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Welcome to the first edition of the eTeacherGroup - ClassicalHebrew Newsletter. In this bi-weekly newsletter we will give you a taste of the Biblical era and the original Biblical Hebrew language. We will briefly cover topics such as Biblical stories; the Creation of the World, the Crossing of the Red Sea, the Fall of Babylon, and more. We will analyze Biblical characters such as Samson, Gideon, Joshua, etc. and talk about the origins of some Jewish holidays such as Passover, Purim, Shavuot, Succoth, etc.
We hope to make this newsletter informative and interesting and we hope you look forward to it every two weeks.
The ClassicalHebrew Team
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Shalom friends,
The character we will discuss today is Miriam, the prophetess, sister of Moses and Aaron. Miriam is first mentioned, although not by name, as the caring older sister
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of Moses who stood at a distance, watching over the baby in the basket made |
of bulrushes floating in the River (Exodus 2:3-9). Her title as prophetess is mentioned at
| the parting of the Red Sea, when she takes a tambourine |
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and leads all the women |
of Israel in a song and dance praising the Lord for the great miracle (Exodus 15:20-21). Miriam is mentioned in the writings of the prophet Micah as one of the saviors of Israel from Egypt, together with her siblings:
"For I brought you up from the land of Egypt, and redeemed you out of the house of bondage; and I sent before you Moses, Aaron and Miriam"
(Micah 6:4)
Although Miriam's figure is altogether a positive one, there is also a negative side to her
| character. Miriam was inflicted with leprosy |
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because she and Aaron spoke ill |
of Moses' wife and of Moses' high position. Although this is a severe accusation, the high regard with which she was held among the Israelites is evident: the people did not travel further in the desert until Miriam was healed and allowed to return to the camp (Numbers 12).
Have a great week!
The Biblical Hebrew Online Team.
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Miriam leading the women of Israel in song
and dance with her tambourine
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| Weekly Biblical Hebrew Words |
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| Transcription: Tof Miriam. |
| Part of speech: Noun, Masculine. |
| Literal Meaning: Tambourine. |
More about Tof Miriam: the tambourine is known in Modern Hebrew as the tambourine of Miriam (in Hebrew all drums are
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). In ancient times, this instrument, simply called |
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– tof, was the typical instrument used by both men and women for celebrations and processions, which usually included dancing. It was often accompanied by other musical instruments such as the lyre and the flute. |
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| Transcription: Tsara'at. |
| Part of speech: Noun, Feminine. |
| Literal Meaning: Leprosy. |
More about Tsara'at: Leprosy in ancient times was usually a general name for many different inflictions affecting the skin. It is because of the story of Miriam that leprosy is often associated with slander or gossiping. Biblical leprosy was not restricted to the human body: vessels, clothing, and homes could also be diagnosed with leprosy. The only person certified to make the diagnosis was the High Priest, who would then quarantine the person or object for a week in order to follow up on the disease.
Leprosy was also used as a Godly sign: when Moses is given his mission of redeeming the people of Israel from Egypt, inflicting his hand with leprosy and then healing it is one of the signs of the divine mission.
In the New Testament, Jesus heals a leper, who begged him for assistance, by the touch of his hand. He then orders the man to go to the priest and give the offering required for cleansing of leprosy (Mark 1:40-44; Matthew 8:1-4; Like 5:12-16).
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Jesus curing the leper
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