31 texts
The Book of Jubilees, an ancient Jewish text, offers a glimpse into the lives of our ancestors, and sometimes, their stories feel surprisingly…familiar.. We find Jacob and Leah, al...
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...
Levi, third son of Jacob and Leah, called his sons together when he knew his death was near. It had been revealed to him that he would die. When they gathered, he told them everyth...
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...
This is a glimpse into the life of Levi, son of Jacob, ancestor of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. And it's a story about how doing things with a pure heart can lead to unexpec...
"They shall take for Me a contribution" (Exodus 25:2). The first commandment God gave after the revelation at Sinai was to build Him a home. Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev finds...
Parashat Pekudei opens with an accounting of the Tabernacle's materials (Exodus 38:21), but the Kedushat Levi (Rabbi Levi Yitzchak of Berditchev) sees something far deeper than a l...
The prophet Micah painted one of the most beloved images in all of Jewish prophecy: "And each man will sit under his grapevine and under his fig tree, and none shall make them afra...
The Torah commands: "And the priest shall burn wood upon it every morning" (Leviticus 6:5), referring to the daily kindling of fire on the altar. The Mekhilta immediately asks: why...
R. Akiva says: What is the intent of "And these are the judgments"? From (Leviticus 1:2) "Speak to the children of Israel and say to them," I would think, only once. Whence do I de...
"Six years shall he serve": I might think (that he performs) both demeaning and non-demeaning service. It is, therefore, written (Leviticus 25:39) "Do not have him work the service...
"and he shall go out alone": We are hereby apprised that a (Canaanite) bondswoman does not require a get (a divorce) from a Jew. Whence do we derive the same (i.e., that she does n...
Rebbi (Rabbi Yehudah HaNasi) offers a dramatically different reading of the three marital obligations listed in (Exodus 21:10). Where Rabbi Yoshiyah identified "she'eirah" as food ...
"He shall pay double to his neighbor" — the Torah requires a thief who is caught to pay twice the value of what he stole. But Rabbi Shimon noticed a conflict with another verse. (L...
Our story today comes from Sifrei Bamidbar, a collection of legal interpretations on the Book of Numbers. We’re looking at Bamidbar (Numbers) 7:6: "And Moses took the wagons and th...
The verse in question, from (Deuteronomy 14:27), commands us: "And the Levite who is in your gate, you shall not forsake him." Sounds straightforward enough. But the rabbis of the ...
The core of this passage revolves around the first tithe, the ma'aser rishon. This was a portion of the harvest given to the Levites, the tribe dedicated to serving in the Temple. ...
The passage centers around (Deuteronomy 18:6), dealing with the rights and roles of the Levites. Now, who were the Levites? They were members of the tribe of Levi, designated for s...
The core of the discussion revolves around a complex scenario: a woman is divorced (receives a get) from her husband, but as part of the divorce agreement, a condition is set – let...
Old Man Planting Charub Tree. Yebamot, f. 63a. Tanh. and B to Levit. Kedoshim, § 8. Midr. Hagadol, Gen. f. 56d—57a. Exod. R., ch. 2. Levit. R., 25 §5. Eccles. R., 2 § 16. Yalk. § 6...
When Jacob fled from his brother Esau and set out on the long road to Haran, he stopped at a place called Bethel and made a vow to God. "If God will be with me and guard me on this...
Levi ben Sisi was a brilliant scholar, one of the finest students of his generation. When a community in the town of Simonia needed a teacher and judge, Rabbi Judah HaNasi sent Lev...
Abraham ibn Ezra and Yehuda Halevi were two of the greatest Jewish minds of medieval Spain — but their partnership was as unlikely as it was legendary. Ibn Ezra was a wandering poe...
Joshua v. Levi & Prophet Elijah. Pesikta, f. 36 a. Nissim, f. 4 b. Maase Hashem, f. 41a to 43 a. Eliah Cohen, Meil Se- daka §439. Heilperin, Seder Hado- rot, s. v. Joshua b. Levi. ...
Before humans, before animals, just… water. What was that like? Our sages imagined just that, and they gave the water a voice, a purpose, a mission. Bereshit Rabbah, that incredibl...
In Devarim Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, we find a fascinating connection between looking after the Levites – members of the tribe of Levi...
According to Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Song of Songs, Hugras was a Levite, part of the choir that served in the Temple. Now, the Levites...
One of those moral quandaries that the ancient rabbis loved to wrestle with. They found wisdom in the most unexpected places – even in the behavior of weasels! Vayikra Rabbah, a co...
It's not just about skin disease. It's about something far deeper. Something that touches on the very fabric of our community and our souls. In Vayikra, Leviticus, we find the word...
In the third month (Exod. 19:1). Scripture says elsewhere in allusion to this verse: Have I not written unto thee excellent things (shilshom) of counsels and knowledge (Prov. 22:20...
Another interpretation (of Numb. 3:40), “enroll every first-born male.” But look, we find two hundred and seventy-three first-born, who were found to be in excess of the [number of...
