(Mishnah): Similarly, a city in which there is a plague, or [walls and houses] fall down, that city fasts and blow the Shofar, and all around it fast and do not blow the Shofar;

R. Akiva says, they blow the Shofar and do not fast.

(Gemara): There was a plague in Tziporin. It did not enter (affect) the market in which R. Chaninah lived;

People of Tziporin were saying, why is that elder among us in Shalom, and his neighbors and [the rest of] the city is in a bad state [and he does not request mercy for us]?!

He rose and said in front of them, there was one Zimri in [Moshe's] generation, and 24,000 died from Yisrael [in a plague due to him]. There are many Zimris in our Dor (people in our city who transgress Arayos), and you complain?!

Once, they needed to make a fast, and rain did not come. R. Yehoshua [ben Levi] made a fast in the south, and rain came. People of Tziporin were saying, R. Yehoshua ben Levi brought rain to the south, and R. Chaninah withheld rain from Tziporin! We need to make a fast again.

[R. Chaninah] sent and brought R. Yehoshua ben Levi. He said "may the master come out with us to the fast!'' Both of them went out to the fast, and rain did not fall.

[R. Chaninah] ascended and said in front of them "R. Yehoshua ben Levi did not bring rain to the south, and R. Chaninah did not withhold rain from Tziporin!''

Rather, people of the south, their hearts are soft, and they hear words of Torah, and they are humbled. People of Tziporin, their hearts are hard, and they hear words of Torah, and they are not humbled.

When R. Chaninah entered, he picked up his eyes and saw that the air is clear. He said "is it still so [even after we fasted, there are not even any clouds]?!'' Immediately rain descended.

[R. Chaninah] vowed that he will not do so again - should I tell the creditor not to collect his debt?! (If they deserve to be punished, I should not complain to Hash-m about this.)

(R. Ze'irah citing R. Chaninah): What can the Gedolei ha'Dor do? [Even if they are totally righteous,] the Tzibur is judged according to its majority;

We find that all 38 years that Yisrael were like excommunicated, [Hash-m] did not speak with Moshe [in a strong way, indicated by the word va'Ydaber, in spite of Moshe's merits], for it says "va'Yhi Ka'asher Tamu Kol Anshei ha'Milchamah Lamus mi'Kerev ha'Machaneh'' - what does it say afterwards? "Va'Ydaber Hash-m Elai Leimor.''

(R. Yakov bar Idi citing R. Yehoshua ben Levi): What can the Gedolei ha'Dor do? The Tzibur is judged according to its majority;

We find that had Yisrael not said at Har ha'Karmel "Hash-m Hu ha'Elokim Hash-m Hu ha'Elokim'', the fire would not have descended and burned the Korbanos. (They accepted to say so if fire will descend. Eliyahu's merits would not have sufficed.)

(R. Yehoshua ben Ya'ir citing R. Pinchas ben Ya'ir): There are three that Hash-m created them, and "regrets'' that He created them - Babylonians, Yishmaelim and the Yetzer ha'Ra;

[The source that He "regrets'' creating the] Babylonians - "Hen Eretz Kasdim Zeh ha'Am Lo Hayah'' - if only it was not!

Yishmaelim - "Yishlayu Ohalim l'Shodedim u'Vatuchos l'Margizei Kel la'Asher Hevi Elokah b'Yado'' (Hash-m brought this Tzarah on Himself, through creating them);

The Yetzer ha'Ra - "ba'Yom ha'Hu Ne'um Hash-m Osfah ha'Tzole'ah veha'Nidachah Akabetzah va'Asher Hare'osi'' - R. Berachiyah cited R. Aba bar Kahana citing R. Yehoshua ben Ya'ir citing R. Pinchas ben Ya'ir to say, it is as if I (Hash-m) did evil (I created the Yetzer ha'Ra).

R. Lazar (R. Eliezer, R. Akiva's Rebbi) made a fast, and rain did not fall. R. Akiva made a fast, and rain fell;

R. Akiva rose and said in front of them "I will give a parable - this is like a king who had two daughters. One was brazen, and one was proper. When the brazen one requested [something] and came in front of him, he would say 'give to her what she wants, and she will go';

When the proper one came in front of him, he would delay [granting her request], from his desire to hear her entreaty. (This is why Hash-m answered me, but did not answer R. Eliezer.)

Question: May one say so (about oneself, i.e. I am brazen)?!

Answer: [He said so] lest there be a Chilul Hash-m regarding R. Eliezer (lest people say that he is not proper, for he was not answered).

R. Acha made 13 fasts, and rain did not fall. When he entered, a Kusi encountered him and said [sarcastically] "Rebbi, Rebbi, squeeze out the rain from your garment!''

R. Acha: [I swear in] the life of that man (you) that Shamayim will do miracles and the year will succeed, and that man (you) will not live [to see it]. Shamayim did miracles and the year succeeded, and that Kusi died;

The entire nation was saying "see Peros that grew due to the sun [without rain]!'' (PNEI MOSHE)

(Mishnah): All around it fast and do not blow the Shofar.

Source: We find on Yom Kipur that we fast, do not blow the Shofar.

(Mishnah - R. Akiva): They blow the Shofar, but do not fast.

Source: We find that on Rosh Hashanah they blow the Shofar, and do not fast.

(Mishnah): What is Dever (a plague)? If a city has 500 people who walk (this excludes people who are very old or young) and three die in three days, one after the other.

(Gemara - R. Levi): It says "Yadbek Hash-m Becha Es ha'Dever'' - like a woman who sticks three loaves one onto another onto another - this is how they make a dough (bake it).

Question: If there are more than this (500 Raglei), is there another Shi'ur [how much must die to be considered Dever]?

Answer: We learn from the following. Even a city as big as Antuchiya, if three died in three days [it is Dever]. This teaches that more than this, there is not another Shi'ur.

The houses that they said (if they fall, we blow the Shofar) were sturdy, but not if they were frail. Similarly, [it is Dever only if the ones who died were] youths, but not elders.

(Beraisa): Croup - [we blow the Shofar for] any amount.

Question: If two died from Dever and one from croup [do we blow the Shofar]?

Objection: The Shi'ur for croup is any amount, and you say so?! (One from croup alone already obligates blowing the Shofar!)

Answer: We need to ask about when they blew the Shofar for croup, and it went away, and afterwards two died from Dever and one from croup.