2,086 related texts · Page 21 of 44
When Moses sat down with his father-in-law Yithro after the exodus from Egypt, he did not simply give a dry report of events. The Mekhilta explains that Moses "related to his fathe...
The Mekhilta offers a striking interpretation of the phrase "from the hand of Egypt and from the hand of Pharaoh" (Exodus 18:10). Why does the verse mention both Egypt and Pharaoh ...
God made a striking declaration to the Israelites at Sinai: "You have seen what I did to Egypt" (Exodus 19:4). The Mekhilta emphasizes that God was not asking the people to accept ...
The Mekhilta offers a poetic interpretation of the Song of Songs, reading its romantic language as a dialogue between God and Israel — and locating that dialogue in specific moment...
The Israelites stood at the edge of the sea, the Egyptian army bearing down behind them, and terror gripped the camp. Hundreds of thousands of men, women, and children, freshly lib...
(Exodus 20:17) says that God came to Sinai "in order to exert you." The Mekhilta reinterprets this: "exert" actually means "to make you great." God's arrival at Sinai was not meant...
Why is it written? It is deliberately superfluous to signal a gezeirah shavah (i.e., "identity"), viz.: It is written here (in Exodus) "Hebrew," and there (in Devarim) "Hebrew." Ju...
When a Hebrew slave chooses to remain in servitude rather than go free at the end of his six-year term, the Torah prescribes a specific ritual: his master takes an awl and bores th...
Rabbi Yonathan asked: what is the purpose of specifying "You shall not light a fire" when the Torah already prohibits all labor on the Sabbath? If all thirty-nine categories of lab...
The passage from (Proverbs 1:22-33) kicks things off: "'How long, you simple ones, will you love simplicity?'... 'and fools hate knowledge.'" The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive com...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, offers a fascinating perspective. It points to the tribe of Levi, specifically those who resisted ...
It draws a powerful parallel between water and Torah, showing how both are essential for life, growth, and well-being. The midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) begins by refe...
It’s a question that’s haunted humanity for millennia. Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, wrestles with this very idea, pulling in ve...
It turns out, that instinct might be deeply woven into the fabric of our tradition. Because according to Midrash Tehillim, that feeling is intrinsically linked to music. Specifical...
The ancient rabbis certainly thought so. And they found echoes of this idea even in the seemingly simple words of the Psalms. Specifically, in Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rab...
Even King David, the sweet singer of Israel, knew what that felt like. Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, delves deep into David's st...
" This verse, seemingly simple, becomes a springboard for a deep dive into themes of good and evil, destiny, and the very nature of creation. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive com...
They can build bridges, offer comfort, and inspire hope. But they can also tear down, inflict pain, and sow seeds of discord. Today, let’s delve into a particularly destructive use...
The passage opens with an intriguing idea: prayer itself as judgment. David, contemplating his own mortality and the possibility of divine judgment, seems to be saying, "If my judg...
And down below? The Israelites, impatient, scared, and feeling abandoned, decide to build themselves a new god – a golden calf. Talk about a betrayal. The Midrash (rabbinic interpr...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, offers a fascinating glimpse into this divine-human "battle" during the Exodus. It's not just abou...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of homiletic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, offers some fascinating perspectives on this very question, particularly in its treatment of Psal...
We often talk about God's love, God's mercy... but what about God's thunder? Midrash Tehillim, a collection of interpretations on the Book of Psalms, dives headfirst into this very...
What would you see? Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, offers us a glimpse into that moment, a moment of sheer, terrifying awe. It’s ...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Psalms, opens up this very question. It tells us that the Holy One gifted the world no less than three core elem...
Specifically, we're looking at Midrash Tehillim 21, which uses (Psalm 24:10), "Who is this King of Glory? The Lord of Hosts, He is the King of Glory, Selah," as a springboard for a...
But the Midrash Tehillim, a collection of homiletic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, doesn’t leave us hanging with just the question. It gives us an answer, and it might surp...
Even Moses, the great lawgiver himself, felt that way. In Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, we find a fascinating glimpse into Moses...
to one particularly powerful passage, a meditation on (Psalm 27:1), "The Lord is my light and my help; whom should I fear? The Lord is the stronghold of my life; whom should I drea...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of Rabbinic commentaries on the Book of Psalms, dives deep into this idea, exploring how the voices of the righteous resonate with the Divine. "The r...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of interpretations on the Book of Psalms, points us to King David as the ultimate example of repentance, of teshuvah (repentance). It says, "Many wil...
Specifically, we're looking at Midrash Tehillim 42. It's a plea, a challenge, almost a demand, directed at God. The speaker in this Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) begin...
We're looking at Midrash Tehillim 45, and it all starts with lilies. The verse in question is (Psalm 45:1): "To the conductor over the white lilies, a wise song of friendship." But...
We get glimpses, whispers really, throughout our sacred texts. And some of those glimpses are...well, let's just say they're unexpected. Midrash Tehillim, a collection of interpret...
The Midrash Tehillim, a collection of homiletic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, gives us some pretty wild and wonderful glimpses into that future. It all starts with a frust...
Midrash Tehillim, specifically Midrash Tehillim 75, grapples with this very idea, drawing upon verses from Psalms and Genesis to paint a compelling picture. The midrash (rabbinic i...
Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), that beautiful, winding path through Jewish text and tradition, often uses metaphors to help us understand our place in the grand scheme...
The blast of the shofar, that ancient ram's horn, isn't just some ritualistic noise. It’s a call to action, a reminder, and, if we listen closely, a whisper from the Divine. Midras...
According to Midrash Tehillim, that very feeling echoes through Jewish history. "My soul longs and faints for the house of the Lord" (Psalm 84:3). This verse, seemingly about the B...
Think of it as a secret decoder ring for understanding the deeper layers of King David's timeless songs. Today, we're diving into a fascinating little nugget from Midrash Tehillim,...
"His name is in their words." What a powerful opening! Rabbi Yudan bar Rabbi Simon suggests something quite striking: the plagues weren't just external events, but were written dir...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Psalms, uses a vivid analogy to explore exactly that feeling, focusing on the Exodus from Egypt. It hangs ...
That feeling, that sense of the utterly unknowable, it’s a thread that runs deep through Jewish thought. The Midrash Tehillim, a collection of interpretations on the Book of Psalms...
That image, that feeling of utter powerlessness, resonates deeply in Jewish tradition. Midrash Tehillim, a collection of interpretations on the Book of Psalms, uses it to describe ...
That’s kind of the feeling behind Psalm 114, and the Midrash Tehillim, an ancient collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Psalms, dives deep into the joy and gratitude expr...
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Psalms, offers some fascinating perspectives on this very question. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentar...
We often hear the story, but sometimes the sheer impossibility of it all gets lost. Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, gives us some ...
In fact, it teaches us that it's really not fitting to sing your own praises… unless someone else steps up to vouch for you. But then, who vouches for God? That's the question pose...
