Study Berakhot folio 32A with parallel Hebrew-English text, traditional commentary, and modern study tools. Free access to Babylonian Talmud online.
דכתיב: ״ואשר הרעתי״.
As it is written in a future prophecy: “In that day, says YHWH, I will assemble the lame, and I will gather those who are abandoned and those with whom I have dealt in wickedness” (Micah 4:6). God states that He caused Israel to act wickedly.
אמר רבי חמא ברבי חנינא: אלמלא שלש מקראות הללו נתמוטטו רגליהם של שונאי ישראל.
Similarly, R' Ḥama, son of R' Ḥanina, said: Had it not been for these 3 verses, the legs of the enemies of Israel, a euphemism for Israel itself, would have collapsed, as Israel would have been unable to withstand God’s judgment.
חד דכתיב: ״ואשר הרעתי״, וחד דכתיב: ״הנה כחמר ביד היוצר כן אתם בידי בית ישראל״, וחד דכתיב: ״והסרתי את לב האבן מבשרכם ונתתי לכם לב בשר״.
One is the verse just mentioned in which it is written: “Those whom I have dealt in wickedness.” And one is the verse in which it is written: “Behold, like clay in the potter’s hand, so are you in My hand, house of Israel” (Jeremiah 18:6). And one is the verse in which it is written: “And I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will place within you, and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and I will give you a heart of flesh” (Ezekiel 36:26). These 3 verses indicate that God influences a person’s decisions, and therefore one does not have sole responsibility for his actions.
רב פפא אמר מהכא: ״ואת רוחי אתן בקרבכם ועשיתי את אשר בחקי תלכו״.
Rav Pappa said there is a clearer proof from here: “And I will place My spirit within you and I will cause you to walk in My statutes, and you will observe My decrees and do them” (Ezekiel 36:27).
ואמר רבי אלעזר: משה הטיח דברים כלפי מעלה. שנאמר: ״ויתפלל משה אל ה׳״ אל תקרי ״אל ה׳״, אלא ״על ה׳״.
And R' Elazar said: Moses also spoke impertinently toward God on High, as it is stated in the verse following the sin of those who murmured against God in the desert: “And Moses prayed to YHWH and the fire subsided” (Numbers 11:2), and this verse is interpreted homiletically: Do not read to [el] YHWH, but rather onto [al] YHWH, which indicates that he spoke impertinently.
Text data via Sefaria: William Davidson Edition - English and William Davidson Edition - Vocalized Aramaic, CC-BY-NC; edition provenance: Koren. Display terminology has been modernized for readability.