19 (20) behold now, this city is near to flee to, and it is a little one: Oh, let me escape there, (is it not a little one?) and my soul shall live.

19 (21) And he said to him, See, I have accepted thee concerning this thing also, that I will not overthrow this city, for which thou hast spoken.

(22) Haste thee, escape there; for I cannot do anything till thou be come there. Therefore the name of the city was called Żo῾ar.

(23) The sun was risen upon the earth when Lot entered into Żo῾ar.

(24) Then the Lord rained upon Sedom and upon ῾Amora brimstone and fire from the Lord out of heaven;

(25) and He overthrew those cities, and all the plain, and all the inhabitants of the cities, and that which grew upon the ground.

(26) But his wife looked back from behind him, and she became a pillar of salt.

(27) And Avraham went early in the morning to the place where he had stood before the Lord:

(28) and he looked toward Sedom and ῾Amora, and toward all the land of the plain, and beheld, and, lo, the smoke of the country went up like the smoke of a furnace.

(29) And it came to pass, when God destroyed the cities of the plain, that God remembered Avraham, and sent Lot out of the midst of the overthrow, when He overthrew the cities in which Lot dwelt.

(30) And Lot went up out of Żo῾ar, and dwelt in the mountain, and his two daughters with him; for he feared to dwell in Żo῾ar: and he dwelt in a cave, he and his two daughters.

(31) And the firstborn said to the younger, Our father is old, and there is not a man in the earth to come in to us after the manner of all the earth:

(32) come, let us make our father drink wine, and we will lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.

(33) And they made their father drink wine that night: and the firstborn went in, and lay with her father; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.

(34) And it came to pass on the morrow, that the firstborn said to the younger, Behold, I lay last night with my father: let us make him drink wine this night also; and go thou in, and lie with him, that we may preserve seed of our father.

(35) And they made their father drink wine that night also: and the younger arose, and lay with him; and he perceived not when she lay down, nor when she arose.

(36) Thus were both the daughters of Lot with child by their father.

(37) And the firstborn bore a son, and called his name Mo᾽av: he is the father of Mo᾽av to this day.

(38) And the younger, she also bore a son, and called his name Ben-῾ammi: he is the father of the children of ῾Ammon to this day.

20 (1) And Avraham journeyed from there toward the Negev, and dwelt between Qadesh and Shur, and sojourned in Gerar.

(2) And Avraham said of Sara his wife, She is my sister: and Avimelekh king of Gerar sent, and took Sara.

(3) But God came to Avimelekh in a dream by night, and said to him, Behold, thou art a dead man, because of the woman whom thou hast taken, for she is a man’s wife.

(4) But Avimelekh had not come near her: and he said, Lord, wilt Thou slay also a righteous nation?

(5) Said he not to me, She is my sister? and she, even she herself said, He is my brother: in the integrity of my heart and innocency of my hands have I done this.

(6) And God said to him in a dream, I too know that thou didst this in the integrity of thy heart; for I also withheld thee from sinning against Me: therefore I did not permit thee to touch her.

(7) Now therefore restore the man’s wife; for he is a prophet, and he shall pray for thee, and thou shalt live: and if thou restore her not, know thou that thou shalt surely die, thou, and all that are thine.

(8) Therefore Avimelekh rose early in the morning, and called all his servants, and told all these things in their ears: and the men were sore afraid.

(9) Then Avimelekh called Avraham, and said to him, What hast thou done to us? and in what have I offended thee, that thou hast brought on me and on my kingdom a great sin? thou hast done deeds to me that ought not to be done.

(10) And Avimelekh said to Avraham, What sawest thou, that thou hast done this thing?

(11) And Avraham said, Because I thought, Surely the fear of God is not in this place; and they will slay me for my wife’s sake.

(12) And yet indeed she is my sister; she is the daughter of my father, but not the daughter of my mother; and she became my wife.

(13) And it came to pass, when God caused me to wander from my father’s house, that I said to her, This is thy kindness which thou shalt show to me; at every place where we shall come, say of me, He is my brother.

(14) And Avimelekh took sheep, and oxen, and menservants, and womenservants, and gave them to Avraham, and restored him Sara his wife.

(15) And Avimelekh said, Behold, my land is before thee: dwell where it pleases thee.

(16) And to Sara he said, Behold, I have given thy brother a thousand pieces of silver: behold, it is to thee a covering of the eyes, to all that are with thee, and unto all others: thus she was reproved.

(17) So Avraham prayed to God: and God healed Avimelekh, and his wife, and his maidservants; and they bore children.

(18) For the Lord had fast closed up all the wombs of the house of Avimelekh, because of Sara Avraham’s wife.

21 (1) And the Lord visited Sara as He had said, and the Lord did to Sara as He had spoken.

(2) For Sara conceived, and bore Avraham a son in his old age, at the set time of which God had spoken to him.

(3) And Avraham called the name of his son that was born to him, whom Sara bore to him, Yiżĥaq.

(4) And Avraham circumcised his son Yiżĥaq being eight days old, as God had commanded him.

21 (5) And Avraham was a hundred years old, when his son Yiżĥaq was born to him.

(6) And Sara said, God has made laughter for me, so that all that hear will laugh with me.

(7) And she said, Who would have said to Avraham, that Sara should give children suck? for I have born him a son in his old age.

(8) And the child grew, and was weaned: and Avraham made a great feast on the same day that Yiżĥaq was weaned.

(9) And Sara saw the son of Hagar the Miżrian, whom she had born to Avraham, mocking.

(10) So she said to Avraham, Cast out this bondwoman and her son: for the son of this bondwoman shall not be heir with my son, with Yiżĥaq.

(11) And the thing was very grievous in Avraham’s eyes because of his son.

(12) And God said to Avraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sara has said to thee, hearken to her voice; for in Yiżĥaq shall thy seed be called.

(13) And also of the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed.

(14) And Avraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it to Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Be᾽er-sheva.

(15) And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs.

(16) And she went, and sat her down over against him a good way off, as it were a bowshot: for she said, Let me not see the death of the child. And she sat over against him, and lifted up her voice, and wept.

(17) And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said to her, What ails thee, Hagar? fear not; for God has heard the voice of the lad where he is.

(18) Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thy hand; for I will make him a great nation.

(19) And God opened her eyes, and she saw a well of water; and she went, and filled the bottle with water, and gave the lad drink.

(20) And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer.

(21) And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran: and his mother took him a wife out of the land of Miżrayim.

21 (22) And it came to pass at that time, that Avimelekh and Pikhol captain of his host spoke to Avraham, saying, God is with thee in all that thou doest:

(23) now therefore swear to me here by God that thou wilt not deal falsely with me, nor with my son, nor with my son’s son: but according to the kindness that I have done to thee, thou shalt do to me, and to the land in which thou hast sojourned.

(24) And Avraham said, I will swear.

(25) And Avraham reproved Avimelekh because of the well of water, which Avimelekh’s servants had violently taken away.

(26) And Avimelekh said, I know not who has done this thing: neither didst thou tell me, neither yet heard I of it, but today.

(27) And Avraham took sheep and oxen, and gave them to Avimelekh; and both of them made a covenant.

(28) And Avraham set seven ewe lambs of the flock by themselves.

(29) And Avimelekh said to Avraham, What mean these seven ewe lambs which thou hast set by themselves?

(30) And he said, For these seven ewe lambs shalt thou take of my hand, that they may be a witness to me, that I have dug this well.

(31) Therefore he called that place Be᾽er-sheva; because there they swore both of them.

(32) Thus they made a covenant at Be᾽er-sheva; then Avimelekh rose up, and Pikhol the captain of his host, and they returned to the land of the Pelishtim.

(33) And Avraham planted a tamarisk in Be᾽er-sheva, and called there on the name of the Lord, the everlasting God.

(34) And Avraham sojourned in the land of the Pelishtim many days.

22 (1) And it came to pass after these things, that God did test Avraham, and said to him, Avraham: and he said, Here I am!

(2) And He said, Take now thy son, thy only son Yiżĥaq, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of Moriyya; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

(3) And Avraham rose up early in the morning, and saddled his ass, and took two of his young men with him, and Yiżĥaq his son, and broke up the wood for the burnt offering, and rose up, and went to the place of which God had told him.

(4) Then on the third day Avraham lifted up his eyes, and saw the place afar off.

(5) And Avraham said to his young men, stay here with the ass; and I and the lad will go yonder and prostrate ourselves, and come again to you.

(6) And Avraham took the wood of the burnt offering, and laid it upon Yiżĥaq his son; and he took the fire in his hand, and the knife; and they went both of them together.

(7) And Yiżĥaq spoke to Avraham his father, and said, My father: and he said, Here I am, my son. And he said, Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb for a burnt offering?

(8) And Avraham said, My son, God will provide himself a lamb for a burnt offering: so they went both of them together.

(9) And they came to the place which God had told him of; and Avraham built an altar there, and laid the wood in order, and bound Yiżĥaq his son, and laid him on the altar upon the wood.

(10) And Avraham stretched out his hand, and took the knife to slay his son.

(11) And an angel of the Lord called to him out of heaven, and said, Avraham, Avraham: and he said, Here I am.

(12) And he said, Lay not thy hand upon the lad, neither do anything to him: for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not withheld thy son, thy only son from me.

(13) And Avraham lifted up his eyes, and looked and behold behind him a ram caught in the thicket by his horns: and Avraham went and took the ram, and offered him up for a burnt offering in place of his son.

(14) And Avraham called the name of that place Adonay-yir᾽e: as it is said to this day, In the mount the Lord will appear.

(15) And the angel of the Lord called to Avraham out of heaven the second time,

(16) and said, By myself have I sworn, says the Lord, because thou hast done this thing, and hast not withheld thy son, thy only son:

(17) that I will exceedingly bless thee, and I will exceedingly multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of its enemies;

(18) and in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed My voice.

(19) So Avraham returned to his young men, and they rose up and went together to Be᾽er-sheva; and Avraham dwelt at Be᾽er-sheva.

(20) And it came to pass after these things, that it was told Avraham, saying, Behold Milka, she also has born children to thy brother Naĥor;

(21) ῾Uż his firstborn, and Buz his brother, and Qemu᾽el the father of Aram,

(22) and Kesed, and Ḥazo, and Pildash, and Yidlaf, and Betu᾽el.

(23) And Betu᾽el begot Rivqa: these eight did Milka bear to Naĥor, Avraham’s brother.

(24) And his concubine, whose name was Re᾽uma, she bore also Tevaĥ, and Gaĥam, and Taĥash, and Ma῾akha.

4 (1) Now a certain woman of the wives of the sons of the prophets cried out to Elisha, saying, Thy servant my husband is dead; and thou knowst that thy servant did fear the Lord: and the creditor is come to take to him my two sons to be slaves. (2) And Elisha said to her, What shall I do for thee? tell me, what hast thou in the house? And she said, Thy handmaid has nothing in the house, except a pot of oil. (3) Then he said, Go, borrow vessels abroad from all thy neighbours, empty vessels; and not a few. (4) And when thou art come in, thou shalt shut the door upon thee and upon thy sons, and shalt pour out into all those vessels, and thou shalt set aside that which is full. (5) So she went from him, and shut the door upon her and upon her sons, who brought the vessels to her; and she poured out. (6) And it came to pass, when the vessels were full, that she said to her son, Bring me another vessel. And he said to her, There is not a vessel more. And the oil stopped flowing. (7) Then she came and told the man of God. And he said, Go, sell the oil, and pay thy debt, and live thou and thy children from the remainder. (8) And it happened one day, that Elisha passed to Shunem, where there was a woman of great note; and she pressed him to eat bread. And so it was, that whenever he passed by, he turned aside there to eat bread. (9) And she said to her husband, Behold now, I perceive that this is a holy man of God, who passes by us continually. (10) Let us make a little upper chamber, I pray thee, with walls; and let us set for him there a bed, and a table, and a chair, and a lamp: and it shall be, when he comes to us, that he shall turn in there. (11) And it happened one day, that he came there, and he turned into the chamber, and lay there. (12) And he said to Geĥazi his servant, Call this Shunammite woman. And when he had called her, she stood before him. (13) And he said to him, Say now to her, Behold, thou hast been careful to take all this trouble for us; what is to be done for thee? wouldst thou be spoken for to the king, or to the captain of the host? And she answered, I dwell among my own people. (14) And he said, What then is to be done for her? And Geĥazi answered, Verily she has no child, and her husband is old. (15) And he said, Call her. And when he had called her, she stood in the door. (16) And he said, About this time, in the coming year, thou shalt embrace a son. And she said, No, my lord, thou man of God, do not lie to thy handmaid. (17) And the woman conceived, and bore a son at that season of which Elisha had spoken to her, in the following year. (18) And when the child was grown, it happened one day, that he went out to his father to the reapers. (19) And he said to his father, My head, my head. And he said to the servant, Carry him to his mother. (20) And when he had taken him, and brought him to his mother, he sat on her knees till noon, and then died. (21) And she went up, and laid him on the bed of the man of God, and shut the door upon him, and went out. (22) And she called to her husband, and said, Send me, I pray thee, one of the young men, and one of the asses, that I may run to the man of God, and then come back. (23) And he said, Why wilt thou go to him today? it is neither new moon, nor sabbath. And she said, It shall be well. (24) Then she saddled an ass, and said to her servant, Drive, and go forward; do not slacken the pace, unless I bid thee. (25) So she went and came to the man of God to mount Karmel. And it came to pass, when the man of God saw her afar off, that he said to Geĥazi his servant, Behold, yonder is that Shunammite woman: (26) run now, I pray thee, to meet her, and say to her, Is it well with thee? is it well with thy husband? is it well with the child? And she answered, It is well. (27) And when she came to the man of God to the hill, she caught him by the feet: and Geĥazi came near to thrust her away. But the man of God said, Let her alone; for her soul is grieved within her: and the Lord has hid it from me, and has not told me. (28) Then she said, Did I desire a son of my lord? did I not say, Do not deceive me? (29) Then he said to Geĥazi, Gird thy loins, and take my staff in thy hand, and go thy way: if thou meet any man, greet him not; and if any greet thee, answer him not again: and lay my staff upon the face of the child. (30) And the mother of the child said, As the Lord lives, and as thy soul lives, I will not leave thee. And he arose, and followed her. (31) And Geĥazi passed on before them, and laid the staff upon the face of the child; but there was neither voice, nor sound. So he went back to meet him, and told him, saying, The child is not awakened. (32) And when Elisha had come into the house, behold, the child was dead, and laid upon his bed. (33) Then he went in, and shut the door upon them both, and prayed to the Lord. (34) And he went up, and lay upon the child, and put his mouth upon his mouth, and his eyes upon his eyes, and his hands upon his hands: and he stretched himself upon the child; and the flesh of the child was warmed. (35) Then he returned, and walked in the house to and fro; and went up, and stretched himself upon him: and the child sneezed seven times, and the child opened his eyes. (36) And he called Geĥazi, and said, Call this Shunammite woman. So he called her. And when she was come in to him, he said, Take up thy son. (37) Then she went in, and fell at his feet, and bowed herself to the ground, and took up her son, and went out.

1. If one put vessels under a water-spout, whether they be large vessels or small vessels or even vessels of dung, vessels of stone or earthen vessels, they make the mikveh invalid. It is all alike whether they were put there [purposely] or were [merely] forgotten, the words of Bet Shammai. But Bet Hillel declare it clean in the case of one who forgets. Rabbi Meir said: they voted and Bet Shammai had a majority over Bet Hillel. Yet they agree in the case of one who forgets [and leaves vessels] in a courtyard that the mikveh remains clean. Rabbi Yose said: the controversy still remains as it was.

2. One who put a board under a water-spout: if it had a rim to it, it disqualifies the mikveh; otherwise it does not disqualify the mikveh. If he made it stand upright to be rinsed, in neither case does it disqualify the mikveh.

3. If one makes a hollow in a water-spout to collect pebbles, its water disqualifies the mikveh; In the case of a wooden [spout] if it holds even a little, But in the case of an earthenware [spout] if it will hold a quarter-log. Rabbi Yose says: also in the case of an earthenware [spout] if it holds even a little: they have spoken of "a quarter-log" only in the case of broken sherds of an earthenware utensil. If the pieces of gravel moved about inside [the hollow], it disqualifies the mikveh. If dirt went down into it and was pressed down, [the mikveh continues to be] valid. If the spout was narrow at each end and wide in the middle, it does not disqualify [the mikveh] invalid, because it had not been made to gather anything in it.

4. Drawn water and rain water which were mixed together in a courtyard or in a cavity or on the steps of a cave: If the greater part was valid, the whole is valid; And if the greater part is invalid, the whole is invalid. If they were equal in quantity, the whole is invalid. When [does this apply]? When they were mingled together before they arrived at the mikveh. If [the drawn water] flowed into the [rain] water: it was known that there fell in forty seahs of valid water before there came in three logs of drawn water, [the mikveh is] valid; otherwise it is invalid.

5. In the case of a trough in a rock: One may not fill up [the hatat waters] from it, nor may the [hatat waters] be consecrated in it, nor may one sprinkle from it. And it does not require a tightly stopped-up covering, And it does not invalidate the mikveh. If it was a vessel and had been joined to the ground with lime: One may fill up the hatat waters from it and the hatat waters may be consecrated in it, and one may sprinkle from it, And it requires a tightly stopped-up covering; And it invalidates the mikveh invalid. If a hole was made in it below or at the side so that it could not contain water in however small a quantity, it is valid. And how large must the hole be? Like the tube of a water-skin. Rabbi Yehudah ben Batera said: it happened in the case of the trough of Yehu in Jerusalem that there was a hole in it like the tube of a water-skin, all the pure things in Jerusalem were made using it. But Bet Shammai sent and broke it down, for Bet Shammai say: [it remains a vessel] unless the greater part of it is broken down.

§ The Sages taught in a baraita: With regard to donkey drivers and laborers who return home, and those who come home from the house of mourning or from the house of feasting for a wedding, their wives remain in a presumptive status of purity. And therefore they may come and remain with them, i.e., engage in intercourse with them, whether they are sleeping or awake. The baraita clarifies: In what case is this statement said? When the husbands left their wives in a presumptive state of purity. But if the husbands left them in a presumptive state of impurity, she remains forever in a status of impurity, until she says to him: I am ritually pure.

The Gemara asks: But according to Rabbi Abba bar Yirmeya, with regard to what case does Shmuel interpret this baraita? If the baraita is dealing with a woman who has a fixed menstrual cycle, it is difficult, as Shmuel holds that such a woman who is awake is required to perform an examination, whereas the baraita indicates that no examination is necessary. And if the baraita is referring to a woman who does not have a fixed menstrual cycle, it is also difficult, as Shmuel holds that she always is required to perform an examination, whether she is awake or sleeping.

The Gemara answers: Actually, the baraita is referring to a case where she has a fixed menstrual cycle, and since her husband came home from his travels and requested of her that they engage in intercourse, there is no greater examination than this. Since she had time to consider the matter while he was asking her, she would have remembered had she sensed the onset of her menstrual cycle, whereas under regular circumstances she might not have time to recall. Based upon this explanation, Rav Pappa said to Rava: What is the halakha with regard to acting in accordance with this baraita? Perhaps it is necessary to wake her and ask her whether she is ritually pure.

Rava said to Rav Pappa: Wise one [sudani]! No, won’t she be demeaned before him? It is embarrassing for her if she is awoken and has to think about whether or not she is pure. Rav Kahana says: I asked the members of the households, i.e., the wives, of Rav Pappa and of Rav Huna, son of Rav Yehoshua: When the Sages, your husbands, came home from the study hall, did they require you to perform an examination prior to intercourse? And they said to me: No. The Gemara asks: But why ask their wives? Why not ask those Sages themselves? The Gemara answers: Perhaps they might rule leniently for others, while acting stringently with themselves. Therefore, their wives were asked, to determine how the Sages conducted themselves in their personal lives.

It’s forbidden to steal or exploit (even) any amount, whether from a Jew or a non-Jew; And if it is an object that is not concerning, it is permitted; such as to take from the package or [taking a splinter] from the fence to brush his teeth with; and even this is prohibited by the Jeruselamite (Talmud), as a quality of fervency.

It is prohibited to steal, even on condition of fair payment from (for) it. And there is one who says, (that) this is if the payments are not evident; because if they are evident, since they (the payments) are preferred over the object since they attain a right for him and he would confer them onto the owners by way of another.

Anyone who steals from his friend, even a penny-worth, is considered as having taken his soul.

Even if he's in dire danger and needs to steal from his friend in order to save his soul, he should not take it unless with the intent to pay.