Was Paul a Tallit-Maker?

Over the past several decades, particularly within Messianic and Messianic-adjacent congregations, a persistent assertion has emerged regarding the Apostle Paul (Rav Sha'ul). Contrary to traditional interpretations found in most biblical translations, which identify Paul's occupation as a "tent-maker," proponents of this alternative view claim he was instead a "tallit-maker" - a craftsman who produced prayer shawls. This claim has gained such widespread acceptance in certain communities that it is rarely subjected to critical examination. Yet a fundamental question remains: what motivates this interpretative shift? Does attributing this specific occupation to Paul somehow authenticate his Jewish identity or enhance his apostolic authority? What hermeneutical advantage do we gain by promoting this understanding? These questions warrant careful consideration as we examine the textual and historical evidence.

The Claim and Its Textual Support
Advocates of the "tallit-maker" interpretation often reference Exodus 33:7-10 as foundational support:
"Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, a good distance from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting. And everyone who sought the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting which was outside the camp. And it came about, whenever Moses went out to the tent, that all the people would arise and stand, each at the entrance of his tent, and gaze after Moses until he entered the tent. Whenever Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent; and the Lord would speak with Moses. When all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would arise and worship, each at the entrance of his tent." (NASB95)

Proponents suggest that the phrase "at the doorway of his tent" (rendered as "entrance" in some translations) actually signifies "wearing his tallit." They argue that since the tallit is conceptualized in rabbinic tradition as a personal sanctuary or doorway, the passage describes individuals standing with their tallitot draped over them. Various websites and commentaries, such as the now-defunct ngabo.org*, have explicitly stated: "The word Tallit in Hebrew means a small tent, a Tabernacle or a dwelling place in the presence of God, which also was given a name as a prayer shawl in English. The scripture in Acts 18:3 talks about Apostle Paul being a tent maker, which simply meant that he was making tallits (prayer shawls)."

*(Note: this site was up and running when this article was originally written in 2016, but as of a prior rewrite in January of 2022, it was no longer active. It may be accessible in the Internet archive, but I am not certain.)

Lexical Analysis
Before evaluating this claim, we must establish what a tallit actually is. In its essence, a tallit is merely a "four-cornered garment" designed to accommodate tzitziyot (tassels/fringes). It is crucial to note that Scripture never commands the wearing of a tallit specifically; rather, it mandates the wearing of tzitziyot (Numbers 15:37-41, Deuteronomy 22:12). The tallit evolved as a practical solution for displaying these ritual fringes and thereby fulfilling the biblical commandment.

Examining the Greek Terminology
The pivotal term used to describe Paul's occupation is the Greek word σκηνοποιός (skēnopoios), which appears exclusively in Acts 18:3. This compound noun derives from two Greek elements: the noun σκηνή (skēnē), meaning "tabernacle, booth, tent, dwelling," and the verb ποιέω (poieō), meaning "to make, do, manufacture." Significantly, in the Septuagint (LXX), the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the word translated as "tent" in Exodus 33:8 is precisely this same term, skēnē.

Thus, skēnopoios literally means "a maker of skēnē." It is noteworthy that prior to the resurgence of Messianic Judaism in the mid-1980s, virtually no scholarly source questioned that skēnē referred to an actual tent. Despite extensive research, I have been unable to locate a single reputable lexicon or dictionary that offers "tallit" as a possible definition for the Greek skēnē. This absence is telling, especially considering the comprehensive nature of many modern Greek lexical resources such as BDAG, Liddell-Scott-Jones, and Thayer's Greek Lexicon [2].

Etymology of "Tallit"
The assertion that "tallit" means "little tent" appears to be etymologically unfounded. Contrary to some claims, tallit is not a Hebrew word but an Aramaic term derived from the root טלל (talal), which means "to shade, to cover" [3]. The term does have a range of meanings, and is used variously in the Talmud to describe a large piece of fabric like a sheet. It can describe an outer garment (Shabbat 147a; Menachot 41a), and it is also found in Shabbat 138a where it refers to a prohibition against stretching out a large sheet to create a tent-like canopy. This, in full disclosure, is the only reference I can locate to relate the tallit to tents. However, this tent-like canopy made from a large sheet is not intended to be worn as a garment. In each of these uses, the Aramaic word talit refers generically to a sheet. In some passages it is questioned whether the sheet, when worn as a garment, requires tsitsiyot or not, while in others, the question is raised as to whether or not it qualifies - when stretched across poles - as a tent. 

In all of this, I can see how someone could have come across these references and then put the ideas together. However, this does not a doctrine make. 

The Development of the Tallit
Historical evidence strongly indicates that the prayer shawl (tallit) as it exists today did not exist in Paul's era. While Jews of that period certainly wore outer garments bearing tzitziyot in compliance with the Torah, the specialized prayer garment known as the tallit "began to take on the form known today beginning around 1,000 CE" [1]. This development occurred nearly a millennium after Paul's lifetime.

To provide a more nuanced historical perspective, Lupia does acknowledge that a primitive form of the tallit began to emerge toward the end of the first century CE. However, this was initially just a standardized garment designed to display the required tzitziyot, similar to the Bedouin abayya. The evolution of this garment into the ritual "prayer shawl" recognized today was a gradual process that culminated around 1,000 CE, well beyond the Apostolic age [1]. Hoffman further confirms this developmental timeline, noting that the specific rituals and blessings associated with the tallit were not standardized until the Geonic period (7th-11th centuries CE) [4].

Logical Inconsistencies
The claim that Paul manufactured tallitot presents several logical problems when examined against the historical and economic realities of the first century CE:

1. Commercial Viability: Acts 18:3 indicates that Paul, Priscilla, and Aquila shared this profession as their livelihood. For this to be economically viable, there would need to be sufficient demand for their product. Manufacturing tallitot exclusively for Jewish customers, especially in the Diaspora where Hellenistic influence was pronounced and observance of mitzvot more lax, would represent an extremely limited market.
2. Ritual Requirements: Since the specific form of the tallit was not yet standardized or ritually required in the first century, there is no historical basis to assume that every observant Jew would have needed one, further constraining potential sales.
3. Diaspora Context: Paul frequently traveled throughout the Gentile world where Jewish populations varied considerably. The feasibility of sustaining a business exclusively producing Jewish ritual items in predominantly Gentile cities seems unreasonable.
4. Material Considerations: Traditional tent-making involved working with robust materials suitable for outdoor use and durability. This aligns with what we know of Paul's physical capabilities and labor-intensive work ethic (1 Corinthians 4:12, 1 Thessalonians 2:9).

Early Translations and Interpretations
The Latin Vulgate
The Latin Vulgate renders Acts 18:3 as: "et quia eiusdem erat artis manebat apud eos et operabatur erat autem scenofactoriae artis." This translates to: "And because he was of the same trade, he remained with them and wrought. (Now they were tentmakers by trade.)"

The Latin text employs "scenofactoriae," essentially a Latinized version of the Greek "skēnopoios" (sceno-factory). While this direct borrowing doesn't provide independent confirmation, it demonstrates that early Latin translators understood the term to refer to tent-making rather than the production of ritual garments.

The Syriac Aramaic Peshitta
The Peshitta, an ancient Syriac translation, reads in Acts 18:3: ומֵטֻל דּבַר אוּמָנוּתהוּן הוָא שׁרָא לֵה לוָתהוּן ופָלַח הוָא עַמהוּן בֻּאומָנוּתהוּן דֵּין לָולָרֵא הוַו
This translates to: "And because he was a son of their art, he dwelt with them and wrought with them: but in their art they were tentmakers."

Interestingly, George Lamsa's translation of the Peshitta renders this as: "And because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and worked with them: for they were saddle makers by trade."

This unexpected translation stems from Lamsa's attempt to capture the precise meaning of the Syriac term לָולָרֵא (lawlarei). According to the Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon, this word denotes "a maker of rough cloth" [5]. J. Payne Smith's Compendious Syriac Dictionary expands this definition to "a maker of rough cloth for tents, or horsecloths" [6]. William Jennings' Lexicon to the Syriac New Testament suggests a possible Latin origin: "Latinism [...], perhaps corrupt from aulaerii, or from lorarii. A saddle- or harness-maker does not make curtains or tent-cloth. Latin lorum with sense saddle, housing, trappings" [7].

These Latin derivatives (related to "lorum") primarily refer to leather products such as "straps, thongs, flogs." Notably, this lexical field has no connection to the fine fabrics traditionally used for tallitot.

It is particularly significant that the Peshitta, being a Syriac text with Aramaic roots, does not use the term "tallit-maker" despite "tallit" itself being an Aramaic word. Had Paul's occupation involved manufacturing tallitot, the Peshitta translators—intimately familiar with Aramaic terminology—would have been uniquely positioned to make this identification. Their failure to do so strongly suggests that they understood Paul's craft to involve heavier materials used for actual tents rather than ritual garments.

Additionally, Franz Delitzsch's Hebrew New Testament renders the term using a form of אֹהֶל (ohel), the standard Hebrew word for "tent," further supporting the traditional understanding [8].

Conclusion
Based on comprehensive lexical, historical, and logical analysis, the evidence overwhelmingly supports the traditional understanding that Paul was indeed a maker of tents, not tallitot. This occupation aligns with the harsh realities of first-century itinerant ministry, where practical skills in crafting durable shelters would have provided Paul with a reliable means of self-support during his missionary journeys.

The tallit, as conceptualized in modern Judaism, represents a later ritual development that did not exist in its current form during the Apostolic era, and certainly not during the time of Moses. While the desire to emphasize the Jewish context of the New Testament is commendable, we must guard against anachronistic interpretations that project later religious developments onto the biblical text.

Sound exegesis must be prioritized over eisegesis (reading our own preferences into Scripture). The persistent advocacy for questionable interpretations without substantial evidence undermines the credibility of Messianic scholarship and distracts from the genuine Jewish elements present in the New Testament.

Shalom.

​Updated 4/19/2025.

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​[1] Lupia, John N. The Ancient Jewish Shroud At Turin. Regina Caeli Press, 2010.
[2] Danker, Frederick W., Walter Bauer, William F. Arndt, and F. Wilbur Gingrich. Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature. 3rd ed. Chicago: University of Chicago Press, 2000.
[3] Jastrow, Marcus. Dictionary of the Targumim, Talmud Bavli, Talmud Yerushalmi and Midrashic Literature. New York: Judaica Treasury, 2004.
[4] Hoffman, Lawrence A. The Tallit: History and Customs of a Jewish Prayer Shawl. Jewish Theological Seminary, 1999.
[5] Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project. Hebrew Union College-Jewish Institute of Religion, 2009.
[6] Smith, J. Payne. A Compendious Syriac Dictionary. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1903.
[7] Jennings, William. Lexicon to the Syriac New Testament. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1926.
[8] Delitzsch, Franz. Hebrew New Testament. London: Trinitarian Bible Society, 1877.