Berajot 9:2 Midrash: Eikhah Rabbah, Midrash Tanchuma Buber & Sifrei Devarim

“The kings of the earth and all the inhabitants of the world did not believe that an adversary and enemy would enter the gates of Jerusalem” (Lamentations 4:12).
“The kings of the earth and all the inhabitants of the world.” There were four kings, what this one demanded that one did not demand, and these are: David, Asa, Yehoshafat, and Hezekiah. David said: “I will pursue my enemies and overtake them…” (Psalms 18:38). The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘I will do so.’ That is what is written: “David smote them from twilight until the evening of their next day” (I Samuel 30:17). What is “of their next day”? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: For two nights and one day. The Holy One blessed be He would illuminate for him with comets and lightning, as we learned there: Over comets, over earthquakes, and over lightning.³⁰On any of these phenomena one recites the blessing “Whose strength and power fill the world” (Mishna Berakhot 9:2). That is what is written: “For you will illuminate my lamp…” (Psalms 18:29).
Asa arose and said: ‘I do not have the power to kill them, but I will pursue them and You do [the killing].’ He said to him: ‘I will do so,’ as it is stated: “Asa…pursued them…as they were broken before the Lord and before His camp; they carried a great many spoils” (II Chronicles 14:12). “Before Asa” is not written here, but rather, “before the Lord and before His camp.”
Yehoshafat arose and said: ‘I have the power neither to kill nor to pursue; rather, I will recite song and You do so.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘I will do so,’ as it is stated: “At the time that they began with song and praise, [the Lord set ambushes against the children of Amon, Moav, and the highlands of Se'ir]” (II Chronicles 20:22).
Hezekiah arose and said: ‘I have the power neither to kill, nor to pursue, nor to recite song; rather I will sleep in my bed and You do so.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘I will do so,’ as it is stated: “It was on that night that an angel of the Lord went out and smote in the camp of the Assyrians” (II Kings 19:35).
How many remained of them? Rav said: Ten, as it is stated: “A child will record them” (Isaiah 10:19), as it is typical of a child to write yod.³¹Yod is the smallest letter and its numerical value is ten. Rabbi Elazar says: Six, as it is typical of a child to scratch a line.³²The letter vav is a straight vertical line. Its numerical value is six. Rabbi Yehoshua said: Five, as it is stated: “Two, three berries at the treetop” (Isaiah 17:6).³³The two were Nebuchadnezzar and Nevuzaradan, who were officers, and the three were Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, and his two sons. They were the survivors. Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Simon said: Nine. That is what is written: “Four, five on its flourishing branches” (Isaiah 17:6).³⁴Four and five are nine. Rabbi Tanḥum ben Ḥanilai said: Fourteen. That is what is written: “Two, three berries at the treetop, four, five on its flourishing branches.”
Both according to statement of these, and according to the statement of those, Nebuchadnezzar was one of them. When the Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘Ascend and destroy the Temple,’ he said: ‘He seeks only to eliminate me. He will do to me what he did to my grandfather.’³⁵Nebuchadnezzar is identified as the grandson of Sennacherib. What did he do? He came and encamped at Daphne in Antioch and sent Nevuzaradan, captain of the guard, to destroy Jerusalem. He stayed there three and a half years. Each day he would circle Jerusalem, but was unable to conquer it. Since he was unable to conquer it, he sought to return. The Holy One blessed be He introduced [an idea] into his mind and he began measuring the wall and it was sinking two and a half handbreadths each day until it was completely sunk. Once it completely sunk, the enemies entered Jerusalem. Regarding that moment, it states: “The kings of the earth and all the inhabitants of the world did not believe that an adversary and enemy would enter the gates of Jerusalem.”

(Gen. 2:4:) THESE ARE THE GENERATIONS OF THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH WHEN THEY WERE CREATED. Let our master instruct us: When someone sees shooting stars and lightnings, what blessing does he say over them? Thus have our masters taught (in Ber. 9:2): OVER SHOOTING STARS, EARTHQUAKES, LIGHTNINGS, AND THUNDERS ONE SAYS: BLESSED BE THE ONE WHOSE POWER FILLS THE WORLD. Note that this is from the Mishnah. Where is it shown from Scripture? Where it is stated (in Ps. 104:32): WHO (i.e., the LORD) LOOKS ON THE EARTH AND IT TREMBLES. And what is written in connection with it (in vs. 31)? MAY THE GLORY OF THE LORD BE FOREVER. Elijah, of blessed memory, asked Rav Mari:³¹See yBer. 9:3 (12c); M. Pss. 18:12; 104:25. Why do earthquakes come upon the world? He said to him: When the Holy One sees Israel not separating their tithes as they should, earthquakes come upon the world. Elijah, of blessed memory, said to him: Upon your life, that is the < apparent > reason for the phenomenon, but the root of the phenomenon is this: When the Holy One looks at his world and sees temples of star worship sitting upon their tells in safety, security, and serenity, while his Holy Temple is destroyed, at that time he wants to overthrow the world and shakes < it >. The Holy One said: All this quaking is for the sanctification of my name, as stated (in Is. 43:7): EVERY ONE THAT IS CALLED BY MY NAME [AND WHOM I HAVE CREATED FOR MY GLORY, I HAVE FORMED HIM, EVEN MADE HIM].³²Isaiah goes on to list the blind and the deaf as examples. Thus God is sanctified by all creation, even earthquakes. Also, through that for which I deserve to be praised, the nations provoke me to anger. One says: The LORD does such and so. Another says to worship the constellations. Another says: I serve the sun and its rays. Therefore, I bring earthquake into the world. Although the heavenly bodies did not sin, because people provoke me to anger through them, they (the heavenly bodies) are also stricken along with them. So it is stated (in Joel 3:4 [2:31]): THE SUN WILL BE CHANGED TO DARKNESS, AND THE MOON, TO BLOOD. And what concern do they have? To make known that no other god created my world along with me. You yourself know that it is so.³³See above, 1:1, and the notes there. R. Johanan said: The angels were created on the second day, as stated (in Gen. 1:6): LET THE FIRMAMENT BE IN THE MIDST OF THE WATERS. Another text (Ps. 104:3) says: WHO ROOFS HIS UPPER ROOMS IN THE WATERS. And what is written next (in vs. 4)? WHO MAKES HIS ANGELS SPIRITS (ruah). Ergo, it says: The angels were created on the second day. R. Hanina said: The angels were created on the fifth day. Where is it shown? Where it is stated (in Gen. 1:20): AND LET THE FOWL FLY (ye'ofef) ABOVE THE EARTH. These are angels, as stated (in Is. 6:2): AND WITH TWO HE WOULD FLY (ye'ofef). Ergo, it says: They were created on the fifth day. Either according to the words of R. Johanan or according to the words of R. Hanina, you have learned this, that the angels were created only after the Holy One had created his world. Why so? It is simply that the Holy One said: If I create them at the beginning, people will say: They assisted me with my world. The Holy One said: I created my world by myself, as stated (in Is. 66:2): [AND] ALL THESE THINGS MY HAND HAS MADE. Where is it shown about the created beings of heaven and earth? {Where it is stated} [From what they have read on the matter] (in Gen. 2:4): THESE ARE THE GENERATIONS OF THE HEAVENS AND THE EARTH….

Zavdi ben Levi began: “The kings of the earth did not believe…” (Lamentations 4:12). There were four kings; what this one demanded that one did not demand, and they are: David, Asa, Yehoshafat, and Hezekiah. David said: “I will pursue my enemies and overtake them…” (Psalms 18:38).¹¹⁶This verse is generally translated “I have pursued my enemies” or “I pursue my enemies.” However, a more literal translation is “I will pursue my enemies” or “let me pursue my enemies,” which is how the midrash understands it here. The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘I will do so.’ That is what is written: “David smote them from twilight until the evening of the next day” (I Samuel 30:17). What is “of the next day”? Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: For two nights and one day. The Holy One blessed be He would illuminate for him with comets and lightning, as we learned there: Over comets, over earthquakes, and over lightning.¹¹⁷Mishna Berakhot 9:2. The mishna continues: One recites: Blessed…whose strength and power fill the world. That is what is written: “For You will illuminate my lamp…” (Psalms 18:29).
Asa arose and said: ‘I do not have the power to kill them, but I will pursue them and You do [the killing].’ He said to him: ‘I will do so,’ as it is stated: “Asa…pursued them…[and Kushites were falling…before the Lord and before His camp]” (II Chronicles 14:12); it is not written here, “before Asa,” but rather, “before the Lord and before His camp.”
Yehoshafat arose and said: ‘I have the power neither to kill nor to pursue; rather, I will recite song, and You do so.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘I will do so,’ as it is stated: “At the time that they began with song and praise, [the Lord set ambushes against the children of Amon, Moav, and the highlands of Seir]” (II Chronicles 20:22).
Hezekiah arose and said: ‘I have the power neither to kill, nor to pursue, nor to recite song; rather I will sleep in my bed and You do so.’ The Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘I will do so,’ as it is stated: “It was on that night that an angel of the Lord went out and smote in the camp of the Assyrians [one hundred eighty-five thousand]” (II Kings 19:35).
How many remained of them? Rav said: Ten, as it is stated: “A child will record them” (Isaiah 10:19), as it is typical of a child to write a yod.¹¹⁸Yod is the smallest letter and is very easy to write. Its numerical value is ten. Rabbi Elazar says: Six, as it is typical of a child to make a line.¹¹⁹The letter vav is a straight vertical line. Its numerical value is six. Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi said: Five, as it is stated: “Two, three berries at the treetop” (Isaiah 17:6).¹²⁰The two are Nebuchadnezzar and Nevuzaradan, who were officers, and the three were Sennacherib, the Assyrian king, and his two sons. They were the survivors (Etz Yosef). Rabbi Yehuda and Rabbi Simon said: Nine. That is what is written: “Four, five on its flourishing branches” (Isaiah 17:6).¹²¹Four and five are nine. Rabbi Tanḥum ben Ḥanilai said: Fourteen. That is what is written: “Two, three berries at the treetop, four, five on its flourishing branches” (Isaiah 17:6). Both according to the statement of these and according to the statement of those, Nebuchadnezzar was one of them. When the Holy One blessed be He said to him: ‘Ascend and destroy the Temple,’ he said: He seeks only to eliminate me. He will do to me what he did to my grandfather.¹²²The midrash identifies Nebuchadnezzar as a grandson of Sennacherib, king of Assyria during Hezekiah’s time. Alternatively, the midrash employs the term grandfather in the sense of predecessor. What did he do? He came and encamped at Daphne in Antioch and sent Nevuzaradan, captain of the guard, to destroy Jerusalem. He stayed there three and a half years. Each day he would circle Jerusalem but was unable to conquer it. He sought to return. The Holy One blessed be He introduced into his mind and he began measuring the wall, and it was sinking two and a half handbreadths each day until it was completely sunk. Once it completely sunk, the enemies entered Jerusalem. Regarding that moment, it states: “The kings of the earth and all the inhabitants of the world did not believe that an adversary and enemy would enter the gates of Jerusalem” (Lamentations 4:12). When they sinned they were exiled. When they were exiled, Jeremiah began lamenting over them, eikha.