Great Throughts Treasury

"As long as a man does not sin, he is feared; as soon as he sins, he himself is in fear."

"God has a seal, and his seal is truth."

"A baby enters the world with hands clenches, as if to say, "The world is mine; I shall grab it." A man leaves with hands open as if to say, "I can take nothing with me.""

"Who is rich? He who rejoices in his lot."

"Gossip kills three: the speaker, the spoken of, and the listener."

"Slander is compared to an arrow because it kills at a distance."

"Who is the bravest hero? He who turns his enemy into a friend."

"If you have acquired knowledge, what do you lack? If you lack knowledge, what have you acquired?"

"If speech is silvern, then silence is golden."

"If ever man becomes proud, let him remember that a mosquito preceded him in the divine order of creation !"

"If you have entered a city, conform to its laws."

"Immediately a man is born he starts towards death."

"The stomach carries the feet."

"They say to fruit-bearing trees: "Why do you not make any noise?" The trees reply: "Our fruits are sufficient advertisement for us.""

"What is an offering to God? Charity to His children."

"Love without criticism is not love."

"Many candles can be kindled from one candle without diminishing it."

"Wherever you find man's footprints, there God is before you."

"All members of a man's body were given him for use, yet some he has no power of restraint. His eyes sometimes see what he would rather not see, his ears often hear against his will, and his nose smells occasionally what he would rather dispense with."

"As a torch is not diminished though it kindles a million candles, so will he not lose when he gives to a good cause."

"As in a theater and circus the statues of the king must be kept clean by him to whom they have been entrusted, so the bathing of the body is a duty of man, who was created in the image of the almighty king of the world."

""Dust thou art and unto dust shalt though return." The grave is the only thing that man has honestly acquired and can honestly claim."

""I am the first and I am the last, and besides me there is no G-d" (Isa. xliii. 6) I am the first, I have no father; I am the last, I have no brother. Beside me there is no G-d; I have no son."

"A wealthy person who gives charity and doesn't take interest on the money he loans, is credited with having observed all the commandments."

"A person who refuses to practice kindness denies the fundamental belief of Judaism."

""The Lord preserveth the strangers." The proselytes who embrace Judaism are kept steadfast in their faith by G-d himself, and are in every respect like a Jew born."

"Happy is the man whose deeds are greater than his learning."

"G-d said to the Jewish people "If you observe Shabbat, I will consider it as if you observe all the mitzvot but if you don't observe Shabbat, I will consider it as if you don't observe any of the mitzvot"."

"Even flies, parasites and microbes have their purpose to fulfill, there is nothing superfluous in creation."

"G-d will wipe away tears from of all faces (Isa xxv. 8) This means from the face of non Jews as well as Jews."

"Give me the admonition of the old in preference to the flattery of the young."

"He who refuses to accept an apology from one who has offended him is wicked."

"G-d gave the Torah to Israel, but all nations are to benefit by it."

"G-d pairs -- in marriages -- and appoints all destinies."

"God always provides what we need, but we must be ready to open our eyes and see it."

"Have no undue passion for tyrants, and you will not become a tyrant over those who deserve compassion."

"Honor the physician so long as you do not need his skill."

"If speech is silver, then silence is gold."

"If a man calls you an ass, the best way is to take no notice of it; but if you are called so by two or more persons, take the bit into your own mouth."

"If you have committed many sins, compensate for them by fulfilling many mitzvot."

"If you have not acquired knowledge, what clan you claim to be possessed of? If you have knowledge, what do you lack."

"If the entire Jewish nation would observe even one Shabbat, the Mashiach would then come."

"If you are anxious not to forget the subject you study, then it is necessary to pass what you read through your lips, not merely read the subject up. If you do not utter the words you read you will forget them"

"In this world people who perform mitzvot are not (fully) aware of their reward, but in the next world when they see the actual reward given for the mitzvot, they will be astounded."

"Israel is compared to sand , just as sand, if it gets into food, destroys the teeth, so if you touch Israel you will bring down calamity upon you. Just as sand going through fire becomes converted from a dull substance to a clear glass, so Israel going through the fire of persecution comes out brighter and clearer. Moreover, other nations are compared to lime and Israel to sand. As one cannot build with lime unless it is mixed with sand, so the nations cannot exist or flourish without Israel in the midst of them."

"In vain have you acquired knowledge if you do not impart it to others."

"Israel is the most arrogant among nations, like the dog amongst the beasts and the cock amongst the fowls."

"Man in celibacy is in sublime ignorance of what is meant by the words "good," "help," "joy," "blessing," "peace," and "expiation of sin." He is, in fact, not entitled to the dignified name of man."

"Man in distress pledges himself to good deeds; man in prosperity forgets his good resolutions."

"Man is the last in creation and the first in responsibility."