Jeshurun ( he, יְשֻׁרוּן ''Yəšurūn''; also ''Jesurun'' or ''Yeshurun'') is a
poetic
Poetry (derived from the Greek ''poiesis'', "making"), also called verse, is a form of literature that uses aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language − such as phonaesthetics, sound symbolism, and metre − to evoke meanings in a ...
name for
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
used in the Tanakh or
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach" '' root word meaning upright, just or straight, but may have been derived from שׁור, shur, to see, or may be a diminutive form of the word ''Israel'' (יִשְׂרָאֵל ''Yiśrāʾēl'').
Biblical accounts
''Jeshurun'' appears four times in the Hebrew Bible: three times in Deuteronomy and once in
Isaiah
Isaiah ( or ; he, , ''Yəšaʿyāhū'', "God is Salvation"), also known as Isaias, was the 8th-century BC Israelite prophet after whom the Book of Isaiah is named.
Within the text of the Book of Isaiah, Isaiah himself is referred to as "the ...
. It can refer to the people of Israel 33:26 , the Land of Israel (), or the
Patriarch
The highest-ranking bishops in Eastern Orthodoxy, Oriental Orthodoxy, the Catholic Church (above major archbishop and primate), the Hussite Church, Church of the East, and some Independent Catholic Churches are termed patriarchs (and in certai ...
Jacob
Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...
(whom an
angel
In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God.
Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles inclu ...
renamed Israel in ):
* 'But Jeshurun grew fat and kicked; you grew fat, you grew thick'. ()
* ' Moses commanded a law for us, a heritage of the congregation of Jacob. He was King in Jeshurun, when the leaders of the people were gathered, all the tribes of Israel together'. ()
* 'There is no one like the God of Jeshurun, who rides the heavens to help you'. ()
* ‘Fear not, O Jacob My servant, and thou, Jeshurun, whom I have chosen'. ( Isaiah 44:2).
The word ''Jeshurun'' may have a relationship to the same root as the
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...
word meaning 'upright' or 'righteous', ''yashar''.
Numbers
A number is a mathematical object used to count, measure, and label. The original examples are the natural numbers 1, 2, 3, 4, and so forth. Numbers can be represented in language with number words. More universally, individual numbers can ...
appears to use the word ''yashar'' (in its plural form ''yesharim'') as a play on the word "Jeshurun" to refer to the people of Israel. (). refers to a
Book of Jasher
Sefer haYashar is a reference to the Five Books of Moses, Joshua 10:13, see Targum Jonathan, "sifra d'oriaitho"; named on behalf of the Patriarchs who were call "Yesharim", see Numbers 23:10.
Sefer haYashar (Hebrew language, Hebrew ספר הישר ...
(or Book of Jashar), translated in some versions as "the Book of the Upright".
, Rabbi Berekiah in the name of Rabbi Simon interpreted Jeshurun to mean the Patriarch Israel. (
Genesis Rabba
Genesis Rabbah (Hebrew: , ''B'reshith Rabba'') is a religious text from Judaism's classical period, probably written between 300 and 500 CE with some later additions. It is a midrash comprising a collection of ancient rabbinical homiletical inter ...
h 77:1.) Similarly, Rabbi Berekiah in the name of Rabbi Judah b. Rabbi Simon interpreted Jeshurun to mean "the noblest and best among you." (Genesis Rabbah 77:1.)
Rabbi Aha bar Jacob told that the breastplate of the High Priest (or
Kohen
Kohen ( he, , ''kōhēn'', , "priest", pl. , ''kōhănīm'', , "priests") is the Hebrew word for " priest", used in reference to the Aaronic priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. Levitical priests or ''kohanim'' are traditionally ...
Gadol) contained the Hebrew words for "The tribes of Jeshurun," thus supplying the otherwise missing Hebrew letter ''tet'' in the word "''Shivtei''" ("tribes"). (See Babylonian
Talmud
The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...
Yoma 73b for full explanation of "otherwise missing"; see also
Exodus Rabbah
Exodus Rabbah (Hebrew: שמות רבה, ''Shemot Rabbah'') is the midrash to Exodus.
Contents
Exodus Rabbah is almost purely aggadic in character.
It contains 52 sections. It consists of two sections with different styles, dubbed "Exodus Rabba ...
38:9.)
In the Zohar, Rabbi Hiya explains that "Jeshurun suggests the word ''shur'' ow, sideand indicates that he acobhas his rank on this side and on the other." (Zohar 1:177b.)
In the Chassidic discourses of the
Baal Shem Tov
Israel ben Eliezer (1698 – 22 May 1760), known as the Baal Shem Tov ( he, בעל שם טוב, ) or as the Besht, was a Jewish mystic and healer who is regarded as the founder of Hasidic Judaism. "Besht" is the acronym for Baal Shem Tov, which ...
and his students, it is suggested that the word Yeshurun comes from the root "shir", meaning song or ring, suggesting the circular nature of melodies, i.e. that Jacob's descendants will sing mystical melodies in the coming redemption.
Modern interpretation
The ReformerJohn Calvin reflected that "by using the word 'upright' for Israel,
he author
He or HE may refer to:
Language
* He (pronoun), an English pronoun
* He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ
* He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets
* He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' ...
ironically taunts them with having departed from rectitude, and, reminding them of the high dignity conferred upon them, more severely reproves their sin of unfaithfulness".
Nineteenth century theologian Charles H. Waller argued that "Jeshurun is a diminutive—a term of endearment: either 'the child of the upright', or 'the beloved Israel'". He suggested that "the letters of the diminutive of Israel, if slightly abbreviated, would make 'Jeshurun'". However,
Joseph Benson
Joseph Benson (26 January 1749 – 16 February 1821) was an early English Methodist minister, one of the leaders of the movement during the time of Methodism's founder John Wesley.
Life
The son of John Benson and Isabella Robinson, his wife, he ...
noted that "some consider the word as being derived from שׁור, ''shur'', to see, and think the appellation was given them because they were so highly favoured with divine manifestations". Benson himself dismissed this view, suggesting that "it is much more probable that it is derived from ישׁר, ''jashar'', to be right, upright, or righteous, and that they are called Jeshurun, because they were a people professing righteousness, and were governed by righteous laws".Benson, J. Commentary on the Old and New Testaments with Critical, Explanatory, And Practical Notes on Deuteronomy 33, accessed 16 January 2016