לְבַלּוֹת שְׁאוֹל מִזְּבוּל לוֹ וְכׇל כָּךְ לָמָּה מִפְּנֵי שֶׁפָּשְׁטוּ יְדֵיהֶם בִּזְבוּל שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר מִזְּבוּל לוֹ וְאֵין זְבוּל אֶלָּא בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר בָּנֹה בָנִיתִי בֵּית זְבוּל לָךְ וַעֲלֵיהֶם אָמְרָה חַנָּה ה׳ יֵחַתּוּ מְרִיבָיו אָמַר רַבִּי יִצְחָק בַּר אָבִין וּפְנֵיהֶם דּוֹמִין לְשׁוּלֵי קְדֵירָה וְאָמַר רָבָא וְאִינְהוּ מִשַּׁפִּירֵי שַׁפִּירֵי בְּנֵי מָחוֹזָא וּמִקַּרְיִין בְּנֵי גֵיהִנָּם
It is taught in a baraita: Beit Shammai say: There will be three groups of people on the great Day of Judgment at the end of days: One of wholly righteous people, one of wholly wicked people, and one of middling people. Wholly righteous people will immediately be written and sealed for eternal life. Wholly wicked people will immediately be written and sealed for Gehenna, as it is stated: “And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall wake, some to eternal life and some to shame and everlasting contempt” (Daniel 12:2). Middling people will descend to Gehenna to be cleansed and to achieve atonement for their sins, and they will cry out in their pain and eventually ascend from there, as it is stated: “And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried; they shall call on My name, and I will answer them” (Zechariah 13:9). This is referring to the members of the third group, who require refinement and cleansing. And about them, Hannah said: “The Lord kills, and gives life; he brings down to the grave, and brings up” (I Samuel 2:6). Beit Hillel say: He Who is “and abundant in kindness” (Exodus 34:6) tilts the scales in favor of kindness, so that middling people should not have to pass through Gehenna. And about them, David said: “I love the Lord, Who hears my voice and my supplications” (Psalms 116:1). And about them, David said the entire passage: “I was brought low [daloti] and He saved me” (Psalms 116:6). Although they are poor [dalim] in mitzvot, God saves them. The rebellious Jews who have sinned with their bodies and also the rebellious people of the nations of the world who have sinned with their bodies descend to Gehenna and are judged there for twelve months. After twelve months, their bodies are consumed, their souls are burned, and a wind scatters them under the soles of the feet of the righteous, as it is stated: “And you shall tread down the wicked; for they shall be ashes under the soles of your feet” (Malachi 3:21). But the heretics; and the informers; and the apostates [apikorsim]; and those who denied the Torah; and those who denied the resurrection of the dead; and those who separated from the ways of the Jewish community and refused to share the suffering; and those who cast their fear over the land of the living; and those who sinned and caused the masses to sin, for example, Jeroboam, son of Nebat, and his company; all of these people descend to Gehenna and are judged there for generations and generations, as it is stated: “And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of the men that have rebelled against Me; for their worm shall not die; neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh” (Isaiah 66:24). Gehenna will terminate, but they still will not terminate, as it is stated: “And their form shall wear away the netherworld, so that there be no dwelling for Him” (Psalms 49:15); that is to say, Gehenna itself will be worn away before their punishment has come to an end. And why are they punished so severely? Because they stretched out their hands against God’s dwelling, the Temple, and everything else that is sanctified, as it is stated: “So that there be no dwelling [zevul] for Him.” Dwelling [zevul] is referring here only to the Temple, as it is stated: “I have built You a house for dwelling [zevul] in” (I Kings 8:13). And about them Hannah said: “The adversaries of the Lord shall be broken in pieces” (I Samuel 2:10). Rabbi Yitzḥak bar Avin said: And their faces on the Day of Judgment will be black and sooty like the bottom of a pot. And Rava said: And they shall include the most handsome, i.e., upstanding, of the people of Meḥoza, as Rava thought that even the most upstanding people of the city of Meḥoza were wicked, and they shall be called the people of Gehenna.
הַיְינוּ דְּאָמַר רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן לֵוִי: מַאי דִּכְתִיב ״עוֹבְרֵי בְּעֵמֶק הַבָּכָא מַעְיָן יְשִׁיתוּהוּ גַּם בְּרָכוֹת יַעְטֶה מוֹרֶה״. ״עוֹבְרֵי״ — אֵלּוּ בְּנֵי אָדָם שֶׁעוֹבְרִין עַל רְצוֹנוֹ שֶׁל הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא. ״עֵמֶק״ — שֶׁמַּעֲמִיקִין לָהֶם גֵּיהִנָּם. ״הַבָּכָא״ — שֶׁבּוֹכִין וּמוֹרִידִין דְּמָעוֹת כְּמַעְיָין שֶׁל שִׁיתִין. ״גַּם בְּרָכוֹת יַעְטֶה מוֹרֶה״ — שֶׁמַּצְדִּיקִין עֲלֵיהֶם אֶת הַדִּין, וְאוֹמְרִים לְפָנָיו: רִבּוֹנוֹ שֶׁל עוֹלָם, יָפֶה דַּנְתָּ, יָפֶה זִכֵּיתָ, יָפֶה חִיַּיבְתָּ, וְיָפֶה תִּקַּנְתָּ גֵּיהִנָּם לָרְשָׁעִים גַּן עֵדֶן לַצַּדִּיקִים. אִינִי?! וְהָאָמַר רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן לָקִישׁ: רְשָׁעִים אֲפִילּוּ עַל פִּתְחוֹ שֶׁל גֵּיהִנָּם אֵינָם חוֹזְרִין בִּתְשׁוּבָה, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״וְיָצְאוּ וְרָאוּ בְּפִגְרֵי הָאֲנָשִׁים הַפּוֹשְׁעִים בִּי וְגוֹ׳״, ״שֶׁפָּשְׁעוּ״ לֹא נֶאֱמַר, אֶלָּא ״הַפּוֹשְׁעִים״ — שֶׁפּוֹשְׁעִים וְהוֹלְכִין לְעוֹלָם! לָא קַשְׁיָא: הָא — בְּפוֹשְׁעֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, הָא — בְּפוֹשְׁעֵי אוּמּוֹת הָעוֹלָם. הָכִי נָמֵי מִסְתַּבְּרָא, דְּאִם כֵּן קַשְׁיָא דְּרֵישׁ לָקִישׁ אַדְּרֵישׁ לָקִישׁ. דְּאָמַר רֵישׁ לָקִישׁ: פּוֹשְׁעֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֵין אוּר גֵּיהִנָּם שׁוֹלֶטֶת בָּהֶן, קַל וָחוֹמֶר מִמִּזְבַּח הַזָּהָב. מָה מִזְבַּח הַזָּהָב, שֶׁאֵין עָלָיו אֶלָּא כְּעוֹבִי דִּינַר זָהָב, עָמַד כַּמָּה שָׁנִים וְלֹא שָׁלְטָה בּוֹ הָאוּר. פּוֹשְׁעֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל, שֶׁמְּלֵיאִין מִצְוֹת כְּרִמּוֹן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״כְּפֶלַח הָרִמּוֹן רַקָּתֵךְ״, וְאָמַר רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן לָקִישׁ: אַל תִּיקְרֵי ״רַקָּתֵךְ״ אֶלָּא ״רֵיקָתֵיךְ״, שֶׁאֲפִילּוּ רֵיקָנִין שֶׁבָּךְ מְלֵיאִין מִצְוֹת כְּרִמּוֹן — עַל אַחַת כַּמָּה וְכַמָּה. אֶלָּא הָא דִּכְתִיב: ״עוֹבְרֵי בְּעֵמֶק הַבָּכָא״, הָהוּא דִּמְחַיְּיבִי הָהִיא שַׁעְתָּא בְּגֵיהִנָּם, וְאָתֵי אַבְרָהָם אָבִינוּ וּמַסֵּיק לְהוּ וּמְקַבֵּל לְהוּ. בַּר מִיִּשְׂרָאֵל שֶׁבָּא עַל הַגּוֹיָה, דְּמָשְׁכָה עׇרְלָתוֹ וְלָא מְבַשְׁקַר לֵיהּ. מַתְקֵיף לַהּ רַב כָּהֲנָא: הַשְׁתָּא דְּאָמְרַתְּ ״הַפּוֹשְׁעִים״ — דְּפָשְׁעִי וְאָזְלִי, אֶלָּא מֵעַתָּה דִּכְתִיב ״הַמּוֹצִיא״ וְ״הַמַּעֲלֶה״ — דְּמַסֵּיק וּדְמַפֵּיק הוּא?! אֶלָּא דְּאַסֵּיק וְאַפֵּיק, הָכִי נָמֵי — דְּפָשְׁעִי הוּא. וְאָמַר רַבִּי יִרְמְיָה (בַּר) אֶלְעָזָר: שְׁלֹשָׁה פְּתָחִים יֵשׁ לַגֵּיהִנָּם, אֶחָד בַּמִּדְבָּר וְאֶחָד בַּיָּם וְאֶחָד בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם. בַּמִּדְבָּר, דִּכְתִיב: ״וַיֵּרְדוּ הֵם וְכׇל אֲשֶׁר לָהֶם חַיִּים שְׁאוֹלָה״. בַּיָּם, דִּכְתִיב: ״מִבֶּטֶן שְׁאוֹל שִׁוַּעְתִּי שָׁמַעְתָּ קוֹלִי״. בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם, דִּכְתִיב: ״נְאֻם ה׳ אֲשֶׁר אוּר לוֹ בְּצִיּוֹן וְתַנּוּר לוֹ בִּירוּשָׁלִָים״. וְתָנָא דְּבֵי רַבִּי יִשְׁמָעֵאל: ״אֲשֶׁר אוּר לוֹ בְּצִיּוֹן״ — זוֹ גֵּיהִנָּם, ״וְתַנּוּר לוֹ בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם״ — זוֹ פִּתְחָהּ שֶׁל גֵּיהִנָּם. וְתוּ לֵיכָּא? וְהָאָמַר רַבִּי מָרִיּוֹן אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן לֵוִי, וְאָמְרִי לַהּ תָּנָא רַבָּה בַּר מָרִיּוֹן בִּדְבֵי רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן בֶּן זַכַּאי: שְׁתֵּי תְמָרוֹת יֵשׁ בְּגֵי בֶּן הִנּוֹם וְעוֹלֶה עָשָׁן מִבֵּינֵיהֶן, וְזוֹ הִיא שֶׁשָּׁנִינוּ: צִינֵי הַר הַבַּרְזֶל כְּשֵׁירוֹת, וְזוֹ הִיא פִּתְחָהּ שֶׁל גֵּיהִנָּם! — דִּילְמָא הַיְינוּ דִּירוּשָׁלַיִם. אָמַר רַבִּי יְהוֹשֻׁעַ בֶּן לֵוִי: שִׁבְעָה שֵׁמוֹת יֵשׁ לְגֵיהִנָּם, וְאֵלּוּ הֵן: שְׁאוֹל, וַאֲבַדּוֹן, וּבְאֵר שַׁחַת, וּבוֹר שָׁאוֹן, וְטִיט הַיָּוֵן, וְצַלְמָוֶת, וְאֶרֶץ הַתַּחְתִּית. שְׁאוֹל, דִּכְתִיב: ״מִבֶּטֶן שְׁאוֹל שִׁוַּעְתִּי שָׁמַעְתָּ קוֹלִי״. אֲבַדּוֹן, דִּכְתִיב: ״הַיְסוּפַּר בַּקֶּבֶר חַסְדֶּךָ אֱמוּנָתְךָ בָּאֲבַדּוֹן״. בְּאֵר שַׁחַת, דִּכְתִיב: ״כִּי לֹא תַעֲזוֹב נַפְשִׁי לִשְׁאוֹל לֹא תִתֵּן חֲסִידְךָ לִרְאוֹת שָׁחַת״. וּבוֹר שָׁאוֹן וָטִיט הַיָּוֵן, דִּכְתִיב: ״וַיַּעֲלֵנִי מִבּוֹר שָׁאוֹן מִטִּיט הַיָּוֵן״. וְצַלְמָוֶת, דִּכְתִיב: ״יוֹשְׁבֵי חוֹשֶׁךְ וְצַלְמָוֶת״. ״וְאֶרֶץ הַתַּחְתִּית״ — גְּמָרָא הוּא. וְתוּ לֵיכָּא? וְהָאִיכָּא ״גֵּיהִנָּם״! — גֵּיא שֶׁעֲמוּקָּה (בְּגֵיהִנָּם), שֶׁהַכֹּל יוֹרֵד לָהּ עַל עִסְקֵי הִנָּם. וְהָאִיכָּא ״תׇּפְתֶּה״, דִּכְתִיב: ״כִּי עָרוּךְ מֵאֶתְמוּל תׇּפְתֶּה״, הָהוּא שֶׁכׇּל הַמִּתְפַּתֶּה בְּיִצְרוֹ יִפּוֹל שָׁם.
And this is what Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: What is the meaning of that which is written: “Those who pass through the valley of weeping turn it into a water spring; moreover, the early rain covers it with blessings” (Psalms 84:7)? “Those who pass through [overei],” these are people who transgress [overin] the will of the Holy One, Blessed be He. “Valley [emek]” indicates that their punishment is that Gehenna is deepened [ma’amikin] for them. “Of weeping [bakha]” and “turn it into a water spring [ma’ayan yeshituhu],” indicates that they weep [bokhin] and make tears flow like a spring [ma’ayan] of the foundations [shitin], meaning like a spring that descends to the foundations of the earth. “Moreover, the early rain covers it with blessings,” indicates that they accept the justice of God’s judgment, and say before Him: Master of the Universe, You have judged properly, You have acquitted properly, You have condemned properly, and it is befitting that You have prepared Gehenna for the wicked and the Garden of Eden for the righteous. The Gemara raises a difficulty: Is that so? Didn’t Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish say: The wicked do not repent, even at the entrance to Gehenna, as it is stated: “And they shall go forth, and look upon the carcasses of the men who rebel against Me; for their worm shall not die, neither shall their fire be quenched; and they shall be an abhorrence to all flesh” (Isaiah 66:24)? The verse does not say: Who rebelled, but rather: “Who rebel,” in the present tense, meaning they continue rebelling forever. The Gemara answers: This is not difficult; here, i.e., where it is said that they accept God’s judgment, it is referring to the sinners of the Jewish people; there, i.e., where it is said that they do not recant, it is referring to the rebels among the nations of the world. So too, it is reasonable to say this, for if you do not say so, there would be a contradiction between one statement of Reish Lakish and another statement of Reish Lakish. As Reish Lakish said: With regard to the sinners of the Jewish people, the fire of Gehenna has no power over them, as may be learned by a fortiori reasoning from the golden altar. If the golden altar in the Temple, which was only covered by gold the thickness of a golden dinar, stood for many years and the fire did not burn it, for its gold did not melt, so too the sinners of the Jewish people, who are filled with good deeds like a pomegranate, as it is stated: “Your temples [rakatekh] are like a split pomegranate behind your veil” (Song of Songs 6:7), will not be affected by the fire of Gehenna. And Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said about this: Do not read: Your temples [rakatekh], but rather: Your empty ones [reikateikh], meaning that even the sinners among you are full of mitzvot like a pomegranate; how much more so should the fire of Gehenna have no power over them. However, that which is written: “Those who pass through the valley of weeping” (Psalms 84:7), which implies that the sinners nonetheless descend to Gehenna, should be explained as follows: There it speaks of those who are liable at that time for punishment in Gehenna, but our father Abraham comes and raises them up and receives them. He does not leave the circumcised behind and allow them to enter Gehenna, except for a Jew who had relations with a gentile woman, in punishment for which his foreskin is drawn, and our father Abraham does not recognize him as one of his descendants. Rav Kahana strongly objected to this: Now that you have said that the words those who rebel are referring to those who go on rebelling, if so, in those verses in which it is written of Him: “He Who brings out” (see Exodus 6:7) and “He Who raises up” Israel from Egypt (see Leviticus 11:45), do these expressions mean: He Who is currently raising them up and bringing them out? Rather, you must understand these terms to mean: He Who already raised them up and brought them out; here too then, the phrase those who rebel means those who already rebelled. And Rabbi Yirmeya ben Elazar also said: There are three entrances to Gehenna, one in the wilderness, one in the sea, and one in Jerusalem. There is one entrance in the wilderness, as it is written with regard to Korah and his company: “And they, and all that appertained to them, went down alive into the pit [She’ol], and the earth closed upon them, and they perished from among the congregation” (Numbers 16:33). In the sea there is a second entrance to Gehenna, as it is written about Jonah in the fish’s belly: “Out of the belly of the netherworld [She’ol] I cried, and You did hear my voice” (Jonah 2:3). And there is a third entrance to Gehenna in Jerusalem, as it is written: “Says the Lord, Whose fire is in Zion, and Whose furnace is in Jerusalem” (Isaiah 31:9). And it was taught in the school of Rabbi Yishmael: “Whose fire is in Zion,” this is Gehenna; and “Whose furnace is in Jerusalem,” this is an entrance to Gehenna. The Gemara asks: Are there no more entrances? Didn’t Rabbi Maryon say in the name of Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi, and some say it was Rabba bar Maryon who taught in the name of the school of Rabbi Yoḥanan ben Zakkai: There are two date trees in the valley of ben Hinnom, and smoke rises from between them, and with regard to this statement about date trees that differ from other palms we learned: The palms of Har HaBarzel are fit for the mitzva of palm branches [lulav], and this is the entrance to Gehenna. The Gemara answers: This is not difficult, for perhaps this is the entrance in Jerusalem. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Gehenna has seven names, and they are as follows: She’ol, Avadon, Be’er Shaḥat, Bor Shaon, Tit HaYaven, Tzalmavet, and Eretz HaTaḥtit. She’ol, as it is written: “Out of the belly of the netherworld [she’ol] I cried and You did hear my voice” (Jonah 2:3). Avadon, as it is written: “Shall Your steadfast love be reported in the grave or Your faithfulness in destruction [avadon]?” (Psalms 88:12). Be’er Shaḥat, as it is written: “For You will not abandon my soul to the netherworld; nor will You suffer Your pious one to see the pit [shaḥat]” (Psalms 16:10). And Bor Shaon and Tit HaYaven, as it is written: “He brought me up also out of the gruesome pit [bor shaon], out of the miry clay [tit hayaven]” (Psalms 40:3). And Tzalmavet, as it is written: “Such as sat in darkness and in the shadow of death [tzalmavet], bound in affliction and iron” (Psalms 107:10). And with regard to Eretz Taḥtit, i.e., the underworld, it is known by tradition that this is its name. The Gemara poses a question: Are there no more names? Isn’t there the name Gehenna? The Gemara answers that this is not a name rather a description: A valley that is as deep as the valley [gei] of ben Hinnom. An alternative explanation is: Into which all descend for vain [hinnam] and wasteful acts, understanding the word hinnam as if it were written ḥinnam, meaning for naught. The Gemara asks: Isn’t there also the name Tofte, as it is written: “For its hearth [tofte] is ordained of old” (Isaiah 30:33). The Gemara answers: That name too is a description, meaning that anyone who allows himself to be seduced [mitpateh] by his evil inclination will fall there.