interpretation of parts of Tanach by close reading, not derivation (Pronounced "par-sha-noot")
6
votes
2answers
158 views
What is Zimri's sin?
Note: This is Zimri that was speared by Phinehas for sleeping with a foreigner.
Wikipedia says that he committed idolatry. However, the Bible only mentions that he slept with a foreign woman. Nothing ...
4
votes
2answers
128 views
Understanding Rashi's resolution of an ambiguity in Parashat Vayigash
The following is based on a question I wrote in the margin of my chumash about ten years ago.
In Yehuda's speech to the Egyptian viceroy (Yosef in disguise) at the beginning of Parashat Vayigash, he ...
6
votes
1answer
61 views
“There is a son born to Naomi”? But it's a grandson — what's up with that?
In chapter 4 of Rut, after Boaz performs yibum with Rut and she bears a son, it says:
וַתִּקְרֶאנָה לוֹ הַשְּׁכֵנוֹת שֵׁם לֵאמֹר, יֻלַּד-בֵּן לְנָעֳמִי; וַתִּקְרֶאנָה שְׁמוֹ עוֹבֵד, הוּא ...
5
votes
0answers
55 views
Was Naaman tamei from tzaraas?
In Melachim Bet 5:10 we read:
וַיִּשְׁלַח אֵלָיו אֱלִישָׁע, מַלְאָךְ לֵאמֹר: הָלוֹךְ, וְרָחַצְתָּ שֶׁבַע-פְּעָמִים בַּיַּרְדֵּן, וְיָשֹׁב בְּשָׂרְךָ לְךָ וּטְהָר.
And Elisha sent a ...
5
votes
2answers
101 views
Yumatu and the plural in Dev 24
Devarim 24:16 makes a statement which is central to Jewish theology. The posuk makes clear that a father will not be put to death for the sins of his son and that a son will not be put to death for ...
12
votes
2answers
977 views
All people in world are Jews?
According to the Book of Genesis, Noah saved his family and representatives of every animal from a flood by constructing a boat. So since all of humanity should be descended from Noah, does that mean ...
4
votes
2answers
92 views
Why does Vayikra 25:3 repeat “שש שנים”?
In Vayikra 25:3 it says:
שש שנים תזרע שדך ושש שנים תזמור כרמך
Why does it say twice שש שנים ?
6
votes
1answer
83 views
Prediction of the destruction of the Beis Hamikdash - seemingly out of place
On Lev. 26:19, ושברתי את גאון עזכם - "I will break the pride of your strength," Rashi (citing Sifra) explains that this refers to the Beis Hamikdash.
But this is still fairly early on in the cycle of ...
7
votes
2answers
257 views
Why does Moshe have a shalshelet?
The "shalshelet" trop appears 4 times in the Torah:
(Vayeira, Gen. 19:16) Lot has a shalshelet, because he was hesitating to leave S'dom.
(Chayei Sarah, Gen. 24:12) Eliezer has a shalshelet, because ...
1
vote
2answers
120 views
Why complain about Graves?
וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֶל מֹשֶׁה הַמִבְּלִי אֵין קְבָרִים בְּמִצְרַיִם (Ex 14:11)
About what were the Jews complaining in particular?
5
votes
1answer
84 views
Why didn't they call her Mara?
Naomi returns to Israel and tells people to call her Mara cause God has embittered her life (Ruth 1:20). But no one actually ends up calling her Mara.
Is a person allowed to change her name for ...
5
votes
2answers
73 views
Shifting subjects and objects in Gen 12:15
There are three statements in Genesis 12:15:
וַיִּרְאוּ אֹתָהּ שָׂרֵי פַרְעֹה וַיְהַלְלוּ אֹתָהּ אֶל פַּרְעֹה וַתֻּקַּח הָאִשָּׁה בֵּית פַּרְעֹה
And Pharaoh's princes saw her, and they ...
2
votes
0answers
61 views
Ma Inyan Shmitta Eitzel Har Sinai?
Rashi says
What does the subject of Shemittah have with Mount Sinai? Were not all the commandments stated from Sinai? However, [this teaches us that] just as with Shemittah, its general principles ...
4
votes
0answers
106 views
HaMalach HaGoel Osi
Why does Yakov ask the malach (angel) (actually it sounds more like a statement of fact - "he will...") who protected him from evil to bless Ephraim and Menashe? Also, do we find that this actually ...
6
votes
2answers
172 views
Moshe talking to the Mizbeach?
Here are the last two psukim in parshat nasso:
פח וְכֹל בְּקַר זֶבַח הַשְּׁלָמִים, עֶשְׂרִים וְאַרְבָּעָה פָּרִים, אֵילִם שִׁשִּׁים עַתֻּדִים שִׁשִּׁים, כְּבָשִׂים בְּנֵי-שָׁנָה שִׁשִּׁים: זֹאת ...
8
votes
4answers
124 views
Why not “Vayikra Hashem”
The first pasuk in Vayikra reads:
וַיִּקְרָא אֶל מֹשֶׁה וַיְדַבֵּר ה׳ אֵלָיו…
And He called to Moshe, and God spoke to him…
Why is the subject on the second verb? It would ...
2
votes
1answer
111 views
Is there an explanation for the seeming contradiction in Leviticus 27:9-10?
I'm looking at Leviticus 27:9-10, and it contains two commandments that are seemingly contradictory. Here's the text:
And if it be a beast, whereof men bring an offering unto the LORD, all
that ...
8
votes
6answers
469 views
does one have to take a Midrash/Aggadah literally?
Does one have to take a Midrash/Aggadah literally?
8
votes
1answer
86 views
“A life for a life”: execution or reparations
The Torah states (Ex. 21:23) that if two people are fighting and accidentally kill an innocent bystander (such as a woman), "you shall give a life for a life."
The Gemara (Sanhedrin 79a-b) records a ...
7
votes
1answer
74 views
Connection between the metzora's purification and the Four Species of Sukkos?
In the procedure prescribed for the first stage of a metzora's purification (Lev. 14:1-7), the Torah lists four items to be dipped into a mixture of blood and water: a live bird, a piece of cedar ...
0
votes
1answer
45 views
Tell Children and you will Know
The Posuk says:
וּלְמַעַן תְּסַפֵּר בְּאָזְנֵי בִנְךָ וּבֶן בִּנְךָ אֵת אֲשֶׁר הִתְעַלַּלְתִּי בְּמִצְרַיִם וְאֶת אֹתֹתַי אֲשֶׁר שַׂמְתִּי בָם וִידַעְתֶּם כִּי אֲנִי ה
If your are telling your ...
-4
votes
1answer
144 views
0
votes
1answer
103 views
4
votes
1answer
96 views
The meaning of the Hebrew word Pe'as (פאת)
In Vayikra 19:27 the verse says לא תקפו פאת ראשכם ולא תשחית את פאת זקנך and it means both Peyos on the head yet in Vayikra 23:22 the verse says ובקצרכם את קציר ארצכם לא תכלה פאת שדך בקצרך ולקט קצירך ...
7
votes
2answers
63 views
Why is “Kedoshim tihyu” (Lev. 19) interposed between the chapters about illicit relations?
Chapter 18 of Vayikra (Leviticus) mostly deals with various forbidden relationships, but without specifying the individual punishments for transgressing them (just a collective warning to the nation ...
4
votes
1answer
78 views
Why does smashing an earthenware vessel resolve the problem of the absorbed material of a cooked offering which has gone beyond its time limit?
Vayikro 6:21
An earthenware vessel in which it is cooked shall be broken, but if it
is cooked in a copper vessel, it shall be purged and rinsed with
water.
Rashi explains,
“[An ...
5
votes
1answer
129 views
Not Negah but Like a Negah
Why when calling the Cohen even if you clearly know the Psak you cant say I have a Negah at home Instead of saying "Kanegah Nireh Li Babayis" Like a Negah?
3
votes
2answers
88 views
Clothing and shame, etymologically speaking
I have been unable to find an etymological connection between the root for shame בשש (especially as it turns into the forms of בושה בושת) and the word for "clothe" לבש. Shame was introduced in ...
5
votes
1answer
97 views
Timing of the Commandment of Gid Hanashe
The Torah mentions, after the story of Yaakov getting injured in Parshas Vayishlach,
that we do not eat the Gid Hanashe for this reason.
The Meforshim seem to concur that this mitzvah was included in ...
6
votes
1answer
160 views
Meggilas Rus - Leket, Shikcha, and Peah
When Rus went out into the field to pick up the Shikcha (dropped or forgotten crops which must be left for the poor), Boaz sees her great piety and tells his servants to drop more on purpose so that ...
2
votes
1answer
55 views
Kindness and truth
The Posuk says (Gen 47:29):
וְעָשִׂיתָ עִמָּדִי חֶסֶד וֶאֱמֶת
Translated as do with me Kindness and truth
Rashi is bothered that Chesed and Emes are two different things so Rashi says:
חסד ...
9
votes
6answers
210 views
20 years for Sin, 7 years for beauty
In the first pasuk of Parshat Chayai Sarah (Genesis 23:1), the Torah says:
א. וַיִּהְיוּ חַיֵּי שָׂרָה מֵאָה
שָׁנָה וְעֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה וְשֶׁבַע
שָׁנִים שְׁנֵי חַיֵּי שָׂרָה:
And the life ...
5
votes
4answers
200 views
God's Pair of Teffilin
How when moshe turns his head not to see God's face, he sees He's got on teffilin? I thought God had no physical form.
11
votes
3answers
135 views
So should be done unto the man
The verse in Esther 6:11 describing Haman's pulling Mordochai on the streets says:
כָּכָה יֵעָשֶׂה לָאִישׁ אֲשֶׁר הַמֶּלֶךְ חָפֵץ בִּיקָרוֹ
So shall it be done unto the man whom the king ...
11
votes
3answers
260 views
Understanding of Ps. 137 before the exile
Psalm 137 starts (in my own translation)
On Babylon's rivers, there, we sat, also cried, in our remembering Zion.
and continues to describe the scene. Ibn Ezra cites some who hold that David ...
12
votes
2answers
99 views
Why did Moshe Rabbeinu object to the mirrors, but not the kumaz?
Why did Moshe Rabbeinu balk when the women wanted to donate their mirrors to the construction of the Mishkan (Rashi, Shemot 38:8), but not when the women donated their kumaz (Shemot 35:22), which were ...
1
vote
3answers
190 views
What does the term “sons of G-d” mean?
The term "sons of G-d" בני האלהים is found 3 times in the Hebrew Bible, once in Genesis (6:2), and twice in Job (1:6 and 2:1). What does it mean? Does it have the same meaning in both instances? What ...
7
votes
2answers
506 views
Why blessings on Mt. Gerizim and curses on Mt. Ebal?
Devarim 11:29 says:
וְהָיָה, כִּי יְבִיאֲךָ יְהוָה אֱלֹהֶיךָ, אֶל-הָאָרֶץ, אֲשֶׁר-אַתָּה בָא-שָׁמָּה לְרִשְׁתָּהּ--וְנָתַתָּה אֶת-הַבְּרָכָה עַל-הַר גְּרִזִים, וְאֶת-הַקְּלָלָה עַל-הַר עֵיבָל.
...
6
votes
2answers
244 views
Why can't Ploni Almoni be a real name, in Ruth?
The verse states (Ruth 4:1):
וּבֹעַז עָלָה הַשַּׁעַר, וַיֵּשֶׁב שָׁם, וְהִנֵּה הַגֹּאֵל עֹבֵר אֲשֶׁר דִּבֶּר-בֹּעַז, וַיֹּאמֶר סוּרָה שְׁבָה-פֹּה פְּלֹנִי אַלְמֹנִי; וַיָּסַר, וַיֵּשֵׁב
Now Boaz ...
7
votes
1answer
93 views
What was Moshe's “masveh”?
The Torah relates that Moshe donned a מסוה to hid the luminescence of his face, when addressing the community. What was the nature/appearance of this "masveh"?
7
votes
1answer
81 views
Did Esther eat at the first feast she made for the king and Haman?
Esther 5:1,5:4 says that Esther made the first feast on the third day of the fast.
Earlier (4:16), Esther tells Mordechai that she will also fast for three days.
Did she eat at the feast, or was ...
10
votes
1answer
94 views
Why not “Where is Achashverosh in the Torah”?
In Chullin 139b, the Gemara asks about hints in the Torah for several of the figures in the Megillah, and provides answers:
"Where is {Haman, Esther, Mordechai} hinted at in the Torah?" ...
6
votes
2answers
114 views
Donkey Talked and an Angel Appeared - Who Knew?
Why is no mention made of the reaction, of Balak’s officers who were accompanying Bilaam, to the talking donkey or the revelation of the angel?
7
votes
2answers
126 views
What does the aramaic “pon” mean?
Once in a while, Onkelos will throw in the word pon (פּוֹן) that doesn't directly translate from the Hebrew.
Avimelech to Yitzchak: k'z'eir pon shachiv d'm'yached b'ama (Toldos 26:10)
Lavan to ...
3
votes
1answer
69 views
Where does Rashi say “Complaint” in his commentary on the Torah?
When I was in 4th grade, my rebbi taught us a Rashi in which he explains a Pasuk by simply saying "Complaint" (קומפליינט or some similar transliteration), meaning the voice in the Pasuk was ...
4
votes
2answers
93 views
Make a Mikdash but we are making a Mishkan?
The Posuk says (Shemot 25:8):
וְעָשׂוּ לִי מִקְדָּשׁ וְשָׁכַנְתִּי בְּתוֹכָם
And let them make Me a sanctuary ('Mikdash'), that I may dwell among them.
I have two questions: first, this was ...
1
vote
3answers
74 views
Returning to Egypt on Boats
The Posuk says (Devarim 28:68):
וֶהֱשִׁיבְךָ יְ־הֹוָ־ה מִצְרַיִם בָּאֳנִיּוֹת בַּדֶּרֶךְ אֲשֶׁר אָמַרְתִּי לְךָ לֹא תֹסִיף עוֹד לִרְאֹתָהּ
And the LORD shall bring thee back into Egypt in ships, by ...
7
votes
2answers
206 views
What did the 70 elders see?
Parshat Mishpatim says of the 70 elders who went up on Har Sinai with Moshe and Aharon:
וַיִּרְאוּ, אֵת אֱלֹהֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל; וְתַחַת רַגְלָיו, כְּמַעֲשֵׂה לִבְנַת הַסַּפִּיר, וּכְעֶצֶם הַשָּׁמַיִם, ...
2
votes
2answers
128 views
Achashverosh — was he or wasn't he?
I'm looking to gather some more background, context, sources and opinions, regarding Achashverosh's Jewishness, or lack thereof.
This was inspired by a recent similar question, and, in fact, much of ...
10
votes
2answers
398 views
If shepherds are taboo to Egyptians, what do we make of them having sheep themselves?
Yosef tells his family to say they're shepherds because that's taboo to Egypt:
you must say, 'We and our fathers have dealt in livestock all our lives'. You will then be able to settle in the ...
