3,636 related texts · Page 39 of 76
The ancient rabbis certainly thought so when reflecting on the history of Israel. Vayikra Rabbah, a midrash – a collection of rabbinic teachings – on the Book of Leviticus, explore...
We often think of life itself, perhaps, or the beauty of nature. But according to Jewish tradition, some gifts are so profound, so foundational, that they shape our very existence....
“I am the man who has seen affliction by the rod of His fury” (Lamentations 3:1).“I am the man” – Rabbi Ḥama bar Ḥanina began: “Jeremiah took another scroll and gave it to Barukh s...
It’s a question that's occupied mystics for centuries, and one that leads us into some pretty fascinating corners of Kabbalah. , shall we? We begin with the words of Moses himself,...
My dear friend, it all boils down to the core of our faith: the absolute and singular authority of God. Our sages, whose wisdom stretches back to Moses himself, taught us that the ...
Seems a little... roundabout, doesn't it? That’s exactly the kind of thing that got the Rabbis thinking, and us too! What’s really going on behind those words? Why not just say, "H...
Get ready, because the answer might surprise you. Our source today is "The Midrash of Philo," a fascinating, often overlooked text. Here, we find a unique take on the serpent in th...
He suggests we look beyond the literal. Philo sees the serpent not just as a snake, but as an allegory – an emblem of desire itself. The serpent "creeps upon his breast and upon hi...
Philo of Alexandria, a Jewish philosopher who lived in Egypt during the Roman era, did just that. He delved deep into the Torah, seeking hidden wisdom and allegorical interpretatio...
Take the writings attributed to Philo of Alexandria, for example. Now, there’s some debate about whether these are actually from Philo himself, but the collection known as “The Mid...
And, behold, there came up out of the river seven kine (Gen. 41:2) After he (Pharaoh) had his dream, he summoned all his magicians. Whereupon the Holy Spirit called out: Where are ...
And Moses went and returned to Jethro, his father-in-law (Exod. 4:18). Scripture says elsewhere in reference to this verse: A friend loveth at all times, and a brother is born for ...
Another comment upon the verse And the Lord said to Aaron: “Go into the wilderness to meet Moses” (Exod. 4:27). Scripture says elsewhere in reference to this verse: O that thou wer...
When Pharaoh shall speak unto you, saying (Exod. 7:9). May it please our masters to teach us whether a man who is bitten by a serpent while standing in prayer may stop praying. Our...
And the Lord said unto Moses: “See, I have set thee in God’s stead to Pharaoh” (Exod. 7:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Lift up your heads, O ye gates, an...
See, I have set thee in God’s stead to Pharaoh (Exod. 7:1). The Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses: The wicked Pharaoh boasts that he is a god. Make him realize that he is an i...
When Pharaoh shall speak unto you (Exod. 7:9). Scripture states (elsewhere in reference to this verse): Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are...
And the Lord spoke unto Moses and Aaron in the land of Egypt, saying (Exod. 12:1). Is it not a fact that He spoke only to Moses? Why, then, does the Scripture say unto Moses and Aa...
And it came to pass in the middle of the night, that the Lord smote all the firstborn in the land of Egypt (Exod. 12:29). The Creator of the night divided the night precisely. The ...
And Moses took the bones of Joseph (Exod. 13:19). How did Moses know where Joseph’s grave was to be found? They say that only Serah the daughter of Asher had survived from that gen...
And I will harden Pharaoh’s heart (Exod. 14:4). This was said because his heart was undecided whether to pursue them or not. And I will get Me honor upon Pharaoh and upon all his h...
And he took six hundred chosen chariots (Exod. 14:7). Whose beasts drew the chariots? If you should say they belonged to the Egyptians, has it not already been said: And all the ca...
And Moses said unto Aaron: “Take a jar and put an omerful of manna therein” (Exod. 16:33). I would not know of what substance the jar was fashioned, whether of silver or of gold or...
(Lev. 16:1:) “Now the Lord spoke unto Moses after the death [of Aaron's two sons].” This is what Elihu said (to Job 37:1), “At this also my heart trembles and leaps.” Elihu was obs...
God told Moses: "Do not speak to Me on this matter again" (Deuteronomy 3:26). The decree was final. But Moses argued anyway. Rabbi Abbahu offered a parable. A nobleman found a magn...
See I, etc. (Deuteronomy 11:26): This is what is stated in the verse (Job 36:10-12), "He opens their ear by discipline, etc. If they will listen and serve, they shall spend their d...
It’s a story etched in blood and freedom, a tale not just of liberation, but of divine protection. And it’s a story that gets even richer when we delve into texts beyond the famili...
Remember Joseph, the favored son sold into slavery in Egypt? He's now a powerful figure, and his brothers, unknowingly standing before him, are begging for the release of their you...
We know the big story: the plagues, the Exodus, the parting of the Red Sea. But what about the nitty-gritty details of those first few days of freedom? The Book of Jasher, a text m...
Jewish tradition, particularly the wealth of stories that amplify the terse narratives of the Torah, offers some pretty compelling answers. to the consequences of that fateful bite...
Your family's survival hangs in the balance. What would you say? What would you do? That’s the tension at the heart of a powerful moment in the Joseph story, as retold in Ginzberg'...
Sometimes, it's in the most unexpected places, like a marriage built on shared destiny and defiance. Amram, a name whispered with reverence in Jewish history, chose as his life par...
According to Legends of the Jews, Jethro, Zipporah's father, gave Moses considerable wealth and his daughter's hand in marriage. But there was a condition. Jethro, a Midianite prie...
It's not just about a people escaping slavery. It’s a cosmic battle, a divine showdown. Think of it as a king going to war, but this king? This king is the Lord. According to Legen...
They did what any of us might do: they complained. Loudly. But Moses, ever the leader, knew what to do. Instead of joining in the despair, he turned to the one source of true hope:...
It’s more than just a day off. It’s a connection to something ancient, something profound. It’s a chance to step back and remember. But it wasn't always easy. Imagine this: The Isr...
They've just been liberated from slavery in Egypt, they're being miraculously fed with manna – that heavenly bread that just appears each day – and, according to the lore, they're ...
Today, let's talk about Amalek. You might remember Amalek from the Bible – this was the nation that attacked the Israelites shortly after their miraculous Exodus from Egypt. It see...
The story of Jethro, Moses' father-in-law, offers a fascinating glimpse. Jethro, who according to the tradition, excelled all other converts in his love for the Torah, wasn’t just ...
We all know the story: Moses goes up Mount Sinai, gets the Ten Commandments, and the Israelites, left to their own devices, panic. But the story, as we find it in Legends of the Je...
The story goes that when the spies returned from scouting the land of Canaan – what we know today as Palestine/Israel – they cooked up a scheme to discourage the Israelites from ev...
There you are, wandering in the desert, sustained by food that literally falls from the sky. And yet…you grumble. You whine. You say, "Ugh, not manna again!" It sounds almost unbel...
It’s not just about knowing how many are present, but something far deeper, a spiritual accounting, if you will. When God led the Israelites out of Egypt, He didn't just release a ...
That’s kind of what it was like for the prophet Jeremiah during the reign of King Zedekiah. According to Legends of the Jews, he was facing opposition from pretty much everyone. – ...
The debate over where the Israelites placed the Passover blood continues in the Mekhilta, and Rabbi Nathan and Rabbi Yitzchak stake out dramatically different positions — each reve...
Rabbi Simon, in the ancient collection of homiletic interpretations known as Midrash Tehillim, sheds light on this very idea. He suggests that simply reciting poetry doesn't make o...
The ancient Israelites grappled with that exact feeling after the Exodus from Egypt. And Midrash Tehillim (a collection of interpretations on the Book of Psalms) delves right into ...
Our sages certainly did. The Midrash Tehillim, a collection of interpretations on the Book of Psalms, dives deep into this very question. Specifically, it wrestles with (Psalm 78:4...
