Legends of the Jews (Ginzberg)

2,650 texts · Page 151 of 295

Selections from Louis Ginzberg's monumental Legends of the Jews, a seven-volume compilation that weaves together aggadic material from the Talmud, Midrash, and other rabbinic literature into a continuous narrative.

Moses Before the Altar

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:303

You offer a compromise, they seem to agree, and then, bam! Back to square one. That's Pharaoh in a nutshell. We're diving back into the Exodus story, specifically that tense back-a...

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Humility of Moses and Egyptians

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:305

We know the big picture: Pharaoh’s stubbornness, the Israelites’ suffering, and God’s mighty hand. But what about the little things? Like, what happened to all those dead animals a...

Hell/GehennaMosesMiraclesEgypt

Moses Beyond the Firmament

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:306

It wasn't just a few gnats buzzing around, was it? It was… well, let's take a look at one of them, the plague of boils, and see how the tradition amplifies the already incredible s...

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Moses's Miracle

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:307

Because true magic, the kind wielded by prophets and emanating from the Divine, is something else entirely. Consider the story of the Egyptian magicians and their fateful encounter...

MosesMiraclesEgypt

Gog in the Days of Moses

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:309

The ancient stories wrestle with these questions, too. Take the story of Pharaoh and the plagues in Egypt. We all know the story: Moses demands freedom for the Israelites, Pharaoh ...

MosesMiraclesWisdomDivine Names

Moses Leaves Egypt and Pharaoh

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:310

We often think about the plagues as pure punishment, but the tradition reveals a more nuanced picture. The fourth plague, hail, is a great example. : God, in His fury, is about to ...

MosesJobEgypt

Egypt: Dreams of Joseph

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:311

They're opposites. Always battling it out. But in one of the most dramatic stories in the Torah, the Exodus from Egypt, we see them working together in a truly terrifying way. I'm ...

JosephMiraclesEgypt

Pharaoh: Moses and the Fires of Gehenna

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:312

Think of that friend who finally starts exercising after a doctor's warning, or the colleague who suddenly becomes a team player when their job is on the line. Well, Pharaoh, in th...

Hell/GehennaMosesMiraclesHoly Land

Moses's Transgression and Talk

Ginzberg Legends of the Jews 4:313

We pick up the story with Moses, right after he convinces Pharaoh to let the Israelites go. He steps just outside the city walls, raising his hands to Adonai (the Lord). Now, why o...

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