Toward a Critical Edition and English Translation of Deuteronomy Rabbah (Printed Edition)

• In Event: Deuteronomy Rabbah Critical Edition

Abstract

Tanhuma-Yelammedenu literature includes the two versions of Midrash Tanhuma (Printed Edition and Buber Edition), Exodus Rabbah (Part 2), Numbers Rabbah (Part 2), the two versions of Deuteronomy Rabbah (Printed Edition and Lieberman Edition), a large portion of Pesiqta Rabbati, related additional texts primarily recovered from the Cairo Genizah and many medieval citations. This genre of midrashic literature seems to have originated in Byzantine Palestine, in the sixth or seventh century, which was followed by a long period of literary expansion and transformation. Among the earliest of these Tanhuma-Yelammedenu Midrashim is Deuteronomy Rabbah (Printed Edition, as distinct from the partially parallel Deuteronomy Rabbah Lieberman). Deuteronomy Rabbah (Printed Edition) is the best available example of the standard literary structure of Tanhuma-Yelammedenu Midrash. It is made up of 27 composite literary homilies, each consisting of the following components: a Halakhic Proem, Regular and Circular Proems, a “body of the sermon” and a Messianic Peroration. Each such composite homily is based on one of the triennial cycle Torah lections, “Sedarim”, according to the liturgical practice of the Land of Israel in Rabbinic Times.
So far, no complete critical edition of any of the Tanhuma-Yelammedenu Midrashim has appeared. Deuteronomy Rabbah (Printed Edition) has been selected as an initial critical edition of these texts because of its compositional consistency and relatively early date. In critically editing this text, I and my colleague, Dr. Ezra Kahalani, will follow the most up-to-date methodology accepted in current academic research into Rabbinic Literature. Our edition will consist of a synopsis of all available textual witnesses, notes on selected textual variants, a critical commentary and an extensive critical Introduction.
My English translation, examples of which will be presented in my Zoom presentation, will be based on our critical edition of Deuteronomy Rabbah (Printed Edition).
We present this preview of our current Deuteronomy Rabbah (Printed Edition) project to invite scholarly comments and suggestions at this initial stage of our work. It would be preferable for my English presentation to be scheduled in the same Zoom session as the Hebrew presentation by Dr. Kahalani due to the clear connection between the two presentations.

Author

• Marc Bregman, The University of North Carolina at Greensboro (Retired)