Gemara Clarity

Sanhedrin 39b

סנהדרין ל״ט ע״ב

Learn Sanhedrin 39b step by step: Aramaic beside English, every question, answer and proof colour-coded.

Open Sanhedrin 39b in Gemara Clarity

Topic

God's goodness, whether He rejoices when רשעים fall, and stories of אחאב, עובדיהו and מואב that close the פרק

Overview

The amud opens by finishing a proof that the Jewish people are not counted among 'the nations.' רבי אלעזר then resolves two פסוקים about whom ה׳ is good to with a parable of an orchard: watering reaches every tree, but hoeing is only for the good ones. Returning to the משנה's 'באבוד רשעים רנה,' the גמרא connects it to the song at אחאב's death. It then asks whether הקדוש ברוך הוא rejoices when רשעים fall. רבי יוסי בר חנינא answers that He does not rejoice Himself, but He causes others to rejoice. More teachings follow about אחאב's death, which fulfilled the prophecies of מיכיהו and אליהו. Next comes praise of עובדיהו: he feared ה׳ greatly, he hid a hundred prophets, and he prophesied against אדום, perhaps as an Edomite convert ('the ax comes from the forest itself'). The amud then discusses the king of מואב who sacrificed his son, and ends the פרק by comparing אבישג's beauty to שרה's.

Opening lines

״וּבַגּוֹיִם לֹא יִתְחַשָּׁב״.

"And shall not be reckoned among the nations."

רַבִּי אֶלְעָזָר רָמֵי:

Rabbi Elazar raises a contradiction:

כְּתִיב ״טוֹב ה׳ לַכֹּל״,

It is written, "The Lord is good to all,"

וּכְתִיב ״טוֹב ה׳ לְקֹוָויו״.

and it is written, "The Lord is good to those who hope in Him."

The steps (32)

  1. ProofThe Jewish people are not counted among 'the nations'
  2. ChallengeTwo verses about whom God is good to
  3. ResolutionThe orchard parable
  4. StatementBack to the משנה: 'Therefore each and every one'
  5. StatementThe 'song' when אחאב died
  6. ChallengeDoes God rejoice when the wicked fall?
  7. Proofרבי יונתן: why 'כי טוב' is missing
  8. ProofThe angels were not allowed to sing at the sea
  9. ResolutionHe does not rejoice, but He makes others rejoice
  10. ProofThe exact word 'ישיש' proves it
  11. StatementThe 'harlots' are two prophecies coming true
  12. Statementרבא: they were real images of harlots
  13. StatementThe archer shot without aiming
  14. StatementThe arrow completed two prophecies
  15. QuestionWhy does the verse mention עובדיהו's fear of ה׳?
  16. Responseאחאב blames עובדיהו, and a בת קול answers
  17. Statementעובדיהו is praised more than אברהם
  18. StatementWhy עובדיהו became a prophet
  19. QuestionWhy groups of fifty?
  20. Responseרבי אלעזר: He learned from יעקב
  21. Responseרבי אבהו: A cave only holds fifty
  22. QuestionWhy did עובדיהו prophesy about אדום?
  23. Responseרבי יצחק: The perfect contrast to עשו
  24. Responseעובדיהו was an Edomite convert
  25. StatementThe same saying applied to דוד and מואב
  26. Statementרב דימי: A thigh rots from within
  27. StatementThe king of Moab offers his son: two views on why
  28. ChallengeWhy was there anger against Israel if it was idol worship?
  29. ResolutionIsrael copied the worst of the nations
  30. StatementIsrael sank to the lowest level
  31. Statementאבישג did not reach half of שרה's beauty
  32. ConclusionHadran — Closing פרק אחד דיני ממונות