3,492 related texts · Page 40 of 73
The ancient text Sifrei Devarim offers a stunningly poetic answer, connecting blessings to something primal, something ancient and enduring. It speaks of "the first of the mountain...
Abraham had just defeated four kings and rescued his nephew. In (Genesis 15:1), God simply says "Fear not, Abram, I am your shield; your reward shall be very great." But the ancien...
The Hebrew Bible says three "men" appeared to Abraham at the oaks of Mamre (Genesis 18:2). The Targum Jonathan tells you exactly what they were and exactly why each one came. They ...
Sarah died at one hundred and twenty-seven years old. The Torah records the number. The Targum records the aftermath: Abraham came from "the mountain of worship"—Mount Moriah, wher...
Abraham married again after Sarah's death. The Torah calls his new wife Keturah. The Targum reveals her true identity in a single phrase: "She is Hagar, who had been bound to him f...
The Torah tells us that Moses was born, hidden, found by Pharaoh's daughter, and eventually fled to Midian. Targum Jonathan fills in the gaps with miracles, secret identities, and ...
The plague of darkness in Exodus chapter 10 is three days of impenetrable blackness across Egypt. The Hebrew Bible says simply that no one could see anyone else and no one rose fro...
The standard biblical text of (Exodus 26:1-37) reads like a construction manual. Ten curtains of fine linen, fifty gold clasps, boards of acacia wood, silver bases. The ancient Ara...
The grain offering described in Leviticus 2 seems straightforward—flour, oil, frankincense, baked into cakes or wafers. But the Targum Jonathan adds a theological bombshell hidden ...
Buried in Leviticus 22's rules about blemished offerings, the Targum Jonathan inserts one of the most beautiful passages in all of Targumic literature—a theology of sacrifice roote...
The shofar on Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) was not just a call to repentance. According to the Targum's version of (Numbers 29), the trumpets served a cosmic combat function...
The Targum Jonathan on (Deuteronomy 6) contains one of the most beloved stories in all of rabbinic literature—and it appears right in the middle of the most sacred prayer in Judais...
The Flood was all of twelve months,1R. Eliyahu from Vilna explains that according to Seder Olam a year about which no details are given is a simple, regular year of 354 days follow...
Rabbi Akiva was caught teaching Torah in public after the Roman Empire banned its study following the Bar Kokhba rebellion. When Pappus ben Yehuda warned him of the danger, Akiva a...
The Hebrew Bible says God "appeared" to Abraham at the oaks of Mamre (Genesis 18:1). Targum Onkelos says God "became revealed." It sounds like the same thing. It is not. Appearing ...
He cast the pur - that is, the lot: Rabbi Chama bar Chanina said, "It was taught [that] when it fell out in the month of Adar, [Haman] rejoiced with great joy: He said, 'The lot fe...
It was taught in the school of R. Ishmael that He pardons one sin after the other before they are put on the scales; and this is the divine custom." "Nevertheless," remarked Raba, ...
Ten kings ruled over the whole world:—God, Nimrod, Joseph, Solomon, Ahab, Nebuchadnezzar, Koresh (Ahas- uerus ruled over half). Alexander of Macedonia not only ruled over the whole...
Nahum ish Gamzo, also called Nahum of Hamadi used to say, “Everything for the best.” Sent to the Emperor with presents, miracles happened. He came to a place where during the night...
A non-Jewish man walked into Shammai's study with a straightforward question: "How many laws does Judaism have?" Shammai gave him the honest answer — two. There is the Written Tora...
The Exempla of the Rabbis preserves a sprawling collection of tales about Solomon and the power of the divine Name. In these stories, Solomon commands demons, builds the Temple wit...
Abraham, the Carpenter in Jerusalem, hac. saved some money through hard work. His neighbour stole it and ran away, but dropped down dead on the road. A young man found him, dug his...
Rav Huna was a wealthy man who owned vast vineyards and employed many laborers to tend them. But he had a flaw. When the harvest was finished and the grapes had been pressed and th...
Nahum ish Gamzo — called that because no matter what happened, he always said "Gam zu le-tovah" ("This too is for the best") — was sent by the Jewish community to the Roman Emperor...
After Abraham sent Ishmael away into the wilderness with his mother Hagar, the patriarch did not forget his firstborn son. According to Pirkei de Rabbi Eliezer and the Midrash Haga...
A star fell from heaven — and its fall marked the beginning of a corruption that would lead to the great Flood. The Midrash (Genesis Rabbah of Rabbi Moses HaDarshan, Midrash Abkhir...
Gog makes his plans in secret. He thinks his strategies are hidden — the alliance-building, the schemes against Israel, the invasions planned in quiet rooms. "On that day, thoughts...
Each prophet saw God differently. Amos saw Him standing — "I saw the Lord standing beside the altar" (Amos 9:1). Isaiah saw Him sitting — "I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high ...
Hell has seven names. This is what Aggadat Bereshit says when Malachi promises "the day is coming, burning like an oven" (Malachi 3:19). The rabbis did not flinch from the geograph...
"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 — ...
King David grew old, and no one could warm him (1 Kings 1:1). The doctors tried blankets. They tried attendants. His body, which had survived lions and bears and Goliath and armies...
It’s a question that’s captivated mystics and scholars for centuries. And Jewish tradition offers a stunning answer: the world was created through God's Name. It’s a “wonderful and...
Jewish tradition gives us a pretty vivid, and frankly terrifying, answer: Gehenna. Now, Gehenna – sometimes also called Gehinnom (the place of spiritual purification after death) –...
The story of Abraham's negotiation with God over the fate of Sodom and Gomorrah, found in the book of Genesis, is a powerful exploration of justice, compassion, and the courage to ...
Serah, daughter of Asher, one of Jacob's sons. We find her name nestled in the list of those who went down to Egypt with Jacob to escape the famine. You can find it in (Genesis 46:...
Jewish tradition has a way of blowing your mind with concepts like that – especially when we delve into stories like the Exodus and the Binding of Isaac. Imagine this: the Israelit...
That raw, visceral feeling is at the heart of a powerful story about Moses and the destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem. Imagine Moses, our leader, the one who brought us out of ...
(Genesis 11:1) tells us, "Everyone on earth had the same language and the same words." Imagine the possibilities! With this miraculous language, some say, anything could be accompl...
It all starts with a simple verse: "These are those who were counted of the children of Israel…" And from there, it launches into a deep dive about blessings, promises, and the end...
These aren't mistakes. They're invitations to delve deeper, to wrestle with the text and uncover hidden layers of meaning. Consider this: In (Hosea 2:1), we read about the children...
The ancient rabbis certainly wrestled with this idea, especially when pondering the future of the Jewish people. to a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabb...
And it's one that our sages grappled with too. This week, in our journey through Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically Bamidbar Rabbah 3, we stumble upon a fascinating exploration of being...
We tend to focus on the big, dramatic stuff, like the Ark of the Covenant. But what about the meticulous work of the Gershonites? Our story comes from Bamidbar Rabbah, a fascinatin...
We find in Bamidbar Rabbah (Numbers Rabbah) 9, a fascinating, and frankly, a bit intense dive into the laws surrounding a suspected adulteress, the sotah. It’s a passage that pulls...
We’re looking at (Numbers 6:10), which discusses the ritual a nazir – a person who has taken a vow of separation – must perform if they become ritually impure during their period o...
But from that small verse, the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) launches into a fascinating exploration of Judah, the tribe of lions, fiery furnaces, and ultimately, God'...
Even in the Bible, the order in which things are presented can tell a whole story. Take the story of the spies sent by Moses to scout out the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, bef...
It wasn't just about following the rules, but about heart and intention. to a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah 17 and see what we can uncover. Rabbi Tanhuma bar Abba, quoti...
