3,492 related texts · Page 14 of 73
We find in Bamidbar Rabbah 14 a fascinating exploration of the verse, "Lift up your heads, O you gates! And be lifted up, you everlasting doors! And the King of glory shall come in...
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...
This seeming contradiction sparked quite the debate amongst our Sages. Specifically, between the schools of Beit Shammai and Beit Hillel. These two houses, or schools, were known f...
The ancient rabbis certainly did. And they found a fascinating clue hidden in plain sight, connecting the Garden of Eden to... the Ark of the Covenant! It all hinges on a single wo...
We choose them carefully, hoping they’ll embody certain qualities, or perhaps carry on a family legacy. But what if a name wasn't a blessing, but a curse? What if it foreshadowed i...
That feeling, that precarious balance between merit and grace, is at the heart of a fascinating discussion about Noah in Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpret...
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...
It's not just filling space, but rather, like a master musician hitting a note again and again until it resonates deep within us. Take the story of Noah. (Genesis 6:9) tells us: "T...
The Torah portion Noah grapples with just that, the world after the flood. But even in this story of renewal, shadows of the past linger. The Rabbis in Bereshit Rabbah, that magnif...
It's easy to point to general "wickedness," but the details, as always, are far more interesting, and speak to timeless human failings. Bereshit Rabbah, that incredible collection ...
to a fascinating passage from Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, and uncover some hidden layers of meaning. The verse in question, (G...
And there's a powerful lesson hidden in the story of Noah and the Flood. Rabbi Yudan, quoting Rabbi Aivu, kicks us off with a verse from Proverbs: "In the transgression of the lips...
The very beginning of that relationship, after the flood, is what we're talking about today. Specifically, the verses in Genesis 9 that deal with what we can and cannot do in this ...
It's more than just a colorful arc in the sky. In fact, according to Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of Rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, the rainbow holds pro...
The Rabbis certainly wondered. Bereshit Rabbah, that incredible collection of rabbinic interpretations of Genesis, dives deep into this seemingly simple verse. It asks, why a viney...
The passage in Genesis (9:24) tells us, "Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his youngest son had done to him." Now, Bereshit Rabbah, that incredible collection of rabbinic int...
Specifically, Bereshit Rabbah 39. Rabbi Azarya, quoting Rabbi Aḥa, starts with a verse from Psalms (45:8): "You love righteousness and abhor wickedness. Because of this, God, your ...
We're talking about the famous verse in (Genesis 12:1), the very beginning of Abraham's journey: "Go you [lekh lekha] from your country, your people and your father’s household to ...
We get glimpses, fragments really, in the Torah, but the Rabbis, through their interpretations, give us access to a deeper understanding of his actions. Take, for example, the vers...
to a fascinating exploration of just that, as we unpack a verse from Genesis and see what the Rabbis of old found hidden within its folds. Our journey begins with the powerful word...
It's right there in the Torah: "Abraham said to God: 'Would that Ishmael might live before You.'" (Genesis 17:18). Seems straightforward. But like so much in our tradition, there's...
Today, let’s delve into a fascinating passage from Bereshit Rabbah, a classical rabbinic commentary on the Book of Genesis, that explores just that. The passage opens with a quote ...
Abraham, our patriarch, certainly did. In (Genesis 18:27), during that intense negotiation with God over Sodom and Gomorrah, Abraham says, “Behold now, I have presumed to speak to ...
Jewish tradition certainly thinks so. to a passage from Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, to see just how much weight our Sa...
to a fascinating passage from Devarim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Deuteronomy, that touches on this very dilemma and much more. The verse that k...
Jewish tradition grapples with this very idea, and it finds a rather poetic expression in Devarim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy. The passage...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet, certainly grapples with that feeling. It can feel bleak. But within that perceived bleakness, ancient interpreters found profound meaning. Tak...
Jewish tradition grapples with this very human experience, and it does so in a fascinating way, using the story of Noah. We find this exploration in Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of...
And the rabbis of old, in their infinite wisdom, dove deep into its poetic verses, finding layers of meaning we might miss today. We're looking at Kohelet Rabbah, a rabbinic commen...
This very human experience echoes in the ancient texts, specifically in a powerful passage from Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. The ...
The ancient rabbis certainly did! And they painted a vibrant picture, filled with light, healing, and unimaginable peace. Our starting point is a fascinating passage from Shemot Ra...
It’s a question that delves into the very heart of our tradition, and Shemot Rabbah (Exodus Rabbah) offers some pretty powerful insights. Let's unpack it. The verse in question is ...
But Jewish tradition teaches us that healing often comes from the very source of our pain. The Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, explo...
a passage from Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a commentary on the Song of Songs, that grapples with just that. It all starts with a verse: "By the fragrance of your good oils, your name is ...
The ancient rabbis grappled with this very feeling, this sense that some groups seem to get away with things that others don't. And they found surprising answers in the stories of ...
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...
It turns out, our ancestors were asking these questions too. to a fascinating passage from Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Song of Songs. The ...
We find ourselves pondering just that in a fascinating discussion rooted in the verse from (Song of Songs 4:16): "Awake, north wind, and come, south wind; blow upon my garden, that...
Our text from Vayikra Rabbah 5, a midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic collection expounding on the Book of Leviticus, grapples with just that question. It starts with a se...
to a fascinating passage from Vayikra Rabbah, a Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), or interpretive commentary, on the Book of Leviticus, that touches upon this very issue....
The Torah tells us of an agreement, a covenant, between God and the Israelites. But the details, as explored in Vayikra Rabbah, are far more intricate and, frankly, a little . Rabb...
Today, we're diving into a fascinating passage from Vayikra Rabbah 12 that explores the dangers of overindulgence. It all starts with a verse from Leviticus (10:9): “Wine or intoxi...
It's more than just a ritual. It touches on themes of covenant, perfection, and even the very nature of blessing. to a fascinating passage from Vayikra Rabbah, a Midrash (rabbinic ...
We often overlook the seemingly insignificant, but Jewish tradition teaches us that profound blessings can reside even there. Take, for instance, the omer offering. What exactly is...
Birth order, historical sequence. But what if there’s more to it than that? Vayikra Rabbah 36, a fascinating passage in the rabbinic commentary on Leviticus, flips that script on u...
“To their mothers they say: Where is grain and wine? While fainting like corpses in the city squares, while their souls are poured into their mothers' bosoms” (Lamentations 2:12).“...
The ancient rabbis certainly did. They grappled with the nature of prophecy: who gets it, and why? Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher living in Egypt in the first century CE...
Take Noah, for example. The world’s about to be… well, let’s just say thoroughly cleansed. And yet, (Genesis 6:8) tells us, almost as an aside, that Noah "found grace in the sight ...
