Four Craftsmen, Seven Shepherds, and Eight Princes: Talmudic Identifications of Biblical Messianic Figures in Eschatological Prophecies (Sukkah 52b)

For the Talmud's tendency to identify unnamed biblical figures, refer to my article in my Academia page.

Outline

1. The Biblical “Four Craftsmen” of Redemption in Zechariah 2:3-4: Messiahs, Elijah, and the Righteous High Priest in the End of Days

2. Interpreting the End of Days: Identifying the Seven Shepherds and Eight Princes in Micah 5:4

3. The extraordinary physical strength of young Temple priests

The Passage

Sukkah.52b.11-15

The Biblical “Four Craftsmen” of Redemption in Zechariah 2:3-4: Messiahs, Elijah, and the Righteous High Priest in the End of Days

The Talmud discusses verses from Zechariah 2:3-4 about "four craftsmen (חרשים)" and their role in the end of days:

ויראני יהוה ארבעה חרשים

ואמר: "מה אלה באים לעשות?" 

ויאמר: 

"לאמר, אלה הקרנות אשר־זרו את־יהודה 

כפי־איש לא־נשא ראשו 

ויבאו אלה להחריד אתם 

לידות את־קרנות הגוים 

הנשאים קרן אל־ארץ יהודה לזרותה

Then GOD showed me four smiths (חרשים).

“What are they coming to do?” I asked. 

The angel replied: 

“Those are the horns that tossed Judah, 

so that nobody at all could raise their head; 

and these [smiths] have come to throw them into a panic, 

to hew down the horns of the nations 

that raise a horn against the land of Judah, to toss it.”

Rav Ḥana bar Bizna (רב חנא בר ביזנא), quoting R' Shimon the Ḥasid (רבי שמעון חסידא), explains that these four craftsmen are Messiah ben David,¹ Messiah ben Yosef (משיח בן יוסף), Elijah, and the “righteous priest” (כהן צדק),² who will serve in the Messianic era. 

Rav Sheshet raises an objection, noting that the verse (verse 4) subsequently speaks of "horns that scattered Judea," which suggests the craftsmen are enemies rather than redeemers. 

Rav Ḥana explains, based on the continuation of the verse, that the craftsmen come to frighten and defeat the nations (the "horns") that exiled the Jewish people. 

Rav Sheshet then concedes, acknowledging Rav Ḥana bar Bizna's expertise in aggada.³

״ויראני ה׳ ארבעה חרשים״, 

מאן נינהו ארבעה חרשים? 

אמר רב חנא בר ביזנא, אמר רבי שמעון חסידא: 

1. משיח בן דוד, 

2. ומשיח בן יוסף, 

3. ואליהו, 

4. וכהן צדק. 

מתיב רב ששת: 

אי הכי, היינו דכתיב: 

״ויאמר אלי:

אלה הקרנות אשר זרו את יהודה״, 

הני לשובה אתו!

אמר ליה:

שפיל לסיפיה דקרא: 

״ויבואו אלה להחריד אותם 

לידות את קרנות הגוים 

הנושאים קרן אל ארץ יהודה לזרותה וגו׳״. 

אמר ליה: בהדי חנא באגדתא למה לי?!

Apropos the end of days, the Gemara cites another verse and interprets it homiletically. It is stated: “The Lord then showed me four craftsmen” (Zechariah 2:3). 

Who are these four craftsmen? 

Rav Ḥana bar Bizna said that R' Shimon Ḥasida said: They are 

1. Messiah ben David, 

2. Messiah ben Yosef, 

3. Elijah, 

4. and the righteous High Priest, who will serve in the Messianic era. 

Rav Sheshet raised an objection:

If so, if that is the identity of the four craftsmen, then that which is written in the previous verse:

“And he said to me:

These are the horns that scattered Judea” (Zechariah 2:4),

is difficult; these four in the first verse are coming for their enemies, and are not redeemers.

Rav Ḥana said to Rav Sheshet:

Go to the end of the verse:

“These then are come to frighten them,

to cast down the horns of the nations,

which lifted up their horn against the land of Judah to scatter it.” This indicates that the horns refer to the nations that exiled the Jewish people and that the four craftsmen will hurl those horns aside. 

Rav Sheshet said to him: Why should I disagree with Rav Ḥana in matters of aggada, where he is more expert than I, and I cannot prevail?!

Interpreting the End of Days: Identifying the Seven Shepherds and Eight Princes in Micah 5:4

The Talmud interprets a verse from Micah 5:4, which describes events at the end of days:

והיה זה שלום אשור  

כי־יבוא בארצנו 

וכי ידרך בארמנותינו 

והקמנו עליו שבעה רעים 

ושמנה נסיכי אדם

And that shall afford safety.

Should Assyria invade our land

And tread upon our fortresses,

We will set up over that nation seven shepherds,

Eight princes of other nations,

The Talmud asks who the "seven shepherds" and "eight princes among men (נסיכי אדם)" mentioned in the verse are. 

The seven shepherds are then identified by the Talmud as the following biblical figures: David in the middle, with Adam, Seth, and Methuselah to his right, and Abraham, Jacob, and Moses to his left (see numbered list below). 

The eight princes among men are the following biblical figures: Yishai, Saul, Samuel, Amos, Zephania, Zedekiah, the Messiah, and Elijah (see numbered list below).

Breakdown in numbered lists, with approximate dates when each lived (all the dates are BCE):

Seven Shepherds (all of them are relatively early biblical figures, from the Pentateuch, besides for David):

1. David - 11th century

2. Adam - 38th century

3. Seth - 37th–28th century

4. Methuselah - 34th–24th century

5. Abraham - 19th century

6. Jacob - 18th century

7. Moses - 14th century

Eight Princes Among Men (all of them are relatively later biblical figures—compared to the previous list—from around David’s time [11th century] and on):

1. Yishai - 11th century

2. Saul - 11th century

3. Samuel - 11th century

4. Amos - 8th century

5. Zephania - 7th century

6. Zedekiah - 6th century

7. Messiah - Future figure

8. Elijah - 9th century

״והיה זה שלום אשור 

כי יבא בארצנו 

וכי ידרוך בארמנותינו 

והקמנו עליו שבעה רועים 

ושמנה נסיכי אדם״. 

מאן נינהו ״שבעה רועים״? 

דוד באמצע, 

1. אדם 

2. שת 

3. ומתושלח 

מימינו, 

1. אברהם 

2. יעקב 

3. ומשה 

בשמאלו. 

ומאן נינהו ״שמנה נסיכי אדם״? 

1. ישי, 

2. ושאול, 

3. ושמואל, 

4. עמוס, 

5. וצפניה, 

6. צדקיה, 

7. ומשיח, 

8. ואליהו.

[...]

The Gemara continues homiletically interpreting verses that relate to the end of days. It is stated: “And this shall be peace: When the Assyrian

shall come into our land,

and when he shall tread in our palaces,

then shall we raise against him seven shepherds,

and eight princes among men” (Micah 5:4).

The Gemara asks: Who are these seven shepherds?

The Gemara explains: David is in the middle;

Adam, Seth, and Methuselah are to his right;

Abraham, Jacob, and Moses are to his left.

And who are the eight princes among men?

They are Yishai, Saul, Samuel, Amos, Zephania, Zedekiah, Messiah, and Elijah.

[...]

The extraordinary physical strength of young Temple priests

The Talmud quotes a baraita that compares the extraordinary physical strength of the young priests who carried the large pitchers of oil to fill the candelabra in the Temple during the Sukkot Simchat Beit HaShoeivah⁴ to that of the son of Marta daughter of Baitos, a priest famous for his might.

It is said that the son of Marta daughter of Baitos could carry two thighs (יריכות) of a huge bull worth one thousand zuz in deliberate steps,⁵ showcasing his strength. 

תנא: 

והן משובחין היו יותר מבנה של מרתא בת בייתוס. 

אמרו על בנה של מרתא בת בייתוס 

שהיה נוטל שתי יריכות של שור הגדול שלקוח באלף זוז, 

ומהלך עקב בצד גודל. 

[...]

One of the Sages taught: 

And these young priests who held the pitchers were superior in strength to the son of Marta, daughter of Baitos, who was a priest renowned for his might.

They said about the son of Marta, daughter of Baitos,

that he would take two thighs of a large bull that was so large that it would be purchased for one thousand zuz,

and walk up the ramp in small steps, heel to toe, without hurrying, due to his strength.

[...]

1. משיח בן דוד - usually referred to simply as “Messiah”.

2. This is the only time that this term appears in the talmudic literature.

The term also appears in Dead Sea Scrolls. Compare the major term used in that corpus: מורה הצדק.

Later, there were at least two geonim with this name (see Hebrew Wikipedia, “כהן צדק“, section “שזה שמם הפרטי“), and it’s the traditional explanation for the Ashkenazi surname Katz (כ”ץ), as an acronym of kohen tzedek.

3. אגדתא - homiletic teachings.

4. Referring to the passage in the Mishnah, quoted in my recent piece, “Pt2 Sukkot in the Second Temple: Rituals of the Lulav, Willow, and Water Drawing Ceremony (Mishnah Sukkah 4:4-5:4)“:

ומנורות של זהב היו שם, 

1. וארבעה ספלים של זהב בראשיהן, 

2. וארבעה סלמות לכל אחד ואחד, 

3. וארבעה ילדים מפרחי כהנה 

ובידיהם כדים של שמן של מאה ועשרים לג, 

שהן מטילין לכל ספל וספל

There were golden candelabra atop poles there in the courtyard.

1. And there were four basins made of gold at the top of each candelabrum.

2. And there were four ladders for each and every pole

3. and there were four children from the priesthood trainees,

and in their hands were pitchers with a capacity of 120 log of oil

that they would pour into each and every basin.

5. עקב בצד גודל - literally: “heel next to big toe”.