Midrash Vayosha () is an 11th-century CE

midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot' ...

, one of the

smaller midrashim A number of midrashim exist which are smaller in size, and generally later in date, than those dealt with in the articles Midrash Haggadah and Midrash Halakah. Despite their late date, some of these works preserve material from the Apocrypha and P ...

. It is based on

Exodus Exodus or the Exodus may refer to: Religion * Book of Exodus, second book of the Hebrew Torah and the Christian Bible * The Exodus, the biblical story of the migration of the ancient Israelites from Egypt into Canaan Historical events * Ex ...

14:30-15:18. It is an exposition in the style of the later

aggadah Aggadah (, or ; ; 'tales', 'legend', 'lore') is the non-legalistic exegesis which appears in the classical rabbinic literature of Judaism, particularly the Talmud and Midrash. In general, Aggadah is a compendium of rabbinic texts that incorporat ...

, and seems to have been intended for Shabbat Shirah or for the seventh day of

Passover Passover, also called Pesach (; ), is a major Jewish holidays, Jewish holiday and one of the Three Pilgrimage Festivals. It celebrates the Exodus of the Israelites from slavery in Biblical Egypt, Egypt. According to the Book of Exodus, God in ...

Sources

Entire sections of ''Midrash Vayosha'' are taken verbatim from the

Tanhuma Midrash Tanhuma (), also known as Yelammedenu, is the name given to a homiletic midrash on the entire Torah, and it is known in several different versions or collections. Tanhuma bar Abba is not the author of the text but instead is a figure to w ...

, such as the passage on

15:3 and on 15:5. The story in the exposition of Exodus 14:30, concerning

Satan Satan, also known as the Devil, is a devilish entity in Abrahamic religions who seduces humans into sin (or falsehood). In Judaism, Satan is seen as an agent subservient to God, typically regarded as a metaphor for the '' yetzer hara'', or ' ...

, who appeared before

Abraham Abraham (originally Abram) is the common Hebrews, Hebrew Patriarchs (Bible), patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father who began the Covenant (biblical), covenanta ...

and

Isaac Isaac ( ; ; ; ; ; ) is one of the three patriarchs (Bible), patriarchs of the Israelites and an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and the Baháʼí Faith. Isaac first appears in the Torah, in wh ...

as they went to the sacrifice, may be compared with similar stories in several other works of midrash. The midrash on Exodus 15:2,7 also contains extracts from the ''

Chronicle of Moses The ''Chronicle of Moses'' (Hebrew: דברי הימים של משה, ''Dibre ha-Yamim shel Mosheh'') is one of the smaller midrashim. Written in Hebrew in a close imitation of Biblical style, it presents a history of the life of Moses embellished ...

''; the passage on Usa, the genius of Egypt, agreeing word for word with the excerpt in

Yalkut Shimoni The ''Yalkut Shimoni'' (), or simply ''Yalkut'', is an aggadic compilation on the books of the Hebrew Bible. It is a compilation of older interpretations and explanations of Biblical passages, arranged according to the sequence of those portions ...

§ 241. Here the first edition has merely "Midrash," while other editions give the ''

Midrash Abkir Midrash Abkir (Hebrew: מדרש אבכיר) is one of the smaller midrashim, the extant remains of which consist of more than 50 excerpts contained in the Yalkut Shimoni and a number of citations in other works. It dealt, according to all accessib ...

'' as the source, although it is doubtful whether this aggadah ever occurred in that work.

The sections begin for the most part with the words ''ameru hachamim'', although

Joshua ben Levi Joshua ben Levi or Yehoshua ben Levi (220 – 250 CE) was an amora—a scholar of Jewish law during the period in which the Gemara was codified—who lived in the Land of Israel in the first half of the third century. He lived and taught in the ...

and

Samuel ben Nahman Samuel ben Nahman (), or Samuel arNahmani (), was a rabbi and amora mentioned throughout the Talmud and Midrashic literature who lived in the Land of Israel from the beginning of the 3rd century CE until the start of the 4th century CE. Biograp ...

are occasionally given as the authors. In the exposition of Exodus 15:18 on the sorrows and the redemption in the Messianic time, the terrible figure of

Armilus Armilus (; also spelled Armilos and Armilius) is an anti-messiah figure in medieval Jewish eschatology who will conquer the whole Earth, centralizing in Jerusalem and persecuting the Jewish believers until his final defeat at the hands of the Je ...

is described. It is said that he will slay the Messiah son of Joseph, but will himself be slain by the Messiah who is the son of David; God will then gather together the scattered remnant of Israel and hold the final judgment. The wonderful beauty of a new world full of joy and happiness is revealed.

Editions

The midrash was first published at Constantinople in 1519, and has been reprinted by A. Jellinek.''Bet. Ha.Midrash'' i. 35-57, Jerusalem 1967, 3rd Ed.

References

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography

Zunz Zunz (, ) is a Yiddish surname: * (1874–1939), Belgian pharmacologist * Sir Gerhard Jack Zunz (1923–2018), British civil engineer * Leopold Zunz (Yom Tov Lipmann Tzuntz) (1794–1886), German Reform rabbi and writer, the founder of academi ...

, G. V. p. 282 * Rab Pe'alim, p. 55 * A. Jellinek, Bet. Ha.Midrasch Band I., IV, Einl. p. xvii. p. 35-57; German Transl. A. Wünsche, I, S.93 *

Benjacob Isaac ben Jacob Benjacob (10 January 1801, Ramygala – 2 July 1863, Vilnius) was a Lithuanian Jewish maskil, best known as a bibliographer, author, and publisher. His 17-volume Hebrew Bible included Rashi, Moses Mendelssohn, as well as his own ...

, Oẓar ha-Sefarim, p. 299 {{Authority control Smaller midrashim

Sources

Contents

Editions

References

Jewish Encyclopedia bibliography