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![]() Reuven Chaim KleinThe Times of Israel (Blogs) |
Thus begins the Torah portion of Bo: “And G-d said to Moses, ‘Go to Pharaoh, for I have hardened his heart and the hearts of his servants so...
When faced with the devastating Plague of Hail, Pharaoh called for Moses and asked him to pray to G-d to remove this pox from upon himself and his...
An obscure passage in the Book of Chronicles discusses Caleb’s children sired through his “Jewish” wife. She was said to have given birth to...
On his deathbed, Jacob prophesied of a time when the Land of Judah will produce plentiful wine, as if a spring of wine flows from their territory. He...
In the cold of the winter, we can often find solace in the warm depths of the Torah by plunging ourselves into a deep Torah discussion and forgetting...
When Pharaoh dreamed in his royal slumber of seven skinny cows consuming seven fat cows, the Bible relates that at the conclusion of this portent...
During the eight days of Chanukah we recite the Al HaNissim prayer, which thanks G-d for His miraculous role in bringing salvation to our...
In the Torah portion of Vayishlach, Jacob’s family is referred to as a machaneh (Gen. 32:9, 33:8) and bayit (Gen. 35:2), but, of course, the...
When Jacob tried to induce the animals in his care to give birth to offspring that fit a certain look, Jacob placed various tree branches that...
The word vayivez only appears twice in the entire Bible: After Esau sold his firstborn rights to Jacob, he then turned around and “disparaged”...
When the Torah relates that Abraham’s wife Sarah died in the City of Hebron, it actually uses an alternate name for the City of the Forefathers:...
Over the years we have discussed many different words in these essays, but we have yet to discuss the words for “word.” In Hebrew there are at...
All three patriarchs of the Jewish People are referred to as “complete”: G-d told Abraham that when he circumcises himself, he will...
The great Tannaitic sage Rabbi Eliezer ben Yaakov said: “A person who performs one mitzvah acquires for himself one praklit. A person who violates...
Avot d’Rabbi Natan (version #1, ch. 37) teaches that just as there are Seven Heavens, so are there seven words for the “Earth”: eretz, adamah,...
Avot de-Rabbi Natan (version #1, ch. 37) teaches that just as there are Seven Heavens, so too are there seven words for the Earth”: eretz,...
The English term “brother-in-law” can denote one of four possible familial connections: A woman’s husband’s brother, a woman’s sister’s...
Words derived from the Hebrew root LAMMED-MEM-DALET (“learn,” “teach”) appear 86 times in the Bible. But if you look at just the Pentateuch,...