Become a Member
Israel

Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, behind acclaimed Hebrew translation of the Talmud, dies

Time magazine lauded Rabbi Steinsaltz’s 45-year project to make the ancient Jewish texts accessible to new generations

August 7, 2020 11:44
Rabbi Adin Even-Israel Steinsaltz   credit Steinsaltz.org
2 min read

Rabbi Adin Even Yisrael Steinsaltz – who spent over four decades working on the acclaimed  modern Hebrew translation and commentary of the entire Babylonian Talmud and Bible – has died at the age of 83.

Losing his capacity to speak after suffering a stroke in 2018, the Jerusalem born Chasidic rabbi had continued to proof-read and mark-up earlier work up,, often with the help of family members,  until his death, which was confirmed on Friday.

In 2001, Time magazine had lauded Rabbi Steinsaltz’s 45 year long project to make the ancient Jewish texts accessible to new generations a “once-in-a-millennium” intellectual undertaking.

His formidable efforts  - which involved updating the 2.5 million unpunctuated Hebrew and Aramaic words in the 6,000 pages of the Babylonian Talmud – even earned him comparisons with the 11th-century French sage Rashi, who had embarked on his commentary on the texts.