Midrash Rabbah

2,921 texts · Page 196 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.

Dawn of the World

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 6:1

Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it's known in Hebrew, tackles this very feeling. "For like the crackling of brambles under the pot, so is the laughter of the fool; this, too, is vanity...

CreationSolomonWisdom

Living by Torah and Yehoshua

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 7:1

Specifically, how being preoccupied can cloud even the sharpest minds. We find this idea explored in Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesi...

SolomonTorahWisdom

Rabbi Eliezer and Creation of Elazar

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 7:2

These questions, and more, bubble to the surface as we delve into a fascinating passage from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes. O...

CreationPatriarchsJosephMoses

Elisha: Rabbi Meir at the Dawn of Creation

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 8:1

The verse in question is Ecclesiastes 7:8: "The end of a matter is better than its beginning; one of patient spirit is better than one of proud spirit." The rabbis, as they often d...

CreationHeavenHell/GehennaPatriarchs

Solomon the Builder and Yudan

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 9:1

We all do. But what if I told you that ancient wisdom offers a powerful image to help us understand – and maybe even control – that inner fire? The verse from Ecclesiastes, 7:9, wa...

SolomonJobSoul

Moses Beyond the Firmament and Betzalel

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 11:1

Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes, tackles this very question, and it does it in such a wonderfully human way. It all starts with...

HeavenNoah & FloodMosesKing David

The Garden of Eden and Moses

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 13:1

The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet, as it’s known in Hebrew, poses a powerful question: "See the work of God, for who can mend what He has warped?" (Ecclesiastes 7:13). Kohelet R...

CreationHeavenAdam & EveMoses

Songs of David and Yudan

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 14:1

One minute you're basking in sunshine, the next you're caught in a downpour. How do we navigate those wild swings of fortune? Well, the book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it’s kno...

Hell/GehennaKing DavidSolomonJob

Longing for Messiah

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 14:2

Our tradition offers some powerful, and perhaps surprising, answers. Take, for example, the interpretation offered by Rabbi Tanhum bar Ḥiyya on a verse dealing with the poor and th...

Messiah