3,391 related texts · Page 301 of 377
The scene: God, in Genesis 17:1, reveals Himself to Abraham, saying "I am God Almighty [Shadai]." But what does Shadai really mean? The Rabbis, in Bereshit Rabbah 46, unpack this w...
The sages of the Midrash explored this very human feeling when grappling with God's command to Abraham to be circumcised. In Genesis 17:1, God tells Abraham, "Walk before Me, and b...
Specifically, we're looking at Bereshit Rabbah 46, where the rabbis are puzzling over something quite profound: where in the Torah do we find the use of acronyms? And more importan...
But in Bereshit Rabbah, that foundational midrashic text, the rabbis unpack layers of meaning from even a single word. The verse uses the Hebrew word "nemaltem," meaning "you shall...
to a fascinating exploration of just that, as we unpack a verse from Genesis and see what the Rabbis of old found hidden within its folds. Our journey begins with the powerful word...
It's right there in Genesis 17:17: "Abraham fell upon his face, and he laughed. He said in his heart: Shall a child be born to one who is one hundred years old? And shall Sarah, a ...
It's right there in the Torah: "Abraham said to God: 'Would that Ishmael might live before You.'" (Genesis 17:18). Seems straightforward. But like so much in our tradition, there's...
Specifically, we're looking at section 47, which tackles the tricky subject of God's promises to both Ishmael and Isaac. The passage centers around Genesis 17:20, where God says, "...
Today, let’s delve into a fascinating passage from Bereshit Rabbah, a classical rabbinic commentary on the Book of Genesis, that explores just that. The passage opens with a quote ...