2,086 related texts · Page 23 of 44
The text starts by pondering the phrase "who can do as Your deeds" (Deuteronomy 3:24). Sifrei Devarim finds echoes of God's power in two pivotal moments of our history: the Exodus ...
But like so many things in Jewish tradition, the answer, or rather the layers of answers, are richer and more meaningful than you might expect. R. Shimon, in Sifrei Devarim, tells ...
It’s a question that echoes through the ages, and the Torah, specifically the book of Devarim (Deuteronomy), gives us a powerful glimpse. The verse states, "and he became there a n...
We read about a “strong hand,” an “outstretched arm,” signs, and wonders. But what are those, really? The Sifrei Devarim, a collection of early Jewish legal interpretations on the ...
But what about everyone else? Well, Sifrei Devarim 311 sheds some light. It interprets the verse about consulting "your elders, and they shall say it to you" (Deuteronomy 32:7) as ...
Today, we're diving into a fascinating passage from Sifrei Devarim 352, which explores this concept through the story of the tribe of Benjamin and a mysterious plot of land in Jeri...
The Book of Exodus opens with a list of names and a king who "knew not Joseph." Targum Jonathan transforms this into something far more vivid—adding a prophetic dream, naming Phara...
The standard book of Exodus says an angel appeared to Moses in the burning bush. The Targum Jonathan, an ancient Aramaic translation composed in the land of Israel, names that ange...
When Moses and Aaron first confronted Pharaoh and demanded he release Israel, the Hebrew Bible records Pharaoh's defiant reply: "Who is the Lord, that I should obey his voice?" (Ex...
Exodus chapter 6 is mostly genealogy—the kind of passage readers skim. The Targum Jonathan turns it into a minefield of hidden revelations. The chapter opens with God revealing the...
When the Hebrew Bible says Aaron threw down his staff before Pharaoh and it became a serpent (Exodus 7:10), the Targum Jonathan makes a far more terrifying claim. The rod did not b...
The plague of hail in Exodus chapter 9 comes with a warning: anyone who fears God's word should bring their livestock inside. The Hebrew Bible says some of Pharaoh's servants feare...
The standard Exodus text says God promised one final plague against Egypt. The Targum Jonathan transforms this announcement into something far more personal and humiliating for Pha...
The Targum Jonathan on (Exodus 13) contains one of the most startling cross-references in all of ancient Aramaic translation. It identifies the famous dry bones from (Ezekiel 37) a...
The Song of the Sea in (Exodus 15) is one of the oldest poems in the Hebrew Bible. The Targum Jonathan rewrites it with additions so bold they create entirely new theology, includi...
The manna story in (Exodus 16) raises an obvious question: where did this miracle food come from? The Hebrew Bible says God "rained bread from heaven." The Targum Jonathan gives a ...
The revelation at Sinai is awe-inspiring in the Hebrew Bible. The Targum Jonathan on (Exodus 19) makes it terrifying. It adds details about God physically uprooting the mountain, I...
The Hebrew Bible mentions a cloud over the Tabernacle. The Targum Jonathan turns it into a sentient navigation system—a pillar of divine fire and glory that dictated every movement...
The Hebrew Bible says God told Moses, "Who gave man a mouth, or who makes a person dumb or deaf, seeing or blind? Is it not I—God?" (Exodus 4:11). Targum Onkelos translates this ve...
The Hebrew Bible says God "hardened Pharaoh's heart" and he pursued the Israelites (Exodus 14:8). Targum Onkelos translates this without softening or explaining. The hardening stan...
The Hebrew Bible records Moses and the Israelites singing a triumphant song after the sea closes over the Egyptians (Exodus 15). Targum Onkelos transforms this victory hymn into so...
"I am God, your Lord, Who brought you out of the land of Egypt" (Exodus 20:2). Targum Onkelos translates the Ten Commandments with almost no deviation from the Hebrew—a remarkable ...
The Hebrew Bible says the people told Aaron: "Make us gods that will lead us, for this Moses, we do not know what happened to him" (Exodus 32:1). Targum Onkelos translates this wit...
The Hebrew Bible says God "passed before" Moses and proclaimed the Thirteen Attributes of Mercy (Exodus 34:6). Targum Onkelos renders this as God "made His Shechinah pass" before M...
When they went out of Egypt, they broke out in song, as it is written: ‘then Moses and the children of Israel sang the song’ (Exodus 15:1); and when Israel went out of Jerusalem th...
...It is written (Ps. 119:62) At midnight do I constantly rise to give thanks unto Thee. Did David rise at midnight? Behold! He arose at the beginning of the night, for it is said,...
The Israelites knew that feeling intimately. Our story begins in just such a place: "The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first of the...
It's not just random geography. It's a lesson in humility and the power of inner space. The Book of Numbers, Bamidbar in Hebrew, opens with the famous line: "The Lord spoke to Mose...
And the king, instead of addressing the crowd, singles you out. He speaks directly to you. That, my friends, is the opening of Bamidbar Rabbah, the ancient midrash on the Book of N...
It’s more than just a geographical landmark; it’s a place brimming with meaning, judgment, and even desire. to the heart of what the Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teach...
We read in the book of Numbers that "all those counted were six hundred three thousand, five hundred and fifty" (Numbers 1:46). But numbers in the Torah are never just numbers, are...
Our tradition teaches us that the world itself was once like that, a desolate and empty space, until something truly remarkable happened. Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic ...
We're diving into Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically section 2, which is like a treasure trove of rabbinic interpretations and stories drawn from the Torah and the Prophets. What's so f...
Their answer is both clever and chilling: The wilderness of Sinai was where they received their death sentence. How could that be? The key, it seems, lies in (Exodus 24:11): “Again...
Sometimes the pieces don’t quite fit at first glance. Take, for instance, the tribe of Levi. In the Book of Numbers – Bamidbar in Hebrew – we find two seemingly opposing instructio...
It all goes back to a fascinating swap, a divine exchange, that re-shaped the spiritual landscape of ancient Israel. We find the seeds of this story in Bamidbar Rabbah, specificall...
It wasn't just a matter of tossing everything into a wagon. There was a precise order, a sacred choreography, and it all begs the question: Why this order? Bamidbar Rabbah, specifi...
The answer, according to our tradition, is complex, but at its heart lies a profound connection between God and Israel, a bond so strong that it influences even divine judgment. Th...
It's almost like a cosmic nudge, inviting us to dig a little deeper. Take, for example, the juxtaposition of the laws concerning lepers right before the section detailing the dutie...
It turns out, those repetitions are often there to teach us something deeper, something we might otherwise miss. Take the curious phrase "ish ish" – "a man, a man" – in the context...
The passage starts with the seemingly straightforward case of a suspected adulteress in (Numbers 5:12): "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: If the wife of any man wi...
Specifically, a nazir – a Nazirite. The passage we're looking at today comes from Bamidbar Rabbah 10, which is a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Numbers. It f...
We find ourselves in Bamidbar Rabbah 12, a section of the Midrash Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic teachings on the books of the Torah. The text opens with a seemingly simple stat...
The passage in Bamidbar Rabbah 12 kicks off with a seemingly simple word: "Vayhi" – usually translated as "it was." But in the world of Jewish interpretation, nothing is ever just ...
The ancient rabbis grappled with that feeling too, especially when things were going well for the Israelites. Take the story in Bamidbar Rabbah 12, which begins with a single, load...
And it turns out, it’s a feeling that resonates even within the stories of our most revered figures. Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Numbers, div...
Bamidbar Rabbah 12, a section of the classic midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic text, wrestles with this very question, using the construction of the Tabernacle – the mis...
We often talk about big, abstract ideas, but sometimes the most profound truths are found in the everyday acts of kindness, learning, and… well, building a really special house. to...
