336 passagesc. 20 BCE–50 CEGreekPublic Domain
Individual passages from The Midrash of Philo, shown in source order. Page 1 of 7.
Usually, it's not something we relish. In fact, Genesis tells us, "It is not good for man to be alone" (Gen. 2:18). But what about God? Think about this: before anything existed, b...
He consulted with them. He asked them if they wanted to be made. The text During those six days, God established the foundations and roots of everything that would exist. But more ...
A bit like trying to imagine the edge of the universe. Or did it spring into being along with everything else? In Philo, a Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, the answer is pretty ...
We tell ourselves stories, grand narratives to explain our origins, to make sense of the chaos. And sometimes, those stories take the most unexpected turns. to one of those stories...
The act of creation is often remembered as a singular event, a cosmic poof and then… nothing. But what if the story isn't quite that simple? What if creation is less of a noun and ...
The Midrash of Philo turns to The Three Craftsmen. There's a fascinating myth, found in Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) ha-Ne'elam, a section of the Zohar Hadash (16a-b)...
There was a blueprint, a guide, an artisan involved: The Torah. Yes, the Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, the very text we read and study, was, according to some tr...
Maybe that feeling is a tiny glimpse into the ultimate truth: that everything is sacred. Philo, the 1st-century Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, certainly thought so. He envisio...
Why does Moses, in the book of Genesis, specifically call out the serpent as being the craftiest of them all? That question, in fact, is the very starting point of a fascinating ex...
It all revolves around a single, loaded question stemming from the Book of Genesis: "I have gotten a man from the Lord?" (Genesis 4:1). Specifically, was that really what Eve said ...
Philo, a Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria in the first century CE, offered a unique lens through which to view the Torah. He sought to reconcile Jewish tradition with Gre...
Philo, the great Jewish philosopher of Alexandria, certainly did. And in the Midrash of Philo, we get a fascinating glimpse into his allegorical interpretations. He reads the Torah...
The Torah tells us plainly: "Enter thou and all thy house into the ark, because I have seen that thou art a just man before me in that generation" (Genesis 7:1). why? What made Noa...
They weren't afraid to ask the tough questions. Take this one, for example, posed in The Midrash of Philo: Why does the Torah specifically mention that God remembered Noah, the ani...
The Midrash of Philo turns to God Blesses Noah to Increase and Multiply After the Flood. God, in his infinite wisdom, tells them: "Increase, and multiply, and replenish the earth, ...
They tell a story. They hint at something deeper. Take Noah's sons: Shem, Ham, and Japhet. You'd think their order would be consistent. But it's not! Isn't that peculiar? Sometimes...
Not quite. The beauty of Jewish tradition lies in its layers. We don't just read the text; we wrestle with it. We ask questions. We search for deeper meaning. And that's where midr...
Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher living in Roman Egypt, grappled with these ideas centuries ago. And while we don't have a complete "Midrash of Philo" in the way we have M...
A reader can see him as just a sneaky snake, but Jewish tradition, especially in the writings we call midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), often sees things on a deeper, sym...
There's a perspective, woven into ancient Jewish thought, that offers a slightly different angle?Now, midrash (מדרש) itself, broadly speaking, is a way of interpreting and expandin...
Philo, a Jewish philosopher who lived in Egypt during the first century, offered a unique lens through which to view the Torah. He wasn't just interested in the literal meaning of ...
A microcosm of humanity, bobbing on a turbulent sea. Could you imagine the tensions? The sheer claustrophobia? It makes you wonder. The text known as the Midrash of Philo tackles t...
Philo, the great Jewish philosopher of Alexandria, grappled with these questions centuries ago. And his interpretations, preserved in what we call The Midrash of Philo, offer a fas...
Philo tackles a seemingly simple question: why are Shem, Ham, and Japhet, the sons of Noah, listed in that specific order? Some might assume it's based on age, with the first-named...
It’s a theme that echoes throughout Jewish tradition, doesn't it? And it makes you wonder: why that particular miracle? Well, one perspective comes to us from a fascinating text at...
Philo, in his allegorical style, sees deep meaning behind seemingly simple words and numbers. In this particular passage, he examines the significance of virtues and numbers, speci...
Take the story of Noah and the Ark. (Genesis 8:1) says, "God remembered Noah, and the beasts, and the cattle…" Beasts before cattle? What's going on here? Philo, the 1st-century Je...
Did you ever stop to wonder… did that serpent in the Garden of Eden actually talk? I mean, really talk? (Genesis 3:2) simply states the fact: the serpent spoke. But how? Was it a s...
Like so many things in the Torah, there's a deeper layer, a hidden meaning waiting to be uncovered. The ancient sages, particularly those who engaged in midrash (rabbinic interpret...
The Midrash of Philo turns to God's Covenant with Abraham in Philo's Reading. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) suggests that God isn't necessarily looking for perfect...
The familiar story is this: Noah, the ark, the animals, and the rain that just wouldn't stop. But what about that crucial moment when the waters finally receded? (Genesis 8:2) simp...
The story in Genesis, as The familiar version gives us, tells of a serpent who tempts the woman, leading to the eating of the forbidden fruit and the expulsion from paradise. But t...
Why on earth did the serpent twist God's words to Eve, claiming, "God has said, 'You shall not eat of every tree in the Garden'" (Genesis 3:1)? God actually said, "You may freely e...
The ancient sages certainly did! And they wrestled with questions that still resonate today. Philo, the 1st-century Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, Egypt, grappled with these v...
(Genesis 7:2) lays it out: seven pairs of every clean animal, but only one pair of unclean animals. Seems straightforward, but. why? That’s a question that’s been puzzling interpre...
One of the biggest, of course, is the story of the Flood. The familiar version gives us the basics: Noah, the Ark, the animals two-by-two. But have you ever stopped to think about ...
Why Island Nations Trace Their Ancestry Back to Japhet is the question behind this passage from The Midrash of Philo. Specifically, why are the people of Ceos, Rhodes, and other "i...
The question before us is this: Why did Sarah, barren and yearning for a child, actually suggest that Abraham sleep with her handmaid, Hagar? Seems a bit… counterintuitive, doesn't...
Philo, a Jewish philosopher living in Alexandria in the first century CE, grappled with this idea. He saw that virtue, that inner goodness, could actually make someone "older" in a...
Philo, deeply influenced by both Greek philosophy and Jewish tradition, offers a unique perspective. He sees the number seven as "clean," a virgin number, untouched and complete. I...
Philo, a Jewish philosopher who lived in Alexandria in the first century CE, delved into these questions. He wrote extensively on the Torah, often offering allegorical interpretati...
The Midrash of Philo turns to Japhet in Jewish Tradition. Philo of Alexandria was a Jewish philosopher living in Egypt in the first century CE. He tried to bridge the gap between J...
Philo, a Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, writing way back in the first century CE, thought so. He saw these narratives as having layers of meaning, a literal interpretation and...
There's a fascinating little puzzle tucked away in the Book of Genesis, specifically (Genesis 3:3). It's a tiny addition to God's command, seemingly insignificant, but it opens up ...
They often hold some of the biggest secrets. Take the story of Cain and Abel. The familiar version gives us the basics: brothers, offerings, jealousy, tragedy. But have you ever no...
That very feeling, that inherent sense of hope, is woven into the very fabric of our being. What truly sets us apart? Philo argues it’s that “copious and wonderful portion of hope”...
That feeling isn't new. In fact, it's something that the ancient sages grappled with too. One particular verse that sparked a lot of discussion is from (Genesis 6:3): "My spirit sh...
Take the moment after the Flood, when the world is starting over. God gives Noah and his family a new covenant, a new set of rules. And smack dab in the middle of it, we find this:...
