Samuel Leib Gordon(1865–1933), Hebrew writer and Bible scholar. Born in Lithuania, he emigrated to Palestine in 1898 and taught at the Jaffa Boys School. When the school was taken over by the Alliance IsraMlite Universelle, he left for Warsaw (1901) where he established a Hebrew school for boys. In 1924, he returned to Palestine and devoted the latter years of his life to the composition of an extensive commentary on the Bible. Gordon contributed poems, articles, and translations to the Hebrew periodicals of the late 19th century, and also wrote extensively for children. His books include Kinnor Yeshurun (3 vols., 1891–93); Torat ha-Sifrut (2 vols., 1900), which was reprinted many times; and a revised edition of his poems, Shirim u-Fo'emot (with foreword by S. Halkin), which was published in 1955. He translated three books by I. Zangwill, La Fontaine's Fables, and Shakespeare's King Lear. Gordon's textbooks played a vital role in Hebrew education in the Diaspora at the turn of the century; Ha-Lashon (3 vols., 1910–19) was one of his most popular works. He also edited several journals for the young: Olam Katan (1901–05), Ha-Ne'urim (1904–05), as well as Ha-Pedagog (1903–04), a journal of education to which the best writers of his generation contributed.

From 1907 he worked on a vocalized Bible commentary which was to provide a "new scientific pedagogical interpretation for advanced students and teachers, edited in the accepted traditional spirit." Known as Shalag after the initials of his name, it was largely based on German Bible criticism. Gordon explained words and subject matter simply and fully enough for school pupils and teachers without elaborating on the religious significance of the Bible. His introduction to the prophetic and hagiographic books deal with the literary aspect as well as with personalities and events. Gordon's commentary is still used extensively in the secondary schools in Israel, with the exception of those which are religiously oriented.

Ephraim Moses Lilien (1874–1925), Austrian illustrator and printmaker. Lilien was born in Drohobycz, Galicia. He studied art in Cracow for a short time, but lack of funds forced him to return home. He eventually earned enough as a sign painter to go to the Academy of Fine Arts in Vienna. In 1895 he worked in Munich as a cartoonist; three years later he moved to Berlin, where he soon became known as a book illustrator. Lilien was the first artist to become involved in the Zionist movement. He took an active part in three consecutive Zionist Congresses and was a member of the Democratic Fraction, which stressed the need to foster Jewish culture. He was one of the founders of the Berlin publishing house, Juedischer Verlag, which he served not only as an illustrator but also as editor, manager, and publicity agent. In 1902 the firm published Juda, a volume of ballads on Old Testament themes by a pro-Zionist German poet, Boerries Freiherr von Muenchhausen, illustrated by Lilien. He collaborated closely with Theodor Herzl; Lilien's photograph of the Zionist leader on the Rhine bridge, his Herzl portraits, and his decorations for the Golden Book of the Jewish National Fund became familiar to Zionists all over the world. In 1905 Lilien, along with Boris Schatz and others, was a member of the committee formed to establish the Bezalel School of Art in Jerusalem. He taught there for some months in the following year and revisited Palestine three times, on the last occasion as a lieutenant in the Austro-Hungarian army during World War I. In 1908 Lilien turned from book illustration to etching. Many of his etchings are views of Austria and Hungary, while others record his impressions of Palestine, Damascus, and Beirut. His drawings, executed mainly in india ink, show a crisp, elegant line and a strong contrast between black and white areas.