1,374 related texts · 18 related myths · Page 6 of 29
" But what does that even mean? The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) doesn't leave us hanging. It tells us a story. There was a woman, see, and she was approached by a ma...
The verse in question is (Numbers 5:12): "Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: If the wife of any man will stray and commit a trespass against him." It But the Rabbis ...
Jewish tradition teaches that there's a profound spiritual power in gathering together, a power that even resonates in the heavens. But is any gathering automatically holy? The Mid...
What do these four seemingly disparate things have in common? They're all described as chukim – decrees or statutes – things we do simply because God commanded them, even if the re...
This is the complex and very human story bubbling beneath the surface of (Numbers 27:17), "that the congregation of the Lord will not be like a flock that has no shepherd." It's a ...
The familiar version gives us the basic story: humanity, unified and speaking a single language, decides to build a tower reaching the heavens. God, not thrilled with this display ...
Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Ilai points out that there were actually three commandments the Israelites received upon entering the land: to wipe out the memory of Amalek, to appoint a ki...
The Jewish people know that feeling all too well. In fact, there's a fascinating passage in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, that uses...
Take the story of the war against Amalek in (Exodus 17:9). Moses tells Joshua, "Choose men for us and go out and wage war with Amalek; tomorrow I will be standing on top of the hil...
That feeling, that intense desire, is at the heart of today's story. We find ourselves in Shir HaShirim Rabbah, an ancient commentary on the Song of Songs, that most beautiful and ...
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...
Shir HaShirim Rabbah turns one phrase from Song of Songs into a story about marriage, grief, and Rabbi Shimon bar Yohai's wisdom. The verse But what does that really mean? The Rabb...
It all starts with the verse, “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: When a person [nefesh (the vital soul)] will sin…” (Leviticus 4:2). That word, nefesh, is usually translated...
“Why do You forget us forever, forsake us for so long?” (Lamentations 5:20).“Why do You forget us forever?” Rabbi Yehoshua bar Avin said: Jeremiah employed four expressions: Spurni...
“For the queen’s deed will get out to all the women, making their husbands contemptible in their eyes; that King Aḥashverosh said to bring Queen Vashti before him, but she did not ...
And there was a famine in the land (Gen. 12:10) What is stated in Scripture prior to this verse? It is written: And the Lord said to Abraham: “Get thee.” Blessed be the name of the...
And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel (Exod. 4:29). He told them: The Holy One, blessed be He, has said: I have surely remembered ...
Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water (Exod. 7:14). Thus the Lord said: Through this (water) you shall cause him to know that I am the Lord. I will ...
And I will get me honor upon Pharaoh (Exod. 14:4). This verse tells us that whenever the Holy One, blessed be He, exacts retribution from the nations, His name is exalted in the wo...
Then came Amalek and fought with Israel in Rephidim (Exod. 17:8). R. Eliezer the son of Hisma said: This verse should be understood and interpreted in relation to the verse quoted ...
And Moses said unto Joshua: “Choose us out men, and go out, fight with Amalek” (Exod. 17:9). From this verse it is apparent that Moses treated his disciple Joshua as his equal. Thi...
And the Lord spoke unto Moses: “Go, get thee down…. I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people” (Exod. 32:7–9). R. Tanhuma the son of Abba began the discussio...
And the Lord spoke unto Moses: “Go, get thee down” (Exod. 32:7). May our masters teach us: If a person sends his eruv34Through the legal procedure known as eruv (“mixing”), various...
(Numb. 16:23–24:) “And the Lord spoke […], ‘Speak unto the congregation, saying, “Get away from about [the dwellings of Korah, Dathan and Abiram].”’” Although Moses heard it from t...
(Deut. 25:17:) “Remember what Amalek (Esau's grandson) did to you.” This verse is related (to Ps.109:14), “May the iniquity of his fathers be remembered before the Lord […].” Were ...
R. Levi opened [his discourse] (with Ps. 9:6), “You have rebuked the nations; you have destroyed the wicked one”: “You have rebuked the nations.” This refers to Amalek, of which it...
(Deut. 25:19:) “And it shall come to pass when the Lord your God grants you rest [… you shall blot out the remembrance of Amalek].” R. Azariah and R. Judah bar Simon said in the na...
The Book of Ben Sira, a work of wisdom literature from the Second Temple period, offers some surprisingly direct advice about remembering the dead. It’s not what you might expect. ...
Holidays is often remembered as something ancient and unchanging, but every tradition has a beginning. the tradition turns to one possible origin story, found in the Book of Jubile...
The Letter of Aristeas gives us a fascinating glimpse into this world. Our story picks up with Demetrius, the chief librarian of Alexandria. Imagine him, a man surrounded by scroll...
More than just inspiration, more than just beautiful writing. Sometimes, it takes a good old-fashioned curse. I’m talking about the story of the Septuagint, the Greek translation o...
Haman wrote one of the most chilling documents in Jewish legend. According to the Chronicles of Jerahmeel, a 12th-century Hebrew chronicle translated by Moses Gaster in 1899, Haman...
Levi, third son of Jacob and Leah, called his sons together when he knew his death was near. It had been revealed to him that he would die. When they gathered, he told them everyth...
It’s closer than it first appears. The scene: Sodom, ripe for the taking, its riches and food plundered by victorious armies. But amidst the spoils, they seize Lot, Abraham’s nephe...
The story goes that these Jews were living under the thumb of a particularly cruel ruler. This lord of Hebron, as Ginzberg tells us in Legends of the Jews, was a real piece of work...
He knew that Esau, his brother, harbored murderous intentions. The tension was thick, a palpable danger hanging in the air. But running wasn't exactly Jacob’s first instinct. As th...
He faced a test that could have changed his life forever. The story goes that when Potiphar's wife, Zuleika, tried to seduce him, he refused. "I fear my master," he said, according...
When Joseph's brothers stood before Pharaoh, they made it crystal clear: Egypt wasn't the final destination. It was a temporary stop, a place to weather a storm. They weren't plann...
As his days dwindled, he called his children together, not just to say goodbye, but to share the story of his life, and astonishingly, to foretell their futures, all the way to the...
Sometimes, leadership isn't about grand pronouncements, but about personal example. And that's exactly what we see in this story about Amram, the father of Moses. Things weren't ea...
The tale begins when Moses, at the ripe old age of 67, leaves Ethiopia. Ginzberg, in Legends of the Jews, tells us this was the moment divinely appointed to liberate Israel from th...
The familiar story centers on Moses, the plagues, and the ultimate escape from slavery. But there's a fascinating little detail, almost a backstage scene, that often gets overlooke...
The battlefield was set, the armies were engaged, but the real battle, according to Legends of the Jews, wasn't on the ground at all. It was happening on a nearby height, where Mos...
His life was basically one long chase scene, wasn't it? Always looking over his shoulder, always one step ahead of Saul. But even in those darkest moments, the legends tell us, mir...
The story of David and Ahithophel certainly makes you think so. We’ve talked before about their complex relationship – Ahithophel, the brilliant advisor whose counsel was once cons...
The story of King David is filled with them. It wasn't just Hushai who proved a faithful friend during David's trials. Some allies came from the most unlikely places. Take Shobi, t...
The familiar story is this: Jonah, tasked with prophesying to Nineveh, decides to take a little detour and ends up swallowed by a giant fish. But what happens inside that fish is w...
That's Sukkot (the Festival of Tabernacles). You might know it as the Feast of Tabernacles or the Festival of Booths. It's a time of harvest celebration and remembrance of the Isra...
