David Kimhi was a Bible commentator and Hebrew grammarian. He is best known for his Bible commentary, covering Genesis, the prophetical books, Psalms, and Chronicles.
Background
He came from a distinguished family of scholars of Spanish origin who lived in Provence in southern France. His father, Joseph (1105-1170) was a Bible commentator, translator from Arabic to Hebrew, grammarian, and anti-Christian polemicist. His elder brother, Moses (died c. 1190) was also a Bible commentator and grammarian.
Career
David Kimhi was born and lived in Narhonne. His grammatical works include Sefer ha-Shorashim (“Book of Roots”), which gives all forms of the Hebrew verbs and their derivatives, and Mikhlol (“Compendium”), a lucid Hebrew grammar compiling and systematizing earlier works on the subject and the first such book written in Hebrew. These contributions led to a greater scientific study of the Hebrew language.
He was influenced by the commentary of Abraham Ibn Ezra and the writings of his father and brother. The result is a clear exposition, based largely on the literal meaning, and often involving grammatical analysis and insight. He sometimes makes references to contemporary events, such as the Crusades, and occasionally engages in anti-Christian polemics, especially attacking christological interpretations, which led to the censorship of certain passages. Nevertheless, his commentary, in its Latin translation, was very popular and influential in Christian circles and its mark can be found, for example, in the King James (Authorized) Version of the Bible.
In his day, a bitter controversy was raging between traditionalist and rationalist circles over the philosophical writings of Moses Maimonides. Kimhi was a leading figure in the rationalist camp, supporting Maimonides, and traveled to Spain to defend Maimonides’ works.