Sapphire Brick: Divine Pathos

אָמַר רָבָא: בְּשָׁעָה שֶׁמַּכְנִיסִין אָדָם לְדִין, אוֹמְרִים לוֹ: נָשָׂאתָ וְנָתַתָּ בָּאֱמוּנָה? קָבַעְתָּ עִתִּים לַתּוֹרָה? עָסַקְתָּ בִּפְרִיָּה וּרְבִיָּה? צִפִּיתָ לִישׁוּעָה? פִּלְפַּלְתָּ בְּחׇכְמָה? הֵבַנְתָּ דָּבָר מִתּוֹךְ דָּבָר? וַאֲפִילּוּ הָכִי, אִי יִרְאַת ה׳ הִיא אוֹצָרוֹ — אִין, אִי לָא — לָא. מָשָׁל לְאָדָם שֶׁאָמַר לִשְׁלוּחוֹ: הַעֲלֵה לִי כּוֹר חִיטִּין לָעֲלִיָּיה. הָלַךְ וְהֶעֱלָה לוֹ. אָמַר לוֹ: עֵירַבְתָּ לִי בָּהֶן קַב חוֹמְטוֹן? אָמַר לוֹ: לָאו. אָמַר לוֹ: מוּטָב אִם לֹא הֶעֱלֵיתָה.

Shabbat 31a:11

With regard to the same verse, Rava said: After departing from this world, when a person is brought to judgment for the life he lived in this world, they say to him in the order of that verse: Did you conduct business faithfully? Did you designate times for Torah study? Did you engage in procreation? Did you await salvation? Did you engage in the dialectics of wisdom or understand one matter from another? And, nevertheless, beyond all these, if the fear of the Lord is his treasure, yes, he is worthy, and if not, no, none of these accomplishments have any value. There is a parable that illustrates this. A person who said to his emissary: Bring a kor of wheat up to the attic for me to store there. The messenger went and brought it up for him. He said to the emissary: Did you mix a kav of ḥomton, a preservative to keep away worms, into it for me? He said to him: No. He said to him: If so, it would have been preferable had you not brought it up. Of what use is worm-infested wheat? Likewise, Torah and mitzvot without the fear of God are of no value.

רש"י על שבת ל״א א:י״א:ג׳

צפית לישועה - לדברי הנביאים:

Rashi on Shabbat 31a:11:3

Did you expect salvation - according to the words of the prophets.

שמות כ״ד:י׳

(י) וַיִּרְא֕וּ אֵ֖ת אֱלֹהֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֑ל וְתַ֣חַת רַגְלָ֗יו כְּמַעֲשֵׂה֙ לִבְנַ֣ת הַסַּפִּ֔יר וּכְעֶ֥צֶם הַשָּׁמַ֖יִם לָטֹֽהַר׃

Exodus 24:10

(10) and they saw the God of Israel—under whose feet was the likeness of a pavement of sapphire, like the very sky for purity.

סידור ספרד, סעודת שבת, זמירות ליום השבת ב׳-ג׳

(ב) בָּרוּךְ אֲדֹנָי יוֹם יוֹם.
יַעֲמָס לָנוּ יֶֽשַׁע וּפִדְיוֹם.
וּבִשְׁמוֹ נָגִיל כָּל הַיּוֹם.
וּבִישׁוּעָתוֹ נָרִים רֹאשׁ עֶלְיוֹן.
כִּי הוּא מָעוֹז לַדָּל וּמַחֲסֶה לָאֶבְיוֹן.

(ג) שִׁבְטֵי יָהּ לְיִשְׂרָאֵל עֵדוּת.
בְּצָרָתָם לֹו צָר. בְּסִבְלוּת וּבְעַבְדוּת.
בְּלִבְנַת הַסַּפִּיר הֶרְאָם עוֹז יְדִידוּת.
וְנִגְלָה לְהַעֲלוֹתָם מֵעֹֽמֶק בּוֹר וָדוּת.
כִּי עִם יְהֹוָה הַחֶֽסֶד וְהַרְבֵּה עִמּוֹ פְדוּת.

Siddur Sefard, Shabbat Day Meal, Zemirot 2-3

(2) Blessed is my Master day by day.5Psalms 68:20. He will load us with deliverance and redemption, and in His Name we shall exult all day, and by His deliverance, we will raise our head to the heights— For He is the [source of] strength for the poor, and a refuge for the needy.

(3) The tribes of Yah bear witness to [the purity of] Israel.6See Rashi to Numbers 26:5. By associating His name Yud (י) Hey (ה) with the tribes of Israel, God testifies that His people had not been sexually defiled by the Egyptians. In their distress He feels distress,7See Mesechet Megillah 29a. [as they were] burdened and enslaved. By a sapphire brick,8When God appeared to the prophets during the era of enslavement, they saw Him with a sapphire brick under his feet. This demonstrated His concern for their hard labor to produce bricks for the the Egyptians. This comforted them in their exile.—Etz Yosef He showed them the might of [His] love; And revealed Himself to lift them from the depths of the pit and dungeon. “For with Adonoy is kindliness, and with Him, is abundant redemption.”9Psalms 130:7.

שמואל א י״ב:כ״ב

(כב) כִּ֠י לֹֽא־יִטֹּ֤שׁ יְהֹוָה֙ אֶת־עַמּ֔וֹ בַּעֲב֖וּר שְׁמ֣וֹ הַגָּד֑וֹל כִּ֚י הוֹאִ֣יל יְהֹוָ֔ה לַעֲשׂ֥וֹת אֶתְכֶ֛ם ל֖וֹ לְעָֽם׃

I Samuel 12:22

(22) For the sake of His great name, the LORD will never abandon His people, seeing that the LORD undertook to make you His people.

תהילים קי״ז:ב׳

(ב) כִּ֥י גָ֘בַ֤ר עָלֵ֨ינוּ ׀ חַסְדּ֗וֹ וֶאֱמֶת־יְהֹוָ֥ה לְעוֹלָ֗ם הַֽלְלוּ־יָֽהּ׃ {פ}

Psalms 117:2

(2) for great is His steadfast love toward us;
the faithfulness of the LORD endures forever.
Hallelujah.

תהילים ק״ל:ז׳

(ז) יַחֵ֥ל יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל אֶל־יְ֫הֹוָ֥ה כִּֽי־עִם־יְהֹוָ֥ה הַחֶ֑סֶד וְהַרְבֵּ֖ה עִמּ֣וֹ פְדֽוּת׃

Psalms 130:7

(7) O Israel, wait for the LORD;
for with the LORD is steadfast love
and great power to redeem.

מגילה כ״ט א:ד׳

תַּנְיָא, רַבִּי שִׁמְעוֹן בֶּן יוֹחַי אוֹמֵר: בּוֹא וּרְאֵה כַּמָּה חֲבִיבִין יִשְׂרָאֵל לִפְנֵי הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא, שֶׁבְּכָל מָקוֹם שֶׁגָּלוּ — שְׁכִינָה עִמָּהֶן. גָּלוּ לְמִצְרַיִם — שְׁכִינָה עִמָּהֶן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״הַנִּגְלֹה נִגְלֵיתִי לְבֵית אָבִיךָ בִּהְיוֹתָם בְּמִצְרַיִם וְגוֹ׳״. גָּלוּ לְבָבֶל — שְׁכִינָה עִמָּהֶן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״לְמַעַנְכֶם שֻׁלַּחְתִּי בָבֶלָה״. וְאַף כְּשֶׁהֵן עֲתִידִין לִיגָּאֵל — שְׁכִינָה עִמָּהֶן, שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״וְשָׁב ה׳ אֱלֹהֶיךָ אֶת שְׁבוּתְךָ״. ״וְהֵשִׁיב״ לֹא נֶאֱמַר, אֶלָּא ״וְשָׁב״. מְלַמֵּד שֶׁהַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא שָׁב עִמָּהֶן מִבֵּין הַגָּלִיּוֹת.

Megillah 29a:4

§ It is taught in a baraita: Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai says: Come and see how beloved the Jewish people are before the Holy One, Blessed be He. As every place they were exiled, the Divine Presence went with them. They were exiled to Egypt, and the Divine Presence went with them, as it is stated: “Did I reveal myself to the house of your father when they were in Egypt?” (I Samuel 2:27). They were exiled to Babylonia, and the Divine Presence went with them, as it is stated: “For your sake I have sent to Babylonia” (Isaiah 43:14). So too, when, in the future, they will be redeemed, the Divine Presence will be with them, as it is stated: “Then the Lord your God will return with your captivity” (Deuteronomy 30:3). It does not state: He will bring back, i.e., He will cause the Jewish people to return, but rather it says: “He will return,” which teaches that the Holy One, Blessed be He, will return together with them from among the various exiles.

מסכת סופרים י״ג:ח׳

מי שהוא אוחז ס"ת נחלקו בדבר שני תנאין חדא אמר פותח ורואה וגולל ומברך וחדא אמר פותח [ורואה] ומברך ומה טעם דכתיב (נחמיה ח׳:ו׳) ובפתחו עמדו כל העם ומה כתיב בתריה ויברך עזרא את ה׳ האלהים הגדול במה גדלו רב אמר גדלו בשם המפורש רבא אמר בברכה גדלו והיכי מברך בעשרה אומרים ברכו את ה' המבורך ביחיד כשהוא משכים לקרוא אומר בא"י אלהינו מלך העולם אשר נתן לנו תורה מן השמים חיי עולמים ממרומים ברוך אתה ה׳ נותן התורה וגולל ואומר ברוך אתה ה׳ אלהינו מלך העולם אשר נתן לנו תורת אמת וחיי עולם נטע בתוכנו ברוך אתה ה׳ נותן התורה:

Tractate Soferim 13:8

If a person holds a scroll of the Torah [in order to read it], there is a difference of opinion between two Tanna’im.47On the question whether the prescribed benedictions should be said while the scroll is open or rolled. One declared that he should open it, look [for the passage which is to be read], roll it up and then say the benediction;48Were one to say it while the scroll is open, people might erroneously assume that the benediction is written in the Torah (Meg. 32a, Sonc. ed., pp. 192f). but the other declared that he should open it, look [for the required passage] and say the benediction.49Because nobody could be so ignorant as to be unaware that the benedictions do not form a part of the text of the Torah (Meg. loc. cit.). What is the reason?50That the scroll must be open when the benediction is said. Because it is written, And when he opened it, all the people stood up;51Neh. 8, 5 referring to the scroll of the Torah. and what follows? And Ezra blessed52i.e. he said the prescribed benedictions. the Lord, the great God.53ibid. 6. As Ezra opened the scroll and blessed the Lord, so everyone who reads the Torah must have the scroll open when the benedictions are said. Whereby did he proclaim His greatness?54As implied in the words the great God. Rab said: He proclaimed His greatness by pronouncing the Ineffable Name.55The Tetragrammaton. Raba said: He proclaimed His greatness by the recital of the prescribed benediction.
What is the form of the benedictions?56Before and after the reading in the Torah. In an assembly of ten57A minimum of ten males over the age of thirteen is required for congregational worship. one says, ‘Bless ye the Lord Who is to be blessed’.58And then follow the benedictions given later for an individual in private reading. In the case of an individual, when he rises early to read in the Torah, he says, ‘Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, Who hast given us a Torah from heaven, everlasting life from the heights. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, Who givest the Torah’. Then59At the conclusion of the reading. he rolls up the scroll60This is a unanimous ruling. It is upheld even by the Rabbi who maintained that the scroll must be open when the first benediction is said. and says, ‘Blessed art Thou, O Lord our God, King of the universe, Who hast given us a Torah of truth and hast planted everlasting life in our midst. Blessed art Thou, O Lord, Who givest the Torah’.61The benedictions now in use are shorter (P.B., p. 147).

ברכות י׳ א:ל״א-ל״ב

כָּךְ מְקּוּבְּלַנִי מִבֵּית אֲבִי אַבָּא, אֲפִילּוּ חֶרֶב חַדָּה מוּנַּחַת עַל צַוָּארוֹ שֶׁל אָדָם, אַל יִמְנַע עַצְמוֹ מִן הָרַחֲמִים. אִתְּמַר נָמֵי, רַבִּי יוֹחָנָן וְרַבִּי אֱלִיעֶזֶר דְאָמְרִי תַּרְוַיְיהוּ: אֲפִילּוּ חֶרֶב חַדָּה מוּנַּחַת עַל צַוָּארוֹ שֶׁל אָדָם, אַל יִמְנַע עַצְמוֹ מִן הָרַחֲמִים. שֶׁנֶּאֱמַר: ״הֵן יִקְטְלֵנִי לוֹ אֲיַחֵל״.

Berakhot 10a:31-32

Hezekiah continued: I have received a tradition from the house of my father’s father, from King David, the founding father of the dynasty of kings of Judea: Even if a sharp sword rests upon a person’s neck, he should not prevent himself from praying for mercy. One may still hold out hope that his prayers will be answered, as was David himself when he saw the Angel of Destruction, but nonetheless prayed for mercy and his prayers were answered. With regard to the fact that one should not despair of God’s mercy, the Gemara cites that it was also said that Rabbi Yoḥanan and Rabbi Eliezer both said: Even if a sharp sword is resting upon a person’s neck, he should not prevent himself from praying for mercy, as it is stated in the words of Job: “Though He slay me, I will trust in Him” (Job 13:15). Even though God is about to take his life, he still prays for God’s mercy.

מאמרי ראי"ה - קודש וחול בתחית ישראל (מן עתון 'ההד', תרצ"א)

ביחס לתקוה המפעמת בלב כל יהודי מדור דור לישועה ולגאולה השתמשו חז"ל בביטוי 'צפיה'. שואלים לאדם 'צפית לישועה', ולא 'קוית'. צפיה היא מגזירת 'צפה'[1]. תפקיד הצופה להשתמש בכל מאורע שהוא להזהיר על תקלה ולעורר למפעל של ישועה. וכך עלינו להשתמש בכל המאורעות שבעולם, שעל ידם תוכל לבוא או לצמוח תשועה לישראל...

Regarding the hope for salvation and redemption that beats in every Jew's heart from generation to generation, our rabbis used the term צפיה. A person is asked "did you hearken (צפיה) for salvation?" and not "did you hope". צפיה comes from the word "scout". The role of the scout is to use every occurrence to warn against problems and to awaken the undertaking of salvation. So it is upon us to make use of every occurrence in the world, for through them salvation for Israel can arrive or spring up.

In what way is hope related to action?

How does hope inform and affect how you act in this political moment?

סוטה י״ג א:א׳

ואומרת עתידה אמי שתלד בן שמושיע את ישראל וכיון שנולד משה נתמלא כל הבית כולה אור עמד אביה ונשקה על ראשה אמר לה בתי נתקיימה נבואתיך וכיון שהטילוהו ליאור עמד אביה וטפחה על ראשה אמר לה בתי היכן נבואתיך והיינו דכתיב (שמות ב, ד) ותתצב אחותו מרחוק לדעה מה יעשה לו לידע מה יהא בסוף נבואתה

Sotah 13a:1

And as a child Miriam would say: In the future, my mother will give birth to a son who will save the Jewish people. And once Moses was born, the entire house was filled with light. Her father arose and kissed her on her head. He said to her: My daughter, your prophecy has been fulfilled. And once they put him into the river, her father arose and hit her on her head. He said to her: My daughter, where is your prophecy? And this is as it is written: “And his sister stood afar off, to know what would be done to him” (Exodus 2:4), i.e., to know what will be the ultimate resolution of her prophecy.

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