The Aleppo Codex is a medieval manuscript of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), associated with Rabbi Aaron Ben Asher. The Masoretic scholars wrote it in the early 10th century, probably in Tiberias, Israel. It is in book form and contains the vowel points and grammar points (nikkudot) that specify the pronunciation of the ancient Hebrew letters to preserve the chanting tradition. It is perhaps the most historically important Hebrew manuscript in existence. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
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As second session we get the Neviʾim (or Prophets) comprising eight books subdivided into the Former Prophets, containing the four historical works, Joshua, Judges, Samuel, and Kings, and the Latter Prophets, the oracular discourses of Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and the Twelve (Minor—i.e., smaller) Prophets — Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. the Twelve (minor prophets) were all formerly written on a single scroll and thus reckoned as one book.
Though the acronym Tanakh is derived from the names of the three divisions of the Hebrew Bible: Torah (Instruction, or Law, also called the Pentateuch), Neviʾim (Prophets), and Ketuvim (Writings), the third part of the Tanakh, or the Ketuvim, was long not considered part of the Holy or Set-apart Scriptures. Those books were referred to “the other books of our fathers,” “the rest of the books” by Ben Sira. Philo speaks simply of “other writings” and Josephus of “the remaining books.”
A widespread practice of entitling the entire Scriptures “the Torah and the Prophets” indicates a considerable hiatus between the canonization of the Prophets and the Ketuvim. they were composed over a long period of time - from before the Babylonian Exile in the early 6th century b.c.e. to the middle of the 2nd century c.e.. Unlike the Torah and the Neviʾim (Prophets), which were canonized as groups, depending on their popularity the books of the Ketuvim became canonised seperately at different times until seen as one big unit in the 2nd century c.e..
Some scholars argue that the Ketuvim was fixed by the Hasmonean dynasty, while others argue it was not fixed until the second century CE or even later. { Philip R. Davies in The Canon Debate, page 50: "With many other scholars, I conclude that the fixing of a canonical list was almost certainly the achievement of the Hasmonean dynasty."
The First Ketuvim, or Ketuvim (Ketuvim Aleph) (Hebrew), Writings (English), Hagiographa (Greek), the third division of the Hebrew Bible, or Old Testament is divided into four sections.
The Ketuvim includes:
poetical books Sifrei Emet (an acronym of the titles in Hebrew, איוב, משלי, תהלים yields Emet אמ"ת, which is also the Hebrew for "truth") with Psalms (Tehillim), Proverbs (Mishlei), and Job (Iyyôbh);
the Five Megillot, or Scrolls which have been grouped together according to the annual cycle of their public reading in the synagogue; with Song of Solomon, Shīr Hashīrīm also known as Song of Songs (Passover), Ruth (Shābhû‘ôth), Lamentations of Jeremiah or Eikhah (Ninth of Av) [Also called Kinnot in Hebrew], Ecclesiastes Qōheleth (Sukkôth), and Esther (Pûrîm);
and the books of prophecy (Daniel), (like Ezra, significant portions in Aramaic);
and history ( Ezra, Nehemiah, and I and II Chronicles or Divrei ha-Yamim, frequently referring to the “Torah of Moses” and exhibiting a familiarity with all the five books of the Pentateuch.).
The Babylonian Talmud (Bava Batra 14b–15a) gives their order as Ruth, Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Daniel, Scroll of Esther, Ezra, Chronicles.
In Tiberian Masoretic codices, including the Aleppo Codex and the Leningrad Codex, and often in old Spanish manuscripts as well, the order is Chronicles, Psalms, Job, Proverbs, Ruth, Song of Solomon, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations of Jeremiah, Esther, Daniel, Ezra.
In later years "hidden writings" or "hidden books" were by some also taken as sacred biblical literature under the name Apocrypha or Deuterocanonical but found non-canonical in Judaism and Protestantism.
The1st Ketuvim or Kethuvim Aleph being a miscellaneous collection of liturgical poetry, secular love poetry, wisdom literature, history, apocalyptic literature, a short story, and a romantic tale, received in later years some additional literature of some good and bad revelations and some letters, which became called the 2nd Ketuvim (2nd Writings) or Messianic Scriptures, the New testament.
Some Jewish sects, inclusive Messianic Jews, found some letters by the disciples of the Jewish rabbi Jeshua (Jesus Christ) very interesting to be part of writings (Ketuvim) for exhortation.
Dutch version / Nederlandse versie: Ketoeviem, Ketuvim, Geschriften, Hagiographa, Megillot en Messiaanse Geschriften
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