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Ask the Rabbi: answers from Project Genesis rabbis
How was Isaiah killed?
The Talmud (Yevamos 49b) tells us that King Menasheh accused Isaiah of sacrilege for claiming to have seen G-d (Is.6:1). Isaiah tried to escape by hiding inside a cedar tree, but he was detected (Yerushalmi Sanhedrin 10:2) and they sawed the cedar tree apart, killing him.
Could you please explain the characteristics of a cedar tree with reference to psalm 92 verse 12 and how is it possible for Isaiah to hide in a cedar tree when he was killed. Is it that big to contain a man?
Looking at Psalm 92:13 (not 12), the date palm bears fruit but is not a sturdy tree. The cedar does not bear fruit, but is powerful. The righteous man has the qualities of both.
You ask if a cedar could be big enough to house a man in it’s trunk? Why not? I have seen tree trunks with diameters as big as a small house.