Rav Sheishes says that someone who teaches Torah in this world - will merit to teach it in the World to Come.

He learns this from the Pasuk in Mishlei "u'Marveh Gam Hu Yoreh", which means either that - 'like he satiated his Talmidim, so he will satiate them ... ', or 'like he taught them ... '.

From the Pasuk in Daniel "ve'Rabim mi'Yeshenei Admas Afar Yakitzu, Eileh le'Chayei Olam ve'Eileh la'Charafos ... " Ravina learns - a hint for Techi'as ha'Meisim.

Rav Ashi learns it from the Pasuk there "ve'Atah Lech le'Keitz, ve'Tanu'ach ve'Ta'amod le'Goralcha le'Keitz Yamin", whereas Rava learns it from the Pasuk in Vay'chi - "Y'chi Reuven ve'Al Yamos".

Rebbi Elazar comments on ...

... a leader who leads the community in a gentle manner in this world that - he will merit to lead them in Olam ha'Ba.

... the Pasuk in Shmuel "ki Keil De'os Hash-m" that - "De'ah (Da'as [intelligence])" must be a great thing, since it is placed between two Names of Hash-m, all of which are wondrous) see Agados Maharsha.

... the Pasuk in the Shirah " ... "Pa'alta Hash-m Mikdash Hash-m ... " that - the Beis-Hamikdash must be a great thing - because it too is placed between two Names of Hash-m.

When Rav Ada Karchina'ah queried him from the Pasuk "Keil Nekamos Hash-m ... ", Rebbi Elazar replied that - vengeance too, is great in its context, as we shall now see.

Ula explains the Pasuk "Keil Nekamos Hash-m, Keil Nekamos Hofi'a" (as if "Hofi'a" was written twice, once with each Nekamah) - once for good (that He took revenge of the nations when Yisrael merited the revelation of the Shechinah, when they said 'Na'aseh ve'Nishma' and they refused, and once for bad (to punish the nations, to whom He will reveal himself on the Day of Judgment, in order to punish them for their misdeeds).

He interprets the first "Nekamos" - to mean 'payment for their statement.

Based on the fact that both De'ah and the Beis-Hamikdash are placed between two names of Hash-m, Rebbi Elazar stated - that anyone who reaches a high level of De'ah, it is as if the Beis-Hamikdash has been built in his days.

Rebbi Elazar learned from the Pasuk "u've'Da'as, Chadarim Yimle'u Kol Hon Yakar ve'Na'im" that - anyone who has De'ah will eventually become wealthy.

And he said about someone who ...

... does not have De'ah - that it is forbidden to sympathize with him.

... gives of his bread to whoever who does not have De'ah that - he will be stricken with suffering.

Rebbi Elazar also said that someone who does not ...

... possess De'ah - will eventually go into exile.

... study Torah at night-time - will be consumed by the fire of Gehinom.

... benefit Talmidei-Chachamim with his money - will never see any sign of B'rachah in his finances.

... leave bread on the table after eating - will never see, any sign of B'rachah in his finances either.

We reconcile this with Rebbi Elazar's own statement that if someone leaves bread on the table it is as if he had served idols (because it was the way of the worshippers of Gad to leave food on the table for him) - by establishing the latter statement specifically where they brought a whole loaf to the table which they placed together with the left-over pieces.

When Rivkah ordered Ya'akov to go into Yitzchok for the B'rachos, he initially declined on the grounds that his father would discover his real identity "ve'Hayisi be'Einav ki'Mesa'te'a" (Toldos). Based on the Pasuk in Yirmiyah "Hevel heimah, Ma'aseh Ta'atu'im", Rebbi Elazar extrapolates from "ve'Hayisi be'Einav ki'Mesa'te'a" that - when someone lies, it is as if he had worshipped idols.

And he says 'Kol ha'Mistakel be'Ervah, Kashto Nin'arah'. He is referring either to someone who looks at a woman's Ervah - or to someone who thinks lewd thoughts in connection with a married woman.

According to the first explanation, 'Kashto Nin'arah' means that his Eiver Tashmish will become weak, and he will not be able to have children. According to the second explanation, it means that - his strength will wane (either from a Lashon of shaking out [like 'Matza K'sus, Mena'arah' in Eilu Metzi'os], or of drowning ["*va'Yena'er* Hash-m es Mitzrayim" in Beshalach]).

When Rebbi Elazar said 'Le'olam Hevei K'veil, ve'Kayam' - he was advising anybody who wishes to live long, to make himself small (to be humble "K'veil" literally means 'dark' [unseen]).

Rebbi Zeira substantiated this with a Mishnah in Nega'im, which rules - that if a dark room has a mark of Tzara'as, which needs to be examined, the Kohen may not open a window to help him see better (so it remains Tahor).

The source for this Halachah is the word "Li" (in the Pasuk in Metzora "ke'Nega Nir'ah Li ba'Bayis") - from which we derive by the Kohen's own eyesight, and not by means of other sources of light).

So we see from here - that as long as a person is in the dark (humble), he remains Tahor.

The Pasuk in Mishlei lists the grave, the womb and the earth - which have in common the fact that none of them can ever get enough (of the dead, intimacy, and water, respectively).

The deeper connection that Rebbi Tavi Amar Rebbi Yashiyah discovers between the grave and the womb is that - just as the latter takes in and gives out, so too, does the grave (a further proof for Techi'as ha'Meisim).

He learns from a 'Kal va'Chomer that - if the womb, despite the fact that it takes in quietly (Bi'ah), gives out with a lot of noise (the birth of the baby), then the grave, which takes in with a lot of noise (the burial), will certainly give out with a lot of noise (Techi'as ha'Meisim [as the Pasuk writes "On that day, a large Shofar will be blown"]).

Based on the word "Kadosh" (which has connotations of permanence), Tana de'bei Eliyahu explains the Pasuk in Yeshayah "ve'Hayah ha'Nish'ar be'Tziyon ve'ha'Nosar bi'Yerushalayim Kadosh Ye'amer lo" to mean that - once the Tzadikim come back to life (before the official Techi'as ha'Meisim [see Rif in Ein Ya'akov]), they will never again revert to dust.

On the other hand, we learn from the Pasuk "ve'Nisgav Hash-m Levado ba'Yom ha'Hu" that - some time between Mashi'ach and Techi'as ha'Meisim, there will be one thousand years when Hash-m will be alone in the world.

The Tzadikim who will remain alive at that time - will float on top of the water.

They will survive - by growing wings like eagles, and being granted extra strength so as not to tire (as the Pasuk in Yeshayah states).

When we ask why not learn from the dead whom Yechezkel brought back to life, we mean to ask - why the Tana de'bei Eliyahu does not learn from them that Techi'as ha'Meisim is followed by death (see also Agados Maharsha).

And we answer - that Tana de'bei Eliyahu subscribes to the opinion that the episode with Yechezkel was a Mashal that never really took place (as we shall now see).

Yechezkel prophesied ...

... just before the Churban Bayis Rishon ...

... in Bavel, where Nevuchadnetzar had exiled him together with Yechonyah eleven years before the Churban.

... The Navi in Eretz Yisrael at that time was Yirmiyah.

According to Rebbi Eliezer in that Beraisa, the dead that Yechezkel brought back to life sang 'Hashem Meimis be be'Tzedek, u'Mechayeh be'Rachamim', whereas according to Rebbi Yehoshua, they sang - "Hash-m Meimis u'Mechayeh, Morid She'ol va'Ya'al" (part of Shiras Chanah, as recorded in Shmuel).

When Rebbi Yehudah said about the episode with Yechezkel 'Emes Mashal Hayah' - he meant to say that in truth, it is no more than a parable.

Rebbi Yossi Hagelili maintains that, following their revival, the dead that Yechezkel brought back to life - arose and went up to Eretz Yisrael, where they married and had children.

When Rebbi Yehudah ben Beseira heard this, he stood up and declared that - he was a descendant of theirs, and that the Tefilin he was wearing were handed down to him from his ancestors, who actually wore them.

According to Rav, the dead that Yechezkel brought back to life were the B'nei Efrayim - who reckoned the four hundred years of Galus Mitzrayim from the B'ris bein ha'Besarim (instead of from the birth of Yitzchak thirty years later), and who therefore left Egypt thirty years too early. They marched up to Eretz Yisrael intending to capture it, but were killed on the way by the men of Gas (one of the cities of the P'lishtim).

Their father (Efrayim) mourned for them for a long time (and, according to some texts, his relatives and friends came to comfort him, though it is not clear what this means).

Shmuel is of the opinion that the dead that Yechezkel revived were people who had not believed in Techi'as ha'Meisim, and who said "Yavshu Atzmoseinu ... ". Rebbi Yirmiyah bar Aba, based on the Pasuk "ha'Atzamos ha'Yeveishos Shim'u D'var Hash-m", says - that they were people totally devoid of Mitzvos.

Rebbi Yitzchak Nafcha explains that they were people who had filled the Heichal with Shekatzim u'Remasim (vermin and insects). The final opinion is that of Rebbi Yochanan, who maintains that - they were the dead of the valley of Dura, whom Nevuchadnetzar had killed after leading them into exile from Eretz Yisrael.

The special feature that marked those young exiles was - their beautiful appearance.

In fact, Nevuchadnetzar ...

... killed them - because their beauty caused the Kasdian (Babylonian) women to break out into Zivus.

... trample them after they were already dead - in order to distort their features, because that trend continued whenever the women saw them, even after they were dead.

According to the Beraisa, Hash-m instructed Yechezkel to revive the dead of Bik'as Dura - to coincide with Nevuchadnetzar casting Chananyah, Mishael and Azaryah into the furnace.

The first thing the bones did was to tap Nevuchadnetzar on his face. According to the other version - it was the drinking vessels that he had manufactured out of some of those bones that tapped him on the mouth as he was about to drink from it.

When Nevuchadnetar asked what was going on, he was told that the colleague of the men whom he had cast into the furnace was about to revive the dead in Bik'as Dura (see Agados Maharsha).

We refer to Nevuchadnetzar as 'Shachik Tamya' - because those words mean 'the grinder of bones', which describes what he did to the bones that we just discussed.

When Nevuchadnetzar began relating Hash-m's miracles and praising His Kingdom - an angel came and slapped him across the mouth.

Had the angel not stopped him, says Rebbi Yitzchak, he would have made all the praises of David ha'Melech in Seifer Tehilim appear insignificant (and people would have begun to recite his praises of Hash-m instead of David Hamelech's).

The Beraisa lists six miracles that occurred on that day. The first of them was that the sunken furnace floated to the surface, and the last, Yechezkel's revival of the dead. Besides the breaching of the furnace's walls and the depleting of Nevuchadnetzar's pride - the golden image that Nevuchadnetzar had set up in the valley of Dura fell on its face and the kings who helped Nevuchadnetzar to throw the Tzadikim into the furnace, were burned (instead of them).

We might also read 'Humak Suro' (the depletion of Nevuchadnetzar's pride) - as 'Humak Sido' which means that the lime melted.

The purpose of ...

... the breaching of the walls of the furnace was - so that the people would be able to see the miracle that was taking place inside.

... the lime melting was - for the heat of the flowing lime to kill the kings who had helped Nevuchadnetzar to throw the three Tzadikim into the furnace.

We know that four kings were burned together with their retinue - from the fact that although the Pasuk initially mentioned the seven rulers that Nevuchadnetzar gathered, only three are mentioned after Chananyah, Misha'el and Azaryah emerged from the furnace.

We learn from the fact, that Chananel, Mishael and Azaryah dressed in their best clothes (as the Pasuk relates) before being cast into the furnace that - even whilst being punished, one should, as far as possible, retain one's dignity and status, so that the enemy should feel embarrassed (see also Agados Maharsha).