2,245 texts · Page 45 of 47
The Rabbis of the Midrash (rabbinic interpretive commentary) take this idea and run with it, suggesting that Jacob and Moses, in their own ways, foreshadowed the battles between th...
Sometimes, a single verse can unlock a whole world of meaning, revealing connections between different figures and events throughout Jewish history. to one such verse from (Genesis...
In the book of Deuteronomy (Devarim), we find Moses at a pivotal moment. God tells him, "Ascend to the top of the peak, and lift your eyes to the west, and to the north, and to the...
We all know the story of the first set, shattered in anger at the sight of the Golden Calf. But why two in the first place? Devarim Rabbah, a collection of homilies on the Book of ...
Our tradition is filled with stories that suggest it might. Today, we're diving into a few tales from Devarim Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic teachings on the Book of Deuteronomy...
It seems so natural, so ingrained in Jewish practice, that we might not even stop to ask why. But the Rabbis of old, they were always asking. They wanted to know the source, the re...
Devarim Rabbah 8 opens with a quote from Proverbs: "Wisdom is lofty to a fool; at the gate, he will not open his mouth" (Proverbs 24:7). But what does it really mean? Rabbi Tanhuma...
That’s the feeling Rabbi Shmuel bar Rav Naḥman evokes in his teaching on the verse, "Rather the matter is very near to you" (Deuteronomy 30:14). It's a beautiful passage about the ...
It sounds almost unbelievable, doesn't it? Yet, according to Devarim Rabbah, this is precisely the monumental struggle Moses faced at the end of his life. Rabbi Yoḥanan tells us th...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet, touches on this very feeling. It asks: "Is there anything of which one can say, 'Look! This is new'? It has already existed long ago, before o...
(Ecclesiastes 4:3) dances with it: "Better than both of them is one who has not yet been, who has not seen the evil actions that are done under the sun." Now, Kohelet Rabbah, a col...
That’s a feeling woven deep into the tapestry of Jewish tradition, a feeling the rabbis grappled with intensely. how they expressed it. The story begins with the passing of Ḥiyya b...
They weren’t afraid to call it out. In Kohelet Rabbah, a commentary on the book of Ecclesiastes, we find a fascinating passage tied to the verse, "This, too, I have seen as wisdom ...
That idea is right at the heart of a beautiful passage from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes. The verse in question is (Ecclesia...
The book of Ecclesiastes, or Kohelet, as it’s known in Hebrew, ends with this rather stark line: "For every action God will bring to judgment, for every unknown, whether good or ev...
Take this one from (Exodus 2:6), describing Pharaoh’s daughter discovering the infant Moses adrift in the Nile: "She opened it and saw the child [yeled], and behold, a boy [na’ar] ...
In the book of Exodus, Moses has that very experience. But it's not quite what you might expect. The text tells us, "He said: I am the God of your father, the God of Abraham, the G...
Our story begins in (Exodus 3:7): “The Lord said: I have seen My people’s affliction that is in Egypt, and I have heard their outcry because of their taskmasters, as I know their p...
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 ...
The verse we're looking at is (Exodus 4:30): "Aaron spoke all the words that the Lord had spoken to Moses, and performed the signs before the eyes of the people." According to Shem...
We all know the story, but Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of midrashim (rabbinic interpretive commentary) – interpretations and expansions – on the Book of Exodus, offers a fa...
Our sages explored this very human tendency in fascinating ways, especially when looking at the stories of Solomon and Moses. Our journey begins with a verse from Exodus (6:2-3): “...
Jewish tradition has some pretty strong opinions on that. And, spoiler alert: it doesn't end well. Shemot Rabbah, a classic collection of Midrash (interpretive stories) on the Book...
The ancient Rabbis certainly thought about that feeling, and they found it in a surprising place: the showdown between Moses and Pharaoh's magicians. The verse in (Exodus 7:12) tel...
"Moses extended his hand toward the heavens, and there was a thick darkness in the entire land of Egypt for three days. They did not see one another, and no one rose from his place...
It's not just about freedom from slavery, but about a deeper truth about power, righteousness, and our relationship with the Divine. Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpr...
The story of the Exodus, as told in Shemot Rabbah, the compilation of rabbinic sermons on the Book of Exodus, gives us a fascinating glimpse into this idea, focusing on the final p...
Jewish tradition is rich with answers to these questions, and Shemot Rabbah, a classical Midrashic (rabbinic interpretive commentary) text, offers a fascinating glimpse into the Di...
There's a fascinating passage in Shemot Rabbah that uses the moon as a metaphor to explain just that. It's a brilliant, poetic, and surprisingly practical way to look at history. T...
We're looking at section 15, which delves into the very first commandment given to the Israelites as they stood on the cusp of freedom: "This month shall be for you" (Exodus 12:2)....
Our story begins with the verse, "It was when Pharaoh let the people go..." (Exodus). But it's not just a simple statement. It's an invitation to reflect on the sheer audacity of G...
There's a fascinating, and perhaps unsettling, perspective offered in Shemot Rabbah, a compilation of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus, that uses a surprising analogy...
It’s a concept that’s wrestled with beautifully in Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. The verse "I will sing to the Lord, for He is exal...
It all starts with the verse, "For He is exalted." The Rabbis ask, what does that truly mean? Rabbi Pappos offers a beautiful and subtle reading of the verse from (Song of Songs 1:...
We know the story: the Israelites trapped, the Egyptians bearing down, then – miraculously – the waters split, a path appears, and they escape to freedom. But what about the unseen...
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...
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 ...
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...
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...
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...
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...
Good intentions, maybe, but with a track record that's... well, let's just say "mixed"? That's the feeling at the heart of a beautiful passage in Shemot Rabbah 49, a collection of ...
You turned the house upside down. You lit every lamp, peered into every corner. Why? Because the reward – finding that lost treasure – was worth the effort. Well, Shir HaShirim Rab...
In fact, the Shir HaShirim Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations of the Song of Songs, dives deep into its meaning and context, revealing some pretty surprising ideas. L...
It wasn't just handed to us on a silver platter, so to speak. According to the ancient rabbis, receiving the Torah at Sinai was contingent on something quite surprising: finding su...
Four sages once walked into a garden that wasn't really a garden at all. No, not the fruit orchard, but the Orchard — a mystical, metaphorical space where one could contemplate the...
Rabbi Yanai had a similar thought. He pointed out that the Torah truly needed to begin only with the verse "This month shall be for you" (Exodus 12:2), marking the start of the Jew...
The ancient rabbis certainly thought about this, especially when it came to how we talk about each other – and about the Jewish people as a whole. We find ourselves in Shir HaShiri...
