Midrash Rabbah

2,921 texts · Page 75 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.

The Garden of Eden and From

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 25:3

In Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, we find this idea explored through a rather unsettling lens: famine. Specifically, the ...

CreationAdam & EvePatriarchsKing David

The Great Flood and Yehuda

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 26:1

Take Noah, for instance. We all know the story: the ark, the flood, the animals two-by-two. But what about Noah before the flood? What kind of person was he? Well, the book of Bere...

CreationNoah & FloodKing DavidTorah

The Great Flood and Planted

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 26:2

We all know the story: the ark, the flood, the animals two by two. But have you ever stopped to wonder about the timing of it all? It's not just about the rain, but about the gener...

CreationHell/GehennaAngelsNoah & Flood

Yefet in Battle

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 26:3

(Genesis 9:18). It seems straightforward. But wait a minute... Was Yefet actually the eldest? That's what some of our Sages wondered. Why does Shem get top billing? Why not list th...

CreationHell/GehennaNoah & FloodPatriarchs

Enosh and the Origins of the World

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 26:4

In the Torah, the word heḥel (הֵחֵל), meaning "began," is one of those words. It pops up in some pretty unsettling contexts. In Bereshit Rabbah 26, a classic collection of rabbinic...

Creation

Foundations of Being and Shimon

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 26:5

The verse says, "The children of the great men [benei haelohim] saw the daughters of man, that they were fair, and they took for themselves wives, from whomever they chose." Simple...

CreationHell/GehennaNoah & FloodMoses

First Days of Existence and Flood

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 26:6

This week, we're diving into a passage from Bereshit Rabbah 26, a rich collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Genesis, that wrestles with this very question. The ver...

CreationNoah & FloodMosesKing David

Dawn of the World and Nefilim

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 26:7

Ever read something in the Bible that just makes you stop and say, "Wait, what?" I get that feeling every time I stumble upon Genesis 6:4: "The Nefilim were on the earth in those d...

CreationNoah & FloodSolomonJob

When the Rains Came and Flood

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 27:1

It’s a powerful, devastating verse that sets the stage for the Flood. But the Rabbis of the Midrash, in Bereshit Rabbah, weren't content with a simple reading. They dug deeper, con...

CreationNoah & FloodKing DavidSolomon