The newest amongst the JewishDrinking.com podcast/video episodes concerns what do a good guest and a bad guest say, as found in early rabbinic literature, especially as it relates to wine🍷
The guest for this episode, Eli Gurevich, is the creator of Tosefta Online, a fantastic resource for the study of the Tosefta, as well as the author of an English translation of Tosefta Berachot, which is available online as a pdf, and for purchase in print.
The episode is available below in both podcast form and video form, with the text under discussion below:
And here is the text under discussion (Tosefta Berakhot 6.5):
היה בן זומא אומר אורח טוב מה הוא אומר זכור בעל הבית לטוב כמה מיני יינות הביא לפנינו כמה [מיני] גלוסקאות הביא לפנינו כמה מיני חשובות הביא לפנינו כל מה שעשה לא עשה אלא בשבילי
אורח רע מה הוא אומר וכי מה אכלתי לא פת אחת אכלתי ולא חתיכה אחת אכלתי לא כוס אחד שתיתי כל מה שעשה לא עשה אלא בשביל אשתו ובניו
על אורח טוב מהו אומר (איוב לו) זכור כי תשגיא פעלו אשר שוררו אנשיםBen Zoma used to say, “What does a good guest say? ‘May the host be remembered for good! How many different types of wine he brought in front of us? How many different pieces [of meat] he brought in front of us? How many different types of fine white bread he brought in front of us? Everything that he did, he did only for me.’
But what does a bad guest say? And what did I eat of his? I ate [only] one bread of his. I ate [only] one piece [of meat] of his. I drank only one cup [of wine] of his. Everything that he did, he did only for his wife and children.’”
And upon a good guest, what does it say? “Remember this so that you may extol His work that people have witnessed” (Job 36:24).
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