Eilenburg, Issachar Baer, Zedah la-Derekh [“Provision for the Way”]

(POSEN, JACOB BEN ZALMAN)

Joseph and Judah Bak

Prague

1623

First edition

Vinograd, Prague 309

The R. Jacob Posen copy of Super-Commentary to Rashi An important super-commentary to Rashi, the most famous Jewish Bible exegete. The author, R. Issachar Baer Eilenburg (c.1570-1623) studied under R. Judah Löw in the latter’s yeshivah in Prague. He later studied in Posen in the yeshiva of Mordechai Jaffe, author of the Levush. Eilenburg’s most famous work is Be’er Sheva (Venice, 1614), to this day a favorite commentary on several tractates of the Talmud. Eilenburg served as rabbi of Austerlitz, Moravia before he was called to serve the rabbinate in Safed (see f.2b) which his premature death prevented. The author was evidently proud of this work; he states he titled it Provision for the Way - “in the hope that it would protect [him] on [his] path to the One Above after [his] sojourn in this world.” See JE, Vol. 5, pp. 77-8. The owner, R. Jacob Posen (1772-1849) served as Dayan of Frankfurt am Main under Chief Rabbi Pinchas Horowitz (author of Sepher Hafla’ah) and was also Klaus-Rrabbiner at the Kannsche Klaus. For more information on Rabbi Posen (including facs. of his gravestone), see N. Bar-Giora Bamberger, The Posen Family (1985) p. 20 and Hebrew supplement, pp. 13, 29