זוהר, וירא כ״אZohar, Vayera 21

Section 21 of 36 in Vayera — 34 segments

Segment 1א׳

וַיַּעַל לוֹט מִצֹּעַר וַיֵּשֶׁב בָּהָר הוּא וּשְׁתֵּי בְנוֹתָיו עִמּוֹ וְגו'. מַאי טַעְמָא. בְּגִין דְּחָמָא דְּהֲוָה קָרִיב לִסְדוֹם וְאִסְתַּלַּק מִתַּמָּן.

AND LOT WENT UP OUT OF ZOAR, AND DWELT IN THE MOUNTAIN, AND HIS TWO DAUGHTERS WITH HIM, ETC. For what reason? Because Zoar was too near Sodom: hence he moved away further.

Segment 2ב׳

רַבִּי יִצְחָק פָּתַח (איוב ל״ז:י״ב) וְהוּא מְסִיבּוֹת מִתְהַפֵּךְ בְּתַחְבּוּלתָיו לְפָעֳלָם וְגו'. קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא מְסַבֵּב סִבּוּבִין דְּעָלְמָא וְאַיְיתֵי קוּמְרִין טְהִירִין לְמֶעְבַּד עוֹבָדוֹי, וּלְבָתַר מְהַפֵּךְ לוֹן וְעָבִיד לוֹן כְּגַוְונָא אָחֳרָא.

R. Isaac discoursed on the verse: And they are turned round about by his devices, according to their work, etc. (Job 37, 12). ‘This means’, he said, ‘that the Holy One, blessed be He, constantly turns the wheel of events, bringing hidden things to the top, and then again giving another turn and shaping things differently; and thus “by his devices” He is ever scheming and planning how to effect the change, and make a new pattern.

Segment 3ג׳

וּבְמָּה, בְּתַחְבּוּלוֹתָיו, עָבִיד תַּחְבּוּלִין וּמְסַבֵּב סִבּוּבִין לַאֲפָכָא לוֹן וְלָאו כְּאִנּוּן קַדְמָאֵי. לְפָעֳלָם, בְּגִין פָּעֳלָם דִּבְנֵי נָשָׁא, כְּמָה דְאִנּוּן עָבְדִין עוֹבָדִין הָכִי מְהַפֵּךְ לוֹן. כֹּל אֲשֶׁר יְצַוֵּם עַל פְּנֵי תֵבֵל אָרְצָה. בְּגִין דְּעוֹבָדִין דִּבְנֵי נָשָׁא מְהַפֵּךְ לְאִנּוּן מְסִבּוֹת בְּכָל מַה דְּאִיהוּ פַּקִּיד לוֹן עַל פְּנִי תֵבֵל וְגו'.

All is “according to their work”, i.e. the variation takes place in accordance to the works and deeds of man. The verse continues: “according as he commandeth them upon the face of the habitable world”, that is, it is in accordance with man’s works that God shapes the course of events, in all that He ordains on the face of the world.’

Segment 4ד׳

רַבִּי אֶלְעָזָר אָמַר וְהוּא מְסִבּוֹת מִתְהַפֵּךְ. הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא מְסַבֵּב סִבּוּבִין וְאַיְיתֵי עוֹבָדִין בְּעָלְמָא לְאִתְקָיְימָא, וּלְבָתַר דְּחֲשִׁיבוּ בְּנֵי נָשָׁא דְּיִתְקָיְימוּן אִנּוּן עוֹבָדִין, קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא מְהַפֵּךְ לוֹן לְאִנּוּן עוֹבָדִין מִכְּמָה דְּהֲווּ בְּקַדְמִיתָא.

R. Eleazar interpreted the words “and they are turned round about by His devices”, in the following manner. ‘The Holy One guides the course of events so as to bring to pass a seemingly stable state of things; but when the sons of men imagine that all before them is fixed and firmly established, then the Holy One turns His works into something altogether different from their former state.

Segment 5ה׳

בְּתַחְבּוּלוֹתָיו. בְּתַחְבּוּלָתוֹ כְּתִיב כְּהַאי אוֹמָנָא דְּעָבִיד מָאנִין דְּחַרְסָא. בְּעוֹד דְּהַהִיא טִיקְלָא אִסְתַּחֲרַת קַמֵיהּ. חָשִׁיב לְמֶעְבַּד כְּגַוְונָא דָּא עָבִיד. חָשִׁיב לְמֶעְבַּד כְּגַוְונָא אָחֳרָא עָבִיד. מְהַפֵּךְ מָאנָא דָּא לְמָאנָא דָא, בְּגִין דְּהַהוּא טִיקְלָא אִסְתַּחֲרַת קַמֵּיהּ. כָּךְ קוּדְשָׁא בְּרִיךְ הוּא מְהַפֵּךְ עוֹבָדוֹי דְּאִיהוּ עָבִיד.

Further,’ he said, ‘we may translate not “devices”, but “device”, i.e. “instrument”, and compare God to a potter who, in turning his wheel, constantly fashions new vessels according to his fancy. So is the Holy One constantly reshaping His works,

…and 29 more segments in this section.

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Zohar — Vocalized Zohar, Israel 2013, via Sefaria

English: The Zohar — Soncino Press, London 1933 (public domain)

English: rendered from the Aramaic for this app — The Gematria's own rendering program. A rendering of the words, not a commentary; the Zohar is learned with a teacher