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Who Said...
"It is always darkest before the dawn"
"To the chief musician: upon the rising of the morning star, a psalm of David: My G-d, My G-d, why have you forsaken me? [Why are You] so far from saving me, from the words of my roar? (Psalms 22:1)
Immediately before the rise of the morning star, the night is at its darkest...(Midrash Shocher Tov)
Shachar---"morning" or "dawn"---is related to shachor---"black"---because the moment immediately preceding the dawn is the blackest, darkest part of the night. (Vilna Gaon, Avnei Eliyahu)
Who Said...
Speak softly and carry a big stick
U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt made this saying famous, but it wasn't his own. As he once confided in a letter, "I have always been fond of the West African proverb, "Speak softly and carry a big stick; you will go far." (Nathan Miller, Theodore Roosevelt, A Life, P. 337.)
Roosevelt may not have gone far enough with his attribution, though, for as Confucious said, "The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions." (Barlett's Quotations)
Bartlett's may not have gone far enough, either. In Ethics of the Fathers (1:15), the Jewish Sages enjoin us to "say little, do much." Thus we find by Abraham, who promised his guests some bread, and then served them not just bread, but butter, milk, and tongue sandwiches with mustard! (Genesis18:5-8, Bava Metzia 86b.)
Who Said...
"You are what you eat"
The Ramban points out that the tameh birds listed in the Torah (Vayikra 11:13) are predators. Those who consume such creatures incorporate the birds' characteristic cruelty into their own hearts. This, maintains the Ramban, is why they are forbidden, since God wishes us to develop our potential for kindness, not cruelty.
The Ramban's explanation poses a problem, though, with regard to the chasidah, which is classed as tameh. As Rashi says, it is called chasidah because of the chesed (kindness) it does for its friends by sharing its food. Why is it that a bird so distinguished by its kindness is forbidden?
The Chiddushei Ha-Rim answers that a creature which discriminates in kindness, giving food only to its friends, is, in the eyes of the Torah, tameh. For when it comes to food, we give to friends and strangers alike. (Mayinah shel Torah, Vayikra 11:19)
Who Said...
"The boy who cried wolf."
This is from Aesop's tale of a boy who cried "Wolf, wolf!" when there was no wolf. When he did this too many times, no one would believe him, and they wouldn't come to his aid any longer, even when there really was a wolf. More ancient than Aesop, the Midrash makes the same point about the fate of liars, using one of the most famous of Biblical episodes for its prooftext. In Avos d'Rabbi Nosson (30:4): Rabbi Shimon says: "Thus is the punishment of the liar, that even when he speaks the truth, no one listens. Thus we find by the sons of Jacob, who lied to their father. In the beginning, he believed them, as it says, (Genesis 37) "and they took the coat of Joseph and slaughtered a goat," [to stain their brother's coat with its blood to make it look like he had been killed], and it's written, 'and he [Jacob] recognized it and said, 'It is my son's coat.' But in the end, even though they spoke the truth, he didn't believe them, as it says, 'and they told him, 'Joseph still lives!' but his heart was faint, for he did not believe them."
Who Said...
"Carrying Coals to Newcastle"
After Aharon cast down his rod before Pharaoh, and it turned into a snake, Pharaoh called for his wise men and sorcerers to do the same with their incantations. (Exodus 7:11) The Midrash says that Pharaoh cackled like a hen, thinking that Aharon was practicing sorcery and claiming it to be the sign of G-d. "It's the way of people to bring merchandise to places where there is a need for it, not to bring it to a place that already has a full supply. Don't you know," Pharaoh asked, "that here in Egypt we have every kind of magic?" And he summoned little schoolchildren to come and replicate Aharon's "tricks." They were able to create the slight-of-hand appearance of a rod turning into a snake, though not a real snake; whereas Aharon's was a real one. They laughed and mocked Aharon, saying, "Do you bring straw to Afarayim?" (A place where the fields are full of straw and serves as a source of supply for other places.) "Don't you know that there is no place in the world for sorcery like Egypt?" Aharon and Moses replied: "On the contrary, that's why we came. If we had performed such wonders elsewhere, they would have accused us of playing mere tricks. But here in Egypt they [will] know very well that what we are doing is nothing like their sorcery." Then, Aharon's rod reverted to being a rod, and then swallowed up the sorcerer's snakes. Later, during the course of the Ten Plagues, Pharaoh's magicians would proclaim (regarding the plague of lice), "This is the finger of G-d!" (Exodus 8:15)
Who Said...
"The meek shall inherit the earth."
This is the phrasing which appears in the non-Jewish religious texts. The original Hebrew of the Psalmist (37:11) reads: "And the humble shall inherit the earth." The difference is significant. For meek connotes a mild, tame or submissive character, lacking in spirit. Humility, on the other hand, consists in knowing one's true worth; recognizing that one's talents and abilities come from G-d, and whatever success one enjoys in life is by the grace of G-d, and not through one's own greatness. Moses is a good example. The Torah testifies that Moses was the humblest man on the face of the earth; but he was certainly not meek. He proclaimed that whatever wisdom he had was given through the Torah; whatever miracles occurred were performed by G-d, not him; and that he was but a messenger of the Almighty, communicating His commands and teachings to the people. But he was never meek in carrying out his responsibilities. Fearlessly, he entered the palace of Pharaoh and issued ultimatums to let the people go; when Korach and his company rebelled against his authority, he called upon G-d to punish them; when he saw the people dancing around the Golden Calf, he cast down the Ten Commandments and smashed them.
Who Said...
"Who will condemn the hatred of evil that springs from the love of what is good and just?"
Menachem Begin, The Revolt, Introduction.
The late Israeli prime minister's words echo the sentiment of King David in Psalms 139:21--- "Behold, those who hate You, G-d, I hate; with those who rise up against you I contend."
Who Said...
"For fools rush in where angels fear to tread."
Rick Nelson made it into a popular song, but those who know British literature will tell you that it comes from Alexander Pope's "An Essay on Criticism" (1711). And those who really know British literature will tell you that it echoes Shakespeare's line in Richard III (1:3, 70): "The world is grown so bad,/That wrens make prey where eagles dare not perch." But those who know Torah will tell you that it bears a striking resemblance to a verse in Proverbs (22:3): "The wise man sees the evil and hides, and the fools pass on and are punished." See Mesilat Yesharim (Path of the Just), Chapter 3, for the classic commentary on this fundamental principle of Judaism.
Who Said...
"What hath G-d wrought!"
This Biblical expression was quoted by Samuel F.B. Morse in the first telegraph message he sent to his partner, Alfred Vail, from Washington to Baltimore on May 24, 1844. (Bartlett's Familiar Quotations.) It is taken from Numbers 23:23, in which the wicked Bilaam, who had come to curse the Israelites, is forced by G-d to bless them. The verse reads in full: "For there is no enchantment with Jacob, nor is there any magic in Israel; in time it will be said to Jacob and to Israel: 'What hath G-d wrought.' " Rashi explains the meaning of the verse: that the people Israel is worthy of G-d's blessing because there are not among them enchanters or diviners. In the future G-d's love for Israel will be revealed to all, when they will sit before Him learning Torah...and their position will be before the ministering angels, who will ask, "What hath G-d wrought?" Alternately, the verse refers not to the future but to the present, saying that Israel does not require enchanters or diviners, for at any time that it is necessary to know 'What hath G-d wrought,' and what are His decrees in heaven, it is told to them by their prophets.
Who Said...
"Mit emunah iz kaiyn kushiyos nita; ain emunah iz kaiyn teirutz nita." "If you have emunah (faith), the questions are not questions; if you don't have emunah, the answers are not answers."
This aphorism is attributed to two luminaries of the Torah world in the last century: Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan, better known as the Chofetz Chaim, for his definitive work on the laws of speech, and Rabbi Avraham Yeshayah Karelitz, better known as the Chazon Ish, for his Talmudic commentary of that name. What is meant is not that a person who has emunah is oblivious to moral and philosophical questions (such as "why do the righteous suffer" and "where was G-d at Auschwitz"), but that such questions do not perplex him because he knows that ultimately G-d's justice and compassion prevails, even when human reason cannot explain everything. One who lacks emunah, on the other hand, is never satisfied with the answers to his questions, because reason will never enable him to completely comprehend the Divine plan behind events.
Who Said...
"It takes patience to master the skill of patience."
Rabbi Zelig Pliskin in his new book "Patience."
Who Said...
"In G-d We Trust"
In response to numerous appeals from U.S. citizens during the Civil War, Secretary of the Treasury Salmon P. Chase ordered that a motto recognizing the Creator should appear on the national coinage. As he wrote to the Director of the U.S. Mint: "Dear Sir: No nation can be strong except in the strength of G-d, or safe except in His defense. The trust of our people in God should be declared on our national coins. You will cause a device to be prepared without unnecessary delay with a motto expressing in the fewest and tersest words possible this national recognition." "In G-d We Trust" first appeared in 1861 on the two-cent coin. Thereafter, its appearance on U.S. coinage and currency became increasingly standard. On July 30, 1956, by a special act of Congress, "In G-d We Trust" became the official motto of the United States. Chase may not have cited any of the many verses in the Bible for the motto he selected, but there are many, of course, that speak of trust in G-d. Here is a brief selection: Psalms 23:1 ("The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not lack.") Psalms 23:3 ("Though I walk in the valley overshadowed by death, I will fear no evil, for You are with me.") Psalms 115:9 ("Israel trusts in G-d, He is their help and their shield.") Proverbs 16:20 ("He who trusts in G-d is happy.") Isaiah 12:2 ("The Lord is my salvation, I will trust and not fear...") Isaiah 26:4 ("Trust in G-d forever, for G-d is the strength of the worlds.") Jeremiah 39:18 ("...for you trusted in Me, saith the Lord." Jeremiah 17:7 ("Blessed is the man who trusts in G-d...") Nachum 1:7 ("G-d is good, a stronghold in the day of trouble, and He knows them that trust in Him."
Who Said...
"The best-laid plans of mice and men often go awry."
Eighteenth century Scottish poet Robert Burns coined the phrase, but the insight is ancient. Centuries before, King Solomon expressed it in Proverbs (19:21): "There are many thoughts in a man's heart, but the counsel of G-d shall stand." (The phrase is recited in the Shacharit (morning prayer), in the yehi kavod prayer, just before ashrei. See also Psalms 33:10.) The Malbim explains that there is no contradiction here to the principle of man's free will. Human freedom consists in the ability to make plans and seek to carry them out. The success or failure of those plans are not, ultimately, in human hands. In the final analysis, it is G-d's will that determines the outcome.
Who Said...
"We have received a wake up call from hell."
Former Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu, in testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Government Reform Committee on September 20, 2001, after the attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon. (For full text, see "How to Win the War Against Terrorism" at aish.com.)
Who Said...
"You can't take it with you."
It comes from Psalms 49, which reads, in part, "Do not worry when [you see] someone becoming wealthy, his house increasing with splendor. Because he will not take anything with him when he dies..." We recite these lines at the end of morning and evening prayers every time we visit a beis avel (house of mourning). It helps us to focus on the important things in life---the things which you can take with you at death, namely the spiritual merit of Torah and good deeds. There is, however, an ancient custom of burying an especially distinguished Torah scholar with his shtender (lectern). It is said to serve as witness in the heavenly court regarding the Torah accomplishments of the deceased. In modern times, for example, Rabbi Meir Simcha of Dvinsk, author of the classic, Ohr Somayach, was interred with his shtender. This is, of course, no contradiction to the statement that "you can't take it with you." The Psalm refers to worldly possessions, which have no place in the spiritual life after this world; whereas the shtender represents the Torah that one has learned, which is an eternal possession.
Who Said...
"Every bullet has its address."
Rabbi Meir Simcha of Dvinsk. When World War One broke out in 1914, the Russian commander, Grand Duke Nikolai Nikolayevitch, ordered the expulsion of the Jews from the Russo-German Front. Dvinsk became dangerous for the Jews, with famine and disease wreaking havoc. All who could, fled the city...But Reb Meir Simcha would not go. Neither the entreaties of his friends and students nor letters from gedolim around the world could persuade him to abandon his post. "As long as there are nine other Jews in that city, I will be the tenth for a minyan,' he declared, and so infused hope and courage into his brethren. When he was reminded of the constant danger, Reb Meir Simcha declared, 'Every bullet has a designated address and none will reach where there has been no heavenly decree that it will do so." (from The Torah Personality, Mesorah Publications)