His importance may be gauged by the following statement from
the _Talmud_, "Our _Mishnah_ comes directly from R. Meir (a
disciple of Akiba), the _Tosefta_ from R. Nehemiah, the
_Sifra_ from R. Judah, and the _Sifre_ from R. Simon; but they
all took Akiba for a model in their works and followed him"
(_Sanhedrin_, 86a). Akiba introduced a new method of
interpreting Scripture, in which not a word, syllable, or
letter was considered superfluous, finding thereby a basis for
many oral laws. His hermeneutical and exegetical activities
were remarkable. Many interesting legends have clustered
around his name. See Bacher, _ibid._, 271-348; Meilziner,
_Introduction to the Talmud_, pp. 29, 125-126; Isaacs,
_Stories from the Rabbis_, p. 61 _et seq.;_ Danziger,
_ibid._, pp. 152-184; the _Jewish Encyclopedia_, arts. _Akiba
ben Joseph_ and _Akiba ben Joseph in Legend;_ Myers, _Story of
the Jewish People_, pp. 171-188; and Geiger, _Judaism and its
History_, p. 226 _et seq._, 230 _et seq._

(48) _Massorah_, from root _masar_, "to deliver," "hand over,"
"transmit," means a "chain of tradition." It is used to
designate tradition in general, and is thus correlative with
_kabbalah_. The _Massorah_ contains information for the
correct transcription of the Scripture. As used here, it
means the traditional interpretation of the _Torah_. Cf.
chapter I, 1, "Moses received the _Torah_ on Sinai, and handed
it down (_umsarah_) to Joshua," and "make a fence around the
_Torah_." Consult Driver, _Notes on Samuel_, _Intro._, p. 37
_et seq._; Schurer, _ibid._, II, i, 328; Taylor, _Sayings_, p.
55, n. 33; Friedlander _ibid._, p. 55, 203, 266; _Jewish
Encyclopedia s.v.;_ and _The Companion Bible_ (London, Oxford