Parshat Bereshit

7,741 related texts · Page 835 of 861

Covers the creation of the world in six days, Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden, the first sin, Cain and Abel, and the generations from Adam to Noah. Genesis 1:1-6:8.

Holy Sanctuary and Temple

Midrash Aggadah Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 51:7

Our tradition certainly does. It’s filled with prophecies and visions of a future so bright, it’s almost hard to imagine. One of the most evocative of these visions concerns the Te...

CreationTempleSabbathShabbat

Maker of Heaven and Earth of Moon

Midrash Aggadah Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 51:8

It's more than just checking the calendar. According to ancient tradition, there was a time when the connection between the earthly and heavenly realms was so clear, so palpable, t...

CreationHeavenPrayerSabbath

Hezekiah's Prayer and Isaiah

Midrash Aggadah Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 52:9

According to Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating text compiling stories and interpretations of the Torah, there was a time when sickness was a one-way street. From the moment cre...

CreationProphecyMiraclesExile

Kingdom of King Hezekiah and Babylon

Midrash Aggadah Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 52:10

The story comes from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating and often imaginative collection of midrashic stories. The scene opens with messengers arriving at Hezekiah's court. Heze...

Noah & FloodTorahTempleExile

Death of Moses and Egypt

Midrash Aggadah Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 54:3

Our ancestors in the wilderness did the same thing, and, according to Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, it didn't go so well. The story goes that the Israelites, fresh out of Egypt, started ...

HeavenAdam & EveJosephMoses

Abraham and the First Humans

Midrash Aggadah Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 54:5

Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating collection of early Jewish stories and interpretations, grapples with just that. Chapter 54 gives us some intriguing food for thought. It's a ...

Adam & EvePatriarchsSolomonPrayer

Wisdom of Satan

Midrash Aggadah Yalkut Shimoni on Nach 653:3

One intriguing explanation offered in the Yalkut Shimoni on Nach 653 suggests that certain aspects of divine knowledge were given "in secret due to the accuser" – that is, Satan. N...

CreationHeavenKing DavidTemple

The Ten Commandments and Aleph

Midrash Aggadah Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 1:3

The Yalkut Shimoni, a compilation of rabbinic commentary on the Hebrew Bible, offers a breathtaking glimpse into just that moment. Rabbi Yochanan tells us that the world was create...

CreationMosesTorahHoly Land

When God Created and Alef

Midrash Aggadah Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 2:5

And, as with many things in Jewish tradition, there isn't just one answer. There are layers, nuances, and profound insights waiting to be uncovered. One interpretation, found in th...

CreationHell/GehennaMosesTorah