Sheqalim (Mishnah)
Scheqalim / שקלים (Eng. "Shekel") is a treatise of the Mishnah in the order Mo'ed (feast days, feast days) .
content
The treatise deals with provisions for the fee due under Ex 30: 11-16 (annually) in the amount of half a shekel, which adult men over 20 years of age had to pay to maintain temple service. This tax had to be paid before the three Jewish pilgrimage festivals ( Passover , Shavuot and Sukkot ). Presumably therefore the treatise is arranged in the order Moed (festive times) and not in Kodaschim, which the latter deals with similar questions.
The following questions are dealt with in detail:
- When and by whom the levy has to be paid in what amount (Chapters 1 and 2).
- How is the donation administered in the temple and what may it be used for (Chapters 3 and 4).
- Which officials were responsible for collecting and administering the levy at the temple (Chapter 5).
- How to deal with money found on the temple grounds (Chapter 7).
There is also a list of objects and regulations associated with the number 13 (Chapter 6), as well as regulations about purity and uncleanliness in the temple, in Jerusalem and outside the city (Chapter 8). Both chapters are thematically only loosely connected to the main question of the temple donation. The questions discussed were of a purely theoretical nature at the time the tract was written, as the temple had already been destroyed. The last Mishnah of the treatise makes this clear:
The sheqels and the firstfruits have no validity except in the face of the temple, but grain and cattle tithes and (regulations on) firstborns are valid in the face of the temple and not in the face of the temple.
Apparently the regulations and information should be kept and handed down until a time when the temple would exist again.
The treatise contains valuable information on financial and economic life in the Land of Israel . It is noteworthy that only the so-called Tyrian shekel was allowed to pay the tax . This was particularly appreciated because its silver content was particularly high and constant over a long period of time. Other coins or currencies had to be exchanged for Tyrian shekels, which required the presence of changers in the temple precinct.
The treatise also contains a map-like description of facilities on the temple grounds, which is essential for knowing how the temple cult works. In addition, there are also Aggadic traditions about the hiding place of the Ark of the Covenant (6.2) and the fantastic nature of the curtain in the temple (8.5).
Rabbis of all generations are involved in the discussions , and biblical figures and historical figures from the time of the temple are also mentioned.
In the traditional editions the tract is in fourth place in the order Moed (מועד) , in the old Mischnah manuscripts, however, in fifth place after Joma . Both tracts have eight chapters, so that the interchanging can be explained. There is a Tosefta tract on Sheqalim, as well as a Gemara in the Jerusalem or Palestinian Talmud , but not in the Babylonian Talmud . In editions of the latter, however, the text of Jeruschalmi is usually included.
See also
literature
- Michael Krupp (Ed.): The Mishnah. 2nd order. Mo'ed - festival times. Part 2, 4: Michael Krupp: Schekalim - Temple Tax. Lee Achim Sefarim, Jerusalem 2004, ISBN 965-7221-19-6 .
Web links
Individual evidence
- ↑ This passage is the starting point for all kinds of speculations up to the present day. A literary processing can be found e.g. B. in Harry Mulisch's The Discovery of Heaven .