1,416 texts · Page 26 of 30
The Book of Proverbs nails it: "Expectation deferred sickens the heart" (Proverbs 13:12). But what does that really mean, especially when we're talking about something bigger than ...
The Torah is full of these stories, and they often leave us scratching our heads. One such story is that of Moses, perhaps the greatest prophet in Jewish history, who led the Israe...
"Hear, Israel: you are crossing the Jordan today..." It's a powerful opening line from Deuteronomy (9:1), isn't it? A promise, a challenge, a moment of immense transition. But what...
The ancient rabbis pondered this very idea, using a seemingly simple verse about eating meat to unlock profound insights about freedom, desire, and divine provision. It all starts ...
Jewish tradition explores this feeling on a national scale, focusing on the ancient Israelites' request for a human king. Imagine this: God, the ultimate King, has been leading the...
In Devarim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, we find a powerful exploration of this very feeling, wrapped in a story about snakes and the proph...
Devarim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy, tackles this very question. It starts with a verse from Proverbs (2:1): "My son, if you take my sayin...
We often focus on the manna, the miraculous food from heaven. But what about something as basic as clothing? I mean, forty years is a long time. Did their clothes just… last? That'...
It's not just poetic flourish. According to Devarim Rabbah, there's a profound and multifaceted reason why Moses calls upon them as witnesses, as partners, as something more. Rabbi...
That question, that nagging feeling, is at the heart of the Book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet in Hebrew. And it’s a question the Rabbis grappled with deeply. The opening verse of Ko...
"What was is what will be," it says, "and what was done is what will be done; and there is nothing new under the sun" (Ecclesiastes 1:9). But is that really true? Are we just doome...
Jewish tradition grapples with this question, especially when it comes to the timing of pivotal moments in our history. And sometimes, the answers are more surprising than you'd ex...
The book of Kohelet, Ecclesiastes, wrestles with these very questions. And Kohelet Rabbah, the rabbinic commentary on Ecclesiastes, digs even deeper. a fascinating passage from it....
The verse from Ecclesiastes (3:16) sets the stage: “Moreover, I have seen, under the sun, in the place of judgment there is wickedness, and in the place of justice there is wickedn...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet, grapples with this very question, stating, "I said in my heart: The righteous and the wicked, God will judge, as there is a time for every pur...
It turns out, that feeling has deep roots in Jewish thought. We find it beautifully expressed in (Ecclesiastes 4:9-12): “Two are better than one; because they have a good reward fo...
The ancient Rabbis certainly did. In Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes, we find a series of stories, almost like little parables,...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet, grapples with these very human feelings. It observes, "With the increase of good, those who consume it increase; what use is there for its own...
The book of Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes, dives right into this question, offering a perspective that might just flip your e...
Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes, tackles this very question, and it does it in such a wonderfully human way. It all starts with...
Kohelet Rabbah, the rabbinic commentary on Ecclesiastes, takes on this very question, diving deep into the meaning of the verse: "Wisdom will bolster the wise more than ten rulers ...
Sometimes, the explanations seem… unexpected, even poetic. to a passage from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes, where we explore ...
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...
It tells us: “Go, eat your bread joyfully, and drink your wine goodheartedly, as God has already accepted your actions” (Ecclesiastes 9:7). But what does that mean? Kohelet Rabbah,...
Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes, wrestles with this very question. And it’s a question that hits at the heart of how we live ou...
The grief is so intense that the townspeople declare a ban: anyone who dares announce the Rabbi's death will face dire consequences. Can you imagine the tension? The air thick with...
Like you're going along, minding your own business, and suddenly – BAM! – you're caught in something you never saw coming? The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet as we call it in Heb...
Take this one, from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes. It's a powerful allegory, and one we can all relate to. The story begins: ...
Today, we’re diving into a passage from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Book of Ecclesiastes, that explores this very idea through the verse: “Cast ...
"Distribute a portion to seven, and also to eight, as you do not know what evil will be upon the earth" (Ecclesiastes 11:2). Simple enough. But what does it mean? That’s where Kohe...
The Rabbis in Kohelet Rabbah delve deep into this verse, unpacking its layers of meaning. Rabbi Pinḥas and Rabbi Ḥilkiya, in the name of Rabbi Simon, pose a crucial question: When ...
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 ancient rabbis certainly did. They saw layers of meaning, hidden connections, and prophecies woven into the very fabric of the Torah. Take the beginning of the Book of Exodus, ...
The Book of Exodus opens with a simple statement: "Joseph died, along with all his brothers and that entire generation" (Exodus 1:6). But this seemingly straightforward sentence ho...
Their story, as told in Shemot Rabbah, is a powerful reminder of resilience, faith, and the strength of community. Pharaoh, wasn't just content with enslaving the Israelites. He wa...
The scene: Pharaoh, terrified by the growing Israelite population, issues a horrifying command to the Hebrew midwives. "When you deliver the Hebrew women," he says, "and you see th...
As is so often the case with Torah, the rabbis unpack layers upon layers of meaning. What did it really mean when it says "he saw that there was no man"? The ancient rabbis of Shem...
It all centers around Moses, and a rather interesting agreement he makes with Jethro (also known as Yitro), his future father-in-law. Remember, Moses has just fled Egypt after, sha...
The ancient rabbis certainly understood that feeling. In the book of Exodus, we read, “It was during those many days that the king of Egypt died and the children of Israel sighed d...
In fact, they wrestled with it in their interpretations of the book of Exodus, specifically (Exodus 2:25): "God saw the children of Israel, and God knew." What did God see? What di...
It might seem like just a simple Hebrew word meaning "was," but in the world of Jewish thought, it can unlock hidden meanings, destinies, and connections. Shemot Rabbah, a collecti...
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...
That's the situation Moses found himself in. In (Exodus 3:11), Moses cries out to God, "Who am I, that I should go to Pharaoh, and that I should take the children of Israel out of ...
The passage we're looking at begins with God instructing Moses: "Go and gather the elders of Israel, and say to them: The Lord, the God of your fathers, God of Abraham, of Isaac, a...
Turns out, Moses did. And, according to the Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, it didn't go unnoticed. The story begins, as we k...
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 ...
That's the situation Moses found himself in. In Shemot Rabbah, the great collection of Midrashim (rabbinic interpretive commentary) (interpretive stories) on the Book of Exodus, we...
The Torah tells us, "The Lord said to Moses: When you go back to Egypt, see all the wonders that I have placed in your hand and perform them before Pharaoh; but I will harden his h...
