266 related texts · Page 1 of 6
Thus we find that they went back (the distance of) three journeys (at Moses' behest), viz. (Numbers 33:8-10) "And they journeyed from Pi Hachiroth … And they journeyed from Marah a...
In ancient Israel, a person who killed someone by accident did not go free. Neither was he executed. He ran for his life to one of six cities of refuge, and the roads that led ther...
Sifrei Devarim turns to Cities of Refuge for the Accidental Manslayer. These weren't just any cities. They were specifically designated places, offering protection to someone who h...
Yalkut Shimoni on Torah turns to Cities of Refuge and Their Expanding Boundaries. Abaye, a prominent Babylonian Talmudic scholar, steps in to smooth things over. He says, "This is ...
It's an idea deeply rooted in our tradition, and it takes center stage in the story of the cities of refuge. We find ourselves with Moses, nearing the end of his life, and the two ...
The Torah provides a fascinating and compassionate solution: cities of refuge, places where an unintentional manslayer could flee and find sanctuary. But how did these cities work,...
Parashat Masei These are the journeys of the children of Israel. The Lord said to Moses, "Write down the journeys that the Israelites have taken in the wilderness, so that they may...
Yalkut Shimoni on Torah turns to Moses Studies Torah of Jordan. Well, it all stems from an earlier verse: "Then Moses set apart three cities." We know Moses established these citie...
It might seem like a niche legal issue, but within it lies a profound understanding of justice, forgiveness, and even the nature of hope itself. In Deuteronomy, we read, "Then, Mos...
The Genesis Apocryphon transforms Abraham from a terse biblical figure into a vivid first-person narrator. In the Aramaic retelling of Genesis 13, Abraham climbs to a high place af...
(Exodus 12:14) "And this day shall be for you as a remembrance": The day which is a remembrance for you, you celebrate. But we have not yet heard which day it is (that is a remembr...
Rabbi Nathan offered a striking interpretation of the word bakosharoth from (Psalms 68:7), "He takes out the bound bakosharoth." Rather than reading it as a single word, he split i...
Pharaoh was told "that the people had fled" (Exodus 14:5). But had Israel actually fled? The Torah itself states in (Numbers 33:3) that "on the morrow of the Pesach, the children o...
Variantly: "on the fifteenth day of the second month": Why is "day" mentioned? To know on which day the Torah was given to Israel. (Rosh Chodesh of the) Nissan on which Israel left...
It's a real grab bag of topics, from protecting orphans to the boundaries of Levite cities. "And one prince," the verse says. Rav Giddel, quoting Rav, asks a crucial question: how ...
Targum Jonathan transforms the dry legal code of (Deuteronomy 19) into something visceral. Where the Torah simply warns that the blood avenger might overtake a fleeing killer, the ...
Rabbi Shimon ben Yoḥai, a prominent figure in the Zohar (the foundational text of Jewish mysticism), puts it this way: a good name is more beloved than the Ark of the Covenant itse...
(Numb. 35:9–11:) “And the Lord spoke [unto Moses, saying], ‘Speak unto the Children of Israel, and say unto them, “When you cross the Jordan to the Land of Canaan, you shall provid...
The Book of Jubilees, also known as the Lesser Genesis, is an ancient Jewish text that retells the stories of Genesis, but with some extra details. Think of it like a director's cu...
The narrative unfolds, telling us how they crossed the Jordan River. crossing a major river, claiming land, establishing themselves. This wasn't a peaceful transaction. "They posse...
Tucked within this letter are some intriguing observations about the land itself. One thing that really stood out to the author was the importance of population distribution. They ...
The Book of Maccabees I turns to Jonathan Springs an Ambush at the Jordan River. Then, all at once, they sprang into action! The Book of Maccabees I 9 tells us that Jonathan and hi...
One of those: a chapter from the Book of Jasher. The Book of Jasher isn't part of the Tanakh. Its authenticity and origins are disputed by scholars. But it's a fascinating text non...
Our ancestor Adam, the first human, knew that feeling intimately after his transgression. And the story of how he atoned is truly remarkable. In Legends of the Jews, a monumental w...
The one who led the Israelites out of Egypt, received the Ten Commandments…even he had moments where he had to turn to a higher power for guidance. The Legends of the Jews, that in...
They confessed their sin, thinking that should be enough. But here's the thing: true repentance isn't just saying you're sorry. It's about changing your actions. God, in his infini...
Legends of the Jews turns to Zelophehad's Vision. The Israelites are on the cusp of entering the Promised Land. After generations of wandering, the dream is finally within reach. M...
He led the Israelites through the desert for forty long years, endured hardship after hardship, and finally, finally, the Promised Land was within sight. But he wasn't going to be ...
It wasn't exactly smooth sailing, let me tell you. According to Legends of the Jews, the moment was ripe with miracles, all designed to solidify Joshua's authority in the eyes of t...
All sorts of momentous events piled up on a single day. This was the very day the Israelites crossed the Jordan River. Can you picture it? After forty years of wandering, they fina...
Joshua inherited an impossible job, replace the greatest prophet in history and lead a nation of former slaves into enemy territory. According to Josephus, he did not hesitate for ...
The Tikkunei (spiritual repair) Zohar, a profound and often enigmatic companion to the Zohar, that foundational text of Kabbalah, touches on just that feeling. It tells a story, a ...
The Mekhilta offers a variant tradition that shifts the scene from the Red Sea to the Jordan River. When Israel crossed the Jordan into the Promised Land, all the kings of Canaan b...
The phrase "until Dan" appears in the vision God granted Moses from Mount Pisgah (Deuteronomy 34:1). But the Mekhilta raises an obvious problem: at the time of Moses, the land had ...
Midrash Tehillim turns to When the Jordan River Parted for Joshua and Israel. The text pointedly asks, "What is the value of the Jordan, and what does it matter to him? Were people...
The Pesikta DeRav Kahana, a collection of Midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) teachings, gives us a glimpse, almost a first-hand account. Rabbi Yochanan, a prominent sage,...
The story in Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer paints a pretty vivid picture. The scene: Jacob, with his sons, grandsons, wives, the whole shebang, journeys to Kirjath Arba, wanting to be nea...
The Israelites certainly did as they stood poised to enter the Promised Land. “And they camped by the Jordan,” the Torah tells us (Numbers 22:1). But what exactly was this Jordan R...
The tradition grapples with this question in fascinating ways, especially when you bring the sea into the equation. The Yalkut Shimoni, a compilation of rabbinic commentary on the ...
" Va'ethchanan is a term loaded with entreaty, a heartfelt plea. Moshe isn't just asking; he's begging. The text then throws us a little curveball: "Let 'to say' not be written." W...
Sifrei Devarim turns to Jordan — Covenant of Moses. The verse in Devarim, Deuteronomy, says, "for you shall not cross this Jordan." It seems harsh, doesn’t it? After leading the Is...
It is often remembered as a clearly defined space, but the ancient texts offer a more nuanced, even dynamic, picture. It's not just about drawing lines on a map. It's about the Jew...
"When you cross the Jordan." Just six words, really. "Ki ta'avrun et ha-Yarden." But packed inside is a promise, a destiny, and a whole lot of hope. What's it all about? Well, it c...
Someone accidentally causes another person’s death. A tragedy, no doubt. But what happens next? What does justice look like? The Book of Deuteronomy, or Devarim in Hebrew, lays out...
Sifrei Devarim turns to Jordan River in David's Court. The book of Sifrei Devarim, a collection of early rabbinic legal interpretations on the book of Deuteronomy, offers us a glim...
Rachel finally bore a son. She named him Joseph, from the Hebrew asaph, "to gather away" (Genesis 30:23). The Targum Pseudo-Jonathan turns her naming into a prophecy about a river ...
Specifically, Bamidbar Rabbah 7 explores the verse in (Numbers 5:2), "Command the children of Israel, that they send out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, ...
That even the greatest among us can have their moments of… well, let’s call it humility. It’s a section that explores how even Moses, the ultimate lawgiver, experienced moments whe...
