Pt1 Singing Cows, Stopped Sun, and the Book of Yashar: Talmudic Readings of Biblical Narratives in Samuel and Joshua (Avodah Zarah 24a-25a)

This is the first part of a three-part series. The outline of the series is below.

Part 1

This sugya moves through several distinct but connected discussions, beginning with a halakhic dispute about animals acquired from non-Jews and eventually developing into a long series of biblical interpretations concerning the Ark, the miraculous stopping of the sun for Joshua (in Joshua 10:12-14), and the identity of the “Book of Yashar.” The discussion is held together by close readings of biblical narratives, especially passages in Samuel and Joshua, and by repeated attempts to reconcile those narratives with rabbinic legal principles.

The opening section continues a dispute concerning whether animals obtained from non-Jews may be used as sacrifices. R’ Eliezer disqualifies such animals because of the possibility that they had been used for bestiality. This produces an obvious tension with biblical passages in which animals associated with non-Jews appear to be accepted as sacrifices. The Talmud accordingly tests R’ Eliezer’s position against a series of cases.

The first challenge comes from Isaiah’s prophecy that “the flocks of Kedar” and “the rams of Nebaioth” will one day ascend God’s altar. R’ Eliezer answers that in the messianic future the nations will all convert to Judaism. Rav Yosef supports this from Zephaniah’s prediction that God will give the peoples a “pure language” so that they may serve Him together. Abaye suggests that the verse might refer only to abandonment of idolatry, but Rav Yosef understands “to serve Him with one consent” as implying broader acceptance of the biblical commandments.

The Talmud then turns from prophecy to biblical precedent. Moses demanded sacrificial animals from Pharaoh; Moses’ father-in-law Yitro brought sacrifices; Saul claimed that Israel had preserved Amalekite livestock in order to sacrifice it; Araunah offered David cattle for burnt-offerings; and the cows that carried the Ark back from Philistine territory were themselves offered to God. Each case seems to show that animals belonging to non-Jews could be used for sacrifice.

The answers are case-specific. Pharaoh’s animals belonged to the period before the giving of the Torah. Yitro’s offerings can similarly be placed before Sinai; according to the opinion that Yitro arrived afterward, the Talmud proposes that he bought the animals from Jews. Saul’s statement is reinterpreted monetarily: the Amalekite animals themselves were to be sold, with their value then used to purchase sacrificial animals. Araunah is classified by Rav Nahman as a ger toshav, and therefore as someone who observed the Noahide prohibition against bestiality.

Part 2

The episode of the Philistine cows is more difficult. After the Ark was returned to Israel, the cows that had pulled its cart were offered as burnt-offerings. The Talmud initially treats this as a hora’at sha’ah, an exceptional temporary ruling that cannot establish ordinary sacrificial law.¹ The fact that the animals were female appears to reinforce this conclusion, since burnt-offerings are ordinarily male. That argument is qualified by Rav Adda bar Ahava’s rule that a female burnt-offering may be brought on a private altar (במה - bamah), supported by the description of Samuel’s sacrificial lamb in I Samuel 7.

R’ Yohanan offers a different way of preserving the general rule concerning animals owned by non-Jews: According to him, female animals under 3 years old become infertile if sexually penetrated, and their owners therefore refrain from bestiality with them. Such animals can consequently be presumed unaffected by the concern underlying R’ Eliezer’s ruling. R’ Yohanan applies this distinction to the earlier biblical cases.

The Philistine cows, however, defeat this explanation. I Samuel explicitly describes them as nursing cows whose calves were confined at home. A baraita assumes that cattle younger than 3 have not yet given birth. The cows therefore had to be at least 3 years old, precisely the age at which R’ Yohanan’s presumption no longer works. The Talmud accordingly returns to its original conclusion: their sacrifice was an exceptional ruling.

From this point the sugya shifts from sacrificial law into aggadic interpretation of the same biblical episode. The verse states that the cows “went straight” toward Beit Shemesh. R’ Yohanan, citing R’ Meir, reads the verb yisharna through the word shira, “song”: the cows sang as they traveled. Rav Zutra bar Toviyya, citing Rav, adds that they turned their faces toward the Ark and sang.

The Talmud then records a series of opinions identifying their song. R’ Meir identifies it with the Song at the Sea in Exodus 15. R’ Yohanan proposes Isaiah 12, beginning “Give thanks to YHWH, proclaim His name.” R’ Shimon ben Lakish assigns them Psalm 98, R’ Elazar Psalm 99, and R’ Shmuel bar Nahmani Psalm 93. These texts share themes of divine kingship, miraculous salvation, praise, and God’s manifestation before the nations.

R’ Yitzhak Nappaha gives a markedly different answer. The cows sang an otherwise non-biblical hymn addressed to the Ark itself: “Sing, sing, acacia,” followed by praise of its acacia wood, gold covering, and the Torah contained within it. Rav Ashi preserves another version in which this hymn was not sung by the Philistine cows at all, but by Israel whenever the Ark set out during the wilderness journey. The same poem is thus attached in different traditions to two biblical scenes involving the movement of the Ark.

Part 3

The wording of this poem then generates two brief linguistic discussions. The term devir, used in the hymn for a “book,” is connected by Rav with the biblical city Debir, formerly called Kiriath Sefer. Rav presents this as an explanation for a Persian word for book. Rav Ashi similarly connects the Persian term for a menstruating woman (dashtana) with Rachel’s statement in Genesis, “the way of women is upon me.” These comments reflect the Talmud’s broader practice of explaining even foreign vocabulary by means of biblical Hebrew.

The next major unit begins with Joshua 10 and the miraculous suspension of the sun during Joshua’s battle against the Amorite coalition. The biblical verse says that this event is written in the “Book of Yashar.” R’ Hiyya bar Abba, citing R’ Yohanan, identifies this book with Genesis, understood as the book of the biblical Patriarchs, who are called yesharim, “upright ones,” in Balaam’s words, “Let me die the death of the upright.”

This identification requires the Talmud to locate Joshua’s miracle somewhere in Genesis. It finds the allusion in Jacob’s blessing of Ephraim: “his seed shall become a multitude of nations.” Since Joshua descended from Ephraim, the phrase is interpreted as anticipating the moment when Joshua’s fame would fill the nations because the sun stood still for him.

The sugya then attempts to quantify the miracle. R’ Yehoshua ben Levi calculates a total period of 24 hours, divided into alternating 6-hour periods of solar movement and suspension. R’ Elazar gives a total of 36 hours, with two 12-hour suspensions. R’ Shmuel bar Nahmani gives 48 hours, including a final suspension lasting an entire 24-hour day. These calculations derive from an extremely literal reading of Joshua’s description that the sun “stood still” and “did not hasten to go down for an entire day.” The miraculous event is therefore converted into a chronological problem whose competing solutions depend on how the clauses of the verse are distributed.

The “Book of Yashar” problem then reappears in connection with David’s lament for Saul and Jonathan. II Samuel 1 says that David ordered the people to teach the sons of Judah “the bow,” adding that the matter was written in the Book of Yashar. Once again, the Talmud asks what biblical book this title designates and where that book contains an allusion to Judah’s archery.

R’ Yohanan again identifies the Book of Yashar with Genesis. The relevant allusion is Jacob’s blessing of Judah: “your hand shall be on the nape of your enemies.” The physical position of the hand opposite the back of the neck is understood as a description of drawing a bow.

R’ Elazar instead identifies the Book of Yashar with Deuteronomy, because Deuteronomy commands Israel to do “what is right and good” in God’s eyes. Judah’s archery is then found in Moses’ blessing, “his hands shall contend for him.” Since archery requires both hands, the verse can be read as an allusion to the bow.

R’ Shmuel bar Nahmani identifies the Book of Yashar with Judges, based on the repeated description of that period as one in which each person did “what was right in his own eyes.” Judges also states that later generations of Israelites were left in contact with hostile peoples “to teach them war.” The Talmud identifies the warfare requiring special instruction as archery. Judah is connected to this passage through the opening of Judges, where Judah is chosen to lead Israel’s campaign against the Canaanites.

The three interpretations therefore use the same basic method. First, each rabbi identifies a canonical biblical book that can plausibly be called “Yashar“ on lexical grounds. Second, he searches that book for a verse that can be read as anticipating the event mentioned in Samuel. The obscure external citation “Book of Yashar” is thereby absorbed into the biblical canon itself: Genesis, Deuteronomy, or Judges can each function as the otherwise unidentified work.

The sugya ends with another close reading of Samuel, this time concerning the meal served to Saul before his public emergence as king. The cook places before him “the thigh and that which was upon it.” R’ Yohanan identifies the accompanying portion as the tail, which rests against the thigh. R’ Elazar identifies it as the breast, which is placed on the thigh during the sacrificial waving procedure. R’ Shmuel bar Nahmani identifies it as the shofi, the upper section of the leg located physically above the thigh.

Across these sections, the sugya repeatedly moves from legal problems into biblical philology and aggadah. A rule about the sacrificial eligibility of animals obtained from non-Jews produces a catalogue of biblical counterexamples. One of those counterexamples, the return of the Ark by the Philistines, becomes the basis for traditions about singing cows and the Ark’s hymn. A linguistic detail in that hymn leads to Persian vocabulary, while another biblical citation opens a long discussion of Joshua’s stopped sun and the identity of the Book of Yashar. The resulting sugya is organized less around a single substantive topic than around a sequence of biblical verses, each becoming the starting point for legal reconciliation, lexical analysis, chronological calculation, or midrashic reconstruction.

Outline

Intro

The Passage

1. R’ Ami / R’ Yitzḥak Nappaḥa - R’ Eliezer disqualifies all animals obtained from non-Jews for sacrifice (because of concern that they may have been used for bestiality)

2. R’ Eliezer’s colleagues challenge R’ Eliezer: Scripture states that in the messianic future, the flocks of Kedar and rams of Nebaioth will be accepted on God’s altar - Isaiah 60:7

3. R’ Eliezer’s response - In the messianic future, the non-Jews will convert to Judaism (so their animals will no longer be subject to this suspicion)

4. Rav Yosef - The conversion of the nations in the messianic future is indicated by the prophecy that God will give the peoples a pure language so that they all call on His name - Zephaniah 3:9

   1. Abaye questions - The verse might mean only that the nations will abandon idolatry

   2. Rav Yosef’s response - “To serve Him with one consent” implies fuller acceptance of God’s commandments, not merely abandonment of idolatry

5. Question from Moses’ request that Pharaoh supply sacrifices - Exodus 10:25

   1. This does not disprove R’ Eliezer, because this occurred before the giving of the Torah

6. Question from Yitro’s sacrifices - Exodus 18:12

   1. This likewise poses no difficulty if his arrival preceded Sinai

   2. According to the view that he came afterward, he must have purchased the animals from Jews

7. Question from Saul’s claim that the best Amalekite livestock was spared for sacrifice - I Samuel 15:15

   1. It means that their monetary value would be used to purchase sacrificial animals

Part 2

1. Question from Araunah’s animals being accepted by David for sacrifice - II Samuel 24:22

2. Rav Naḥman - Araunah’s animals could be accepted because Araunah was a ger toshav, who observed the Noahide prohibition against bestiality

3. Ulla - The biblical morigim were serrated threshing boards - II Samuel 24:22

4. Rav Yosef - The verse in Isaiah validates the fact that morag means a toothed threshing implement - Isaiah 41:15

5. Question from the sacrifice of the Philistines’ cows after the Ark’s return - I Samuel 6:14

   1. That was an exceptional temporary ruling, not ordinary law

6. Rav Adda bar Ahava - A female burnt-offering is permitted on a private altar, as Samuel sacrificed a nursing lamb - I Samuel 7:9

7. Rav Naḥman bar Yitzḥak - Although the word describing Samuel’s sacrifice is read as grammatical masculine, it is written in a grammatical feminine form (supporting the permissibility of a female burnt-offering on a private altar) - I Samuel 7:9

8. R’ Yoḥanan - A female animal under 3 years old becomes barren when sexually penetrated, while one aged 3 or older does not (therefore non-Jews refrain from bestiality with younger animals)

9. Rav Huna b. Natan - Rejects R’ Yoḥanan’s explanation: the Philistine cows had calves, yet cows under 3 years old cannot have given birth - I Samuel 6:10

10. Baraita - A cow or donkey purchased before age 3 is certainly assumed not to have previously given birth; after age 3, that is uncertain

11. R’ Yoḥanan citing R’ Meir - “yisharna” means that the Philistine cows sang a song - I Samuel 6:12

12. Rav Zutra bar Toviyya citing Rav - “yisharna” means that the cows turned their faces toward the Ark and sang - I Samuel 6:12

13. R’ Yoḥanan citing R’ Meir - The cows sang the Song at the Sea - Exodus 15:1

14. R’ Yoḥanan - The cows sang Isaiah’s hymn beginning “Give thanks to YHWH, proclaim His name” - Isaiah 12:4

15. R’ Shimon ben Lakish - The cows sang Psalm 98

16. R’ Elazar - The cows sang Psalm 99

17. R’ Shmuel bar Naḥmani - The cows sang Psalm 93

18. R’ Yitzḥak Nappaḥa - The cows sang a non-biblical hymn praising the Ark as acacia wood adorned with gold and containing the Torah

19. Rav Ashi’s Alternative version of R’ Yitzḥak’s statement - hymn was sung by Israel when the Ark set out in the wilderness - Numbers 10:35

Part 3

1. Rav - The Persian use of devir for “book” is associated with Debir’s earlier name, Kiriath Sefer - Judges 1:11

2. Rav Ashi - The Persian term for a menstruating woman, dashtana, is connected with the biblical phrase “the way of women” - Genesis 31:35

3. R’ Ḥiyya bar Abba citing R’ Yoḥanan - The “Book of Yashar” in Joshua is Genesis, the book of the Patriarchs, who are called yesharim - Joshua 10:13; Numbers 23:10

   1. Joshua’s stopping of the sun is alluded to in Jacob’s blessing of Ephraim, whose descendants would become “a multitude of nations” - Genesis 48:19; Joshua 10:13

4. R’ Yehoshua ben Levi - Joshua’s extended day lasted 24 hours in total: alternating 6 hours of movement and 6 hours of standing - Joshua 10:13

5. R’ Elazar - Joshua’s extended day lasted 36 hours in total: two 6-hour periods of movement and two 12-hour periods of standing - Joshua 10:13

6. R’ Shmuel bar Naḥmani - Joshua’s extended day lasted 48 hours in total, including a final 24-hour suspension

   1. Prooftext - Joshua 10:13

7. R’ Ḥiyya bar Abba citing R’ Yoḥanan - The “Book of Yashar” in David’s lament is Genesis, the book of the Patriarchs - II Samuel 1:18; Numbers 23:10

   1. Genesis alludes to Judah’s skill with the bow through Jacob’s blessing, “your hand shall be on the nape of your enemies” - Genesis 49:8

8. R’ Elazar - The “Book of Yashar” is Deuteronomy, called so because it commands doing what is “right and good” - Deuteronomy 6:18

   1. Judah’s use of the bow is alluded to in “his hands shall contend for him,” since drawing a bow requires both hands - Deuteronomy 33:7

9. R’ Shmuel bar Naḥmani - The “Book of Yashar” is Judges, whose period is described as one in which everyone did what was “right” in his own eyes - Judges 17:6

   1. The command to teach later generations warfare refers to archery; its connection to Judah follows from Judah being chosen to lead the war against the Canaanites - Judges 3:2, 1:1–2

10. R’ Yoḥanan - The portion placed before Saul was the thigh together with the tail, which rests against it - I Samuel 9:24

11. R’ Elazar - The portion was the thigh together with the breast, which is placed on the thigh for sacrificial waving

12. R’ Shmuel bar Naḥmani - The portion was the thigh together with the shofi, the upper part of the leg situated above the thigh

Appendix - Comparative Biblical and Scientific Context

The Passage

Avodah_Zarah/24a#14 thru 25a#17

R’ Ami / R’ Yitzḥak Nappaḥa - R’ Eliezer disqualifies all animals obtained from non-Jews for sacrifice (because of concern that they may have been used for bestiality)

יתיב

• רבי אמי

• ורבי יצחק נפחא

אקלעא דרבי יצחק נפחא,

פתח חד מינייהו ואמר:

וכן היה רבי אליעזר פוסל בכל הקרבנות כולן.

§ The Talmud relates:

• R’ Ami

• and R’ Yitzḥak Nappaḥa

were sitting on R’ Yitzḥak Nappaḥa’s porch.

One of them began and said that the baraita teaches:

And, similarly, R’ Eliezer would disqualify all offerings purchased from non-Jews,

due to the concern that a person had engaged in bestiality with the animals.

R’ Eliezer’s colleagues challenge R’ Eliezer: Scripture states that in the messianic future, the flocks of Kedar and rams of Nebaioth will be accepted on God’s altar - Isaiah 60:7

פתח אידך מינייהו ואמר:

מאי אותיבו ליה חברוהי לרבי אליעזר?

The other one of them began and said:

What did R’ Eliezer’s colleagues respond to him?

״כל צאן קדר יקבצו לך וגו׳״

They quoted the verse:

“All flocks of Kedar shall be gathered together unto you,

the rams of Nebaioth shall minister unto you;

they shall come up with acceptance upon My altar” (Isaiah 60:7).

This verse clearly indicates that offerings will be accepted from non-Jews in the messianic future.

R’ Eliezer’s response - In the messianic future, the non-Jews will convert to Judaism (so their animals will no longer be subject to this suspicion)

אמר להן רבי אליעזר:

כולם גרים גרורים הם לעתיד לבא.

R’ Eliezer said to them:

In the messianic future all non-Jews will convert² to Judaism,

and as Jews, they will not be suspected of engaging in bestiality.

Rav Yosef - The conversion of the nations in the messianic future is indicated by the prophecy that God will give the peoples a pure language so that they all call on His name - Zephaniah 3:9

אמר רב יוסף:

מאי קרא?

״כי אז אהפך אל עמים שפה ברורה וגו׳״.

Rav Yosef said:

What is the verse from which it is derived that they will convert in the messianic future?

The verse states: “For then will I turn to the peoples a pure language,

that they may all call upon the name of YHWH, to serve Him with one consent” (Zephaniah 3:9).

This verse indicates that all nations will worship God in the messianic future.

Abaye questions - The verse might mean only that the nations will abandon idolatry - Zephaniah 3:9

אמר ליה אביי:

ודלמא מעבודה זרה הוא דהדור בהו?

Abaye said to him:

But perhaps it is only from idol worship that they will withdraw,

while they will still engage in forbidden sex, including bestiality?

Rav Yosef’s response - “To serve Him with one consent” (which implies fuller acceptance of God’s commandments, not merely abandonment of idolatry) - Zephaniah 3:9

אמר ליה רב יוסף:

״לעבדו שכם אחד״ כתיב.

[...]

Rav Yosef said to him:

That cannot be, as it is written at the conclusion of the verse: “To serve Him with one consent,”

which indicates that the non-Jews will accept all of God’s mitzvot.

[...]

Question from Moses’ demand that Pharaoh supply sacrifices - Exodus 10:25

מיתיבי:

״ויאמר משה:

גם אתה תתן בידנו זבחים ועלת״

§ The Talmud cites a series of verses which present difficulties with regard to the claim that animals purchased from non-Jews may not be used as offerings.

The Talmud raises an objection from the following verse:

“And Moses said:

You must also give into our hand offerings and burnt-offerings

that we may sacrifice unto YHWH our God” (Exodus 10:25).

Moses demanded that Pharaoh provide the Jews with offerings, despite the fact that he was a non-Jew.

This does not disprove R’ Eliezer, because this occurred before the giving of the Torah

קודם מתן תורה שאני.

The Talmud explains: The halakha prior to the giving of the Torah at Sinai was different,

as at that time it was acceptable to use animals taken from non-Jews as offerings.

Question from Yitro’s sacrifices - Exodus 18:12

תא שמע:

״ויקח יתרו חתן משה

עלה וזבחים לאלהים״

The Talmud raises another objection:

Come and hear a proof from the verse:

“And Yitro, Moses’ father-in-law,

took a burnt-offering and offerings for God” (Exodus 18:12).

Yitro was not a Jew, and yet he brought offerings for God.

This likewise poses no difficulty if his arrival preceded Sinai

יתרו נמי קודם מתן תורה הוה.

The Talmud answers:

The incident with Yitro was also prior to the giving of the Torah.

according to the view that he came afterward, he must have purchased the animals from Jews

• הניחא למאן דאמר:

  • יתרו קודם מתן תורה הוה,

• אלא למאן דאמר:

  • יתרו לאחר מתן תורה הוה,

מאי איכא למימר?

The Talmud observes:

• Granted, this works out well according to the one who says that

  • the incident with Yitro was prior to the giving of the Torah.

• But according to the one who says that

  • the incident involving Yitro was after the giving of the Torah,

what is there to say?

How could they accept offerings from him?

אלא,

יתרו מישראל זבן.

Rather,

it must be that Yitro purchased the animals from a Jew.

Question from Saul’s claim that the best Amalekite livestock was spared for sacrifice - I Samuel 15:15

תא שמע:

״ויאמר שאול:

מעמלקי הביאום

אשר חמל העם על מיטב הצאן והבקר

(המשנים והכרים ועל כל הצאן)

למען זבח לה׳ אלהיך״

The Talmud further states:

Come and hear another objection from a verse:

“And Saul said:

They have brought them from the Amalekites;

for the people spared the best of the flock and of the herd,

to sacrifice unto YHWH your God” (I Samuel 15:15).

The verse states explicitly that the Israelites intended to sacrifice animals previously owned by non-Jews.

It means that their monetary value would be used to purchase sacrificial animals

מאי ״מיטב״?

דמי מיטב.

The Talmud explains: What is the meaning of the phrase: “The best”?

This is referring to the monetary value of the best livestock.

The intention was not to sacrifice the animals themselves, but to sell them and use the proceeds of the sale to purchase other animals to sacrifice as offerings.

ומאי שנא מיטב?

The Talmud inquires: And what is different about the best animals?

If the animals were sold for their value, why sell those animals in particular, rather than several inferior-quality animals?

כי היכי דליקפץ עליהו זבינא.

The Talmud explains that they did so in order that buyers would jump at the opportunity to buy superior-quality livestock.

In other words, it is easier to sell one superior-quality animal than several inferior-quality ones.

1. On this concept in general, see Hebrew Wikipedia, “הוראת שעה (הלכה)”, and see my two-part series, “Talmudic Justifications for Biblical Stories that Contradict Halacha: Hora’at Sha’ah and Et La’asot”, final part: Pt2.

2. גרים גרורים - Steinsaltz: “i.e., those who converted for personal gain”.