3,636 related texts · Page 7 of 76
It's often because the Rabbis, in their infinite wisdom, saw connections we might miss. Take the story of Moses at the burning bush in Exodus, chapter 4. God gives him three signs ...
The answer, they suggest, might lie in the seemingly simple phrase, "I will harden his heart." But what does it mean to harden someone's heart? According to Shemot Rabbah, a collec...
Specifically, let's look at Shemot Rabbah 5, which delves into the pivotal moment when Moses and Aaron first approach the Israelites in Egypt. The verse we're looking at is (Exodus...
Sometimes, it's not about luck at all, but about seizing the moment. And in Jewish tradition, the story of Moses and Pharaoh offers a powerful lesson in just that. In (Exodus 8:16)...
It wasn't just about remembering the events, but about understanding the deeper meaning behind them. The Torah tells us, "And so that you will relate in the ears of your son, and o...
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...
We're looking at section 15, which delves into the very first commandment given to the Israelites as they stood on the cusp of freedom: "This month shall be for you" (Exodus 12:2)....
The Book of Exodus tells us that the Israelites were instructed to mark their doorposts with blood so that God would "pass over" their homes during the tenth plague, sparing their ...
Pharaoh's army bearing down, water as far as the eye could see. What do you do? The Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, paints a vivid pi...
The story starts with a grumble. "The entire congregation of the children of Israel complained" (Exodus 16:2). They were wandering in the desert, fresh out of Egypt, and their port...
The text suggests that these three actions originated from Moses' own reasoning, and, remarkably, his reasoning turned out to be in sync with God's own. The first instance involves...
Moses stood in the wilderness, preparing a special oil. According to Rabbi Yehuda ben Rabbi Ilai, this wasn't just any oil; it was a vessel for miracles from the very beginning. Th...
It's easy to think of him as simply a messenger, a conduit for God's will. But the Book of Jubilees, a fascinating text from around the 2nd century BCE, paints a picture of Moses t...
Following the pestilence, God instructs Moses and Elazar, the son of Aaron the priest, to take a census. A head count of the entire Israelite community, specifically those twenty y...
Why did God Himself attend to the burial of Moses? Because of what Moses had done decades earlier in Egypt, when everyone else was busy loading up silver and gold for the exodus. W...
What if the very people meant to lead us to freedom are born into the darkest of times? Times so bleak, even love itself seems impossible. That's the story of Amram and Jochebed, t...
According to Ginzberg's retelling in Legends of the Jews, Moses encountered seven maidens at a well. One of them, Zipporah, caught his eye with her modesty. He proposed marriage, b...
It wasn't just a lucky break; it was a carefully orchestrated act of bravery and quick thinking by his sister, Miriam. Imagine the scene: Pharaoh's daughter, Thermutis (some tradit...
Seriously close. We all know the story: Pharaoh, terrified by the growing Israelite population, orders all newborn Hebrew boys to be thrown into the Nile. A brutal decree born of f...
There's a fascinating little story tucked away in Legends of the Jews that gives us a glimpse into the lives of two lesser-known prophets, Eldad and Medad. Now, these weren't just ...
That's the scene facing Moses and Aaron in the wilderness, as described in Ginzberg's Legends of the Jews. Initially, the people focused their anger on Moses. Aaron, with his legen...
God created the world in six days. And after each day, He looked around and said, "Yeah, that's good." But not every day got that stamp. Why? Well, some say it's because of water. ...
The Mekhilta completes its trilogy of faith-based miracles with the blood of the Passover lamb. God told the Israelites to slaughter a lamb and place its blood on their doorposts, ...
The Mekhilta notices something peculiar about how the Torah identifies Yithro. In the beginning of the story, Moses is the one who boasts about the relationship. When Moses returns...
God told Moses to "bring near Aaron" for the priestly consecration—and the Targum Jonathan adds three devastating words the Hebrew Bible does not contain: "who is afar off on accou...
In Jewish tradition, we find striking examples of this idea, particularly in the story of Korah and his rebellion against Moses and Aaron. Our story comes from Bamidbar Rabbah, a M...
And sometimes, the solutions to those disagreements come in the most unexpected forms… like, say, a blossoming staff. We find this story in Bamidbar Rabbah 18, which elaborates on ...
We all know the big picture: slavery, plagues, the parting of the Red Sea. But what about the individual choices, the moral dilemmas, the moments of despair and resilience that sha...
The story of Micah is, frankly, a wild ride. It all starts with Delilah. Yes, that Delilah – the one who betrayed Samson. According to the Legends of the Jews, Delilah took some of...
(Exodus 12:1) "in the land of Egypt":(He spoke to them) outside the city. But perhaps in the city itself? (This cannot be, for it is written (Exodus 9:29) "When I leave the city" (...
Rabbi Akiva posed a provocative question: where do we learn that each of the ten plagues that struck Egypt was actually five plagues in one? If this calculation is correct, the Egy...
We're about to dive into a fascinating slice of Jewish tradition from Midrash Tehillim, specifically Psalm 78, that does just that, exploring the story of the Israelites in the des...
Midrash Tehillim (a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms) poses a seemingly simple question about the opening of Psalm 90, traditionally ascribed to Moses: ...
Take the story of the plagues in Egypt. It's not just about showing off God's power; it's a complex tapestry woven with themes of justice, redemption, and even a little bit of…well...
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...
And Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them upon an ass (Exod. 4:20). The singular form ass is employed here, as when a man says: “Lead out the animal” (though he may have m...
Get thee unto Pharaoh in the morning; lo, he goeth out unto the water (Exod. 7:14). Thus the Lord said: Through this (water) you shall cause him to know that I am the Lord. I will ...
Behold, tomorrow about this time I will cause it to rain a very grievous hail, such as hath not been seen (Exod. 9:18). Zabdi the son of Levi said: He made a mark upon the wall and...
That's the scenario we find ourselves in, according to some fascinating threads in Jewish legend. The story, found within Legends of the Jews, paints a picture of the serpent – you...
Rabbi Yitzchak posed a deceptively simple question about one of the most famous promises in the Torah. In (Exodus 15:26), God tells the Israelites that if they follow His commandme...
R. Elazar says: after she parted from him with a ma'amar (i.e., by word of mouth). For when the L–rd said to Moses: Go and take My people, the children of Israel, out of Egypt, viz...
When Miriam died on the tenth day of the month Nisan, the well that had sustained Israel throughout their desert wanderings vanished. The Targum makes this connection explicit in a...
The Torah portion of Terumah introduces us to Betzalel, the artisan chosen to construct the Mishkan, the Tabernacle. But where did he get all that skill? Shemot Rabbah, a classical...
When Pharaoh shall speak unto you (Exod. 7:9). Scripture says elsewhere: A fool spendeth all his spirit; but a wise man stilleth it within him (Prov. 29:11). That is, the fool says...
And when the people saw that Moses delayed to come down (Exod. 32:1). The word boshesh (“delayed”) indicates that it was the sixth hour of the day. Forty thousand people had assemb...
Our story comes from the Book of Jubilees, a fascinating text considered canonical by the Ethiopian Orthodox Church but not by most of mainstream Judaism. Think of it as a kind of ...
Talk about pressure. The Book of Jubilees, an ancient Jewish text that retells and expands upon stories from the Hebrew Bible, gives us a glimpse into this pivotal moment. So, pict...
Pharaoh, the most powerful man in the land, is understandably worried. He needs a solution, and fast. The text says, "let Pharaoh appoint overseers in all the land of Egypt, and le...
