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678 Ben Naphtali Ben Sira

THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

678

HDDC

B. A.

ITnri (Ez. xiv. 16), B.

N.

contains his autoepigraph, which unfortunately is incomplete, only "Ben David ben Naphtali" re-

B. N. 1S-IN

maining. Ben Naphtali wrote a Bible with vowels, accents, and Masorah, wherein he differed in some respects

The differences between the two Masorites do not represent solely personal opinions; the two rivals represent different schools. Like the Relation of Ben Ashers there seem to have been The stateseveral Ben Naphtalis. Both. to Received mentof E. Levita ("Mas. ha-Masoret," ed. Ginsburg, p. 144), that the WestText. erns follow Ben Asher, and the Easterns Ben Naphtali, is not without many exceptions. Thus, for instance, in the difference concerning I Kings iii. 20 (see above, No. 7), the Westerns are said to agree with Ben Naphtali, while the Easterns follow Ben Asher. The rule of Ben Naphtali given under No. o is followed in all MSS. and printed edi-

from

contemporary and rival, Aaron b. Moses This Bible codex has not been preserved, but the differences between its author and Ben Asher are found in more or less complete Masoretic lists and in quotations in David Kimhi, Norzi, and other medieval writers. These lists are printed his

Ben Asher.

in the rabbinical Bibles, in the texts of Baer-Delitzsch and of Ginsburg, and in the latter's Masorah, vol. iii. The differences between Ben Naphtali and

Ben Asher number about

which JHO and K'$?3- The remaining ones have reference to C'!H and 'EH. to vowels, accents, and consonantal spelling. The variations may be classified as follows, Ben Asher beiDg referred to as B. A. and Ben Naphtali as B. N. (1) The proper name "Oct;" constitutes the first 875, nine.-tenths of

refer to the placing of the accents

point of difference.

Differences

Between the Two. (" to eat ").

B. A. vocalizes For the B. N. has "I3E>E« reading of B. N. in this case, various sources give different accounts. (2) Certain forms of the verb "Ob According to B. A. wherever a form of it ~;2t't>

,

this verb occurs with a suffix

and the

^ has "segol,"

the 3 has "hatef-patah," except in one instance (Eccl. v. 10); whereas B. N. always points it with simple "sheva." (3) Some forms of the verb tjhj ("to drive away"). Wherever the forms of this verb occur with a suffix and the K» has segol, B. A. points the 1 with

with the exception of intn^l (Ps. where the C> has " sere " while B. N. always points the "i with simple sheva. (4) The " dagesh " in the n in the forms of the word DTI3, when it has two accents. According to B. A., this word has extra dagesh only in two hatef-patah,

xxxiv.

1),



instances (Deut. vi. 11 I Chron. xxviii. 11) according to B. N., there are more instances where it has two accents and has the extra dagesh in the T) viz.,





Ex.

ii.

7, viii. 7;

Deut.

vi. 11;

I Chron. xxviii. 11;

xxxiv. 11. The term "extra dagesh" probably means " dagesh forte, " as both consider the dagesh in the word D'MB, whenever it has only one accent, as a " dagesh lene. (5) The prefixes 3 and p, in words which begin with a ' having the vowel i. To B. A. this prefix takes sheva and the ' retains its vowel. Thus II Chron.

he would vocalize biOfe^, ^80E"3. that the prefix takes the vowel of the

B. N. asserts i

and the

loses its consonantal force; e.g., ?!OE>, b,

a feature analogous

to the

As

also the

guage.

this

is

latter

?X"1E', 3,

usage of the Syriac lan-

method

of the Easterns

(compare Masorah), the statement of E. Levita is confirmed that the Westerns follow B. A. and the Easterns B. N. (6) The presence or absence of the dagesh in the letters DQ31J3 under certain conditions. (7) Individual cases of orthography and textual readings; e.g., B. A. reads nJK" (I Kings iii. 20), B. N. spells nrK>, B. A. reads -)j- (Isa. xxx. 23),



rpnn hodk'-

tions, in the

words

Tni"ij3''3(Ps. xlv. 10)

and T fh

The Masoretic lists often do (Prov. xxx. 17), etc not agree on the precise nature of the differences between the two rival authorities; it is, therefore, impossible to define with exactness their differences and it is probably due to this fact that the received text does not follow uniformly the system of either Ben Asher or Ben Naphtali. The attempt is likewise futile to describe the one codex in every case



Western or Eastern.

as

Bibliography

Bikdulfe lia-Te'amim, ed. Baer and Strack, Harris, Jew. Quart.' Rev. i. 250; Ginsburg, Introduction to Hie Mamretieo-Critical Edition of the Hebrew

p. 11;

Bible, pp. 241 et seq. L. G.

C.'L.

BEN NAZAR. See Odenathus. BEN-ONI (" child of my affliction ") A play upon

the 18,

name "Benjamin." According to Gen. xxxv. it was the name given by the dying Rachel to

her son Benjamin.

See Benjamin.

JR.

J.

G. B. L.

BEN PORATH.

See

Manasseh ben Joseph

op Ilye.

BEN KTD

SIRA,

K1T3) of proverbs ]3T



—

ALPHABET OP A small book

(atbtt -|3D containing a double

twenty-two Aramaic and twentytwo Hebrew alphabetically arranged, and a haggadic commentary on them, enriched with fables list

—

and legends.

Corresponding to their linguistic difference, there are differences in their contents and origin; consequently the two collections must be treated separately. Following is a list of the Ara-

maic proverbs, concerning only four of which nite statements of origin can be made

defi-

1. " Honor the physician before thou hast need of him " (see Ecclus. [Sirach] xxxviii. 1 ; cited also in the rabbinical sources as a genuine saying of Ben Sira; compare Schechter, in "Jewish Quarterly Review," iii. 694, 703).

" If a son do not conduct himself like a son, let him float on This means " deliver him up to his own fate." For another explanation, see Reifmann, in "Ha-Karmel," ii. 2.

the water." 126. 3.

"Gnaw

the bone that falls to thv lot whether

it

be good

or bad." 4. 5.

6.

"Gold must be hammered, and the child must be beaten." " Be good and refuse not thy portion of good." "Wo to the wicked man and wo to his companions."

This proverb is frequently cited in rabbinical literature compare Dukes, "Rabbinische Blumenlese," p. 91. 7. " Cast thy bread upon the waters and upon the land, for thou shalt And it after many days" (Eccl. xi. 1, with the addition of the word Nneoiai, " and upon the land ")