זוהר, שמות ט״זZohar, Shemot 16

Segment 4ד׳

וְהָכָא רָזָא דְּחָכְמְתָא אִית בֵּיהּ. יֵשׁ הֶבֶל, דְּנַפְקָא מֵאִינוּן הֲבָלִים עִלָּאִין, דְּעָלְמָא קַיְּימָא עָלַיְיהוּ, וְדָא נַעֲשָׂה עַל הָאָרֶץ, וְאִתְקַיַּים בְּקִיוּמֵיהּ, וְאִתְתַּקַּף בְּתוּקְפֵּיהּ בְּעוֹבְדֵי אַרְעָא, וּבִסְלִיקוּ דְּסַלְּקָא מֵאַרְעָא, וְדָא אִתְמָנָא עַל אַרְעָא, וְכָל תּוּקְפָּא וְקִיּוּמָא דִּילֵיהּ, בְּאִינוּן נִשְׁמָתִין דְּצַדִּיקַיָּא, דְּאִתְלְקִיטוּ מֵאַרְעָא, כַּד אִינּוּן זַכָּאִין, עַד לָא סָרְחוּ, בְּעוֹד דְּיָהֲבֵי רֵיחָא טָב, כְּגוֹן חֲנוֹךְ, דִּכְתִּיב בֵּיהּ, (בראשית ה׳:כ״ד) וְאֵינֶנּוּ כִּי לָקַח אוֹתוֹ אֱלהִים. וְנָטַל לֵיהּ עַד לָא מָטָא זִמְנֵיהּ, וְאִשְׁתַּעֲשַׁע בֵּיהּ, וְכֵן שְׁאַר זַכָּאִין דְּעָלְמָא.

to convey the following esoteric lesson. There is a certain “breath” . emanating from those supernal “breaths” upon which the world is sustained, closely connected with the earth and fed from it. It depends, in fact, on the souls of the righteous who have been gathered from the earth while still pure before they have committed any sin, and while their savour is still sweet: for instance, Enoch, of whom it is written, “And he was not, for God took him” (Gen. 5, 24). God took him away before his time and had delight in him.

Segment 5ה׳

דְּתָנֵינָן, עַל תְּרֵין מִלִּין, צַדִּיקַיָּא מִסְתַּלְּקֵי מֵעָלְמָא עַד לָא יִמְטֵי זִמְנַיְיהוּ, חַד, עַל חוֹבֵי דָּרָא, דְּכַד אַסְגִּיאוּ חַיָּיבַיָּא בְּעָלְמָא, אִינּוּן זַכָּאִין דְּמִשְׁתַּכְּחֵי בֵּינַיְיהוּ, אִתָּפְסוּן בְּחוֹבֵיהוֹן, וְחַד כַּד אִתְגְּלֵי קָמֵי קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא דְּיִסְרְחוּן לְבָתַר, סָלִיק לוֹן מֵעָלְמָא, עַד לָא מָטָא זִמְנַיְיהוּ, הֲדָא הוּא דִכְתִיב, (קהלת ח׳:י״ד) אֲשֶׁר יֵשׁ צַדִּיקִים אֲשֶׁר מַגִּיעַ אֲלֵיהֶם כְּמַעֲשֵׂה הָרְשָׁעִים, מָטֵי עָלַיְיהוּ דִּינָא דִּלְעֵילָּא, כְּאִילּוּ עָבְדוּ חוֹבִין וְעוֹבָדִין דְּרַשִׁיעַיָּיא.

And so it is with all the righteous, for we have been taught that the righteous are removed from this world before their time for one of two reasons: one for the sins of their generation, for when there is much sin in the world the righteous are penalized for its guilt; the second is that when the Holy One, blessed be He, is aware that they would commit a sin if they lived longer, He removes them before their time. And this is the meaning of the verse quoted above: “there are righteous to whom it happeneth according to the work of the wicked”, as was the case with R. Akiba and his colleagues; the judgement from above came upon them, as if they had committed the sins and actions of the wicked.