12,014 related texts · Page 4 of 251
The Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating collection of stories and interpretations from the early Middle Ages, gives us a glimpse. It tells us that Isaac was thirty-seven years ol...
Like, you're on your path, feeling good, and then BAM! Suddenly, everything changes. Maybe it's a job loss, a health scare, or just a general feeling of being lost. How do we react...
Today, we're diving into a fascinating little debate from Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis. Specifically, we're looking at C...
That’s the situation Abram faces in (Genesis 14:14): "Abram heard that his brother had been taken captive…” But what’s truly fascinating isn't just the event, but Abram's reaction....
We find a fascinating glimpse into that struggle in Bereshit Rabbah 44, a section of the ancient midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic collection on the Book of Genesis. It ...
It centers on Sarai (later Sarah) and Abram (later Abraham), a couple whose journey to parenthood was anything but straightforward. We find them facing a heartbreaking reality: Sar...
We read the stories, we know the milestones – but sometimes the weight of those moments gets lost. Take the act of circumcision, the brit milah, at the ripe old age of ninety-nine....
The Torah, the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, is so concise, that every word, every phrase, even a name, can hold layers of meaning. Take Ketura, for example. Who was she, r...
It's like peeling an onion – each layer reveals something new, something unexpected. Take the verse from (Genesis 39:1): "Joseph was taken down to Egypt and Potiphar, the official ...
Our journey begins with a seemingly simple verse from (Genesis 42:5): "The sons of Israel came to acquire grain among [betokh] those who came, as the famine was in the land of Cana...
But the Torah tells us, "God did not lead them [naḥam]" that way. (Exodus 13:17). So, what gives? There's more to this story than meets the eye. The Rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic...
The scene unfolds like this: the Israelites are trapped between the pursuing Egyptian army and the seemingly insurmountable Red Sea. Moses, holding his staff, is their leader, thei...
It's not just a love poem, you see. It’s an allegory, a conversation between God and the people of Israel. Rabbi Berekhya paints a powerful picture. He says the congregation of Isr...
The ancient sages certainly did. And they found profound meaning in that feeling. to a fascinating interpretation of a well-known biblical passage, explored in the Midrash of Philo...
One such moment comes to us in (Genesis 17:18). Abraham, after hearing God's promise of a son, Isaac, through Sarah, turns to God and says, "O may my son Ishmael live before thee!"...
We often think of Abraham's journey as beginning with the covenant God made with him, the "covenant of the pieces," promising him descendants as numerous as the stars. But as Legen...
According to Legends of the Jews, the Ishmaelites who’d taken him to Egypt began to suspect something wasn't right. They'd heard whispers: "This Joseph... he's not just some runawa...
It all starts with a command. A voice. God says to Abram (that's Abraham's name before it was changed, much like his wife was originally Sarai, not Sarah), "Lekh Lekha" – "Go forth...
"Many peoples have afflicted me from my youth" (Psalm 129:1). The Assembly of Israel — the collective voice of the nation — says this as a Song of Ascents, sung while ascending to ...
This story, found in Bereshit Rabbah 61, takes us right into the middle of just such a scene. The verse that sparks this whole episode is from (Genesis 25:6): "But to the sons of t...
Abraham did everything the angel commanded. He slaughtered the animals, divided them, and gave the portions to the angels who had appeared beside him. Iaoel took the birds. Abraham...
Abraham could no longer contain himself. "O Mighty, Eternal One, hallowed by Your power! Be favorable to my petition. As you have brought me up to your height, so make known to me,...
When Israel fears God, the nations fear Israel. When Israel abandons its fear of God, the nations attack — and the enemy pursuing them is not a military power. It is the consequenc...
"Far be it from You to do such a thing!" Abraham said it to God's face. He was standing between Sodom and heaven, and he was arguing (Genesis 18:25). The Hebrew word is chalilah — ...
Jubilees, for those unfamiliar, is an ancient Jewish text that retells the stories from Genesis and Exodus, but with some… shall we say, interesting additions. It's considered pseu...
We find Abraham, or Avram as he's known here, grappling with just that. The story picks up with Lot, Avram’s nephew, deciding to separate from him. Now, Lot wasn't just any relativ...
The Book of Jubilees, a text not found in the Hebrew Bible but considered sacred by some, gives us a peek behind the curtain, fleshing out stories we think we know. And one of thos...
But when you're talking about someone like Abraham, the father of monotheism, the grief takes on a whole new dimension. Let's turn to the Book of Jubilees, an ancient Jewish text t...
Isaac, son of Abraham, certainly knew that feeling. Our story picks up with him journeying towards Gerar, a Philistine territory, seeking refuge with King Abimelech. (Jubilees 24)....
We're going to dive into one of those today, straight from the Book of Jubilees. Now, the Book of Jubilees is a fascinating text. It’s considered apocryphal by many, meaning it's n...
The night Abraham was born, a star appeared in the sky and swallowed four other stars from the four corners of heaven. Nimrod's astrologers saw it and rushed to the king with a war...
The Torah portion of Noah certainly gives us food for thought on that subject. It's a story of survival, new beginnings...and a rather unfortunate curse. We all know the tale: the ...
That's exactly what happened in the story of Abraham's birth. According to Legends of the Jews, Terah, Abraham’s father, married Emtelai, the daughter of Karnabo. A simple enough b...
Our story begins with Terah, Abraham's father, falling ill. He needed cash – specifically, money to cover expenses. And his solution? "Sell these idols!" he tells his sons Haran an...
The story goes that King Nimrod, a powerful and, shall we say, unpleasant ruler, wasn't too thrilled with Abraham's monotheistic views. He believed in many gods, and Abraham was go...
Things weren't exactly smooth sailing between them. According to Ginzberg's retelling in Legends of the Jews, the tension that was building between their servants had escalated to ...
See, news had reached Abraham about his nephew Lot, and it wasn’t good. Lot was in serious trouble, caught up in the wickedness of the cities of the plain. Now, Abraham and Lot had...
You’re not wrong. to a classic tale of jealousy, longing, and a bit of divine intervention, straight from the heart of the Sarah and Abraham story. Imagine this: Sarah, Abraham's w...
But let's rewind a bit, to the story of Abraham, Sarah, and Hagar. Abraham, known for his humility, gave Sarah the authority to deal with Hagar as she saw fit. However, he did offe...
The story of Lot, Abraham's nephew, gives us a masterclass in hospitality gone wrong. We all know the basics: God, displeased with the wickedness of Sodom, sends angels to investig...
Ever find yourself in a sticky situation, and think, "Didn't I just do this?" Well, let's talk about Abraham. He's about to have a serious case of déjà vu. After leaving Egypt, Abr...
We know the story of Isaac, the son born in Abraham's old age, the one through whom the Jewish people would descend. But what about Ishmael, Abraham's firstborn? Was he forgotten? ...
Abraham, busy with honored guests, and Sarah, proving to the women that Isaac was truly her child... they were preoccupied. And at their door stood a beggar, completely ignored. Th...
The stories we tell about the resting places of the righteous are so much more than just historical markers. They're portals into understanding our values, our fears, and our deepe...
Here's Moses, destined to lead the Israelites out of slavery, to receive the Torah – the first five books of the Hebrew Bible – at Mount Sinai. Yet, according to tradition, he wasn...
The Israelites, fresh from their miraculous escape from Egypt, faced just such a dilemma. Imagine the scene: the Red Sea has just crashed back down, swallowing Pharaoh's army whole...
We left off with the tribe of Dan backing down from their planned invasion of Judah. Good news for Judah. But, as often happens, one problem solved just paves the way for another. ...
Let’s talk about Jeremiah. We all know the prophet. The one who warned Judah of its impending doom, the “weeping prophet” who saw the Babylonian exile coming. But what happened aft...
