Onkelos was a well-educated man and well versed in all things relating to Greek and Roman cultures. He was blessed with a clear head, an exceptional brain, and an uplifted soul. He is one of the most famous converts to Judaism, having taken on the Jewish religion when he traveled to Jerusalem. He was a disciple of 3 of the Torah greats, Rabbi Yehoshua ben Chananya, Rabbi Eliezer ben Hirkanos, and Rabbi Jochanan ben Zakai.
Following the Babylonian exile, Onkelos noted that many of the Jewish people started speaking Aramaic and other dialects and were unable to read the Torah. Onkelos took it upon himself to translate the Torah into the spoken language of Aramaic according to the explanations handed down from generation to generation back to Moses. This translation is to this day known as “Targum Onkelos”, the translation of Onkelos.
Reading the Bible with this translation opens up a deeper understanding of G-d’s Holy words and is a must for every home where Bible study is valued.
It is rare to find Onkelos in English. This is a unique and remarkable translation and English commentary of the Onkelos translation of the Torah.
The five-volume set, in a deluxe case, which contains the Hebrew Massoretic text, a vocalized text of Onkelos and Rashi, Haftarot (weekly Torah readings that coincide with each weekly Torah portion) in Hebrew with an English translation from the Aramaic, a scholarly appendix, and a “Beyond the Text” exploration of biblical themes.
- Hardcover
- Boxed set of 5 volumes
- Genesis
- Exodus
- Leviticus
- Numbers
- Deuteronomy
- Page count: 1534
Onkelos On the Torah Boxed Set
Stanley M. Wagner is Rabbi Emeritus of the BHM-BJ Congregation in Denver, Colorado; Professor Emeritus at the University of Denver; Founding Director of its Center for Judaic Studies; and Founding Director of the Mizel Museum in Denver.
He wrote, edited, or co-edited four volumes, A Piece of My Mind, Traditions of the American Jew, Great Confrontations in Jewish History, and Great Schisms in Jewish History, and was General Editor of a six-volume series entitled Christian and Jewish Traditions in the 20th Century. Professor Wagner received six degrees of higher learning from Yeshiva University, including a doctorate in Jewish History. He lives in Jerusalem with his wife, Renee.
Israel Drazin is the author of ten books, seven of which are on Targum Onkelos. He was the first scholar to recognize that the Targum took hundreds of items from the Tannaitic Midrashim, edited around 400 CE, and even incorporated many words found in these Midrashim in his translation. This discovery allowed him to date the Targum Onkelos to around 400 CE, a period much later than was widely accepted, because of the Targum’s reliance on these Midrashim. Dr. Drazin received a number of rabbinic ordinations, and has earned a BA in theology, an MEd in psychology, an MA in Hebrew literature, a law degree, and a PhD in Aramaic literature. He resides in Boca Raton and Jerusalem with his wife, Dina.