2,344 texts · Page 42 of 49
It all starts with the verse, "Speak to the children of Israel, and they shall take Me a gift; from every man whose heart pledges, you shall collect My gift" (Exodus 25:2). But ins...
Our story begins with the verse, "They shall take Me a gift" (Exodus 25:2). But where does this gift come from? Shemot Rabbah dives into this, connecting it to a verse in Psalms: "...
The congregation of Israel itself has felt that way! Our passage opens with a fascinating connection between the verse "They shall take Me a gift" (Exodus 25:2), which refers to th...
The ancient rabbis grappled with this, and in Shemot Rabbah (that's the Book of Exodus explained and expanded upon by the Rabbis) we find a fascinating exploration of this very ide...
Our tradition teaches us that something else holds even greater worth: a good name. And it's not just about reputation, but about the power and blessing inherent in a name earned t...
It’s a question that's plagued philosophers and theologians for centuries, and it all starts, strangely enough, with a box. A very special box, mind you – the Ark of the Covenant. ...
It all starts with this idea of building a home – not just for ourselves, but for the Divine. We find this idea beautifully illustrated in Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic ...
Jewish tradition certainly has. to a fascinating passage from Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, that explores just that. The text open...
It wasn't just about aesthetics or availability. According to Shemot Rabbah, it was a symbolic statement about history, power, and ultimately, redemption. We read in (Exodus 25:3),...
It's more than just a source of delicious oil; it's a metaphor for the Jewish people themselves. to a fascinating passage from Shemot Rabbah 36 and unpack its rich layers of meanin...
It's not that God needs our light, the text insists. As it says, it’s not that I need the light of the candelabra." But why then does God command us to bring light? Here's the beau...
The ancient rabbis had something to say about that, and it all comes down to light. Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of Midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) interpretati...
A collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, there are four specific things that God longs for from His creation. The passage begins with the verse, "And you sha...
We find a powerful idea tucked within Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. It centers around the verse: "And you, draw Aaron your brother ...
It's all about second chances, about grace, and about how sometimes, the people who stumble are the very ones chosen for greatness. The verse we're focusing on is "and you, draw…ne...
In Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, we find a fascinating exchange. God tells Moses, "And you, draw near to you." Now, Moses isn't exa...
Shemot Rabbah, that incredible collection of Midrashim (rabbinic interpretive commentary) (interpretive stories) on the Book of Exodus, offers a fascinating insight into just this ...
Take the story of atonement after the sin of the Golden Calf. It all starts with an offering. But what kind of offering? The verse in Exodus tells us to "Take one young bull." But ...
The ancient rabbis wrestled with this, too, and their insights, preserved in Shemot Rabbah, are surprisingly relevant today. The verse from Hosea (14:3) says, "Take words with you ...
In Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, we find a fascinating exploration of this very idea. The verse "This is the matter [hadavar]" (Exo...
It’s a fascinating subject, and one that the ancient Rabbis pondered deeply. In fact, Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of Midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) interpreta...
In Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, we find a fascinating passage that hints at just that. It starts with the verse, "See, I have call...
It sounds strange, but Jewish tradition explores the idea that certain special figures in our history were known by multiple names, each reflecting a different facet of their chara...
The ancient rabbis certainly did. This week, we're diving into a passage from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, specifically Shemot Rab...
The Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, delves into this very idea. It centers around the verse in (Proverbs 2:6), "For the Lord grants w...
We often think of God as all-powerful, distant, maybe even a little intimidating. But what if I told you that Jewish tradition also emphasizes God's incredible humility? Shemot Rab...
Our tradition teaches that the Torah isn't just a book; it's a blueprint for creation, a manifestation of God's very being. And the luchot, the tablets upon which the Ten Commandme...
That feeling, that sense of unfair ostracism, resonates deeply within a fascinating interpretation of the Torah portion Ki Tissa in Shemot Rabbah (Exodus Rabbah). We often read the...
The aftermath of the Golden Calf. Moses is up on Mount Sinai, receiving the Torah, while the Israelites down below are, well, not exactly holding the faith. When God tells Moses to...
Our tradition wrestles with that very feeling in the story of the Golden Calf. Imagine the scene: Moses is up on Mount Sinai, receiving the Torah, the very blueprint for a just and...
The Book of Exodus, Shemot in Hebrew, tells the story of the Israelites' journey from slavery to freedom, a story punctuated by moments of incredible faith and… well, moments of pr...
The book of Exodus tells us that after the giving of the Torah, the Israelites, impatient and afraid, built the Golden Calf. God, understandably, was furious. "Let Me be," He says ...
Like, "Why does this even exist?" The ancient rabbis grappled with this too. And in Shemot Rabbah (a collection of rabbinic homilies on the Book of Exodus), we find a fascinating e...
The Israelites, fresh from their miraculous exodus from Egypt, had already broken their covenant with God. And God, understandably, was furious. But Moses, ever the advocate, stepp...
Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, offers a fascinating perspective on this, likening the people of Israel to a vine. Rabbi Tanhuma bar ...
In fact, they found an answer – a surprising one – in the power of remembering the righteous dead. Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, de...
The story of how he did it, according to Shemot Rabbah, is The verse says, "Remember Abraham..." But the question is, why Abraham? Why not just appeal to God's mercy directly? Rabb...
In Shemot Rabbah, the great midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) collection on the Book of Exodus, we find a story about just that, and it hits right at the heart of the re...
The Torah is full of moments like that, and they teach us so much about ourselves and our relationship with the Divine. We find a fascinating exploration of this idea in Shemot Rab...
Not physical places, of course, but… well, let’s explore a fascinating passage from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. It delves into a ...
The ancient sages grappled with this too, finding echoes of life's rhythms even in the verses of the Torah. : "To everything there is a season, and a time for every purpose under h...
Shemot Rabbah (a classical collection of Rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus) explores this very human dynamic, and it hits surprisingly close to home. The text opens wi...
It’s a question that delves into the very heart of our tradition, and Shemot Rabbah (Exodus Rabbah) offers some pretty powerful insights. Let's unpack it. The verse in question is ...
The Torah tells us, "He was there with the Lord forty days and forty nights; he did not eat bread, and he did not drink water. He wrote upon the tablets the words of the covenant, ...
What did he eat? Did he even sleep? to what Shemot Rabbah, a classical collection of Rabbinic homilies on the Book of Exodus, tells us. The verse from (Exodus 34:27), "The Lord sai...
It’s a question that’s intrigued Jewish thinkers for centuries. How did he know when a day had passed, when night had fallen, without the usual cues? The answer, as we find in Shem...
It reveals a surprising strategy employed by the righteous when approaching the Divine. The text opens with the curious phrase "write for yourself," and then it proposes that the r...
The passage begins with Moses announcing Betzalel's appointment to oversee the construction of the Mishkan, the Tabernacle. "See, the Lord has called by name Betzalel, son of Uri, ...
