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Talmud

Looking for a good Talmud set or volume?

For many people today, the Talmud may seem inaccessible. First of all, it's very large, with 5,894 pages. And second, it's written mostly in Aramaic. And third, the structure of the Talmud page is not like most books (in fact, it has been compared to the

Soncino Hebrew/English Babylonian Talmud
30-Volume Set

New! Steinsaltz Hebrew Talmud! (Talmud Bavli minukad mivuar umiturgam)
34 volumes

structure of...a web page!) Finally, discussions in one tractate refer to others, so that you're assumed to know the whole thing before you start.

Thankfully, there are now two excellent versions for people most comfortable in English, one by Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz, and one by Artscroll (known as the Schottenstein edition). They're not just translations - these editions explain and guide you through as you enter the intellectual, religious, and legal discourse of the sages and commentators over centuries. The Soncino Talmud (shown here) is also a classic, and is available as a complete set, with facing English and Hebrew/Aramaic pages. If you can follow a sugya but need English, this is a great option.

Traditional Talmud (Shas) Sets

These beautiful traditional sets of the Babylonian Talmud, available from our friends at Judaism.com, will make exquisite gifts to your special scholar or student - or even yourself. We use the full-size Moznaim edition, since our vision isn't quite what it used to be, and it really is a beauty. The type is clear, and the introductions to Rashi's commentary (the dibburei mathil) are set in regular type (not Rashi script), a feature we find helpful. The smaller editions are handy for travel or for use in class.

Talmud - Moznaim (Neharda'a) full-size (9"x12") edition, 20 volumes

Talmud - Penninim (7"x10") edition, 20 volumes

Talmud - Moznaim small-size (5.5"x8.5") edition, 20 volumes

Talmud - Moznaim small-size (5.5"x8.5") edition, 16 volumes

New! Talmud Software

Here are computer programs and other goodies to help you learn Talmud (and how about reading Rashi script?), some courtesy of our affiliate jewishsoftware.com.

Reading Rashi - Interactive Education for Reading Rashi Script	Gemara Buddy - Perek Eilu Metzios - Technology for Talmud Study and Review	Gemara Tutor	Talmud Master - Interactive Talmud Trainer	Wolfson Talmud - 26 CD-ROMS
Talmud HaMuklat - 22 CDs - Technology for Talmud Study and Review in Hebrew	Master Mishna – Complete Set - Technology for Mishna Study and Review - 6 CDs	Master Mishna – Zeraim	Master Mishna – Moed	Master Mishna – Nashim
Master Mishna – Nezikin	Master Mishna - Kodshim	Master Mishna - Tahoros	Bar Ilan Responsa 10	Bar Ilan Responsa 10 Plus Encyclopedia Talmudit
Tanach Plus - includes Tanach, 24 Bible Commentaries, Talmud Bavli and Commentaries, Zohar, and more	Judaic Bookshelf - Master Library - Tanach, Bible Commentaries, Talmud Bavli with Commentaries, Zohar, Sifrei Mussar, Machshava, and Siddurim	Bar Ilan Talmud Torah Study Buddy	Encyclopedia Talmudit complete on CD	Soncino Hebrew/English Babylonian Talmud (CD-ROM edition)

Steinsaltz Talmud

We personally like the Steinsaltz Talmud best, because it includes a unique blended translation and commentary to help us steer our course through the Sea of Talmud. (Yes, that's one name for it. It's that big.) The Steinsaltz Talmud edition is truly a masterpiece. It even has margin notes on words Rashi used in Old French, geography, short biographies of the rabbis taking part in the current page's discussions, etc. The Steinsaltz Talmud is also a beautifully produced book.

Artscroll Schottenstein Talmud

The Schottenstein Talmud, published by Artscroll, is also a considerable achievement. The Artscroll Schottenstein edition has facing English and Hebrew pages, where the English page reproduces the traditional layout of the Hebrew facing page. No small feat, that, when you consider that an English translation usually needs about 30% more words than a Hebrew original...and the language of the Talmud is especially condensed. The Artscroll Talmud is also a handsomely-bound edition, one you can be proud to have on your bookshelf. In addition to the full-size Schottenstein edition, Artscroll also has a smaller 8 3/4" x 12" Daf Yomi (daily page) edition. You can use the Artscroll Schottenstein Daf Yomi edition to join with thousands of Jews around the world studying one page of Talmud a day according to a schedule. This edition is smaller so you can take it with you on the bus and study while commuting or on a break at work.

Soncino Talmud

The Soncino Hebrew/English Babylonian Talmud (30-Volume Set) is another fine edition. Like the Artscroll Talmud, the Soncino Talmud preserves the traditional layout of the Talmud page, with Hebrew (and Aramaic) on one side, and the English translation on the facing page. The Soncino Talmud differs from the Artscroll Talmud and the Steinsaltz Talmud in that it offers a translation but skips the detailed explanations in English of the other editions. The Soncino Talmud is, like the Steinsaltz and Artscroll editions, beautifully produced. Since it sticks to the Talmud text plus translation, it's more compact than the other two. And it's available as a complete set...as well as in a CD-ROM edition.

How to choose a Talmud edition

You'll do fine with any of these Talmud editions; which one to choose is really a matter of individual taste. The Soncino Talmud is closest to the traditional Vilna layout. The Artscroll Talmud adds commentary to help you navigate that layout, and the Steinsaltz Talmud blends the traditional commentaries into a running text that's perhaps easiest for those of us used to reading a text from start to finish instead of moving around on the page in non-linear fashion.

So, come, join the discussion. It's intellectually and religiously stimulating to hear the voices of the ancient academies in Babylonia, joined by commentators over the centuries, and sooner than you know it, you're taking part yourself! Talmud is traditionally studied in pairs - hevrutas - it's not a book to read cover-to-cover. You need a friend at about the same level as you to work through passages together and keep each other on track through the threads of the arguments. A small group will also do nicely, as long as each of you works your way through the text.

When you click on the Artscroll Schottenstein Talmud volumes here, we take you to the Artscroll site, just as we take you to Amazon for the Steinsaltz and Soncino Talmuds. That's because Amazon's selection of the Artscroll Schottenstein edition is limited. On the other hand, if you want an inexpensive Steinsaltz edition, Amazon's your best bet - they've got used copies and remainders in addition to in-print new copies.

More Talmud Editions and Books on Talmud!

Here are many more Talmud editions and various books on Talmud, available from Amazon.


1.		Everyman's Talmud: The Major Teachings of the Rabbinic Sages from Schocken Price: $12.24 Customer Review: The content is great, but be aware that the typography is abysmal and is difficult to read.	Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 Click here for more information


2.		The Essential Talmud from Basic Books Price: $12.21 Customer Review: From Jewish oral tradition to the cultural development of the Talmud, and from the colorful depiction of Jewish daily life to the importance of Hebraic history and impact on "Modern Jews", Rabbi Steinsaltz took us on a delightful journey of wisdom and enlightement. I knew the Rabbi for many... more info	Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 Click here for more information


3.		Rabbinic Stories (Classics of Western Spirituality) from Paulist Press Price: $16.47 Customer Review: What is the Talmud? Who put it together, and why? If you are curious about those questions, this book is an excellent choice. Rubenstein takes a literary approach to a number of key stories in the Talmud and uses them to examine the Sages of the Babylonian Academies. The only quibble I have... more info	Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


4.		The Cambridge Companion to the Talmud and Rabbinic Literature (Cambridge Companions to Religion) from Cambridge University Press Price: $24.99 Customer Review: The Cambridge Companion to The Talmud and Rabbinic Literature is a scholarly volume of essays by an assembly of learned authors assembled especially to introduce students to historical, cultural, hermeneutical issues relevant to the study and interpretation of rabbinic literature. Individual essays... more info	Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


5.		The Babylonian Talmud, all 20 volumes in one file, with active table of contents, improved 6/12/2008 from B&R Samizdat Express Price: $0.99 Customer Review: This translation/adaptation of the Babylonian Talmud (the introduction says that duplicate sections were removed, but nothing "of substance") is as lucid as it can be to someone outside the language and culture it circumscribes. However, it would be very well served by a much more comprehensive... more info	Customer Rating: 3.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


6.		Jesus in the Talmud from Princeton University Press Price: $19.98 Customer Review: "We are not the murderers of the Messiah and the Son of God, nor the king of the Jews as Pilate wanted to have it. Rather, we are the rightful executioners of a blasphemer and idolater, who was sentenced according to the full weight, but also the fair procedure, of our law... For the first time in... more info	Customer Rating: 3.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


7.		Book of Legends/Sefer Ha-Aggadah: Legends from the Talmud and Midrash from Schocken Price: $50.37 Customer Review: This is a beautiful work of scholarship and literature. It is for those with spiritual/religious interests, especially Jewish, but not only Jewish. It presents the colorful and evocative stories of these ancient writings, without the theology or the commandments. Anyone who cares about myth and... more info	Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


8.		The Complete Idiot's Guide to the Talmud from Alpha Price: $12.89 Customer Review: This book has innumerable printing errors (typos). I've never read another volume in the series but I can't imagine they were proofread so casually. And to think the subject being such an important, even sacred, book would be represented with such sloppiness, oy! Also, in the chapter on... more info	Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 Click here for more information


9.		Talmud of Jmmanuel from Bridger House Publishers Price: $10.17 Customer Review: George Green has stolen this information from Billy Meier and, although, this book still is a good read, it's not the true version of the Talmud. Look up Billy Meier's version "Talmud Jmmanuel" for the unaltered version. George Green is a fake and a phoney.	Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


10.		Prophecies for the Era of Muslim Terror: A Torah Perspective on World Events Price: $19.96 Customer Review: While some of Rabbi Kohen's conclusions seem to be a stretch from the actual text, his analysis of the relationships between political events and natural disasters is amazing. One, two, or even three correlations may have been coincidental, but the number is far too great to be regarded as occurring... more info	Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


11.		Pirke Avot: A Modern Commentary on Jewish Ethics (Modern Commentary On) (Modern Commentary On) from Urj Press Price: $10.17 Customer Review: "Pirke Avot" (the "Chapter of the Fathers") is a tractate of the Mishnah that collects not laws but sayings of the tannaitic Rabbis, mostly concerning the virtues of Torah study and the proper conduct of scholars. It is one of the classics of rabbinic literature, included (in whole or in part) in... more info	Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 Click here for more information


12.		Swimming in the Sea of Talmud from Jewish Publication Society of America Price: $16.47 Customer Review: Rabbis Katz and Schwartz have wrtten a lucid introduction to talmudic study. Talmud is voluminous, encompassing many tractates divided into six orders of study. If you were to read a page a day (front and back of each) it would take seven and a half years to comlpete the task. Indeed, many people do... more info	Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


13.		On the Road with Rabbi Steinsaltz: 25 Years of Pre-Dawn Car Trips, Mind-Blowing Encounters, and Inspiring Conversations with a Man of Wisdom from Jossey-Bass Price: $16.47 Customer Review: Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz was and still a source of inspiration to me, to my family and to my friends. Do not look upon him as simply a Jewish scholar, because he is much much more than that. He is a man for all seasons; a man of goodness, intelligence, knowledge, and wisdom. A philosopher, a... more info	Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


14.		Dictionary of the Targumim, Talmud Bavli, Talmud Yerushalmi and Midrashic Literature from Judaica Press Price: $27.96 Customer Review: This Dictionary has a great advantage in fact that is compact and gives not only translations of the Aramaic expressions, but it gives also examples from real rabbinic scripts as Talmud, Midrashes and specially from Targums which form an important testimony on how the ancient rabbis understood the... more info	Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


15.		The Archko Volume : or The Archeological Writings of the Sanhedrim & Talmuds of the Jews from McGraw-Hill Price: $10.17 Customer Review: "The Archko Volume" was first published in 1884. This re-print is based on an revised edition from 1887. Actually, the history of the volume goes back to 1879, when a reverend from Missouri, W.D. Mahan, published a sensational document about Pontius Pilate he claimed to have discovered (?) in the... more info	Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


16.		Gospel-Centered Hermeneutics: Foundations and Principles of Evangelical Biblical Interpretation from IVP Academic Price: $21.17 Customer Review: Great Resource for those studying Literature and Theology. A long time faculty member of Moore Theological College, Sydney, Graeme Goldsworthy is a biblical scholar of justifiable repute - his other books including "According to Plan" and "Gospel and Kingdom" explain biblical theology clearly and... more info	Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


17.		The Talmud Unmasked: The Secret Rabbinical Teachings Concerning Christians from Kessinger Publishing, LLC Price: $12.89 Customer Review: If no thought was put into the book, no thought goes into its review. Seriously, watching your $30 burn up in smoke is more entertaining than reading this book.	Customer Rating: 3.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


18.		Aiding Talmud Study from Feldheim Price: $14.99 Customer Review: I thought it might be meant for real beginners, but NOT AT ALL. The vocabulary was very well selected and its a great help. Besides, due to its small size, you can take it anywhere along with your Gemara.	Customer Rating: 5.0 / 5.0 Click here for more information


19.		Nine Talmudic Readings from Indiana University Press Price: $15.26 Customer Review: This is the book that's noted for the famous quote about how we might be able to forgive some Nazis but never Heidigger. And while that's a great line, it's even more profound in the context of a story about a rabbi that didn't begin teaching again for the last late student - a seemingly inocuous... more info	Customer Rating: 4.5 / 5.0 Click here for more information


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