1,298 texts · Page 76 of 145
It all starts with a verse from Ecclesiastes (10:10): “If the iron is dull, and one did not whet the edge, he must intensify his exertion; the advantage is in preparation with wisd...
Ancient Jewish wisdom grappled with these questions too. Take this passage from Kohelet Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Ecclesiastes. It starts with...
"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 ...
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...
And in this little snippet of that text, we find a moment of intense connection, and a gentle but firm assertion of self. The verse we're focusing on is Ruth 1:16: "Do not beseech ...
"These are the names of the children of Israel who came to Egypt with Jacob; each came with his household" – that’s how the Book of Exodus begins. But what does that have to do wit...
The story goes that Moses, having slain an Egyptian taskmaster, intervenes in a quarrel between two Hebrews. And what does he get for his trouble? A stinging rebuke: "Who appointed...
to one, from Shemot Rabbah, a collection of rabbinic interpretations on the Book of Exodus. The verse we're looking at is simple, yet profound: “God saw the children of Israel, and...
