Tanach Thoughts

Just a quick tidbit I came across now: A Late Antiquity silver lamella (an amulet text inscribed on a sheet of metal, often silver or gold) in Hebrew, Wolfe NA 3, includes the following quote: "ועמהם שבעת המלאכים שיאצאו עם יהושע בנון מחוץ למחנה..." "And with them the seven angels that exited with Yehoshua Binun the encampment..." According to Ohad Abudraham, who published the lamella in the essay ''Joshua Son of Nun and the Seven Angels': a Hebrew lamella from the Wolfe Collection', Journal of Jewish Studies  72 (2021), pp. 45-58, this type of spelling may be the rationale behind Ramban's explanation for why Yehoshua was called b i n Nun instead of b e n Nun. Ramban wrote that it was because the word "binun" (בינון) was a nickname, referring to his tevunah (תבונה), his wisdom. So, we have here evidence of Jews of Antiquity seemingly agreeing with Ramban's idea. Perhaps they did not think up of an explanation themselves but simply c...

 A few days ago, we reached in the Daf Yomi two mishnas that deal with customs of heretics and sectarians in terms of prayer. One of these mishnas says the following: "One who constructs his phylacteries in a round shape exposes himself to danger and he does not fulfill the commandment to don phylacteries If one placed the phylacteries worn on the head on his forehead, or if he placed the phylacteries worn on the arm on his palm, and not on his bicep, this is the way of the heretics. If one plated his phylacteries with gold or placed the phylacteries worn on the arm on the outside of his sleeve [ unkeli ], this is the way of the outsiders, i.e., those who do not take part in the traditions of the Jewish people." (translation based on Sefaria's for Megillah 4:8 ) This is a very curious mishna for those, such as myself, who take interest in understanding the customs and views of ancient Jewish sects and what our sages thought of them. One of the issues with ...