759 related texts · Page 16 of 16
Now, Song of Songs is already pretty heady stuff – love, longing, metaphor piled upon metaphor. But the Rabbah, the commentary, takes it to a whole new level, interpreting the poem...
What's that about?" It's beautiful poetry, sure, but sometimes the imagery feels… obscure. Well, the ancient rabbis had a field day unpacking those metaphors. And when we dive into...
Take this one from the Song of Songs, or Shir HaShirim: "Your hair is like a flock of goats" (Song of Songs 4:1). Goats? Hair? What’s that all about? Well, Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a ...
The ancient Rabbis did. They poured over the verses, searching for clues. And in Shir HaShirim Rabbah, the rabbinic commentary on the Song of Songs, we find some fascinating answer...
Today, we’re diving into a passage from Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Song of Songs, that explores just that feeling. Specifically, we're lo...
Our Rabbis certainly did. They grappled with this very question, especially when comparing the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem. In Shir HaShirim Rabbah, the Rabbis delve into...
Li (לי). It simply means "to Me" or "for Me." But according to the ancient sages, as we learn in Vayikra Rabbah, that little word packs a cosmic punch. It signifies an unbreakable ...
to Vayikra Rabbah, specifically section 2, to uncover some fascinating layers within the verses describing the offerings. We begin with (Leviticus 1:5): “He shall slaughter the you...
Today, we're diving into a fascinating story from Vayikra Rabbah, a Midrash (rabbinic commentary) on the Book of Leviticus, that explores just that. It's a story of ambition, betra...
to a fascinating passage from Vayikra Rabbah, a midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic commentary on the Book of Leviticus, that explores this concept. The passage begins wit...
The passage opens with a quote from the Book of Job: “Does the eagle ascend at your directive?” (Job 39:27). Rabbi Yudan of Gaul uses this verse to ask a powerful question about Aa...
We find ourselves in Vayikra Rabbah, specifically chapter 20, digging into the story of Aaron’s sons, Nadab and Abihu, and their brothers Elazar and Itamar. You remember Nadab and ...
What would you bring with you? What could possibly prepare you for such an encounter? Well, Rabbi Yudan, in Vayikra Rabbah 21, offers a fascinating perspective. He interprets the v...
That feeling, that ache of separation, is what this week’s portion of Vayikra Rabbah (Leviticus Rabbah) touches upon. It centers around a seemingly simple phrase in (Leviticus 16:2...
Specifically, we're looking at (Leviticus 23:11), which instructs us about waving the omer "before the Lord, for acceptance on your behalf; on the day after the sabbath the priest ...
The story begins with two prominent scholars, Rabbi Yoḥanan and Reish Lakish, deep in discussion. They were grappling with a seemingly simple question: Should the shofar (ram's hor...
“The greatly crowded city,” Rabbi Shmuel taught: There were twenty-four thoroughfares in Jerusalem, each and every thoroughfare had twenty-four streets, each and every street had t...
A visitor from Athens arrived in Jerusalem with a trick question, certain he could stump the local priests. According to Eikhah Rabbah, a midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)...
“And her tears are on her cheeks [leḥya],” over her priests, just as it says: “He shall give to the priest the foreleg, the jaw [haleḥayayim], and the maw” (Deuteronomy 18:3). Alte...
“Her impurity is on her hems, she had not considered her end; she has declined extraordinarily, there is no one to comfort her. See, Lord, my affliction, for the enemy has expanded...
“It was due to the sins of her prophets, the iniquities of her priests, who shed the blood of the righteous in her midst” (Lamentations 4:13).“It was due to the sins of her prophet...
“The king said to Haman: Hurry, take the garments and the horse; as you have said, do so to Mordekhai the Jew who sits at the king’s gate. Do not omit anything that you spoke of. H...
Maybe that feeling is a tiny glimpse into the ultimate truth: that everything is sacred. Philo, the 1st-century Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, certainly thought so. He envisio...
Jewish thought is FULL of those moments. Let’s unpack one, shall we? Our journey starts with what some might call "foolishness and evil folly." Strong words. The text we're looking...
It goes deep, friends. Really deep. We're talking about a system where, as the esteemed Kabbalist, the master of the Chamber of Blessing, of blessed memory, tells us, the court has...
It’s a story of intense debate, careful consideration, and a deep commitment to preserving the integrity of Jewish law and thought. It’s a reminder that tradition isn’t static; it’...
He sacrifices some animals. End of story. But what if there was a deeper meaning hidden within those verses? That's what the Midrash of Philo explores when it asks about (Genesis 8...
A Question.9Sections 2 and 3 of “In the Beginning” and the fourth section of “Noah” were taken from the She’iltot of R. Ahai, a distinguished Babylonian scholar who left Palestine ...
And Isaac trembled exceedingly (Gen. 27:33). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: The hearing ear, and the seeing eye, the Lord hath made even both of them (Prov. ...
And Jacob called unto his sons (Gen. 49:1). May it please our master to teach us whether the one who leads the congregation in prayer may respond “Amen” after the priests. Thus did...
In the tent of meeting, without the veil (Exod. 27:21). In case you are inclined to assert that He required the light, the menorah was placed before the curtain near the ark, outsi...
This is the thing that thou shalt do unto them (to hallow them … take one young bullock and two rams without blemish, and unleavened bread) (Exod. 29:1). You shall do it for them, ...
When thou takest the sum of the children of Israel (Exod. 30:12). May our masters teach us: How many times each year did the Israelites bring their offerings to the Temple? Thus di...
R. Yudan opened the discussion with the verse: The tongue of the righteous is as choice silver; the heart of the wicked is little worth (Prov. 10:20). The tongue of the righteous i...
And Bezalel made the ark (Exod. 37:1). You find that everything constructed for the Tabernacle was made in its proper order. First he made the boards and joined them together. Afte...
These are the accounts of the tabernacle, even the tabernacle of the testimony (Exod. 38:21). The Tabernacle bears testimony to the entire world that He forgave them for the episod...
(Lev. 1:7:) “And the sons of Aaron the Priest shall put fire upon the altar, and they shall lay wood in order upon the fire.” (Tamid 2:3:) All of the trees are proper for [altar] f...
(Numb. 6:22–23:) “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying, “Speak unto Aaron and unto his children, saying, ‘Thus shall you bless the Children of Israel.’” Let our master instruct u...
And when you approach the battle, the priest shall come forward and address the people (Deuteronomy 20:2): And so [too] does it state (Deuteronomy 21:5) "The priests, the Sons of L...
