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Alphabet of Sirach

January 10, 2023

Alphabet of Sirach (Imperial Aramaic: אלפא-ביתא דבן סירא, romanized: Alpha-Beta de-Ben Sira) is an anonymous text of the Middle Ages inspired by the Book of Sirach, written in an Islamic country between 700 and 1000 AD. It is a compilation of two lists of proverbs, 22 in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic and 22 in Medieval Hebrew, both arranged as alphabetic acrostics. Each proverb is followed by an Aggadic commentary. Neubauer and Epstein argued for a satirical character, which reading was rejected by Ginzberg.[1] It has been translated into Latin, Yiddish, Judaeo-Spanish, French and German. An English translation by Norman Bronznick appeared in Stern and Mirsky (1998). A critical edition under the title סיפורי בן סירא בימי הביניים was published by Eli Yassif in 1984.[2]

Adam clutches a child in the presence of the child-snatcher Lilith

Aramaic proverbs

The Aramaic proverbs are the older part of the book. Five of them can be traced to Talmudic-Midrashic literature. The Hebrew commentary, illustrating the proverbs with fables, is much younger.

in the reading of Ginzberg:[1]

  1. "Honor the physician before thou hast need of him", (Sirach 38:1)
  2. "If a son do not conduct himself like a son, let him float on the water."
  3. "Gnaw the bone that falls to thy lot whether it be good or bad."
  4. "Gold must be hammered, and the child must be beaten."
  5. "Be good and refuse not thy portion of good."
  6. "Woe to the wicked man and woe to his companions."
  7. "Cast thy bread upon the waters and upon the land, for thou shalt find it after many days" (Eccles. 11:1)
  8. "Hast thou seen a black ass? [Then] it was neither black nor white."
  9. "Bestow no good upon that which is evil, and no evil will befall thee."
  10. "Restrain not thy hand from doing good."
  11. "The bride enters the bridal chamber and, nevertheless, knows not what will befall her."
  12. "A nod to the wise is sufficient; the fool requires a blow." (Proverbs 22:15)
  13. "He who honors them that despise him is like an ass."
  14. "A fire, when it is kindled, burns many sheaves" (James 3:5)
  15. "An old woman in the house is a good omen in the house"
  16. "Even a good surety has to be applied to for a hundred morrows; a bad one for a hundred thousand."
  17. "Rise quickly from the table and thou wilt avoid disputes."
  18. "In thy business deal only with the upright."
  19. "If the goods are near at hand, the owner consumes them; but if they are at a distance, they consume him."
  20. "Do not disavow an old friend."
  21. "Thou mayest have sixty counselors, but do not give up thy own opinion"
  22. "He that was first satisfied and then hungry will offer thee his hand; but not he that was first hungry and then satisfied."

The second Alphabet

The 22 Hebrew proverbs are quite different in character from the Aramaic ones, and much more recent. Half of the proverbs are borrowed from the Talmud, and are only a pretext for the presentation of a number of legends surrounding Ben Sira. Ben Sira is presented as the son of Jeremiah, born to the prophet's own daughter who dipped in a mikveh into which Jeremiah was previously forced to lay seed. Ben Sira's fame reached Nebuchadnezzar II, who called him to his court. Nebuchadnezzar sets forth various ordeals for Ben Sira, who responds with 22 stories.

Editions

  • Salonica, 1514, two known surviving copies
  • Constantinople, 1519, one known complete copy in the British Library, a defective one at the Bodleian, and another defective one in Basel.
  • Venice, 1544, reprinted by Steinschneider, 1854; most later editions are based on this one.

References

  1. ^ a b "Ben Sira, Alphabet of". www.jewishencyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2022-06-23.
  2. ^ Yassif, Eli; יסיף, עלי (1984). סיפורי בן סירא בימי הביניים: מהדורה ביקורתית ופרקי מחקר (in Hebrew). הוצאת ספרים ע״ש י״ל מאגנס, האוניברסיטה העברית. ISBN 978-965-223-529-9.

Sources

  • Eisenstein, J.D., Alpha Beta Ben Sira, in: Otsar Midrashim vol. 1 (1915).
  • Steinschneider, Moritz Alphabeticum Syracidis, Berlin (1854).
  • Steinschneider, Moritz Alphabeticum Syracidis utrumque, cum expositione antiqua (narrationes et fabulas continente), Berlin (1858).
  • David Stern, Mark Jay Mirsky (eds.), Rabbinic Fantasies : Imaginative Narratives from Classical Hebrew Literature, Yale Judaica Series (1998). ISBN 0-300-07402-6
  • Taylor, C., The Alphabet of Ben Sira, in: JQR 17 (1904/05) 238-239.
  • Taylor, C., The Alphabet of Ben Sira, in: Journal of Philology 30 (1907) 95-132.
  • Tobias Lachs, Samuel, The Alphabet of Ben Sira, Gratz College Annual of Jewish Studies 11 (1973), 9-28.

External links

  • Humm, Alan. "Lilith". Alphabet of Ben Sirah.
  • Yuter, Josh (Nov 20, 2003). "The Alphabet Of Ben Sira - A Not So Divine Comedy".
  • "Lilith". Straight Dope.

January 10, 2023
alphabet, sirach, imperial, aramaic, אלפא, ביתא, דבן, סירא, romanized, alpha, beta, sira, anonymous, text, middle, ages, inspired, book, sirach, written, islamic, country, between, 1000, compilation, lists, proverbs, jewish, babylonian, aramaic, medieval, hebr. Alphabet of Sirach Imperial Aramaic אלפא ביתא דבן סירא romanized Alpha Beta de Ben Sira is an anonymous text of the Middle Ages inspired by the Book of Sirach written in an Islamic country between 700 and 1000 AD It is a compilation of two lists of proverbs 22 in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic and 22 in Medieval Hebrew both arranged as alphabetic acrostics Each proverb is followed by an Aggadic commentary Neubauer and Epstein argued for a satirical character which reading was rejected by Ginzberg 1 It has been translated into Latin Yiddish Judaeo Spanish French and German An English translation by Norman Bronznick appeared in Stern and Mirsky 1998 A critical edition under the title סיפורי בן סירא בימי הביניים was published by Eli Yassif in 1984 2 Adam clutches a child in the presence of the child snatcher Lilith Contents 1 Aramaic proverbs 2 The second Alphabet 3 Editions 4 References 5 Sources 6 External linksAramaic proverbs EditThe Aramaic proverbs are the older part of the book Five of them can be traced to Talmudic Midrashic literature The Hebrew commentary illustrating the proverbs with fables is much younger in the reading of Ginzberg 1 Honor the physician before thou hast need of him Sirach 38 1 If a son do not conduct himself like a son let him float on the water Gnaw the bone that falls to thy lot whether it be good or bad Gold must be hammered and the child must be beaten Be good and refuse not thy portion of good Woe to the wicked man and woe to his companions Cast thy bread upon the waters and upon the land for thou shalt find it after many days Eccles 11 1 Hast thou seen a black ass Then it was neither black nor white Bestow no good upon that which is evil and no evil will befall thee Restrain not thy hand from doing good The bride enters the bridal chamber and nevertheless knows not what will befall her A nod to the wise is sufficient the fool requires a blow Proverbs 22 15 He who honors them that despise him is like an ass A fire when it is kindled burns many sheaves James 3 5 An old woman in the house is a good omen in the house Even a good surety has to be applied to for a hundred morrows a bad one for a hundred thousand Rise quickly from the table and thou wilt avoid disputes In thy business deal only with the upright If the goods are near at hand the owner consumes them but if they are at a distance they consume him Do not disavow an old friend Thou mayest have sixty counselors but do not give up thy own opinion He that was first satisfied and then hungry will offer thee his hand but not he that was first hungry and then satisfied The second Alphabet EditThe 22 Hebrew proverbs are quite different in character from the Aramaic ones and much more recent Half of the proverbs are borrowed from the Talmud and are only a pretext for the presentation of a number of legends surrounding Ben Sira Ben Sira is presented as the son of Jeremiah born to the prophet s own daughter who dipped in a mikveh into which Jeremiah was previously forced to lay seed Ben Sira s fame reached Nebuchadnezzar II who called him to his court Nebuchadnezzar sets forth various ordeals for Ben Sira who responds with 22 stories Editions EditSalonica 1514 two known surviving copies Constantinople 1519 one known complete copy in the British Library a defective one at the Bodleian and another defective one in Basel Venice 1544 reprinted by Steinschneider 1854 most later editions are based on this one References Edit a b Ben Sira Alphabet of www jewishencyclopedia com Retrieved 2022 06 23 Yassif Eli יסיף עלי 1984 סיפורי בן סירא בימי הביניים מהדורה ביקורתית ופרקי מחקר in Hebrew הוצאת ספרים ע ש י ל מאגנס האוניברסיטה העברית ISBN 978 965 223 529 9 Sources EditEisenstein J D Alpha Beta Ben Sira in Otsar Midrashim vol 1 1915 Steinschneider Moritz Alphabeticum Syracidis Berlin 1854 Steinschneider Moritz Alphabeticum Syracidis utrumque cum expositione antiqua narrationes et fabulas continente Berlin 1858 David Stern Mark Jay Mirsky eds Rabbinic Fantasies Imaginative Narratives from Classical Hebrew Literature Yale Judaica Series 1998 ISBN 0 300 07402 6 Taylor C The Alphabet of Ben Sira in JQR 17 1904 05 238 239 Taylor C The Alphabet of Ben Sira in Journal of Philology 30 1907 95 132 Tobias Lachs Samuel The Alphabet of Ben Sira Gratz College Annual of Jewish Studies 11 1973 9 28 External links EditHumm Alan Lilith Alphabet of Ben Sirah Yuter Josh Nov 20 2003 The Alphabet Of Ben Sira A Not So Divine Comedy Lilith Straight Dope Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Alphabet of Sirach amp oldid 1100678395, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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