BEYOND METHUSELAH—WHO IS OLD?
R. José, the son of Judah , of Kephar Babli, said“He who learns from the young, to what is he like? To one who eats unripe grapes or drinks wine from the vat. And he who learns from the old, to what is he like? To one who eats ripe grapes, or drinks old wine.” Meir said,“Look not at the flask, but at what it contains: there may be a new flask full of old wine, and an old flask that has not even new wine in it.»10
Both authorities agree that the person, not the years matter. A later section of this chapter, however, divides life into specific periods:
He(Judah ben Tema) used to say: At five years old [one is fit] for the Scripture, at ten years for the Mishnah, at thirteen for[the fulfilling of] the commandments, at fifteen for the Talmud , at eighteen for the bride-chamber, at twenty for pursuing[a calling], at thirty for authority, at forty for discernment, at fifty for counsel, at sixty for to be an elder, at seventy for grey hairs, at eighty for special strength, at ninety for bowed back, and at a hundred a man is as one that has[already] died and passed away and ceased from the world. Sixty here was considered old, but life went on and no ailments were noted until 90 and 100."
Age and sickness are occasionally equated.'> When the death of a series of scholars is mentioned, along with some accomplishments, ages are not given(M. Sotah 9.15).