Biblical Hermeneutics

PRINCIPLES OF BIBLICAL HERMENETICS ; M. M. NINAN
Conversely, a letter may not be used at all. Words were interpreted through the principle of
notarikon even when the words derived from the original did not necessarily correspond to it.
Thus nazuf ("under divine censure") is connected with Nezem Zahav beaF ḥazir ("a ring of
gold in the snout of a pig"; Avot 6:2).
The rabbis made extensive use of the notarikon and the anagram in the interpretation of
dreams (e.g., Ber. 57a), and many analogous usages of them can also be found in Hellenistic
writings of the period (S. Lieberman, see bibl.).
The use of the notarikon was also widespread in medieval homiletical and kabbalistic writings
(e.g., Ba'al ha-Turim by Jacob b. Asher). Through such methods of interpretation many words
in the Bible became notarikonim.
An example of such kabbalistic interpretation is the taking of the word בְּרֵ‏ אשִׁית (bereshit, "in
the beginning") to refer to the cosmogenic order בָּרָ‏ א רָ‏ קִיעַ‏ אֶרֶ‏ ץ שָׁמַיִם יָם תְּהוֹם (Bara Raki'a Ereẓ
Shamayim Yam Tehom; "He created the firmament, the earth, the heavens, the sea, and the
abyss").
Another example is to interpret bereshit to mean בְּרֵ‏ אשִׁית ("created in six primordial days";
Zohar, Gen. Prologue, 3b). According to the Mishnah, Queen *Helena of Adiabene had a
golden tablet made for the Temple on which the portion of the *sotah (see *Ordeal) was
written in an abbreviated notarikon manner (Yoma 3:10; 37b).
GEMETRIA
Gematria or gimatria (Hebrew: גימטריה / gēmaṭriyā) is a traditional Jewish system of
assigning numerical value to a word or phrase, in the belief that words or phrases with
identical numerical values bear some relation to each other, or bear some relation to the
number itself as it may apply to a person's age, the calendar year, or the like
גימטריא
The best-known example of Gematria is the Hebrew word Chai ("life"), which is composed of
two letters which (using the assignments in the Mispar gadol table shown below) add up to
18. This has made 18 a "lucky number" among Jews, and gifts in multiples of 18 are very
common among Jews.
Some identify two forms of gematria: the "revealed" form, which is prevalent in many
hermeneutic methods found throughout Rabbinic literature, and the "mystical" form, a largely
Kabbalistic practice.
Though gematria is most often used to calculate the values of individual words, psukim
(Biblical verses), Talmudical aphorisms, sentences from the standard Jewish prayers,
personal, angelic and Godly names, and other religiously significant material, Kabbalists use
them often for arbitrary phrases and, occasionally, for various languages.
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