Questions tagged [parshanut-torah-comment]
interpretation of parts of Tanach by close reading, not derivation (Pronounced "par-sha-noot")
1,459
questions
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Why does it say “of Puvah, the clan of the Punites“?
In Bamidbar (26:23):
בְּנֵ֤י יִשָּׂשכָר֙ לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתָ֔ם תּוֹלָ֕ע מִשְׁפַּ֖חַת הַתּוֹלָעִ֑י לְפֻוָ֕ה מִשְׁפַּ֖חַת הַפּוּנִֽי׃
Descendants of Issachar by their clans: [Of] Tola, the clan of ...
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71 views
Torah verses with zero educational / Halachic value
Informational non-uniformity of the Torah bothers me a lot, I'd rather expect from a holy book to be evenly informational (cf. Parshas Mishpotim for example). (I remember asking a question once about ...
0
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56 views
Source for the commentary that Miriam died “to teach that death is mysterious”?
So, a few weeks ago I was looking up some sources on the death of Miriam in preparation for a D'var Torah, and came across a very brief commentary that she died "to teach that death is mysterious" (or ...
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0answers
61 views
Why a Mitzvah object wasn't used to make people look up?
In Parshas Chukkas, God commands Moses to make a bronze serpent and put in on a standard:
וַיֹּאמֶר ה' אֶל־מֹשֶׁה עֲשֵׂה לְךָ שָׂרָף וְשִׂים אֹתוֹ עַל־נֵס וְהָיָה כָּל־הַנָּשׁוּךְ וְרָאָה אֹתוֹ ...
-3
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0answers
71 views
Why did Moses stop the plague of snakes in the middle?
I'm looking for an explanation of Moses' advice to Aharon of stopping the epidemic of snakes (whatever it was) in the middle (Parashas Chukas).
In my understanding, G-d is just and knows everyone's ...
1
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1answer
66 views
Of what material were the staffs made in Parshas Korach?
Bamidbor 17 (17) records the instruction to take a staff for each of the chieftains.
דַּבֵּ֣ר ׀ אֶל־בְּנֵ֣י יִשְׂרָאֵ֗ל וְקַ֣ח מֵֽאִתָּ֡ם מַטֶּ֣ה מַטֶּה֩
לְבֵ֨ית אָ֜ב מֵאֵ֤ת כָּל־נְשִֽׂיאֵהֶם֙ ...
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1answer
46 views
Korach vs Elitzafan - what's the big deal?
Rashi on Korach's claims:
וּמָה רָאָה קֹרַח לַחֲלֹק עִם מֹשֶׁה?
נִתְקַנֵּא עַל נְשִׂיאוּתוֹ שֶׁל אֱלִיצָפָן בֶּן עֻזִּיאֵל,
שֶׁמִּנָּהוּ מֹשֶׁה נָשִׂיא עַל בְּנֵי קְהָת עַל פִּי הַדִּבּוּר
...
0
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72 views
Korach's logic regarding the link between birth order and jobs
I'm confused with Rashi's view on Korach's claims:
"אָמַר קֹרַח, אַחֵי אַבָּא אַרְבָּעָה הָיוּ,
עַמְרָם הַבְּכוֹר נָטְלוּ שְׁנֵי בָנָיו גְּדֻלָּה ...
מִי רָאוּי לִטֹּל אֶת הַשְּׁנִיָּה?
לֹא ...
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33 views
How are we allowed to judge Korach?
When listening to numerous rabbis showing their intellectual and religious superiority to the leading figures of Dor Hamidbar (not limited to), claiming to know the right answers and behaviors the ...
0
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1answer
28 views
Clarifying Korach's practical demands
Pretty strangely for me, the Korach plans and intentions are widely discussed by interpreters (see this question). In the Torah, He uttered two clear statements:
all the community are holy, all of ...
0
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1answer
29 views
How many did Moshe/Aharon have on their side?
Korach had "250" on his side. How many did Moshe/Aharon have on their side?
What do the rabbis say?
0
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1answer
46 views
Explain usage of “kaved” re Moshe's raising his hands w/ war of Amaleq
In Shemot 17:12 it says:
וידי משה כבדים
Targum (and Rash"i in a sense) translates כבדים as יקרן, which I gather means "precious".
I don't know where or how this translation fits here. Doesn't כבד ...
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0answers
28 views
Did all the spies stay together throughout the entire mission?
In viewing Rash"i on Bemidbar 13:21-22, it seems that the Torah lists things out of order unless it is describing "general" first and then "specifics".
In other words - in reading Rash"i on verse 21, ...
2
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3answers
224 views
Pshat of what did Korach take?
In Parashat Korach (Bamidbar 16:1-2):
וַיִּקַּ֣ח קֹ֔רַח בֶּן־יִצְהָ֥ר בֶּן־קְהָ֖ת בֶּן־לֵוִ֑י וְדָתָ֨ן וַאֲבִירָ֜ם בְּנֵ֧י אֱלִיאָ֛ב וְא֥וֹן בֶּן־פֶּ֖לֶת בְּנֵ֥י רְאוּבֵֽן׃
ב וַיָּקֻ֙מוּ֙ ...
0
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1answer
56 views
Contradiction in the idea of sending spies
Currently, I'm presented with two views on the purpose of sending spies - some commentators say that the purpose was strictly military (to learn the strategy), and some say to probe the land's ...
4
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1answer
29 views
How did B'nai Yisra'el differentiate what the departure of the cloud meant?
I'm curious about various functions of the cloud that rested on Ohel Mo'ed. For example:
In Bemidbar 9:17 - 18 its says that B'nai Yisra'el would camp while the cloud was resting on the Ohel Mo'ed, ...
1
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0answers
35 views
Why were Leah and Bilhah's tribes larger than Rachel and Zilpah's?
I plotted the census results given in Bamidbar, and it struck me that the tribes descended from Rachel are very small. In contrast, those descended from Leah have population counts between average and ...
2
votes
2answers
68 views
What made Moses want to be killed after people asked for meat?
In Parashat Bealotchah, when the people asked for meat Moses' reaction went eccentric (Num. 11:10):
מֵאַיִן לִי בָּשָׂר לָתֵת לְכָל־הָעָם הַזֶּה כִּי־יִבְכּוּ עָלַי לֵאמֹר תְּנָה־לָּנוּ בָשָׂר ...
3
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2answers
612 views
Sources that Reuven slept with Bilah
Okay, so this is how it seems like the correct translation of this pasuk is:
that Reuven went and lay with Bilhah, his father’s concubine…” (Bereshit 35:21-22) That would be an unbelievable act if ...
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1answer
25 views
Commentary on Psalm 23:4 is this accurate? [closed]
raashi commentary on the verse in psalm
"Valley of the shadow of death"
Good nefeshim do not suffer the pangs of death as much as evil nefeshim suffer, for the hazaruth ha mautim touches the ...
0
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2answers
72 views
Why do some translators translate “to prophesy” as to “speak in ecstasy”?
Why do translators translate "to prophesy" as to "speak in ecstasy"?
Why do the Jewish translators, for example, in the Sefaria translation of the below passages, translate "to prophesy" as to "...
3
votes
1answer
28 views
Why does the book of Shmuel present two origins for the expression “Is Shaul too among the prophets”?
Shmuel I 10:10-12:
וַיָּבֹ֤אוּ שָׁם֙ הַגִּבְעָ֔תָה וְהִנֵּ֥ה חֶֽבֶל־נְבִאִ֖ים לִקְרָאת֑וֹ וַתִּצְלַ֤ח עָלָיו֙ ר֣וּחַ אֱלֹהִ֔ים וַיִּתְנַבֵּ֖א בְּתוֹכָֽם׃
וַיְהִ֗י כָּל־יֽוֹדְעוֹ֙ מֵאִתְּמ֣וֹל ...
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Why Abel didn't ask Cain to bring his sacrifice?
The Torah declares that before Matan Torah, the firstborns were responsible for bringing sacrifices and Cohanim replaced them after the Golden Calf incident (Num 3,40):
:וְלָקַחְתָּ אֶת־הַלְוִיִּם ...
1
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2answers
158 views
What is the meaning of Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim 12:5 when it uses the Hebrew phrase “כִּי מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ דֵּעָה אֶת ה'”?
In Mishneh Torah, Hilchot Melachim 12:5, Rambam quotes Isaiah 11:9 using the phrase:
כִּי מָלְאָה הָאָרֶץ דֵּעָה אֶת ה' כַּמַּיִם לַיָּם מְכַסִּים
This is commonly translated as, That the earth ...
4
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3answers
51 views
Connection Between Tochacha and Evaluating People (Arechin) [duplicate]
Immediately after the long Tochacha of Bechukosai (Vayikra 26:14), the Torah continues with Arechin (Vayikra 27)- evalutating people's value in money to be consecrated for the Mishkan/Beis HaMikdash. ...
4
votes
1answer
58 views
What is the oldest extant source which attributes Targum Pseudo-Jonathan to Yonasan Ben Uziel?
There’s an impressive list of proofs that what’s commonly called Targum Yonasan on the Chumash was not, in fact, written by Yonasan Ben Uziel.
Where did the rumor start that it was actually written ...
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Laws given at locations
There were many divrei Torah that I read recently which addressed the question of mah inyan sh'mittah Etzel har Sinai, why does the Torah point out specifically that the concept and laws of the Sh'...
3
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1answer
75 views
Why did Moshe need Hobab as a guide?
וַיֹּ֕אמֶר אַל־נָ֖א תַּעֲזֹ֣ב אֹתָ֑נוּ כִּ֣י ׀ עַל־כֵּ֣ן יָדַ֗עְתָּ חֲנֹתֵ֙נוּ֙ בַּמִּדְבָּ֔ר וְהָיִ֥יתָ לָּ֖נוּ לְעֵינָֽיִם׃
He said, “Please do not leave us, inasmuch as you know where we ...
3
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3answers
71 views
Why are laws of damages written in the middle of the story of the blasphemer?
In the end of Parshas Emor (Vayikra 24:10-23), the Torah relates the story of someone who blasphemed and his punishment. After the person blasphemes, he is put in a prison while Moshe proceeds to ask ...
1
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2answers
135 views
Why is the 7th commandment restricted to adultery?
The seventh of the ten commandments is Lo Tin'af, do not engage in adultery. But the Talmud tells us that we may break all commandments to save a life, except those against idolatry, murder and sexual ...
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Malkizedek, Jerusalem and the Temple Mount
וּמַלְכִּי־צֶדֶק מֶלֶךְ שָׁלֵם הוֹצִיא לֶחֶם וָיָיִן וְהוּא כֹהֵן לְאֵל עֶלְיוֹן׃
And King Melchizedek of Salem brought out bread and wine; he was a priest of God Most High. (Ber 14, 18)
Many ...
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0answers
44 views
Are Abraham Ibn Ezra and Moshe Ibn Ezra related? [closed]
Are these two figures of Jew tradition related, and if so, can anyone point me to any encyclopedia articles which deal with this question?
2
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1answer
63 views
(How) did the M'kallel know he was doing something the warranted death?
In Vayikra 24:12 it says they placed the person who cursed God in jail. The gemarah (Sanhedrin 78b) explains that Moshe did not know if this person's actions warranted the death punishment and that ...
4
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0answers
22 views
Honoring parents - before and after Shabbos
In the Decalogue (Parashas Yisroh):
Keeping Shabbos is called Zachor (positive Mitzvah)
It precedes Honoring parents
Honoring is a positive Mitzvah (כבד).
In Parashas Kdoshim it says the "opposite" ...
4
votes
0answers
90 views
Why is the Sinai revelation of the Decalogue called “Matan Torah”? [duplicate]
This question focuses on the term "Matan Torah" used everywhere, its practical and factual events (no metaphors, please). Also, this is not about the festival of Shavuos as in this question.
I've ...
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1answer
76 views
Why do we use the term “Jew” or “Jewish” when referencing people in the Torah/Chumash passages?
Why do we use the term "Jew" or "Jewish" when referencing people in the Torah/Chumash passages?
In the Torah (the Chumash), the "children of Israel" are called just that "בני ישראל" or Israelite.
...
3
votes
1answer
56 views
How does everything that breathes praise God?
I know this was asked before as a joke, but it really IS a serious question. Psalm 150 says:
כֹּ֣ל הַ֭נְּשָׁמָה תְּהַלֵּ֥ל יָ֗הּ
Everything that breathes praises God.
This includes cats, dogs, ...
2
votes
1answer
76 views
Source for Ramban regarding Devarim 30:7
According to Ramban (in the context of Vikuah), Devarim 30:7 applies both to notzrim and ishmaelim:
וקראתי להם פרשת והיה כי יבואו עליך כל הדברים האלה הברכה והקללה אשר
נתתי לפניך, וגמר הפרשה עד ...
6
votes
1answer
50 views
Source for Ir Miklat used to improve one's character
I heard in a shiur that one purpose for sending an accidental killer to the arei miklat, the cities of refuge, was so that he could improve his character. He would be surrounded by the Leviim, and ...
1
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0answers
58 views
“Vaishakehu” Extra Points over entire word? or some letters?
Shalom!
The famous Passuk on which Esav and Jaacov ran, hug, kiss and cry.
The Word VAISHAKEHU has points-dots over every leter.
Siftei Chakhamim seems to have VAISHAKEHU וישקהו with 5 nekudot, ...
2
votes
0answers
34 views
In Exodus, when exactly they “could not delay” until the dough was leavened?
THe Torah says (Ex 12,39):
וַיֹּאפוּ אֶת־הַבָּצֵק אֲשֶׁר הוֹצִיאוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם עֻגֹת מַצּוֹת כִּי לֹא חָמֵץ כִּי־גֹרְשׁוּ מִמִּצְרַיִם וְלֹא יָכְלוּ לְהִתְמַהְמֵהַּ וְגַם־צֵדָה לֹא־עָשׂוּ לָהֶם׃
...
1
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1answer
29 views
Did Adam and Eve realize they sinned?
This question must precede "why-didnt-adam-ask-for-forgiveness".
A short recap of the events as I understand it:
G-d asks Adam not to eat from the tree, Eve is brought to Adam to be his supporter, ...
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votes
1answer
47 views
How did Lavan become so evil and why wasn't he punished?
As in the previous question, the Haggadah mentions the wickedness of Lavan that surpasses the wickedness of Pharaoh.
THat wickedness seems inconsistent with the general story of the Torah - Eisov was ...
0
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0answers
56 views
Where does Pharaoh's wickedness stem from?
The Torah brings very descriptive lineage of the Good guys (us) and the Bad guys (Eusov's Alufim, Amolek from Eisov etc) but reciting the Haggadah I was stumbled by the fact that Pharaoh's wickedness ...
0
votes
1answer
45 views
Why at the Seder night it is not sufficient to be wise?
The Haggadah says:
וַאֲפִילוּ כֻּלָּנוּ חֲכָמִים, כֻּלָּנוּ נְבוֹנִים, כֻּלָנוּ זְקֵנִים, כֻּלָנוּ יוֹדְעִים אֶת הַתּוֹרָה
Listing 4 different qualities means that each one is not sufficient, and ...
3
votes
2answers
107 views
What is R. Chananel's/R. Bachye's calculation of the years in Egypt?
In this answer I collected the opinions of various biblical commentators as to how many years the Israelites actually spent in Egypt. One of those views was that expressed by R. Chananel, as recorded ...
0
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1answer
30 views
What's the difference between two potential (כוחניים) maters the Yuly and the second
I read in the Abarbanel on Bereishit 1:1,quoting the Ramban, that on the first day Hashem created two types of primordial matter:
הראשון לבד שני חמרים מבלי צורה כוחניים בטבעם כענין ההיולי הראשון ...
0
votes
1answer
46 views
Body Parallels to the Creation
Inspired by this question.
Some commentaries viewed maaseh bereishis to be the literal description of the creation, and some interpret it in an allegorical fashion. I recall hearing somewhere that ...
5
votes
1answer
302 views
How did Beeri the Hittite come up with naming his daughter Yehudit?
וַיְהִי עֵשָׂו בֶּן־אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וַיִּקַּח אִשָּׁה אֶת־יְהוּדִית בַּת־בְּאֵרִי הַחִתִּי
וְאֶת־בָּשְׂמַת בַּת־אֵילֹן הַחִתִּי׃
When Esau was forty years old, he took to wife Judith ...
0
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1answer
49 views
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 ...
