Hillel ben Naphtali Zevi
Encyclopedia
Hillel ben Naphtali Zevi was a Lithuanian rabbi
.
He was born at Brest-Litovsk in 1615; died at Zolkiev January 3, 1690. After he had studied under Hirsh Darshan, Hillel went to Vilna
, where from 1650 to 1651 he was a member of the rabbinical college. He stayed at Wilna until 1666, then became rabbi in Kėdainiai
and several other Lithuania
n towns, was called in 1670 as rabbi to Altona
and Hamburg
, and in 1680 to Zolkiev. He was also a delegate to the Council of the Four Lands at the fair of Yaroslav
.
Hillel was the author of an important work entitled Bet Hillel, a commentary and novellæ
on the four parts of the Shulkhan Arukh, an important code of Jewish law
. His son, Moses ben Hillel, published only the portions on Yoreh De'ah and Eben ha-Ezer, with the text (Dyhernfurth, 1691). He also wrote under the same title a homiletic and mystical commentary on the Torah
(five books of Moses
).
Rabbi
In Judaism, a rabbi is a teacher of Torah. This title derives from the Hebrew word רבי , meaning "My Master" , which is the way a student would address a master of Torah...
.
He was born at Brest-Litovsk in 1615; died at Zolkiev January 3, 1690. After he had studied under Hirsh Darshan, Hillel went to Vilna
Vilnius
Vilnius is the capital of Lithuania, and its largest city, with a population of 560,190 as of 2010. It is the seat of the Vilnius city municipality and of the Vilnius district municipality. It is also the capital of Vilnius County...
, where from 1650 to 1651 he was a member of the rabbinical college. He stayed at Wilna until 1666, then became rabbi in Kėdainiai
Kedainiai
Kėdainiai is one of the oldest cities in Lithuania. It is located on the Nevėžis River. First mentioned in the 1372 Livonian Chronicle of Hermann de Wartberge, its population as of 2008 was 30,214. Its old town dates to the 17th century....
and several other Lithuania
Lithuania
Lithuania , officially the Republic of Lithuania is a country in Northern Europe, the biggest of the three Baltic states. It is situated along the southeastern shore of the Baltic Sea, whereby to the west lie Sweden and Denmark...
n towns, was called in 1670 as rabbi to Altona
Altona, Hamburg
Altona is the westernmost urban borough of the German city state of Hamburg, on the right bank of the Elbe river. From 1640 to 1864 Altona was under the administration of the Danish monarchy. Altona was an independent city until 1937...
and Hamburg
Hamburg
-History:The first historic name for the city was, according to Claudius Ptolemy's reports, Treva.But the city takes its modern name, Hamburg, from the first permanent building on the site, a castle whose construction was ordered by the Emperor Charlemagne in AD 808...
, and in 1680 to Zolkiev. He was also a delegate to the Council of the Four Lands at the fair of Yaroslav
Yaroslav
Yaroslav is a Slavic given name, and it may refer to:*Yaroslav I the Wise , Grand Prince of Kiev. Son of Vladimir the Great*Yaroslav II of Kiev , son of Iziaslav II of Kiev...
.
Hillel was the author of an important work entitled Bet Hillel, a commentary and novellæ
Novella
A novella is a written, fictional, prose narrative usually longer than a novelette but shorter than a novel. The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America Nebula Awards for science fiction define the novella as having a word count between 17,500 and 40,000...
on the four parts of the Shulkhan Arukh, an important code of Jewish law
Halakha
Halakha — also transliterated Halocho , or Halacha — is the collective body of Jewish law, including biblical law and later talmudic and rabbinic law, as well as customs and traditions.Judaism classically draws no distinction in its laws between religious and ostensibly non-religious life; Jewish...
. His son, Moses ben Hillel, published only the portions on Yoreh De'ah and Eben ha-Ezer, with the text (Dyhernfurth, 1691). He also wrote under the same title a homiletic and mystical commentary on the Torah
Torah
Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five books of the bible—Genesis , Exodus , Leviticus , Numbers and Deuteronomy Torah- A scroll containing the first five books of the BibleThe Torah , is name given by Jews to the first five...
(five books of Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
).