Today’s daf explores the final days and ultimate destruction of the First Temple at the hands of the Babylonians under the military leadership of Nebuzaradan. This is arguably the defining tragedy of Jewish history, and it’s a gratuitously gory narrative — perhaps even bloodier in the retelling on today’s daf. But rather than see Nebuzaradan as a powerful agent of an evil empire, the Gemara insists on seeing him as an instrument of God’s plan. Ultimately, he is not only exonerated but extolled.

The story begins with Nebuzaradan marching on Jerusalem with 300 mules laden with iron axes. But the axes are useless against the city walls, and in fact are destroyed on contact — until God declares that the time for Jerusalem’s destruction is at hand. Then, the Babylonian general’s final axe miraculously slices through the city gate, blunt side first. Nebuzaradan kills his way straight through to the sanctuary, which he sets on fire. The Talmud records that the sanctuary itself flew up to heaven to avoid the flames, but the angels kicked it back down to earth, furthering the thesis that it was the ordained time for the Temple’s destruction.

Amidst this chaos, Nebuzaradan comes upon an unusual sight:

He saw the blood of Zechariah the priest boiling.

According to 2 Chronicles 24:20–22, the prophet Zechariah had warned the people of Israel that God had forsaken them. In retaliation, they had stoned him to death in the sanctuary. When Nebuzaradan encounters the boiling blood of the dead prophet/priest, at first he does not understand what he is looking at. But through a series of tests, Nebuzaradan learns the truth and then he also knows what he must do:

He (Nebuzaradan) said to the priests: “I will pacify the blood so the boiling will stop.” He brought the sages and killed them over the blood and its boiling did not cease. He brought schoolchildren and killed them over the blood and its boiling did not cease. He brought young priests and killed them over the blood and its boiling did not cease. He continued killing until he killed 940,000 people over the blood, and its boiling did not cease. Nebuzaradan approached the blood and said: “Zechariah, Zechariah, the worthy among them I killed on your behalf. Is it satisfactory for you that I kill them all?” Immediately the boiling ceased.

Zechariah’s blood stops boiling — either because Nebuzaradan killed so many Jews, or to stop him from killing more, or for both reasons. This is what ensues:

He (Nebuzaradan) contemplated repentance. He said: “If they, who caused only one person to perish, gained atonement only after all this killing, then with regard to that man (referring to himself) what will be required for him to gain atonement?” He deserted his army and dispatched a last will to his house and converted.

Now that Nebuzaradan understands what God is willing to exact for the death of a single prophet, he is terrified of what he has done. He runs from the battle, forsakes everything about his previous life and becomes a righteous convert to Judaism. 

According to today’s daf, Nebuzaradan is not the only enemy of the Jews contributed to our people’s success. Nebuchadnezzar, the king he served, was also an ancestor of righteous Jews. The Canaanite army commander Sisera, who opposed the Israelites under the leadership of Deborah and was ultimately slain by Yael (Judges 4), became the ancestor of Jewish sages. Similarly, Sennacherib, the Assyrian general who besieged Jerusalem during the reign of King Hezekiah, is named as an ancestor of the early Jewish sages Shemaya and Avtalyon. Elsewhere in the Talmud, we learn that Nero, the Roman Emperor famous for fiddling as Rome burned, converted to Judaism and was the ancestor of Rabbi Meir. But my vote for the most surprising conversion on today’s daf is this one:

Among the descendants of Haman were those who studied Torah in Bnei Brak. 

Haman? The guy who sought to destroy the Jewish people in our entirety? This is even more puzzling given the ostensible ban on accepting converts from the wicked nation of Amalek, of which Haman was a part. A number of sources back this ban up and by pointing to King David killing an Amalekite convert. Maimonides, however, rejects any identity-based restrictions on conversion to Judaism. In his view anyone — even Haman and the Amalakites — can join the Jewish people.

This challenging discussion reminds us of some of the worst historical adversaries the Jews have ever faced. Depending on your perspective, the notion they all became Jews and/or sired Jewish scholars may feel facile or triumphalist. Presumably, this is the Talmud’s way of explaining that even horrific tragedies are part of a divine plan. But just as this notion was difficult for the biblical Job, it may be tough for us to accept. Perhaps the best we can say is that sometimes, the apple does, in fact, fall far from the tree.

Read all of Sanhedrin 96 on Sefaria.

This piece originally appeared in a My Jewish Learning Daf Yomi email newsletter sent on March 23, 2025. If you are interested in receiving the newsletter, sign up here.