1,227 texts · Page 3 of 26
The story unfolds in a time of exile, a time of vulnerability for the Jewish people. Shoshana, a woman renowned for her beauty and piety, becomes the target of unwanted attention. ...
That’s exactly where Shoshana found herself. The story, tucked away in the Book of Daniel (though some versions place it separately), throws us right into the middle of a drama in ...
Her story, found in The Book of Susanna, is a powerful one. It all unfolds with a chilling simplicity. The text tells us "the people of the house heard her cry and ran to the viney...
That feeling, that desperate plea, is at the heart of the story of Susanna. Imagine this: a woman, Shoshana, young and beautiful, is brought before a crowd. The text tells us she w...
Sometimes, looking to other texts can give us a fuller picture. Take, for example, this passage from the Book of Jasher. It begins with a rumble of war. Chedorlaomer, king of Elam,...
We often focus on the big, dramatic moments – the covenant, the near-sacrifice of Isaac. But what about the everyday stuff? The family dynamics? The sibling rivalry? The Book of Ja...
While not part of the accepted biblical canon, Jasher (meaning "Upright" or "Correct Record") offers a fascinating, if sometimes embellished, account of biblical events. And Chapte...
Beyond just having it, I mean. What does it take to establish a claim that lasts for generations? Chapter 24 of the Book of Jasher, an ancient text referenced in the Bible itself (...
According to Jasher, after Sarah's death, Abraham took another wife named Keturah, said to be from the land of Canaan. And she bore him six sons: Zimran, Jokshan, Medan, Midian, Is...
The Book of Jasher, a non-canonical text with roots possibly stretching back to the Second Temple period, offers some fascinating glimpses. Isaac and Rebecca. We begin with a probl...
So, picture this: Jacob, after leaving his previous location, arrives in the land of Shalem, near the city of Shechem – a place in Canaan. He buys a piece of land for five shekels ...
We all know the story from Genesis 34 – how Shechem, son of Hamor, defiled Jacob's daughter, Dinah, and how Jacob's sons, particularly Simeon and Levi, exacted a brutal revenge. Bu...
We pick up with Jacob, now 99 years old, receiving a divine instruction. "Arise, go to Bethel," God tells him, "and remain there, and make there an altar to the Lord who appeareth ...
We all know the story from Genesis 34: how Jacob's daughter Dinah is defiled by Shechem, son of Hamor, and how Simeon and Levi exact a brutal revenge, slaughtering all the men of t...
The Bible gives us glimpses, but the Book of Jasher, an ancient Hebrew text referenced in the Bible itself (Joshua 10:13, (2 Samuel 1:1)8), offers a more detailed narrative.. The c...
To recap, the brothers have already journeyed to Egypt to buy food during a brutal famine, encountering the powerful and mysterious Egyptian viceroy– who is secretly their long-los...
Remember Joseph, the favored son sold into slavery in Egypt? He's now a powerful figure, and his brothers, unknowingly standing before him, are begging for the release of their you...
Today, we’re diving into Chapter 59, a chapter that, on the surface, seems like a simple list of names, but it’s so much more than that. It's a powerful reminder of family, legacy,...
There are so many fascinating texts that offer different perspectives and details on familiar narratives. Today, we're diving into a chapter from one of these books: the Book of Ja...
We know him as the great leader, the lawgiver, the one who led the Israelites out of Egypt. But what about his birth, his infancy, those perilous first months? The Book of Jasher, ...
Chapter 76 opens with Moses reigning as king in Cush, apparently thriving and ruling with justice for forty years! According to Jasher, "all the children of Cush loved Moses… and a...
There are entire books dedicated to filling in those gaps, offering tantalizing glimpses into the lives of our ancestors. One such book is the Book of Jasher, a work referenced in ...
The chapter opens with a change of leadership in Edom. Baal Channan, son of Achbor, dies and the Edomites reach out to find a new king. They settle on a man named Hadad. He reigns ...
The Book of Jasher, an ancient Hebrew text referenced in the Bible itself (Joshua 10:13 and (2 Samuel 1:1)8), fills in some of those gaps. It's like a behind-the-scenes look at the...
We know about Mount Sinai, the thunder, the lightning, the booming voice... but what about the days that followed?Book of Jasher and see what unfolded. The story picks up right aft...
We all know about the Exodus, the parting of the Red Sea, and even receiving the Ten Commandments. But what about the nitty-gritty details of setting up their new life, their new r...
The teacher calls out the letter Bet. Ben Sira responds with a proverb that could have come straight from the book of Proverbs itself: "By the appearance of a beautiful woman have ...
For the letter Gimel, Ben Sira offers a proverb about trust: "Reveal your secret to one out of a thousand, even if you have many well-wishers." One out of a thousand. That's the ra...
The letter Dalet brings a warning about desire that cuts right to the bone: "Deprive your flesh of a graceful woman, like the flame of a coal." Like the flame of a coal. The metaph...
By the letter Hey, Ben Sira's proverbs have shifted from gentle warnings to something more direct: "Blind your eyes because of the graceful woman, lest you be caught in her trap." ...
The letter Vav arrives, and Ben Sira delivers one of his sharpest proverbs yet: "Woe to one who follows after his eyes! And know that they are the product of straying, and there is...
The letter Zayin brings a proverb that circles back to the teacher's earlier obsession with beards: "Do not be thin-bearded or thick-bearded. Scorn these things, because you do not...
The letter Chet opens with Ben Sira's most provocative proverb so far: "Males are dear to all, but woe to fathers of females." Let's be clear about what this is. The Alphabet of Be...
The letter Tet continues the theme of fatherhood and daughters with a proverb that's as bleak as it is brief: "A daughter is a false image to her father. Out of fear of her, he doe...
The letter Yud picks up exactly where the previous proverb left off, and it doesn't hold back: "The watchman does not sleep. When she is a minor—lest she be seduced or assaulted in...
The letter Kaf pushes the father's worry even further into the future: "When you marry the daughter, you worry about her the most—lest she not have children. And when you are older...
The letter Lamed marks a sharp turn. After several proverbs about daughters, Ben Sira pivots to marriage itself: "Do not sleep in your youth, and when you are old, do not marry an ...
The letter Mem—which in Hebrew also means "water"—brings a proverb built entirely around that elemental image: "The waters of a virgin wife are sweet and add strength; the waters o...
The letter Nun delivers a proverb about the domestic nightmare the Alphabet of Ben Sira seems to fear most—not infidelity, not poverty, but a wife who won't stop talking: "Shake yo...
"Blind your eyes because of a widowed woman, and do not covet her beauty in your heart." That's what Ben Sira says, in the proverb attached to the Hebrew letter Ayin (ע)—and it's a...
"Acquire for yourself money, and a good wife, fear of God, and accumulate sons for yourself, even a hundred of them." The letter Kuf (ק) in the Alphabet of Ben Sira delivers a prov...
"Acquire for yourself gold coins, and all money, but do not tell your wife where the money is, even if she is good." And with that, the alphabetical proverbs of the Alphabet of Ben...
We all know the story: Moses, the parting of the waters, a miraculous escape. But what if there was someone else there, seeing even more than meets the eye? That someone was Serah ...
Let’s talk about Abraham. Scarcely had Abraham settled in Canaan when a devastating famine struck. Now, famines aren’t exactly rare in the grand scheme of things. In fact, the lege...
We often think of Abraham's journey as beginning with the covenant God made with him, the "covenant of the pieces," promising him descendants as numerous as the stars. But as Legen...
As Isaac grew, tensions flared between the two half-brothers over inheritance rights. Ishmael, the elder, believed he deserved a double portion, while Isaac should receive only one...
His story, often overshadowed, takes some fascinating turns, especially concerning his wives. According to Legends of the Jews, that incredible compilation of rabbinic lore by Loui...
After such a monumental event, life surely changed. According to Legends of the Jews, Abraham felt the weight of his years more acutely after Sarah's passing. Interestingly, the te...
