3,287 related texts · Page 68 of 69
A song, a smell, a place... and suddenly you're right back there, feeling the weight of it all over again. Jewish tradition is keenly aware of this power of association, and how ea...
It's not just about the animals themselves; it's about the patriarchs, about Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, and the profound legacy they left behind. Vayikra Rabbah, a collection of ra...
And it all hinges on a seemingly simple phrase. It comes from Vayikra Rabbah 30, a fascinating section of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary). Midrash, by the way, is a ...
It's not just about taste or culinary use; there's a deeper story, a narrative woven through our texts that elevates olive oil above all other oils. Rabbi Ḥiyya, in Vayikra Rabbah ...
Vayikra Rabbah, a fascinating collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Leviticus, delves into this very question, challenging us to examine our motivations and the imp...
It’s a question the rabbis grappled with, and in Vayikra Rabbah 36, we find some fascinating—and differing—answers. The text explores just how long the merit, the z’chus, of the pa...
“Zion spread her hands, there was no comforter for her; the Lord has commanded for Jacob that her adversaries surround her. Jerusalem has become like a pariah among them” (Lamentat...
“And did not remember His footstool [hadom raglav],” Rabbi Ḥanina bar Yitzḥak said: The Holy One blessed be He does not remember that blood [hadam] that was between the legs of the...
“The elders of the daughter of Zion sit on the ground, are silent. They have placed dust on their heads, have girded themselves with sackcloth. The virgins of Jerusalem have lowere...
“I called Your name, Lord, from the depths of the pit” (Lamentations 3:55).“I called Your name, Lord, from the depths of the pit” – this is Joseph, this is Jeremiah, this is Daniel...
There was an incident involving Rabbi Yehoshua ben Ḥananya, who went to the great city of Rome. They said to him: ‘There is a certain child in prison in disgrace.’10The Romans were...
It is written: “And set it in the ears of Joshua” (Exodus 17:14), this is one of four righteous people to whom a portent was given; two sensed it and two did not sense it. A porten...
Another matter: “After these matters, King Aḥashverosh promoted Haman” – there were calculations there. Who calculated? Rabbi Yehuda said: Haman calculated. He said: If Esther is a...
It sounds radical, I know. According to some accounts, God bestowed immense honor upon Moses, gifting him dominion over the entire earth, the seas, the rivers – all the elements th...
Sometimes, the deepest truths are hidden in plain sight, masked by complexity or sheer volume of information. This is something the author of The Wars of God seems to anticipate. R...
Jewish tradition speaks of such moments as revelations of the Shekhinah (שכינה), the Divine Presence. But what exactly does that mean? And what does it look like? Sometimes, it see...
Isn't it frustrating when someone twists your words, puts ideas in your mouth, and generally acts in bad faith? That's the vibe I get from this next section of "The Wars of God." S...
Our ancestor Abraham felt it too. The Torah tells us, in (Genesis 15:12): "About the time of the setting of the sun a trance fell upon Abraham; and lo, a great horror of darkness c...
The ancient sages certainly did. And they found profound meaning in that feeling. to a fascinating interpretation of a well-known biblical passage, explored in the Midrash of Philo...
Not quite. The beauty of Jewish tradition lies in its layers. We don't just read the text; we wrestle with it. We ask questions. We search for deeper meaning. And that's where midr...
They're not just labels, you know. In Jewish tradition, a name can be a destiny, a reflection of character, a clue to understanding the deeper story. Take Sarah, for example. Why i...
We often think of affliction as purely negative, something to be avoided at all costs. But what if I told you that, according to some ancient wisdom, affliction can actually be… be...
According to Jewish tradition, the very concept of the Temple in Jerusalem, that sacred place, was envisioned at the dawn of creation itself. As Howard Schwartz recounts in Tree of...
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 there was a famine in the land (Gen. 12:10) What is stated in Scripture prior to this verse? It is written: And the Lord said to Abraham: “Get thee.” Blessed be the name of the...
And God did prove Abraham (Gen. 22:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: The Lord trieth the righteous (Ps. 11:5). R. Jonah maintained: If you pound a good-qual...
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. 25:9). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Children’s children are the crown of old m...
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...
And Isaac trembled very exceedingly (Gen. 27:33). May it please our master to teach us the blessing one pronounces upon tasting oil. Thus do our masters teach us: One who tastes oi...
And Isaac trembled very exceedingly (Gen. 27:33). What is written before this? Jacob was yet scarce gone out from the presence of Isaac, his father (ibid., v. 30). This indicates t...
And Isaac trembled very exceedingly (Gen. 27:33). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: The fear of man bringeth a snare; but whoso putteth his trust in the Lord sh...
He dreamed, and behold, a ladder set upon the earth; and the top of it reached to heaven; and behold, the angels of God ascending and descending on it (Gen. 28:12). R. Samuel the s...
And Jacob went out (Gen. 28:10). Scripture states elsewhere in reference to this verse: For He will give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways (Ps. 91:11). R. M...
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...
Return unto the land of thy fathers, and to thy kindred (Gen. 31:3). What is written above concerning this? Lift up now thine eyes, and see, all the he-goats which leap upon the fl...
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 the messengers returned to Jacob, saying … “He cometh to meet thee with four hundred men” (Gen. 32:7). Thereupon, Jacob was greatly afraid and was distressed (ibid., v. 8). Why...
And Dinah, the daughter of Leah, went out to see (Gen. 34:1). Was she not also Jacob’s daughter? Indeed, but Scripture associates her name with that of her mother. Leah’s daughter ...
But he refused, and said unto his master’s wife (Gen. 39:8). Scripture states elsewhere in reference to this verse: Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord (Jer. 17:7). You fi...
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...
And he sent Judah before him (Gen. 46:28). May our master teach us: When is the blessing over the light offered at the expiration of the Sabbath? Thus do our masters teach us: The ...
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 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...
And Jacob called unto his sons (Gen. 49:1). Scripture states elsewhere in allusion to this verse: He removeth the speech of men of trust, and taketh away the sense of the elders (J...
