Rejoicing at the Downfall of the Wicked
Question
Answer
Peace and blessings
The topic is extensive, so I will just bring sources:
א. Berachot 9b – "לא אמר דוד שירה עד שראה במפלת הרשעים" ("David did not recite song until he saw the downfall of the wicked").
ב. Sanhedrin 39b – "באבוד רשעים רינה" ("When the wicked perish, there is song" – Mishlei/Proverbs 11:10). He [i.e., the Holy One, blessed be He] does not rejoice, but He causes others to rejoice [He brings joy to others through their downfall].
ג. Sifrei, Korach 117 – "יש שמחה לפני המקום כשיאבדו מכעיסים מן העולם" ("There is joy before the Omnipresent when those who anger Him vanish from the world").
ד. Zohar, Parashat Noach, folio 61 – "רק כשנתמלאה סאתם של רשעים הקב"ה שמח במפלתם, אבל כשלא נתמלאה סאתן, לא" ("Only when the measure of the wicked has become full does the Holy One, blessed be He, rejoice in their downfall; but when their measure is not yet full, He does not").
ה. Yalkut Shimoni (תתקס) – We do not recite song on the seventh day of Pesach since the Egyptians drowned. [And the Tzlach explained that the measure of the Egyptians was not yet full.]
ו. Masechet Semachot (ch. 2, mishnah 10) – "הפורשים מדרכי ציבור ומתו, קרוביהם לובשים בגדים לבנים ושמחים" ("Those who separate themselves from the ways of the community and die — their relatives wear white garments and rejoice").
