Observations on the Jewish Manner of Dividing and Reading the Law and the Prophets.

OBSERVATIONS ON THE JEWISH MANNER OF DIVIDING AND READING THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS.

The ancient Jews divided the whole law of Moses into fifty-four sections, which they read in their synagogues in the course of the fifty-two Sabbaths in the year, joining two of the shortest twice together, that the whole might be finished in one year’s space; but in their intercalated years, in which they added a month, they had fifty-four Sabbaths, and then they had a section for each Sabbath: and it was to meet the exigency of the intercalated years that they divided the law into fifty-four sections at first. When Antiochus Epiphanes forbade the Jews on pain of death to read their law, they divided the prophets into the same number of sections, and read them in their synagogues in place of the law; and when, under the Asmoneans, they recovered their liberty, and with it the free exercise of their religion, though the reading of the law was resumed, they continued the use of the prophetic sections, reading them conjointly with those in the law. To this first division and mode of reading the law there is a reference, Acts 15:21: For Moses of old time hath in every city them that preach him, being READ IN THE SYNAGOGUES EVERY SABBATH DAY. To the second division and conjoint reading of the law and the prophets we also find a reference, Acts 13:15; And after the reading of the LAW AND THE PROPHETS, the rulers of the synagogue sent unto them, saying, &c. And that the prophets were read in this way in our Lord’s time, we have a proof, Luke 4:16, &c., where, going into the synagogue to read on the Sabbath day, as was his custom, there was delivered unto him the book of the Prophet Isaiah: and it appears that the prophetical section for that Sabbath was taken from the sixty-first chapter of his prophecies. Of these sections the book of Genesis contains twelve:

The FIRST, called tyvrb bereshith, begins Genesis 1:1, and ends Genesis 6:8.

The SECOND, called jn Noach, begins Genesis 6:9, and ends Genesis 11:32.

The THIRD, called Ël Ël lech lecha, begins Genesis 12:1, and ends Genesis 18:1.

The FOURTH, called aryw vaiyera, begins Genesis 18:1, and ends Genesis 22:24.

The FIFTH, called hrc yyj chaiyey Sarah, begins Genesis 23:1, and ends Genesis 25:18.

The SIXTH, called tdlwt toledoth, begins Genesis 25:19, and ends Genesis 28:9.

The SEVENTH, called axyw vaiyetse, begins Genesis 28:10, and ends Genesis 32:3.

The EIGHTH, called jlvyw vaiyishlach, begins Genesis 32:4, and ends Genesis 36:43.

The NINTH, called bvyw vaiysheb, begins Genesis 37:1, and ends Genesis 40:23.

The TENTH, called xqm mikkets, begins Genesis 41:1, and ends Genesis 14:17.

The ELEVENTH, called vgyw vaiyiggash, begins Genesis 44:18, and ends Genesis 47:27.

The TWELFTH, called yjyw vayechi, begins Genesis 47:28, and ends Genesis 50:26.

These sections have their technical names, from the words with which they commence; and are marked in the Hebrew Bibles with three ppp pe’s, which are an abbreviation for hvrp parashah, a section or division; and sometimes with three sss samech’s, which are an abbreviation for the word rds seder, or ards sidra, an order, a full and absolute division. The former are generally called twyvrp parashioth, distinctions, divisions, sections; the latter µyrds sedarim, orders, arrangements; as it is supposed that the sense is more full and complete in these than in the parashioth. See the Tables, &c., at the end of the Book of Deuteronomy, where all these matters, and others connected with them, are considered in great detail.

MASORETIC Notes on the Book of GENESIS.

At the end of all the books in the Hebrew Bible, the Masoretes have affixed certain notes, ascertaining the number of greater and smaller sections, chapters, verses, and letters. These they deemed of the greatest importance, in order to preserve the integrity of their law, and the purity of their prophets. And to this end they not only numbered every verse, word, and letter, but even went so far as to ascertain how often each letter of the alphabet occurred in the whole Bible! Thus sacredly did they watch over their records in order to prevent every species of corruption. The sum of all the VERSES in Bereshith (Genesis) is 1534. And the memorial sign of this sum is dl ka-aleph a signifying 1000; final caph Ë 500; lamed l 30, and daleth d 4.=1534.

The middle verse of Genesis is the fortieth of chap. 27.: By thy sword shalt thou live.

The PARASHIOTH, or greater sections; are twelve. The symbol of which is the word hz zeh, THIS, Exodus 3:15: And THIS is my memorial to all generations. Where zain z stands for 7, and he h, for 5.=12. The SEDARIM, or orders, (see above) are forty-three. The symbol of which is the word µg gam. Genesis 27:33: YEA (µg gam) and he shall be blessed. Where gimel g stands for 3, and mem m for 40.=43. The PERAKIM, or modern division of chapters, are fifty; the symbol of which is Ël lecha, Isaiah 33:2: We have waited FOR THEE. Where lamed l stands for 30, and caph Ë for 20.=50.

The open sections are 43, the close sections 48, total 91: the numerical sign of which is ax tse, GET THEE OUT, Exodus 11:8, where tsaddi x stands for 90, and aleph a for 1.=91.

The number of letters is about 52,740; but this last is more a matter of conjecture and computation than of certainty, and on it no dependence can safely be placed, it being a mere multiplication by twelve, the number of sections, of 4395, the known number of letters in the last or twelfth section of the book. On this subject see Buxtorf’s Tiberias, p. 181.