Person
Rabbi Yeshevav the Scribe רבי ישבב הסופר
he who gave all to the poor; one of the Ten Martyrs
A sofer is a scribe, a copyist of sacred books; it is a craft, not a title, and it demanded exactness to the letter.
Of Rabbi Yeshevav the Gemara remembers one deed. He gave away all his property to the poor, and word was sent to him: at Usha they ordained that generosity should not exceed a fifth—otherwise the giver himself becomes one to whom alms are given (Ketubot 50a). That dispute is not about stinginess but about measure: even good has a bound beyond which it ceases to be good.
In the count of the Ten Martyrs he stands eighth.
On the timeline
Related
Sources
Chazal: Mishnah, Talmud, midrash, Zohar
- Ketubot 50a — he gave away all; the ordinance at Usha on a fifth
Rishonim
- «Eleh Ezkerah», the Yom Kippur Musaf piyyut — the name in the count of the Ten Martyrs
- Midrash Asarah Harugei Malkhut — the account of the killing of the ten
Basis: Talmud and midrash.