Sefer Divrei Chachamim - Zolkiew 1757. Includes Unknown Torah Novella of R. Meir Margulies of Lviv, A Foremost ...

Sefer Divrei Chachamim - Zolkiew 1757. Includes Unknown Torah Novella of R. Meir Margulies of Lviv, A Foremost Disciple of Baal Shem Tov.

Sefer Divrei Chachamim is composed of many Torah thoughts - “Vertlach”, as heard from Torah scholars in the 18th century. Such a phenomenon was commonplace in that era, and many tens of titles of such nature were published. Authored by R. Yehuda Leib b. Yekusiel from Butchatch. Unique to this edition is the publication of various Torah thoughts from the Gaon and Chasidic Master R. Meir Margulies of Lviv, author of Meir Nesivim and foremost disciple of R. Yisroel Ba’al Shem Tov - founder of the Chassidic movement. In 1754, he was appointed as Rabbi of Lviv, just three short years before the publication of this present work. This is perhaps the earliest recorded Torah novella known to us. His magnum opus Meir Nesivim would not be published until decades later - 1791 - after his death.

In addition to the many times quoted in this work, also published is a letter of testimony written by R. Meir Margulies. Because the author was a Sofer and Magiah by profession, R. Meir attests to the scrupulous work carried out by him. In it he writes, “I can also attest to this, since I gave him my own Sefer Torah which I wrote myself, and I did not find any fault with his work. There was not even a small “Os Chaser” or anything of the like, therefore it is befitting that all may give him their Sifrei Torah for checking and pay him well”. Thus it is clear that the author was a reliable person in the eyes of R. Meir.

Very rare. To the best of our knowledge this work has never been seen at auction.

In overall good condition. Few paper repairs, sometimes affecting text. Margins and headers trimmed. Pp. 9-10 accidentally bound upside-down. Bound in a new vellum binding. Ancient handwritten inscriptions seen on rear flyleaf. 

Only edition, unrecorded in Vinograd. Rare. 

 36 pp.