Baraita of the Forty-nine Rules
Encyclopedia
The Baraita of the Forty-nine Rules (Hebrew: ברייתא מ"ט מדות) is a work of rabbinical literature which is no longer in existence except in references by later authorities. Rashi
, the Tosafists
, Abraham ibn Ezra
, Yalḳut
, and Asher ben Jehiel
mention a work, "Baraita of the Forty-nine Rules," and make citations from it (thus, Rashi, ed. Berliner, on Ex. xxvi. 5; Yalḳ., Gen. 61, calls it "Midrash"; Rashi on Ex. xxvii. 6 calls it "Mishnah").
showed, by referring to a number of passages in the Talmud, that the tanna
R. Nathan, in the Halakah as well as in the Aggadah
, was accustomed to group things arithmetically, and to arrange his sayings accordingly. On this observation, Zunz based the conjecture that "this lost work of R. Nathan contained a large portion of his Mishnah
, and was arranged in rubrics from one to forty-nine; so that each rubric, under the introductory formula "Middah," mentioned halakic, haggadic, and, in general, scientific subjects which belonged in that particular place in regard to number" (G. V. 2d ed., pp. 95–97).
From the few fragments of this Baraita preserved by the above-mentioned authors, only one fact pertaining to its character can be ascertained, viz., that it contained haggadic (Yalḳ. l.c. on the seventy nations) as well as halakic matter, especially such portions of the Halakah as are concerned with exact measurement; for instance, the measurement of the Tabernacle and its furnishings (Rashi
, l.c.). If from these short fragments an opinion could be formed concerning the composition of the Baraita, Zunz's assumption would be justified that it contained Haggadah and Halakah numerically arranged. Another assumption of his, however, that it represents the "Mishnat R. Nathan" mentioned elsewhere, is highly improbable; R. Nathan's Mishnah was in all likelihood only a version of Akiba's Mishnah differing from the authoritative Mishnah. Against Zunz's opinion, compare Eliakim Milsahagi RABIH, pp. 4b, 7b.
. For, although the scientific terminology of this, the oldest, mathematical work of the Jews
shows its origin to have been in a time previous to Arabic influences on Jewish scholarship, yet expressions like חץ = Arabic סהם ("arrow") for sinus versus, or משיחה = Arabic מסאחה for measure, area, show that the work could not have been written before the contact of the Jews with the Arabs.
But Steinschneider's assumption can hardly be supported. The Mishnat ha-Middot
has nothing in common with the Baraita cited by the old scholars under that name: for the citations leave no doubt that the Baraita, even in its mathematical parts, was founded on the Bible
; whereas the Mishnat ha-Middot is a purely secular work, and, possibly, it drew upon the same source as did Mohammed b. Musa, the oldest Arabic mathematician. The plea that the Mishnat ha-Middot has not been preserved in its entirety, and that in its original form there were references to the Bible for special points, is of no weight, since it is absolutely incomprehensible that haggadic or halakic matter should fit into the frame of the work as it now is.
The same reason demolishes the hypothesis of the German translator of the Mishnat ha-Middot (Abhandlung zur Geschichte d. Mathematik, in Supplement to Zeitschrift für Mathematik und Physik, 1880; H. Schapira, Mishnat ha-Midoth . . . ins Deutsche Uebersetzt), who assumes that there was a Mishnah
with the Gemara
on it, and that citations of the old scholars refer to the Gemara, whereas the printed text represents the Mishnah (compare the tanna
R. Nathan, and Baraita on the Erection of the Tabernacle
).
Rashi
Shlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
, the Tosafists
Tosafists
Tosafists were medieval rabbis from France and Germany who are among those known in Talmudical scholarship as Rishonim who created critical and explanatory glosses on the Talmud. These were collectively called Tosafot , because they were additions on the commentary of Rashi...
, Abraham ibn Ezra
Abraham ibn Ezra
Rabbi Abraham ben Meir Ibn Ezra was born at Tudela, Navarre in 1089, and died c. 1167, apparently in Calahorra....
, Yalḳut
Yalkut
There are several rabbinical works that bear the title "Yalkut" :*Yalkut Yosef*Yalkut Shimoni*Yalkut Makiri*Yalkut Reuveni...
, and Asher ben Jehiel
Asher ben Jehiel
Asher ben Jehiel- Ashkenazi was an eminent rabbi and Talmudist best known for his abstract of Talmudic law. He is often referred to as Rabbenu Asher, “our Rabbi Asher” or by the Hebrew acronym for this title, the ROSH...
mention a work, "Baraita of the Forty-nine Rules," and make citations from it (thus, Rashi, ed. Berliner, on Ex. xxvi. 5; Yalḳ., Gen. 61, calls it "Midrash"; Rashi on Ex. xxvii. 6 calls it "Mishnah").
Authorship and Character
Ibn Ezra (Yesod Moreh, ed. Königsberg, 6a) mentions R. Nathan as the author of the Baraita. ZunzZunz
Zunz, Zuntz is a Yiddish surname: , Belgian pharmacologist* Leopold Zunz , German Reform rabbi* Gerhard Jack Zunz , British civil engineer- Zuntz :* Nathan Zuntz , German physiologist...
showed, by referring to a number of passages in the Talmud, that the tanna
Tannaim
The Tannaim were the Rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 70-200 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also referred to as the Mishnaic period, lasted about 130 years...
R. Nathan, in the Halakah as well as in the Aggadah
Aggadah
Aggadah refers to the homiletic and non-legalistic exegetical texts in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, particularly as recorded in the Talmud and Midrash...
, was accustomed to group things arithmetically, and to arrange his sayings accordingly. On this observation, Zunz based the conjecture that "this lost work of R. Nathan contained a large portion of his Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
, and was arranged in rubrics from one to forty-nine; so that each rubric, under the introductory formula "Middah," mentioned halakic, haggadic, and, in general, scientific subjects which belonged in that particular place in regard to number" (G. V. 2d ed., pp. 95–97).
From the few fragments of this Baraita preserved by the above-mentioned authors, only one fact pertaining to its character can be ascertained, viz., that it contained haggadic (Yalḳ. l.c. on the seventy nations) as well as halakic matter, especially such portions of the Halakah as are concerned with exact measurement; for instance, the measurement of the Tabernacle and its furnishings (Rashi
Rashi
Shlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
, l.c.). If from these short fragments an opinion could be formed concerning the composition of the Baraita, Zunz's assumption would be justified that it contained Haggadah and Halakah numerically arranged. Another assumption of his, however, that it represents the "Mishnat R. Nathan" mentioned elsewhere, is highly improbable; R. Nathan's Mishnah was in all likelihood only a version of Akiba's Mishnah differing from the authoritative Mishnah. Against Zunz's opinion, compare Eliakim Milsahagi RABIH, pp. 4b, 7b.
The Mishnat ha-Middot
Steinschneider believed that he had put an end to all conjecture concerning the Baraita through a happy find. In the introduction to an edition of the Mishnat ha-Middot, die Erste Geometrische Schrift in Hebräischer Sprache (Berlin, 1864), he maintains that this mathematical work, edited by him, is identical with the Baraita under consideration. Were this the case, the Baraita would be a product of the 9th or, at the earliest, of the 8th century, and its birthplace would have to be BabyloniaBabylonia
Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia , with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as a major power when Hammurabi Babylonia was an ancient cultural region in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq), with Babylon as its capital. Babylonia emerged as...
. For, although the scientific terminology of this, the oldest, mathematical work of the Jews
Jews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
shows its origin to have been in a time previous to Arabic influences on Jewish scholarship, yet expressions like חץ = Arabic סהם ("arrow") for sinus versus, or משיחה = Arabic מסאחה for measure, area, show that the work could not have been written before the contact of the Jews with the Arabs.
But Steinschneider's assumption can hardly be supported. The Mishnat ha-Middot
Mishnat ha-Middot
The Mishnat ha-Middot is considered the earliest known Hebrew treatise on geometry. The treatise was discovered in the Munich Library by Moritz Steinschneider, who dated it between 800 and 1200 C.E. Hermann Schapira argued the treatise dates from an earlier period and Solomon Gandz conjectured...
has nothing in common with the Baraita cited by the old scholars under that name: for the citations leave no doubt that the Baraita, even in its mathematical parts, was founded on the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
; whereas the Mishnat ha-Middot is a purely secular work, and, possibly, it drew upon the same source as did Mohammed b. Musa, the oldest Arabic mathematician. The plea that the Mishnat ha-Middot has not been preserved in its entirety, and that in its original form there were references to the Bible for special points, is of no weight, since it is absolutely incomprehensible that haggadic or halakic matter should fit into the frame of the work as it now is.
The same reason demolishes the hypothesis of the German translator of the Mishnat ha-Middot (Abhandlung zur Geschichte d. Mathematik, in Supplement to Zeitschrift für Mathematik und Physik, 1880; H. Schapira, Mishnat ha-Midoth . . . ins Deutsche Uebersetzt), who assumes that there was a Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
with the Gemara
Gemara
The Gemara is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah. After the Mishnah was published by Rabbi Judah the Prince The Gemara (also transliterated Gemora or, less commonly, Gemorra; from Aramaic גמרא gamar; literally, "[to] study" or "learning by...
on it, and that citations of the old scholars refer to the Gemara, whereas the printed text represents the Mishnah (compare the tanna
Tannaim
The Tannaim were the Rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 70-200 CE. The period of the Tannaim, also referred to as the Mishnaic period, lasted about 130 years...
R. Nathan, and Baraita on the Erection of the Tabernacle
Baraita on the Erection of the Tabernacle
Baraita on the Erection of the Tabernacle is a Baraita cited several times by Hai Gaon, by Nathan ben Jehiel in the Aruk, as well as in Rashi, Yalḳut, and Maimonides. Rashi calls it a "Mishnah". It treats in fourteen sections of the boards Baraita on the Erection of the Tabernacle is a Baraita...
).
Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography
- Abraham b. Solomon of Wilna, in the introduction to his edition of Aggadat Bereshit;
- idem, Rab Pe'olim, pp. 86 et seq.;
- S. Buber, Yeri'ot Shelomoh, pp. 22, 23, Warsaw, 1896;
- Grünhut, in Israelitische Monatsschrift (scientific supplement to Jüdische Presse), vii. 30-31, 1898;
- idem, Sefer ha-Liḳḳutim, ii. 3 et seq. (Grünhut believes that he found more citations from the present Baraita in Yalḳuḳ; the proofs for his assumption are not convincing, at least not for all the passages in Yalḳuṭ, the source of which he considers to be the Baraita);
- Zunz, Schapira, and Steinschneider, as cited above;
- A. Geiger, in Wissenschaftliche, Zeitschrift für Jüdische Theologie, vi. 25-30;
- A. Epstein, in Ha-Ḥoker, i. 35.
External links
- Jewish Encyclopedia article for Baraita of the Forty-nine Rules, by Marcus JastrowMarcus JastrowMarcus Jastrow was a renowned Talmudic scholar, most famously known for his authorship of the popular and comprehensive A Dictionary of the Targumim, Talmud Babli, Talmud Yerushalmi and Midrashic Literature....
and Louis GinzbergLouis GinzbergRabbi Louis Ginzberg was a Talmudist and leading figure in the Conservative Movement of Judaism of the twentieth century. He was born on November 28, 1873, in Kovno, Lithuania; he died on November 11, 1953, in New York City.-Biographical background:...
.