Joanna Weinberg, “The Role of Jewish Commentaries in Christian interpretation of the Mishnah in 17th century Northern Europe,” in Piet van Boxel, et al, eds., The Mishnaic Moment: Jewish Law among Jews and Christians in Early Modern Europe (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2022), 301-319 (original) (raw)

Guilielmus Surenhusius wrote a letter to Antonio Magliabechi, Cosimo III de' Medici's distinguished librarian, a prominent figure in the republic of letters and bibliophile. In his opening sentence he informed Magliabechi that he had embellished one of the volumes with his portrait and a letter, and that the volume was intended for Cosimo III, the dedicatee of the second volume of the Mishnah, the Order of Moʽed (' Appointed Times').¹ Surenhusius's portrait does indeed adorn some copies of his Mishnah.² In this context, however, it is not the actual portrait that is of significance, but rather the Hebrew inscription that undergirds it. Presumably chosen by Surenhusius himself, the caption presents a key to our understanding of Surenhusius's whole endeavour-the translation and interpretation of the Jewish systema. Taken from the Babylonian Talmud, tractate Shabbat 31a, the text, a mini-Midrash, encapsulates the universal significance of all the Mishnah's separate parts. It takes the form of an intricate play on Isaiah 33:6: And the stability (emunat) of your times shall be a hoard (hosen) of salvation, wisdom and knowledge, and the fear of the LORD which is His treasure. is is an especially difficult verse to construe, always a signal to the rabbis that the text is ripe for creative re inter pret ation. e Talmudic text reads: ' And there shall be trust in Your times, abundance of salvations, wisdom and knowledge and the fear of the Lord which is His treasure' (Isa. 33:6). 'Trust' refers to the Order of Seeds; 'Your times' refers to the Order of I am grateful to Anthony Gra on and my fellow editors for their careful reading of my chapter. ¹ Florence, Biblioteca Nazionale Centrale di Firenze [herea er BCNF], MS Magl. VIII.1360, fol. 178r-v: 'Libros Misnicos per veredarium ad te transmisi, unus qui effigie mea et inserta epistola ornatus est, Regiae Celsitudini offeratur, alter vero qui utraque caret, Serenissimo Principi ac Cardinali de Medicis, eique officia mea humillime offeras, obnixe peto'. ² e portrait was executed by the engraver Abraham de Blois (1679-1720). Surenhusius's portrait is in the first volume of his Mishnah held by BCNF, Palat. 29.2.7.1 (currently in conservation), and in the copies held by the Bibliotheca Rosenthaliana of Amsterdam (ROF 30) and Leiden University Library (841 A. 5). ere are likely to be other copies that contain the portrait. It also hangs in Amsterdam Rijksprentenkabinet, object no. RP-P-1936-748.