On the other hand, the name xerxes is actually the appropriate greek derivation of the kings persian name, khsyay. This introductory article acquaints the reader with a fascinating, ancient translation of the scroll of esther, the socalled targum to esther. After the return from exile aramaic gradually won the ascendancy as the colloquial language over the slowly decaying hebrew until, from probably the last century before the christian era, hebrew was hardly more than the language of the schools and of worship. Paris hebrew 110 of the bibliotheque nationale english and aramaic edition aramaic. Targum jonathan otherwise referred to as targum yonasanyonatan is the official eastern babylonian targum to the neviim. Second translation, a collection of homilies in aramaic on the book of esther. Book of esther, book of the hebrew bible and the christian old testament. Open library is an open, editable library catalog, building towards a web page for every book ever published.
The source of this digital edition of the second targum to esther comes from the comprehensive aramaic lexicon project at hebrew union collegejewish institute of religion, cincinnati, usa. Targum sheni on megillat esther can be characterised as a targum with a mul. Ahasuerus, a name which is confirmed by other greek translations, the latin vulgate, the targums, and the syriac translation. The two targums of esther download ebook pdf, epub. It is one of the five scrolls megillot in the hebrew bible. Excepting the scroll of esther, which might be read by two persons in turn, only one person might read the targum, as the pentateuch or prophetic section also was read by a single person. In the jewish bible, esther follows ecclesiastes and lamentations and is read on the festival of purim, which commemorates the rescue of the jews from hamans plottings. The value and significance of the targumstranslations of the hebrew bible into aramaic, the language of palestinian jews for centuries following the babylonian exilelie in their approach to translation.
Song of songs, ruth, lamentations, ecclesiastes, esther. The targums that require most to be considered are the official targums, those that are given in the rabbinic bibles in columns parallel with the columns of hebrew. According to the talmud, it was a redaction by the great assembly of an original text by mordecai. What is called the magillat esther scroll of esther is part of the biblical group of books in the hagiographa known as the five megillot. Two targums of esther aramaic bible vol 18 grossfield, bernard on. Search for library items search for lists search for contacts search for a library. The official targums of the law and the prophets approach more nearly the character of translations, though even in them verses are at times explained rather than translated. The jewish encyclopedia characterizes the story as a. It belongs to the third section of the judaic canon, known as the ketuvim, or writings. Giving you holy bibles the way they were originally printed. Targum is the distinctive designation of the aramaic translations or paraphrases of the old testament. A late targum on chronicles has been found and published separately. The best known, most literal, and possibly the earliest targum is the targum of onkelos on the pentateuch, which appeared in its final revision in the 3rd century ad. These five scrolls play an integral part in jewish liturgy next to the pentateuch.
This translation exists in several versions, and therefore it is better to use the plural and speak of. Targum sheni was written in byzantine palestine before the rise of islam and then used in islams textual construction of. The second targum to esther is an ancient aramaic translation of the hebrew book of esther. Click download or read online button to get the two targums of esther book now. This translation exists in several versions, and therefore it is better to use the plural and speak of the targums to esther. What is called the magillat esther scroll of esther is part of the biblical group of books in the hagiographa known as the five megillot designating esther. The first targum to esther by bernard grossfeld, august 1983, sepher hermon pr edition, paperback in english. The targums are the aramaic translationsor rather paraphrasesof the books of the old testament, and, in their earliest form, date from the time when aramaic superseded hebrew as the spoken language of the jews. The targums to esther the targums to esther damsma, alinda 20140301 00. Some of the apocryphal additions to esther appear in a late targum to that book. The targum was to be read after every verse of the parashiyyot of the pentateuch, and after every third verse of the lesson from the prophets.
However, formatting rules can vary widely between applications and fields of interest or study. This translation exists in several different versions, and therefore it. Since the pentateuch in its entirety was read consecutively in the successive weekly synagogue services, the targums of the pentateuch were particularly important. But when the dead sea scrolls were finally translated, we saw every book of the old testamentexcept one, estherhad some fragment in it or whatever. The official recognition of a written targum, and therefore the final fixing of its text, belongs to the posttalmudic period of the 5th century ad. But many of the targums also have detailed summaries of the translation techniques used, the relationship of the targums to each other like the two esther targums or neofiti and onqelos on the pentateuch, the relation of the targums to other rabbinic writings, the halakha laws, midrash interpretation and haggadah legends, the. The targum of chronicles is quite late, possibly medieval. The targum sheni second targum is an aramaic translation and elaboration of the book of esther, that embellishes the biblical account with considerable new apocryphal material, not on the face of it directly related to the esther story. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. What is called the magillat esther scroll of esther is part of the biblical group of books in the hagiographa known as the five megillot, designating esther, the scrolls of canticles, ruth, lamentations, and ecclesiastes. Esther this is a hebrew name from the term myrtle bdb 2, from the targums, cf. There are like 40 different amazing truths from the blessed book of esther.
It is possible that esther was hadassahs throne name, but this is unsubstantiated. Targums hastings dictionary of the bible bible dictionary. The targums to the five megilloth festival scrolls ruth, esther, song of songs, lamentations, and qoheleth ecclesiastes all contain long interpretive additions. Pdf the targums to esther, in european judaism, 47. Retelling the story of esther in targum sheni in light of septuagint. Read the text of aramaic targum to esther online with commentaries and connections. The best known of these is the socalled targum of onkelos. Including some of them with the whole scroll, like isaiah, the entire book, all sixty. Retelling the story of esther in targum sheni in light of.
It relates the story of a hebrew woman in persia, born as hadassah but known as esther, who becomes queen of persia and thwarts a. In addition, there is for the law the targum yerushalmi, another recension of which is called targum yonathan ben uzziel. Cmrs roundtable the second targum of the book of esther, a translation of esther from hebrew into aramaic, contains material about solomon and sheba not found in the hebrew esther, but found in the koran. The aramaic bible, volume 18, translated with apparatus and notes by bernard grossfeld, a michael glazier book, the liturgical press, collegeville, mn, 1991, pp. The cal is a text base of the aramaic texts in all dialects from the earliest 9 th century bce through the th century ce, currently with a database of approximately 2. The megillat esther book of esther became the last of the 24 books of the tanakh to be canonized by the sages of the great assembly. From palestine, the tradition of targum to ketuvim made its way to italy, and from there to medieval ashkenaz and sepharad. Concordance of the first targum to the book of esther. The textual lineaments of three medieval identities. The mishnah stipulates that the torah should be read with targum, i. The book of esther, also known in hebrew as the scroll megillah, is a book in the third section ketuvim, writings of the jewish tanakh the hebrew bible and in the christian old testament. The first targum to esther august 1983 edition open. The targumim of psalms, proverbs, and job are generally treated as a unit, as are the targumim of the five scrolls esther has a longer second targum as well.