Ben Zoma

Simeon ben Zoma, also known as Simon ben Zoma, Shimon ben Zoma or simply Ben Zoma (Hebrew: בן זומא‎), was a Tanna of the first and 2nd century CE. His name is used without the title "Rabbi" because, like Ben Azzai, he died at a young age, remaining in the grade of "pupil" and never receiving semikhah (Rabbinical ordination). Ben Zoma and Ben Azzai are often mentioned together distinguished representatives of this class. Like Ben Azzai, also, he seems to have belonged to the inner circle of Joshua ben Hananiah's disciples and a halakic controversy between them is reported in which Ben Zoma was the victor (Naz. viii. 1).

Ben Zoma's erudition in the Halakah became proverbial, for it was said, "Whoever sees Ben Zoma in his dream is assured of scholarship" (Ber. 57b). He was, however, specially noted as an interpreter of the Jewish Scriptures, so that it was said (Soṭah ix. 15), "With Ben Zoma died the last of the exegetes" ("darshanim").

The principal subject of Ben Zoma's exegetic research was the first chapter of the Torah, Genesis. One of his questions on this chapter, in which he took exception to the phrase "God made" (Gen. i. 7), has been handed down by the Judean haggadists (though without the answer), with the remark, "This is one of the Biblical passages by which Ben Zoma created a commotion all over the world" (Gen. R. iv.). An interpretation of the second verse of the same chapter has been handed down in a tannaitic tradition (Tosef., Ḥag. ii. 5, 6; compare Ḥag. 15a), together with the following anecdote: Joshua ben Hananiah was walking one day, when he met Ben Zoma, who was about to pass him without greeting. Thereupon Joshua asked: "Whence and whither, Ben Zoma?" The latter replied: "I was lost in thoughts concerning the account of the Creation." And then he told Joshua his interpretation of Gen. i. 2. When speaking to his disciples on the matter, Joshua said, "Ben Zoma is outside," meaning thereby that Ben Zoma had passed beyond the limit of permitted research.

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