what I taught thee then; why, then, dost thou not trust me now in what I
tell thee respecting the oral law?"

_Shabbath_, fol. 31, col. 1.

Every man as he goes on the eve of the Sabbath from the synagogue to his
house is escorted by two angels, one of which is a good angel and the
other an evil. When the man comes home and finds the lamps lit, the
table spread, and the bed in order, the good angel says, "May the coming
Sabbath be even as the present;" to which the evil angel (though with
reluctance) is obliged to say, "Amen." But if all be in disorder, then
the bad angel says, "May the coming Sabbath be even as the present," and
the good angel is (with equal reluctance), obliged to say "Amen" to it.

Ibid., fol. 119, col. 2.

Two are better than three. Alas! for the one that goes and does not
return again.

_Shabbath_, fol. 152, col. 1.

As in the riddle of the Sphinx, the "two" here stands for youth
with its two sufficient legs, and the "three" for old age, which
requires a third support in a staff.

There were two things which God first thought of creating on the eve of
the Sabbath, which, however, were not created till after the Sabbath had
closed. The first was fire, which Adam by divine suggestion drew forth
by striking together two stones; and the second, was the mule, produced
by the crossing of two different animals.