Faith of Abraham

The Midrash of Philo 3:1

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·March 24, 2026

What is the meaning of, "Abraham fell on his face?" (Genesis 17:3).

Themes

Creation Patriarchs Abraham Divine Justice Faith

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Vayikra RabbahElazar — Abraham at the Dawn of CreationRabbi Elazar, in Vayikra Rabbah 35, offers a powerful comparison. He says, "The way of the world is that a king issues a decree; if he wishes to fulfill it, he The Midrash of PhiloThe Great Horror of Darkness That Fell Upon AbrahamOur ancestor Abraham felt it too. The Torah tells us, in (Genesis 15:12): "About the time of the setting of the sun a trance fell upon Abraham; and lo, a great The Midrash of PhiloAbram — Abraham's TransgressionThe 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 Ben SiraWisdom Given to All Flesh According to God's Desire" Now, who is this "her"? Interpretations vary, but many scholars see this as referring to Torah itself, the divine teachings. the Torah isn't just a set of rul Book of JubileesStory of AbrahamThe Book of Jubilees, a text not found in the canonical Tanakh, but considered sacred in some Jewish traditions. It retells much of Genesis and Exodus, but with Legends of the JewsAbraham Meets a Woman Searching for Her Lost ChildThat feeling, that fleeting nature of time, echoes in a powerful story about Abraham from Ginzberg's Legends of the Jews. Abraham, not yet the patriarch we know