3,287 related texts · Page 9 of 69
But what if I told you there's a perspective, woven into ancient Jewish thought, that offers a slightly different angle?Now, midrash (מדרש) itself, broadly speaking, is a way of in...
The ancient sages certainly did. to a fascinating interpretation from the Midrash of Philo that uses geography to explain the pursuit of happiness itself. Philo, a Jewish philosoph...
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...
We find a powerful description of it in the Book of Jubilees. Imagine the moment. Jacob, having tricked his father into giving him the blessing meant for Esau, now stands before th...
The Book of Jubilees, an ancient Jewish text that expands on the stories of Genesis and Exodus, gives us a peek into that moment. It’s like a family reunion, generations connecting...
You know, the Book of Jubilees? It's one of those ancient Jewish texts, considered apocryphal (meaning not part of the official canon) by some, but absolutely brimming with fascina...
You know, the one with the coat of many colors. We often focus on his rise to power in Egypt, but let’s not forget the messy middle. The part where he's wrongly accused and finds h...
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...
We're diving into the tale of Judah, one of the twelve sons of Jacob, and a rather...uncomfortable encounter. The Book of Jubilees, by the way, is an ancient Jewish text that retel...
We get a glimpse into that momentous meeting not just from the Book of Genesis, but also from other ancient Jewish texts. Today, let's look at how the Book of Jubilees, an ancient ...
That tension, that feeling of unease even amidst blessing, it's woven right into the fabric of the story of Joseph and his brothers. And in the Book of Jubilees, a retelling of Gen...
We all know the story of Joseph. Sold into slavery, falsely accused, imprisoned, but ultimately rising to become second-in-command in Egypt. But what happened after he interpreted ...
It’s a universal sting, and even Joseph, the dreamer of dreams himself, wasn't immune. Book of Jasher and see how this plays out. So, Joseph is still stuck in that Egyptian prison....
Simeon, second son of Jacob and Leah, was dying in his hundred and twentieth year. Joseph his brother had already passed. When his sons came to visit, Simeon strengthened himself, ...
Naphtali, eighth son of Jacob, born of Bilhah, was dying in his hundred and thirtieth year. His sons gathered on the first day of the seventh month. He was still in good health. He...
Joseph, eleventh son of Jacob, beloved of Rachel, was about to die. He called his sons and brethren together and spoke. "My brethren and my children, hearken to Joseph the beloved ...
His story of wrestling with an angel is one of the most powerful and enigmatic in the entire Torah. As Jacob journeyed back to Canaan, anticipating a tense reunion with his brother...
The story, as told in Ginzberg's Legends of the Jews, begins with Judah. After the sale of Joseph into slavery, Judah's brothers urged him to take a wife, reasoning that their fath...
We all know the story of Joseph and his brothers. Sold into slavery in Egypt, he rises to prominence, eventually saving his family from famine. But let's rewind and look at the ver...
As we read in Legends of the Jews, a masterful retelling of Jewish lore by Rabbi Louis Ginzberg, Joseph began to reap the rewards for his unwavering commitment to virtue. It's a po...
That’s kind of the place Jacob was in. Years had passed since he last saw his beloved son, Joseph. He believed Joseph was dead, and the grief was a heavy cloak he wore every day. B...
It’s a powerful thing, steeped in tradition and emotion. And it’s at the very heart of the story of Jacob and Joseph. The narrative goes that Jacob enjoyed seventeen years of peace...
The mourning period ended, but the story certainly didn't. In fact, it was then that the simmering conflict between the descendants of Jacob and Esau erupted again with full force....
I'm talking about Joseph, of course, and his brothers. We know the story: Joseph, sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, rises to power in Egypt, and then, years later, fate br...
As Joseph lay on his deathbed, he made his brethren swear a solemn oath. He didn't just ask it of them, but instructed them to have their sons swear it too: when God would finally ...
There was a transition, a gradual dimming of the light. It’s almost like the Egyptians were waiting for something… or someone. Ginzberg tells us that as long as the sons of Jacob w...
It wasn’t exactly a warm reunion. The story, as retold in Ginzberg's Legends of the Jews, paints a picture of simmering tensions boiling over. Judah, ever the pragmatist, wasn't bu...
We all know the story: the coat of many colors, the dreams, the rise to power in Egypt. But what about before all that? What was Joseph really like as a teenager? According to Lege...
The story of Joseph being sold into slavery is one we all know. But have you ever stopped to really consider his experience in those first agonizing moments? Ginzberg, in his Legen...
That feeling… it's a heavy one. And it's something Judah, one of Jacob's sons, knew all too well. See, Jacob was utterly devastated by the supposed death of his beloved son, Joseph...
You know, the one with the coat of many colors? We're past the coat now, past the jealous brothers, and right into his new life in Egypt. He's working in the house of Potiphar, an ...
But let's rewind to the very beginning of his Egyptian adventure. The Torah tells us Joseph's brothers sold him to a caravan heading to Egypt. But what happened when he actually go...
And according to Jewish tradition, his extended stay behind bars had a very specific reason. We all know the story: Joseph, sold into slavery by his jealous brothers, rises in powe...
That feeling… it’s a universal one. But Jewish tradition teaches us that even in the darkest moments, hope remains. Take the story of Joseph, languishing in an Egyptian prison. We ...
It sounds like a dream. But what if everyone around you is dead-set against it? That's the situation Joseph found himself in, according to Ginzberg's Legends of the Jews, when Phar...
That’s kind of what happened in Egypt, according to the legends surrounding Joseph, the dreamer who rose to power. Remember Joseph? Sold into slavery by his brothers, he ended up i...
Take the story of Joseph and his brothers. Talk about a tangled web! We all know the story. Joseph, the favored son, gets sold into slavery in Egypt. Years pass. He rises to power,...
It can make you feel like you can take on the world. That's the feeling that must have coursed through Joseph's brothers as they strode back into the Egyptian city. Remember, these...
Let me tell you a story, one ripped from the pages of Legends of the Jews, that might just give you a taste. Imagine this: Joseph, elevated to power in Egypt, is finally face-to-fa...
Take Jacob's death, for example. It's more than just a passing in the Torah. According to the Legends of the Jews, it's a highly orchestrated event, full of meaning and significanc...
It's just the beginning of a whole new chapter! After Joseph's incredible rise, having gone from enslaved prisoner to second-in-command, he needed a wife. And the Bible tells us (G...
That's exactly where we find Joseph, son of Jacob, in the land of Egypt. What does he do? He makes his brothers swear an oath. But it's not just any oath. It's a promise that when ...
That’s the story of Joseph, as he lay dying. Can you imagine being on your deathbed, not thinking about your own legacy, but about the destiny of your people? Joseph, the dreamer, ...
He's lived a long life, seen triumphs and hardships, and now he has one final, crucial instruction. "I command you, my children," he says, his voice perhaps a little frail but firm...
But he's cunning. He doesn't just decree slavery outright. Instead, as we read in Legends of the Jews, he starts with a seemingly generous offer. For a whole month, Egyptians and I...
A heavy scene. That's where we find ourselves with a certain king in the Legends of the Jews (Ginzberg). He's surrounded by Queen Alfar'anit and his nobles, all weeping, as he prep...
Your name is tied to your identity, your reputation. But what about God’s name? What does that tell us? The story goes that Moses, finally convinced he had to be the one to lead th...
