The Torah describes the song of the Israelites, after crossing the Sea of Reeds, in the future tense: אז ישיר משה ובני ישראל את השירה הזאת Moshe and the Israelites will then sing that song… The Midrash comments that this refers to the song which will be chanted at the…
At first sight the laws of Nazir, detailed in Parashat Nasso, seem to suggest that the Torah encourages people to take upon themselves vows of abstinence. A closer, contextual reading, makes it clear that the life of a hermit, away from society and from the world’s bounty, is not the…
Noah, the man of the land, started [rebuilding after the flood] by planting a vineyard. He drank of the wine, became inebriated, and exposed himself naked in his tent. Ham, Canaan’s father, saw his father’s nakedness and told his two brothers outside the tent. Shem and Yephet took the robe…
Counting the Omer is a beautiful concept. It emphasizes the importance of gradual development, echoing the physical and spiritual journey of our ancestors from slaves in Egypt to a liberated, monotheistic nation at Mount Sinai. Unfortunately, the demand to keep track of the count and make sure one counts every…
Why the Book of Numbers is not about numbers What’s in a name? The book of BeMidbar suffers of somewhat of an identity crisis. It is easy to determine the identity of the other books of the Torah. Genesis is about the creation and the life of the forefathers, Exodus…
No matter how well-prepared we are, mentally and emotionally, for the inevitable loss of a close relative or a dear friend, when death strikes, we experience shock, grief, disbelief, and anger. We don’t understand how can the world move on, functioning efficiently as if nothing happened, as if our lives…
Reading Between the Lines in Miketz Questions for discussion: In verse 41:14 we read that Yosef “shaved and changed clothes”. Whose initiative was it? Can it be proven from the grammar? How does Pharaoh echo Yosef’s language? How are Yaakov and Pharaoh similar in their treatment of Yosef? Why did…
Choosing a college major is a tricky business. You start studying for the profession most in demand at the moment, just to find out four years later that the world has drastically changed. Programming, or coding, has been one exception and a safe bet for the last couple of decades,…
For Parashat VaYeshev I have a confession to make. I love Tanakh. Obsessed with Tanakh. I go back to familiar verses and read them over and over again, looking for unturned stones under which I find treasures. At times, I feel that commentary takes away from the beauty and dynamics…
In his royal chambers, covered in fine Egyptian linen sheets, Zaphenat Pa’aneah, aka Joseph the Hebrew, wakes up screaming, awash in cold sweat. His wife, the delicate noblewoman Asenath, finds his shaking hand and holds it, whispering “you had that nightmare again, honey?” Her husband is too startled to talk,…