12,014 related texts · Page 224 of 251
Now if (in the killing of) an Israelite, the graver (instance), not being subject to (the provision of [(Exodus 21:21)]) "But if one or two days," he is not liable unless it be wit...
R. Yitzchak says: "an eye for an eye": I understand this to mean that whether or not he intends (to blind him), he pays only money. And, indeed, Scripture limits one who intends to...
From the law of the burglar, the Mekhilta derives one of the most important principles in Jewish law: a doubt about whether a life is in danger overrides the Sabbath. The reasoning...
(Exodus 22:18) "Whoever lies with a beast shall be put to death": What is the intent of this? It is written (Leviticus 20:15) "And a man who cohabits with a beast shall be put to d...
"only to the L–rd alone": Because others say: If the Israelites had not joined the name of the Holy One Blessed be He, with that of idolatry (i.e., the golden calf), they would hav...
The Torah was given with its signs — its built-in warnings against idolatry. The Mekhilta explains why this matters. Israel might have reasoned as follows: we are commanded against...
And thus do you find (the L–rd's esteem for the stranger-proselyte) in the four classes who respond before Him who spoke and brought the world into being, (Isaiah 44:5) "One shall ...
"My people": If an Israelite and a gentile stand before you to borrow, "My people" take precedence. A poor man and a rich man—the poor man takes precedence. Your poor (i.e., the po...
To teach that a dog is of higher station than a slave, a treifah being relegated to a dog, but only neveilah, to a slave, and to teach that the Holy One Blessed be He does not with...
The prophet declares in (II Kings 21:12): "Thus said the L-rd, the God of Israel." The Mekhilta stops on this phrase and asks a question that seems almost impertinent. Is God only ...
The Mekhilta cites (Psalms 50:7-8) to illustrate God's unique relationship with Israel: "Hear, My people, and I will speak; Israel, and I will exhort you. I am God, your God. I wil...
(Exodus 23:19) prohibits: "You shall not cook a kid in its mother's milk." Rabbi Shimon asked why this prohibition is stated three times in the Torah — here, in (Exodus 34:26), and...
(Exodus 31:13) says: "For it is a sign between Me and you." The Mekhilta reads "between Me and you" — between God and Israel — to the exclusion of the other nations. The Sabbath is...
The Torah declares about the Sabbath: "for it is holy to you" (Exodus 31:14). The Mekhilta DeRabbi Yishmael draws from this phrase a remarkable teaching about how Sabbath observanc...
(Exodus 35:2) says: "And on the seventh day it shall be holy for you." The Mekhilta explains why this clarification was needed. Israel might have reasoned as follows: the daily off...
The prophet Daniel had such a dream. It's recorded in the Book of Daniel, and it's a vision that’s puzzled and inspired readers for centuries. "As I looked on," Daniel recounts, "t...
Jewish mystical tradition offers us some pretty imagery. We're talking about God's Throne of Glory – not just any chair, but a cosmic command center. A vision of ultimate authority...
Jewish tradition is rich with visions of the future, of the Olam Ha-Ba, the World to Come. And some of those visions are, well, breathtaking. Imagine this: a day when the very thro...
We often think of God as formless, beyond human comprehension, but our tradition is full of rich, imaginative descriptions. And one of the most striking is the image of God wearing...
And the Torah, in its own way, grapples with this very question. We find ourselves in the Book of Exodus, a pivotal moment in the story of the Israelites. Moses is about to ascend ...
We often think of God as all-knowing, all-powerful, the ultimate authority... but what if I told you there's a tradition that suggests God, too, is a student? It's a fascinating id...
And Jewish tradition, in its wonderfully audacious way, even imagines God putting on a tallit and tefillin (leather phylacteries worn during prayer). Yes, you read that right. God,...
We pray to God. But…does God pray? And if so, to whom? The mystics have wrestled with these questions for centuries, and the answer, perhaps unsurprisingly, is layered and fascinat...
The destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem – twice – is one of the most profound traumas in Jewish history. It’s not just about losing a building; it’s about losing a connection, a...
They’ve journeyed far, and now, they're about to experience something beyond comprehension. Exodus 19 tells us that on the third day, as morning broke, the atmosphere crackled with...
Jewish tradition has a powerful way of describing this feeling: the wandering of the Shekhinah (the Divine Presence). The Shekhinah, often translated as "divine presence," is under...
In Jewish tradition, we have a name for that Divine Presence: the Shekhinah (the Divine Presence). And there's a place where the veil between worlds is said to be especially thin: ...
We all know the story from Genesis, about God speaking the world into existence. But what if there were other, older stories? Stories that paint an even more vivid and active pictu...
In Judaism, there's a pretty firm foundation: God created the world precisely when He chose to. But that leads to a whole host of other questions, doesn't it? What was before that ...
Some ancient Jewish texts suggest something far more dramatic. Imagine this: On the first day of creation, God brings forth fire and water, mixing them to form the very heavens. Bu...
The ancient rabbis certainly did, and they came up with some pretty fascinating ideas. The image of the world resting on pillars is a powerful one, found in creation myths across c...
Jewish tradition understands that feeling, and even gives it a name: fiery waves. These aren't just any ordinary ocean waves, mind you. These are the ones, we're told in the Talmud...
We see them as so different, one blazing with glory, the other a gentle, silvery presence. But did you know there's a story, a midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), that sugg...
The Jewish mystical tradition certainly does. It paints a fascinating, and sometimes even controversial, picture of Adam as both the first and the last of God's creations. Now, we ...
But for Elijah, the prophet, and his devoted disciple Elisha, it was reality. Our story begins as the Lord is about to take Elijah up to heaven. Elijah and Elisha are journeying fr...
Jewish mystical tradition speaks of something called the Pargod, and it's more fascinating than you might imagine. The Pargod (פרגוד) is described as an extraordinary curtain, a co...
Jewish tradition has a way of making the immense feel intimate. Take the idea of heaven itself. It’s not some distant, cold abstraction. Instead, picture this: Heaven, according to...
The Bible tells us, in (2 (Kings 2:1)1), "A fiery chariot with fiery horses suddenly appeared . . . and Elijah went up to heaven in a whirlwind!" But what happened after that whirl...
Jewish tradition has a fascinating answer, a story whispered through generations about an angel named Lailah. Lailah, the Angel of Conception, is like the midwife of souls. Accordi...
Jewish tradition holds a beautiful, almost whimsical idea about friendship: that it actually creates an angel. It’s said that each of us has a unique light burning for us in the wo...
We often imagine them rising up, floating on wings of hope and sincerity. But what if something—or someone—tried to block them? That’s precisely what happened, according to a fasci...
Jewish tradition has a place for them, a place of purification and, yes, punishment called Gehenna. It's not exactly hell, but it's definitely not a pleasant resort. But who's in c...
But it's actually a much more complex and nuanced concept than that. It’s not just a place of punishment, but also a place of purification, a spiritual pressure cooker. And accordi...
Jewish tradition teaches that the world's very existence is conditional. According to Tree of Souls, God, in a moment of cosmic suspense, declared, "If Israel accepts the Torah whe...
The mystics imagine it as an incredibly intimate moment, a divine gift presented with love. They say that when God was ready to give the Torah to Israel, God fashioned the very let...
The air crackles with anticipation, with divine energy. And then, it begins. According to the Mateh Moshe, during the revelation of the Torah, God didn't just speak. He didn't just...
Remember the scene: Moses, up on Mount Sinai, receiving the very word of God, etched onto stone tablets. And then… disaster. The Israelites, impatient and faithless, melt down thei...
Jewish tradition has some fascinating ideas, and one of the most poetic involves flying letters! Imagine, if you will, a cosmic soup of Hebrew letters, swirling and chaotic. Before...
