JTS MS 2367, fol. 84a

Notes

1. The opening completes “even when Israel do not perform” at 83b:43. Genesis 21:10 is combined with Psalm 2:4, יושב בשמים ישחק. The text associates ישחק, “laughs,” with יצחק, “Isaac,” through their similar sound. “Heaven” is identified with Tiferet; the Shekhinah is its occupant, not explicitly equated with Tiferet here. The referents of the short clauses remain compressed; the abbreviation בש׳[?] is not silently expanded. Biblical combination and distinction of referents. ↩
2. Genesis 21:14 and Deuteronomy 1:5. The latter’s באר ordinarily means “explain,” but is reread as be’er, “well,” later in the exposition. JTS spells the verb ויאיל; the translation gives its apparent intended sense without changing that Hebrew form. The deletions at lines 4–5 appear to repeat the lemma; the illegible part is not reconstructed. Biblical sources, wordplay, and scribal deletion. ↩
3. JTS מצות הקדומות is rendered “the primordial unleavened breads,” in keeping with the repeated bread imagery. Oxford instead reads מבית הקדומות, “from the house of the primordial [ones].” The image supports retaining the JTS wording. The abbreviated מד׳ is not assigned a particular attribute with certainty, even though morning and Abraham supply interpretive context. Image-checked witness difference and abbreviation. ↩
4. חמת (ḥemat), “waterskin,” is associated with חמה (ḥemah), “wrath.” The additional JTS form נחמת is retained in transliteration because its syntax is unclear; it is not replaced with Oxford’s וחמת. The reward language continues at lines 12–13. Wordplay and unresolved form. ↩
5. מים = 40 + 10 + 40 = 90; המילה = 5 + 40 + 10 + 30 + 5 = 90. The equivalence requires the definite article in “the circumcision.” The three components are those actually listed by JTS: foreskin, purification, and crown. No different ritual sequence is substituted. Verified gematria and source terminology. ↩
6. Lines 12–13 are not securely understood. The abbreviations, הנחירות[?], and אתנם[?] are retained as unresolved or provisional rather than turned into a fluent account of two rewards. שכר means both reward and wages; the latter sense is suggested by the following uncertain “hire.” The lemma סופה differs from Oxford’s later תחלתו מוכיח על סופו, “its beginning proves its end.” Uncertain reading and lexical limits. ↩
7. Genesis 24:15. כדה (“her jar”) = 20 + 4 + 5 = 29; adding one for the word gives 30. The divine Name יהוה = 26; adding its four letters also gives 30. This reconstructs a plausible calculation from the compressed syntax, not an emendation of it. The reading “with the word” remains marked as uncertain. Computed numerical interpretation with explicit qualification. ↩
8. שכמה (“her shoulder”) is divided into שכם + ה and then permuted to משך + ה. שכם and משך contain the same letters, with final kaf written ך in the latter. משך can denote drawing or extension; the commentary connects the permutation with uniting the inner things in the following line. The exact expansion of ש׳ is left open. Verified letter permutation and continuation. ↩
9. Genesis 21:14. The wording תחלתו ... סופו has masculine suffixes (“its beginning ... its end”); they are not silently converted into feminine references to Hagar. The image supports שנתן לו, “that he gave him,” although the ensuing commentary returns to feminine לה. Biblical narrative and grammatical distinctions. ↩
10. לשועלי מטה is rendered literally “to the foxes below.” Its precise referent and the syntax of השליט אותה remain difficult; a familiar description of lower powers is not substituted for the actual image. המיצה in the next line is also unresolved, perhaps related to the repeated matzah language, but no certain expansion is asserted. Difficult vocabulary and limits of interpretation. ↩
11. Numbers 21:18 supplies the princes digging the well. The image reads ג׳ הויות עליונות, “three upper hypostases,” correcting the first draft’s שלשות[?]. The reference to Moses again exploits באר as both the verb “explain” and the noun “well” (Deuteronomy 1:5). The word לדעה[?] before “drank” remains unresolved; the English does not invent a subject for it. Image correction, biblical allusions, and uncertainty. ↩
12. Genesis 21:19 supplies ויפקח, “he opened.” The line’s crowded final words are provisionally read ה׳[?] הודיעו בעת[?], followed by מתן רות[?] at line 25. Oxford has הודיעו בעת מתן רות, which supports this reading but does not settle all JTS letter forms. The antecedent of “made it known” is not explicit. Witness comparison and provisional image reading. ↩
13. The syntax after “the opening” is difficult: the transcription gives nine attributes, followed by “which is Malkhut,” then שפעו, “flowed.” The translation retains these components and labels its supplied preposition rather than recasting them as a secure account of emanation. Proverbs 31:15 follows, portraying the female figure as provider for her household. Unresolved syntax and biblical prooftext. ↩
14. Genesis 21:19 describes filling the waterskin. JTS explicitly contrasts it with כדה, “her jar,” recalling Rebecca. Oxford’s ולא כך is reported separately; it does not replace the image-supported JTS wording. The Proverbs clause immediately before this lemma is unbarred in the manuscript. Consequential witness difference and lemma boundary. ↩
15. קיצוץ נטע[?] evokes the kabbalistic image of cutting the plantings, but the uncertain singular wording is retained rather than replaced with the usual plural formula. Line 30 reads הכד, “the jar,” correcting the earlier הכ״ר; the middle-line identification thus resumes Rebecca’s jar at lines 14–15. Technical image and image-supported correction. ↩
16. המעיין can designate one who examines or inquires, while the imagery also evokes מעיין, “spring.” The commentary’s explicit instruction to draw from intellectual rather than bodily powers supports “inquirer” here. The opposition continues through line 35. Lexical ambiguity resolved through the exposition. ↩
17. JTS has החמה, “the wrath,” against Oxford’s החמת, “the waterskin.” The commentary identifies the content with bodily appetites, maintaining the waterskin/wrath association introduced earlier. The syntax of “matter ... which filled the wrath” is compressed and has not been rewritten as a smooth narrative about Hagar filling a vessel. The concluding ית׳ at line 36 is retained as an abbreviation. Witness difference and closing rubric. ↩
18. Exodus 30:37 supplies “the incense that you shall make.” Keritot 6a describes 368 maneh of incense, of which 365 correspond to the days of the solar year; the earlier transcription note’s 6b reference should therefore be corrected to 6a for this numerical parallel. רוח is rendered “wind” alongside the rising fragrance, though “spirit” remains a possible secondary resonance. The image supports השמימה, “heavenward,” rather than הטמיאה[?]. Primary parallel: Keritot 6a. Biblical lemma, checked rabbinic parallel, and image correction. ↩
19. The image supports a provisional כת׳[?], rendered as Keter, rather than the draft’s ת״ת[?]. The preposition in ובה׳ ספירות is retained as “in five sefirot”; neither the precise five nor the syntax of this connection is securely explained here. Numbers 17:13 (16:48 in some English numbering) describes Aaron’s stopping the plague with incense. The following reference to Abraham continues the account of his affiliation with Gevurah on 83b. Uncertain abbreviation, biblical source, and interfolio argument. ↩
20. The wording recalls Job 22:16 and its interpretation in Hagigah 13b–14a. The continuation at 84b:1 explicitly begins “the slain,” then discusses the soul’s obstruction and ascent. This local continuation does not justify identifying the referents here simply with the 974 generations discussed in the Talmud. The sentence is left open at the folio boundary. Verbal parallel distinguished from local referent. ↩