The book of ben sira index of passages compiled by joshua a. Sirach, by ben sira, also known as wisdom of jesus son of sirach, the wisdom of ben sira, or ecclesiasticus, is a work from the second century bc, originally written in. Ben sira uses the expression fear of the lord twelve times and the noun wisdom seven times to emphasize the connection between the two ideas. Sirach united states conference of catholic bishops. In the case of the genizah materials, the specific manuscript, folio, and side r recto. The alphabet of ben sirach is an anonymous text of the middle ages inspired by the hellenistic. The alphabet of ben sira alphabet of jesus ben sirach, alphabetum siracidis, othijoth ben sira is an anonymous medieval text attributed to jesus ben sirach, the author of the wisdom of sirach.
And not to be confused with the apocryphal book the wisdom of ben sira. In hebrew the book is known as the wisdom of joshua jesus ben sira. The author of the lifes sequel grasped in full the workings of humour in the life of ben sira, in that its beginning is a splendidly humorous passage. The first known textual source for the myth of lilith is the alphabet of bensira, which was probably written in the period between 600 and ev1. The alphabet of ben sira the alphabet of ben sira alphabet of jesus ben sirach, alphabetum siracidis, othijoth ben sira is an anonymous medieval text attributed to yoshua bin sira pdf. He is represented as the son of jeremiah, and was born with the physical and mental powers of an adult. Here the author recounts a dispute that arose between adam and lilith. The alphabet of bensira is an anonymous medieval text, attributed to ben sira sirach, the author of the deuterocanonical book ecclesiasticus, written in the second century bc gold must be hammered. Who hath measured the height of heaven, and the breadth of the earth, and the depth of the abyss. Ben sira the jewish encyclopedia ond alphabet is really nothing more than a collection of legends and fables common among the jews of the middle ages.
Known as the early journal content, this set of works include research articles, news, letters, and. In some ways, his book reads like a modernday text on business ethics, although he prefers the public sector to the private and assumes that all merchants are corrupt 26. The alphabet of ben sira pseudosirach is a hebrew work from those circumstances. The account begins with the remarkable birth of ben sira. The wisdom of ben siravolume 39 t h e anchor bible is a fresh approach to the worlds greatest classic. The book of sirach, also known as ecclesiasticus, is part of the wisdom literature of the greek septuagint and the latin vulgate bible. Each verse is indexed to a specific genizah folio andor qumran or masada document. Its tone is satiric, and themes include the lighter aspects of life, and many proverbs. Posts about alphabet of ben sira written by alexander.
The book of sirach actually has three different titles, depending on the language of its transmission or the religious tradition that reads it. Specifically, i was reading about the alphabet of ben sira which is best known for giving us the midrash of lilith. The origins of evil and the fall of man 3 eshayahu 34. Original hebrew of a portion of ecclesiasticus by cowley a. Alphabet of ben sira 425 tiona presentation, for example, in which. It is a compilation of two lists of proverbs, 22 in aramaic and 22 in hebrew, both arranged as. Each of these proverbs is followed by a haggadic comm. Ben sira, alphabet of, a narrative, satirical work, written probably in the geonic period in the east. Lilith is mentioned four times in the babylonian talmud, but it is not until the alphabet of ben sira c. For more about this discovery, click on introduction. It is to be expected that such a book should be full of absurdities and it is not just in reifmann, epstein, and neubauer to stigmatize it as an intentional mockery of jewish literature.
The unknown author of this work has filled it with many elements that seem designed to upset the sensibilities of traditional jews. The compilation so designated consists of two lists of proverbs, 22 in aramaic and 22 in hebrew, arranged in each case as alphabet acrostics. Gold must be hammered, and the child must be beaten. History of adams first wife lilith learn religions. Ecclesiasticus ben siras book of wisdom sirach 7 jesus, the son of sirach, were he alive today, would be a professor of public administration. The book of sirach or ecclesiasticus selfdefinition. Full text of the alphabet of ben sira see other formats stop early journal content on jstor, free to anyone in the world this article is one of nearly 500,000 scholarly works digitized and made freely available to everyone in the world byjstor. Free pdf download toshiba satellite l645ds4056 psk0qu01200d c documents and settings melissa application data corel three months after passing. Ben sira, alphabet of the 1901 jewish encyclopedia. In this medieval text, ben sira names lilith as adams first wife and presents a full account of her story. The son who is not clearwitted, leave him upon the surface of the water and let him swim trade. Over 40,000 seforimhebrew books for free in pdf format. In the vulgate, the book is called ecclesiasticus the churchs book. The first page of the hebrew original of ben sira to be identified in the modern era, by solomon schechter in 1896 now located in cambridge, bearing the shelfmark cul or.
Five of them can be traced to talmudicmidrashic literature. In fact, the proverbs were made by him when as a oneyearold child he was sent to a teacher, and was taught the alphabet by him. The alphabet of ben sira the alphabet of ben sira alphabet of jesus ben sirach, alphabetum siracidis, othijoth ben sira is an anonymous medieval text attributed to jesus ben sirach, the author of the wisdom of sirach. A text edition of all extant hebrew manuscripts and a synopsis of all parallel hebrew ben sira texts supplements to vetus testamentum 9781589832367. Some of the proverbs in the alphabets are probably genuine.
The alphabet of ben sira is the earliest form we know of the lilith legend familiar to most people that is, to most people who are familiar with lilith at all. Used by kind permission of the syndics of cambridge university. Proverb number 4 from aramaic proverbs, the far older part of the book, reads. The alphabet of ben sira claims for ben sira a miraculous birth. In the jewishgreek scriptures and for nets, the title is that given above, sirach. Scholars tend to date the alphabet between the 8th and 10th centuries, ce. The alphabet of ben sira the oldest known text that explicitly refers to lilith as adams first wife is the alphabet of ben sira, an anonymous collection of midrashim from the medieval period. The book of sirach or ecclesiasticus chapter 1 1 all wisdom is from the lord god, and hath been always with him, and is before all time. Pdf david stern, the alphabet of ben sira and the early. The alphabet of ben sira is one of the earliest, most complicated, and most sophisticated hebrew stories written in the middle ages.
Its a real shame this isnt taught in yeshivot this stuff is off the charts on the unintentional comedy scale. The tale of lilith originates in a medieval work called the alphabet of bensira, a work whose relationship to the conventional streams of judaism is, to say the least, problematic. Whether the story itself is older, or, if so, how much older is not possible to say. Original hebrew of a portion of ecclesiasticus by a. He is the author of sirach, also known as the book of ecclesiasticus he wrote his work in hebrew, possibly in egypt in alexandria in the. As aramaic renditions of the real ben sira compare zunz, g. Sirach, the alphabet of international standard bible. David stern, the alphabet of ben sira and the early history of parody in jewish literature, in hindy najman and judith newman, eds. It is followed with nebuchandnezzar asking ben sira further questions, which ben sira answers to the kings unwavering satisfaction. Pdf david stern, the alphabet of ben sira and the early history.
1457 1166 1410 581 803 1297 1195 1081 723 432 1204 1464 1482 599 166 806 1253 1107 598 257 147 36 7 897 876 490 1360 1068 1414 557 1283 1180 355 1498 207 417