Yehoshua Bin Nun
The 26th of Nisan is the anniversary of the death of our great leader Yehoshua Bin Nun. He was buried in Timnat Heres, which is currently located in an Arab village.
Being that it was the anniversary of his death, many people went last night to visit his grave, along with the graves of his father Nun, and of Calev Ben Yefuneh. (See this post at Life In Israel and this video up at Arutz Sheva.)
Every Wednesday night, I learn Gemara with a group of people, and we're currently learning Massechet Megilla. Last night, the 26th of Nissan, we just "happened" to be learning the bottom of page 14b, which talks about Yehoshua Bin Nun, and how he married Rahav, and that Hulda and other prophets descended from him. The proof that Hulda descended from him is from a Gezeira Shava mentioned in this line:
אמר רב נחמן חולדה מבני בניו של יהושע היתה כתיב הכא (מלכים ב כב) בן חרחס וכתיב התם (יהושוע כד) בתמנת חרס
The burial place of Yehoshua was mentioned in the gemara that I was learning.
But wait, this gets better. This morning, at the synagogue, it happened to also be the first anniversary of the death of a man who was a big Gomeil Hessed to people in our community. He performed Hassadim for the living (by preparing breakfast for all who prayed each morning after Shaharit) and for the dead (by taking care of cemetary arrangements - a Hessed Shel Emet). His name: Yehoshua.
I just installed Psuko Shel Yom on my computer. When turning on my computer this morning, the verse of the day was:
גומלי חסדים זוכין לחסות בצלו של הקדוש ברוך הוא
Those who perform kindnesses merit to be protected in the shade of the Holy One, blessed be He
Thank you, Hashem, for showing me a glimpse of Your ways.
posted by yaak @ 5/01/2008 12:48:00 PM
15 comments
15 Comments:
Assuming that in the generation of Chulda there were living descendants of Yehoshua, the most reasonable assumption is that every Jew at the time was a descendant of Yehoshua. That would include Chulda, of course, and the Gezeira Shava is not Mehadesh much. I suggest it means something else.
For background, read this: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Identical_ancestors_point
This relates to the question you asked in your earlier post: "Are you from David Hamelech? If so, are you Ben Ahar Ben?"
If a Ben Ahar Ben exists in our generation, just about everybody must be from David HaMelech in one way or other. Under reasonable assumptions, that includes just about every non-Jew.
I saw that אובמא is mentioned in this Gemara. May it add to your glimpse of His ways.
Shabbat Shalom
Actually, it is פתיא אוכמא, but still :-)
1st Anonymous commenter above:
You think that "everybody", including "just about every non-Jew" is a descendant of David HaMelech? I think that a few billion Chinese, Indians, and Latin American natives (among many, many others) beg to differ.
Moshe Meir, The Chinese are most certainly descendants of Jews, and by force of David HaMelech. About a thousand years ago there were very sizeable Jewish communities in China. The disappeared through intermarriage. I you read the link I have. The best thing is the to do the math yourself, if you can.
The point I make is that it must be assumed on mathematical grounds that all Jews descend from David HaMelech, and because of assimilatin just about all citizens of the world. Make sure you understand the math before taking a stand.
How come Nun is buried in Israel? Didn't he die in the midbar cos of chet hameraglim?
Most, if not all of tribe-forefathers are buried in Eretz Yisrael. They all died in Mitzraim. Perhaps Nun did as well.
Is there a source that the remains of those who died in mitzraim or in the midbar were brought to Eretz Yisroel to be buried there? Torah explicitly only mentions the bringing of the bones of Yosef. Book of Joshua tells us where Yosef and Yehoshua were buried. But Nun? And other tribe-forefathers? If there is no biblical (or even midrashic?) source that says their remains were brought to EY, it seems to be just conjecture that these kavarim are authentic?
I know of no such source, and immediately after I wrote this last comment I considered writing that this seems to be the accepted Jewish tradition, though I did not know it to be necessarily stated fact one way or the other.
Indeed the mefarshim say that Pesach Sheini in the Midbar was due to the people carrying Yosef's Aron. Why not anyone else if there were others?
Indeed that is a good question. Traditions are an important part of our heritage, and they should be traceable. I'd be interested if any reader has any knowledge of any source to these traditions regarding bringing of remains other than Yosef's to Eretz Yisrael.
Here's one source:
Makkot 11b - Yehudah's bones rolling around the coffin.
Also see Rashi there, where he brings a source from
והעלו את עצמותי מזה אתכם - meaning along with your own.
Great - thanks - that's a great source for the bones of the Shevatim having been taken to Eretz Yisrael. See also Bava Kamma 92a and the Rashi there (kol ha-shevatim) (similar to Makkot 11b).
But I am still lacking a source for Nun. Anyone have any idea please?
Rashi also comments on the pasuk והעלו את עצמותי מזה אתכם (Shemot 13:19) that the bones of all the shevatim were taken with them.
And don't forget the shiloh connection...
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