4,193 related texts · Page 56 of 88
(Ecclesiastes 8:16) says, "When I applied my heart to know wisdom, and to see the matters that are performed on the earth, as both during the day and during the night, one does not...
We find one such sentence in (Ecclesiastes 10:13): "The beginning of the words of his mouth is foolishness, and the end of his mouth is evil debauchery." Ouch. But who is this vers...
The story of Ruth is all about that, about choosing a people, a faith, a destiny. And it begins with those famous words: "Your people shall be my people, and your God my God." (Rut...
Like stacking the deck. Well, Shemot Rabbah, the great collection of interpretations on the Book of Exodus, wrestles with just that. One fascinating reading hinges on a verse from ...
It starts with the verse "This month shall be for you" (Exodus 12:2), which marks the beginning of the Hebrew month of Nissan, the month of Passover, the month of our freedom. But ...
Eleven! As it says, "From Egypt to the Land of Israel there are eleven journeys, which can be conducted in eleven days." (Shemot Rabbah 20). So, why did it end up taking them forty...
Jewish tradition teaches us that this feeling might be more than just a lucky coincidence. It might be the very presence of the Divine. Shemot Rabbah, a classic compilation of rabb...
He says that God declares "I am the Lord your God" precisely because He took us out of Egypt. It's the foundation. He freed us so that we would, in turn, accept His divinity upon o...
One fascinating passage in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, sheds light on this through a rather striking image. The passage opens wit...
The ancient rabbis certainly did. They explored every facet of joy, dissecting its many shades and flavors. And in Shir HaShirim Rabbah, the commentary on the Song of Songs, they g...
The Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Song of Songs, dives deep into this idea. Rabbi Ḥanan of Tzippori offers a powerful image connected to thi...
And it turns out, the ancient rabbis were thinking about this very thing, about the art of asking, of receiving, of appeasing the powers that be. In Vayikra Rabbah 5, a Midrash on ...
They saw those patterns reflected even in the seemingly mundane laws about skin diseases in the book of Leviticus. In Vayikra Rabbah, a fascinating collection of rabbinic interpret...
This feeling isn’t new. In fact, the ancient rabbis grappled with it, too, and found profound meaning in it. Rav Ḥanan of Tzippori offers a beautiful interpretation of doing acts o...
The ancient rabbis grappled with these questions too, and their insights, preserved in texts like Vayikra Rabbah, offer some startling perspectives. Rabbi Ḥiyya bar Abba, quoting R...
Jewish tradition grapples with this tension constantly, especially when it comes to giving to the poor. And sometimes, the answers we find are… well, unexpected. to a fascinating, ...
The ancient rabbis certainly did. They wrestled with theological concepts that could easily lead to heresy, constantly defending the core belief in one God against any notion of mu...
The Torah, in its infinite wisdom, speaks to that very human experience. Consider the loaded question in (Genesis 4:8), after Cain has just slain his brother Abel. God confronts hi...
The Midrash of Philo grapples with this very point. It’s not about God needing information. It’s about something far deeper: confronting Cain with the enormity of his actions. See,...
The ones you read and think, "Okay, that happened... but why is it there?" (Genesis 4:25) is one of those lines. "God has raised up for me another seed in the place of Abel whom Ca...
One that theologians and philosophers have wrestled with for centuries. We find it even bubbling up in the ancient texts. Take, for example, the passage that talks about God "repen...
It turns out, even Abraham, our forefather, might have had a moment of… well, not exactly doubt, but perhaps profound wonder. The Torah tells us, in (Genesis 17:17), after God prom...
And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel (Gen. 14:1). May it please our master to teach us whether a slave obtains his freedom if his owner assigns all his property to him as a ...
Jacob said unto his sons: “Why do ye look one upon another?” (Gen. 42:1). Jacob told his sons: Since you are strong and handsome, do not enter through one gate, nor stand together ...
And Moses said unto the children of Israel: “See, the Lord hath called by name Bezalel the son of Uri” (Exod. 35:30). May it please our masters to teach us: How far must a person g...
When you go out to war, etc. (Deuteronomy 20:1): What is written above the matter? "And the judges shall make a thorough investigation" (Deuteronomy 19:18). From when the judges ex...
One figure looms large in this discussion: Satanael. In the ancient text of 2 Enoch, this was the name of the highest angel, and the story surrounding him is… complicated, especial...
In fact, the Sabbath isn't just a terrestrial observance; it's a celestial one, too. Imagine this: right after creating the Sabbath, God gathers all the angels – the angels of the ...
The land was barren. A terrible famine gripped the region, forcing Abraham and Sarah to seek refuge in Egypt. They first tried Hebron, but the hunger was everywhere. So, they journ...
Ben Sira paints a picture of someone so deeply connected to wisdom that they "encamp about her house." What does that even mean? It's more than just visiting. It suggests a dedicat...
Ben Sira, that wise sage whose words dance between scripture and folklore, grapples with this very question. And what he offers us is both comforting and challenging. "According to...
It’s a challenge as old as time, and the Book of Ben Sira, a treasure trove of wisdom literature, offers some incredibly relevant insights. So, what does it really mean to find tha...
Ben Sira, that wise sage whose words echo through the ages, offers us a powerful insight in his teachings. He tells us, "He that feareth the Lord shall discern judgement; And shall...
Our verse is simple, yet powerful: "And he brought from him a man, finding grace in the eyes of all life. Beloved by God and man, Moshe, remembered for good." , shall we? First, "H...
Ben Sira chapter 45 gives us a glimpse, a whisper of what it meant for Moses and Aaron to be elevated by God. "And God honored him, and strengthened him in the heights." It begins ...
Today, let's talk about Yehoshua Ben Nun – Joshua, son of Nun – a figure who embodies that very idea. Ben Sira, in his wisdom, paints a vivid picture of Yehoshua. He calls him "a w...
Ben Sira, in his wisdom, offers us a glimpse into the very heart of David's reign. "And he went against the Philistine foe, and to this day shattered their horn." It's a powerful i...
Incense fills the air, music swells, and then Simon the High Priest appears. He's just completed the sacred service, and the sight is so breathtaking, so imbued with holiness, that...
Ben Sira, that wise sage from centuries ago, knew the feeling. He even wrote about it. He mentions "the inhabitants of Seir and Philistia; And the foolish nation that dwelleth in S...
The Book of Jubilees, a fascinating text from around the 2nd century BCE, speaks to that very feeling. It paints a picture of a future where the people stray from the path, and the...
It might surprise you to learn that some of it isn't directly from the Torah we read in synagogues. Let's talk about a text called the Book of Jubilees. The Book of Jubilees, also ...
Specifically, not eating it. The Book of Jubilees, a text bubbling with rich detail expanding on the Torah’s narratives, dives headfirst into this very topic. This isn’t just a sug...
Ancient texts wrestled with this too, particularly with how easily we can lose track of the sacred rhythms of life. The Book of Jubilees, a text not found in the Hebrew Bible but c...
It’s not just a vague "they went off and settled," but a detailed allocation. We find a fascinating, if somewhat cryptic, account in the Book of Jubilees. This ancient Jewish text,...
We're not talking politics here, but something far older, something almost mythical. Let's turn to the Book of Jubilees, an ancient Jewish text also known as Lesser Genesis, that o...
The scene is set. God is speaking, promising judgement upon the nation that will enslave Abraham's descendants. But it doesn’t end there. There’s a promise of liberation, a return ...
We often hear the story of Abraham, the patriarch, but sometimes we miss the sheer power of the moment his name was transformed. It's not just a name change; it's a cosmic realignm...
Let’s talk about brit milah, circumcision, and a fascinating text called the Book of Jubilees. This ancient Jewish work, considered scripture by some but not included in the standa...
