[Avodah] Merchavyah

Akiva Miller akivagmiller at gmail.com
Sun Dec 31 08:10:04 PST 2017


.
There is a pasuk in Hallel (Tehillim 118:5) that begins "Min
hamaytzar". In RSR Hirsch's siddur, the last word of that pasuk is
"merchavyah". In his perush on Tehillim, there too, the last word is
"merchavyah", and in the perush he writes that "According to Pesahim
117a, merchavyah is one word, like halleluyah."

My understanding of that gemara is that R Yochanan, Rav, and Raba all
hold "merchavyah" to be one single word. Although Rav Chisda quoted R
Yochanan to that effect, the Gemara is unsure how Rav Chisda held
personally on this issue, and leaves that as a "tayku".

However - When I look in various Tanachs, Tehillims, Siddurim, and
Hagados, almost all of them (there *are* a few exceptions) print this
as two separate words: "merchav yah". Obviously, there must be someone
who either argues against this gemara, or understands the gemara
differently than how Rav Hirsch understands it.

The Minchas Shai on this pasuk refers to this gemara. If I'm reading
it correctly, he seems to feel that the gemara is an unresolved
machlokes, and I suppose that's why he tries to resolve it by looking
at whatever manuscripts he had, both here and in Beshalach (where
there's a similar question on Kes Y-ah).

In my very unlearned and inexperienced view, it is not reasonable to
consider these as two words, which is an unproven opinion that the
gemara left as a tayku, and reject the combined weight of R Yochanan,
Rav, and Raba, who all clearly held this to be a single word. Can
anyone help me out?

Akiva Miller


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