Joy, Waterskin, and Students of Jesus: Talmudic Wordplay on the Names of Heretics (Sukkah 48b; Sanhedrin 43a)
Sason, Simḥa, and the Waterskin; The Trial of Names: the Trial of Jesus's Disciples
Outline
The Heretics Sason and Simḥa (Sukkah 48b)
A humorous exchange Between the Heretics Sason and Simḥa: Scriptural Supremacy and Comic Rivalry
R’ Abbahu's Sharp Retort to Heretical Mockery: The Case of 'With Sason'
The Trial of Jesus's Five Disciples (=Apostles): A Narrative of Names, Scriptural Wordplay, and Verdicts (Sanhedrin 43a)
Mattai (=Matthew)
Nakai
Netzer
Buni
Toda (=Thaddeus)
Turning Into a Waterskin: The Heretics Sason and Simḥa (Sukkah 48b)
A humorous exchange Between the Heretics Sason and Simḥa: Scriptural Supremacy and Comic Rivalry
The Talmud relates an amusing exchange between two individuals1 named Sason and Simḥa. They argue over who is superior, using references to their names in biblical verses.
Sason claims to be greater because Isaiah 35:10 places "joy [sason]" before "happiness [simḥa]."
Simḥa counters, citing Esther 8:17, where "happiness [simḥa]" precedes "joy [sason]."
Each then predicts the other's future downfall, in the messianic era: Sason argues Simḥa will be demoted to a mere messenger (Isaiah 55:12), while Simḥa retorts that Sason will one day be used to draw water (Isaiah 12:3).2
הנהו תרי מיני, חד שמיה ששון וחד שמיה שמחה.
אמר ליה ששון לשמחה: אנא עדיפנא מינך, דכתיב: ״ששון ושמחה ישיגו וגו׳״.
אמר ליה שמחה לששון: אנא עדיפנא מינך, דכתיב: ״שמחה וששון ליהודים״.
אמר ליה ששון לשמחה: חד יומא שבקוך ושויוך פרוונקא, דכתיב: ״כי בשמחה תצאו״.
אמר ליה שמחה לששון: חד יומא שבקוך ומלו בך מיא, דכתיב: ״ושאבתם מים בששון״.
Apropos this verse, the Gemara relates: There were these two heretics, one named Sason and one named Simḥa.
Sason said to Simḥa: I am superior to you, as it is written: “They shall obtain joy [sason] and happiness [simḥa], and sorrow and sighing shall flee” (Isaiah 35:10). The verse mentions joy first.
Simḥa said to Sason, On the contrary, I am superior to you, as it is written: “There was happiness [simḥa] and joy [sason] for the Jews” (Esther 8:17).
Sason said to Simḥa: One day they will dismiss you and render you a messenger [parvanka], as it is written: “For you shall go out with happiness [simḥa]” (Isaiah 55:12).
Simḥa said to Sason: One day they will dismiss you and draw water with you, as it is written: “With joy [sason] you shall draw water.”
R’ Abbahu's Sharp Retort to Heretical Mockery: The Case of 'With Sason'
The Talmud recounts a similar dialogue between R' Abbahu and a heretic named Sason.
The heretic (a Christian?) stated that you (plural; i.e. you Jews) will draw water for me in the the future messianic era, citing the verse: “With ‘sason’ you shall draw water.”
R' Abbahu countered, arguing that the verse does not imply servitude but rather that Sason himself will become a waterskin used to draw water (taunting the heretic).
אמר ליה ההוא מינא, דשמיה ששון, לרבי אבהו:
עתידיתו דתמלו לי מים לעלמא דאתי,
דכתיב: ״ושאבתם מים בששון״,
אמר ליה:
אי הוה כתיב ״לששון״ — כדקאמרת,
השתא דכתיב ״בששון״ —
משכיה דההוא גברא משוינן ליה גודא, ומלינן ביה מיא.
The Gemara relates a similar incident: A certain heretic named Sason said to R' Abbahu:
You are all destined to draw water for me in the World-to-Come,
as it is written: “With sason you shall draw water.”
R' Abbahu said to him:
If it had been written: For sason, it would have been as you say;
now that it is written: With sason,
it means that the skin of that man, you, will be rendered a wineskin, and we will draw water with it.
The Trial of Jesus's Five Disciples (=Apostles): A Narrative of Names, Scriptural Wordplay, and Verdicts (Sanhedrin 43a)
A baraita recounts a narrative about the trial and execution of Jesus's five disciples:3 Mattai, Nakai, Netzer, Buni, and Toda.4
Each disciple presents a biblical verse playing on their name, arguing for their innocence. The judges, however, counter each argument with another verse playing on their name that supports their execution.5
ת"ר
חמשה תלמידים היו לו לישו:
מתאי
נקאי
נצר
ובוני
ותודה
Apropos the trial of Jesus, the Gemara cites another baraita, where the Sages taught:
Jesus the Nazarene had five disciples:
Mattai,
Nakai,
Netzer,
Buni,
and Toda.
Mattai (=Matthew)
Mattai6 cites Psalms 42:3 to argue for his righteousness, but the judges counter with Psalms 41:6, implying his death.
אתיוהו למתי
אמר להו:
מתי יהרג?!
הכתיב (תהלים מב, ג): "מתי אבוא ואראה פני אלהים"
אמרו לו:
אין, מתי יהרג
דכתיב (שם מא, ו): "מתי ימות ואבד שמו"
They brought Mattai in to stand trial.
Mattai said to the judges:
Shall Mattai be executed?!
But isn’t it written: “When [matai] shall I come and appear before God?” (Psalms 42:3). Mattai claimed that this verse alludes to the fact he is righteous.
They said to him:
Yes, Mattai shall be executed,
as it is written: “When [matai] shall he die, and his name perish?” (Psalms 41:6).
Nakai
Nakai (נקאי) references Exodus 23:7, which forbids killing the innocent (נקי), but the judges cite Psalms 10:8, where the innocent are slain.
אתיוהו לנקאי
אמר להו:
נקאי יהרג?!
הכתיב (שמות כג, ז): "ונקי וצדיק אל תהרוג"
אמרו לו:
אין, נקאי יהרג
דכתיב (תהלים י, ח): "במסתרים יהרג נקי"
Then they brought Nakai in to stand trial.
Nakai said to the judges:
Shall Nakai be executed?!
But isn’t it written: “And the innocent [naki] and righteous you shall not slay” (Exodus 23:7)?
They said to him:
Yes, Nakai shall be executed,
as it is written: “In secret places he kills the innocent [naki]” (Psalms 10:8).
Netzer
Netzer (נצר) quotes Isaiah 11:1, associating himself with a branch of growth, but the judges counter with Isaiah 14:19, describing an abhorred branch.
אתיוהו לנצר
אמר:
נצר יהרג?!
הכתיב (ישעיה יא, א): "ונצר משרשיו יפרה"
אמרו לו:
אין, נצר יהרג
דכתיב (שם יד, יט): "ואתה השלכת מקברך כנצר נתעב"
Then they brought Netzer in to stand trial.
He said to the judges:
Shall Netzer be executed?!
But isn’t it written: “And a branch [netzer] shall grow out of his roots” (Isaiah 11:1)?
They said to him:
Yes, Netzer shall be executed,
as it is written: “But you are cast out of your grave like an abhorred branch [netzer]” (Isaiah 14:19).
Buni
Buni (בוני) invokes Exodus 4:22, identifying himself with Israel as God’s firstborn (בני, בכורי), but the judges use Exodus 4:23, threatening the death of a firstborn.
אתיוהו לבוני
אמר:
בוני יהרג?!
הכתיב (שמות ד, כב): "בני בכורי ישראל"
אמרו לי':
אין, בוני יהרג
דכתיב (שם, כג): "הנה אנכי הורג את בנך בכורך"
Then they brought Buni in to stand trial.
Buni said to the judges:
Shall Buni be executed?!
But isn’t it written: “My firstborn son [beni] is Israel” (Exodus 4:22)?
They said to him:
Yes, Buni shall be executed,
as it is written: “Behold, I shall kill your firstborn son [binkha]” (Exodus 4:23).
Toda (=Thaddeus)
Toda7 appeals to Psalms 100:1, which praises thanksgiving, but the judges respond with Psalms 50:23, associating a thanksgiving offering with honor yet permitting sacrifice.
אתיוהו לתודה
אמר:
תודה יהרג?!
הכתיב (תהלים ק, א): "מזמור לתודה"
אמרו לו:
אין, תודה יהרג
דכתיב (שם נ, כג): "זובח תודה יכבדנני"
Then they brought Toda in to stand trial.
Toda said to the judges:
Shall Toda be executed?!
But isn’t it written: “A psalm of thanksgiving [toda]” (Psalms 100:1)?
They said to him:
Yes, Toda shall be executed,
as it is written: “Whoever slaughters a thanks-offering [toda] honors Me” (Psalms 50:23).
Ostensibly heretics - מיני. However, it is likely that the story is apocryphal, and the individuals in the story are labeled by the Talmud as heretics simply due to the negative elements within the narrative.
Compare the five riddles of complex incestous family relationships in Yevamot.97b.1-6. In each case, the resolution consistently attributes the negative behavior (incest) to a non-Jew (גוי) rather than a general individual. This choice reflects the Talmud's inclination, as noted by Steinsaltz, to avoid suggesting that a Jew might engage in such conduct: "The Gemara refers to a gentile because it does not wish to entertain the idea that a Jew would act in such a manner."
תלמידים. On Jesus’ disciples, compare apostles:
In Christian theology and ecclesiology, the apostles, particularly the Twelve Apostles (also known as the Twelve Disciples or simply the Twelve), were the primary disciples of Jesus according to the New Testament. During the life and ministry of Jesus in the 1st century AD, the apostles were his closest followers and became the primary teachers of the gospel message of Jesus. There is also an Eastern Christian tradition derived from the Gospel of Luke that there were seventy apostles during the time of Jesus' ministry […]
The term apostle comes from the Greek apóstolos (ἀπόστολος) – formed from the prefix apó- (ἀπό-, 'from') and root stéllō (στέλλω, 'I send, I depart') – originally meaning 'messenger, envoy'. It has, however, a stronger sense than the word messenger, and is closer to a 'delegate'.
On Jesus in the Talmud, see at length Hebrew Wikipedia, ישו (יהדות), and the bibliography cited there.
All five follow the same pattern:
They brought X in to stand trial.
X said to the judges:
Shall X be executed?! (Referring to himself in the third-person, see my note in my piece here on illeism)
But isn’t it written: “Y”?! (Y being a bible verse playing on his name, that would indicate innocence)
They said to him: Yes, X shall be executed, as it is written: “Z” (Z being a different bible verse playing on his name, that would indicate guilt).
For another series of disputes with “heretics” based on Biblical verses, see my recent series, “Defending God, Biblical Monotheism, and Jewish Distinctiveness: Twelve Dialogues Between Sages and Challengers in the Talmud (Sanhedrin 38b-39a)“ final part here.
It’s a apropos that many of the verses in our sugya are from the biblical books of Exodus, Isaiah, and Psalms; these “New Testament” books were especially popular among Christians.
On the many names of commoners here, compare my pieces at my Academia page:
“Figures on the Fringes: Named Non-rabbis in the Talmudic Literature“
“Talmud Personal Names Extracted From Steinzaltz Translation“ (recently revised and updated)