Midrash Rabbah

2,921 texts · Page 76 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.

Enosh at the Dawn of Creation

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 27:2

Specifically, in section 27, we find a powerful connection drawn between human sin and divine response, all through the lens of a verse from Ecclesiastes. The verse in question is ...

CreationHell/GehennaNoah & FloodMoses

Pillars of Existence and Flood

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 27:3

The Torah tells us, in Genesis 6:5, that God saw the wickedness of humankind was "great" – raba in Hebrew – before the Flood. But what kind of "great" was it? Rabbi Ḥanina suggests...

CreationNoah & FloodJob

Cosmic Origins and Rabbis

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 27:4

The Torah tells us, in Genesis 6:6, "The Lord regretted that He had made man on the earth, and He was saddened in His heart.” Whoa. Heavy stuff. But what does it really mean? The R...

CreationNoah & FloodWisdom

Pillars of Existence and There

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 28:1

The flood narrative in Genesis is one of the most challenging passages in the Torah, wrestling as it does with divine regret and the wiping out of nearly all life. It all starts wi...

CreationHell/GehennaJobRepentance

Enosh and Creation

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 28:2

It’s not just about the rain, or the oceans. It's about something much deeper – a relationship, even a conversation, between God and the very elements of the universe. We find a fa...

CreationNoah & FloodKing DavidHoly Land

Adam and the First Humans of Hadrian

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 28:3

The Book of Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of Genesis, grapples with just that question in section 28. It all stems from God’s statement, "I will obliter...

Adam & Eve

The Great Flood

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 28:4

Turns out, even God has had those thoughts about humanity. We find a fascinating glimpse into this in Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Genes...

Adam & EveNoah & FloodPatriarchsKing David

Noah and Creation of Flood

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 28:5

Jewish tradition grapples with this very question, comparing different eras and communities that faced divine judgment. to some intense comparisons drawn from Bereshit Rabbah, a cl...

CreationNoah & FloodPatriarchsTorah

Acts of Creation and Yudan

Midrash Rabbah Bereshit Rabbah 28:6

Innocent creatures caught in the wake of human sin. But the ancient rabbis grappled with this question too, offering powerful, and perhaps unsettling, explanations. In Bereshit Rab...

CreationNoah & Flood