Sota 49: When Everything Went Bad

Masechet Sota ends with much mention of the sota ritual.  However, the text does remind us about the ending of different rituals and practices.

First, we are reminded that rabbis will be rewarded for good behaviour - talking about Talmud while with other scholars, learning Torah in a state of poverty.  Rabbis will be consequenced for negative behaviours, as well.

The rabbis then discuss the notion of lost taste and aroma when piety is lacking.  This becomes a conversation about fathers loving their sons while those sons adore their own sons rather than their fathers.

The final Mishna of Masechet Sota teaches about what ceases after which event.  Following one war/death, there was a loss to teh Jewish people:

After the war of the Vespasian, bridgrooms could not be crowned and drums could not be played

After the war of Titus, brides could not be crowned and children could not be taught Greek

After the Bar Kochva Revolt, the last war, there was a debate over whether or not brides could be paraded

Death of Rabbi Meir - no more parables

Dealth of Azzai - no more diligents

Death of Zoma - no more exegeses

Death of R. Akiva - no more Torah

Death of Chanina ben Dosa - no more men of action

Death of Yasai the Small - no more pious people

Death of Rabban Yochanan ben Zakkai - no more glory of wisdom

Death of Rabban Gamliel the Elder - no more honour of Torah, purity or asceticism

Death of Rabbi Yishmael ben Pavi - no more glory of the priesthood

Death of Rabbi Yehuda NaNasi - no more humility or fear of sin

What does this mean?  people were filled with shame, violent and "smooth talking men" gained power, and people ceased looking for answers through enquiry.  Rabbi Eliezer the Great understood this to mean that from the day that the Second Temple was destroyed, each generation has deteriorated.  

Much of the remainder of this last daf of Sota tells of the world without these qualities.  The rabbis also clarify the type of drum that was forbidden, the types of crowns that were disallowed, and different opinions about discouraging the use of the Greek language and/or the study of Greek wisdom.  

The very final words of our daf are telling.  We are reminded of the last line of the Mishna (Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi's death hastened the end of humility and fear of sin).   However, Rav Yosef said to the tanna who reviewed this Mishna "Do not teach that humility ceased, for there is someone - me." Similarly, Rav Nachman said to that same tanna, "Do not teach that the fear of sin ceased for there is someone - me."

From this final paragraph I take two lessons.  The first is a pshat reading: these positive qualities have not been destroyed.  There is still hope for our future as a good people.  My second reading is quite the opposite: both rabbis suggest that they demonstrate laudable qualities.  However, someone who has humility will not say that s/he is humble.  And someone who is fearful of sin, for example, the sin of pride, will not advertise his fear of that sin.  And so we are left with an ironic and yet poignant set of statements as we end Masechet Sota.