ck looked they were healed. Some of the laws of Sodom are
also recorded: "Whosoever cut off the ears of another's ass received the
ass till his ears grew again." "Whosoever wounded another, the man wounded
was obliged to pay him for letting his blood." When the judges of Sodom
attempted to fine Eliezer, the servant of Abraham, because another man had
wounded him, he took up a stone and flung it at the judge. He then bid the
judge to pay the fine, which was now due to him for letting his blood, to
the man who had first wounded him. There was a public bed in Sodom, and
every stranger was obliged to lie in it. If his legs were too long for it,
they were cut off; and if too short, they were racked out to the proper
length. When a traveller came, each citizen, to show his hospitality, was
obliged to give him a coin with his name written upon it. The traveller
was then deprived of bread; and when he had died of starvation, the
citizens came, and each one took back his own money. The Sodomites thus
kept up their character for liberality.

At the giving of the Law the Israelites stood at the lower part of the
mount (Exod. xix. 17). Rabbi Avidmi says, "these words teach us that the
Holy One, blessed be He, turned the mountain over them like a tub, and
said to them, 'If ye will receive the Law, well; but if not, there shall
be your grave.' " Rabbi Joshua says, "As each commandment proceeded from
the mouth of the Holy One, Israel retreated twelve miles, and the
ministering angels led them back, as it is said, 'The angels of the host
did flee apace'(6) (Ps. lxviii. 13). Do not read 'they fled' but 'they
led.' " Rabbi Eliezer, the Modite, says, that Jethro "heard the giving of
the Law; for when the Law was given to Israel His voice went from one end
of the world to the other, and all the nations of the world were seized
with trembling in their temples, and they repeated a hymn, as it is said,
'In His temple doth everyone speak of His glory' " (Ps. xxix. 9). The
question is asked, "Why are the Gentiles defiled?" "Because they did not
stand on Mount Sinai, for in the hour the serpent came to Eve he
communicated defilement, which was removed from Israel when they stood on
Mount Sinai." Rav Acha, the son of Rabbi, said to Rav Ashai, "How then is
it with proselytes?" He answered, "Although they went not there, their
lucky star was there, as it is written, 'With _him_ that standeth here
with us this day before the Lord our God, and also wit