A Short Tribute

It says in the Talmud, "the Messiah will not come until the peruta [penny] will cease from the purse". It also says there that "The son of David will not come until the arrogant will cease to exist from among [the People of] Israel". I once heard a reason for the contiguity of the two sayings told as a witticism. There once was a pauper from a good family, who was glad of his poverty for the reason that "the Messiah will not come until the peruta will cease from the purse", who met up with a haughty individual, whom he greeted and who did not greet him in return. He was very sad making his way home. When asked why he seemed sadder than usual, he replied that until now he had been glad of his poverty, because "the Messiah will not come until the peruta will cease from the purse", and his monies had indeed ceased, so that he was certain that this would privilege him to bringing the Redeemer to [the People of] Israel. However, he had now encountered this haughty person and, since "The son of David will not come until the arrogant will cease to exist from among [the People of] Israel", this certainly warranted his sadness, seeing as his pride hinders the redemption of Israel.