Q. There are 3 consecutive days of fasting in the month of Tevet. Besides Asara Betevet, on the eight the Greek translation to the Torah was done, and on the ninth it is the yohrzait of Ezra. Since after the translation was accomplished it says that there was darkness for three days, is there a connection between the three?
A. The correlation between this three days could be that in one way or another they strongly contributed to the churban of the Beis Hamikdash. However, the three also contain the key and answer for the prompt Geula.
The Eight of Teves, is a day of fasting mentioned in Shulchan Aruch (O.H. 580: 2). It marks the day of the completion of the Septuagint, the Greek translation of the Torah. As the Talmud (Megilah 9a) explains; King Ptolemy, gathered seventy-two elders, placed them in seventy-two separate houses. He did not reveal to them the purpose for which he had gathered them. Then he went in to visit each of them, one by one, and he said to them, “Write for me the Torah of Moshe your teacher.” Hashem, gave to the heart of each of them shared wisdom, and all of them arrived at a single translation."
As opposed to all other translations that always existed, this one was not written next to the Hebrew Torah text. This gave rise to false and mendacious interpretations of the text, and thus made possible and gave authority and validity to the New Testament.
On question 1567, regarding the he 9 of Teveis, we wrote: " Shulchan Aruch (O.H. 580: 2) counts as one of the days that misfortunes occurred to our forefathers and it is proper to fast on them, the Ninth of Teves. The Mechaver adds; but we do not know what happened on that day.
However, Mishna Berura (ibid. 13) indicates that in the selichos recited on this day, it is mentioned that the day marks the yohrtzait of Ezra Hasofer. This day actually marks the birth of “Oisso Hoish”ť and it coincides more or less with the winter solstice. Traditionally it was the occasion of pagan festivities such as Saturnalia. Later on, the Church, as it often did, adopted it and made it coincide with the birth in Betlechem of Yeshu and the celebration of Christmas, better known in our tradition as the night of “Nitel.”ť From the term for natalis or being-born in Latin. Or as some argue, it represents the first letters of Nolad Yeshu Tes Leteves. Yeshu was born on the ninth of Teves. (Nitei Gavriel - Chanuka p. 416).
Since the event, turned out to be catastrophic to our nation, giving rise to all kinds of severe persecutions, inquisitions and many a holocaust, it was therefore established as a day of mourning and fasting. The fact that the reason was hidden and deemed forgotten or was disguised by Ezra’s yortzait, was simply to avoid further conflict with the Church, that would only increase their antisemitism and abuse.
Important Numbers
