The Lord Called unto Moses

The Waters of Noah

231) When there are many righteous in the world, the Creator is glad and is praised by them. When there is a righteous in the world and he is in it, it is as though he casts peace in the world (which is Malchut), and the whole world is blessed through him. And he casts peace in the company above. It is written, “Or else let him take hold of My strength, make peace unto Me, peace let him make unto Me.” Two peaces are written here, “Make peace unto Me,” instilling male and female, ZA and Malchut, and “Peace let him make unto Me,” when the patriarchs, HGT de ZA, are blessed.

232) What is the difference between “Make peace unto Me,” and “Peace let him make unto Me”? When the patriarchs are blessed, meaning HGT, it is said, “Peace let him make unto Me.” This is so because he puts peace before everything, since it is the most important. This is why it writes “peace” first, “Peace let him make unto Me.” “Make peace unto Me” does not put “peace” first here, since first the serpent that is with the Nukva [female]—which is Malchut—must be removed, and then ZA will come to be in his place with the Malchut. This is why he puts “Make” first, making the correction of removing the serpent, and then the peace between ZA and Malchut.

233) When there is a righteous in the world, Dinim do not awaken and do not govern the world, since a righteous man is a sign in the world, meaning Yesod, which is called “a sign,” and the Creator wishes to honor him. Hence, the world exists because of him.

234) When people are guilty before the Creator and that righteous one is in the world, the Creator speaks with him so he will ask for mercy for the world, and He will be appeased toward them. What does the Creator do? He speaks to him of those wicked ones in the world, and tells him that He will do good only to him and will destroy all of them. What is the way of that righteous man? He leaves his own and takes himself to plead for the whole world, so the Creator will be appeased toward them.

235) How do we know this? From Moses. The Creator told him, “Israel have sinned. They have made them a molten calf, and have worshipped it.” He also said to him, “Let Me alone, that I may destroy them.” At that time, Moses said, “If because of my honor, Israel will be obliterated from the world, I would rather die, and let it not be said that I left the whole world for my own honor.” Promptly, “And Moses besought the Lord his God” and gave himself to death in several places for Israel. It is written, “But now, if You will, forgive their sin—and if not, please blot me out from Your book.” Moses did not move from there until the Creator forgave Israel, as it is written, “And the Lord repented of the evil which He said He would do unto His people.” It is also written, “And the Lord said, ‘I have pardoned according to your word.’”

236) Concerning Noah, it is written, “And God said unto Noah, ‘The end of all flesh is come before Me.’” Noah told him, “And what will You do to me?” He told him, “But I will establish My covenant with you.” “Make for yourself an ark of gopher wood.” He did not beseech mercy for the world, and the water came down and destroyed the people of the world. This is why it writes, “The waters of Noah,” for they were dependent upon him, since he did not beseech mercy for the world.

237) Hence, the words, “And Noah, man of the earth, began.” “Began” means “He shall not break his word,” for it became secular [in Hebrew: “began” and “break” are the same word here]. He is a man of the earth because all the people were destroyed because of him, for he did not beseech mercy for them. Another interpretation: “Man of the earth” means that the earth existed thanks to him, after the former ones corrupted it, as it is written, “I will never again curse the ground on account of man.”

238) “The waters of Noah” are called so because he caused them to be called after his name by not having prayed for them. But what does “This is ... unto Me” mean? The Creator said, “The waters of Noah caused Me to reveal This, meaning Malchut, in the world, appearing as the rainbow, to protect the world.” It is written, “As for Me, this is My covenant with them.”

It is also written, “This is the token of the covenant ... I have set My bow in the cloud,” to protect the world. In other words, the rainbow indicates that there is no one to watch over the world and pray for it, but I do for the honor of My name, which is implied in “This.” And who caused this to Me? The waters of Noah, who did not pray and did not protect the world.

239) This is why the sign of a pious righteous is that the rainbow does not appear in his days, since in his days the world has no need for this token because he protects the world with his prayer. And who is he? One who beseeches mercy for the world and is worthy of protecting it, such as Rabbi Shimon, in whose days the world did not need this token, since that token is a sign in the world that there is no protector but the Creator.

The Creator Sentences and the Righteous Revokes

241) Such was Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai. One day he was sitting at the door of the gate to the city of Lod. He raised his eyes and saw that the sun was shining. He blocked its light three times. Thus, the light was darkened and black and green were seen in the sun. He said to Rabbi Elazar, his son, “Follow me, my son, and we will see; a decree must have been declared above and the Creator wishes to inform me.” Indeed, that thing which was sentenced hangs above for thirty days and the Creator does not act before He alerts the righteous, as it is written, “For the Lord God will do nothing, but He reveals His counsel unto His servants the prophets.”

242) While they were walking in that vineyard, they saw a serpent that came with its mouth open, blazing in the dust of the earth. Rabbi Shimon was disturbed and his hands struck the serpent’s head. The serpent went silent and lowered its mouth, and Rabbi Shimon saw its tongue dangling. He told it, “Serpent, serpent, go and tell that high serpent, which incites and slanders, that Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai is in the world.” The serpent put its head into a hole in the ground and Rabbi Shimon said, “I declare that as the lower serpent returned to the hole in the ground, the upper serpent will return to the hole of the great deep.”

243) Rabbi Shimon whispered a prayer. While they were praying, they heard a voice saying, “The sentences have ceased; return to your places. The strikes of the saboteurs are gone from the world because Rabbi Shimon Bar-Yochai cancelled them. Happy are you Rabbi Shimon that your Master wishes for your best more than for all the people in the world.” It is written about Moses, “And Moses besought,” meaning that he was sickened [in Hebrew, “besought” can also mean “be sick”]. But you, Rabbi Shimon, sentence, and the Creator keeps; He sentences and you revoke.

244) In the meantime, he saw that the sun had shone and that black was removed. Rabbi Shimon said, “It must be that the world has been perfumed.” He went into his house and interpreted, “For the Lord is righteous, He loves righteousness; the upright shall behold His face.” What is “His face”? “For the Lord is righteous, He loves righteousness” because “The upright shall behold His face,” meaning the high faces of the people of the world, for they need to ask of the Creator for mercy for everything they need.

245) What is, “The upright shall behold His face”? These are the ancient days, the Sefirot of Atik, the hidden of all that are hidden, the Keter. And the days of the world are the Sefirot of ZA, which are called “His face.” They see each other in an upright way what they should see, meaning the Panim [face] of ZA sees the Panim of Atik, and the Panim of Atik sees the Panim of ZA in an upright way, without turning right or left.

246) When the Creator watches over the world and sees that the acts of people below are upright, Atik, which is Keter, appears in ZA, Tifferet, and all those Panim of ZA look at the hidden Panim of Atik. Then, all are blessed because they look at each other in an upright way, in the middle line, which leans neither to the right nor to the left. It is written about that, “The upright shall behold His face,” meaning that the faces of Atik and ZA look at each other in an upright way, in the middle line. And then they are all blessed and water each other until all the worlds are blessed and all the worlds are as one. At that time, it is considered that “The Lord is one and His name One.”

247) And when the iniquities in the world increase, Atik is concealed and they do not look face to face. Then Dinim awaken in the world, the thrones are set up, and Atik, which is Keter, is concealed and not revealed, as it is written, “I looked until thrones were set up” and Atik Yomin was sitting. “Until thrones were set up” are the upper Keters that water all the others to establish their existence. They are the patriarchs, HGT de ZA. And “Atik Yomin was sitting” means that He was not revealed. He is considered sitting because one who sits lowers his height and then the wicked in the world turn the Rachamim into Din.