This passage from the Jerusalem Talmud considers whether a synagogue may be sold to buy a study house. In Section A, a tradition attributed to Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi – a first-generation amora and a prominent sage who was active in the first half of the third century – is used to rule that such sales are permissible. However, his teaching does not address this halakhic matter but, rather, it discusses the destruction of Jerusalem in the Great Revolt (70 CE). As detailed in Section B, he expounds on Jeremiah 52:13 (= 2 Kings 25:9): “He burned the house of the Lord, the king’s house, and all the houses of Jerusalem; every great house he burned down.” In its original context, this verse refers to the destruction of the First Temple but, in the Talmud, it is read as a description of the demise of both Temples, following the rabbinic pattern that sees repetitions as references to different events and, thereby, highlights the similarities in these two catastrophes. In Section B, the Talmud teaches that Rabbi Yehoshua ben Levi speaks of synagogues as “houses” (“‘and all the houses of Jerusalem’ (Jeremiah 52:13) this [refers to] the four hundred and eighty synagogues that were in Jerusalem”) and, in Section D, this sage identifies “the great house” as “the study house (midrasho) of Rabban Yoḥanan Zakay.” Based on these identifications, the anonymous voice of the Talmud concludes that a study house has greater holiness than a synagogue; therefore, a synagogue may be sold to fund the purchase of a study house.

This teaching (B+D) frames Section C (likely an independent passage inserted by the editor), which is attributed to Rabbi Pinḥas, a fourth-generation amora who was active in first half of the fourth century, in the name of Rabbi Hoshaya (at least two sages had this name: a first-generation amora who was active in the first half of the third century; and, a third-generation amora who was active in the late third and early fourth centuries). The placement of Section C may stem from the mention of 480 synagogues in Jerusalem in both (B) and (C). Section C asserts that each of these synagogues housed two schools – one for Scripture and one for Mishnah – “and Vespasian arose [against] all of them,” implying that he destroyed them. Historically Vespasian, who became emperor in 69 CE, charged his son Titus with subjugating Jerusalem; eventually, Titus conquered the city in 70 CE. Indeed, Sections B and D (which form one teaching) do not include Vespasian or the name of the emperor who destroyed Jerusalem. However, Section C ascribes this assault to Vespasian, as do its parallels in later sources: for example, Pesiqta de Rab Kahana 15:7 (Mandelbaum Edition, vol.1, p. 257; MS. Oxford, Bodleian Library, 151:1):

ר' פנחס בשם ר' הושיעיא א'. ארבע מאות ושמנים בתי כנסיות היו בירושלם וכל אחת ואחת יש בה בית ספר ובית תלמוד. בית ספר למקרא ובית תלמוד למשנה. וכולם עלה אספסיאנוס והחריבן. הד'ה דכת': "ויגל את מסך יהודה".

Rabbi Pinḥas said in the name of Rabbi Hoshaya: Four hundred eighty synagogues were in Jerusalem, and each and every one houses (lit. has in it) a school (beyt sefer) and a house of learning (beyt talmud). A school (beyt sefer) for [teaching] Scripture (mikra’) and a house of learning (beyt talmud) for [teaching] Mishnah (Oral Torah). And Vespasian arose [against] all of them and destroyed them. As it is written [in Scripture]: “He has taken away the covering of Judah” (Isaiah 22:8, NRSV).

Interestingly, here, the primary damage caused by Vespasian seems to be the demise of Jewish centers for learning Scripture and Mishnah, the two main branches of rabbinic learning: the Written and Oral Torah, respectively. By placing this passage (C) immediately before Section D, the Jerusalem Talmud adds “the study house (midrasho) of Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakay” to the study houses destroyed by Vespasian (although this emperor does not appear in B+D).

Later rabbinic texts envision that, after fleeing from Jerusalem, Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakay had an exchange with Vespasian, where he sought permission to found a rabbinic center in Yavneh (see these traditions in Alon, Studies, p. 238-247; and p. 219-252 for challenges to the authenticity of this account). Neither the Jerusalem Talmud nor earlier tannaitic sources mention this encounter. Rather, in our passage, Rabban Yoḥanan ben Zakay and Vespasian are named together through the joining of two independent units (B+D and C). Here Vespasian is portrayed as having destroyed Jerusalem as the center of Torah study whereas, in later compositions, he is credited for allowing the establishment of a new center for studying Torah in Yavneh.