936 related texts · Page 15 of 20
to Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms. Specifically, we're going to explore Psalm 136, a powerful song of gratitude that repeats the p...
Jewish tradition, in its beautiful complexity, actually has something to say about that feeling – about being an outcast, and even more surprisingly, about the possibility of retur...
The mystics did, and they connected it directly to the Divine. : how do we respond to new beginnings? With joy, with song, with dance! And according to the Midrash Tehillim, a coll...
We find clues in Midrash Tehillim, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Psalms. Psalm 149 opens with the line, "For the Lord desires His people." But what does t...
The ancient text Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating collection of stories and interpretations, suggests that there just might be. The text draws our attention to the fifth day. ...
We all know the story of Jonah, swallowed whole for his disobedience. But what happened in the belly of the beast? Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating collection of stories and i...
Our sages pondered these questions for centuries, and their answers, preserved in texts like Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, might surprise you. It's not just about grand pronouncements or...
The Book of Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a fascinating and often imaginative work of Jewish literature, poses this very question. And it answers it with a story of courage, loyalty, and...
This particular passage, from Chapter 26, gives us a glimpse into Sarah's encounters with powerful rulers and the surprising twists that shaped her journey. It all starts with Phar...
The ancient text Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, a collection of stories and interpretations of the Hebrew Bible, gives us a glimpse into just such a moment. Specifically, it focuses on Ab...
It's a wild ride through sin, repentance, and the surprising grace that might just be waiting on the other side. Our first stop is the story of Achan. Remember him? He's the guy in...
Ezra, Zerubbabel son of Shealtiel, and Jeshua son of Jehozadak – powerful figures in their time – are leading a grand assembly. They’ve gathered 800 priests, 800 children, and – im...
He paints a picture, a truly awe-inspiring one, of Moses standing on the mountain. But here's the thing: only his feet were actually on the ground. The rest of him? According to Ra...
We all know the story of the Exodus, of course. Moses, the pillar of cloud, the parting waters… But who was brave enough to actually take the first step into the unknown? According...
to a fascinating moment from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, specifically chapter 42, where Moses himself is in conversation with the Holy One, blessed be He. The Israelites are on the cus...
That feeling, that connection, it's at the heart of this story from Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer, Chapter 44. The Israelites are facing a fearsome foe: Amalek. Moses, wise and divinely c...
Even something as seemingly straightforward as who inherits what can have fascinating, and sometimes surprising, origins in Jewish thought. to one such discussion from the Yalkut S...
That feeling isn’t new. In fact, there's a beautiful passage in the Yalkut Shimoni on Nach 499 that speaks directly to this. It uses the image of extinguished candles to describe t...
They burst into song! Remember the verse? "Then Moses and the children of Israel sang this song to the Lord..." (Exodus 15:1). Pure, unadulterated joy, expressed in music. But then...
It's fascinating to think about how sound shaped their experience, how specific blasts of the shofar, the ram's horn, or trumpets dictated their actions. Our focus today comes from...
Something that makes you wonder, "Why is that there?" Well, let's talk about a strange little section tucked away in the Book of Numbers, Bamidbar. Specifically, Bamidbar 10:35: "A...
The scene: the Israelites are in the desert, and something unusual is happening. Two men, Eldad and Medad, are prophesying within the camp (Bamidbar/(Numbers 11:2)7). A "youth" run...
This verse speaks of Phinehas (Pinchas), the grandson of Aaron, and the covenant G-d makes with him. It’s a verse packed with meaning, a testament to the enduring power of zealotry...
We often think of it as a simple transfer of power, but in Jewish tradition, it's so much more nuanced than that. It's about legacy, about diminishing brilliance, and about the uni...
It wasn't just about wise judges in flowing robes, you know. It was also about… bailiffs. Yep, the folks tasked with keeping order, sometimes with a little more… persuasion. Sifrei...
It's a daunting prospect, isn't it? The ancient text of Sifrei Devarim (a legal commentary on the book of Deuteronomy) wrestles with this very challenge, offering guidance to judge...
You're not alone. Turns out, this is a tale as old as time, or at least as old as the Israelites wandering in the desert. We find ourselves in the Book of Devarim, Deuteronomy (1:2...
There's this beautiful analogy in Sifrei Devarim that paints a picture of a king and his wife. The king tells his wife, "Adorn yourself with all your jewels, so you may be desirabl...
There's a fascinating little passage in Sifrei Devarim that wrestles with this very tension. It starts with a seemingly simple observation: "You will be plowing in the time of harv...
It starts with a question: do words of Torah truly bring joy? Maybe they're like water to someone already learned – essential, sure, but not necessarily exhilarating. That's where ...
The ancient sages grappled with a similar idea when considering the Torah. Could the very words of wisdom, the sacred teachings, ever become… detrimental? Sifrei Devarim, a legal m...
In Sifrei Devarim, a collection of early Jewish legal interpretations, we find a fascinating instruction about writing a Sefer Torah, a Torah scroll. It says, "that he shall write ...
Sifrei Devarim, a very early Halachic Midrash on the Book of Deuteronomy, gives us a powerful, if concise, insight. We're looking at verse (Deuteronomy 17:19), which speaks of a ki...
Deuteronomy, or Devarim in Hebrew, chapter 20 verse 8, gives us a glimpse into this often-overlooked role. It says, "Then the officers shall speak further to the people..." It soun...
We're looking at laws concerning who can and cannot enter the congregation of Israel. It's a topic that might seem distant, but it raises profound questions about forgiveness, coll...
Specifically, who gets to marry into the Jewish people. The passage we're looking at comes from Sifrei Devarim, a collection of legal interpretations on the Book of Deuteronomy. Th...
And nowhere is it more poignant than in the story of Moses, right before his passing. Imagine this: Moses, the greatest prophet, standing at the edge of the Promised Land, knowing ...
Here he was, the leader who brought the Israelites out of Egypt, the one who stood face-to-face with God on Mount Sinai... and none of his sons were deemed fit to succeed him. Acco...
The passage begins, "Listen, O heavens, and I shall speak." Rabbi Yehudah b. Chananiah, a wise sage, taught that when Moses spoke those words, the heavens – not just the heavens we...
It’s a question that’s been pondered for centuries, and one little verse in Devarim (Deuteronomy) offers a fascinating glimpse into the reverence the ancients held for the unspeaka...
The story of Rabbi Chanina ben Teradyon, as told in Sifrei Devarim 307, is a stark and powerful example. It's not an easy story to hear, but it’s a testament to unwavering belief i...
The ancient rabbis wrestled with that feeling too, especially when considering the relationship between Israel and the other nations. We find a powerful, raw expression of this in ...
Our tradition offers a fascinating glimpse into this very question, through the examples of two of the greatest figures in Jewish history: David, the shepherd-king, and his son, So...
The verse references Shimon, one of Jacob's sons, and it says, "His (Shimon's) hands did battle for him." This echoes a passage from Genesis (Bereshith 34:25), "And there took, two...
JOSHUA B. PERAḤIAH AND NITTAI THE ARBELITE RECEIVED THE TRADITION FROM THE PRECEDING. JOSHUA B. PERAḤIAH SAID: PROVIDE YOURSELF WITH A TEACHER, AND GET YOURSELF A COMPANION, AND JU...
The plague of hail in Exodus chapter 9 comes with a warning: anyone who fears God's word should bring their livestock inside. The Hebrew Bible says some of Pharaoh's servants feare...
The Song of the Sea in (Exodus 15) is one of the oldest poems in the Hebrew Bible. The Targum Jonathan rewrites it with additions so bold they create entirely new theology, includi...
The Hebrew Bible says Moses sent twelve spies into Canaan. The Targum Jonathan says he sent "keen-sighted men"—then reveals how spectacularly their vision failed them. Moses dispat...
