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681 THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

681

49, 50-04; the longer, based ou the incomplete Constantinople-Venice edition. Several manuscripts of

both have been preserved as, forexample, in tlie Munich Codex 22, folio 70-103, which supplies the gaps purposely left in the longer eoniposition in the Cra cow -Anisl<'nliiiu edit ion in the Vatican Codex, 2vS, IJ (see Wolf, "Bihl. Helir." ii. 12.")!^, and Steinschneider, " Hebr. IJibl." xiv. 7); and one manuscript in thcHodleian Lil)rarv which is described in Xcubauer. "Cat. Bodl. Hebr.'JISS." No. 1927 (of this no exact information is given, but according to the inunber of its pages, it is prol)al)ly the .shorter al|)liabet), A fragment of the shorter is contained in the Bodleian Library manuscript, "No. 1822 (Neubavu'r, ih.). There are, besides, three other manusiripis in the Bodleian Library containing alphabets of 1{. Akilja (compare ib. Nos. 1104, 3; 2287, 11; 228!), 7). The catalogue does not give any details of their contents; but the fait that none of them is marked •]>rinted" would indicate that they are not identical with the published "Alphabets," fragment consisting of two leaves n'3 ^V. TID' (" Mysterium "), also differ-

surrounded by

Ilis host of angels, will expound the to the righteous in paradise, whereupon Zerubbabel will i)roclaim God's glorj-, so Their that it will resound over the w"hole

Torah



Parenetic Character,



A

ing from the published alphabets, is in the Almanzi Library (Codex 19"), xiv. ), and deserves special notice because it furiiish<'S strong support to the theory that the writings under the present heading are genuine apocalyp.ses. It begins " Alepli stands for the ^Most High, who i.s the First" (which, in the Constantinople-Venice edition, is the beginning of ^ 10), and the conclusion contains the following passage: "

destruction of llie soonnii till' Ki'ilim-Tii's will (li-iriiisi- 111 niinil>ei-s; . . ut tliceiul ycuis, iii-ccniliii; to tin' iiili-iiiliii- of the (ientlles [tile lleIflra Is iiii'uiit hi'ivl. tlii'lr klnk''liiin will vaiilsli fiiiin iln'uirtb; ... Ill 111!' i-iid i>< :iiM v.-ars. arcordlni.' to tluir riili-nclur. the of Duvlil will loiiii'. I, oil wllllin;!" (Si-.-.su-insrhiii-lil.-i-. " llebr. BIbl." V. IIW, uuil " AiHxalypsen," etc., In "Z. 1). M. Ii." .vxvlll. Elt'litt't'ii liiiniirt'ii yi'jiis :ifti*r rtie

Teiii^ili-,

of

.

ail)

wm

en, note

and

The

This fragment originated in the Orient, as is shown the words "the calendar of the Gentiles." which signify "dating from the llegiia"; more exactly, it maybe inferred from the concluding words wliieli quote a Persian expression, that it originated in

by

Persia. Jellinck's distinction of the two published alphabets as " First Recension " and " Second Recension " neq. vi., pp. xl. tt neq.) is mis("B. H."iii., pp. xiv. leading; for in respect notoidyof the length but also of the contents, they dilTerso mdically that they must be considered as altogether distinct and iiidrpendent In the longerof the |)ublisliril alpliaof each other. bets, as in the Hebrew Book of Knoch, Jletull'oii

H



(Enoch) is represented as the revealer of the secrets disclosed in these writings. There is also a very brief and conden.sed narration of Knoch 'sa.ssuinption into heaven, of his Ininsforination into one of the nngels at the heaveidy tlirone, and of his initiation into all the mysteries of heaven and earth. This piece is not in the Constantinople-Venice edition. but istobe found inihe ('nicow-Amsterdain edition. in the Munich Codex. The latter has also the seventy or seventv-two names of God and the ninety-two names of "Me(alron, which, from religions .sfrnples, were omitted in the Cmcow-Amsler(1am edition. The names of God are obtained from combinalionsiif IhedilTelenl leltersof Iheiilphabets, already alluded to as eharacteristic of this group of

and also

writings. Clo.sely bound up with the relation of the above mysteries is the glorillcationof the Torali as the aim Qiul end of creation and the center of future bliss. Because of its observance Israel will inherit the joys of panidise. whereas the heathen, having disregarded it, will be given over to hell, (ioil Himself.

world



the sinners of Israel and the

among the heathen in hell will add their "amen " to this glorification jiious

will be

dise.

found worthy of admittance to parapleasures of the righteous in paradise are

described in a glowing, sensuous style:

God Him-

dwells among and a.s.sociates with them like one of themselves, contributing actively to their entertainment. (Asthemateriali/ingof God in this gross manner has hitherto been considered a sure proof of the later origin of a work, it may be well to call atself

tention to the fact that there is a" parallel to this description in the oldest Jlidrash. Sifra. ed. Malbim, 22.>); compare also Ta'anit, 31«.) The circumstance, that in these writings the Torah is placed in such prominence, explains, too, their eminently parenetic character. In regard to R. Akiba's alleged authorship of these writings, it may be recalled, that, as early as the .lerusalem Talmud, a legenil was current that R. Akiba enjoyed the superliuman ijiivilege of ascending to heaven and having the secrets of God revealed to him (Yer. Hag. ii. 77i: compare Talmud Bab. ib. 14i). Further, it .seems worthy of notice, that, in the fragment of an "Alphabet" of R. Akiba" contained in the Lemberg edition of the Book of Enoch, xxix. 2, and referred to above, the story of Enoch's asstimption. etc. (there condensed to a few sentences), is narrated as if Akiba had heard it in heaven. To conclude, with Jellinek and Steinsehneider (compare "B. H." iii. 17. No. 2, and "Hebr. Bibl." xiv. 7), from the quotations which are found in the medieval literature but which arc not in the printed editions anything more than that the " Alphabets of R. Akiba" are incomplete to theextent suggested here, would be premature until all the manuscripts have been published. Hrief relirence may again be made to the views of Znii/. and Graetz regarding the origin of the theo.sopliiial speculation contained in the apocalypsi-s which have been discussed thus far. If both" hold Islam responsible for the theosophy in these NeoHebrew apocalypses, because similar vagaries and stretches of imagination are found in its literature (see Ziuiz, "G. V." p. 171, and especially in "Monatsschrift," viii. 11.') ,t k,(/.). the reply may k- nnide that, as Steinsehneider well observed iind Nocldeke, the foremost Arabist of the present time, corrobonited him later .lewish lilemlurehad the widest and deepest inlluenceon the formation and development of the views and teachings of Islam (see " Hebr. Bibl." iv. ('J,I mij. "GiMliuger (Jeleiirle Anzeigeu," 18t(2, i)p. 7"iO it iK-r/.). From the presence of mystical speculations about the i-^M'iue and beini; of God, etc., in the Andiic lileniluie. similar to those in the NeoHebrew. it is ipiiie impossible to conclude that they found their way from (he former into the latter; rather would the opposite conclusion be

—

—

6.)

Apocalyptic Liiterature

—

—



jusiitied.

The Hebrew Elijah Apocalypse

7.

apocalypse. i,T7X

ied appeared

lir^t

in



This

Saloidca

1743, printed in tlie same volume with severjil pieces, and was reprinted by Jellinek in " H. H " iii. O.Vtls A critical edition, iicconling to a

in

other

Munich manuscript, with translation, explanatory and an attempt to ascertain the date of ciimposition, was published bv Mo.ses Butteuwie.ser notes,

("Die Hebrillsrhe

EliiLs-Apoi-alypse." etc.). The essay was that in this book neces.sury to distinguish between the original

ii'sidt it

is

arrived at

in this