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Our story comes from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. It paints a breathtaking picture of divine intervention and the unwavering faith...
That feeling, that's what we're diving into today, looking at a passage from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. The passage opens with a...
Shemot Rabbah, a rich collection of Midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) interpretations on the Book of Exodus, offers a powerful reading of the verse "Then Moses…sang [thi...
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...
Rabbi Yehuda tells us that the Israelites reasoned, "The Holy One, blessed be He, only took us out of Egypt for five things!" What were those five things? First, to give us the plu...
It might seem a little... unflattering at first glance. But as with so many things in our tradition, there's a depth and beauty to be found when we dig a little deeper. Shemot Rabb...
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 ...
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...
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 ...
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...
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 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...
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...
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 ...
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...
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 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...
"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...
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...
It's justice. That’s why, as Shemot Rabbah tells us, God gave us laws after the Ten Commandments. If justice is perverted, everything crumbles. God, in his ultimate justice, brings...
It's not just about power, but about the very fabric of society and our relationship with the Divine. The book of Exodus, specifically 22:27, lays down a firm rule: "You shall not ...
Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic homilies on the Book of Exodus, dives deep into this idea, using the verse "If you lend money to My people" (Exodus 22:24) as a springboard ...
In Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, we find a fascinating exploration of this very question. It begins with a verse: "Behold, I am sen...
To Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Exodus. Specifically, we're looking at section 32, where Rabbi Yitzchak opens with a verse from Jeremiah ...
It happened. And the story, found in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, is It all starts after the Golden Calf incident. Moses, understa...
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...
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 ...
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...
What allowed him, a human, to step into the most sacred space? Shemot Rabbah, a treasure trove of biblical interpretations, explores this very question. "This is the matter," it sa...
We often think of it as just a structure, but according to Jewish tradition, every single element, every color, every placement, held profound meaning. Take the Hoshen, the breastp...
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...
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...
The book of Exodus and the sages of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) explore this very idea. In (Exodus 32:7), we read, "The Lord spoke to Moses: Go descend; for your...
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 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 ...
It’s a moment of intense frustration, but also a testament to Moses's unwavering advocacy for his people. How does he possibly defend the indefensible? to the story as illuminated ...
