Once upon a time three men were traveling abroad. It was on a Friday and it was getting late and the Sabbath was approaching.

Said one to the other: "What shall we do? The road is infested with robbers, and many wild beasts are roaming about in this forest. It is much better to continue our journey and get out of this dangerous place so as to save our lives, rather than to keep the Sabbath and remain where we are, so that robbers and wild beasts may come and kill us."

But there was one among them who said: "I will not move from here until the Sabbath is out, and I will not desecrate the Sabbath, for the Lord Himself has commanded that we should keep the Sabbath. Therefore I will not move hence, until the Sabbath is out, for I will not desecrate the Sabbath. The Lord, blessed be He, can protect me from all evil."

The two others went on and violated the Sabbath, but he remained where he was and refused to break the Sabbath. He put up his tent in the field, spread his table and observed the Sabbath. As he began to eat, there appeared a bear larger than any human being had ever seen before and sat down in front of the pious man. When the pious man saw the bear, he gave him a piece of bread to eat, and the bear ate it. And the pious man had no fear of the bear. When he finished his meal, he said grace

and lay down to sleep, and the bear lay down beside him and slept also. When the pious man awoke, he found the bear sleeping beside him and he was glad that the bear had done him no harm, and praised the Lord, blessed be He, who had protected him from the bear.

In the morning the pious man said his prayers, spread his table and sat himself down to eat, and the bear ate with him, and in the afternoon he partook of the third meal. And when the Sabbath was out, he said the evening prayer and the habdalah and went on his way. And the bear accompanied him all through the night. The same night robbers found the two other men in the forest and took away all their property. Just then the pious man came along with the bear, and when the bear saw the two men who had desecrated the Sabbath, he leaped upon them and tore them to pieces.

When the pious man saw what the bear had done he was frightened lest the bear should do the same to him.

At the same moment the robbers came along and asked: "Who are you?" And he replied: "I am a Jew."

He would not hide his Judaism, for he trusted that God who had protected him from the bear, would also protect him against the robbers.

Then they said to him: "Whence do you come?"

And he replied: "I come from the king's palace."

Then they asked him: "Whence came this bear and who gave him to you?"

The pious man replied: "The king gave him to me as a companion so that no one should harm me."

Then one of the robbers said to the other: "The king must be very fond of this man to give him the bear as companion and protection."

And another one said: "This man may betray us, seeing that we are robbers, and the king may cause us to be hanged. Let us give him all our money provided he keep silent."

And they gave him all the money they had, so that he should not denounce them, and accompanied him to his house. And no sooner had the pious man reached his home, than the bear departed and went his way.

Therefore every man should observe the Sabbath and God will stand guard over him. He can protect you from robbers and wild beasts, as you have observed in this story. And no one should allow himself to be led astray.