''Tiqqūn sōferīm'' ( he, תיקון סופרים, plural ''tiqqūnēi sōferīm'') is a term from

rabbinic literature Rabbinic literature, in its broadest sense, is the entire spectrum of rabbinic writings throughout Jewish history. However, the term often refers specifically to literature from the Talmudic era, as opposed to medieval and modern rabbinic writ ...

meaning "correction/emendation of the scribes" or "scribal correction" and refers to a change of wording in the

Tanakh The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
''

Tiqqun Soferim ''Tiqqūn sōferīm'' ( he, תיקון סופרים, plural ''tiqqūnēi sōferīm'') is a term from rabbinic literature meaning "correction/emendation of the scribes" or "scribal correction" and refers to a change of wording in the Tanakh in o ...

'' can also refer to a copy of the

Five Books of Moses The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the sa ...

that is used to copy therefrom the Torah scroll.

History and commentaries

The first to use the term ''tiqqun soferim'' was

Shimon ben Pazi Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi, also known as Rabbi Simon, was an amora of the third generation. He was a student of Rabbi Yochanan and Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi. He is commonly called Rabbi Shimon ben Pazi in the Babylonian Talmud, and Rabbi Simon in the J ...

(an amora); previously, the

tannaim ''Tannaim'' ( Amoraic Hebrew: תנאים , singular , ''Tanna'' "repeaters", "teachers") were the rabbinic sages whose views are recorded in the Mishnah, from approximately 10–220 CE. The period of the ''Tannaim'', also referred to as the Mis ...

had used the phrase ''kina hakatuv'' ("the verse used a euphemism") in reference to the same verses. Many traditional commentators (including Elijah Mizrachi, Rashba, and Joseph Albo) consider ''tiqqunei soferim'' not as actual changes in the text, but rather as meaning that the original author acted like one who corrects a text for reasons of honoring God. On the other hand, modern scholars interpret the words of the old rabbis literally — that the text was corrected by later scribes, perhaps those of the

Great Assembly According to Jewish tradition the Men of the Great Assembly ( he, כְּנֶסֶת הַגְּדוֹלָה) or Anshei Knesset HaGedolah (, "The Men of the Great Assembly"), also known as the Great Synagogue, or ''Synod'', was an assembly of 120 sc ...

that edited the Biblical corpus. Even among traditional commentators, including the Arukh and

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

, there are those who believe that the ''tiqqunei soferim'' were actual changes that were made (and this seems to be stated explicitly in the

Midrash Tanhuma Midrash Tanhuma ( he, מִדְרָשׁ תַּנְחוּמָא) is the name given to three different collections of Pentateuch aggadot; two are extant, while the third is known only through citations. These midrashim, although bearing the name of ...

Known examples

The rabbis mentioned ''tiqqunei soferim'' in several places in their writings, with a total of about 18 ''tiqqunei soferim'' in all. However, some modern scholars argue that the rabbis did not give all the cases of ''tiqqun soferim'', and they try to identify other cases. An example of a ''tiqqun soferim'' can be seen in

I Kings The Book of Kings (, '' Sēfer Məlāḵīm'') is a book in the Hebrew Bible, found as two books (1–2 Kings) in the Old Testament of the Christian Bible. It concludes the Deuteronomistic history, a history of Israel also including the books ...

21:12–13, where

Naboth Naboth ( he, נבות) was a citizen of Jezreel. According to the Book of Kings in the Hebrew Bible, he was executed by Queen Jezebel so that her husband Ahab could possess his vineyard. Narrative 1 Kings 21:1-16 states that Naboth owned a vine ...

is accused of cursing God, but the text now has "blessed" since it is not fitting that the name of God should appear after the word "cursed": "Naboth has blessed God and King" instead of "Naboth has cursed God and King".

History and commentaries

Known examples

See also

Notes

References

Further reading