2,006 related texts · 10 related myths · Page 40 of 42
Our stories are woven into our lineage, and sometimes, those threads get tangled. to a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of N...
Bamidbar Rabbah turns to Kingdom of Bilam of Balak. The story unfolds in Bamidbar Rabbah 20, a midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) collection that dives deep into the bibl...
It's not about being stingy, but about creating a sense of progression, a journey. Why, it asks, did God command a diminishing number of bulls to be sacrificed each day? What did H...
A powerful image. "The power of His deeds He told to His people" (Psalms 111:6). According to Bamidbar Rabbah, God could have simply created a new land for the Israelites. But inst...
In the ancient world, and even described in the Torah, there was a system in place to offer refuge. The book of Numbers instructs us, "You shall designate cities for you" (Numbers ...
Rabbi Yoḥanan starts us off with a verse from Psalms (139:5): "Back and front [ahor vakedem], You shaped me…" Ahor vakedem, it's a phrase that hints at so much. Rabbi Yoḥanan sugge...
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...
Consider the verse in (Genesis 2:21), "He took one of his sides [mitzalotav].." Now, mitzalotav can mean either "one of his ribs" or "one of his sides." So, which was it? Rabbi Shm...
Bereshit Rabbah turns to What Cain and Abel Were Really Fighting About. The Torah is concise, leaving us to confront the underlying tensions. And that's where the beauty of Jewish ...
Bereshit Rabbah turns to Noah's Transgression of Canaan. First, the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) clarifies that "Noah awoke from his wine" means simply that the wine'...
The Torah tells us, "Abram passed through the land to the place of Shekhem, until the plain of Moreh. And the Canaanites were then in the land" (Genesis 12:6). But there's more to ...
Who was this Malkitzedek? Why is he offering bread and wine? And what's the deal with Salem? The Rabbis of Bereshit Rabbah, that rich collection of early Jewish interpretations of ...
In the story of Abram and the King of Sodom, found in Bereshit Rabbah (Genesis Rabbah) 43, we see a masterclass in ethical leadership and selfless action. After Abram's victorious ...
” What does it mean to be a "wild man?" The Rabbis of old certainly wrestled with this very question. The ancient commentary, Bereshit Rabbah, explores this verse, offering various...
Bereshit Rabbah turns to The Ram Caught in the Thicket and Temple Prophecy. What does it really mean? The Torah tells us, “Abraham lifted his eyes and saw that behold, there was a ...
Take the story of Jacob, disguised as Esau, receiving Isaac's blessing. It's a pivotal moment, full of deception and destiny. Okay, hides of goat kids. That sounds… itchy. Rabbi Yo...
It’s a powerful scene, thick with emotion. But according to Bereshit Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Genesis, there's so much more going on ...
It’s a feeling as old as...well, as old as Jacob, actually. to a fascinating little corner of Bereshit Rabbah, a treasure trove of rabbinic commentary on the Book of Genesis, and s...
Our story comes from Bereshit Rabbah, a classic midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) text that dives deep into the Book of Genesis. Specifically, It starts with a verse God...
One fascinating passage in Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis, dives right into this thorny issue. Specifically, it tackles Jacob's bl...
Our guide? None other than Bereshit Rabbah 93, a treasure trove of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Genesis. Specifically, Now, that word "approached"… it's loaded. What kin...
Jewish tradition is just teeming with those kinds of moments. Take Jacob, for instance, as he's about to head down to Egypt to reunite with his son Joseph. The Torah tells us, "Isr...
It centers around the verse: "He slaughtered feast-offerings to the God of his father Isaac" (Genesis 46:1). Why Isaac? Why not Abraham, the patriarch of them all? Rabbi Yehoshua b...
Our story comes from Devarim Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic teachings on the book of Deuteronomy. It begins with the verse from (Psalm 20:2), "May the Lord answer you on a day o...
In Devarim Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, we find a fascinating connection between looking after the Levites – members of the tribe of Levi...
Devarim Rabbah turns to Why Justice Matters More to God Than Grand Rituals. The book of Devarim Rabbah, a collection of homiletic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, wrestles wit...
In Devarim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, we find a powerful exploration of this very feeling, wrapped in a story about snakes and the proph...
Even Moses, the great lawgiver, felt it. In Devarim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, we find a poignant moment where Moses pleads with God. He...
It sounds almost unbelievable, doesn't it? Yet, according to Devarim Rabbah, this is precisely the monumental struggle Moses faced at the end of his life. Rabbi Yoḥanan tells us th...
Like everyone else is contributing, and you're just... there? Our sages grappled with this feeling, and their stories, preserved in texts like Kohelet Rabbah, offer surprising comf...
It all starts with a verse from Ecclesiastes (4:17): “Guard your feet when you go to the house of God, and draw near to heed. This is better than fools giving an offering, as they ...
It’s a topic explored further in the rabbinic commentary on Ecclesiastes, Kohelet Rabbah, and it's a fascinating, and frankly, a little scary. The verse in question is (Ecclesiaste...
Like that perfect cup of coffee, or maybe... mitzvot (commandments)? That’s the question bubbling up from Kohelet Rabbah, a fascinating exploration of the book of Ecclesiastes. In ...
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....
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...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet in Hebrew, certainly does. And the rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), in Kohelet Rabbah, wrestled with it too. Specifica...
It tells us: “Go, eat your bread joyfully, and drink your wine goodheartedly, as God has already accepted your actions” (Ecclesiastes 9:7). But what does that mean? Kohelet Rabbah,...
Sometimes, the answer isn’t just in swords and shields. Sometimes, it's in something far more powerful: wisdom. Our story comes from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interp...
The Rabbis in Kohelet Rabbah delve deep into this verse, unpacking its layers of meaning. Rabbi Pinḥas and Rabbi Ḥilkiya, in the name of Rabbi Simon, pose a crucial question: When ...
What exactly does that mean, "He made houses for them?" This teaching presents two perspectives, attributed to Rav and Levi. One suggests that God rewarded the midwives with priest...
Where is God, exactly? Is He up in the heavens, completely removed from our earthly struggles? Or is He still somehow… here? The book of Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic int...
It wasn't pretty. And it certainly wasn't subtle. Our story picks up right after Moses and Aaron deliver their fateful message: "Let my people go!" (Exodus 5:1). Pharaoh, predictab...
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...
It's so much more than just a simple "Let my people go!" narrative. Take, for instance, the exchange in (Exodus 10:24-29). It's a masterclass in negotiation, divine will, and maybe...
The Israelites certainly did in Egypt. But even in the darkest of times, hope can blossom. And it often arrives in unexpected ways. Our story begins, as so many do, with a word fro...
It seems like a minor detail, but as we learn in Shemot Rabbah, it's anything but. Rabbi Ḥanina offers a beautiful explanation. He says that God's choice of words reflects a profou...
The Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, offers a breathtakingly intimate perspective on that pivotal moment. Specifically, Shemot...
The story of the Exodus, as told in Shemot Rabbah, the compilation of rabbinic sermons on the Book of Exodus, gives us a fascinating glimpse into this idea, focusing on the final p...
