Naftali Hertz ben Yaakov Elchanan (Bacharach) (17th century) was a German rabbi, born in

Frankfurt Frankfurt am Main () is the most populous city in the States of Germany, German state of Hesse. Its 773,068 inhabitants as of 2022 make it the List of cities in Germany by population, fifth-most populous city in Germany. Located in the forela ...

, author of the controversial work ''Emeq HaMelekh'' (''Valley of the King'', 1648,

Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , ; ; ) is the capital of the Netherlands, capital and Municipalities of the Netherlands, largest city of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It has a population of 933,680 in June 2024 within the city proper, 1,457,018 in the City Re ...

) on the subject of the

Lurianic Kabbalah Lurianic Kabbalah is a school of Kabbalah named after Isaac Luria (1534–1572), the Jewish rabbi who developed it. Lurianic Kabbalah gave a seminal new account of Kabbalistic thought that its followers synthesised with, and read into, the earli ...

Works

His most well-known work, ''Emeq HaMelekh'', was based mainly on

Israel Sarug Israel Sarug Ashkenazi (Hebrew: ר׳ ישראל סרוג אשכנזי , also סרוק ''Saruk'' or ''Srugo'', known also as רי״ס ''the Ris'' and מהר״י סרוג ''Mahari Sarug,'' 1590–1610) was a pupil of Isaac Luria who devoted himself ...

's ''Limmudei Azilut'' (published 1897), incorporating large portions of that text. It seems very likely that Bacharach borrowed heavily from many sources (including Sarug,

Joseph Solomon Delmedigo Joseph Solomon Delmedigo (or Del Medigo), also known as Yashar Mi-Qandia (; 16 June 1591 – 16 October 1655), was a rabbi, author, physician, mathematician, and music theory, music theorist. Born in Heraklion, Candia, Crete, a descendant of E ...

, and Shabbetai Horowitz) without acknowledging the debt ( Scholem 1974). The book had a major impact on later kabbalah as it was regarded among many, including the Chabad Hasidim and the followers of the

Vilna Gaon Elijah ben Solomon Zalman, ( ''Rabbi Eliyahu ben Shlomo Zalman''), also known as the Vilna Gaon ( ''Der Vilner Goen''; ; or Elijah of Vilna, or by his Hebrew acronym Gr"a ("Gaon Rabbenu Eliyahu": "Our great teacher Elijah"; Sialiec, April 23, 172 ...

, as an authoritative statement of Luria's kabbala. Its influence is also evident in Ramchal's system. The book indicates that, prior to the conquest of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

and the

Babylonian captivity The Babylonian captivity or Babylonian exile was the period in Jewish history during which a large number of Judeans from the ancient Kingdom of Judah were forcibly relocated to Babylonia by the Neo-Babylonian Empire. The deportations occurred ...

, the prophet

Jeremiah Jeremiah ( – ), also called Jeremias, was one of the major prophets of the Hebrew Bible. According to Jewish tradition, Jeremiah authored the Book of Jeremiah, book that bears his name, the Books of Kings, and the Book of Lamentations, with t ...

hid the treasures of

Solomon's Temple Solomon's Temple, also known as the First Temple (), was a biblical Temple in Jerusalem believed to have existed between the 10th and 6th centuries Common Era, BCE. Its description is largely based on narratives in the Hebrew Bible, in which it ...

, with the assistance of five others. Although ''Emeq HaMelekh'' contained approbations from well-respected scholars, it also met with substantial disapproval from contemporary kabbalists such as

Chaim Joseph David Azulai Haim Yosef David Azulai ben Yitzhak Zerachia (; 1724 – 1 March 1806), commonly known as the Hida (also spelled Chida, the acronym of his name, ), was a Jerusalem born rabbi, rabbinical scholar, a noted bibliophile, and a pioneer in the publica ...

Berechiah Berak Berechiah Berak ben Isaac Eisik Shapira (died 1664) was a Galician preacher who was educated by Nathan Shapira, rabbi of Kraków, and was appointed preacher of that city, where he spent most of his life. He ultimately left for Jerusalem, but died ...

, and

Moses Hagiz Moses Hagiz (1671 – c. 1750) (Hebrew: משה חגיז) was a Talmudic scholar, rabbi and writer born in Jerusalem during the time of the Old Yishuv. He was also one of the most prominent and influential Jewish leaders in 17th-century Amsterdam. ...

. The book ''Emeq HaMelekh'' is the source for the famous story about the historic Avraham Avinu synagogue in

Hebron Hebron (; , or ; , ) is a Palestinian city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Hebron is capital of the Hebron Governorate, the largest Governorates of Palestine, governorate in the West Bank. With a population of 201,063 in ...

. According to the introduction, a stranger appeared on the evening of

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

to serve as the 10th man of the

minyan In Judaism, a ''minyan'' ( ''mīnyān'' , Literal translation, lit. (noun) ''count, number''; pl. ''mīnyānīm'' ) is the quorum of ten Jewish adults required for certain Mitzvah, religious obligations. In more traditional streams of Judaism ...

and thus complete the required number of people for a prayer service. After Yom Kippur, the rest of the congregation couldn't find him. That night, the

hazzan A ''hazzan'' (; , lit. Hazan) or ''chazzan'' (, plural ; ; ) is a Jewish musician or precentor trained in the vocal arts who leads the congregation in songful prayer. In English, this prayer leader is often referred to as a cantor, a term al ...

of the synagogue dreamed that the man was speaking to him and told him that he was Avraham Avinu, the Patriarch of the Jewish people who is buried nearby in the Cave of Machpela. The full text of this story and the original cover of the book today hang on a plaque in the Avraham Avinu synagogue. The second part of this work, under the title ''Gan HaMelekh'', is a commentary on passages of the

Zohar The ''Zohar'' (, ''Zōhar'', lit. "Splendor" or "Radiance") is a foundational work of Kabbalistic literature. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material o ...

. It is still in manuscript.

Translations

The first two "Gates" of ''Sefer Emeq HaMelekh'' were translated into English.

References

* * *Bachrach, Naftali Hertz (2013
Sefer Emek haMelech
(Hebrew Edition, reprinting)
Brief explanation and English translation of Emeq HaMelekh
*Eliezer Baumgarten
Comments on Rav Naftali Bachrach's Usage of Pre-Lurianic Sources
, AJS Review 37:2 (November 2013) pp. 1–23 17th-century German rabbis Kabbalists German Orthodox rabbis Rabbis from Frankfurt Year of death unknown Year of birth unknown {{kabbalah-stub