906 related texts · Page 2 of 19
Reached the absolute limit of what you can do to help someone, and they just... won't listen? Well, Moses knew that feeling. And the story of Korach's rebellion really brings it ho...
According to the legends, Miriam wasn't just Moses' sister; she was a pivotal figure in her own right. She was a prophetess, a leader, and, perhaps most importantly, she was the re...
R. Akiva says: "succoth" refers to the clouds of glory, as in (Isaiah 4:5) "And the L–rd will create on the entire base of Mount Zion and on all of its branchings a cloud by day an...
Three miraculous gifts sustained Israel in the wilderness, and each one was tied to a specific leader. Rabbi Yehoshua teaches that when Miriam died, the well that had followed the ...
And the Torah, in its own way, grapples with this very question. We find ourselves in the Book of Exodus, a pivotal moment in the story of the Israelites. Moses is about to ascend ...
For forty long years, as they wandered, they had a constant companion: a pillar of cloud by day, and a pillar of fire by night. The Torah tells us, in (Exodus 13:21), "And Yahweh w...
Like just when you think you've made it, something... shifts? Jewish tradition has a way of acknowledging that final, often fiery, transition. Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating...
It’s a recurring theme in our tradition, and each instance carries a powerful lesson.This isn't a physical descent, mind you, but a drawing near, a manifestation of the Divine pres...
Maybe it's because, according to our tradition, words have power. Real, tangible power. And how we use that power matters. The book of Devarim, Deuteronomy, reminds us of this in a...
The Targum Jonathan on (Deuteronomy 4) transforms the Sinai revelation into something far more vivid than the Hebrew original. Where the Bible says God spoke from the fire, the Tar...
The Hebrew Bible says Moses, Aaron, Nadav, Avihu, and seventy elders "saw the God of Israel" (Exodus 24:10). This is an extraordinary claim—direct visual perception of the divine. ...
Specifically, the fire of divine approval. The Second Book of Maccabees, a historical and religious text not included in the Hebrew Bible but important for understanding the Second...
The period of the Judges was an era of divine intervention so direct that storms fought battles and fires executed corrupt leaders. According to the Chronicles of Jerahmeel, a 12th...
Zerubbabel won the riddle contest, but when King Darius offered him any reward up to half the kingdom, he asked for something no treasure could buy. According to the Chronicles of ...
The story of Moses' birth is a powerful testament to that kind of bravery, laced with faith and a touch of the miraculous. It all begins with a decree from Pharaoh, ordering the de...
It wasn't exactly a picnic. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) paints a picture of intense anticipation, mixed with a healthy dose of terror. From the moment the Israel...
The ancient Israelites certainly did. And sometimes, loss can make that feeling even more intense. Imagine this: You're trekking through the desert, following a cloud that miraculo...
That’s the situation Moses found himself in after Miriam’s well vanished. According to Legends of the Jews, as retold by Louis Ginzberg, the miraculous well that had sustained the ...
(Exodus 14:20) "And it (the cloud) came between the camp of Egypt and the camp of Israel, and it was cloud and darkness"—cloud for Israel and darkness for Egypt; Israel in the ligh...
(Ibid. 20) "Then Miriam the prophetess took": Where do we find that Miriam was a prophetess? She said to her father (Amram): In the end, you will beget a son who will be the savior...
(Exodus 15:20) introduces Miriam with a curious title: "the prophetess, the sister of Aaron." The Mekhilta immediately spots the problem. Miriam was the sister of both Aaron and Mo...
Isn't it fascinating how language can be so fluid, so open to interpretation? The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) starts with a rather stark statement: "Speak differentl...
It’s a question humanity has grappled with for millennia. Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Psalms, tackles this very question head-on in it...
The mystics did, and they connected it directly to the Divine. : how do we respond to new beginnings? With joy, with song, with dance! And according to the Midrash Tehillim, a coll...
The Torah portion of Bamidbar (Numbers) opens a fascinating window into exactly that, with a story about Miriam and Aaron speaking against their brother, Moses. The verse in (Numbe...
The passage opens with a rather startling image: "And the L-rd said suddenly." R. Shimon b. Menassia points out that Moses himself was frightened by the word "suddenly" earlier in ...
Jewish tradition certainly has, and it teaches us profound lessons about cause and effect, especially when it comes to how we treat others.It all starts with a verse from Bamidbar ...
Today, we’re diving into the book of Bamidbar (Numbers), specifically chapter 18 in Sifrei Bamidbar, to unpack the intense responsibilities placed on the Kohanim and Levi'im (Levit...
It’s a question that’s been wrestled with for centuries, and Sifrei Devarim 41 offers a beautiful, layered answer, drawing on imagery from the Song of Songs. The verse from Song of...
But not in a scary, Big Brother kind of way. More like… a loving parent hoping you’ll make the right choices. This idea comes to life in the Sifrei Devarim, a collection of legal i...
Book of Eldad the Danite A Question and Answer between the People of Kairouan and Rabbi Zemach Gaon [Epstein, Eldad the Danite, Story I] Before the chariot of Israel and its horsem...
That image, that feeling, is right at the heart of Psalm 91, and it takes center stage in a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah 12. The verse "He who dwells in the shelter of ...
The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), specifically Bamidbar Rabbah 15, tells us that crafting the menorah was uniquely challenging for Moses. More so than any other objec...
Bamidbar Rabbah, in section 15, tackles this very question, and the answers are surprisingly profound. "Toward the front of the candelabrum, the seven lamps shall illuminate," the ...
The story of the menorah, the candelabrum in the Tabernacle, as told in Bamidbar Rabbah 15, is a wild ride about just that. It's a reminder that even Moses, the ultimate receiver o...
We're good at selective hearing. Well, Jewish tradition suggests this happened big time with the story of the spies sent to scout the land of Canaan. Our story comes from Bamidbar ...
to a fascinating passage from Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, that grapples with just that question in the fiery destructi...
It starts with a verse from Deuteronomy (4:25): "When you will beget children, and children’s children, and you will have been long in the land, and you will act corruptly and craf...
The Jewish tradition certainly does. In fact, it links our speech directly to our relationship with the Divine. Devarim Rabbah, a collection of homilies on the Book of Deuteronomy,...
That feeling isn’t new. In fact, it echoes through one of the most powerful stories in the Torah. We all know the story of Moses. Born into slavery, hidden away, destined for great...
The Torah tells us, "His sister said to Pharaoh’s daughter: ‘Shall I go and call you a nurse from the Hebrew women to nurse the child for you?’" (Exodus 2:7). But why specifically ...
The passage we're looking at begins with God instructing Moses: "Go and gather the elders of Israel, and say to them: The Lord, the God of your fathers, God of Abraham, of Isaac, a...
to a fascinating passage from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, specifically chapter 22, that explores exactly that idea. The verse in ...
It might seem a little... unflattering at first glance. But as with so many things in our tradition, there's a depth and beauty to be found when we dig a little deeper. Shemot Rabb...
It's not just a love poem, you know. Jewish tradition sees it as an allegory, a story of the love between God and Israel. And within its verses, we find echoes of the Temple, its d...
The Torah tells us of an agreement, a covenant, between God and the Israelites. But the details, as explored in Vayikra Rabbah, are far more intricate and, frankly, a little . Rabb...
Our tradition certainly does. In Vayikra Rabbah, specifically chapter 7, we find a powerful thread connecting arrogance and divine retribution, often in the form of fire. It's a po...
You're not alone. Our tradition recognizes this struggle, this internal tug-of-war. And it offers a powerful image to understand it. The text we're looking at today comes from Vayi...
