זוהר, נשא ג׳Zohar, Nasso 3

Segment 1א׳

(במדבר ה׳:ו׳) אִישׁ אוֹ אִשָׁה כִּי יַעֲשׂוּ מִכָּל חַטֹּאת הָאָדָם וְגוֹ'. תָּא חֲזֵי, כְּתִיב (שופטים ד׳:י״א) וְחֶבֶר הַקֵּינִי נִפְרָד מִקַּיִן מִבְּנֵי חוֹבָב חוֹתֵן מֹשֶׁה וְגוֹ', וְחֶבֶר הַקֵּינִי מִבְּנֵי בְּנוֹי דְּיִתְרוֹ הֲוָה, כְּמָה דְאַתְּ אָמֵר (שמואל א ט״ו:ו׳) וַיֹּאמֶר שָׁאוּל אֶל הַקֵּינִי וְגוֹ'. אֲמַאי אִקְרֵי קֵינִי. וְהָא אוּקְמוּהָ. וּכְתִיב (בראשית ט״ו:י״ט) אֶת הַקֵּינִי וְאֶת הַקְּנִיזִּי. וְאִתְּמַר דְּעַבֲד קִנָּא בְּמַדְבְּרָא, כְּעוֹפָא דָּא, בְּגִין לְמִלְעֵי בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, וְאִתְפְּרַשׁ מִן מָתָא, נִפְרָד מִקַּיִן, אִתְפְּרַשׁ מֵהַהוּא עַמָּא דְּהֲוָה בְּקַדְמִיתָא, וְאִתְדַּבָּק בֵּיהּ בְּקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, נִפְרַד מִקַּיִן.

“When a man or woman shall commit any sin that men commit” (Num. 5, 6), and so forth. Observe: it is written, “Now Heber the Kenite had severed himself from Kain, from the children of Hobab the father-in-law of Moses” (Judg. 4, 11), and so forth. And Heber the Kenite was of the descendants of the sons of Jethro, as you say, “And Saul said to the Kenites” (I Sam. 15, 6), and so forth. Why was he called Kenite? This has been explained. And it is written, “the Kenite, and the Kenizzite” (Gen. 15, 19). And it is said that he made a nest (kina) in the wilderness, like this bird, in order to study the Torah, and he separated himself from the town — “severed himself from Kain”: he separated from that people among whom he had been at first, and he cleaved to the Holy One, blessed be He: “severed himself from Kain.”

Segment 2ב׳

זַכָּאָה בַּר נָשׁ דְּזָכֵי בְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, לְמֵיזָל לְאִתְדַּבְּקָא בְּאוֹרְחוֹי. דְּכַד בַּר נָשׁ אָזִיל בְּאוֹרְחוֹי דְּאוֹרַיְיתָא, מָשִׁיךְ עָלֵיהּ רוּחָא קַדִּישָׁא עִלָּאָה. כְּמָה דְאַתְּ אָמֵר, (ישעיהו ל״ב:ט״ו) עַד יֵעָרֶה עָלֵינוּ רוּחַ מִמָּרוֹם. וְכַד בַּר נָשׁ סָטֵי אוֹרְחוֹי, מָשִׁיךְ עָלֵיהּ רוּחָא אַחֲרָא מִסִּטְרָא אַחֲרָא, דְּהוּא סִטְרָא דְּמִסְאֲבָא. וְסִטְרָא דְּמִסְאֲבָא אִתְּעַר מִסִּטְרָא דְּנוּקְבָּא דִּתְהוֹמָא רַבָּא, דְּתַמָּן מָדוֹרִין דְּרוּחִין בִּישִׁין, דְּנַזְקֵי לִבְנֵי נָשָׁא, דְּאִקְרוּן נַזְקֵּי עָלְמָא. דְּהָא (קמ"ג ע"א ע"ב) מִסִּטְרָא דְּקַיִן קַדְמָאָה אִשְׁתְּכָחוּ.

Happy is the man who is worthy of the Torah, to walk and cleave to its ways. For when a man walks in the ways of the Torah, he draws upon himself a supernal holy spirit, as you say, “until the spirit be poured upon us from on high” (Isa. 32, 15). And when a man turns his ways aside, he draws upon himself another spirit from the other side, which is the side of defilement. And the side of defilement is roused from the side of the female of the great abyss, where there are the dwellings of evil spirits that harm the sons of men, and they are called the harmers of the world; for (folio 143a and 143b) they were found from the side of Cain the first.

Segment 3ג׳

וְיִתְרוֹ בְּקַדְמִיתָא כּוּמָרָא לְעֲבוֹדָה זָרָה הֲוָה, וּלְהַהוּא סְטָר הֲוָה פָּלַח, וּמָשִׁךְ עָלֵיהּ רוּחָא מֵהַהוּא אֲתָר. וְעַל דָּא אִקְרֵי קֵּינִי לְבָתַר נִפְרָד מִקַּיִן (ודאי), וְאִתְדְּבַק (נ"א ואתחבר) בֵּיהּ בְּקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, (מאי משמע) דְּכָל מַאן דְּאִתְדַּבָּק בֵּיהּ בְּקוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא, וְעָבִיד פִּקּוּדֵי אוֹרַיְיתָא, כִּבְיָכוֹל, הוּא קִיֵּים עָלְמִין, עָלְמָא דִּלְעֵילָּא וְעָלְמָא דִּלְתַּתָּא. וְהָא אוּקְמוּהָ, וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אוֹתָם כְּתִיב.

And Jethro at first was a priest to idolatry, and to that side he worshipped, and he drew upon himself a spirit from that place. And therefore he was called Kenite; afterwards, “severed himself from Kain” (assuredly), and he cleaved (a variant reads: and he joined) to the Holy One, blessed be He. (What does this imply?) That everyone who cleaves to the Holy One, blessed be He, and performs the precepts of the Torah, as it were, sustains worlds — the world above and the world below. And this has been explained: “and you shall do them” is written.