Bar Kokhba
- This page is edited by Shayna Sheinfeld, Montreal Canada
- SCHOLARLY AND FICTIONAL WORKS: see Bar Kokhba (works)
Shimon Bar Kokhba (2nd century CE) was the Jewish leader of the so-called Bar Kokhba revolt (or Third Jewish revolt) against the Roman rule in Judea around 132 CE.
Overview
Bar Kokhba in ancient sources
The discovery of letters in a cave near the Dead Sea, some apparently signed by Bar Kokhba himself, have provided some first-hand information about this historical character and the dramatic conclusion of the revolt.
Bar Kokhba in Rabbinic Literature
In the Jerusalem Talmud, Rabbi Akiba heralds Bar Kokhba as the messiah (y Ta’anit 4:8), citing Numb 24:17 (‘A star shall step forth from Jacob’) as a prooftext. The dictum is recited by Rabbi Akiba’s student Rabbi Shimon b. Yohai, whereas Rabbi Yohanan b. Torta responds to Akiba that ‘grass will grow between your jaws and still the son of David will not yet come!’
Midrash Lamentations Rabbah has a parallel legend (Lam. Rab. 2.5). Here, however, it is Rabbi Yohanan rather than Rabbi Shimon b. Yohai, who begins the tradition, “R. Yohanan said: Rabbi would expound A star shall step forth from Jacob thus: do not read “star” (kokhav) but “liar” (kozav).” Rabbi Akiba follows this with his statement of Bar Kokhba as the messiah, and Rabbi Yohanan b. Torta’s statement, as seen in y Ta’anit, follows.
Bar Kokhba in Scholarship
From ancient sources we know that his real name was Simon ben Kosiba. The Aramaic surname (Bar Kokhba = "son of a star") was given to him in reference to the messianic prophecy of Numbers 24:17. After the failure of the revolt, rabbinic writers would rather call him "Bar Kozeba" (= son of disappointment").
Bar Kokhba in Fiction
The rediscovery of Bar Kokhba as a Jewish hero and its transformation into a fearless champion of freedom and independence for his people coincide with the rise of Zionism in the second half of the 19th century. The memory of Bar Kokhba has accompanied the birth of the State of Israel and its struggle for independence and survival.
References
- Bar Kokhba / Benjamin Isaac and Aharon Oppenheimer / In: The Anchor Bible Dictionary (1992 Freedman), dictionary, 1:598-601