Midrash Rabbah

2,921 texts · Page 223 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.

Moses and Joseph

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 12:2

The Torah tells us, "Behold, I will rain down tomorrow at this time very severe hail, that there has not been like it in Egypt since the day it was founded until now" (Exodus 9:18)...

JosephMosesJobProphecy

From Nothing to Everything and Moses

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 12:3

In the book of Exodus, we read, "The Lord said to Moses: Extend your hand toward the heavens, and there will be hail throughout the land of Egypt…" (Exodus 9:22). It seems straight...

CreationJosephMosesKing David

Aaron's Vision

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 12:4

The Book of Exodus tells us, "Moses extended his staff toward the heavens and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the ground, and the Lord rained hail upon the lan...

CreationHell/GehennaPatriarchsMatriarchs

Pharaoh's Transgression and Moses

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 12:5

We often think of him as this monolithic, unyielding villain. But what if there were moments of genuine, albeit fleeting, remorse? The Book of Exodus tells us that after the devast...

JosephMosesEgyptSinai

Blood on the Nile and Pinchas

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 12:6

It turns out, even a seemingly simple verse about crops can open up a whole world of midrashic interpretation. Take Exodus 9:31-32: “The flax and the barley were stricken, as the b...

MosesEgypt

Joshua: Nebuchadnezzar and the Lawgiver

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 12:7

The verse in question: "Moses emerged from the city, from Pharaoh, and spread his hands to the Lord; the thundering and hail ceased, and the rain did not pour upon the earth" (Exod...

MosesDanielPrayerRepentance

Pharaoh's Miracle and Abba

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 13:1

It’s a question that our sages grappled with, and the Midrash in Shemot Rabbah offers a fascinating perspective, connecting it to the story of the Exodus. It all begins with the ve...

CreationHeavenMosesSolomon

Story of the Exodus

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 13:2

Like stacking the deck. Well, Shemot Rabbah, the great collection of interpretations on the Book of Exodus, wrestles with just that. One fascinating reading hinges on a verse from ...

Judgment

Birth of Pharaoh and Lakish

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 13:3

The Torah is full of stories that grapple with these very questions, and one passage in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, really dives ...

MosesSolomonRepentanceEgypt