4

In many instances, we know the ages of personalities in Tanach and when they got married. In some cases, we aren't given enough information within the text and in some of those instances, the Midrashim or later works provide the missing ages. Often, this can be very enlightening for understanding the interactions between characters in Tanach.

For example, there are various Midrashic and later sources which discuss the ages of Avraham and Sarah being either 25 and 15, or 50 and 40.

As another example, We know that Yitzchak was 40 at the time he married Rivka, and that she was either 14 (according to Tosafot on Yevamot 61b) or 3 (Rashi to Gen. 25:20).

What is the largest known age difference between a married couple in Tanach?

Improve this question
8
  • 2
    @Doniel what about Kayin who married his twin?
    – Double AA ♦
    Mar 14, 2019 at 16:19
  • 2
    I'm voting to close this question as off-topic because it is a riddle question.
    – רבות מחשבות
    Mar 14, 2019 at 16:44
  • 1
    @רבותמחשבות This is a legit question as it has lots of applications and נפקא מינות.
    – Al Berko
    Mar 14, 2019 at 20:05
  • 2
    @AlBerko how are those nafka minas to who in tanach had the largest age difference?
    – רבות מחשבות
    Mar 14, 2019 at 20:28
  • 4
    @רבותמחשבות Based on the discussion here, I don’t think this is asked in the spirit of a riddle question that it should be closed. Riddle questions are ones where the OP knows the answer already. How is this different than, say, all the recent questions about “How old was X during the Purim story?”
    – DonielF
    Mar 14, 2019 at 21:37

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
14

Based on certain midrashim and assuming they're compatible, Naamah was Noach's wife and was born, at the latest, in 129. Noach was born in 1056. That makes her at least 927 years (+/- rounding errors) older than him.

Improve this answer
15
  • 1
    926.001 at least
    – Double AA ♦
    Mar 14, 2019 at 16:39
  • 1
    Nice find. Maybe I should have specified "post-שנות תוהו" :)
    – Chaim
    Mar 14, 2019 at 16:50
  • 2
    You should probably quote the whole passage from B"R - this is only דעת יחיד - "אָמַר רַבִּי אַבָּא בַּר כַּהֲנָא", and "וְרַבָּנָן אָמְרֵי נַעֲמָה אַחֶרֶת הָיְתָה, וְלָמָּה הָיוּ קוֹרִין אוֹתָהּ נַעֲמָה, שֶׁהָיְתָה מַנְעֶמֶת בְּתֹף לַעֲבוֹדַת כּוֹכָבִים." The others don't accept it and we usually follow the majority.
    – Al Berko
    Mar 14, 2019 at 19:59
  • 2
    @AlBerko I qualified the answer with "Assuming all the relevant midrashim are compatible"
    – Heshy
    Mar 14, 2019 at 20:14
  • 2
    @AlBerko 1. Even if the Chachamim disagree, Rashi still holds like R’ Abba (Bereishis 4:22 DH Ne’amah). 2. Do the normal rules of psak apply to this kind of situation? 3. He said “assuming that all relevant Midrashim are compatible” - i.e. that R’ Abba’s opinion that it’s the same Ne’amah with the Midrashim relevant to when she was born.
    – DonielF
    Mar 14, 2019 at 21:33

You must log in to answer this question.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged .