Pirkei de-Rabbi Eliezer (, 'Chapters of Rabbi Eliezer'; abbreviated , 'PRE') is an aggadic-midrashic work of Torah exegesis and retellings of biblical stories. Traditionally, the work is attributed to the tanna Eliezer ben Hurcanus and his school. Modern research suggests that the text is pseudepigraphic from the Geonic period of the eighth century, written in or near the Land of Israel.
First chapters and attribution to Eliezer Medieval scholarly texts also referred to Pirkei De-Rabbi Eliezer as Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer HaGadol and as Baraita DeRabbi Eliezer. Whereas medieval scholars attributed the work to the Tanna Eliezer ben Hyrcanus, Abraham Zacuto wrote, "it is well known that although it is attributed to Rabbi Eliezer, it was written by later generations".Sefer Yuchasin, First Part, Aleph-Bet, Letter Aleph. Subsequently, research by Leopold Zunz claims that Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer is an pseudepigraphic work. The first two chapters of the work are dedicated to the story of Eliezer ben Hyrcanus's approach to Torah, serving as an introduction to the work and providing background about the author. These chapters are derived from Avot de-Rabbi Natan, Version B, Chapter 13, and their originality in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer is a matter of scholarly debate. Many researchers speculate that these chapters are a later addition and not original to the Midrash.This hypothesis is based on evidence from the Cairo Geniza, where a list of books includes a manuscript in which the midrash begins at Chapter 3. Additionally, in one manuscript, the title of the midrash appears only in Chapter 3. According to this hypothesis, there is no internal evidence in the midrash itself to attribute it specifically to Eliezer, and the name Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer was given because he is the first sage mentioned at the beginning of Chapter 3, "Rabbi Eliezer ben Hyrcanus opened...", as it was customary to name works after the first sage mentioned in them.M.B. Lerner, "Studies in a List of Books from the Geniza," Te'uda 1 (1980), p. 49 (in Hebrew) Kister, "Studies in Avot DeRabbi Nathan," p. 15 (in Hebrew) Eliezer Treitl disagrees with this view and believes that the chapters should not be excluded from the canon for two reasons: These chapters appear in all the complete manuscripts of the work that exist; the language of the chapters slightly differs from their source in Avot DeRabbi Natan in a way that suits the unique language and stylistic nuances of Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer.Treitl, "Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer," p. 25-26. (in Hebrew).
Time and place of the composition The first scholar to establish the dating of the midrash was Leopold Zunz. Following his work, the widely accepted opinion in research is that the midrash was written around the eighth century.Y.L. Zunz, "Derashot BeYisrael" 1974, p. 136 (in Hebrew) Zunz dates the book from the beginning to the middle of the eighth century. The evidence Zunz brings for this dating is that the author frequently refers in sermons to Ishmael and the kingdom of the children of Ishmael, and condemns their rule. Ishmael's name is interpreted at the beginning of Chapter 32 as: "And why is his name called Ishmael? Because in the future, the Holy One, blessed be He, will hear the cry of the people from what the children of Ishmael are destined to do in the land at the end of days." At the end of Chapter 30, the following apocalyptic vision appears,
According to Zunz, the "structure in the sanctuary" refers to the Dome of the Rock, which was built on the Temple Mount at the end of the seventh century. The rejection of the "kingdom's rock" refers to the minting of Muslim coins, which also occurred at the end of that century. Furthermore, the text bears a distinct similarity to the Geonic literature, a remarkable resemblance to the Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, and messianic sayings that set the expected year of redemption as 729.Y.L. Zunz, "Derashot BeYisrael" 1974, Notes 23-29 to Chapter Sixteen, p. 420 (in Hebrew)
Thus, the work was not written before the end of the seventh century. The opening passage of Chapter 3 appears in the letter of Pirqoi ben Baboi, who operated at the end of the eighth century or the beginning of the ninth century, indicating that the work was not written after the ninth century.Ginzberg, "Genizah Studies," p. 544 (in Hebrew)
Regarding where the midrash was composed, extensive references to the rule of Ishmael indicate that the work was most likely composed in the Muslim-ruled Bilad al-Sham or its surroundings. Furthermore, in chapter 8, the work emphasizes the exclusive right of the "sages of the Land of Israel" to establish the calendar, stating that even shepherds and laypeople there are preferable to the righteous and prophets in the Diaspora, only the inhabitants of the Land of Israel have the right to establish the calendar. In addition, the text cites various customs of the Land of Israel. For example, the custom of defloration with a finger (mentioned in Chapter 16) is explicitly noted in the Book of Differences, as discussed by Mordecai Margalioth in 'Differences between Easterners and Residents of the Land of Israel'.Mordecai Margalioth, "Differences between Easterners and Residents of the Land of Israel", pp. 87, 160 (in Hebrew)
Structure In contrast to other earlier midrashic and classical rabbinic works, which considered collective creations, Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer is considered the work of a single author.Elbaum, "The Formation of the Story in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer," p. 125; Yahalom, "Then There Was No One," p. 47 (in Hebrew) The work includes fifty-four chapters (or fifty-two chapters according to a slightly different division of the chapters, such as in the edition of Michael Higger and other manuscripts), in which the author expounds on the Torah portions from the days of creation to the history of Israel in the desert. The author also incorporates sermons and entire chapters on various portions from the books of the Nevi'im and the Ketuvim.
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer does not have a uniform and orderly structure. The first two chapters recount the life of Eliezer ben Hyrcanus. Chapter 3 contains homilies on the days of creation, followed by rewritten sections from the books of Genesis and Exodus. The last two chapters (53-54) form a unit dealing with slander, ending with homilies on the denunciation of the Israelites in the story of the bronze serpent and a final discourse that includes the parable of "The Diligent Workers and the Lazy Workers." The work rewrites and expands the books of Genesis and Exodus, sometimes in detail and sometimes briefly. The work does not cover all of Genesis and does not always follow the biblical order. Occasionally, the author arranges his homilies by thematic units and includes sections from the Nevi'im and the Ketuvim. For example, the first twenty chapters are dedicated to homilies on Genesis, and in the middle of chapter 22, he transitions to the parashah of Noach. However, he intersperses an entire chapter on the story of Jonah in the fish's belly (Chapter 10); and two complete chapters (16-17) focus on acts of kindness to bridegrooms and mourners. Later, when recounting the history of Abraham, the author does not follow the biblical order but prefers to arrange Abraham's history according to the tradition of the "Ten Trials" Abraham underwent. The final chapters of Genesis (Judah and Tamar, Joseph's revelation to his brothers, etc.) are omitted entirely, yet the author extensively incorporates the Book of Esther (Chapter 50).
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer differs from classical midrashic literature: it does not contain homilies on every verse (as found in works such as"Genesis Rabbah" and "Song of Songs Rabbah"), nor is it organized by the sequence of Torah or selected topics (like "Leviticus Rabbah" or "Pesikta de-Rav Kahana"). Although composed by a single author, the text exhibits various literary styles, leading scholars to debate its genre classification. Due to its extensive rewriting of biblical stories with midrashic expansions, abridgements, and changes in order, Joseph Heinemann and others consider it akin to the genre of "rewritten Bible" (a genre that includes some apocryphal books like "Jubilees" and the later "Book of Jasher"). Rina Drori disagrees with Heinemann, considering PRE as a standard midrashic work. She emphasizes its attribution of numerous homilies to various sages and the frequent use of the midrashic term "Shene'emar" (as it is said). Rachel Adelman of Hebrew College in Boston suggests viewing the work as a "narrative midrash."
Question of completeness As it exists today, the midrash has an incomplete structure. Whether it was written this way or whether chapters were lost over the generations is a matter of debate. Chaim Palagi wrote about its conclusion, "It seems that up to here they found, and there were more chapters but they were not seen, and may God in His mercy enlighten our eyes with the light of His Torah, the Torah of life" (Par Echad on Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer - Chapter 54). Leopold Zunz described the problem of the work's structure: first, the text (in the standard editions available to him at the time) is being cut off in the middle of an issue. Additionally, he pointed out two central themes, or foundational elements, on which the author bases various chapters of the work, which are missing at their ends:
At the beginning of Chapter 14, the author presents a tradition about God's descent to earth ten times, with these descents described subsequently, each in its place—but the last descent is the eighth (in Chapter 54), with the last two descents missing.
From the middle of the work, some chapters end with benedictions from the Amidah. The first benediction, "Shield of Abraham," appears at the end of Chapter 27, the second in the middle of Chapter 31, and so on. But the last benediction is "Healer of the Sick," with the other benedictions missing. From this, Zunz hesitantly suggested the hypothesis that the work did not survive.