A Palestinian amora of the first amoraic generation (third century), surnamed Berabbi, Ha-Gadol or Roba ("the Great"). He systematized Baraitot at the Academy of Ḥiya ha-Gadol, and was teacher of Samuel ha-ZaḲen (Ber. 14a; Yer. Ber. 2:5a; Yer. Sanh. 2:20c, 4:22b, 5:22c; Bek. 24b). The Midrash preserves the following homily of his on Numbers 13:2: "Send thou men, that they may search the land of Canaan, which I give unto the children of Israel," the last clause of which appears to be superfluous. Prefacing this homily with a quotation from Isa. 8, "The grass withereth, the flower fadeth; but the word of our God shall stand forever," he illustrates his subject with the following simile:
(Tan., Sheiah, 3; Num. r ).
"A king once had a friend with whom he made a covenant saying, 'Follow me and I will bestow a gift upon thee.' The friend obeyed the royal summons, but soon after died. Then the king spoke to his friend's son, saying, 'Although thy father is dead, I shall not cancel my promise of a gift to him; come, thou, and receive it.' The king is the Holy One—blessed be He! and the friend is Abraham, as it is said in Isaiah 41:8, 'the seed of Abraham my friend.' To him the Holy One had said, 'Follow me,' as we read in Genesis 12:1, 'Get thee out of thy country unto a land that I will show thee' And to him the Lord promised a gift; as it is said [Genesis 13:17], 'Arise, walk through the land; for I will give it unto thee'; and again [Genesis 13:15], 'All the land which thou seest, to thee I will give it, and to thy seed forever.' Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were dead; but the Lord said to Moses, 'Although I promised to give the land to Israel's fathers, who are now dead, I shall not cancel my promise, but fulfil it to their children'; thus we understand the text, 'The word of our God shall stand forever'"
S. M.
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Bibliography Information Singer, Isidore, Ph.D, Projector and Managing Editor. Entry for 'Aḥa (Aḥai) II.'. 1901 The Jewish Encyclopedia. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tje/a/aa-aai-ii.html. 1901.
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