This series of philological commentaries by Isaac Jerusalmi has enabled generations of students from Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion as well as other institutions around the globe to unlock, with less pain and increased incentive, the treasures of Semitic Language literature. They make excellent course texts and are equally suitable to independent study.
The Aramaic Sections of Ezra and Daniel
A gateway for students into knowledge of Aramaic language and comparative Semitics through study of the Aramaic sections of Ezra and Daniel. The commentary is an introduction to Aramaic dialectology, with the goal of building facility also in Rabbinic Aramaic, Rabbinic literature, and ultimately Talmud. It is appropriate for students with minimal Hebrew background, as it also reviews the basics of Hebrew grammar.
Basic Pirqe Avoth
A gateway for students into knowledge of Mishnaic Hebrew through study of Pirqe Avoth. The commentary covers differences between Biblical and Mishnaic Hebrew, helpful for students with some Hebrew background, as well as common idioms in rabbinic literature.
The Story of Joseph (Genesis 37; 39-47)
A gateway for students into knowledge of Hebrew language and comparative Semitics through study of the Joseph story. It introduces the binyanim for strong and weak verbs, vocabulary, phonological rules, and elements of syntax.
Surat Yusuf: The Story of Joseph in the Qur’an
A gateway for students into knowledge of the Arabic language and comparative Semitics through study of the story of Joseph as told in the Qur’an. It walks students through an entire Qur’anic surah with philological notes and explanations designed to introduce beginning students to the various forms of the Arabic verb, vocabulary, phonological rules, and elements of syntax in Qur’anic Arabic.