Parshat Vayeshev

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Joseph's dreams and his brothers' jealousy, Joseph sold into slavery, Judah and Tamar, and Joseph in Potiphar's house and prison. Genesis 37:1-40:23.

Dina: Pharaoh at the Dawn of Creation

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 8:1

Take the verse from Ecclesiastes (10:8): “One who digs a pit will fall into it; and one who breaches a fence, a serpent will bite him.” It's a powerful image. But what does it real...

CreationHell/GehennaAdam & EvePatriarchs

Stars and Firmament and the Serpent

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 11:1

Ancient Jewish wisdom grappled with these questions too. Take this passage from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes. It starts with...

CreationHeavenHell/GehennaAngels

Mount Sinai and the Lawgiver of Israelites

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 18:1

The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet, is part of the Ketuvim ("Writings") section of the Hebrew Bible. Kohelet Rabbah, a Midrashic commentary on Ecclesiastes, digs deep into the ve...

MosesKing DavidSolomonTemple

Solomon the Builder

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 3:1

It all centers around a verse from Ecclesiastes 12:3, a verse filled with cryptic imagery: "On the day that the guards of the house will tremble, the men of valor will be bent, the...

Solomon

Rabbi Eliezer and the Lawgiver

Midrash Rabbah Kohelet Rabbah 11:1

It all starts with a verse from Ecclesiastes (12:11): "The words of the wise are like goads, and like nails well fastened are the collectors of wisdom; they are given from one shep...

MosesKing DavidSolomonTorah

Jacob and the Origins of the World

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 1:3

It's rarely just repetition. Often, it's about adding layers of meaning, offering a deeper appreciation for what came before. Take the very beginning of the Book of Exodus. We’re i...

CreationPatriarchsJosephMoses

Pharaoh: Moses in the Wilderness

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 1:14

The scene: Pharaoh, terrified by the growing Israelite population, issues a horrifying command to the Hebrew midwives. "When you deliver the Hebrew women," he says, "and you see th...

CreationMosesProphecyMiracles

Pharaoh: Eve and the Origins of the World

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 1:16

The Torah tells us that Pharaoh, increasingly paranoid about the growing Israelite population, ordered the Hebrew midwives to kill all newborn baby boys (Exodus 1:16). But the midw...

CreationAdam & EveNoah & FloodJoseph

Maker of Heaven and Earth of Presence

Midrash Rabbah Shemot Rabbah 2:2

But where is God, exactly? Is He up in the heavens, completely removed from our earthly struggles? Or is He still somehow… here? The book of Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic...

CreationHeavenAdam & EvePatriarchs