13,298 related texts · Page 265 of 278
Our story begins with the instruction to Moses to craft two silver trumpets, kliyot keseph, hammered meticulously. "Craft for you two silver trumpets; hammered, you shall craft the...
The text hinges on the seemingly simple phrase, "Craft for you." (Numbers 10:2) It's all about the personal nature of leadership and the instruments that come with it. "Craft for y...
The passage opens with the idea of kingship and privilege. The text tells us, "Craft for you – you use them, as you are king, but no one else may use them other than King David." T...
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...
It's like a secret code, hinting at deeper meanings. Take this verse from (Numbers 11:16): "Gather to Me seventy men [ish]..." Why ish, and not the more common Hebrew word for men,...
Moses knew the feeling. Leading the Israelites through the desert? No small feat! And it seems even he needed a little help. We find ourselves in Bamidbar Rabbah 15, a section of t...
The verse from Proverbs (26:6) sets the stage: “One who sends things by the hand of a fool cuts off his feet and drinks rancor.” Ouch. Strong words. But here's the puzzle: were the...
It’s a story found within Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Numbers. The scene is set: Moses has sent out spies to scout the Land of Israel. ...
It’s a question that echoes throughout Jewish tradition, and one place we find it wrestled with is in Bamidbar Rabbah – specifically, in section 16. Bamidbar Rabbah, if you're not ...
It’s a question that resonates throughout Jewish tradition, and one that the Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Numbers, tackles head-on. The passag...
The ancient rabbis pondered this very question, drawing a profound parallel between a human father and God, our ultimate Father. to Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically section 17, to unp...
We find ourselves in chapter 17, exploring the meaning behind the verse in (Numbers 15:3): "And you will perform a fire offering to the Lord, a burnt offering, or a peace-offering ...
It zeroes in on the verse, "You shall not rove after your heart" (Numbers 15:39), explaining that our hearts and eyes often act as mediators of temptation, leading us down paths we...
We often think of it as pure power-grabbing, but the ancient texts suggest a more nuanced, almost heartbreaking, story of ambition, family, and perceived injustice. The Book of Num...
It all begins with the tzitzit (fringes) on a garment. The Torah tells us, "They shall make for themselves a fringe [tzitzit]" (Numbers 15:38). Now, Korah, ever the instigator, see...
We find it in Numbers chapter 16, when Korah and his followers challenge Moses and Aaron's leadership. The consequences? Let's just say they were…earth-shattering. "The earth opene...
We often focus on the leaders, the prophets, the ones making history. But what about the everyday folks caught in the crossfire? Today, we're diving into a fascinating passage from...
The Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Numbers, dives into this very question, and what it reveals is both awe-inspiring and, well, a little unsettl...
And sometimes, the solutions to those disagreements come in the most unexpected forms… like, say, a blossoming staff. We find this story in Bamidbar Rabbah 18, which elaborates on ...
It’s a question that echoes through the story of Moses and the waters of Mei Meriva – the waters of dispute. "These are the waters of dispute, where the children of Israel quarrele...
The Book of Numbers, in the Bamidbar Rabbah, grapples with this very question when describing the plague of fiery serpents. "The Lord sent the fiery serpents against the people, an...
A classic example surfaces in Bamidbar Rabbah 19 as it grapples with a seemingly simple verse: "Israel sent messengers to Siḥon, king of the Emorites, saying…" (Numbers 21:21). The...
Take, for example, the story of sending messengers. In one place, it says Israel sent them. In another, it says Moses did. So, which is it? Did the whole nation get together and wr...
Our tradition has some fascinating things to say about that, especially when it comes to warfare and justice. to a curious little passage from Bamidbar Rabbah 19, which elaborates ...
The text opens with a quote from (Numbers 22:2): "Balak son of Tzipor saw all that Israel had done to the Emorites." This sets the stage for a larger discussion about divine justic...
It all starts with the line: “Moav was very alarmed by the nation because they were numerous, and Moav was dreaded by the children of Israel” (Numbers 22:3). But what does it reall...
The story, as it unfolds in the Book of Numbers, centers on Balak, king of Moab, who is terrified by the approaching Israelites. He hires Bilam, a non-Israelite prophet known for t...
He was a non-Israelite diviner, a kind of prophet, hired to curse the Israelites as they approached Moab. But the story takes a twist, doesn't it? Let's look at the moment when God...
The verse tells us, "God's wrath was enflamed because he was going, and the angel of the Lord stood on the way as an impediment to him, and he was riding on his donkey, and his two...
It's all about perception, stubbornness, and maybe even a little bit of divine humor. So, the scene is set: Bilam, a non-Jewish prophet hired to curse the Israelites, is on his way...
The Torah gives us a fascinating glimpse of such a moment in the story of Bilam, the non-Jewish prophet hired to curse the Israelites. In Numbers, chapter 22, verse 31, we read: “T...
The scene opens with Balak, the king of Moab, terrified by the Israelites. He’s hired Bilam, a non-Jewish prophet known for the power of his blessings and curses, to, well, curse I...
And the story of Pinḥas, as told in Bamidbar Rabbah, shines a light on just how vital shalom is. The story begins with a moment of intense crisis. The Israelites are straying, and ...
We find ourselves at a fascinating crossroads in the book of Numbers, Bamidbar, specifically in Bamidbar Rabbah 21. Moses, our leader, is aging. The question of succession looms la...
The ancient rabbis did, and they spun some incredible tales around the question. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), specifically Bamidbar Rabbah 21, delves into this v...
It's not about being stingy, but about creating a sense of progression, a journey. Believe it or not, we find a hint of this idea in the book of Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically in se...
The text opens with God's command to Moses: "Take the vengeance of the children of Israel against the Midianites; then you will be gathered to your people" (Numbers 31:2). It seems...
It’s a deeply human dilemma, and it appears even in the stories of our greatest leaders. to a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically section 22, to uncover just suc...
The verse in (Joshua 1:5) declares, "As I was with Moses, I will be with you." This promise seems to imply that Joshua would enjoy a life parallel to that of Moses, who lived to be...
We chase it, toil for it, sail across oceans for it... but is all that effort actually the thing that makes us rich? Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book...
It's more than just history or geography. It’s woven into the very fabric of our spiritual DNA. Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of Midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) teachi...
It sees echoes of the very first moments of creation rippling through time, playing out in the lives of individuals and entire generations. Rabbi Yehuda bar Simon, in Bereshit Rabb...
The Rabbis certainly did. In Bereshit Rabbah, an expansive collection of Rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, we find a fascinating take on the very first verses, conne...
Our sages certainly did. They saw echoes of history, morality, and even the fate of the Temple itself woven into those very first verses of Genesis.They offer profound insights int...
It’s a question that's captivated Jewish mystics and scholars for centuries. And, like many profound questions in Jewish tradition, the answer isn't simple, but layered with meanin...
It's like the whole thing is one giant, intricate tapestry. Take the creation of light, for example. The very first "Let there be light!" in Genesis. Rabbi Simon, in Bereshit Rabba...
He sees the very first verses of Genesis as a foreshadowing of the choices we all face. "The earth was emptiness (tohu vavohu)" – he says, that represents the actions of the wicked...
According to Bereshit Rabbah, the rakia, the firmament – that expanse we see as the sky – is like a gigantic pool of water. Above that pool, there's a dome, and because of this cos...
