9. R. Jose, the son of Kisma, said, "I was once walking by the way,
when a man met me and saluted me, and I returned the salutation. He
said to me, 'Rabbi, from what place art thou?' I said to him, 'I come
from a great city of sages and scribes.' He said to me, 'If thou art
willing to dwell with us in our place, I will give thee a thousand
thousand golden dinars and precious stones and pearls.' I said to
him, 'Wert thou to give me all the silver and gold and precious stones
and pearls in the world, I would not dwell anywhere but in a home of
the _Torah';_ and thus it is written in the book of Psalms by the
hands of David, King of Israel, 'The law of thy mouth is better unto
me than thousands of gold and silver'; and not only so, but in the
hour of man's departure neither silver nor gold nor precious stones
nor pearls accompany him, but only _Torah_ and good works, as it is
said, 'When thou walkest it shall lead thee; when thou liest down it
shall watch over thee; and when thou awakest it shall talk with thee';
'when thou walkest it shall lead thee'--in this world; and 'when thou
awakest it shall talk with thee'--in the world to come. And it says,
'The silver is mine, and the gold is mine, saith the Lord of hosts.'"

10. Five possessions the Holy One, blessed be He, made especially His
own in His world, and these are they, the _Torah_, heaven and earth,
Abraham, Israel, and the house of the sanctuary. Whence know we this
of the _Torah?_ Because it is written, "The Lord possessed me as the
beginning of his way, before his works, from of old." Whence of
heaven and earth? Because it is written, "Thus saith the Lord, the
heaven is my throne, and the earth is my footstool: what manner of
house will ye build unto me? and what manner of place for my rest?";
and it says, "How manifold are thy works, O Lord! In wisdom hast thou
made them all: the earth is full of thy possessions." Whence of
Abraham? Because it is written, "And he blessed him, and said,