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The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it's known in Hebrew, wrestles with these very feelings. One verse in particular, (Ecclesiastes 6:10), really gets to the heart of it: "What...
Kohelet Rabbah, the commentary on Ecclesiastes, digs into this very question, offering some fascinating, and at times surprising, answers. The verse from Ecclesiastes, "Wisdom will...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it’s known in Hebrew, wrestles with this very question. It’s a book about searching, about meaning, and often, about the frustrating lack of...
to one fascinating interpretation from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes. The verse at the heart of it all is (Ecclesiastes 8:4):...
to (Ecclesiastes 8:8): “There is no man who rules the spirit to retain the spirit, and there is no rule over the day of death. There is no release in war, and wickedness will not r...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as it's known in Hebrew, certainly did. It observes, "I have seen servants upon horses, and princes walking on the ground like servants" (Eccle...
It all centers around the verse from (Ecclesiastes 12:13): "The end of the matter, everything having been heard: Fear God and observe His commandments, for that is all of man." But...
The book of Exodus, Shemot in Hebrew, opens with a seemingly simple verse that holds a profound message about humility and identity. "All the people who emerged from the loins of J...
We all know about Moses, about the plagues, about the parting of the Red Sea. But what about the women who defied a king's cruel decree and saved countless Israelite babies? The To...
Like a well, for instance. It's more than just a source of water; it’s often a meeting place, a place of destiny. Our sages point this out in Shemot Rabbah, noting how the well is ...
In the story of Moses, that moment is captured in a single, powerful scene – the burning bush. The book of Exodus tells us (3:3) that Moses said, "I will turn now, and see this gre...
In the book of Exodus, Moses has that very experience. But it's not quite what you might expect. The text tells us, "He said: I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the G...
It all starts with that pivotal moment when Moses encounters God at the burning bush. Remember the verse? "God said to Moses, 'I will be what I will be,' and He said, 'So shall you...
It's often because the Rabbis, in their infinite wisdom, saw connections we might miss. Take the story of Moses at the burning bush in Exodus, chapter 4. God gives him three signs ...
Something that makes you think, "Surely, there's someone better suited for this!" Well, you're not alone. Even Moses, the great lawgiver himself, had a moment of reluctance. to a f...
The answer, they suggest, might lie in the seemingly simple phrase, "I will harden his heart." But what does it mean to harden someone's heart? According to Shemot Rabbah, a collec...
The ancient Jewish texts delve into this very idea, and one particular passage in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, offers a powerful i...
Our sages explored this very human tendency in fascinating ways, especially when looking at the stories of Solomon and Moses. Our journey begins with a verse from Exodus (6:2-3): “...
This very human experience echoes in the ancient texts, specifically in a powerful passage from Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. The ...
The Israelites certainly did in Egypt. But even in the darkest of times, hope can blossom. And it often arrives in unexpected ways. Our story begins, as so many do, with a word fro...
You might think it's all divinely ordained, etched in stone... but the answer, according to some fascinating interpretations, is a little more nuanced, a little more… us. Shemot Ra...
The ancient Rabbis felt that way about the Exodus, the liberation of the Israelites from Egypt. And they found echoes of that feeling in the most unexpected places, even in the Son...
It was about a whole new way of counting time itself. Think of it this way. Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Exodus, offers a beautiful analogy to e...
The passage opens with a seemingly simple phrase: "This month shall be for you" (Exodus 12:2). But it's more than just a calendar note. It's a declaration. The text connects it to ...
We often think of it as being solely for the sake of the Israelites, to free them from slavery. But what if there was another, deeper reason? Shemot Rabbah, the collection of Midra...
Our story comes from Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Exodus. We’re looking at chapter 17, which delves into the symbolism of the Passover of...
We often focus on the miracles, the parting of the Red Sea, the giving of the Torah. But nestled within that incredible narrative are moments of sheer, unadulterated divine power.....
The ancient texts offer some fascinating perspectives. Let's look at (Exodus 12:23), the verse describing the pasach, the Passover: "The Lord will pass to smite Egypt, and He will ...
The Divine, it seems, knows the feeling. According to Shemot Rabbah, the great collection of Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary)ic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, God...
The story starts with a seemingly simple commandment: "This is the statute of the paschal offering." Rabbi Shimon ben Ḥalafta paints a vivid picture: God, blessed be He, instructs ...
We often think of Moses, armed with divine authority, as the driving force behind the Israelites' liberation. But what about Pharaoh? Did he simply cave to the plagues, or was ther...
The book of Exodus tells us, “God did not lead them via the land [derekh eretz]” (Exodus 13:17). But what exactly does that mean? Well, Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbi...
It sounds like something out of a movie, but the Rabbis grappled with this moment, and what it truly meant. The book of Exodus (14:16) tells us, "And you, raise your staff, and ext...
The Israelites certainly did at the Red Sea. Pharaoh’s army was bearing down on them, and the sea was, well, a sea. So what were they supposed to do? Pray? Act? Just give up? The B...
Pharaoh's army bearing down, water as far as the eye could see. What do you do? The Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, paints a vivid pi...
It all starts with the verse, "For He is exalted." The Rabbis ask, what does that truly mean? Rabbi Pappos offers a beautiful and subtle reading of the verse from (Song of Songs 1:...
The Israelites, fresh from their miraculous escape from Egypt, certainly did. The book of Exodus tells us, "Moses led Israel from the Red Sea and they went out to the wilderness of...
We often gloss over place names, assuming they're just… well, places. But sometimes, they're so much more. Take, for example, the phrase "the wilderness of Shur," which pops up in ...
to a fascinating passage from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, that really gets to the heart of this question. Rabbi Simon, quoting Ra...
This week, we're diving into a fascinating passage from Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, specifically Shemot Rabbah 27. It uses the s...
He appears in the narrative, offers Moses some crucial advice, and then… well, what do we really know about him? The Book of Exodus tells us, “Yitro heard…” (Exodus 18:1). But hear...
The ancient rabbis grappled with this very idea, and their insights, preserved in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of homiletic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, offer some fascina...
And the Shemot Rabbah, a classical collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, gives us some fascinating answers. "The Lord called to him from the mountain, sayin...
According to Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic homilies on the Book of Exodus, the answer might surprise you. It all goes back to Mount Sinai. Rabbi Yitzḥak makes a bold clai...
Shemot Rabbah, the collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, points this out explicitly. "Come and see," it urges, "how excellent this portion is!" What's so ex...
The Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, dives deep into this question, particularly in section 30. It all starts with a verse from Isaiah...
That feeling, that fear, is something the Jewish people have grappled with throughout our history. And it's right there in Shemot Rabbah 31, a midrash on the book of Exodus. The pa...
Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, gives us a fascinating glimpse into the behind-the-scenes preparations for this monumental task. It a...
