Midrash Rabbah

2,921 texts · Page 17 of 325

The great Midrash Rabbah, a collection of aggadic midrashim on the Torah and the Five Megillot. These rabbinic commentaries explore the deeper meanings of Scripture through parable, allegory, and legend.

Journey in the Desert and Yosei

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:36

Take, for example, the strange and solemn ritual described in the Book of Numbers, chapter 5, concerning a woman suspected of infidelity. It’s a fascinating, and frankly unsettling...

Torah

Menorah in the Temple and Shimon

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:38

We're looking at Chapter 9, specifically dealing with the ritual of the sotah, the suspected adulteress. It's a wild ride, full of symbolic actions and high stakes. The verse we're...

MosesTempleEgyptShabbat

Court of the Priests and the Altar

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:39

It comes from Numbers, Chapter 5, verse 26. We're in the middle of the sotah ritual – that's the process involving a woman suspected of infidelity. The verse reads: "The priest sha...

TempleSacrificeJudgment

First Days of Existence and Akiva

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:40

to a really intense, and frankly, kind of disturbing ritual described in the Book of Numbers, Chapter 5. It involves a woman suspected of adultery, and... well, let's just say it i...

CreationProphecyPrayerHoly Land

Adam and Eve in Eden of Yishmael

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:41

The verse in Numbers 5:28 states: “And if the woman was not defiled, and she is pure, she will be absolved and will conceive offspring.” Seems straightforward. But the rabbis of ol...

Adam & Eve

High Priest Enters

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:42

That’s what diving into Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically chapter 9, feels like. We're looking at a fascinating passage dealing with the Sotah, the suspected adulteress, and the laws s...

TorahTempleMysticism

Transmigration of Souls and Rabbis

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:43

It's a heavy place to be, and ancient Jewish law, specifically in the Book of Numbers, addresses this very situation with the ritual of the sotah, the suspected adulteress. But wha...

TorahSoul

Exile from Eden

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:44

There’s a fascinating passage in Bamidbar Rabbah – that's the collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Numbers – that dives right into this, focusing on the case of th...

Adam & EveTorahTempleJudgment

Aaron Beyond the Firmament

Midrash Rabbah Bamidbar Rabbah 9:45

The passage starts with the seemingly straightforward case of a suspected adulteress in Numbers 5:12: "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: If the wife of any man will...

HeavenMosesKing DavidDaniel