The Rubin Edition of the Prophets: Joshua and Judges

by Nosson Scherman

You have made the Stone Edition of the Chumash, by Rabbi Nosson Scherman, the standard English-language translation and commentary throughout the world. Countless people have requested a similar work on the Prophets and Writings. We have heard you!



Thanks to the brilliance of the ArtScroll/Mesorah team of scholars and writers - led by Rabbi Nosson Scherman - the tradition continues, with The Rubin Edition - a translation and commentary of the Prophets that will sweep the English-speaking world, providing new dimensions of understanding and beauty.



There is a new degree of education and sophistication among English-speaking Jews, and this is a work that speaks to them.



This brilliant new work has an unprecedented array of

A highly regarded new translation, firmly grounded in traditional sources

A commentary culled from classic sources and presented gracefully and literately

Newly set Hebrew commentaries of Rashi, Radak, and Metzudos

Newly set, accurate Hebrew Text of the Tanach

An Overview on Prophets and Prophecy

Introductions and explanations of difficult concepts

Maps and diagrams

Lightweight, opaque, acid-free heirloom-quality paper, for decades of quality use

Gilded page heads for decades of dust resistance

Magnificent sculpted cover

Ribbon place-marker



For most people, Tanach is something they studied a smattering of when they were too young to understand it. The result is that we have vague recollections of some of the narratives, and even less comprehension of its messages. But the Talmud tells us that the Books of the Prophets contain only prophecies that were needed by future generations. This new commentary not only brings the verses alive, it does so in such a way that they are actually speaking to us - in language, in outlook, in aspiration for spiritual growth.



The Rubin Edition's inclusion of the major Hebrew commentaries gives this work a high degree of versatility, so that it can be studied on many levels.



What the Schottenstein Edition does for the study of Talmud, and the Stone Edition does for the study of Chumash, the Rubin Edition will do for the study of Tanach. For multitudes of people, it has been a closed book. No more.

Genres: Judaism

264 pages, Hardcover

First published August 1, 2001

About the author

Nosson Scherman (Hebrew: נתן שרמן‎, born 1935, Newark, New Jersey) is an American Haredi rabbi best known as the general editor of ArtScroll/Mesorah Publications.

Scherman was born and raised in Newark, New Jersey, where his parents ran a small grocery store. He attended public school, but in the afternoons joined a Talmud Torah started in 1942 by Rabbi Shalom Ber Gordon, a shaliach of the sixth Lubavitcher Rebbe, Rabbi Yosef Yitzchok Schneersohn. Rabbi Gordon influenced many of the 200 boys in his afternoon Talmud Torah to enroll in yeshiva, including young Nosson Scherman, who became a dormitory student at Yeshiva Torah Vodaas at around age 10. Afterwards, he studied in Beth Medrash Elyon in Spring Valley, New York

Scherman worked as a rebbi (teacher) for about eight years at Torah VoDaas of Flatbush, later known as Yeshiva Torah Temimah. Afterwards he was a principal at Yeshiva Karlin Stolin of Boro Park for six years. During his tenure as principal, he was recommended to Rabbi Meir Zlotowitz, director of a high-end graphics studio in New York named ArtScroll Studios, as someone who could write copy, and they collaborated on a few projects of brochures and journals.

In late 1975, a close friend of Zlotowitz, Rabbi Meir Fogel, died in his sleep, prompting Zlotowitz to want to do something to honor his memory. As Purim was a few months away, he decided to write an English translation and commentary on the Book of Esther, and asked Scherman to write the introduction. The book was completed in honor of the shloshim (the 30-day commemoration of a death) and sold out its first edition of 20,000 copies within two months. With the encouragement of Rabbi Moses Feinstein, Rabbi Yaakov Kamenetsky, and other Gedolei Yisrael, the two continued producing commentaries, beginning with a translation and commentary on the rest of the Five Megillot (Song of Songs, Ecclesiastes, Lamentations and Ruth), and went on to publish translations and commentaries on the Torah, Prophets, Talmud, Passover Haggadah, siddurs and machzors. The name ArtScroll was chosen for the publishing company to emphasize the visual appeal of the books.

In its first 25 years, ArtScroll produced more than 700 books, including novels, history books, children's books and secular textbooks, and is now one of the largest publishers of Jewish books in the United States.

Selected bibliography:
Zlotowitz and Scherman are the general editors of ArtScroll's Talmud, Stone Chumash, Tanakh, Siddur, and Machzor series. They co-authored Megillas Esther: Illustrated Youth Edition (1988), a pocket-size Mincha/Maariv prayerbook (1991), and Selichos: First Night (1992). They have also produced a host of titles on which Scherman is author and Zlotowitz is editor.

Scherman contributed translations and commentaries for ArtScroll's Stone Chumash, the ArtScroll Siddurim and Machzorim, and the Stone Tanach. He served as general editor of the 73-volume translation Schottenstein edition of the Talmud from 1990 until 2005.

Scherman attributes his strong English language skills to the stronger general-studies departments that yeshivas had when he was a student, and his correspondence with two out-of-town high school classmates, Mendel Weinbach and Nisson Wolpin. He has said: "During the summers we used to write letters. Does anyone correspond today? We wrote to each other – that helped. We tried to outdo each other; we were big-shot teenagers. The only way to learn how to write is to write."

Reviews

[Lance · Rating 5 out of 5]

Following the style of the Stone Edition Chumash, the Hebrew text is on the right hand page along with Rashi and other commentaries in Hebrew. The new English translation is on the left hand page along with commentary in English. The English translation has a few errors, but nothing major. Follows the exploits of Joshua in the land of Canaan and the Judges or governors up until the time of the prophet Samuel. It was enjoyable to read the text in the Hebrew and the commentary added a lot.

[James Hatton · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a serious student of God I appreciated this book, enormously. Follows the Chumash, of course. The commentary is outstanding.