About this episode
The gemara lists rabbis who all did special things to prepare food for Shabbat including being involved in cooking the food for Shabbat. The story is told of Yosef Mokir Shabbat who was rewarded financially for always buying good food for Shabbat and for borrowing money to do so. The gemara talks about the importance of other mitzvot (by promising rewards) like tithing, learning Torah, answering amen to a blessing and answering in Kaddish "may God's great name be blessed" with a lot of intent, and saying " veyechulu " on Friday night in davening. The gemara then says that a fire will break out in one's house if one doesn't keep Shabbat. They bring a verse from Jeremiah that discusses the fire of the destruction of Jerusalem (that will not be able to be extinguished) will be on account of not keeping Shabbat but it is derived that also one's personal house will burn on fire on Shabbat when one will not be able to extinguish it. Abaye uses that verse to teach that Jerusalem was destroyed on account of desecration of Shabbat. Seven other opinions are brought regarding why the temple was destroyed - people did not recite Shema twice a day, places of Torah learning for young children were closed, people had no shame, leaders were treated with disrespect, people did not rebuke one another, Torah scholars were disrespected, there were no longer honest people.