Chumash Stone Edition Travel Size (Artscroll Series) - Ashkenaz

While this Chumash does seem very (some may say "too") dependent on Rashi in both its commentary notes and its translation choices for the more difficult Hebrew, I find the traditional notes and Rabbinic commentary Enlightening even when I don't completely agree with it. I like the Koren fonts for Hebrew a little more and the Koren tendency to put the Hebrew on the left instead of the right page, but the fonts for the Hebrew are easy to read and the traditional page layout is maintained. The pages in the full-size version are large enough for the Targum Onkelos, Rashi's commentary in Hebrew, and English translation and commentaries. The JPS translation is more literal than the Artscroll, and as I said, the Artscroll relies heavily on Rashi. I use more modernist Tenakh and Torah commentaries often, but having an Orthodox version which skews traditional and is very useful for understanding Judaism as it is understood by Haredi and other Orthodox rabbis. The book design is excellent and sturdy. The pictures at the end at quite good. I find that I use it with Jewish Study Bible quite a bit.

I cannot believe how good this Chumash is especially given how reasonably priced it was. The quality of this book and the commentaries is just fantastic. I was looking at similar versions for like 500 bucks but this one for 60 is excellent.

This book is beautiful well created. And it teaches you the knowledge, wisdom, and understanding, which builds patience, and humility. I like that it is written in two languages, which helps us to connect to G_d even more. The book has recipes in the back for traditional Jewish foods. It also has maps and explanations of how the Arc was built. Which is very insightful. Thank you for providing this book on Amazon!

Absolutely love this great commentary easy to read and also helping me keep up on my Hebrew language.

Having this smaller size really helped me feel like the Chumash belonged to me personally and so the reading of each weeks parsha became more exciting because it felt less formal and i felt more connected to it. The portable size also makes it easier to use free time that occurs when I'm not at home with the huge textbook sized Chumash, like the bus, etc. The quality of the book is perfect, each page is printed perfectly and it comes with extras such as instructions for certain elements of tefillah and also nicely laid out pages for the owner to write out his or her family tree. My one issue is that as the reader gets deeper into learning, he or she will require something else, be it more rashi or more hebrew training, (IE interlinear, so the reader can begin to learn the parsha actually in Hebrew if he/she has been reading in English), etc. All in all however, this is an excellent basic Chumash and seems to be the standard in most Orthodox Synagogues.

The English translation is so so, more like an explanation than an accurate translation. Robert Alter's translation is by far more accurate and very readable. The book's strength is the commentary from the ultra-orthodox (Haredi) point of view. R. Nosson Scherman did an outstanding job incorporating , commentaries from the Talmud, Midrash and several major rabbinical commentaries. While you will see no mention of the documentary hypothesis or any archeological facts, the text flows beautifully and is presenting in a compact way the views of the ultra orthodox on the Torah. Very highly recommend this outstanding book.

In looking over the reviews of this uniformly excellent volume, I find that there is some misinformation which should be corrected for the sake of potential buyers. The idea that this translation is "biased" toward Rashi is, frankly, laughable. Where is the evidence for this claim? In the admittedly "extensive and well-researched commentary"? Glancing over the commentary from last week's parsha (Vayigash) I find citations from the following sources among others: Ibn Ezra; Rambam; R. Avraham ben HaRambam; Ramban; R. Hirsch; R. Menachem Mendel of Kotzk; R. Bachya; R. Shlomo Ashtruc; Sforno; the Chafetz Chaim; R. Munk; R. Yosef Dov Solovetchik; R. Yaakov Kamenetzky; R. David Feinstein (not to mention the Zohar and other traditional texts cited by title rather than by author). Even this is not a complete list, and it is just silly to say that the commentary is "not reflective of the variety that is present within the tradition of rabbinic Judaism." Nor would it even be correct to say that Rashi's interpretation is given precedence over others' (as would be expected if the translation were controlled by his commentaries). At 45:1, for example, the commentary cites three interpretations, one each from Rashi, Rashbam, and Ramban, without attempting to adjudicate between them. At 46:15 the commentary cites Rashi, then Ibn Ezra's contrary reading, then Ramban's disagreement with Ibn Ezra. And so forth. Of course Rashi is cited fairly often, as are other solidly tradition-based writers who have written extensive commentaries on the text (i.e., those who are said to be "acceptable [from] a Haredi (ultra-Orthodox) point of view," to those whom our friend regards as "religious extremists"). Why this should be an occasion for surprise or alarm, let alone an indication that something is amiss with the _translation_ in this edition of the Chumash, is more than I can fathom. Nor is any other evidence offered that Rashi's interpretations have colored or biased the translation itself. And such evidence is very much needed, if only to establish the credibility of the one mounting the claim in question. To put it bluntly, anyone who levels such a charge had better be a highly competent reader of Hebrew himself. I must therefore suspect that the problem here is with traditional translation and commentary in general. It is exceedingly odd to describe straightforward Orthodox Judaism as "fundamentalism" -- a term much more descriptive of the various "liberal" movements which derisively tagged traditional Judaism as "Orthodoxy" in the first place. At any rate, such comments do tell the customer something important: this volume is faithful to Torah-based Jewish tradition in a way that even the most conservative "liberal" Jews will find uncomfortable. In other words, if you want to study Torah, this Chumash is just exactly the edition you need.

The best I ever found

I really love this Chumash its beautiful.. and helpful for study... Thank you..

Excellent Chumash for beginners,commentaries are superb. Delivered on time. Small fold in the corner of book when I received. But it's very small. I like it. Note: Actual verses , Hebrew text, commentaries, quotes, instructions are clearly shown by using different font styles and sizes. Commentaries font fize - small.

This is, without a doubt, the finest Chumash I’ve ever owned and the one I use regularly. It’s truly a work of art. From the detailed text on the hard cover to the impeccable binding, high-quality paper, and beautifully designed Hebrew font, everything about this edition is exceptional. The commentary is insightful and enhances the learning experience. I also appreciate the translation—it’s clear, accessible, and flows naturally, without the archaic "Thou" and "Thee" that often clutter other translations. I particularly love that they use “HaShem” instead of “Lord” when translating G-d’s name. It’s a more accurate and preserves the divinity of the name, which can sometimes be diluted when "Lord" is used, especially considering that many people hold the title of “Lord.” My only minor complaint is that I wish they hadn’t included the Rashi script. It can be difficult to read, and it's summarized anyways in the commentaries. Without it, the book would have been lighter and more compact. Ideally, I would love to see an exact version of this Chumash but without the Rashi script included.

Fast delivery, excellent condition!

Il LIbro dei libri è forse il libro peggio tradotto che ci sia. Innumerevoli sono le vere e proprie cretinate, se non addirittura mistificazioni e falsificazioni intenzionali, presenti in tutte le traduzioni che ho visto, in Francese, Inglese, Italiano e Spagnolo. La buonissima traduzione Inglese offerta da questa edizione, oltre a moltissime note utilissime e commenti antichissimi, anch'essi tradotti dall'Ebraico, la rendono indispensabile vista praticamente l'assenza di traduzioni decenti.