The Camp of Israel Stretched Twelve Mil at Sinai

Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 301:4

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

"And the people stood far off" (Exodus 20:18): this is twelve mil. This tells that the camp of Israel was twelve mil, and so it says "And they camped by the Jordan from Beth-jeshimoth to Abel-shittim" (Numbers 33:49), and that is twelve mil.

Themes

IsraelSinaiHoly Land

Continue Reading

Mekhilta DeRabbi Shimon Ben YochaiOn the Third Day Before the Eyes of All the PeopleGod commands the people to be ready for the third day, and the Sages hear in that readiness a plan being made. The people set themselves a fixed meeting place, Pesikta de-Rav KahanaFrom Nothing You Came and the Single Cry That Earns Every ComfortThe prophet's harsh words turn tender in the rabbis' hands. "You are from nothing," Isaiah says (Isaiah 41:24), and the sages hear it as a meditation on birth iPesikta de-Rav KahanaIsrael Like the Apple Tree at the Giving of the TorahThe Song of Songs sings that the beloved is like an apple tree set among the ordinary trees of the forest. Three sages turn that single image over and find threTanna DeBei Eliyahu RabbahThe King's Banquet and Israel's Share in the World to ComeThe chapter opens with a hard truth: craving a comfortable life in this world is a bad sign. It tells of a king who invites his servant to a long banquet and prYalkut Shimoni on NachThe River That Encircles the Whole Land of IsraelThis short comment lingers on why the Euphrates earns the title "the great river" when, by ordinary measure, it is not the largest waterway in the world. The saYalkut Shimoni on TorahNations Rage and Philistia Trembles at Israel's RiseWhy should the nations rage when they hear Israel is coming home? The midrash imagines God answering them with sharp impatience. Look at your own history, He sa