Editing Midrash (section)

=== Tannaitic ===
* '''[[Alphabet of Rabbi Akiva]]'''. This book is a midrash on the names of the letters of the [[hebrew alphabet]].
* '''Mekhilta'''. The Mekhilta essentially functions as a commentary on the [[Book of Exodus]]. There are two versions of this midrash collection. One is ''[[Mekhilta of Rabbi Ishmael]]'', the other is ''[[Mekhilta of Rabbi Shimon ben Yochai]]''. The former is still studied today, while the latter was used by many medieval Jewish authorities. While the latter (bar Yohai) text was popularly circulated in manuscript form from the 11th to 16th centuries, it was lost for all practical purposes until it was rediscovered and printed in the 19th century.
** ''Mekhilta of Rabbi Ishmael''. This is a halakhic commentary on Exodus, concentrating on the legal sections, from Exodus 12 to 35. It derives halakha from Biblical verses. This midrash collection was redacted into its final form around the 3rd or 4th century; its contents indicate that its sources are some of the oldest midrashim, dating back possibly to the time of [[Rabbi Akiva]]. The midrash on Exodus that was known to the Amoraim is not the same as our current mekhilta; their version was only the core of what later grew into the present form.
** ''Mekhilta of Rabbi Shimon''. Based on the same core material as Mekhilta de Rabbi Ishmael, it followed a second route of commentary and editing, and eventually emerged as a distinct work. The Mekhilta of Rabbi Shimon is an exegetical midrash on Exodus 3 to 35, and is very roughly dated to near the fourth century.
* '''[[Seder Olam Rabbah]]''' (or simply '''Seder Olam'''). Traditionally attributed to the Tanna [[Jose ben Halafta]]. This work covers topics from the creation of the universe to the construction of the Second [[Temple in Jerusalem]].
* '''[[Sifra]]''' on [[Leviticus]]. The Sifra work follows the tradition of Rabbi Akiva with additions from the School of Rabbi Ishmael. References in the [[Talmud]] to the Sifra are ambiguous; It is uncertain whether the texts mentioned in the Talmud are to an earlier version of our Sifra, or to the sources that the Sifra also drew upon. References to the Sifra from the time of the early medieval rabbis (and after) are to the text extant today. The core of this text developed in the mid-3rd century as a critique and commentary of the Mishnah, although subsequent additions and editing went on for some time afterwards.
* '''[[Sifre]]''' on [[Book of Numbers|Numbers]] and [[Deuteronomy]], going back mainly to the schools of the same two Rabbis. This work is mainly a halakhic midrash, yet includes a long haggadic piece in sections 78–106. References in the Talmud, and in the later Geonic literature, indicate that the original core of Sifre was on the [[Book of Numbers]], Exodus and Deuteronomy. However, transmission of the text was imperfect, and by the Middle Ages, only the commentary on Numbers and Deuteronomy remained. The core material was redacted around the middle of the 3rd century.
* '''[[Sifri Zutta]]''' ("The small [[Sifre]]"). This work is a halakhic commentary on the book of Numbers. The text of this midrash is only partially preserved in medieval works, while other portions were discovered by [[Solomon Schechter]] in his research in the famed [[Cairo Geniza]]. It seems to be older than most other midrash, coming from the early third century.