SIMEON B. ṬARFON:

Tanna of the second generation. Four exegetic sentences by him have been preserved: (1) "Ex. xxii. 11, 'Then shall an oath of the Lord be between them,' means that the person taking the oath and the one who causes him to do so are alike responsible if perjury is proved." (2) "Ex. xx. 10 should be read 'tan'if' = 'to contribute to the commission of adultery'; and the interdiction applies also to the furnishing of opportunity for adultery." (3) "In Deut. i. 27 [Hebr.] the word 'wa-teragenu,' which should be explained as Noṭariḳon, means: 'You spied out and desecrated God's dwelling among you.'" (4) "In Deut. i. 7 the Euphrates is called 'the great river' [although it is not really such] because it is the boundary river of Palestine, according to the proverb, 'Approach the anointed, and you yourself will smell of ointment'" (Sheb. 47b).

Bibliography:
  • Frankel, Hodegetica in Mischnam, p. 137;
  • Bacher, Ag. Tan. i. 447-448.
W. B. J. Z. L.
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