Judaism Rabbis of Talmud

[Jason]

Hello everyone!

I'm a non-Jewish Ukrainian book translator and I'm currently working on a Stan Lee biography by a Jewish American author. Among other things, he writes about Lee's Judaistic beliefs and their possible connection with the writer's creations. Working on one of the chapters I've just come across a passage that I can't translate without the help of Jewish community representatives. 

It reads as follows: "Discussing what the coming of the Messiah—the final redeemer, the ultimate superhero—might look like, the wise rabbis of the Talmud described a vision the Captain might have endorsed."

Could you help me to understand who are the rabbis of the Talmud? Is the author talking about the rabbis who created the Talmud as a written text, or he may as well refer to present-day rabbis who base their theological concepts on the Talmud?

Thank you in advance!

The rabbis that are quoted in the Talmud are normally called the "Sages." In Hebrew, they are specifically called חֲכָמֵ֫ינוּ זִכְרוֹנָם לִבְרָכָה ḥăḵāmếnû ziḵrônām liḇrāḵâ (chachamím zichronám livracháh), "our sages of blessed memory" (abbreviated to חָזָ״ל [chazal]). You can find out about the various rabbis that appear in the Talmud on Wikipedia.