Gevurot 20

1. And after the uproar had ended, Rav Sha’ul summoned the Moshiach’s talmidim and, having exhorted them, and having taken his leave, he departed to go to Macedonia.

2. And having traveled through those regions and having exhorted the Moshiach’s talmidim there with many words, Rav Sha’ul came to Greece.

3. And after he had spent shloshah chodashim there, Rav Sha’ul was about to set sail for Syria when a kesher (conspiracy) was plotted against him by the [unbelieving] Yehudim, and so Rav Sha’ul decided to return through Macedonia.

4. And accompanying Rav Sha’ul from Berea was Sopater the son of Pyrrhus; from Thessalonica was Aristarchus and Secundus; from Derbe, Gaius; and from Asia, Timotiyos, Tychicus and Trophimus.

5. And these, having gone ahead, were waiting for us in Troas.

6. And we sailed away after the Yamim HaMatzot [i.e., Pesach] from Philippi, and within chamash yamim we came to them in Troas, where we stayed shivah yamim.

7. And on Yom Rishon, when we met for tish (it was Motzoei Shabbos when there was a Melaveh Malkeh communal meal), Rav Sha’ul was saying a shiur to them, since he would have to depart early the next day and was having to extend the message until chatzot halailah.

8. And there were a number of menorot in the upper story, where we had assembled.

9. And a certain bocher, by the name of Eutychus, was sitting on the window sill and began to succumb to a deep sleep while Rav Sha’ul was saying a shiur that went on and on. Overcome by this sleep, Eutychus fell from the third story downwards, and was picked up dead.

10. And having come down, Rav Sha’ul fell upon him, and, having embraced him, Rav Sha’ul said, "Do not be troubled, for his neshamah is in him." [MELACHIM ALEF 17:21; MELACHIM BAIS 4:34]

11. And having gone up and, at the Betzi’at HaLechem, having partaken of it, and having spoken until Shacharis, thus Rav Sha’ul departed.

12. And they led away the bochur chai! And they were not a little comforted.

13. And we went ahead to the oniyah (sailing vessel) and set sail for Assos, where we were intending to take Rav Sha’ul on board, for he had arranged it so, intending to travel himself there by land.

14. When Rav Sha’ul met us in Assos, we took him on board and came to Mitylene.

15. And from there, having sailed away, we arrived on the next day opposite Chios. And then the day following we crossed over to Samos, and, on the following day, we came to Miletus.

16. For Rav Sha’ul had decided to sail past Ephesus, so he would not have to spend time in [the Province of] Asia, for he was hurrying in order that, if possible, he might by Shavu’os go up to Yerushalayim.

17. And from Miletus, having sent to Ephesus, Rav Sha’ul summoned the Ziknei HaKehillah.

18. And when they came to him, he said to them, "You have da’as from the yom harishon in which I set foot in Asia how I was with you the entire time,

19. "My avodas kodesh service to Hashem with all anavah (humility) and tears and tzoros, and all that happened to me by the kesharim of the [unbelieving] Yehudim;

20. "How I kept back nothing profitable from you, but kept giving you messianic drashot and shiurim publicly and from bais to bais, [TEHILLIM 40:10; YIRMEYAH 26:2; 42:2]

21. "Bearing solemn edut both to Yehudim and Yevanim about teshuva toward Hashem and emunah in Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Adoneinu Yehoshua.

22. "And now, hinei, having been bound by the Ruach Hakodesh, I am going to Yerushalayim, not having da’as of the things that are going to happen to me there,

23. "Except that the Ruach Hakodesh, in every city, testifies to me, saying that the beis hasohar and tzoros are awaiting me.

24. "But I gufa (myself) do not account my existence in the Olam Hazeh of any value to myself, if only I may finish my course and the avodas kodesh sherut which I received from the Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Adoneinu Yehoshua to bear witness to the Besuras HaGeulah of the Chen v’Chesed Hashem.

25. "And now, hinei, I have da’as that no longer will you see my face, all of you among whom I went about preaching the Malchut Hashem.

26. "Therefore I bear solemn edut (testimony) to you on this very day today, that I am innocent of the blood of any of you.

27. "For I did not shrink back from preaching and disclosing to all of you the whole etzat Hashem (counsel, plan of G-d).

28. "Pay attention to yourselves and to all the Eder Hashem (flock of G-d) in which the Ruach Hakodesh has placed you as mashgichim ruchaniyim (spiritual overseers) to do the work of ro’im (shepherds) over the Kehillah of Hashem which Adoneinu purchased for the Geulah with his own dahm [kapporah].

29. "I have da’as that after my departure savage ze’evim (wolves) will come in among you, not sparing the eder (flock). [YECHEZKEL 34:5]

30. "And from you yourselves will rise up anashim speaking perverted doctrines in order to draw away talmidim after themselves.

31. "Therefore, be shomer, remembering that for shloshah shanim, yomam v’lailah, I did not stop admonishing each one of you with tears.

32. "And now I commend you to Hashem and to the Dvar HaChen v’Chesed Hashem which is able to build you up and give you a nachalah (inheritance) among all the kadoshim.

33. "I coveted no one’s silver or gold or shtreimel. [SHMUEL ALEF 12:3]

34. "You yourselves have da’as that these hands of mine supported all my needs as well as the needs of those with me.

35. "In all this I was showing you a mofet (example) that thus working hard it is necessary to help the weak and to have zikaron of the dvarim of Rebbe, Melech HaMoshiach Adoneinu Yehoshua, that he himself said, ‘Beser (better) to geben (give) than to nemen (take).’"

36. And having said these things, Rav Sha’ul fell down and, with them all, began davening.

37. And there was much weeping among them, and, having fallen upon the neck of Rav Sha’ul, they were kissing him,

38. with agmat nefesh above all at the dvar in which Rav Sha’ul had said that no longer would they see his face again. And they were accompanying him to the oniyah.