{"id":77726,"date":"2020-07-20T15:42:13","date_gmt":"2020-07-20T12:42:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/?p=77726"},"modified":"2020-07-20T15:42:13","modified_gmt":"2020-07-20T12:42:13","slug":"obadiahs-france-and-spain","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/obadiahs-france-and-spain\/","title":{"rendered":"Obadiah\u2019s France And Spain"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[281],"tags":[],"acf":{"old_id":"77726","type":"no","iframe":"","writer":64450,"related_cahpter":"528","type_929":"2","show_author_image":false,"old_create_date":"","old_url":"","post_main_content":{"description":"The furthest reaches of the exile\r\n\r\n","content":"

At the end of his book, Obadiah prophesies the return of Israel to their land, and even predicts that the borders will expand:<\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cAnd that exiled force of Israelites [shall possess] what belongs to the Phoenicians as far as Zarephath, while the Jerusalemite exile community of Sepharad shall possess the towns of the Negeb.\u201d (Obadiah 1:20)<\/span><\/p>\n

These two locations \u2013 Zarepath (<\/span>Tzarfat<\/span><\/em>) and Sepharad \u2013 are understood by scholars as ancient towns in the eastern Mediterranean. <\/span>Tzarfat\u00a0<\/span><\/em>is identified with \u201cSarpeta,\u201d a Phoenician city between Sidon and Tyre. One theory claims that the name derives from the Hebrew root <\/span>tz-r-f<\/span><\/em>, \u201cto smelt, refine\u201d. Glass manufacturing originally developed in that region, so the name is appropriate.<\/span><\/p>\n

Sepharad is further north, likely the city of Sardis, which is today located in Turkey. Based on inscriptions found in the area, Sepharad was the Aramaic name for the city.<\/span><\/p>\n

However, today neither <\/span>Tzarfat<\/span><\/em>\u00a0nor Sepharad are associated with those ancient towns. <\/span>Tzarfat<\/span><\/em>\u00a0is the Hebrew name for the country of France, and Sepharad is the Hebrew name for Spain.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How did this come about?<\/span><\/p>\n

Of the two, the changed meaning of Sepharad is older. The ancient translation known as Targum Yonatan translates Sepharad in the verse in Obadiah as \u201c<\/span>Espamia<\/span><\/em>,\u201d the name for Spain at that time. That identification was continued in the Middle Ages by the commentator Radak. It is unclear why Targum Yonatan made that translation. Perhaps it was due to Spain being such a remote area, and so the prophecy of a return from there would be all that more impressive.<\/span><\/p>\n

Tzarfat<\/span><\/em>\u00a0is identified with France in the commentaries of Rashi and Radak on this verse. Both lived in France in the Medieval period, so they are reflecting an accepted understanding by the Jews who lived there in those times. One theory as to why that identification occurred in the first place is due to the popularity in France of a type of word game or anagram (that today goes by the name \u201cverlan,\u201d \u201cinvert\u201d). That could explain how, <\/span>Tzarfat<\/span><\/em>\u00a0<\/span><\/i>becomes <\/span>f-r-tz<\/span><\/em>, which is similar to the name Francia used at the time.<\/span><\/p>\n

We\u2019ve seen now \u201chow\u201d <\/span>Tzarfat<\/span><\/em>\u00a0and Sepharad became France and Spain. But the question remains \u2013 why? And this question also applies to another region, Ashkenaz. It was later applied to Germany, but was originally a biblical word (first found in Genesis 10:3) and based on its appearance in Jeremiah 51:27, is assumed to have been in the area of Asia minor.<\/span><\/p>\n

Looking at the experience of the Jews in history provides us with an answer. After the destruction of the Second Temple, the Jews were exiled to faraway lands, whose names did not appear in the Bible. Being disconnected from the biblical tradition of exile destinations could imply that those communities would not participate in the redemption as well.<\/span><\/p>\n

But by associating their new residences with Biblical lands, they confirmed that they remained connected to Jewish history and destiny. In that sense, the prophecy came true. In our days, Sepharadim and Ashkenazim (and Tzarfatim) all returned to the Land of Israel.<\/span><\/p>\n","image":{"ID":77727,"id":77727,"title":"obad-france spain","filename":"obad-france-spain.png","filesize":0,"url":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/07\/obad-france-spain.png","link":"https:\/\/wp.929.org.il\/en\/obadiahs-france-and-spain\/obad-france-spain\/","alt":"","author":"7","description":"","caption":"","name":"obad-france-spain","status":"inherit","uploaded_to":77726,"date":"2020-07-20 12:40:02","modified":"2020-07-20 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