Sefer ha-ḥayim (The Book of Life)

Simon Frankfurt

1703

As it is written in the Zohar, Shelakh lekha: Women are privileged to merit the joy of the righteous who do the work of the Lord. They establish merit for their portion among the righteous. Men and women who walk in the straight path in this world and who bring a multitude of merit to the world to come. Therefore, it is for their [the above…

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Creator Bio

Simon Frankfurt

1634–1713

Simon ben Israel Judah was born in Poznań (Posen), Poland. He left the town after it was invaded by the Swedes and settled in Amsterdam. Simon subsequently took his father-in-law’s family name, Frankfurt. He served as rabbi of Amsterdam’s Ashkenazic burial society for more than thirty years. Simon’s best-known book is Sefer ha-ḥayim (The Book of Life), first published in 1703. This was a bilingual (Hebrew and Yiddish) work concerning deathbed rituals, the first text of its kind in Yiddish. It became very popular, shaping Jewish deathbed rituals in the Western world. Simon also composed a book of customs and halakha, Sefer yitnu, which remained in manuscript form, in addition to the poems for special occasions that he penned for his son. His writing reveals great erudition and narrative skill.

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