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We dole things out with a closed fist, hesitant, as if we're afraid of running out. But what about the Divine? Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book o...
The story starts with a grumble. "The entire congregation of the children of Israel complained" (Exodus 16:2). They were wandering in the desert, fresh out of Egypt, and their port...
Jewish tradition says a resounding "YES!" And one of the most beautiful examples of this is found in the stories surrounding the manna, that miraculous bread from heaven that susta...
Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of Midrash on the book of Exodus, tackles this very question, and the answers are, frankly, . It starts with a verse from Psalms: "There is none...
The passage begins by linking the manna, that miraculous bread from heaven, to a verse in Proverbs (9:5): "Come, partake of my bread, and drink of the wine I have mixed." What's th...
The ancient rabbis felt that way too, and they found profound hope in the story of the Exodus. In Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, we ...
It’s not just about receiving, but about the giving, the engagement, the doing. to a fascinating passage from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of...
Remember the manna, that miraculous bread from heaven? God instructed the Israelites to gather only what they needed for each day, except on Friday, when they were to collect a dou...
The Torah tells us in Exodus (16:29), "See that the Lord has given you the Shabbat (the Sabbath); therefore, He gives you on the sixth day bread for two days. Remain each man where...
Rabbi Levi makes a staggering claim in Shemot Rabbah: a single, perfectly observed Shabbat (the Sabbath) could bring about the Messiah. He says, “If Israel observes Shabbat properl...
The Jewish people know that feeling all too well. In fact, there's a fascinating passage in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, that uses...
The Israelites certainly did. In the book of Exodus, right after the incredible miracle of being freed from Egypt, they find themselves wandering in the desert, thirsty and complai...
Take the story of the war against Amalek in (Exodus 17:9). Moses tells Joshua, "Choose men for us and go out and wage war with Amalek; tomorrow I will be standing on top of the hil...
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...
The Book of Exodus gives us a powerful example in the story of Yitro, Moses' father-in-law. And the midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), specifically Shemot Rabbah, offers u...
It’s a recurring theme in Jewish tradition, and one particularly striking example comes to us from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. Th...
A single event, a powerful moment, that resonates far beyond its origin. The Book of Exodus, or Shemot in Hebrew, tells us that "Yitro heard..." (Exodus 18:1). But what exactly did...
The verse “Yitro…heard” (Exodus 18:1) sparks a fascinating connection to a seemingly unrelated verse from Job: “The stranger does not stay the night outside” (Job 31:32). What’s th...
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...
It all revolves around Yitro, Moses' father-in-law. The verse we're looking at is “Yitro…heard” (Exodus 18:1), which is the start of the portion where Yitro comes to visit Moses in...
In Jewish tradition, names aren't just labels. They're packed with meaning, hinting at a person's essence, their journey, their very destiny. Take Yitro, Moses' father-in-law. He's...
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...
We all know the story, but the Rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary), those ancient interpreters of scripture, delve into the details, revealing layers of meanin...
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, saying......
The Torah tells us in (Exodus 19:8), "Moses reported the statement of the people to the Lord." According to Shemot Rabbah, this moment prompted God to want to give the Torah to the...
Can you picture them all crying out at the same moment? Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, tells us that God hears them all concurrently...
Shemot Rabbah (a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus) offers a mind-bending perspective on this, using God as the ultimate example. It begins with the simp...
The book of Deuteronomy (4:33) asks a pretty profound question: “Has a people heard the voice of God [Elohim] speaking [medaber] from the midst of the fire, as you heard, and lived...
He says that God declares "I am the Lord your God" precisely because He took us out of Egypt. It's the foundation. He freed us so that we would, in turn, accept His divinity upon o...
It’s a declaration, a relationship. And Shemot Rabbah, the great collection of homiletical teachings on the Book of Exodus, offers some profound insights into why this phrasing is ...
It's more than just a title, more than just a declaration of power. According to Shemot Rabbah, it's a promise. A promise of unwavering commitment, far beyond what any earthly rule...
We often picture a grand, almost theatrical event. But the ancient texts hint at something far more profound, and even a little terrifying. The Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection ...
, shall we? The verse "These are the ordinances that you shall place before them" (Exodus 21:1) seems straightforward enough. But the Rabbis, in their infinite wisdom, saw much mor...
Take a look at Exodus. Right after we're told, "You shall not ascend on stairs to My altar, so that your nakedness will not be exposed upon it," (Exodus 20:23) we suddenly read, "A...
In Jewish tradition, even a single letter can unlock hidden depths." It's a difference that, according to some rabbinic interpretations, can tell us what's being included and what'...
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 verses in Exodus dealing with accidental harm to a pregnant woman. The text quotes (Exodus 21:22-23): “If men fight and they strike a pregnant woman and her children are miscar...
It all starts with a seemingly straightforward verse from (Exodus 21:37): “If a man steals an ox or a sheep and slaughters it or sells it, he shall pay five cattle for the ox and f...
It might seem obvious – they're in need of help! But the Rabbis, those masters of interpretation, saw something deeper at play. Consider the verse in Exodus (22:21): "You shall not...
It's a pretty radical concept, really. Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of Midrash on the Book of Exodus, dives right into this. It starts with the verse "These are the ordinanc...
It all centers around the Hebrew word ve’eleh, meaning "these are." The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) opens with a question: What's so special about ve’eleh? The Rabbi...
The passage starts with the phrase, "These are [ve’eleh] the ordinances." That little word "ve’eleh" – "these are" – isn't just a throwaway. The Midrash (rabbinic interpretive comm...
In Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, we find a fascinating exploration of this idea, starting with the verse "These are the ordinances....
"Endow the king with Your justice, God…May he judge Your people with righteousness" (Psalms 72:1–2). Rabbi Yehuda HaNasi, a key figure in the compilation of the Mishnah (the earlie...
Well, the answer might surprise you. Rabbi Natan, in Shemot Rabbah, makes a pretty strong statement: justice is fitting for God precisely because He upholds it without showing favo...
Rabbi Shimon, in Shemot Rabbah, really zeroes in on this. He points out the verse in Exodus (21:18), "If men quarrel and one strikes the other." Rabbi Shimon emphasizes that "nothi...
Shemot Rabbah 30 begins by stating that "the punishment that is prepared for the wicked is plentiful," drawing on the fiery imagery of (Psalms 11:6), "He will rain burning coal upo...
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...
