5,341 related texts · 2 related myths · Page 2 of 112
Legends of the Jews turns to Joel in the Holy Land. In the first year, the stores ran dry. Everything tucked away in the houses, the carefully preserved harvests, vanished. Imagine...
It breaks down the very foundation of governmental order, the architecture of how things work, into two key parts. First, it states that the entire governmental order of Justice is...
There is a warrior in a province. As soon as the arrow leaves his hand he cannot retrieve it. Not so, the Holy One Blessed be He. When Israel do not do His will, a decree goes fort...
This is exactly the concern that arises in Sifrei Devarim, a rabbinic commentary on the Book of Deuteronomy. The text addresses a critical aspect of justice: familiarity and legiti...
It's not as simple as "everyone," that's for sure. to what the ancient texts tell us about who’s in, who’s out, and why. The verse we’re unpacking is from Sifrei Devarim, a collect...
A king summoned Rabbi Joshua ben Chanania and pressed him with a hard question. Is your God really just? He creates some people blind, others lame, others deformed, through no faul...
Rabbi Matia ben Heresh, a second-century Tanna who founded a Torah academy in Rome during the age of the later Roman emperors, was known among his peers for an almost iron constanc...
Rabbi Judah was asked a difficult question about divine justice: how can body and soul be judged together when one is mortal and the other eternal? He answered with a parable. A ki...
This is one of the most disturbing explanations in Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, and it changes how you read Rahel's theft forever. While Laban was away shearing his flock, Rahel stole t...
"Put away the idols of the peoples which are among you, which you took from the temple of Shekem, and purify you from the uncleannesses of the slain whom you have, and change your ...
That’s kind of the vibe we get right at the very beginning of Bereshit Rabbah, the classic rabbinic commentary on the Book of Genesis. Rav Huna, quoting Bar Kapara, invokes a verse...
The verse that really gets us thinking is (Ecclesiastes 9:6): "Even their love, even their hatred and even their envy, have already perished; they will never again have a portion i...
The Torah is full of stories that confront these very questions, and one passage in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, really dives into...
“He said to Mehuman, Bizzeta, Ḥarvona” – Rabbi Yoḥanan said: At that moment, the Holy One blessed be He called the angel who is appointed over fury16A reference to the verse: “Quee...
After these things the word of the Lord came unto Abram (Gen. 15:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: The wicked earneth false wages, but he that soweth righte...
2:16). Was it proper for this righteous man to go to the home of an idolater? After all, since the Holy one, blessed be He, detests idolatry, why did he permit Moses to go to a pla...
(Lev. 19:2:) “You shall be holy, for I am holy.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Israel, “Before I created My world, the ministering angels praised My name through you and san...
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...
The Torah's treatment of adultery presents a puzzle that the Mekhilta refuses to ignore. In one verse, the commandment thunders from Sinai: "You shall not commit adultery." In anot...
Shabbat Shekalim arrives on the Shabbat before the month of Adar ends, the first of the four special Sabbaths that prepare the Jewish people for Passover. The Torah reading is brie...
(Leviticus 19:9-10) and (Deuteronomy 24:19) lay out a peculiar agricultural law. When you harvest your field and forget a sheaf behind you, you are forbidden to go back for it. It ...
Midrash Tehillim 8, a commentary on the Book of Psalms, explores the very heart of that moment, revealing a surprising twist about who actually guaranteed the Torah's acceptance by...
The core of this particular midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), Midrash Tehillim 31, revolves around (Psalm 97:7), "All those who serve idols will be ashamed." But it doesn...
The Sifrei Devarim, a legal midrash on the Book of Deuteronomy, touches on some specific examples of legal “disputes” that might arise. It mentions the ordeal of the sotah, the wom...
Bamidbar Rabbah (5) dives deep into this, using the verse "Do not rob the impoverished as he is impoverished..." (Proverbs 22:22) as a springboard for profound ethical reflection. ...
That sparks a whole chain of thought, linking it to the verse, "Heed the word of the Lord, house of Jacob" (Jeremiah 2:4). So, what’s the connection? Well, Rabbi Nechemya, as quote...
The book of Ben Sira, also known as Sirach or the Wisdom of Yeshua ben Sira, belongs to the Apocrypha, writings associated with the Hebrew Bible but not formally canonized in the J...
Ben Sira, in his wisdom, reminds us of the immense task Aaron undertook. He says, "And who, in his nobility, his heart, atoned for the children of Israel." Aaron atoned. Think abou...
Book of Jubilees turns to The Covenant Sealed With Isaac Not Ishmael. So what does Abraham do? Does he sit around and wait? Nope. He gets to work. "And Abraham did according as God...
Book of Jubilees turns to Waters of Noah and the Covenant. A celestial court, filled with angels – not just any angels, but the angels of the presence and the angels of sanctificat...
In the Book of Jubilees, we find this intense father-to-son talk that feels exactly like that, a guide to staying on that path. It’s like a spiritual GPS, handed down through gener...
When we look at texts like the Book of Jubilees, we see just how far that went. The Book of Jubilees, considered scripture in some traditions, particularly Ethiopian, offers a uniq...
The familiar version gives us about the plagues, the parting of the Red Sea, and the giving of the Ten Commandments. But what about the details that fill in the cracks, the "behind...
The Letter of Aristeas gives us a glimpse into such a world, or at least, the ideal of one. It's a fascinating text, purportedly written by Aristeas, an official in the court of Pt...
The followers of the Ba'al Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidic Judaism, knew a thing or two about joy. Every year, they celebrated Simhat Torah – the culmination of Sukkot (the Festiv...
It wasn’t just carpentry; it was cosmic-level engineering! Turns out, according to some fascinating legends, he had a little help… in the form of a very special book. This wasn’t j...
The Bible is full of them, but sometimes the stories between the lines are even more fascinating. to the tale of Jacob and his father-in-law, Laban, a story ripe with tension, accu...
As the time approached for the Israelites' redemption from Egyptian slavery, a dilemma arose. They hadn't accumulated enough good deeds to merit their freedom! So, what did God do?...
Abraham knew that feeling well. Before he was Avraham Avinu, our father Abraham, before the brit bein ha-betarim, the covenant of the pieces, he was just a man with a promise and a...
That’s kind of what happened to Laban after Jacob left Haran. The story goes that Jacob, after his. let's call it a complicated stay with Laban, finally packed up and headed toward...
The familiar version gives us Jacob. Grandson of Abraham, son of Isaac, and a central figure in the Torah. And Laban? Well, let’s just say he wasn't winning any "Father-in-Law of t...
Jacob, nearing the end of his days, yearned to bestow a blessing upon Joseph's sons, Ephraim and Manasseh. He called them close, showering them with kisses and embraces. Why? He ho...
Our story begins with messengers. The messengers of Agnias, to be precise, hurrying back from Kittim (often associated with Cyprus or sometimes Rome) with good news. They carry the...
Take Aaron, for instance, Moses' brother. We know Moses as the lawgiver, the one who spoke to God face-to-face. But Aaron... well, the people loved Aaron. And that’s saying somethi...
Legends of the Jews turns to Amorite Books and Precious Idols Survive Divine Fire. That. Everything reduced to ash, but these artifacts remain untouched. Fire couldn’t burn them. W...
Even after all the miracles, all the divine interventions, the people of Israel… well, they just weren't getting it. They were still caught up in idolatry. According to Legends of ...
The Ba'al Shem Tov, the founder of Hasidism, reportedly did just that. The story goes that on Rosh ha-Shanah – the Jewish New Year, a day of judgment and profound spiritual signifi...
After all his hard work, "a foolish, silly, and wicked person" – a "son of a worthless one," no less! – criticized his work. The critic, he says, is an "empty-headed fool, all sinn...
