336 passages in Hellenistic Jewish Writers
Individual passages from The Midrash of Philo, shown in source order. Page 2 of 7.
In Jewish tradition, a name can be a destiny, a reflection of character, a clue to understanding the deeper story. Take Sarah, for example. Why is she always referred to as "Sarah,...
The Midrash of Philo turns to Faith of Abraham. That's the question the Midrash of Philo – a collection of interpretations and expansions of biblical stories attributed to the Jewi...
The Midrash of Philo – and when we say Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), It does so by looking at offerings. Not just any offerings, but how people approach giving to the...
The Midrash of Philo turns to Adam and the Lawgiver. The Midrash of Philo, a fascinating collection of interpretations attributed to the Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria, off...
When we say "The Midrash of Philo," it's important to clarify we aren't talking about a midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) in the classic rabbinic sense. Instead, it refers...
He saw the world – and especially our inner world – as a kind of living midrash, a constant interpretation of the Torah and reality itself. And in his unique way, he understood the...
This particular piece tackles the tricky subject of a virtuous man taking a concubine, even though he already has a wife. How could that possibly be seen as righteous? Well, Philo ...
The Midrash of Philo turns to Ruth Speaks for God. The passage starts by talking about keeping oneself "free from stain." What does that even mean? Well, according to this midrash ...
The Midrash of Philo turns to Philo Unpacks God's Covenant Promise to Abraham. Philo, a Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, grappled with this very question. His interpretation, pr...
Some interpret this verse as God’s permission for humanity to eat meat. After the flood, the world was starting anew, and perhaps a new dietary allowance was being granted. But is ...
Seems a little... roundabout, doesn't it? That’s exactly the kind of thing that got the Rabbis thinking, and us too! What’s really going on behind those words? Why not just say, "H...
Take the story of Cain and Abel. A foundational story. The familiar version gives us it: the first brothers, the first offering, the first murder. So, why is it that in (Genesis 4:...
These are the kinds of questions that the ancient interpreters of the Bible loved to wrestle with! And in a fascinating, though fragmented, text known as The Midrash of Philo, we f...
The animals are all loaded, the family’s aboard… what’s the hold-up? Well, our sages pondered this very question, and, as they often do, came up with some beautiful and thought-pro...
Take Noah's Ark, for example. The familiar story is this: the flood, the animals, the dove with the olive branch. But then you get to (Genesis 8:4), and it hits you with, "The ark ...
Don't eat meat with blood still in it. But, as is often the case with Jewish tradition, there's so much more to unpack here. This verse, part of the covenant God makes with Noah an...
Our question comes from (Genesis 16:4): "When she saw that she had conceived, her mistress was despised in her eyes." Hagar, Sarai’s maidservant, becomes pregnant with Abraham's ch...
When Genesis says, "when they were created," it's almost teasing us. It's like saying, "Yeah, things were created, but when exactly? for a second. Why the ambiguity? Why not say, "...
These aren't exactly the Midrashim (rabbinic interpretive commentary) we might be most familiar with, the ones that examine the Torah verse by verse. Philo’s Midrashim have a uniqu...
One such answer comes from a text attributed to Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher who lived in Egypt during the first century. While scholars debate whether he actually pen...
Take the story of Noah and the Ark. The familiar version gives us the basic plot: God sends a flood, Noah builds an ark, and saves his family and the animals. But what about the de...
Sometimes, it's like the universe is trying to tell us something! Take the story of the Flood, the mabul. According to the Midrash of Philo, there's a fascinating detail about timi...
A fascinating corner of this exploration, guided by the writings of Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher who lived in the first century CE. He offers a unique perspective on t...
The Torah, in its often subtle way, touches upon this very question. Our passage focuses on a seemingly small detail in the story of Sarah and Hagar. You remember the story. Sarah,...
(Genesis 7:4) tells us that the rain fell for this specific duration, but why this particular number? Philo, in his Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), explores this very q...
Take, for instance, the verse in (Genesis 7:4): "I will destroy every living substance that I have made from off the face of the earth." (Genesis 7:4) Doesn't that phrasing strike ...
The verse in question is (Genesis 2:5): "And God made every green herb of the field, before it was upon the earth, and every grass before it had sprung up." Seems a bit… backwards....
The kind of things that make you pause and think, "Wait, did that really happen that way?" Remember what he says? "You will be as gods, knowing good and evil" (Genesis 3:5). Powerf...
The Torah, in the story of Cain and Abel, grapples with this very question. (Genesis 4:4) tells us that God respected Abel and his offering, but not Cain and his. But what's the me...
The words that seem almost. unnecessary? Like when we read, "Noah did everything which the Lord commanded him" (Genesis 7:5). Seems straightforward. Noah was a righteous guy, God t...
Ever stumble across a verse in the Torah that just. sticks in your craw? A line that looks simple at first, but the more you chew on it, the more questions it raises? That's exactl...
The Midrash of Philo turns to Sarah Confronts the Tension With Hagar Head On. Remember the story? Sarah, unable to conceive, suggests that Abraham have a child with Hagar. It’s a c...
The Midrash of Philo turns to Abram — Abraham's Transgression. Take Abraham, for instance. His story begins with a different name entirely: Abram. So, what's in a single letter, a ...
Philo, a Jewish philosopher living in Alexandria in the first century CE, certainly did. And in his writings, particularly in what we now call The Midrash of Philo, he offers a fas...
Get ready, because the answer might surprise you. Our source today is "The Midrash of Philo," a fascinating, often overlooked text. Here, we find a unique take on the serpent in th...
This particular midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), let's call it Midrash of Philo 5, offers what we might call a "noble panegyric" – high praise, really – for the just per...
Philo, in his unique way, dives into this very question, and his insights, drawn from his interpretation of scripture, are surprisingly relevant even today. He speaks of two kinds ...
The story, of course, revolves around Sarah, Abraham, and Hagar. Sarah, unable to conceive, gives her handmaiden Hagar to Abraham. But as we know, things get complicated. Hagar con...
One added letter turns Abram into Abraham, and Philo refuses to treat that small change as small. The story begins with some… let's call them skeptics. These folks, "destitute of a...
In the Midrash of Philo, we find a truly intriguing answer. (Genesis 2:6) poses a bit of a puzzle, doesn't it? "A fountain went up from the earth, and watered all the face of the e...
The Torah tells us plainly, but the why is left hanging, ripe for interpretation. Oh, have the interpretations grown! One fascinating perspective comes to us from, well, Philo. Now...
Wait a minute… God, anxious? God, regretting? It’s a pretty radical idea, isn’t it? Pretty heavy stuff. So, what’s going on here? What are we supposed to make of this? Did God real...
The familiar version gives us the big picture: flood, animals two-by-two, dove with an olive branch. But what about the timing? Specifically, why did Noah wait a full forty days af...
Take the phrase, "Whoso sheddeth man's blood, by man shall his blood be shed" (Genesis 9:6). An eye for an eye. But is it really that simple? They dove into this verse, wrestled wi...
The familiar story centers on Abraham, or Avraham as we say in Hebrew, and his wife Sarah, or Sarah. They longed for a child, but time was passing. So Sarah, following the customs ...
The question centers around a powerful promise God makes to Abraham in (Genesis 17:6): "I will greatly increase thee, and set thee among the nations, and kings shall proceed from t...
This is precisely the puzzle posed in The Midrash of Philo. It's a beautiful, thought-provoking exploration of the early chapters of Genesis, attributed to Philo of Alexandria, a J...
A passage that offers a rather… pointed perspective. The Midrash of Philo, a collection of interpretations attributed to Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher from the 1st cent...
