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Jose ben Helpetha,[a] commonly known asJose ben Halafta (IPA:[ˈjosibenxaˈlafta]) was atanna of the fourth generation (2nd century CE). He is the fifth-most-frequently mentioned sage in the Mishnah.[1] Yose Ben Halafta is the one of two rabbis calledRabbi Yose in the Talmud; the other beingJose ben Zimra, anamora.
He was born atSepphoris; but his family was ofBabylonian-Jewish origin.[2] According to a genealogical chart found atJerusalem, he was a descendant ofJonadab ben Rechab.[3] He was one ofRabbi Akiva's five principal pupils, called "the restorers of the Law,"[4] who were afterward ordained byJudah ben Baba.[5] He was also a student ofJohanan ben Nuri, whosehalakhot he transmitted[6] and ofEutolemus.[7] It is very likely that he studied much under his father,Halafta, whose authority he invokes in several instances.[8] But his principal teacher was Akiva, whose system he followed in his interpretation of the Law.[9]
After having been ordained in violation of a Roman edict,[10] Jose fled toAsia Minor,[11] where he stayed till the edict was abrogated. Later he settled atUsha, then the seat of theSanhedrin. As he remained silent when his fellow pupilSimeon bar Yohai once attacked the Roman government in his presence, he was forced by the Romans to return to Sepphoris,[12] which he found in a decaying state.[13] He established there a flourishing school; and it seems that he died there.[14]
Jose's great learning attracted so many pupils that the words "that which is altogether just shalt thou follow"[15] were interpreted to mean in part "follow Jose to Sepphoris".[16] He was highly extolled after his death. His pupilJudah ha-Nasi said: "The difference between Jose's generation and ours is like the difference between the Holy of Holies and the most profane."[17]
Owing to Jose's fame as a saint, legend describes him as having metElijah.[18] Jose, complying with thelevirate law, married the wife of his brother who had died childless; they had five sons:Ishmael,Eleazar,Menahem, Halafta (who died in his lifetime), andEudemus.[19]
He exemplifiedAbtalion's dictum, "Love work";[20] for he was atanner,[21] a trade then commonly held in contempt.[22]
His legal decisions are mentioned throughout the greater part of theMishnah, as well as in the Baraita and Sifra. TheBabylonian Talmud says that in a dispute between Rabbi Jose b. Halafta and Rabbi Shimon Bar Yochai, thehalakha follows Rabbi Jose b. Halafta. So, too, in any dispute between himself and his colleagues, Rabbi Yehuda b. 'Ilai and Rabbi Meir, the rule of practice is in accordance with Rabbi Jose.[23]
His teaching was very systematic. He was opposed to controversy, declaring that the antagonism between the schools of Shammai and Hillel made it seem as if there were two Torahs.[24] For the most part, Jose adopted a compromise between two contending halakhists.[25] Like his master Akiva, Jose occupied himself with the dots which sometimes accompany the words in the Bible, occasionally basing his halakhot on such dots.[26] He was generally liberal in his halakhic decisions, especially in interpreting the laws concerning fasts[27] and vows.[28]
Jose was also a prominent aggadist. The conversation which he had with aRomanmatron, resulting in her conviction of the superiority of the Jewish religion,[29] shows his great skill in interpreting Biblical verses.
Jose is considered to be the author of theSeder Olam Rabba, a chronicle from thecreation to the time ofHadrian, for which reason it is called also known as "Baraita di Rabbi Jose ben Halafta."[30] This work, though incomplete and too concise, shows Jose's system of arranging material in chronological order.
Jose is known for his ethical dicta, which are characteristic, and in which he laid special stress on the study of the Torah.[31] A series of Jose's ethical sayings[32] shows his tendency towardEssenism. As has been said above, Jose was opposed to disputation. When his companion Judah desired to exclude Meïr's disciples from his school, Jose dissuaded him.[33] One of his characteristic sayings is, "He who indicates the coming of the Messiah, he who hates scholars and their disciples, and thefalse prophet and the slanderer, will have no part in the future world."[34] According to Bacher[35] this was directed against the HebrewChristians.
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Schechter, Solomon and M. Seligsohn."Jose ben Ḥalafta."Jewish Encyclopedia. Funk and Wagnalls, 1901–1906; which cites:
This article incorporates text from a publication now in thepublic domain: Singer, Isidore; et al., eds. (1901–1906).The Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls.{{cite encyclopedia}}:Missing or empty|title= (help)
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