person · P0153

Rabbi Yishmael beRabbi Yose רבי ישמעאל ברבי יוסי

Son of Rabbi Yose ben Chalafta of Sepphoris and a colleague of Rebbi, known above all as the conduit of his father's traditions — "Rabbi Yishmael beRabbi Yose says in the name of his father" is a fixed formula of the Talmud. The aggadah pairs him with Rabbi Elazar ben Shimon, both in their famous girth and in the morally fraught service of arresting thieves for Rome, for which Eliyahu rebuked him.

I. Who

Hebrew: רבי ישמעאל ברבי יוסי
Also known as: Yishmael ben Yose, Rabbi Yishmael ben Rabbi Yose
Era: tannaim
Generation: T5

Received the mesorah from: Rabbi Yose ben Chalafta

Parents: Rabbi Yose ben Chalafta
Teachers: Rabbi Yose ben Chalafta
Colleagues: Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi, Rabbi Elazar ben Shimon

II. When

Traditional: c. 3895–3970 AM
Academic: c. 135–210 CE
Lifespan (traditional): ≈75 years
Precision: approximate

V. How do we know

Claim	Evidence	Confidence	Sources
Regularly transmitted his father's rulings with the formula "in the name of his father," e.g. on the boundary of the sanctified land for tithes ("until Levlevo").	rabbinic	★★★★☆	Gittin 7b
As the honored guest of Rabbi Shimon beRabbi Yose ben Lakonia, he acted on the maxim "whatever the host tells you, do — except leave."	rabbinic	★★★★☆	Pesachim 86b
Was pressed into arresting thieves for the Roman government; Eliyahu rebuked him, "How long will you hand over the people of our God for execution?" and urged him to flee as his father had fled to Asia. Aggadic narrative.	rabbinic	★★★☆☆	Bava Metzia 84a
Was explicitly one of the five named sons of Rabbi Yose ben Chalafta, the first in the Bavli's list. The passage identifies the five as Rabbi Yose's sons.	rabbinic	★★★★★	Shabbat 118b
He and Rabbi Elazar ben Shimon are described as so corpulent that a pair of oxen could pass beneath their bellies when they stood facing each other. Hyperbolic physical-description narrative.	rabbinic tradition	★★★☆☆	Bava Metzia 84a
He was present in Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi's circle and personally conversed with Rebbi concerning the comparative accomplishments of Rabbi Chiya and his own father Rabbi Yose. The evaluative content is omitted; the passage supplies a concrete generational synchronism.	rabbinic tradition	★★★★☆	Bava Metzia 85b
Traditional placement c. 3895–3970 AM (c. 135–210 CE): son of Rabbi Yose ben Chalafta, active as a colleague of Rebbi's generation. Schematic traditional dating.	tradition reconstruction	★★☆☆☆	Gittin 7b (transmits in the name of his father)