394 related texts · Page 8 of 9
A pious man did strange things, i. e., placed a young girl in his bed, &c., but was not suspected of any wrong by his disciples who found afterwards that they were justified in not...
There was a man who owned a prosperous vineyard and a cellar full of casks — fine oil and rich wine, the fruits of years of careful labor. He was wealthy by any measure. But he had...
The prophet Elijah — who never died but ascended to heaven in a chariot of fire — appeared to Rabbi Joshua ben Levi, one of the greatest sages of the third century, and offered him...
R. Johanan was one of the last beautiful men of Jerusalem. Rish Lakish, a robber, surprised him in the bath thinking him to be a woman. He was converted to study on the promise of ...
V. 1. A man on his deathbed commanded his son to cast bread upon the waters. He did it daily and one fish caught it regularly and grew very big and persecuted the other fishes. The...
In the distant lands of Persia, where fire altars burned day and night in honor of the elements, the Jewish communities faced a peculiar danger that was not from human persecutors ...
Abimelech ruled over Israel for three years (Judges 9:22). Aggadat Bereshit uses this strange opening — about a king in the book of Judges — to arrive at the first murder. The path...
It's almost like a cosmic nudge, inviting us to dig a little deeper. Take, for example, the juxtaposition of the laws concerning lepers right before the section detailing the dutie...
Especially when we delve into the curious case of the sotah – the suspected adulteress – in Numbers chapter 5. It’s a wild ride, full of ritual, suspicion, and a whole lot of barle...
The verse sets the scene: "The man shall bring his wife to the priest, and he shall bring her offering on her behalf, one-tenth of an ephah of barley flour; he shall not pour oil u...
The verse in question, (Numbers 6:15), describes the offerings brought by a Nazirite upon completing their term: “And a basket of unleavened bread, loaves of high quality flour mix...
That image, that feeling, is right at the heart of Psalm 91, and it takes center stage in a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah 12. The verse "He who dwells in the shelter of ...
And it turns out, it’s a feeling that resonates even within the stories of our most revered figures. Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Numbers, div...
The Torah portion Naso, particularly in Bamidbar Rabbah 13, delves into this very concept, using the offerings of the princes as a springboard. It's a fascinating exploration of Is...
We're looking at Bamidbar Rabbah 13, a midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic exploration of (Numbers 7:30), which kicks off a lengthy description of the offerings brought by...
It's not just about the surface story; the Rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) saw layers upon layers of meaning, connections between seemingly disparate verse...
That feeling resonates deeply in a powerful passage from Bamidbar Rabbah 16. It explores the fraught relationship between God and the Israelites, focusing on their repeated rejecti...
The Torah gives us some pretty strong clues, and it all boils down to how they chose to attack us. Think about the story of Balaam and Balak. Remember that? Balak, the King of Moab...
But according to Bereshit Rabbah, there was profound intention behind every detail. The school of Rabbi Yanai asks a crucial question: Why does the verse use the full name, "The Lo...
It's like a linguistic puzzle, where sometimes a single letter can shift the whole meaning of a word. And that brings us to a curious little detail in the Torah, one that our sages...
Our ancestors wrestled with that very question. Remember the story? Jacob, after years of hard labor for Laban, decides it’s time to return to his homeland with his wives and child...
The verse tells us, "Dina, daughter of Leah, whom she had borne to Jacob, went out to see the daughters of the land." Seems simple enough. But the rabbis saw much more. The text im...
He says, "Woe unto us from the Day of Judgment; woe unto us from the day of rebuke!" It's a powerful statement, isn't it? He uses Joseph as an example. : Joseph, a man of flesh and...
The Torah, in (Genesis 49:20), says of Asher, "From Asher, his bread is rich, and he will provide royal delicacies." Simple enough. But as is often the case with sacred texts, ther...
Sometimes, a single verse can unlock a whole world of meaning, revealing connections between different figures and events throughout Jewish history. to one such verse from (Genesis...
It's like a subtle wink, inviting us to dig deeper and uncover hidden connections. Take this verse from Deuteronomy (7:13): "He will love you, bless you, and multiply you; He will ...
Our tradition is filled with stories that suggest it might. Today, we're diving into a few tales from Devarim Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy...
Devarim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, tackles this very question. It starts with a verse from Proverbs (2:1): "My son, if you take my sayin...
That question, that nagging feeling, is at the heart of the Book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet in Hebrew. And it’s a question the Rabbis grappled with deeply. The opening verse of Ko...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it's known in Hebrew, has something to say about that. "A handful of tranquility is better than two handfuls of toil and herding wind" (Eccl...
And the ancient rabbis, in Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on Ecclesiastes, really dig into this idea. The verse in question is (Ecclesiastes 6:6-7): “Were...
Kohelet, Ecclesiastes, throws us a curveball right from the start: "A good name is better than fine oil, and the day of death than the day of one's birth" (Ecclesiastes 7:1). Whoa....
It's not just about accumulating knowledge, but about understanding, about the ability to delve into the heart of things. And according to Kohelet Rabbah, one of the most beautiful...
The ancient rabbis certainly thought words held immense power, for good and for ill. to a fascinating interpretation of a verse in Exodus, as explored in Shemot Rabbah, a compilati...
Jewish tradition has some pretty strong opinions on that. And, spoiler alert: it doesn't end well. Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of Midrash (interpretive stories) on the Book...
Shemot Rabbah, a collection of interpretations on the Book of Exodus, recounts a fascinating episode. It begins with the verse, "This month shall be for you" (Exodus 12:2), referri...
Shemot Rabbah, a treasure trove of interpretations on the Book of Exodus, brings us a powerful insight through a teaching connected to the verse, "These are the ordinances" (Exodus...
Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, offers a fascinating perspective on this, likening the people of Israel to a vine. Rabbi Tanhuma bar ...
Specifically, in Shemot Rabbah 48, we find a fascinating exploration of the power of a good name. The passage begins with Moses announcing Betzalel's appointment to oversee the con...
But in Shir HaShirim Rabbah – that’s the collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Song of Songs – we find a beautiful exploration of just that. It's all about unpacking the ve...
It's not just a love poem, but a lens through which to view the most precious gifts given to the Jewish people. to one fascinating interpretation from Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a colle...
In Shir HaShirim Rabbah 7, the Rabbis unpack a seemingly simple verse – (Song of Songs 2:7): “I administer an oath to you, daughters of Jerusalem, by the gazelles, and by the hinds...
to one tiny, potent verse: "Come with me from Lebanon, my bride, with me from Lebanon; look from the peak of Amana, from the peak of Senir and Ḥermon, from the dens of lions, from ...
The ancient rabbis grappled with this feeling, turning to the beautiful, enigmatic verses of the Song of Songs (Shir HaShirim) for answers. to one such interpretation from Shir HaS...
Our Rabbis certainly did. They grappled with this very question, especially when comparing the First and Second Temples in Jerusalem. In Shir HaShirim Rabbah, the Rabbis delve into...
Take, for example, the instructions for bringing a minchah, a meal offering, found in Leviticus. It might seem like a simple act, but the Rabbis find layers of meaning and insight ...
Vayikra Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Leviticus, delves into the nuances of the meal offering, specifically looking at two types: one made in a shallow ...
The core debate boils down to this: Did the descendants of Noah, meaning all humanity before the giving of the Torah at Sinai, offer only burnt offerings, or did they also offer pe...
