1)

(a)The author of our Mishnah, which rules that one is Chayav for extinguishing a lamp in order to save the lamp, the oil or the wick - must be Rebbi Yehudah, who holds that one is Chayav for performing a 'Melachah she'Einah Tzerichah le'Gufah' (a Melachah which one performs for a negative motive - e.g. in order that the lamp or the oil etc. should stop burning - but not for a positive one, which is the essence of all Melachos, according to Rebbi Shimon [See Tosfos, on Daf 94a DH 'Rebbi Shimon', who gives a different definition]).

(b)He is Patur in the Reisha, when he extinguishes the lamp for a sick person - because the Tana is referring to a person who is dangerously ill.

(c)Strictly speaking, the Mishnah should have written 'Mutar' - however, because it needed to write 'Chayav' in the Seifa, it wrote 'Patur' in the Reisha.

(d)The Beraisa, which writes 'Patur Aval Asur' with regard to someone who extinguishes a lamp for a sick person, is referring to a person who is not dangerously ill.

2)

(a)When David ha'Melech wrote "Lo ha'Mesim Yehalelu Kah" he meant that someone who dies can no longer praise Hash-m. And that is also the meaning of the Pasuk "ba'Mesim Chofshi" - the moment a person dies, he becomes free from the Mitzvos (which is why we refer to a dead person as 'a Niftar').

(b)When Shlomoh wrote in Koheles "ve'Shavach Ani es ha'Meisim she'Kevar Mesu", if he was talking about Moshe Rabeinu's ...

1. ... inferiority during his lifetime - then he was referring to the fact that Moshe Davened many times for K'lal Yisrael, to no effect - until he mentioned the merits of the Avos (who were no longer alive); only then was he answered.

2. ... superiority after death - then he was referring to the fact that even though a king issues a decree, one does not know whether the people will obey him or not; and even if they do, that is only during his lifetime; after his death, one can take for granted that people will no longer adhere to the decree. Yet see how Moshe Rabeinu issued many decrees (such as the obligation to discuss the Dinim of Yom-Tov on Yom-Tov), and to this day, millennia later, his decrees are still being kept.

(c)Another example of the greatness of Tzadikim after their death, is that of David, who pleaded with Hash-m to forgive him for the sin of Bas Sheva, and then to make a sign by which everyone would know that he was forgiven, to which Hash-m replied that he would make such a sign, but only after his death -When Shlomoh built the Beis Hamikdash, and wanted to bring the Aron ha'Kodesh into the Kodesh ha'Kodoshim, the gates refused to open, and even the twenty-four songs of praise that he sang, did nothing to change the situation, until he mentioned his father David; only then, did the gates condescend to open. Then everybody (even David's enemies) knew, without the slightest shadow of doubt, that David's sin had been forgiven.

3)

(a)The gates wanted to destroy Shlomoh ha'Melech - when he asked them to open and let 'the King of Glory' enter (because they understand that he was referring to himself).

(b)It was only when he explained to them that he was referring to "Hash-m, the G-d of Hosts, who is the King of Glory" that they relented.

(c)Following the celebrations following the completion of the Beis Hamikdash, the Pasuk in Melachim uses the following five expressions ...

1. "va'Yelchu le'Oholeihem"means - that they returned home to find their wives Tahor;

2. "Semeichim" - that they drew inspiration from the Shechinah;

3. "ve'Tovei Lev" - that each and every man's wife became pregnant and gave birth to a son;

4. "Al Kol ha'Tovah Asher Asah Hash-m le'David Avdo" - that Hash-m had forgiven his father David for the sin of Bas Sheva;

5. "u'le'Yisrael Amo" - that He had forgiven them for the sin of eating on Yom Kipur (which they had just done, in the course the celebrations following the completion of the Beis Hamikdash).

4)

(a)David asked Hash-m when he would die - to which Hash-m replied that that is something that nobody may know.

(b)When David was informed that he would die on Shabbos - he asked Hash-m whether, in order to avoid the responsibility (even after death) of Chillul Shabbos, he would not be allowed to die on Sunday instead. Hash-m replied that this was impossible, since Shlomoh was already destined to rule on Sunday, and David would be encroaching, if he were to rule one day longer.

(c)When he then asked whether he could not die on Friday - Hash-m replied "Ki Tov Yom ba'Chatzerecha me'Alef" - meaning that just one day of David's Torah-study was worth more to Him than a thousand offerings that Shlomoh would later sacrifice on the day that he inaugurated the Beis Hamikdash.

(d)From that day on, David would spend the entire Shabbos studying Torah, from morning till night, in order to deny the Angel of Death access. The day that he was destined to die, the Angel of Death shook the trees in David's orchard, creating a terrible racket, and attracting his attention. Still deep in learning, he went out to investigate. As he was climbing the tree, the Angel of Death broke the ladder from under him, and it was as he was falling that David stopped learning and the Angel of Death took his life.

5)

(a)'My dead father is lying in the sun, and the dogs of his household are hungry (what shall I do)' - Shlomoh asked the Chachamim?

(b)They told him - to cut up a carcass and feed it to the hungry dogs; and to place a loaf of bread or a baby on his father's body, and then to move him him from the sun to the shade.

(c)This prompted Shlomoh to write in Koheles "Ki la'Kelev Chai Hu Tov min ha'Aryeh ha'Meis" - because, on behalf of the dogs, he was permitted to move a carcass, which is normally Muktzah, whereas his father (whom he compared to a lion - presumably taking his cue from Ya'akov Avinu, who called Yehudah a "Gur Aryeh") they permitted him to move, only together with a loaf of bread or a baby. Alternatively, they answered the question pertaining to the dogs before the one pertaining to his father (despite the fact that he posed them in the reverse order).

6)

(a)Regarding the She'eileh concerning extinguishing a lamp for a dying person, Rebbi Tanchum ruled that, since the Soul of man is also called a lamp, it is better to extinguish the human lamp before the lamp of Hash-m.

(b)That is not the real reason. The real source for this ruling is - the Pasuk in Vayikra "va'Chai Bahem" ve'Lo she'Yamus Bahem'.

(c)Nevertheless, Rebbi Tanchum chose to give them this reason - because there were women and men who were less learned present, and they needed a more attractive answer.

7)

(a)They wanted to hide the Book of Koheles, because it contained (apparent) self-contradictory statements. The reason that they decided not to do so is - because it begins and ends with words of Torah. So they figured that the middle must contain words of Torah, too.

(b)They infer from the words of the opening Pasuk "Mah Yisron la'Adam be'Chol Amalo, she'Ya'amol Tachas ha'Shamesh - that "below the sun" (meaning after the sun was created), there is nothing worthwhile, but 'before the sun' (this refers to Torah, which was created two thousand years before the world) there is.

(c)The final Pasuk too, is Divrei Torah. It reads - "Sof Davar, ha'Kol Nishma, es ha'Elokim Yera ve'es Mitzvosav Shemor, Ki Zeh Kol ha'Adam".

(d)"Ki Zeh Kol ha'Adam" - refers to the man who fears G-d, to tell us that he is the most important person in the world, because the purpose of the entire creation is the fear of Hash-m.

8)

(a)

1. "Tov Ka'as mi'Sechok' means that the anger that Hash-m displays towards the righteous in this world, is preferable to the laughter that He laughs with the wicked in this world - because the former brings the Tzadik to the World to Come, whilst the latter brings the Rasha to Gehinom. "ve'li'Sechok Amarti Mehulal", on the other hand, refers to the laughter that Hash-m will laugh with the righteous in the World to Come.

2. "ve'Shibachti Ani es ha'Simchah" refers to 'Simchah shel Mitzvah' - whereas "u'le'Simchah Mah Zoh Osah?" to Simchah which is not based on a Mitzvah.

(b)Hashra'as ha'Shechinah, a Devar Halachah and a good dream all need Simchah Shel Mitzvah in order to succeed.

(c)Elisha's calling a minstrel to play for him was a 'Simchah shel Mitzvah' - anasmuch as he wanted the minstrel to play for him in order to prophecy, which is a Mitzvah. Consequently, the Simchah of hearing the music was, in effect, 'a Simchah shel Mitzvah.

9)

(a)We Darshan the Pasuk in Shir ha'Shirim "Sifvosav Shoshanim Notfos Mor Over" - be explaininf "Mor Over", as Mar Over, and Shoshanim as she'Shonim (from the Lashon 'Mishnah'). By doing this, the Pasuk will mean that Torah learning must be accompanied by a bitterness - meaning a Fear of Hash-m - and not by jokes.

(b)We reconcile this with what we learnt a little earlier about a Simchah shel Mitzvah by differentiating between a Rebbe (who should express happiness when he begins to learn with his Talmidim) and a Talmid (who should not). We could establish both statements by a Rebbe - because even he should only begin the Shiur with a joke (like Rabbah used to do), but, after that, he too must continue to learn and teach, whilst displaying the Fear of Hash-m.

(c)They did not hide the book of Mishlei when they discovered that it too, contained apparently contradictory statements - because they reckoned, having resolved the discrepancies in Koheles, they would probably be able to resolve those in Mishlei. too.

10)

(a)"Al Ta'an Kesil ke'Avlaso" refers to secular matters - "Anei Kesil ke'Avlaso", to Divrei Torah where it is permitted, even laudable, to answer him, in order to vindicate the words of Torah.

(b)It was the prayer that Rebbi recited daily - that prevented people who did not like him from calling his children 'Mamzeirim'. The Tefilah is the one that we say every day after Birchos ha'Shachar: 'Yehi Ratzon etc., she'Tatzileini ha'Yom u've'Chol Yom me'Azei Panim u'me'Azus Panim' etc.

11)

(a)Rabban Gamliel learnt from "Harah ve'Yoledes Yachdav" - that in time to Come, women will give birth every day.

(b)That Talmid thought it very funny - because 'there is nothing new under the sun', and who'se ever heard of a woman having children every day?!

(c)So Rabban Gamliel (true to the Pasuk "Anei Kesil ke'Avlaso") showed him a chicken, which lays eggs every day.

12)

(a)When that Talmid mocked Rabban Gamliel, who taught that, in the days of Mashi'ach, the trees will bear fruit every day - he showed him the caper-bush, which produces three different kinds of fruit at different periods.

(b)And when that Talmid laughed at him, for saying that bread and silk garments will grow on trees, he pointed out that mushrooms also emerge from the ground overnight - ready to eat, and as for the silk garments, he showed him the fiber-like strands which grow on a date-palm, together with the new branches that grow each year.