639 related texts · Page 14 of 14
They found ways to see even those challenging forces as a path towards the Divine. to a fascinating interpretation of a verse from Shir HaShirim, the Song of Songs, explored in Shi...
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...
It all starts with the verse: “Take Aaron, and his sons with him, and the vestments, and the anointing oil, and the bull of the sin offering, and the two rams, and the basket of un...
Rabbi Ḥiyya taught that this specific portion, Kedoshim, was delivered in a grand assembly – "Speak to the entire congregation of the children of Israel..." (Leviticus 19:2). Why? ...
He points out a simple truth: When we wash our clothes on a rainy day, we have to work so hard to dry them. But while we're sleeping soundly, the Holy One, blessed be He, sends a l...
“My enemies hunted me like a bird, without cause. They bound my life in the pit, and cast stones at me” (Lamentations 3:52–53).“My enemies hunted me like a bird, without cause. The...
“How has gold tarnished, the fine gold changed? The sacred stones are spilled at the head of every street” (Lamentations 4:1).“How has gold tarnished [yuam]?” Rabbi Shmuel said: Ho...
“It was contemptible in his eyes to lay hands on Mordekhai alone, for they had told him of Mordekhai’s people; Haman sought to destroy all the Jews that were in the whole kingdom o...
The Jerusalem Talmud, specifically in the tractate Shabbat, recounts a rather bold statement. The sages, or Chazal, tell us about someone who, upon witnessing the beauty of somethi...
That feeling, that sense of unease, might be more than just good manners telling you to speak up. According to Jewish tradition, it's practically a commandment. The Torah tells us,...
It's a harsh rebuke, a stark reminder of the damage that lashon hara – evil speech – can inflict. The writer directly confronts his friend, accusing him of believing falsehoods wit...
It’s a question that’s plagued theologians and spiritual seekers for centuries. Are we addressing the Infinite, the unknowable source of all creation? Or is there… something more? ...
Philo, the 1st-century Jewish philosopher from Alexandria, grappled with this very question in his own way. In what we call "The Midrash of Philo," he argues that Adam must have be...
But what if I told you there's a perspective, woven into ancient Jewish thought, that offers a slightly different angle?Now, midrash (מדרש) itself, broadly speaking, is a way of in...
Take Noah’s blessing of his sons after the flood. It's a doozy. Specifically, let's zoom in on Japhet. Noah says, "God shall enlarge Japhet, and bid him to dwell in the house of Sh...
