The Talmud

This is one of the first substantial abridged translations of the Talmud, published in the latter half of the nineteenth century. Barclay, a sympathetic Christian, states in the Preface that he studied the Talmud with learned Rabbis during a ten-year's residence in the Holy land.

The task of translating the Talmud, which takes up more shelf space than the Britannica, would be daunting, and is probably beyond what one person is capable of in a lifetime. So early solo translators such as Barclay had to prioritize. Barclay took a representative approach. He translated the Mishna (primary text) of seventeen tracts across the entire span of the Talmud, as well as a commentary on the Tabernacle. He also includes an extensive architectural study of the Temple complex.

Barclay does a straightforward translation of each text, and keeps his personal opinions to a few footnotes. This is a meaningful and significant modern Talmud translation, and has been cited many times in other works, although seldom seen; now available on the Kindle.--J.B. Hare