A complete English translation with links to commentaries and other sources makes this vital text more accessible than ever.
A new edition of the Jerusalem Talmud is now available in Sefaria’s free library of Jewish texts — available on sefaria.org and the Sefaria iOS and Android apps. This new addition to Sefaria will open the world of this uniquely challenging text to a wider audience. “I really believe that we are changing the way that the Yerushalmi will be learned,” said Lev Israel, Chief Data Officer at Sefaria. “People who come to learn Talmud in the coming years and the coming generations will not look to the Yerushalmi as an inaccessible or obscure book, but as something that is near at hand and that they can understand.”
The Jerusalem Talmud, also known as the Talmud Yerushalmi or Palestinian Talmud, is the sister text to the better-known Babylonian Talmud. It was compiled in Israel between the 3rd and 5th centuries from oral traditions. Like the Babylonian Talmud, the Jerusalem Talmud is a textual record of rabbinic debate about law, philosophy, and biblical interpretation, structured as a commentary on the Mishnah. However, a language barrier (it is written in a different dialect of Aramaic), reduced elaboration, and complex structure can make it difficult to study.
The new Jerusalem Talmud on Sefaria includes:
- Complete English translation
- Fully vocalized text to assist learners in reading the distinctive Aramaic dialect.
- Extensive interlinking to the Bible, Babylonian Talmud, and other works, providing connections that help with understanding the work and placing it in context. These linkages also provide the reader with the opportunity to see the impact of the Jerusalem Talmud on later sources.
- Topic tagging so searches on Sefaria will surface references from the Jerusalem Talmud, adding this text to the resources available to learners as they research topics that interest them.
- Six of the standard Hebrew commentaries included in the Vilna edition of the Talmud available and linked on Sefaria, including Korban HaEdah, Penei Moshe, Mareh HaPanim, and others.
- Standardized organization of the different published formats of the Jerusalem Talmud so readers can more easily find their place in the text.
The only fully extant manuscript of the Jerusalem Talmud was set down by Rabbi Jehiel ben Jekuthiel Anav in 1289, which formed the base for the first printing in Venice by Daniel Bomberg in 1524. Sefaria has manuscript images from both of these editions visible in the resource panel, to see the original format of the texts alongside the modern, digital version.
The English translation of the Yerushalmi was completed in 2015 by Heinrich Guggenheimer, a renowned mathematician who also published works on Judaism. He spent the last 20 years of his life working on translating the Jerusalem Talmud. With his blessing, Sefaria approached his publisher de Gruyter GmbH who enthusiastically agreed to partner on this open access version of Dr. Guggenheimer’s historic work. Dr. Guggenheimer passed away on March 4, 2021 at the age of 97.
With this new edition, Sefaria invites all interested learners to incorporate this vital work of Jewish thought into their studies.
Press
- "Intimidated by the Jerusalem Talmud? There's now a more 'accessible' translation." The Forward. December 14, 2021
- "New online translation by Sefaria may be the Jerusalem Talmud's 'Cinderella moment.'" The Times of Israel. January 7, 2022
- "Revival of the Forgotten Talmud." Lehrhaus. January 13, 2022