Passing Phrase - www.learnhebrew.org.il

Ro-eh Cheshbon

Literally: One who looks over numbers
Idiomatically: An accountant

There are two main meanings for the word "Roeh." The first is an old nickname for the word prophet, or literally a "seer" (Samuel I 9:9). The other usage can refer to an overseer or spectator (Samuel I 26:12). The phrase gained acceptance at the end of the 18th century as job within the Jewish community to oversee their accounts. But we can even find it mentioned in a letter written by Rabbi Simeon ben Zemah Duran (aka Rashbatz, 1361-1444), a respected Rabbi, philosopher, mathematician, and doctor. But you do have to wonder about people in this profession: My friend the accountant, when his wife can't fall asleep, she asks him about his day…

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