3,200 related texts · Page 42 of 67
“Upon the completion of [uvimlot] those days” – it is written uvimlot [plene, with the extra vav],8It is not clear if this is merely a textual note or somehow related to the follow...
Our tradition teaches us a vital principle: we don't prostrate ourselves before the Sefer Torah, the Torah scroll itself. It's not about worshipping parchment and ink. Instead, as ...
The text we're looking at speaks to just that – a world where falsehood reigns and those who uphold Torah are scorned. It's a harsh indictment, a cry of pain from someone who feels...
The question of creation... it's one that's gripped humanity for millennia, isn't it? How did it all begin? Was there a before? And if so, what was it like? The rabbis of old grapp...
to what some of our sages have said about it. The verse reads, “Unto the woman He said: ‘I will greatly multiply thy pain and thy travail; in pain thou shalt bring forth children; ...
"I am the Lord thy God who brought thee out of the land of the Chaldaeans to give thee this land for an inheritance" (Genesis 15:7). It's not just a generic "Hey, I'm God!" introdu...
Even Abraham, the patriarch of faith, had moments of doubt. Our question comes from the Midrash of Philo, an exploration of the Hebrew Bible through the lens of the writings of Phi...
Sometimes, those tiny details hold the biggest secrets. Take (Genesis 15:10), for example. It’s a verse about Abraham, and God's covenant with him. Seems straightforward. "And he t...
What does it even mean? The verse appears in the context of the brit bein ha-betarim, the “covenant between the pieces.” God makes a covenant with Abraham, promising him descendant...
to a fascinating little corner of Jewish tradition, a passage from what's known as The Midrash of Philo. Now, Philo of Alexandria was a Jewish philosopher who lived a long, long ti...
The Torah, in its unflinching honesty, doesn't shy away from these tough questions. to one particularly weighty example. In (Genesis 15:13), God tells Abraham – Avraham, the patria...
The Torah, in its often subtle way, touches upon this very question. Our passage focuses on a seemingly small detail in the story of Sarah and Hagar. You remember the story. Sarah,...
Take Hagar, for example. Poor Hagar. A handmaiden, caught in the middle of Sarah and Abraham's struggle to have a child. She runs away into the desert, desperate and alone. And the...
to a fascinating interpretation from the Midrash of Philo, a collection of interpretations attributed to the Jewish philosopher Philo of Alexandria. The passage in question revolve...
We often stumble upon verses that seem straightforward but hint at something profound, something beyond the literal. Take (Genesis 17:4), where God says to Abraham, "And I, behold,...
He’s just received the earth-shattering news that he, in his old age, is going to have a son with Sarah. A son who will carry on the covenant with God. It's huge! But then comes th...
And God remembered Noah (Gen. 8:1). May it please our master to teach us the benediction recited upon witnessing a rainbow. Thus did our masters teach us: Upon seeing a rainbow, on...
And I will bless thee and make thy name great, and be thou a blessing (Gen. 12:2). And I will bless thee implies: I Myself will bless thee. I will make thy name great indicates tha...
And it came to pass in the days of Amraphel (Gen. 14:1). Scripture says elsewhere in reference to this verse: Through Thee do we push down our adversaries, through Thy name do we t...
Prior to the verse After these things scripture states: And Abraham heard that his brother was taken captive (Gen. 14:14). Was Lot actually Abraham’s brother? No, indeed! This stat...
And the two angels came to Sodom (Gen. 19:1). May it please our master to teach us the number of death penalties the Beth Din (the court of seventy-one members) was empowered to im...
And the two angels came to Sodom (Gen. 19:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: But they rebelled and grieved his Holy Spirit; therefore, He was turned to be th...
And he saw the place from afar off (Gen. 22:4). Abraham said to Isaac: “Do you see what I see?” “I behold a glorious mountain encircled by a cloud,” he replied. Then he asked his y...
And Abraham took another wife (Gen. 25:1). May our master teach us: How many times should one pray each day? R. Samuel the son of Nahman declared: Since there are three periods in ...
And these are the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son (Gen. 25:19). May it please our master to teach us why peace-offerings (sacrifices) were instituted?1There are three kinds of ...
These are the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham begot Isaac (Gen. 25:19). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: The father of the righteous will greatly ...
These are the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham begot Isaac (Gen. 25:19). Why does Scripture repeat itself by adding: Abraham begot Isaac? There were some men who whispe...
These are the generations of Isaac, Abraham’s son: Abraham begot Isaac (Gen. 25:19). It is written in Scripture: No weapon that is formed against thee shall prosper; and every tong...
Abraham begot Isaac (Gen. 25:19). R. Isaac stated; No generation lacks scoffers. While Nabal was shearing his flock, David sent some of his young men to him with the request: Give,...
And Jacob went out from Beer-sheba (Gen. 28:10). May it please our master to teach us where a man who has unintentionally taken the life of another man may take refuge. Thus do our...
The Lord saw that Leah was hated (Gen. 29:17). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: For He knoweth base men; and when He seeketh iniquity, will He not then conside...
And the Lord said unto Jacob: “Return unto the land of thy fathers” (Gen. 31:3). May it please our master to teach us whether an Israelite may light a candle with another candle up...
And God came to Laban the Aramean in a dream of the night (Gen. 31:24). This is one of the occasions on which the Holy One, blessed be He, contaminated the purity of His divine glo...
Take heed to thyself that thout speak not to Jacob either good or bad (Gen. 31:24). From this episode we learn that the merit acquired from labor may be helpful even when the influ...
And Jacob sat in the land (Gen. 37:1). Whenever Scripture uses the expression and he sat (also translated “and he dwelt”), it connotes misfortune: And Israel sat in the land of Egy...
42:1). Scripture states elsewhere in reference to this verse: Happy is He whose help is the God of Jacob (Ps. 146:5). Why does this verse say the God of Jacob and not “the God of A...
And God Almighty give you mercy before the man (Gen. 43:14). May it please our master to teach us the number of times a man must pray each day. Thus did our masters teach us: A man...
Then Judah came near (Gen. 44:18). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: My son, if thou art become a surety for thy neighbor, if thou hast struck thy hands for a s...
And the time drew near that Israel must die (Gen. 47:29). It is stated in Scripture in reference to this verse: For we are strangers before Thee, and sojourners, as all our fathers...
And it came to pass after these things, that one said to Joseph: “Benold, thy father is sick” (Gen. 48:1). May it please our master to teach us whether a benediction may be recited...
And it came to pass after these things (Gen. 48:1). Scripture states in response to this verse: For such as are blessed of Him shall inherit the land; and they that are cursed of H...
And Jacob called unto his sons (Gen. 49:1). May it please our master to teach us whether the one who leads the congregation in prayer may respond “Amen” after the priests. Thus did...
1:1). The names of the Israelites were most appropriate for them. You find, in fact, that the Holy One, blessed be He, assigned their names to them. He gave Abraham a son, and He s...
And Moses and Aaron went and gathered together all the elders of the children of Israel (Exod. 4:29). He told them: The Holy One, blessed be He, has said: I have surely remembered ...
18:1). Scripture says elsewhere: Thine own friend and thy father’s friend forsake not; neither go into thy brother’s house in the day of thy calamity; better is a neighbor that is ...
And this is the thing that thou shalt do unto them (Exod. 29:1). Scripture says elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Forever, O Lord, Thy word standeth fast in heaven (Ps. 119:89)....
Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, thy servants (Exod. 32:13). May our masters teach us: Until what time may the morning prayers be recited? Thus our masters teach us that the mo...
Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel (Exod. 32:13). It is written elsewhere in reference to this verse: And when they shall say to you: “Seek unto the ghosts and the familiar spirit...
