An Introduction to Talmud and Midrash
A Complex Literary and Traditional Tapestry
This brief introduction is adapted from material in David Halivni’s The Formation of the Babylonian Talmud, Louis Jacob’s Structure and Form in the Babylonian Talmud, and Günter Stemberger’s Introduction to the Talmud and Midrash. These volumes are highly recommended for a more detailed and thorough introduction to this subject.
The Midrash and Talmud are monumental and expansive literary works that form the basis for Jewish law, ethics, theology and thought.
The Midrash, having its origins in oral traditions that predate both the Rabbinic and New Testament eras, often refers to a specific compilation of these traditions put into writing, composed and collated between 400 and 1200 CE. The term midrash itself is derived from the Hebrew darash which is typically translated as “to seek” or “to ask”. In the Hebrew Bible this underlying principle can be found in Ezra 7:10 referring to the study of the Torah, and in Isaiah 34:16 referring to the admonition of careful reading. The concept of darash is also found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, such as 4QSb, 4QSd, and 4Q Florilegium, used there as descriptions of “searching” and “interpreting” inherited texts and traditions.
In rabbinic usage, midrash refers to research and study, distinguished as “theory” from the more essential “practice”. The authoritative text is an essential prerequisite for midrash. However, midrash is not simply a literature about another literature, as some scholars have claimed. Scholars note that midrash may allude not only to a biblical text but also to a biblical event. The key defining feature of midrash remains the act of interpreting and expanding upon authoritative texts and religious traditions, not focused on the subjective response of the audience. In this context, scholars note that these interpretive practices have their origins in the text itself, as the books of Chronicles are often understood as a type of midrash on Samuel and Kings, and a later addition found in Genesis 22:14 is seen as a simple midrash identifying the mountain of the sacrifice of Isaac with the Temple Mount.
While simplistic, Midrash is often described as one of these two types:
Aggadic Midrash: This includes narratives, stories, and parables that are meant to illustrate moral, ethical, or religious principles derived from the biblical text. These stories are not always meant to be taken literally or historically, but are used to convey deeper truths and lessons.
Halakhic Midrash: This focuses on deriving law or legal precedent from the biblical text. It often involves detailed analysis and discussion of commandments and legal principles.
While the Midrash focuses primarily on interpreting the Hebrew Bible and deriving moral, ethical, and spiritual lessons, the Talmud delves deeply into Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs, and history. It consists of two main parts: the Mishnah, a written compendium of Rabbinic Judaism's Oral Torah, compiled around 200 CE, and the Gemara, a discussion and elaboration of the Mishnah, completed over the next few centuries in both Babylon and Israel. This dual structure of the Talmud, encompassing the Mishnah and Gemara, forms a detailed and expansive legal discourse, bringing together laws, rabbinic debates, stories, and philosophical explorations in a way that is far more intricate than the narrative and homiletic style of the Midrash. These written compilations are distinctive in their thoroughness and attention to detail which far surpasses any prior analogues in the Dead Sea Scrolls, New Testament, or other pre-rabbinic literature.
Scholars generally discuss two distinct families of Talmud:
The Jerusalem Talmud (Talmud Yerushalmi)- This was compiled in Palestine around 400 CE, likely in Tiberias. It includes commentary on 39 of the Mishnah's 63 tractates.
The Babylonian Talmud (Talmud Bavli)- This was compiled about 200 years after the Jerusalem Talmud between 500-600 CE in Babylonia. It is more extensive than the Yerushalmi, commenting on 37 tractates.
Within the text of the Talmud, the Mishnah represents the first major written redaction of Jewish oral traditions. It was compiled around the year 200 CE by Rabbi Judah the Prince and organizes the oral law into six concise orders divided into tractates.
The Gemara is rabbinic commentary on the Mishnah produced by Jewish scholars known as Amoraim. The Gemara systematically analyzes the Mishnah, explains the reasons behind laws, reconciles contradictions, and debates proper practice. While the Mishnah is terse and omitted much underlying reasoning, the Gemara provides extensive legal discussions and justifications. It incorporates folk materials, scriptural exegesis, theological perspectives, and narrative elements.
Beyond these specific divisions with the texts, scholars also commonly divide the historic eras encompassing the compilation of Talmud over time:
Tannaitic Period (10 BCE – 220 CE): This period encompasses the lifetimes of the tannaim, the rabbi-scholars who began compiling and recording oral traditions. Early midrashim and the Mishnah took shape at this time.
Amoraic Period (220 CE – 500 CE): In this period, the amoraic scholars undertook extensive analysis and commentary on the Mishnah, recorded in the Gemara. Both the Jerusalem and Babylonian Talmud began formation.
Savoraic Period (500 CE – 600 CE): During this transitional century, the Talmud was completed and minor editorial emendations occurred.
Geonic Period (600 CE – 1050 CE): The academies of Babylonia solidified the Talmudic text and began developing systematic philosophies to explain Talmudic principles.
Rishonic Period (1050 CE – 1500 CE): Rabbinic scholars focused on explicating the Talmud through major commentaries. Codes of law were compiled extracting Talmudic legal rulings.
Acharonic Period (1500 CE – present): Talmud study and commentary continues along with application of Talmudic law to new conditions. Critical academic study of the Talmud also developed in this era and continues into the present day
The Midrash and Talmud present rich opportunities for intertextual study due to their assimilation and preservation of Jewish oral traditions developed over centuries. While the final form of these texts we have today represent developments over time, it is vital to remember that the dates representing the writing and/or compilation of these works do not necessarily date the individual contents within them. A legal or narrative tradition contained in these later works may have originated much earlier, even if it only appears explicitly in writings compiled after 600 CE. Careful examination using tools of textual criticism allows scholars to uncover early precursors obscured by the multilayered evolution of Rabbinic literature.
For example, a legal ruling or exegetical interpretation found in the Babylonian Talmud (redacted around 600 CE) may also be attested in the Dead Sea Scrolls, Philo, Josephus, or the New Testament (all dating in a range from 100 BCE - 100 CE). Finding such parallels provides evidence that the tradition likely dates back to Second Temple times or earlier, rather than originating in the communities who compiled the Talmud. Tales of Jewish martyrdom under Roman rule contained in medieval Midrashim may have antecedents in 1st century accounts by Josephus or early Christian chronicles.
By studying these manuscripts, diverse textual traditions, and through source-critical analysis, scholars work to identify traditions typically credited to the Sadducees, Pharisees, or Essenes, all of which may have contributed to later harmonized Rabbinic texts.
The composite, multilayered nature of Midrashic and Talmudic literature enables peering backward in time to uncover origins obscured by intervening centuries of transmission. Careful intertextual study that compares Talmudic and Midrashic passages with other related texts can provide a window into the early stages of development of even broader and more deeply connected traditions.