Good Deeds and Sins Accompany the Dead
R. Samuel bar Naḥmani said R. Jonathan said: Anyone who fulfills one commandment in this world, that commandment precedes him and goes before him in the world to come, as it is said: And your righteousness shall walk before you (Isaiah 58:8). And anyone who commits one transgression in this world, it shrouds him and goes before him on the day of judgment, as it is said: The courses of their paths wind; they go up into the chaos and are lost (Job 6:18).
Translated by Jenny R. Labendz.
Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 2: Emerging Judaism.
You may also like
Son of Man
At that place, I saw the One to whom belongs the time before time. [ . . . ] And I asked the one—from among the angels—who was going with…
Baskets of Flowers
And the angel of power took me and led me to the fifth heaven. And he showed me large gates, and names of men were written (on them), and…
Trial by Ordeal
Then the imperishable angels of immortal God, Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and Uriel, who know what evils anyone did previously, lead all the souls of men from the…
Weighing Good Deeds and Sins
One who performs mostly good deeds inherits the garden of Eden. One who performs mostly transgressions inherits Gehenna.
R. Yosi bar Ḥanina said: It does not say [God] “who…
All Past Deeds Are Shown
God of faithfulness and without falsehood; [He is just and upright] (Deuteronomy 32:4).
God of faithfulness—Just as evil ones receive recompense in the world to come even for the…
The Soul and the Body Testify
R. Judah ben R. Naḥmani, the translator for Resh Lakish, expounded: What is the meaning of Do not trust a friend; do not put your faith in a general; guard what comes out of your mouth from her who…
Engage with this Source
Related Guide
Death and the Next World in Ancient Judaism
4th Century BCE–6th Century CE
Related Guide
Heavenly Judgment in Early Jewish Texts
3rd Century BCE–7th Century CE
You may also like
Son of Man
At that place, I saw the One to whom belongs the time before time. [ . . . ] And I asked the one—from among the angels—who was going with…
Baskets of Flowers
And the angel of power took me and led me to the fifth heaven. And he showed me large gates, and names of men were written (on them), and…
Trial by Ordeal
Then the imperishable angels of immortal God, Michael, Gabriel, Raphael, and Uriel, who know what evils anyone did previously, lead all the souls of men from the…
Weighing Good Deeds and Sins
One who performs mostly good deeds inherits the garden of Eden. One who performs mostly transgressions inherits Gehenna.
R. Yosi bar Ḥanina said: It does not say [God] “who…
All Past Deeds Are Shown
God of faithfulness and without falsehood; [He is just and upright] (Deuteronomy 32:4).
God of faithfulness—Just as evil ones receive recompense in the world to come even for the…
The Soul and the Body Testify
R. Judah ben R. Naḥmani, the translator for Resh Lakish, expounded: What is the meaning of Do not trust a friend; do not put your faith in a general; guard what comes out of your mouth from her who…