12,014 related texts · Page 23 of 251
Midrash Tehillim, a collection of homiletic interpretations on the Book of Psalms, gives us a list of ten things that are dear to the Holy One. And you might be surprised by what m...
Our tradition understands that feeling. It even gives voice to it in a powerful, almost defiant way. to a passage from Midrash Tehillim, a collection of interpretations on the Book...
Midrash Tehillim, in its exploration of Psalm 128 – "Praiseworthy is the one who fears the Lord" – throws us a curveball. Rabbi Chayya bar Abba, quoting Ulla, makes a startling cla...
The Pesikta DeRav Kahana, a collection of Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic teachings, offers a fascinating insight into this very question. It all starts with a verse f...
The Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, an ancient text that weaves together biblical narrative, aggadah (storytelling), and mystical insights, outlines ten trials that Abraham faced. Ten mome...
It’s easy to skim over those details, but sometimes, buried within those numbers, are entire worlds of meaning. Let's pull on one of those threads today, and see where it leads us....
Jewish tradition has some fascinating things to say about that, especially when it comes to the grand sweep of history and the ultimate redemption. Let’s go back to Abraham, sittin...
This ancient text, a non-canonical Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), offers a unique, sometimes cryptic, perspective on the relationship between Israel and the descendant...
That's the situation Moses faced in a powerful story found in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer (chapter 45). The story opens with a terrifying decree: God, in his anger, sends not one, but f...
One place they did this was in Seder Olam Zutta, a later, shorter version of the Seder Olam Rabbah, a 2nd-century CE rabbinic text that attempts to chronicle history from creation ...
We know him as the liberator of the Israelites, the one who received the Torah on Mount Sinai. But what about the years before the burning bush? The Yalkut Shimoni, a compilation o...
In the Book of Bamidbar (Numbers 19:1-2), we read: "And the L-rd spoke to Aaron and to Moses saying: This is the statute of the Torah, which the L-rd has commanded, saying: Speak t...
But think about it: a well-aimed, honest rebuke can clear the air, address grievances, and ultimately lead to reconciliation. Our tradition teaches that rebuke, when delivered with...
Today, let's journey to the heart of such a place: Jerusalem, and more specifically, the Temple that once stood there. Our guide for this exploration is the Sifrei Devarim, a colle...
It's so central to Jewish prayer, so foundational to our understanding of G-d, that we might sometimes take it for granted. But the rabbis of old saw so much depth and meaning pack...
We say the words, of course. "V'ahavta et Adonai Elohecha b'chol l'vavcha" – You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart… but what does that actually look like? Our sages ...
Jewish tradition understands this feeling on a cosmic scale. Sifrei Devarim, a collection of teachings and interpretations on the Book of Deuteronomy, explores this very idea in a ...
And it's one that our sages grappled with too. This week, in our journey through Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically Bamidbar Rabbah 3, we stumble upon a fascinating exploration of being...
The Torah (Numbers 5:17) instructs the priest to take "sacred water in an earthenware vessel, and from the dirt that is on the floor of the Tabernacle...place it into the water." B...
It all starts in the Book of Numbers, Bamidbar (Numbers 19:2), with the words: “This is the statute of the Torah that the Lord commanded, saying: Speak to the children of Israel, a...
And maybe, just maybe, there's a hidden message in those seemingly random journeys. In the Book of Numbers – in Hebrew, Bamidbar – we find a detailed list of all the places the Isr...
We often think of God as all-knowing, all-seeing, but the Rabbis in Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of early Jewish interpretations of Genesis, dare to imagine a divine experience of...
In the book of Bereshit, Genesis, we find two such words used to describe key figures: tamim and haya. What do they really mean? , because the Rabbis of old sure had some fascinati...
We often think of the Torah as a clear-cut set of instructions, but sometimes, things get a little… complicated. Take the story of God's promise to Abraham in (Genesis 15:19-21). G...
Specifically, we're looking at section 47, which tackles the tricky subject of God's promises to both Ishmael and Isaac. The passage centers around (Genesis 17:20), where God says,...
It opens with the seemingly simple phrase: "At the entrance [petaḥ] of the tent [ohel]." This refers to Abraham sitting at the entrance of his tent, welcoming guests. But, as is so...
It all starts with Abraham, of course, and his legendary hospitality. The passage opens with Abraham's plea: "My Lord, please, if I have found favor in Your eyes, please do not dep...
We find ourselves pondering this in Bereshit Rabbah 49, where Rabbi Eleazar raises a fascinating question. How do we understand instances in the Torah where individuals seem to be ...
The story of Abraham pleading with God to spare Sodom and Gomorrah is more than just a negotiation; it’s a glimpse into the very nature of divine justice and collective responsibil...
The story of Lot and the destruction of Sodom, as explored in Bereshit Rabbah 50, is a stark reminder of how attachment to material possessions can cloud our judgment and even enda...
We’re going to do just that, diving into a fascinating interpretation from Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic commentary on the Book of Genesis. It all starts with a...
That's the scene we find ourselves in with Abraham and Avimelech, as retold in Bereshit Rabbah, the ancient rabbinic commentary on the Book of Genesis. The verse in question is (Ge...
to a fascinating passage from Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, specifically section 55, and see what wisdom we can unearth. The pas...
Jewish tradition is full of stories that remind us that sometimes, salvation comes on the third day. It’s a recurring motif, a whisper of hope that echoes through our texts. Think ...
Names hold power, history, and sometimes, the very essence of a place. Take Jerusalem, for example. Its story, according to the ancient Rabbis, is far more intricate than you might...
It might sound surprising, but the ancient Rabbis certainly thought so! The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), specifically Bereshit Rabbah 59, delves into a fascinating i...
We often focus on practicalities, but sometimes, the ancient texts remind us that there’s much more at stake than meets the eye. Take the story of Abraham sending his servant to fi...
The Torah is full of incredible journeys, and sometimes, the distance covered seems almost impossible. to a fascinating passage from Bereshit Rabbah (59) about Eliezer, Abraham's s...
Our story begins with the verse: "It was after the death of Abraham, God blessed Isaac his son, and Isaac lived beside Be’er Laḥai Ro’i" (Genesis 25:11). Be’er Laḥai Ro’i, meaning ...
Take the story of Jacob and Esau and that fateful bowl of lentil stew. We often think of it as a simple transaction, a hungry Esau trading away his birthright for a quick meal. But...
Our ancestor Isaac certainly did. The Torah tells us that Isaac went to Avimelekh, king of the Philistines, in Gerar (Genesis 26:1). But where exactly was Gerar? Bereshit Rabbah, t...
But did he just follow the big commandments, the obvious ones? Or was there something more? (Genesis 26:5) tells us that Abraham "heeded My voice, and observed My commission, My co...
The ancient rabbis wrestled with this very idea, and they came up with a fascinating little lesson hidden within the stories of our ancestors. Bereshit Rabbah, that incredible coll...
There's something to that. In fact, the rabbis saw that connection way back when. We find ourselves in (Genesis 29:1), where it says, "Jacob lifted his feet, and went to the land o...
We pick up the story with Jacob preparing to leave Laban. Remember the scene? Jacob, after years of hard work and trickery (and being tricked himself!), is finally heading back to ...
Our ancestor Jacob certainly did. When he sends messengers ahead to his brother Esau, the report they bring back plunges him into fear. But within that fear, we find a fascinating ...
The Torah tells us in (Genesis 32:28) that after wrestling with a mysterious figure, Jacob is told, "No more shall Jacob be said to be your name; rather, Israel, for you have striv...
The verse we're focusing on is from (Genesis 35:2): "Jacob said to his household, and to all who were with him: Remove the foreign gods that are in your midst, and purify yourselve...
