124. Rabbi Yehuda opened the discussion with the verse: "Who lays the beams of His chambers in the waters" (Tehilim 104:3). When the Holy One, blessed be He, created the world, He took it out of the water and arranged it upon water. What did He do? He divided the water into two HALVES, a half below and a half above, and did certain things with them. With the lower half, He made and established this world. He set it on this half and established the world above it. Hence, it is written: "For He has founded it upon the seas" (Tehilim 24:2). He raised the other half and paneled it with high ceilings. Hence, it is also written: "Who lays the beams of his chambers in the waters..."
125. He made a firmament between these two halves, as it says: "Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters..." (Beresheet 1:6). On them, He formed and arranged supernal holy angels from His mouth's breath, as is written: "And all the host of them by the breath of His mouth" (Tehilim 33:6).
126. With these ANGELS, He established and arranged those who sing His praises by day. They mixed with flames of fire. These hosts of armies sing by day, praises in the morning and hymns in the evening. When night comes, they all stop singing BECAUSE OTHER ANGELS SING AT NIGHT, AS THOSE WHO SING BY DAY DO NOT DO SO BY NIGHT. Above them, there are legions of fire of a strong flame. They smell the consuming fire and return to their places.
127. There are on the Other Side, NAMELY WITH THE KLIPOT, abysses, the one on top of the other - an upper abyss, BINAH OF THE KLIPOT, and a lower abyss, MALCHUT OF THE KLIPOT. Opponents of the side of Harsh Judgment abide in all of them. In the aspect of the lower abyss, there are flares that burn sparks of fire, which are in charge over decrees in the world, and they burn the wicked in the fire that is drawn from the River of Fire. They are all fire and their appearance is of scorching flames. They stand between the upper and the lower realms.
128. When the smoke rises from the altar, THOSE DEMONS whose function is to destroy and annihilate are removed and lost from that grade, NAMELY THE LOWER ABYSS. That flow of strong fire from the River of Fire, which is strong and high, goes back to its place, and all EXTERNAL forces enjoy the smoke from the altar because it was established in respect to the supernal altar. This is the reason why they enjoy it. They draw that SMOKE near, THE SMOKE OF THE PORTIONS OF THE SACRIFICE AND THE FATS THAT ARE CONSUMED BY NIGHT, FROM WHICH THE EXTERNAL FORCES ARE FED. Another smoke rises, as we explained, THE SMOKE THAT RISES FROM THE SACRIFICES BY DAY, WHICH IS MEANT FOR HOLINESS, for THE SMOKE FEEDS each and every one, WHETHER IT PERTAINS TO HOLINESS OR TO THE OTHER SIDE. It is the goodwill of everything that rises above, since it gives pleasure to the Holy King.