SONG
OF SONGS:
16.
"Behold, you are comely, my beloved, yea pleasant; also our couch is
leafy.
17.
The beams of our houses are cedars; our corridors are cypresses."
1.
"I am a rose of Sharon, a rose of the valleys."
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SOULS THAT DESCENDED TO EGYPT: Shimon
TALMUD
SHEVUOTH: Daf 6 - the Metzorah
BOOK
OF JEREMIAH: Chapter 6
Week 6 in
the Jewish calendar is the second week of Cheshvan. The Song of Songs verses
for this week again appear connected to boh main themes of Cheshvan: the Temple
and the Flood.
The first
two verses again are said by the Jewish people, and again they speak of Hashem
resting in our midst. Below are Rashi’s comments regarding the first two
verses:
yea pleasant: For You overlooked my
transgression and caused Your Shechinah to rest in our midst, and this is the
praise of the descent of the fire (Lev. 9:24): “and all the people saw and
shouted for joy.”
also our couch is leafy: Through your
pleasantness, behold our couch is leafy with our sons and with our daughters,
all of whom gather to You here, as it is said (ibid. 8: 4): “and the
congregation gathered [to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting].” The Tabernacle
is called a bed, as it is said (below 3: 7): “Behold, the litter of Solomon,”
and the Temple is called a bed, as it is said concerning Joash (II Chron.
22:11, II Kings 11:2): “in the bed chamber” which was in the “House of the
Lord” (ibid. 3), because they [the Sanctuaries] are the source of Israel’s
fruitfulness and procreation.
The beams of our houses are cedars: This
is the praise of the Tabernacle.
The second
verse also mentions structures made of cypresses, like the cypress wood used in
the construction of the Ark.
The third
verse, which begins a new chapter in Shir HaShirim, speaks of the rose of the
valleys, Chavatzelet HaSharon. Our sages note that Chavatzelet(rose) stands for
Chav Tzel, the “shade of love” constructed byBetzalel, the Temple itself.
Of the
seventy souls of the Jewish people that descended to Egypt, the sixth mentioned
is Shimon. Of all of Jacob’s sons, he is the one most associated with violence,
such as what caused the Flood (literally, Chamas). Jacob states that the
weapons of Shimon and Levi are those of “Chamas.” The name Shimon comes from Shmiah,
hearing.
Daf Vav(Folio
6) of Shvuot discusses primarily the afflictions of the Metzorah; there is a
debate about its color. The Metzorah represents a high degree of guilt and
negative social behavior, such as Lashon Harah, evil speech (and also hearing
such speech).
Chapter 6 of
the Book of Jeremiah contains a similar theme to the above:
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6.
For so says the Lord of Hosts: Cut the trees and cast on Jerusalem a siege
mound; that is the city whose sins have been visited upon her, everywhere
there is oppression in its midst.
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ו. כִּי כֹה אָמַר יְהֹוָה צְבָאוֹת כִּרְתוּ עֵצָה וְשִׁפְכוּ עַל
יְרוּשָׁלִַם סֹלְלָה הִיא הָעִיר הָפְקַד כֻּלָּהּ עֹשֶׁק בְּקִרְבָּהּ:
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7.
As a well lets its water flow, so has she let her evil flow; violence and
spoil is heard therein before Me continually; sickness and wounds.
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ז. כְּהָקִיר בַּיִר מֵימֶיהָ כֵּן הֵקֵרָה רָעָתָהּ חָמָס וָשֹׁד
יִשָּׁמַע בָּהּ עַל פָּנַי תָּמִיד חֳלִי וּמַכָּה:
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8.
Be corrected, O Jerusalem, lest My soul be alienated from you; lest I make
you a desolation, a land uninhabited.
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ח. הִוָּסְרִי יְרוּשָׁלִַם פֶּן תֵּקַע נַפְשִׁי מִמֵּךְ פֶּן
אֲשִׂימֵךְ שְׁמָמָה אֶרֶץ לוֹא נוֹשָׁבָה:
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Beyond the connection made here between Jerusalem and trees, there is also a connection between water and punishment for evil and the hearing of Hamas (violence and spoil). Repentance can save the land from desolation. In fact, the entire chapter focuses greatly on complete desolation, completely uninhabited, similar to the world after the Flood.
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