Pt1 Tripartite Aphorisms: From The Men of the Great Assembly to Rabban Gamaliel’s Dynasty (Mishnah Avot 1:1-2:4)

This is the first part of a two-part series.¹ The outline of the series is below.

List of all the named individuals mentioned in the chapter, in order of appearance

Part 1

1. Moses (c. 13th century BCE), Joshua, the Elders, the Prophets

2. The Men of the Great Assembly (c. 5th-4th century BCE)

3. Shimon HaTzadik (c. 300 BCE)

4. Antigonus of Socho (c. 2nd century BCE)

Part 2: “Pairs” (‘Zugot’)²

1. Yose ben Yoezer of Zeredah & Yose ben Yohanan of Jerusalem (fl. 170-140 BCE)

2. Yehoshua ben Perahiah & Nittai the Arbelite (fl. 140-100 BCE)

3. Yehuda ben Tabbai & Shimon ben Shetach (fl. 110-80 BCE)

4. Shemaiah & Avtalion (65-31 BCE)

5. Hillel & Shammai (early 1st century CE)

Part 3: Rabban Gamaliel’s Dynasty (Nesi'im / Patriarchate)

1. Rabban Gamaliel (mid-1st century CE)

2. Shimon ben Rabban Gamaliel (fl. 50-70 CE)

3. Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel (=Shimon ben Gamaliel II; fl. 142-165 CE)

4. R’ Yehuda HaNasi (c. early 3rd century CE)

5. Rabban Gamaliel ben R’ Yehuda HaNasi (=Gamaliel III; fl. 220-230 CE)

Outline

List of all the named individuals mentioned in the chapter, in order of appearance

The Passage - Tripartite aphorisms at the Beginning of Tractate Avot, from The Men of the Great Assembly to Rabban Gamaliel’s Dynasty (Mishnah Avot 1:1-2:4)

Part 1

1. The Transmission of Torah from Sinai: Moses, Joshua, The Elders, The Prophets, and Men of the Great Assembly (1:1)

2. Men of the Great Assembly - Be deliberate in judgment; raise many disciples; make a fence for the Torah (1:1)

3. Shimon HaTzadik - The world stands on 3 things: Torah, Temple service, and acts of kindness (1:2)

4. Antigonus of Socho - Serve not for reward; fear Heaven (1:3)

Part 2: “Pairs” (‘Zugot’)

Yose ben Yoezer of Zeredah & Yose ben Yohanan of Jerusalem (1:4)

1. Yose ben Yoezer of Zeredah - Make your home a meeting place for Sages; sit in the dust of their feet; drink their words with thirst (1:4)

2. Yose ben Yohanan of Jerusalem - Keep home open; treat poor as household members; limit talk with women (1:5)

   1. The dangers of conversations with women - he causes evil to himself, he neglects the study of the Torah, and in the end he will inherit Gehinnom

Yehoshua ben Perahiah & Nittai of Arbel (1:6)

1. Yehoshua ben Perahiah - Make a teacher for yourself; acquire a friend; judge others favorably (1:6)

2. Nittai of Arbel - Distance from evil neighbor; avoid wicked people; don't despair of divine retribution (1:7)

Yehuda ben Tabbai & Shimon ben Shetach (1:8)

1. Yehuda ben Tabbai - Judges: don’t be like lawyers; view litigants as guilty before judgment, innocent after (1:8)

2. Shimon ben Shetach - Interrogate witnesses thoroughly; be careful with words (1:9)

Shemaiah & Avtalion (1:10)

1. Shemaiah - Love work; hate authority; avoid rulers (1:10)

2. Avtalion - Sages, be cautious with speech lest disciples err and desecrate God's name (1:11)

Hillel & Shammai (1:12)

1. Hillel

   1. Be like Aaron: love and pursue peace, love people, bring them to Torah (1:12)

   2. One who aggrandizes name, loses it; no growth →decline; not learning →death; improper use of Torah → death (1:13)

   3. If I am not for me, who will be? If I am only for myself, what am I? If not now, when? (1:14)

2. Shammai - Make Torah study fixed; say little, do much; greet everyone kindly (1:15)

Part 3: Rabban Gamaliel’s Dynasty (Patriarchate)

1. Rabban Gamaliel - Appoint a teacher; avoid doubt; don’t tithe by guesswork (1:16)

2. Shimon ben Rabban Gamaliel - silence is best; deed--not study--is primary; excessive speech lead to sin (1:17)

3. Rabban Shimon ben Gamaliel - The world stands on justice, truth, and peace - Zechariah 8:16 (1:18)

4. R’ Yehuda HaNasi (2:1)

   1. Choose the path that brings personal and public honor; weigh mitzvah loss/gain

   2. Remember you are always seen, heard, and recorded (by Heaven/God)

5. Rabban Gamaliel ben R’ Yehuda HaNasi (2:2-3)

   1. Torah + work prevents sin; Torah without work leads to sin; work with the public for Heaven’s sake; their merit helps; God credits you as if you did it all

   2. Aligning Human Will with Divine Will (2:4)

Appendix - More Of Hillel’s Aphorisms (Avot 2:4-7)

1. Ethical and Intellectual Caution (2:4)

2. On Character and the Limits of Learning (2:5)

3. Cycles of Divine Retributive Justice (2:6)

4. “The more [X], the more [Y]” - A List of 9 items (2:7)

The Passage

Avot.1.1-2.2

The Transmission of Torah from Sinai: Moses, Joshua, The Elders, The Prophets, and Men of the Great Assembly (1:1)

משה קבל תורה מסיני,

1. ומסרה ליהושע,

2. ויהושע לזקנים,

3. וזקנים לנביאים,

4. ונביאים מסרוה לאנשי כנסת הגדולה.

Moses received the Torah at Sinai

1. and transmitted it³ [=the Torah] to Joshua,

2. Yehoshua [transmitted it] to the Elders,

3. and the Elders [transmitted it] to the Prophets,

4. and the Prophets transmitted it to the Men of the Great Assembly.

Men of the Great Assembly - Be deliberate in judgment; raise many disciples; make a fence for the Torah (1:1)

הם אמרו שלשה דברים:

1. הוו מתונים בדין,

2. והעמידו תלמידים הרבה,

3. ועשו סיג לתורה

They [=the Men of the Great Assembly] said 3 things:

1. Be patient in [the administration of] justice,

2. raise many disciples

3. and make a fence⁴ round the Torah.

Shimon HaTzadik - The world stands on 3 things: Torah, Temple service, and acts of kindness (1:2)

שמעון הצדיק היה משירי כנסת הגדולה.

הוא היה אומר:

על שלשה דברים העולם עומד:

1. על התורה

2. ועל העבודה

3. ועל גמילות חסדים

Shimon HaTzadik was one of the last of the Men of the Great Assembly.

He used to say:

the world stands upon 3 things:⁵

1. the Torah,

2. the [Temple] service (עבודה),

3. and acts of kindness⁶

Antigonus of Socho - Serve not for reward; fear Heaven (1:3)

אנטיגנוס איש סוכו קבל משמעון הצדיק.

הוא היה אומר:

• אל תהיו כעבדים המשמשין את הרב

  • על מנת לקבל פרס,

• אלא הוו כעבדים המשמשין את הרב

  • שלא על מנת לקבל פרס,

ויהי מורא שמים עליכם

Antigonus a man of Socho received [the oral tradition] from Shimon the Righteous.

He used to say:

• do not be like servants who serve the master (רב)

  • in the expectation of receiving a reward,⁷

• rather be like servants who serve the master

  • without the expectation of receiving a reward,

and let the fear of Heaven⁸ be upon you.

“Pairs” (‘Zugot’)

Yose ben Yoezer of Zeredah & Yose ben Yohanan of Jerusalem (1:4)

1. יוסי בן יועזר איש צרדה

2. ויוסי בן יוחנן איש ירושלים

קבלו מהם.

1. Yose ben Yoezer (a man) of Zeredah

2. and Yose ben Yohanan (a man) of Jerusalem

received [the oral tradition] from them [=Shimon the Righteous and Antigonus].

Yose ben Yoezer of Zeredah - Make your home a meeting place for Sages; sit in the dust of their feet; drink their words with thirst (1:4)

יוסי בן יועזר איש צרדה אומר:

1. יהי ביתך בית ועד לחכמים,

2. והוי מתאבק בעפר רגליהם,

3. והוי שותה בצמא את דבריהם

Yose ben Yoezer used to say:

1. let your house be a house of meeting (ועד) for the Sages

2. and sit in the very dust of their feet,

3. and drink in their words with thirst.

Yose ben Yohanan of Jerusalem - Keep home open; treat poor as household members; limit talk with women (1:5)

יוסי בן יוחנן איש ירושלים אומר:

1. יהי ביתך פתוח לרוחה,

2. ויהיו עניים בני ביתך,

3. ואל תרבה שיחה עם האשה.

Yose ben Yochanan of Jerusalem used to say:

1. Let your house be wide open,

2. and let the poor be members of your household.

3. Engage not in too much conversation (שיחה) with women.

The dangers of conversations with women - he causes evil to himself, he neglects the study of the Torah, and in the end he will inherit Gehinnom

באשתו אמרו,

קל וחמר באשת חברו.

מכאן אמרו חכמים:

כל זמן שאדם מרבה שיחה עם האשה --

1. גורם רעה לעצמו,

2. ובוטל מדברי תורה,

3. וסופו יורש גיהנם

They said this with regard to one’s own wife,

how much more [does the rule apply] with regard to another man’s wife.

From here the Sages said:

as long as a man engages in too much conversation with women --

1. he causes evil to himself,

2. he neglects the study of the Torah (בוטל מדברי תורה),

3. and in the end he will inherit Gehinnom.

Yehoshua ben Perahiah & Nittai of Arbel (1:6)

1. יהושע בן פרחיה

2. ונתאי הארבלי

קבלו מהם.

1. Yehoshua ben Perahiah

2. and Nittai the Arbelite

received [the oral tradition] from them [=Yose ben Yoezer of Zeredah & Yose ben Yohanan of Jerusalem]

Yehoshua ben Perahiah - Make a teacher for yourself; acquire a friend; judge others favorably (1:6)

יהושע בן פרחיה אומר:

1. עשה לך רב,

2. וקנה לך חבר,

3. והוי דן את כל האדם לכף זכות

Yehoshua ben Perahiah used to say:

1. appoint for yourself a teacher,⁹

2. and acquire for yourself a companion (חבר - “friend”)

3. and judge all men with the scale weighted in his favor.

Nittai of Arbel - Distance from evil neighbor; avoid wicked people; don't despair of divine retribution (1:7)

נתאי הארבלי אומר:

1. הרחק משכן רע,

2. ואל תתחבר לרשע,

3. ואל תתיאש מן הפרענות

Nittai the Arbelite used to say:

1. keep a distance from an evil neighbor,¹⁰

2. do not become attached to the wicked,

3. and do not abandon faith in [divine] retribution (פרענות)

Yehuda ben Tabbai & Shimon ben Shetach (1:8)

1. יהודה בן טבאי

2. ושמעון בן שטח

קבלו מהם.

1. Yehuda ben Tabbai

2. and Shimon ben Shetach

received [the oral tradition] from them [=Yehoshua ben Perahiah & Nittai of Arbel]

Yehuda ben Tabbai - Judges: don’t be like lawyers; view litigants as guilty before judgment, innocent after (1:8)

יהודה בן טבאי אומר:

1. אל תעש עצמך כעורכי הדינין.

2. וכשיהיו בעלי דינין עומדים לפניך —

   1. יהיו בעיניך כרשעים.

3. וכשנפטרים מלפניך —

   1. יהיו בעיניך כזכאין,

   2. כשקבלו עליהם את הדין

Yehuda ben Tabbai said:

1. Don’t act as an advocate;¹¹

2. and when the litigants are standing before you —

   1. look upon them as if they were [both] guilty;¹²

3. [but] when they leave your presence —

   1. look upon them as if they were [both] innocent (זכאין),

   2. when they have accepted the judgement.

Shimon ben Shetach - Interrogate witnesses thoroughly; be careful with words (1:9)

שמעון בן שטח אומר:

1. הוי מרבה לחקר את העדים,

2. והוי זהיר בדבריך,

3. שמא מתוכם ילמדו לשקר

Shimon ben Shetach used to say:

1. increase (מרבה) the interrogation of witnesses,¹³

2. and be careful with your words,

3. lest from them they learn to lie.

Shemaiah & Avtalion (1:10)

1. שמעיה

2. ואבטליון

קבלו מהם.

1. Shemaiah

2. and Abtalion

received [the oral tradition] from them [=Yehuda ben Tabbai & Shimon ben Shetach]

Shemaiah - Love work; hate authority; avoid rulers (1:10)

שמעיה אומר:

1. אהב את המלאכה,

2. ושנא את הרבנות,

3. ואל תתודע לרשות

Shemaiah says:

1. love work (מלאכה - i.e. labor),

2. hate acting the superior (רבנות)

3. and do not attempt to draw near (תתודע) to the ruling authority (רשות)

Avtalion - Sages, be cautious with speech lest disciples err and desecrate God's name (1:11)

אבטליון אומר:

חכמים!

הזהרו בדבריכם!

שמא תחובו חובת גלות

ותגלו למקום מים הרעים,

וישתו התלמידים הבאים אחריכם וימותו,

ונמצא שם שמים מתחלל

Abtalion used to say:

Sages!

be careful with your words!

lest you incur the penalty of exile,

and be exiled to a place of evil waters,

and the disciples who follow you drink and die,

and thus the name of heaven becomes profaned¹⁴

1. See my recent five part series on Tannaitic aphorisms that appear later in the tractate, in Avot 2:10-4:22, final part here.

And see my intro to that series, at beginning of Part 1.

2. The dates in the list in this section and the next (“fl.” = “flourished”) are based on the “term in office” in the table in Wikipedia, “Nasi (Hebrew title)“, section “List of Nesi'im“:

3. מסרה - literally: “gave it, handed it, passed it”.

Compare the cognate word masoret (מסרת - “tradition”), that appears later in the tractate, quoted in the next footnote.

4. סיג.

On these “fences”, compare R’ Akiva’s statement later in the tractate, here, section “Frivolity leads to sexual sin; various practices act as protective “fences”; silence is a safeguard for wisdom (3:13)“:

1. מסרת --

   1. סיג לתורה.

2. מעשרות --

   1. סיג לעשר.

3. נדרים--

   1. סיג לפרישות.

4. סיג לחכמה --

   1. שתיקה

1. Tradition (מסרת) —

   1. is a fence to the Torah;

2. Tithes (מעשרות) —

   1. a fence to wealth,

3. Vows (נדרים - neder) —

   1. a fence to abstinence;

4. A fence to wisdom —

   1. is silence.

5. Compare the similar set-up and list later in the tractate, here, section “R' Shimon - Three crowns exist—Torah, priesthood, kingship—but a good name surpasses them all (4:13)“. The first two items are essentially equivalent: #1 - Torah; #2 - the [Temple] service (עבודה) = priesthood (כהנה).

On “service” (עבודה) as specifically Temple service, compare my recent appendix here, section “Firmly Grounded Laws - Civil law, temple service, ritual purity, and forbidden sexual relations“, for the usage of the term avodot (עבודות - “services”) to mean laws of Temple service.

And see Hebrew Wiktionary, sense #4, on this sense of the word as “ritual service”.

Compare also the word in the term for idolatry, avoda zarah (עבודה זרה - literally: “foreign service”).

For another example of this common usage, taken essentially at random, see Yoma.24a.6:

אמר רב:

ארבע עבודות זר חייב עליהן מיתה:

1. זריקה,

2. והקטרה,

3. וניסוך המים,

4. וניסוך היין.

ולוי אמר: אף תרומת הדשן.

וכן תני לוי במתניתיה: אף תרומת הדשן.

§ Rav said:

Although a non-priest may not perform any Temple service, there are only four Temple services (עבודות) for which a non-priest (זר) is liable to receive the punishment of death by God’s hand for doing so.

They are:

1. Sprinkling (זריקה) sacrificial blood on the altar,

2. and burning (הקטרה) incense or parts of sacrificial animals on the altar,

3. and pouring out the water libation (ניסוך) on the altar on the festival of Sukkot,

4. and pouring out the wine libation on the altar.

And Levi said: This is true also for the removal of the ashes (תרומת הדשן).

And similarly, Levi taught in his collection of baraitot: The removal of ashes is also included among those services for which a non-priest incurs the death penalty if he performs them.

6. גמילות חסדים.

See Wikipedia, “Chesed“, section “Jewish ethics“.

7. פרס.

This word is likely etymologically related to Latin pretium, and thus cognate with Modern English prize; see discussion in Hebrew Wiktionary, sense #2, and section “etymology”.

In general, compare the many mentions of (divine) reward (שכר - ‘sekhar’) later in the tractate; as I mention in my intro (mentioned in a previous footnote), divine reward is one of the major themes of the aphorisms in the tractate.

8. מורא שמים.

See Wikipedia, “Fear of God“, section “Judaism“.

9. רב - literally: “a master”, i.e. rabbi.

Compare later in the tractate, here, section “R' Elazar ben Shammua - Respect student like yourself; colleague like your teacher; teacher like heaven (4:12)“, and my note there on the term “teacher, master, rabbi” (רבך).

10. Compare later in the tractate, in my recent piece “Rabban Yohanan ben Zakkai and His Five Disciples: On the Ethical Paths to Choose and Avoid (Avot 2:8-9)“, section “The same exercise is repeated for negative Ethical “Path” (evil eye, bad companion, etc.)“:

אמר להם:

צאו וראו:

איזוהי דרך רעה שיתרחק ממנה האדם?

[…]

רבי יוסי אומר: שכן רע

[…]

He [=Rabban Yohanan] said unto them:

go forth and observe:

which is the evil way which a man should shun?

[…]

R' Yose said: an evil neighbor

[…]

11. עורכי הדינין.

On the interpretation of this line, see Hebrew Wikipedia, “אל תעש עצמך כעורכי הדיינים“.

12. רשעים - literally: “wicked”.

The typical term in Talmudic literature for “guilty” in the context of litigants is hayav (חייב).

13. לחקר את העדים.

The beginning of the fifth chapter of Mishnah tractate Sanhedrin is devoted to this, see Mishnah_Sanhedrin.5.1-4. See ibid., 5.1-2, where the focus is on establishing the exact time of the offense:

היו בודקין אותן בשבע חקירות:

1. באיזה שבוע,

2. באיזו שנה,

3. באיזה חדש,

4. בכמה בחדש,

5. באיזה יום,

6. באיזו שעה,

7. באיזה מקום.

[…]

The court would examine (בודקין - literally: “check”) the witnesses in capital cases with 7 interrogations (חקירות), i.e., interrogatory questions, and they are:

1. In which 7-year period (שבוע), that is, in which cycle of 7 years within a 50-year Jubilee cycle did the event occur;

2. in which year of the 7-year Sabbatical cycle did the event occur;

3. in which month did the event occur;

4. on which day of the month did the event occur;

5. on which day of the week did the event occur;

6. at which hour did the event occur;

7. and in what place did the event occur.

[…]

כל המרבה בבדיקות —

הרי זה משבח.

מעשה

ובדק בן זכאי בעקצי תאנים.

With regard to all judges who increase (מרבה) the number of examinations, i.e., who add questions about the details of the event —

this is praiseworthy, as this may clarify that the witnesses are lying.

An incident occurred

and Ben-Zakkai examined the witnesses by questioning them about the color and shape of the stems (עקצי) of figs in order to unearth a contradiction between the witnesses.

And see at length Hebrew Wikipedia, “דרישה וחקירה“.

As mentioned, the focus in items #1-6 in the 7-part list is on establishing the exact time of the offense, listed from the broadest time period (sabbatical cycle), to the narrowest (hour). Compare in standard modern dating, for example, in reverse order:

1. 10am (#6 - hour)

2. Sunday (#5 - day [of the week])

3. 1st (#4 - which [day] of the month)

4. of January (#3 - month)

5. 2025 (#1-2 - year)

Re the year, in practice, it’s likely that the Seleucid era would be used (מניין שטרות), or the year of the current secular ruler.

14. שם שמים מתחלל - i.e. chillul hashem.