10,602 related texts · Page 37 of 221
The Mekhilta DeRabbi Yishmael presents a striking teaching about the value of a single human life. The text interprets the phrase "and there fall of them many" to mean that if even...
The Torah says about a kidnapper: "and sells him" (Exodus 21:16). The Mekhilta derives from this phrasing that the kidnapper is liable only if he sells the entire person, not half....
(Exodus 22:3) says: "If found will be found in his hand." The phrase "in his hand" seems to mean the stolen object was physically held by the thief. But the Mekhilta interprets "in...
We often picture God as all-powerful, creating worlds and intervening in human affairs. But did you know there's a tradition that imagines God as… a Torah scholar? It’s true! The B...
We all know the story from Genesis, about God speaking the world into existence. But what if there were other, older stories? Stories that paint an even more vivid and active pictu...
Okay, it's not exactly a fashion question, but it's a fascinating way to think about the beginning of everything. According to Jewish tradition, the very first thing created wasn't...
Some ancient Jewish texts suggest something far more dramatic. Imagine this: On the first day of creation, God brings forth fire and water, mixing them to form the very heavens. Bu...
Jewish tradition offers some fascinating, and at times unsettling, explanations. One story, found scattered in sources like Pesikta Rabbati and Yalkut Re'uveni, centers around a fi...
We're talking about a figure so powerful that, according to some, it was this angel who brought everything into existence. Think of it: this angel created not just the physical wor...
According to some accounts, these beings are, in a way, leftovers from the very first week of existence. The story goes that God was creating, creating, creating, all day long for ...
We're not talking about a stern lecture or a time-out. We're talking about Gehenna. Now, Gehenna, sometimes translated as Hell, isn't exactly a picnic. It's described as being in t...
We know that today, the Torah is meticulously handwritten on parchment scrolls. But before there was a world, before there were animals whose skins could be turned into parchment, ...
Some say God offered it to every nation on earth, but only Israel was willing to accept it. But there's another, even more dramatic version that I think you'll find fascinating. Im...
We're talking about the creation of a Golem! Now, what exactly is a Golem? In Jewish folklore, a Golem is an animated being, usually made of clay or mud, brought to life through my...
But it's a very real fear that pulses through the heart of Jewish tradition, especially during the High Holy Days. There's this powerful idea, a myth really, that the world isn’t a...
Ever stumble across a name in the Bible and wonder, "Who was that person?" The Torah is full of these little mysteries! Let's talk about one that always gets my attention: Iscah. Y...
The Torah tells us that Isaac eventually married Rebecca. But did you know that, according to some traditions, they faced a long period of infertility? Twenty-two years, to be exac...
Not just on Earth, but in this state of… well, existence. Fraught with hard work, pain, and ultimately, mortality? The story of the exile from Eden, found in (Genesis 3:1-24), trie...
Jewish tradition has a lot to say about it, and it’s pretty . Imagine a world without the sun or moon. I know, sounds like science fiction. But the prophet Isaiah, in chapter 60, v...
Jewish tradition offers some fascinating glimpses, and one particularly dramatic scene involves Satan himself getting a sneak peek at the Messiah. The story goes that even before t...
It’s a question that fascinated them, leading to complex calculations and intricate systems to track the lunar cycle. to a passage from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating early ...
You're not alone. Our ancestors, too, gazed at the stars, seeking meaning and guidance in their celestial dance. And according to ancient Jewish wisdom, that dance holds profound s...
It’s a question that has captivated humanity for millennia, and Jewish tradition offers a beautiful, almost poetic, explanation. Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, an early medieval text fill...
For an agricultural society, it’s about knowing when to plant, when to harvest, and aligning our lives with the rhythms of the earth. According to Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascina...
It's a portal, a time set apart. And according to Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a beautiful, almost novelistic Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), keeping Shabbat (the Sabbath) b...
We know the story. Jealousy, anger, the first murder. But the Bible itself is remarkably silent on the details. That's where the rich tapestry of Jewish tradition steps in, filling...
Rabbi Yossi, in Sifrei Devarim 43, asks a pointed question: why are idols even called elohim – "gods" in Hebrew? It's not just a matter of labels. He explains that it's precisely t...
The Hebrew Bible opens with a spare, magnificent account of creation in seven days. The Targum Jonathan, an ancient Aramaic translation composed between the 2nd and 7th centuries C...
Chapter 1 From Adam to the Flood was 1656 years, and this is their enumeration: Adam 130, Seth 105, Enosh 90, Kenan 70, Mahalalel 65, Jared 162, Enoch 65, Methuselah 187, Lamech 18...
Another explanation: And you will quickly perish (Deuteronomy 11:17)—exile after exile. And thus do you find with the ten tribes, exile after exile. And thus do you find with the t...
The Hebrew Bible says God "appeared" to Abraham at the oaks of Mamre (Genesis 18:1). Targum Onkelos says God "became revealed." It sounds like the same thing. It is not. Appearing ...
He cast the pur - that is, the lot: Rabbi Chama bar Chanina said, "It was taught [that] when it fell out in the month of Adar, [Haman] rejoiced with great joy: He said, 'The lot fe...
...It is written, "The Lord established the earth with wisdom"—this is the Torah. The Torah, where was it and where will it be? Why is it called Torah? Because a teaching descended...
The sages taught that ten kings have ruled — or will rule — over the entire world. The list reads like a history of power itself, stretching from the beginning of time to its end. ...
The flood waters had covered everything. Noah had been sealed in the ark for months — the rain, the silence, the slow recession of the water, the waiting. Then the text says simply...
Jewish tradition offers some pretty wild and wonderful cosmologies. And a recurring image? Water. Waters upon waters, in fact. According to some mystical teachings, long ago, prime...
(Genesis 11:1) tells us, "Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words." Imagine the possibilities! With this miraculous language, some say, anything could be accompl...
That’s exactly what happens in Bamidbar Rabbah 13, a Midrash on the Book of Numbers. It all starts with a single letter: a vav. The passage asks, "vekorban (a sacrificial offering)...
And if you delve into the ancient texts, particularly the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), you find some truly mind-bending ideas. Let's turn to Bereshit Rabbah, a class...
Bereshit Rabbah, a classical collection of rabbinic interpretations on the book of Genesis, offers us a fascinating glimpse into their perspective. Specifically, in section 12, we ...
It's easy to just gloss over those descriptions of the Garden of Eden, but the Rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), those ancient interpreters of the Torah, sa...
It seems simple enough on the surface: "From every tree of the garden you may eat." But, like with so much in Torah, the rabbis saw layers upon layers of meaning hidden beneath the...
In fact, our sages wondered about that very thing way back in the book of Genesis! We find it in (Genesis 2:18): "The Lord God said: It is not good that the man should be alone; I ...
The Torah tells us, "The Lord God said: Behold, the man has become as one of us, to know good and evil, and now, he might extend his hand, and take also from the tree of life, and ...
Like you've pulled the wool over someone's eyes, maybe even... God's? Well, Bereshit Rabbah, that incredible collection of rabbinic interpretations of Genesis, has something to say...
In Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, we find this idea explored through a rather unsettling lens: famine. Specifically, the ...
Take Noah, for instance. We all know the story: the ark, the flood, the animals two-by-two. But what about Noah before the flood? What kind of person was he? Well, the book of Bere...
Sometimes, it's in the details, in the seemingly small phrases, that we find the biggest insights. Take the story of Noah, for instance. We all know the basics: flood, ark, animals...
