Nachum Ish Gamzu was a Tanna of the 1st century CE. The Talmud (Taanit 21a) explains his name: whatever happened to him, he would say “Gam zu l’tovah” – “this too is for the good.”
The Talmud tells that he was sent with a chest of jewels as a gift to the Roman emperor. On the way, thieves replaced the jewels with dirt. Nachum said “this too is for the good,” and the dirt turned out to have miraculous power in battle, so he was honoured instead of punished.
He suffered great physical afflictions, which he accepted as atonement, yet lived in faith and joy. He taught Rabbi Akiva for twenty-two years, passing on his method of interpreting the Torah’s inclusions and exclusions.
