9,687 related texts · Page 184 of 202
That feeling of imbalance, of unspoken credit, is something the ancient rabbis grappled with too. And we find a fascinating example of it right at the beginning of the Book of Numb...
We find it in (Numbers 3:4): "Nadav and Avihu died before the Lord when they offered alien fire before the Lord in the wilderness of Sinai, and they had no children. Elazar and Ita...
The verse "Speak to the children of Israel…" (Numbers 6:2) seems simple enough, but the Rabbis unpack it with incredible detail. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) imme...
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 ...
The Book of Numbers, in the Bamidbar Rabbah, grapples with this very question when describing the plague of fiery serpents. "The Lord sent the fiery serpents against the people, an...
According to the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), not at all. It's a question that comes to the fore when we delve into Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically chapter 20. The pas...
Our story today, drawn from Bamidbar Rabbah 20, a section of the classical Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), plunges us right into such a situation – a tale of Moabites, ...
The scene is set in (Numbers 25:6): “Behold, a man from the children of Israel came and brought near to his brethren the Midyanite woman, before the eyes of Moses, and before the e...
The Torah gives us some pretty strong clues, and it all boils down to how they chose to attack us. Think about the story of Balaam and Balak. Remember that? Balak, the King of Moab...
The ancient rabbis certainly did. They found that very human feeling reflected in the Torah itself, specifically in the book of Numbers, Bamidbar in Hebrew. And they explore it in ...
It's not about being stingy, but about creating a sense of progression, a journey. Believe it or not, we find a hint of this idea in the book of Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically in se...
It’s a deeply human dilemma, and it appears even in the stories of our greatest leaders. to a fascinating passage from Bamidbar Rabbah, specifically section 22, to uncover just suc...
The verse in (Joshua 1:5) declares, "As I was with Moses, I will be with you." This promise seems to imply that Joshua would enjoy a life parallel to that of Moses, who lived to be...
The book of Numbers, Bamidbar in Hebrew, recounts the Israelites' journey through the wilderness. In chapter 32, we encounter the tribes of Reuben and Gad. "The children of Reuben ...
It's more than just history or geography. It’s woven into the very fabric of our spiritual DNA. Bamidbar Rabbah, a collection of Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic teachi...
Our sages grappled with these questions ages ago, and in Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of Genesis, they offer some pretty striking analogies. Imagine a ...
In fact, the ancient Rabbis dove deep into the very first verses of Genesis to understand their roles. The Book of Genesis (1:14) tells us, "God said: Let there be lights in the fi...
It’s more than just a day off. It's a taste of paradise, a hint of the World to Come, a weekly reset button for the soul. And according to our sages, even the food tastes better! R...
Turns out, even the story of the Garden of Eden, that pivotal moment of eating the forbidden fruit, offers a lesson in precedence. Rabbi Ḥiyya, a sage from long ago, taught a fasci...
The verse in Genesis (6:14) states: "Craft for you an ark of cypress wood; you shall craft the ark with compartments, and you shall coat it within and without with pitch." Now, Rab...
That frustration, that sense of futility, echoes through a powerful passage in Bereshit Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Genesis. Rabbi Abba kicks th...
Turns out, that impulse might be older – and more significant – than you think. We’re talking about land, about ownership, and about the very act of claiming something as your own....
Today, we're diving into Bereshit Rabbah 42, a fascinating passage from the Midrash, the body of ancient rabbinic interpretations of Scripture. This passage looks at Genesis 14, sp...
We often imagine triumphant parades and grateful citizens. But what about the really awkward moments? Like when the defeated villains try to become your new best friends? That’s ki...
The verse in question is (Genesis 14:19): "He blessed him, and he said: Blessed is Abram to God, the Most High, Maker of heavens and earth." But another way to read it is "Acquirer...
Abraham, our patriarch, knew that feeling. In (Genesis 15:2), he cries out, "My Lord God, what will You give me, seeing that I go childless, and the one who has charge of my house ...
But in Bereshit Rabbah, that foundational midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic text, the rabbis unpack layers of meaning from even a single word. The verse uses the Hebrew ...
It's a fascinating, and sometimes complex, corner of Jewish law. Our guide for today is Bereshit Rabbah, a classic Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic text – meaning, a co...
But the Rabbis, in their infinite wisdom, saw so much more. The Bereshit Rabbah, that incredible collection of rabbinic interpretations of Genesis, dedicates a whole section to unp...
The ancient rabbis grappled with that all the time, and their discussions, preserved in texts like Bereshit Rabbah, offer some fascinating, and sometimes surprising, insights. We f...
It opens with the seemingly simple phrase: "At the entrance [petaḥ] of the tent [ohel]." This refers to Abraham sitting at the entrance of his tent, welcoming guests. But, as is so...
That’s the kind of feeling I get when I think about Abraham and that young bull. Let's set the scene. Remember when three divine guests show up at Abraham's tent in the heat of the...
What does it mean to approach God? That's precisely what the Rabbis grapple with in Bereshit Rabbah 49. The text opens with that powerful line from Genesis, "Abraham approached, an...
The Torah, in its infinite wisdom, gives us a glimpse into this very idea through the contrasting actions of Abraham and Lot. We find ourselves in Genesis chapter 19, where Lot enc...
After decades of barrenness, at a very, very advanced age, she miraculously conceives and gives birth to Isaac. In (Genesis 21:6), she exclaims, "God has made laughter for me; ever...
The Torah tells us that Abraham was old, zaken (Genesis 24:1). But the rabbis in Bereshit Rabbah 59 ask, what does that really signify? The rabbis dig deep, finding layers of meani...
We find a poignant example in the story of Abraham's burial, as recounted in Bereshit Rabbah 62, a section of the classic midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic collection th...
The verse in Genesis (25:21) tells us, "Isaac entreated the Lord opposite his wife, because she was barren, and the Lord acceded to his entreaty, and Rebecca his wife conceived." S...
Take the birth of Jacob and Esau, for example. Seems straightforward. But Bereshit Rabbah, the ancient rabbinic commentary on Genesis, dives deep, revealing layers of interpretatio...
The scene: Isaac is hanging out in the land of the Philistines, near Gerar. Remember, his father Abraham had his own…issues there. And wouldn’t you know it, history seems to be rep...
We often think of fate, of serendipity, maybe even algorithms these days. But Jewish tradition offers a far more profound and frankly, audacious, answer. : the idea that someone, s...
The Torah tells us the story, of course, but the Rabbis of old, in their infinite wisdom, weren't content with just the surface narrative. They dove deep, poring over every word, e...
Rabbi Shmuel bar Naḥman begins our story in Bereshit Rabbah 68, by interpreting a verse from Psalms (121:1) as referring directly to Jacob’s experience. “A song of ascents. I lift ...
We know, of course, the story of creation: six days of incredible activity, culminating in rest. But what about after that? What occupies the divine attention now? Well, according ...
Rabbi Ḥanina, quoting Rabbi Pinḥas, makes a striking observation in Bereshit Rabbah. He points out that the patriarchs – Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob – are mentioned eighteen times in...
The verse in question is (Genesis 29:31): “The Lord saw that Leah was unloved, and He opened her womb, and Rachel was barren.” Seems straightforward. But Rabbi Binyamin links this ...
Our journey begins with Leah, one of the matriarchs of the Jewish people. (Genesis 29:32) tells us, "Leah conceived and bore a son, and she called his name Reuben; she said: Becaus...
It all starts simply enough: "Reuben went during the days of wheat harvest, found mandrakes in the field, and brought them to Leah, his mother. Rachel said to Leah: Please give me ...
