Questions tagged [parshanut-torah-comment]
interpretation of parts of Tanach by close reading, not derivation
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S'fat Emet Likkutim
Is the S'fat Emet Likkutim available online? It's listed as being available on Bar Ilan but I can't actually seem to find it there.
NB I definitely mean S'fat Emet Likkutim and not just the regular S'...
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Exodus 21:22–25 Relevance for the issue of abortion
I'm asking about the interpretation of Exodus 21:22-25 as a Christian who talks about abortion policies etc. In my reading of the passage, I tend to interpret it that the expectation of the passage is ...
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Why didn't Adam name the fish and the insects?
In Genesis 2:19:
And the Lord God formed from the earth every beast of the field and
every fowl of the heavens, and He brought [it] to man to see what he
would call it, and whatever the man ...
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Why does G-d provide meat together with the mahn?
In viewing the intial complaint, B'nai Yisra'el complained that there was no meat or bread in the desert. I was curious why they asked for meat, considering that they had so many animals and they ...
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Does Numbers 5:27 involve an induced miscarriage/abortion?
I have heard someone identifying as a Christian argue that the process in Numbers 5 supports abortion since a woman suspected of being unfaithful to her husband involves an induced miscarriage/...
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What are the 10 utterances in Pirkei Avot 5:1
Pirkei Avot (Chapters of the Fathers) 5:1 says that the world was created with 10 "utterances" (מאמרות). Both Rash"I and Rav Ovadiah Mibartenura explain the term מאמרות to mean that it refers to the ...
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Me’am Lo’ez online in English or Hebrew
Is there a translation of Rabbi Culi’s Me’am Lo’ez available online or as an ebook in either English or Hebrew?
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Why is "the righteous" (Chavakuk 2:4) a reference to "Jeconiah the king"?
Why is "the righteous" (as in Chavakuk 2:4) in reference to "Jeconiah the king"?
The passage in question reads:
"but the righteous shall live by his faith." Chavakuk - ...
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603,550 Jews at Sinai and 603,550 Jews Entering Promised Land?
Why in Exodus 38:26 does it say there were 603,550 men over age 20, and then in Numbers 1:46 the exact same number (603,550) is again listed?
Didn’t all the Jews of the generation in Exodus all die ...
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Why did Rachel die from Jacob's curse?
According to Rashi's commentary based on Genesis Rabbah 74:4 was that Rachel died because of Jacob's curse. The Torah text says whomever "You find" as in whomever Laban finds the idols that ...
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Keeping Shemittah "When you enter the land"?
The mitzvah of Shemittah is introduced in the following way in Parshas Behar (Vayikra 25:1-4):
וַיְדַבֵּ֤ר ה' אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה בְּהַ֥ר סִינַ֖י לֵאמֹֽר׃ דַּבֵּ֞ר אֶל־בְּנֵ֤י יִשְׂרָאֵל֙ וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ ...
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Why did Moses add part of the tribe of Menashe to join Re'uven and Gad on the east of the Jordan?
In response to Reuven and Gad's request to settle on the east side of Jordan, Moses includes part of the tribe of Menashe to join them, as it says:
Numbers 32:33:
וַיִּתֵּ֣ן לָהֶ֣ם ׀ מֹשֶׁ֡ה לִבְנֵי־...
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Moses at fault for spies?
Looking to better understand if, per the sources, Moses was at fault for sending spies, especially as it relates to sending them on a seemingly military mission.
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Kli Yakar to B’midbar 26:64
Can anyone help me with the final words of the quoted passage (below) from this commentary? Beginning with the asterisks, to the end. Thanks!
אבל הנשים של אותו דור צדקניות היו והיו אוהבים הצדקה, הן ...
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Second plague was crocodiles?
The Ohr Somayach website's 'Ask a rabbi' column quotes Abarbanel as saying that the second plague was crocodiles, rather than frogs, and that one of Abarbanel's reasons was:
The Egyptians worshipped ...
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Are homosexual relations forbidden by God? Why?
To my understanding, Bible says that God does not like homosexual relations. But why? Why did God punish and destroy inhabitants of Sodom and Gomorrah? They were not Jewish and were not given the laws ...
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What's the meaning of Daniel 9:26
Daniel 9:26:
And after the threescore and two weeks shall an anointed one be cut off, and be no more; and the people of a prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; but his ...
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Where did the Egyptians get the wealth they brought to the sea?
In Shemot 15:22, Rashi says:
Moses led Israel away: lit., made Israel journey. He led them away against their will, for the Egyptians had adorned their steeds with ornaments of gold, silver, and ...
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Emptying out Mitzrayim [duplicate]
If when the Jews left Egypt it says וינצלו את מצרים, they emptied out Mitzrayim, then where did all the silver and gold that the Egyptians had at the Yam Suf come from? And the spoils at the sea were ...
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What happened to a tzarua when Bnei Yisrael moved?
Bamidbar 12:15 tells us that Bnei Yisrael waited for Miriam when she got tzaraat, which seems to be an anomaly:
וַתִּסָּגֵ֥ר מִרְיָ֛ם מִח֥וּץ לַֽמַּחֲנֶ֖ה שִׁבְעַ֣ת יָמִ֑ים וְהָעָם֙ לֹ֣א נָסַ֔ע עַד־...
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Six verses with the same ending, except one difference
There's an unusual phenomenon in parshas Metzora, where there are six verses with the exact same second half (after the אתנחתא). They are Leviticus 15:5-8,10,11. The six are also together, with four ...
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Implications of "[Tora] ascribes as if..." ("מעלה עליו הכתוב") (Reuven case)
The Torah states (Gen. 35:22):
Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine
The Gemmorah explains (Shabbat 55b):
Rabbi Shemuel bar Naḥmani said that Rabbi Yonathan said: Anyone who says ...
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What exactly did Reuben do with/in his father's bed?
On the verse "...Reuben went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine..." the Gemmorah (Shabbat 55b) explains: "And the verse ascribes to him as if he had actually lain with Bilhah .....
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Translating a passage from Ma'asei ha-Shem
I'm struggling with two short phrases from the Ma'asei ha-Shem commentary on Parashat Korach. I've bolded the relevant bits below, can anyone help?
אשמים אנחנו כאשר נתרשל מלחקור בסתרי תורתנו באמרנו ...
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Habakkuk 3:5 and דבר
I have some questions to ask :
1) what does [דבר ] mean? Does it mean cholera? or plague? Or does it mean all kinds of Infectious and contagious diseases?
2) what is the exact translation of [לפניו ...
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Are there still animals in the garden of Eden?
Genesis 3:22-24
כב וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֱלֹהִים, הֵן הָאָדָם הָיָה כְּאַחַד מִמֶּנּוּ,
לָדַעַת, טוֹב וָרָע; וְעַתָּה פֶּן-יִשְׁלַח יָדוֹ, וְלָקַח גַּם מֵעֵץ
הַחַיִּים, וְאָכַל, וָחַי לְעֹלָם. 22 And ...
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English translation of word in Kli Yakar Shemos 6:3
וע"כ נקט ראיה, וידיעה בדרך לא זו אף זו, כי הרעות לא זו ידיעה אלא אפילו בראיה עין בעין נראה
להם, והרחמים גמורים לא זו שלא ראו אותם עדיין אלא אפילו לא נודעתי להם
(Kli Yakar, Shemos 6:3)
Trying to ...
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What did the sages of blessed memory say about this phrase "sons of the priests"?
1 Chronicles 9:30 And some of the sons of the priests were compounders
of the mixture for the spices.
https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/16529/showrashi/true
Ezra 10:18 And it was found of ...
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Apparent wrong arrangement of war instructions in Devarim 20:1-9
While reviewing the instructions that the Cohen tells people prior to going to war, as shown in Devarim 20:1-9, there seems to be an incorrect order of statements. In particular:
Verse 3 - The Cohen ...
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Devarim 20: division of roles
Devarim 20:1-9 is a list of instructions that must be given orally to soldiers before setting out to battle. Rashi (on verse 8) explains that a priest says the words in verses 3-4, and that they also ...
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What technology did King Solomon have?
I'm looking for sourced statements of modern technology possessed by King Solomon.
So far I have seen:
An answer here quotes the idea that King Solomon had a flying carpet of sorts. The Ben ...
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Slavery, an apparent contradiction?
In the Exodus, G-d hears the suffering of Israel as follows:
“The Israelites were groaning under the bonding and cried out, and their cry for help from the bondage rose to G-d” (Exod 2:23); “I will ...
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According to 1st century Jewish interpretations of Ecclesiastes, what part of man goes to Sheol?
Note: this is an adaptation of the question According to Ecclesiastes, what part of man goes to Sheol? which I previously asked on Biblical Hermeneutics Stack Exchange. On that site the question ...
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How would Pharisees of the 1st century AD have interpreted Ecclesiastes 9:5-10?
Ecclesiastes 9:5-10 (ESV):
5 For the living know that they will die, but the dead know nothing, and they have no more reward, for the memory of them is forgotten. 6 Their love and their hate and ...
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Philistines destroyed the Temple?
Posting for someone else:
The Rashbam on Bereshis 22:1 brings that Hashem, in retaliation for Avraham giving 7 sheep to Avimelech, says that Avimelech's descendants will destroy 7 sanctuaries of ...
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Why are these verbs in the past tense
If I understand the rules of the vav hahipuch properly, which reverses the tense of a word from past to future or vice-versa, where the accent is placed plays a big role.
For example, the word אהבת ...
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Why are the forefathers called רועי צאן and not רועי בקר?
In my poor townsman's understanding, confirmed by the scriptures, both sheep (צאן) and cattle (בקר) need shepherding, as it says (Exodus.34.3):
"וְאִישׁ לֹא־יַעֲלֶה עִמָּךְ וְגַם־אִישׁ אַל־יֵרָא ...
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Why doesn't the Torah use more efficient ways to say "both" or "each" when describing the Mishkan utensils?
In Parshas Terumah, in the description of many of the utensils of the Temple, the Torah seems to be very repetitive in its description of parts that are meant to be the same. For example, chapter 25 ...
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Parshanut Theory/Intro Books
I am currently looking for a book that gives a thorough introduction into the Rishonim's and other Meforshim's understanding of the Chumash in their compilations and a guide to Parshanut and (Jewish) ...
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How exactly did the Jews get enough water in the desert?
The Torah does not give details as to how the Bnai Yisrael got water in the desert. Given that there were 600,000 men between twenty and sixty (about 2 - 3 million people total) they could not have ...
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When was Shlomo HaMelech anointed king?
When (day, month, year) was Shlomo HaMelech anointed king, as according to the pasuk below?
1 Kings 1:45 And Zadok the priest and Nathan the prophet have anointed
him king in Gihon, and they have ...
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How did the Israelites borrow garments from the Egyptians?
It is written1 that the Israelites kept their uniqueness by keeping their language, names and their dress. Why then did the Bnei Yisrael borrow from the Egyptians their clothes if they kept their ...
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Why does Midrash refer to "New Torah" not found in the original verse?
Rabbi Abin builds a Drasha on a phrase not found in the text (Vayikra_Rabbah.13):
"אָמַר רַבִּי אָבִין בַּר כַּהֲנָא אָמַר הַקָּדוֹשׁ בָּרוּךְ הוּא (ישעיה נא, ד):
"תּוֹרָה חֲדָשָׁה מֵאִתִּי ...
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Explanation for episode with Moshe's near death at the hotel
Exodus 4:24-26 describes one of the strangest stories in the Chumash. Moshe was on his way to save the Jewish people, and the Torah says that he stayed with his wife and children in a hotel. Next, we'...
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Why did Pharaoh only order the murder of boys?
In parashat shemote, Pharaoh explicitly commands the midwives to allow the females to live (וְאִם-בַּת הִוא וָחָיָה). What are the traditional commentaries explaining the order to allow the girls to ...
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Why did Avraham argue with G-d about Sodom but not about his son's sacrifice?
Are there any Mefarshim who commented on why Avraham chose to advocate on behalf of Sodom when G-d tells him that the city will be destroyed, but chose to remain silent and just accept the decree when ...
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The miraculous nature of the incident with Bas Paroh and baby Moshe; why is it not mentioned in the text?
Shemos 2 (5 – 11). To escape the decree of Paroh to kill Jewish male babies, Yocheved places her son in a basket in the water. None other than Paroh's daughter discovers him and saves him. Paroh's ...
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Why did Yaakov give the city of Shechem to Yosef?
Yaakov gives Yosef what many commentators assume is the actual city of Shechem as an additional inheritance (see Genesis 48:22, especially according to Rashi's interpretation). Why did Yaakov choose ...
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Why all the Bnei Yakov (the holy tribes) went to Egypt for food
What is the reason that all the holy tribes (except for Benjamin) went to Egypt for food? Couldn't they send only several of them or to split themselves and go in different time? Or even send some of ...
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ויהיה ערב ויהיה בוקר - what's the nature of those emergences?
"וַיִּקְרָא אֱלֹהִים לָאוֹר יוֹם וְלַחֹשֶׁךְ קָרָא לָיְלָה וַיְהִי־עֶרֶב וַיְהִי־בֹקֶר יוֹם אֶחָד׃"
"God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night.
And there was evening ...
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