Shimon b. Chalafta (Tannaim - Sixth Generation, c.170 - c.200 CE) came from an illustrious family and was a regular at R. Yehudah haNasi's academy. There he developed a close friendship with R. Yehudah's son, Shimon, and with the academy's leading student, R. Chiyya. In spite of his lineage, he subsisted on little until helped by R. Chiyya.
An illustration: Rabbi Ḥiyya the Great and Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta were sitting to study the Torah in the great study hall of Tiberias on the day before Passover, and some say that it was the day before the great fast [Yom Kippur]. They heard the sound of people crying [Because they were too poor to buy food for the holiday]. He [Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta] said to him [Rabbi Ḥiyya]: ‘Those people, what will they do?’ He said: ‘One who has, will buy, and one who does not have will go to his employer and he will give them.’ He said to him: ‘If so, I too will go to my employer, and He will give me.’ He went out and prayed in the cave by Tiberias and he saw a hand outstretched to him with a pearl. He went and brought it to Rabbeinu [Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi]. He said to him: ‘From where did you get this? It is priceless. [Do not sell it;] rather, here are three dinars for you [He lent him the three dinars so that Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta would not need to sell the pearl in order to make preparations for the holiday], go and make preparations in honor of the day, and after the holiday we will publicize it, and whoever offers the highest price will take it.’ He took the three dinars and went and bought his purchases and entered his house. His wife said to him: ‘Shimon, have you begun to steal? All your property is worth only a hundred maneh [Ten thousand dinars. She is presumably utilizing hyperbole], and [so] what are these purchases? He immediately related the incident to her. She said to him: ‘What do you want? That your canopy be one pearl smaller than that of your colleagues in the World to Come?’ He said to her: ‘What should we do?’ She said to him: ‘Go, return the purchases to their owner, the dinars to their owner, and the pearl to its owner.’
When he heard, Rabbeinu was upset. He sent for her and she came to him. He said: ‘You caused all this distress to this righteous one.’ She said to him: ‘What do you want? That his canopy will be one pearl smaller than yours in the World to Come?’ He said to her: ‘And if it will be smaller, are we not able to make it up [i.e., make up whatever is missing from his merit]?’ She said to him: ‘Rabbi, in this world we have been privileged to see your face [But not in the World to Come]; did Reish Lakish not say: Each righteous person will have a compartment for himself?’ And he [Rabbeinu] conceded to her [He prayed for God to take the pearl back, and a hand emerged and took it.]. Moreover, it is the way of Heaven to give, but it is not its way to take. The latter miracle was more difficult than the former. When it [the pearl] was taken, the hand was lower, and when it gave it to him, the hand was higher, like a person who lends money to another.
The Gemara raises an objection from a baraita to the assertion that eating meat was prohibited to Adam: Rabbi Yehuda ben Teima would say: Adam, the first man, would dine in the Garden of Eden, and the ministering angels would roast meat for him and strain wine for him. The snake glanced at him and saw his glory, and was jealous of him, and for that reason the snake incited him to sin and caused his banishment from the Garden. According to this, evidently Adam would eat meat. The Gemara answers: There the reference is to meat that descended from heaven, which was created by a miracle and was not the meat of animals at all.
The Gemara asks: Is there such a thing as meat that descends from heaven? The Gemara answers: Yes, it is like this incident: As Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta was walking along the way, he encountered those lions that were roaring at him, intending to eat him. He said: “The young lions roar after their prey, and seek their food from God” (Psalms 104:21), and they deserve to receive food. Two thighs of an animal descended from heaven for him. The lions ate one of these thighs, and they left the other one. He took it and entered the study hall, and inquired about it: Is this thigh a kosher item or a non-kosher item? The Sages said to him: Certainly it is kosher, as a non-kosher item does not descend from heaven.
In connection to that story, it is related that Rabbi Zeira asked Rabbi Abbahu: If the likeness of a donkey had descended for him, what would the halakha have been? Would it have been permitted? Rabbi Abbahu said to him: Foolish bird [yarud nala]. The Sages already said to him that a non-kosher item does not descend from heaven; therefore, it must be kosher.
“And it shall be, if you heed the voice of the L-rd your G-d to observe to do all of His commandments that I command you today, then the L-rd your G-d shall exalt you above all the nations of the earth." (Devarim 28:1). Rabbi Shimon ben Halafta said, "One who has studied words of Torah but does not fulfill its commandments commits a greater sin than one who has never studied. What is this comparable to? To a king who owns an orchard and places into it two gardeners, one of whom plants beautiful trees and then breaks them; the king is angered with him more than he is angered with the gardener who planted nothing. Similarly, one who studies words of Torah and does not fulfill its commandments commits a greater sin than one who has never studied. From where do we know this?"
"But when the scoundrel is spared, he learns not righteousness;
In a place of integrity, he does wrong—
He ignores the majesty of the LORD." (Isaiah 26:10)
This supports what the Sages, our rabbis said: There was an incident involving one of the prominent men of Tzippori, who had occasion to circumcise [his son], and the residents of Ein Te’ena came up to honor him and Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta came up with them. When they came to the city gates, they came across the sound of lads standing and playing before one courtyard. They saw Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta, who was distinguished and handsome. They said to him: ‘You will not move from here until you dance for us a bit.’ He said to them: ‘This is inappropriate for me, as I am an elderly man.’ He reprimanded them, but they were not daunted and did not submit. He lifted his glance and saw that the courtyard [was going to be] overturned. He said to them: ‘Repeat after me what I say: Go and say to this owner of this courtyard: “If you are sleeping, awaken, as the beginning of sin is sweet but its end is bitter.”’ From the sound of their words the owner of that courtyard awakened, and he emerged, and fell at [Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta’s] feet. He said: ‘Rabbi, I beg of you, do not pay attention to their words, as they are young and foolish.’ [Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta] said to him: ‘What can we do for you, the edict has already been issued. However, I will delay it for you [so you have enough] time to take out everything that you have in the courtyard.’ When he had taken out everything that he had in the courtyard, that courtyard was lifted up and then crashed down [and was destroyed].
They went to fulfill the mitzva of circumcision, and the father of the boy was giving them aged wine to drink, and saying: ‘Drink of this fine wine, as I trust in the Master of Heaven that I will [also] give you to drink of it at his wedding.’ They answered him: ‘Just as you brought him to circumcision, so may you bring him to Torah and to the wedding canopy.’ From the sound of their words, Rabbi Shimon bar Ḥalafta emerged into the darkness, he was accosted by the emissary of the people. [The angel of death] said to him: ‘Is it because you rely on your good deeds that you are going out at a time that is not a time?’ [Rabbi Shimon bar Ḥalafta] said to him: ‘You, who are you?’ He said to him: ‘I am the emissary of the people.’ He said to him: ‘Why do you look forlorn?’ He said: ‘It is from the sound of the harsh words that I hear from people every day.’ He said to him: ‘What are they?’ He said to him: ‘That baby that you circumcised today, I have the document of his [fate, which states] that I am to take him from here in thirty days. His father gave you to drink and said: “Drink this fine wine as I trust in the Master of Heaven that I will give you to drink of it at his wedding.” I heard and I was sad, because your prayer abrogates it.’ [Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta] said to him: ‘By your life, show me my fate.’ He said to him: ‘I have no control over yours and not over your colleagues.’ He said to him: ‘Why?’ He said: ‘It is because each and every day you exert yourself in Torah and mitzvot and perform acts of righteousness, and the Holy One blessed be He adds years to your lifetimes.’ He said to him: ‘May it be the will of the Holy One blessed be He that just as you do not control our fates, so you will not have license to violate our words and our plea for mercy from Heaven.’ The baby lived.
Rabbi Akiva said: What is [the significance of] this incident for us? I do not have an incident, but rather a verse: “I will fill the number of your days” (Exodus 23:26). Moses, how many mitzvot did he fulfill and how many acts of righteousness, and ultimately, it was stated to him: “Behold, your days are approaching to die” (Deuteronomy 31:14); that is: “A time to be born [and a time to die].”
Another matter, “a time to be born and a time to die” – when a man is born, the Holy One blessed be He waits up to twenty years for him to marry a woman. If he reached the age of twenty and did not marry a woman, the Holy One blessed be He says to him: It is “a time to be born” for you, but you did not wish to do so; this is nothing other than “a time to die.” Some say: One waits only a bit before that which will burn him.
“A time to plant,” in peacetime; “and a time to uproot that which is planted,” in wartime.