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IT CAME TO PASS AT MIDNIGHT

“On that night he saved Hezekiah, Hananiah and his companions, Daniel from the lions’ den, and on that night Messiah and Elijah will appear, for it is, written: The watchman said, Morning has come and also night. . .”

‘The division of the night into three watches continues throughout the biblical period. They were referred to in these terms: nmwowx WN, the first watch; aor nweRn, the middle watch; pan rrwpx, the morning watch (Lamentations 2:19; Judges 7:19; Exodus 14:24). The Roman division of the night into four watches was also known (Berakhoth 3b). The author of this poem uses the phrase nmwapxn wx in the sense of midnight, that is, at the beginning of the last watches, obviously because he maintains that the night consists of four watches.

‘The first two stanzas allude to Genesis 14:15; 20:3; 31:24, 42; 92:25. The expression bari qxbno wr is taken from Hosea 12:5.

ovine is identified with Upper Egypt (Jeremiah 44:1; Ezekiel 29:14), which was the original seat of the Egyptians. nbn their offspring (Genes 49:3; Joo! 2:22). nomin m1 nove the flight of the general who lived in Haro~ sheth-goyim (Judges 4:2; 5:20).

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