508 passages in Rabbinic Midrash
Individual passages from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, shown in source order. Page 7 of 11.
Rabbi Azariah, whose wisdom is preserved in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a captivating collection of stories and teachings, tackles this very question. He tells us plainly: all the soul...
One of the most poetic comes from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a collection of stories and teachings that many scholars believe comes from around the 8th century. It paints a picture of...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a collection of stories and interpretations from the early medieval period, paints a vivid picture of the future, a time when the Holy One, blessed be He, w...
One particularly evocative image comes from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, specifically chapter 34. This text, a fascinating collection of stories and interpretations, explores all sorts ...
Jacob saw a ladder at Bethel, but Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer hears the end of history hidden in that night vision. "Better is the end of a thing than the beginning thereof," Ecclesiast...
Take lentils, for example. They might seem like just another legume, but in Jewish tradition, they carry a heavy weight of sorrow and mourning. Why is that? Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer,...
The familiar story centers on the manna, the miraculous bread from heaven. But what about water? How did they quench their thirst in that desolate landscape? Well, according to Rab...
Maybe the story of Jacob's journey to Haran can shed some light. In Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating text filled with aggadic expansions of biblical narratives, Jacob was 77 y...
Tonight, It centers on Jacob, later known as Israel, and a pivotal dream he had while resting his head on a rather unusual pillow. The story goes that Jacob, in his travels, took t...
Jacob certainly did. We find him waking up, not with a stretch and a yawn, but in sheer terror. Why? Because of a dream, of course. A dream of a ladder stretching to the heavens, a...
The familiar story centers on Jacob's dream. Fleeing his brother Esau, he rests his head on a pile of stones and dreams of a ladder stretching to heaven, angels ascending and desce...
Our ancestor Jacob knew that feeling well. He was a man on the run, with a destiny he couldn’t fully grasp. Let's rewind a bit. Jacob, fleeing from his brother Esau's wrath, finds ...
This ancient text, a treasure trove of Jewish legend and lore, offers a fascinating glimpse into the lives of our ancestors. Here, the verse from (Proverbs 4:12), "When thou goest,...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer turns to Jacob Follows in Abraham's Footsteps Against All Odds. Jacob? The verse reads, "Jacob's steps were not straitened, and his strength did not fail." H...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating early medieval Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), offers a beautiful, almost poetic, pattern recognition. It points out a recurring m...
The sages pondered this question deeply, and stories like this one from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer (chapter 36) offer a glimpse into the intricate workings of Providence. Rab Huna tell...
Sometimes, it's not as straightforward as it first appears. to a curious passage from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, specifically chapter 36, and see what we can uncover about how our anc...
It turns out, that feeling might be more ancient and profound than you think. Jewish tradition actually has something pretty amazing to say about it. to a fascinating little teachi...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer turns to Marriage of Jacob. Jacob, as we know, agreed to work seven long years to earn Rachel’s hand in marriage. And when those seven years were up, he cele...
Take the story of Laban, Jacob, Leah, and Rachel, for instance. It's a family drama, yes, but also a window into ancient customs and divine compassion. We read in Pirkei DeRabbi El...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer turns to Jacob in Heaven. Rabbi Eliezer paints a vivid picture of Jacob’s family. Apparently, Leah had a knack for early deliveries, bringing her sons into t...
What were the Teraphim? The very description from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating collection of stories and interpretations, sends chills down my spine. It's a grim opening, ...
Our story begins with Jacob, completely unaware of the drama unfolding within his own family. Remember when Rachel, his beloved wife, stole her father Laban’s Teraphim – household ...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, by the way, is a beautiful and somewhat enigmatic work of Jewish literature from around the 8th century CE that retells and expands upon biblical narratives...
The people of Jebus, knowing the Israelites were coming, weren't about to just roll out the welcome mat. But how could they possibly hold off the Israelites, especially knowing abo...
The story we find in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, Chapter 36, about King David and the conquest of Jerusalem, reveals just that. It's a fascinating glimpse into how deeply the covenant ...
The scene: King David, poised to capture the city of the Jebusites. But this wasn't just any siege. The Jebusites, confident in their defenses, had placed idols upon their walls – ...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer turns to Isaac and the Philistines Battle Over Abraham's Wells. We find the story in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer (Chapter 36), a fascinating text that retells and...
Our guide today is a passage from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a captivating work of Jewish legend and lore. Specifically, The passage begins with King David, a warrior, a poet, a king....
It all starts with King David, and his ambition to conquer the land of Edom. In this ancient text, David really wanted to come into the land of Edom, but he couldn't. Why? Because ...
Jacob certainly did. Imagine this: He's returning home after years away, and he knows his brother Esau – the very brother he tricked out of his birthright – is coming to meet him. ...
The familiar story is this: Jacob, preparing to face his estranged brother Esau, finds himself confronting a mysterious figure in the dead of night. The Torah tells us "a man" wres...
Our ancestor Jacob had that experience, big time, at the ford of the Jabbok (יַבֹּק), a river mentioned in Genesis. The story, as told in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer (chapter 37), a fas...
It’s a fascinating story that takes us from the biblical Jacob to the very Throne of Glory, with a little help from the angel Michael. In Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating work...
The ancient texts are full of such moments, and they often reveal hidden truths about human nature. to one of those stories, a fascinating take on the reunion of Jacob and Esau. Re...
The story picks up as Jacob, returning to the land of Canaan, sends gifts ahead to his brother Esau, whom he fears. But these aren't just any gifts. Jacob sends "all the tithe of h...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer turns to The Dark History of Shechem from Adam to Jacob. The Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer asks: who is this serpent? The text startlingly equates the serpent with ...
Her story, as told in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer (chapter 38), takes a turn you might not expect. So, what happened to Asenath before she met Joseph? According to this tradition, Jacob...
The story of Simeon and Levi, found in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 38, explores just that kind of fiery zeal. It all starts with the violation of their sister, Dinah, by Shechem. That S...
The story in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer paints a pretty vivid picture. The scene: Jacob, with his sons, grandsons, wives, the whole shebang, journeys to Kirjath Arba, wanting to be nea...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer turns to Kingdom of Isaac of Esau. Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating collection of stories and interpretations from the early Middle Ages, gives us a gli...
It paints a picture of a final transaction, a division of inheritance, that has echoes even today. The story goes that Esau took all that his father, Isaac, had left. But then – an...
That’s definitely not a new phenomenon. to a story from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 38, a text filled with midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) interpretations and expansions of...
The familiar story is this: jealous brothers, a colorful coat, a treacherous sale. But sometimes, the details we gloss over hold the most fascinating secrets. to one particular ver...
The Torah itself doesn't dwell on it. But the ancient rabbis, they loved to fill in the gaps, to imagine the "what ifs" and the "how comes" of our sacred stories. And in Pirkei DeR...
Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer turns to Joseph — Jacob and the Fires of Gehenna. We find ourselves in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, Chapter 38, a fascinating text that fills in the gaps in the T...
The familiar story is this: Joseph, the favored son, is sold into slavery by his jealous brothers. It's a terrible act, filled with betrayal and long-lasting consequences. But did ...
Jewish tradition has a lot to say about that, especially when it comes to oaths and bans. to a powerful teaching from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, specifically chapter 38, that illumina...
