Ki Tisa
Encyclopedia
Ki Tisa, Ki Tissa, Ki Thissa, or Ki Sisa (כִּי תִשָּׂא — Hebrew
for “when you take,” the sixth and seventh words, and first distinctive words in the parshah) is the 21st weekly Torah portion (parshah) in the annual Jewish
cycle of Torah reading
and the ninth in the book of Exodus. It constitutes Jews in the Diaspora
read it the 21st Sabbath
after Simchat Torah
, generally in late February or March.
Jews also read the first part of the parshah, regarding the half-shekel
head tax, as the maftir
Torah reading on the special Sabbath
Shabbat Shekalim (February 17, 2012 (read with parshah Mishpatim
); February 9, 2013 (read with parshah Mishpatim); and March 1, 2014 (read with parshah Pekudei
)). Jews also read parts of the parshah addressing the intercession of Moses
and God’s
mercy, and as the Torah readings on the fast days of the Tenth of Tevet
, the Fast of Esther
, the Seventeenth of Tammuz
, and the Fast of Gedalia
h, and for the afternoon (Mincha) prayer service
on Tisha B'Av
. Jews read another part of the parshah, which addresses the Three Pilgrim Festivals (Shalosh Regalim), as the initial Torah reading on the third intermediate day (Chol HaMoed
) of Passover
. And Jews read a larger selection from the same part of the parshah, as the initial Torah reading on a Sabbath that falls on one of the intermediate days of Passover or Sukkot
.
of the Israelites, each person 20 years old or older, regardless of wealth, should give a half-shekel offering. God told Moses to assign the proceeds to the service of the Tent of Meeting.
God told Moses to place a copper
laver between the Tent of Meeting and the altar
, so that Aaron
and the priests
could wash their hand
s and feet in water
when they entered the Tent of Meeting or approached the altar to burn a sacrifice
, so that they would not die.
God directed Moses to make a sacred anointing oil from choice spice
s — myrrh
, cinnamon
, cassia — and olive oil
. God told Moses to use it to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the furnishings of the Tabernacle
, and the priests. God told Moses to warn the Israelites not to copy the sacred anointing oil’s recipe for lay purposes, at pain of exile
.
God directed Moses make sacred incense
from herb
s — stacte, onycha, galbanum
, and frankincense
— to burn in the Tent of Meeting. ) As with the anointing oil, God warned against making incense from the same recipe for lay purposes.
God informed Moses that God had endowed Bezalel
of the Tribe of Judah
with divine skill in every kind of craft. God assigned to him Oholiab of the Tribe of Dan
and granted skill to all who are skillful, that they might make the furnishings of the Tabernacle, the priests’ vestments, the anointing oil, and the incense. God told Moses to admonish the Israelites nevertheless to keep the Sabbath, on pain of death. Then God gave Moses two stone tablets inscribed by the finger of God.
earring
s, and he cast them in a mold and made a molten golden calf
. They exclaimed, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt
!” Aaron built an altar before the calf, and announced a festival of the Lord. The people offered sacrifices, ate, drank, and danced.
God told Moses what the people had done, saying “let Me be, that My anger may blaze forth against them and that I may destroy them, and make of you a great nation.” But Moses implored God not to do so, lest the Egyptians say that God delivered the people only to kill them off in the mountains. Moses called on God to remember Abraham
, Isaac
, and Jacob
, and God’s oath to make their offspring as numerous as the star
s, and God renounced the planned punishment.
Moses went down the mountain bearing the two tablets. Joshua
told Moses, “There is a cry of war in the camp,” but Moses answered, “It is the sound of song that I hear!”
When Moses saw the calf and the dancing, he became enraged and shattered the tablets at the foot of the mountain. He burned the calf, ground it to powder, strewed it upon the water, and made the Israelites drink it. When Moses asked Aaron how he committed such a great sin, Aaron replied that the people asked him to make a god, so he hurled their gold into the fire, “and out came this calf!”
Seeing that Aaron had let the people get out of control, Moses stood in the camp gate and called, “Whoever is for the Lord, come here!” All the Levite
s rallied to Moses, and at his instruction killed 3,000 people, including brother, neighbor, and kin.
Moses went back to God and asked for God either to forgive the Israelites or kill Moses too, but God insisted on punishing only the sinners, which God did by means of a plague.
, but God decided not to go in their midst, for fear of destroying them on the way. Upon hearing this, the Israelites went into mourning. Now Moses would pitch the Tent of Meeting outside the camp, and Moses would enter to speak to God, face to face. Moses asked God whom God would send with Moses to lead the people. Moses further asked God to let him know God’s ways, that Moses might know God and continue in God’s favor. And God agreed to lead the Israelites. Moses asked God not to make the Israelites move unless God were to go in the lead, and God agreed. Moses asked God to let him behold God’s Presence. God agreed to make all God’s goodness pass before Moses and to proclaim God’s name and nature, but God explained that no human could see God’s face and live. God instructed Moses to station himself on a rock, where God would cover him with God’s hand until God had passed, at which point Moses could see God’s back.
God directed Moses to carve two stone tablets like the ones that Moses shattered, so that God might inscribe upon them the words that were on the first tablets, and Moses did so.
God came down in a cloud
and proclaimed: “The Lord! The Lord! A God compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness, extending kindness to the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet He does not remit all punishment, but visits the iniquity of parents upon children and children’s children, upon the third and fourth generations.”
Moses bowed low and asked God to accompany the people in their midst, to pardon the people’s iniquity, and to take them for God’s own. God replied by making a covenant to work unprecedented wonders and to drive out the peoples of the Promised Land. God warned Moses against making a covenant with them, lest they become a snare and induce the Israelites’ children to lust after their gods.
God commanded that the Israelites not make molten gods, that they consecrate or redeem every first-born, that they observe the Sabbath, that they observe the Three Pilgrim Festivals, that they not offer sacrifices with anything leavened
, that they not leave the Passover lamb
lying until morning, that they bring choice first fruits to the house of the Lord, and that they not boil a kid in its mother’s milk
.
, drank no water, and wrote down on the tablets the terms of the covenant. As Moses came down from the mountain bearing the two tablets, the skin of his face was radiant, and the Israelites shrank from him. Moses called them near and instructed them concerning all that God had commanded. When Moses finished speaking, he put a veil
over his face. Whenever Moses spoke with God, Moses would take his veil off. And when he came out, he would tell the Israelites what he had been commanded, and then Moses would then put the veil back over his face again.
1 Kings
reports a parallel story of golden calves. King Jeroboam
of the northern Kingdom of Israel made two calves of gold out of a desire to prevent the kingdom from returning to allegiance to the house of David and the southern Kingdom of Judah
. In the people said of the Golden Calf, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” Similalrly, in Jeroboam told the people of his golden calves, “You have gone up long enough to Jerusalem; behold your gods, O Israel, that brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” Jeroboam set up one of the calves in Bethel
, and the other in Dan, and the people went to worship before the calf in Dan. Jeroboam made houses of high place
s, and made priests from people who were not Levite
s. He ordained a feast like Sukkot on the fifteenth day of the eighth month (a month after the real Sukkot), and he went up to the altar at Bethel to sacrifice to the golden calves that he had made, and he installed his priests there.
of Passover, calling it “the Feast of Unleavened Bread.” In the Hebrew Bible
, Passover is called:
Some explain the double nomenclature of “Passover” and “Feast of Unleavened Bread” as referring to two separate feasts that the Israelites combined sometime between the Exodus
and when the Biblical text became settled. (See, e.g., W. Gunther Plaut
. The Torah: A Modern Commentary, 456. New York: Union of American Hebrew Congregations, 1981. ISBN 0-8074-0055-6.) and indicate that the dedication of the firstborn also became associated with the festival.
Some believe that the “Feast of Unleavened Bread” was an agricultural festival at which the Israelites celebrated the beginning of the grain harvest. Moses may have had this festival in mind when in and he petitioned Pharaoh to let the Israelites go to celebrate a feast in the wilderness. (Plaut, at 464.)
“Passover,” on the other hand, was associated with a thanksgiving sacrifice of a lamb, also called “the Passover,” “the Passover lamb,” or “the Passover offering.” ( 21, 27, 43, 48; 5–6; 17–18; 6–9, 11, 13.)
and and 5, and direct “Passover” to take place on the evening of the fourteenth of Aviv (Nisan
in the Hebrew calendar
after the Babylonian captivity
). and confirm that practice. and and direct the “Feast of Unleavened Bread” to take place over seven days and and direct that it begin on the fifteenth of the month. Some believe that the propinquity of the dates of the two festivals led to their confusion and merger. (Plaut, at 464.)
and 27 link the word “Passover” (Pesach, פֶּסַח) to God’s act to “pass over” (pasach, פָסַח) the Israelites’ houses in the plague
of the firstborn. In the Torah, the consolidated Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread thus commemorate the Israelites’ liberation from Egypt
. ( 3, 6.)
The Hebrew Bible frequently notes the Israelites’ observance of Passover at turning points in their history. reports God’s direction to the Israelites to observe Passover in the wilderness of Sinai
on the anniversary of their liberation from Egypt. reports that upon entering the Promised Land
, the Israelites kept the Passover on the plains of Jericho
and ate unleavened cakes and parched corn, produce of the land, the next day. reports that King Josiah
commanded the Israelites to keep the Passover in Jerusalem as part of Josiah’s reforms, but also notes that the Israelites had not kept such a Passover from the days of the Biblical judges
nor in all the days of the kings of Israel or the kings of Judah
, calling into question the observance of even Kings David
and Solomon
. The more reverent however, reports that Solomon offered sacrifices on the festivals, including the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And reports King Hezekiah
’s observance of a second Passover anew, as sufficient numbers of neither the priests nor the people were prepared to do so before then. And reports that the Israelites returned from the Babylonian captivity observed Passover, ate the Passover lamb, and kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy.
. In the Hebrew Bible, Shavuot is called:
associates Shavuot with the first-fruits (בִּכּוּרֵי, bikurei) of the wheat harvest. (See also ) In turn, set out the ceremony for the bringing of the first fruits.
To arrive at the correct date, instructs counting seven weeks from the day after the day of rest of Passover, the day that they brought the sheaf of barley for waving. Similarly, directs counting seven weeks from when they first put the sickle to the standing barley.
sets out a course of offerings for the fiftieth day, including a meal-offering of two loaves made from fine flour from the first-fruits of the harvest; burnt-offerings of seven lambs, one bullock, and two rams; a sin-offering of a goat; and a peace-offering of two lambs. Similarly, sets out a course of offerings including a meal-offering; burnt-offerings of two bullocks, one ram, and seven lambs; and one goat to make atonement. directs a freewill-offering in relation to God’s blessing.
and ordain a holy convocation in which the Israelites were not to work.
reports that Solomon offered burnt-offerings on the Feast of Weeks.
Sukkot’s agricultural origin is evident from the name "The Feast of Ingathering," from the ceremonies accompanying it, and from the season and occasion of its celebration: "At the end of the year when you gather in your labors out of the field" ; "after you have gathered in from your threshing-floor and from your winepress." It was a thanksgiving for the fruit harvest. (Compare .) And in what may explain the festival’s name, Isaiah
reports that grape harvesters kept booths in their vineyards. (Isaiah
) Coming as it did at the completion of the harvest, Sukkot was regarded as a general thanksgiving for the bounty of nature in the year that had passed.
Sukkot became one of the most important feasts in Judaism, as indicated by its designation as “the Feast of the Lord” or simply “the Feast.” ( 65; ) Perhaps because of its wide attendance, Sukkot became the appropriate time for important state ceremonies. Moses instructed the children of Israel to gather for a reading of the Law during Sukkot every seventh year. King Solomon dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem
on Sukkot. And Sukkot was the first sacred occasion observed after the resumption of sacrifices in Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity.
In the time of Nehemiah
, after the Babylonian captivity, the Israelites celebrated Sukkot by making and dwelling in booths, a practice of which Nehemiah reports: “the Israelites had not done so from the days of Joshua.” In a practice related to that of the Four Species
, Nehemiah also reports that the Israelites found in the Law the commandment that they “go out to the mountains and bring leafy branches of olive
trees, pine
trees, myrtle
s, palms
and [other] leafy trees to make booths.” In God told Moses to command the people: “On the first day you shall take the product of hadar trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willow
s of the brook,” and “You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths, in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt.” The book of Numbers, however, indicates that while in the wilderness, the Israelites dwelt in tents. Some secular scholars consider (the commandments regarding booths and the four species) to be an insertion by a later redactor. (E.g., Richard Elliott Friedman
. The Bible with Sources Revealed, 228–29. New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 2003.)
King Jeroboam of the northern Kingdom of Israel, whom describes as practicing “his evil way,” celebrated a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, one month after Sukkot, “in imitation of the festival in Judah.” “While Jeroboam was standing on the altar
to present the offering, the man of God, at the command of the Lord, cried out against the altar” in disapproval.
According to the prophet Zechariah, in the messianic era, Sukkot will become a universal festival, and all nations will make pilgrimages annually to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast there.
taught that Moses asked God how Israel would be exalted, and God replied in the words of (about collecting the half-shekel tax), “When you raise them up,” teaching that collecting contributions from the people elevates them. (Babylonian Talmud
Bava Batra 10b.) The first four chapters of Tractate Shekalim in the Mishnah
, Tosefta
, and Talmud interpreted the law of the half-shekel head tax commanded by (Mishnah Shekalim 1:1–4:9; Tosefta Shekalim 1:1–3:1; Babylonian Talmud Shekalim 2a–13a.)
said in the name of Rabbi Johanan
that Bezalel (whose name can be read betzel El, “in the shadow of God”) was so called because of his wisdom. When God told Moses (in ) to tell Bezalel to make a tabernacle, an ark, and vessels, Moses reversed the order and told Bezalel to make an ark, vessels, and a tabernacle. Bezalel replied to Moses that as a rule, one first builds a house and then brings vessels into it, but Moses directed to make an ark, vessels, and a tabernacle. Bezalel asked where he would put the vessels. And Bezalel asked whether God had told Moses to make a tabernacle, an ark, and vessels. Moses replied that perhaps Bezalel had been in the shadow of God (betzel El) and had thus come to know this. (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 55a.)
Tractate Shabbat
in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud
, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of the Sabbath in and 29; (20:8–11 in the NJPS); and (5:12 in the NJPS). (Mishnah Shabbat 1:1–24:5; Tosefta Shabbat 1:1–17:29; Jerusalem Talmud Shabbat 1a–; Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 2a–157b.)
Reading the words “everyone who profanes [the Sabbath] shall surely be put to death” in (in which the verb for death is doubled), Samuel
deduced that the Torah decreed many deaths for desecrating the Sabbath. The Gemara
posited that perhaps refers to willful desecration. The Gemara answered that is not needed to teach that willful transgression of the Sabbath is a capital crime, for says, “Whoever does any work therein shall be put to death.” The Gemara concluded that thus must apply to an unwitting offender, and in that context, the words “shall surely be put to death” mean that the inadvertent Sabbath violator will “die” monetarily because of the violator’s need to bring costly sacrifices. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 70a.)
taught that because of God’s displeasure with the Israelites, the north wind did not blow on them in any of the 40 years during which they wandered in the wilderness. Rashi
attributed God’s displeasure to the golden calf, although the Tosafot
attributed it to the incident of the spies in (Babylonian Talmud Yevamot 72a.)
Did the prayer of Moses in change God’s harsh decree? On this subject, Rabbi Abbahu
interpreted David
’s last words, as reported in 2 Samuel
where David reported that God told him, “Ruler over man shall be the righteous, even he that rules through the fear of God.” Rabbi Abbahu read to teach that God rules humankind, but the righteous rule God, for God makes a decree, and the righteous may through their prayer annul it. (Babylonian Talmud Moed Katan 16b.)
Rava
employed to interpret which says: “And Moses besought (va-yechal) the Lord his God” in connection with the incident of the golden calf. Rava noted that uses the term “besought” (va-yechal), while uses the similar term “break” (yachel) in connection with vows. Transferring the use of to Rava reasoned that meant that Moses stood in prayer before God until Moses annulled for God God’s vow to destroy Israel, for a master had taught that while people cannot break their vows, others may annul their vows for them. (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 32a.) Similarly, Rabbi Berekiah taught in the name of Rabbi Helbo
in the name of Rabbi Isaac that Moses absolved God of God’s vow. When the Israelites made the golden calf, Moses began to persuade God to forgive them, but God explained to Moses that God had already taken an oath in that “he who sacrifices to the gods . . . shall be utterly destroyed,” and God could not retract an oath. Moses responded by asking whether God had not granted Moses the power to annul oaths in by saying, “When a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word,” implying that while he himself could not break his word, a scholar could absolve his vow. So Moses wrapped himself in his cloak and adopted the posture of a sage, and God stood before Moses as one asking for the annulment of a vow. (Exodus Rabbah
43:4.)
The Gemara deduced from the example of Moses in that one should seek an interceding frame of mind before praying. Rav Huna
and Rav Hisda
were discussing how long to wait between recitations of the Amidah
prayer if one erred in the first reciting and needed to repeat the prayer. One said: long enough for the person praying to fall into a suppliant frame of mind, citing the words “And I supplicated the Lord” in The other said: long enough to fall into an interceding frame of mind, citing the words “And Moses interceded” in (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 30b.)
Interpreting on the “tablets that were written on both their sides,” Rav Chisda
said that the writing of the tablets was cut completely through the tablets, so that it could be read from either side. Thus the letters mem
and samekh
, which each form a complete polygon, left some of the stone tablets in the middle of those letters standing in the air where they were held stable only by a miracle. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 104a.)
A midrash
explained why Moses broke the stone tablets. When the Israelites committed the sin of the Golden Calf, God sat in judgment to condemn them, as says, “Let Me alone, that I may destroy them,” but God had not yet condemned them. So Moses took the tablets from God to appease God’s wrath. The midrash compared the act of Moses to that of a king’s marriage-broker. The king sent the broker to secure a wife for the king, but while the broker was on the road, the woman corrupted herself with another man. The broker (who was entirely innocent) took the marriage document that the king had given the broker to seal the marriage and tore it, reasoning that it would be better for the woman to be judged as an unmarried woman than as a wife. (Exodus Rabbah 43:1.)
A Baraita taught that when Moses broke the tablets in it was one of three actions that Moses took based on his own understanding with which God then agreed. The Gemara explained that Moses reasoned that if the Passover lamb, which was just one of the 613 commandments, was prohibited by to aliens, then certainly the whole Torah should be prohibited to the Israelites, who had acted as apostates with the golden calf. The Gemara deduced God’s approval from God’s mention of Moses’ breaking the tablets in Resh Lakish interpreted this to mean that God gave Moses strength because he broke the tablets. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 87a.)
Reading the report of that Moses “took the calf . . . ground it to powder, and sprinkled it on the water, and made the children of Israel drink it,” the Sages interpreted that Moses meant to test the Israelites much as the procedure of tested a wife accused of adultery (sotah). (Babylonian Talmud Avodah Zarah 44a.)
The Rabbis taught that through the word “this,” Aaron became degraded, as it is said in “And Aaron said: ‘. . . I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf,’” and through the word “this,” Aaron was also elevated, as it is said in “This is the offering of Aaron and of his sons, which they shall offer to the Lord on the day when he is anointed” to become High Priest. (Leviticus Rabbah
8:1.)
A midrash noted that Israel sinned with fire in making the Golden Calf, as says, “And I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf.” And then Bezalel came and healed the wound (and the construction of the Tabernacle made atonement for the sins of the people in making the Golden Calf). The midrash likened it to the words of “Behold, I have created the smith who blows the fire of coals.” The midrash taught that Bezalel was the smith whom God had created to address the fire. And the midrash likened it to the case of a doctor's disciple who applied a plaster to a wound and healed it. When people began to praise him, his teacher, the doctor, said that they should praise the doctor, for he taught the disciple. Similarly, when everybody said that Bezalel had constructed the Tabernacle through his knowledge and understanding, God said that it was God who created him and taught him, as says, “Behold, I have created the smith.” Thus Moses said in “see, the Lord has called by name Bezalel.” (Exodus Rabbah 48:5.)
Rav Nahman bar Isaac
derived from the words “if not, blot me, I pray, out of Your book that You have written” in that three books are opened in heaven on Rosh Hashanah
. Rav Kruspedai said in the name of Rabbi Johanan that on Rosh Hashanah, three books are opened in heaven — one for the thoroughly wicked, one for the thoroughly righteous, and one for those in between. The thoroughly righteous are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of life. The thoroughly wicked are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of death. And the fate of those in between is suspended from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur. If they deserve well, then they are inscribed in the book of life; if they do not deserve well, then they are inscribed in the book of death. Rabbi Abin said that Psalm
tells us this when it says, “Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.” “Let them be blotted out from the book” refers to the book of the wicked. “Of the living” refers to the book of the righteous. “And not be written with the righteous” refers to the book of those in between. Rav Nahman bar Isaac derived this from where Moses told God, “if not, blot me, I pray, out of Your book that You have written.” “Blot me, I pray” refers to the book of the wicked. “Out of Your book” refers to the book of the righteous. “That you have written” refers to the book of those in between. (Babylonian Talmud Rosh Hashanah 16b.)
taught that when the Israelites gave precedence to “we will do” over “we will hear,” 600,000 ministering angels came and set two crowns on each Israelite man, one as a reward for “we will do” and the other as a reward for “we will hearken.” But as soon as the Israelites committed the sin of the golden calf, 1.2 million destroying angels descended and removed the crowns, as it is said in “And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments from mount Horeb.” (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 88a.)
The Gemara reported a number of Rabbis’ reports of how the Land of Israel did indeed flow with “milk and honey,” as described in and 17, and and and and 15, and Once when Rami bar Ezekiel visited Bnei Brak, he saw goats grazing under fig trees while honey was flowing from the figs, and milk dripped from the goats mingling with the fig honey, causing him to remark that it was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey. Rabbi Jacob ben Dostai said that it is about three miles from Lod
to Ono
, and once he rose up early in the morning and waded all that way up to his ankles in fig honey. Resh Lakish said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey of Sepphoris
extend over an area of sixteen miles by sixteen miles. Rabbah bar Bar Hana said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey in all the Land of Israel and the total area was equal to an area of twenty-two parasang
s by six parasangs. (Babylonian Talmud Ketubot 111b–12a.)
Rav Judah
taught in the name of Rav
that as Moses was dying, Joshua quoted back to Moses the report of about how Joshua stood by the side of Moses all the time. Rav Judah reported in the name of Rav that when Moses was dying, he invited Joshua to ask him about any doubts that Joshua might have. Joshua replied by asking Moses whether Joshua had ever left Moses for an hour and gone elsewhere. Joshua asked Moses whether Moses had not written in “The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one man speaks to another. . . . But his servant Joshua the son of Nun departed not out of the Tabernacle.” Joshua’s words wounded Moses, and immediately the strength of Moses waned, and Joshua forgot 300 laws, and 700 doubts concerning laws arose in Joshua’s mind. The Israelites then arose to kill Joshua (unless he could resolve these doubts). God then told Joshua that it was not possible to tell him the answers (for, as tells, the Torah is not in Heaven). Instead, God then directed Joshua to occupy the Israelites’ attention in war, as reports. (Babylonian Talmud Temurah 16a.)
Rav Nachman
taught that the angel
of whom God spoke in was Metatron
(מטטרון). Rav Nahman warned that one who is as skilled in refuting heretics as Rav Idit should do so, but others should not. Once a heretic asked Rav Idit why says, “And to Moses He said, ‘Come up to the Lord,’” when surely God should have said, “Come up to Me.” Rav Idit replied that it was the angel Metatron who said that, and that Metatron’s name is similar to that of his Master (and indeed the gematria
(numerical value of the Hebrew letters) of Metatron (מטטרון) equals that of Shadai (שַׁדַּי), God’s name in Genesis and elsewhere) for says, “for my name is in him.” But if so, the heretic retorted, we should worship Metatron. Rav Idit replied that also says, “Be not rebellious against him,” by which God meant, “Do not exchange Me for him” (as the word for “rebel,” (tamer,תַּמֵּר) derives from the same root as the word “exchange”). The heretic then asked why then says, “he will not pardon your transgression.” Rav Idit answered that indeed Metatron has no authority to forgive sins, and the Israelites would not accept him even as a messenger, for reports that Moses told God, “If Your Presence does not go with me, do not carry us up from here.” (Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 38b.)
A Baraita taught in the name of Rabbi Joshua ben Korhah that God told Moses that when God wanted to be seen at the burning bush
, Moses did not want to see God’s face; Moses hid his face in for he was afraid to look upon God. And then in when Moses wanted to see God, God did not want to be seen; in God said, “You cannot see My face.” But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of Rabbi Jonathan
that in compensation for three pious acts that Moses did at the burning bush, he was privileged to obtain three rewards. In reward for hiding his face in his face shone in In reward his fear of God in the Israelites were afraid to come near him in In reward for his reticence “to look upon God,” he beheld the similitude of God in (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 7a.)
Rabbi Jose ben Halafta
employed to help explain how God can be called “the Place.” Reading the words, “And he lighted upon the place,” in to mean, “And he met the Divine Presence (Shechinah
),” Rav Huna asked in Rabbi Ammi
's name why assigns to God the name “the Place.” Rav Huna explained that it is because God is the Place of the world (the world is contained in God, and not God in the world). Rabbi Jose ben Halafta taught that we do not know whether God is the place of God’s world or whether God’s world is God’s place, but from which says, “Behold, there is a place with Me,” it follows that God is the place of God’s world, but God’s world is not God’s place. Rabbi Isaac taught that reading “The eternal God is a dwelling place,” one cannot know whether God is the dwelling-place of God’s world or whether God’s world is God’s dwelling-place. But reading “Lord, You have been our dwelling-place,” it follows that God is the dwelling-place of God’s world, but God’s world is not God’s dwelling-place. And Rabbi Abba ben Judan taught that God is like a warrior riding a horse with the warrior’s robes flowing over on both sides of the horse. The horse is subsidiary to the rider, but the rider is not subsidiary to the horse. Thus Habakkuk
says, “You ride upon Your horses, upon Your chariots of victory.” (Genesis Rabbah 68:9.)
explained why God carved the first two tablets but Moses carved the second two, as God instructed in Rabban Johanan ben Zakkai compared it to the case of a king who took a wife and paid for the paper for the marriage contract, the scribe, and the wedding dress. But when he saw her cavorting with one of his servants, he became angry with her and sent her away. Her agent came to the king and argued that she had been raised among servants and was thus familiar with them. The king told the agent that if he wished that the king should become reconciled with her, the agent should pay for the paper and the scribe for a new wedding contract and the king would sign it. Similarly, Moses spoke to God after the Israelites had committed the sin of the golden calf. Moses argued that God knew that God had brought the Israelites out of Egypt, a house of idolatry. Then God answered that if Moses desired that God should become reconciled with the Israelites, then Moses would have to bring the tablets at his own expense and God would append God’s signature, as God says in “And I will write upon the tables.” (Deuteronomy Rabbah 3:17.)
In Moses foretold that “A prophet will the Lord your God raise up for you . . . like me,” and Rabbi Johanan thus taught that prophets would have to be, like Moses, strong, wealthy, wise, and meek. Strong, for says of Moses, “he spread the tent over the tabernacle,” and a Master taught that Moses himself spread it, and reports, “Ten cubit
s shall be the length of a board.” Similarly, the strength of Moses can be derived from in which Moses reports, “And I took the two tablets, and cast them out of my two hands, and broke them,” and it was taught that the tablets were six handbreadths in length, six in breadth, and three in thickness. Wealthy, as reports God’s instruction to Moses, “Carve yourself two tablets of stone,” and the Rabbis interpreted the verse to teach that the chips would belong to Moses. Wise, for Rav and Samuel both said that 50 gates of understanding were created in the world, and all but one were given to Moses, for said of Moses, “You have made him a little lower than God.” Meek, for reports, “Now the man Moses was very meek.” (Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 38a.)
The Sifre
taught that demonstrates one of God’s attributes that humans should emulate. (Sifre to Deuteronomy 49:1.) Rabbi Hama son of Rabbi Hanina asked what means in the text, “You shall walk after the Lord your God.” How can a human being walk after God, when says, “[T]he Lord your God is a devouring fire”? Rabbi Hama son of Rabbi Hanina explained that the command to walk after God means to walk after the attributes of God. As God clothes the naked — for says, “And the Lord God made for Adam
and for his wife coats of skin, and clothed them” — so should we also clothe the naked. God visited the sick — for says, “And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre
” (after Abraham was circumcised in ) — so should we also visit the sick. God comforted mourners — for says, “And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed Isaac his son” — so should we also comfort mourners. God buried the dead — for says, “And He buried him in the valley” — so should we also bury the dead. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 14a.) Similarly, the Sifre on taught that to walk in God’s ways means to be (in the words of ) “merciful and gracious.” (Sifre to Deuteronomy 49:1.)
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Rabbi Jose
interpreted the words “forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin; and that will by no means clear the guilty” in to teach that a person who sins once, twice, or even three times is forgiven, but one who sins four times is not forgiven. Rabbi Jose cited for support Amos
where God says, “for three transgressions of Israel,” God would not reverse God’s forgiveness, and Job
which says, “God does these things twice, yea thrice, with a man.” (Tosefta Kippurim (Yoma) 4:13.)
A Baraita taught that when Moses ascended to receive the Torah from God, Moses found God writing “longsuffering” among the words with which describes God. Moses asked God whether God meant longsuffering with the righteous, to which God replied that God is longsuffering even with the wicked. Moses exclaimed that God could let the wicked perish, but God cautioned Moses that Moses would come to desire God’s longsuffering for the wicked. Later, when the Israelites sinned at the incident of the spies, God reminded Moses that he had suggested that God be longsuffering only with the righteous, to which Moses recounted that God had promised to be longsuffering even with the wicked. And that is why Moses in cited to God that God is “slow to anger.” (Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 111a–b.)
Tractate Beitzah in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws common to all of the Festivals
in 43–49; and (Mishnah Beitzah 1:1–5:7; Tosefta Yom Tov (Beitzah) 1:1–4:11; Jerusalem Talmud Beitzah 1a–49b; Babylonian Talmud Beitzah 2a–40b.)
The Mishnah interpreted to allow money in exchange for redemption of a first-born son to be given to any priest
(kohen). (Mishnah Challah 4:9.)
Rabbi Akiva interpreted to prohibit plowing prior to the Sabbatical year (Shmita) that would reap benefits in the Sabbatical year and to prohibit reaping in the year after the Sabbatical year produce that grew in the Sabbatical year. Rabbi Ishamel
argued, however, that applied to the Sabbath, and limited its prohibition to plowing and reaping not elsewhere required by commandment. (Mishnah Sheviit 1:4.)
Tractate Sukkah
in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of Sukkot in and and and (Mishnah Sukkah 1:1–5:8; Tosefta Sukkah 1:1–4:28; Jerusalem Talmud Sukkah 1a–33b; Babylonian Talmud Sukkah 2a–56b.)
Tractate Pesachim
in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of the Passover in 43–49; and and and (Mishnah Pesachim 1:1–10:9; Tosefta Pisha 1:1–10:13; Jerusalem Talmud Pesachim 1a–; Babylonian Talmud Pesachim 2a–121b.)
Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai taught that because the generation of the Flood transgressed the Torah that God gave humanity after Moses had stayed on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights (as reported in and and 18, 25, and ), God announced in that God would “cause it to rain upon the earth 40 days and 40 nights.” (Genesis Rabbah 32:5.)
, there are 4 positive and 5 negative commandments
in the parshah:
(See Sefer HaHinnuch: The Book of [Mitzvah] Education. Translated by Charles Wengrov, 1:397–431. Jerusalem: Feldheim Pub., 1991. ISBN 0-87306-179-9.)
Maimonides
, however, attributed to this parshah only the following 4 positive and 3 negative commandments:
(See Maimonides. The Commandments: Sefer Ha-Mitzvoth of Maimonides. Translated by Charles B. Chavel, 1:33–34, 45, 143, 180–81; 2:82–84, 182–83. London: Soncino Press, 1967. ISBN 0-900689-71-4.)
for the parshah is:
. In both the parshah and the haftarah, the prophet was on a mountain ; the prophet invoked the names of Abraham and Isaac in prayer to God ; sound (kol) is observed ; the prophet called on the Israelites to choose between God and the false god ; and God manifested God’s choice .
prior to Passover — as it does in 2009, 2010, 2013, and 2017), the haftarah is On Shabbat Parah, the Sabbath of the red heifer
, Jews read which describes the rites of purification using the red heifer (parah adumah). Similarly, the haftarah in Ezekiel also describes purification. In both the special reading and the haftarah in Ezekiel, sprinkled water cleansed the Israelites.
, 2002. ISBN 1-57819-697-3.)
Some Jews sing of the Sabbath’s holiness, reflecting as part of the Baruch El Elyon song (zemer) sung in connection with the Sabbath day meal. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 466.)
Jews recite the account of the Sabbath’s significance in as the final reading concluding the blessings of the Shema
before the punctuating half-Kaddish
and the Amidah prayer in the Friday Sabbath evening (Maariv
) prayer service. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 104.) The exhortation to “observe” (V’shamru, ושמרו) the Sabbath that this reading concludes reflects God’s command in to “keep My Sabbaths,” even to the exclusion of other apparently worthy causes. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 103.) Again, Jews recite the account of the Sabbath’s significance in as part of the V’shamru paragraph of the Amidah prayer in the Sabbath morning (Shacharit
) prayer service. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 345.) And once again, Jews recite the account of the Sabbath’s significance in as part of the V’shamru paragraph of the Kiddusha Rabba
blessing for the Sabbath day meal. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 458.)
The second blessing before the Shema addresses God about “your people” Israel, as Moses does in (Reuven Hammer
. Or Hadash: A Commentary on Siddur Sim Shalom
for Shabbat and Festivals, 29. New York: Rabbinical Assembly
, 2003. ISBN 0-916219-20-8.)
Jews recite the account of how Moses brought down two tablets of stone reported in as part of the Amidah prayer in the Sabbath morning (Shacharit) prayer service. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 344–45.)
Some Jews refer to the inscription on the two tablets of stone reported in as they study Pirkei Avot chapter 5 on a Sabbath between Passover and Rosh Hashanah
. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 571.) And thereafter, some quote as they study Pirkei Avot chapter 6 on a succeeding Sabbath between Passover and Rosh Hashanah. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 584.)
God’s characteristics of graciousness and compassion in are reflected in and in turn in the Ashrei prayer in the morning (Shacharit) and afternoon (Mincha
) prayer services. Similarly, Jews call on God’s characteristic of forgiveness in with the words “forgive us, our Guide” in the weekday Amidah prayer in each of the three prayer services. And again, Jews cite God’s characteristic of “steadfast lovingkindness (rav chesed)” in in the Kedushah D’Sidra section of the Minchah service for Shabbat. (Hammer, at 1, 4, 228.)
Jews recite three times the 13 attributes of mercy in after removing the Torah from the Ark on Passover, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur
, Sukkot, and Hoshana Rabbah. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 359.)
During the Amidah prayer in the Sabbath morning (Shacharit) prayer service, Jews refer to the “crown of splendor” that God placed on Moses in (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 344.)
, Sephardi Jews each week base the songs of the services on the content of that week's parshah. For Parshah Ki Tisa, Sephardi Jews apply Maqam Hijaz, the maqam that expresses mourning and sorrow. This is appropriate, because it is the parshah that contains the episode of the golden calf, a sad and embarrassing episode in the history of the Israelite people.
Hebrew language
Hebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
for “when you take,” the sixth and seventh words, and first distinctive words in the parshah) is the 21st weekly Torah portion (parshah) in the annual Jewish
Judaism
Judaism ) is the "religion, philosophy, and way of life" of the Jewish people...
cycle of Torah reading
Torah reading
Torah reading is a Jewish religious ritual that involves the public reading of a set of passages from a Torah scroll. The term often refers to the entire ceremony of removing the Torah scroll from the ark, chanting the appropriate excerpt with special cantillation, and returning the scroll to...
and the ninth in the book of Exodus. It constitutes Jews in the Diaspora
Jewish diaspora
The Jewish diaspora is the English term used to describe the Galut גלות , or 'exile', of the Jews from the region of the Kingdom of Judah and Roman Iudaea and later emigration from wider Eretz Israel....
read it the 21st Sabbath
Shabbat
Shabbat is the seventh day of the Jewish week and a day of rest in Judaism. Shabbat is observed from a few minutes before sunset on Friday evening until a few minutes after when one would expect to be able to see three stars in the sky on Saturday night. The exact times, therefore, differ from...
after Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah
Simchat Torah or Simḥath Torah is a celebration marking the conclusion of the annual cycle of public Torah readings, and the beginning of a new cycle...
, generally in late February or March.
Jews also read the first part of the parshah, regarding the half-shekel
Shekel
Shekel , is any of several ancient units of weight or of currency. The first usage is from Mesopotamia around 3000 BC. Initially, it may have referred to a weight of barley...
head tax, as the maftir
Maftir
Maftir properly refers to the last person called to the Torah on Shabbat and holiday mornings: this person also reads the haftarah portion from a related section of the Nevi'im ....
Torah reading on the special Sabbath
Special Sabbaths
Special Shabbatot are fixed Jewish Shabbat days, which precede or coincide with certain Jewish holidays during the year. Each one has a special name.-Shabbat Shuvah:...
Shabbat Shekalim (February 17, 2012 (read with parshah Mishpatim
Mishpatim
Mishpatim is the eighteenth weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the sixth in the book of Exodus...
); February 9, 2013 (read with parshah Mishpatim); and March 1, 2014 (read with parshah Pekudei
Pekudei
Pekudei, Pekude, Pekudey, P’kude, or P’qude is the 23rd weekly Torah portion in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the 11th and last in the book of Exodus...
)). Jews also read parts of the parshah addressing the intercession of Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
and God’s
Names of God in Judaism
In Judaism, the name of God is more than a distinguishing title; it represents the Jewish conception of the divine nature, and of the relationship of God to the Jewish people and to the world. To demonstrate the sacredness of the names of God, and as a means of showing respect and reverence for...
mercy, and as the Torah readings on the fast days of the Tenth of Tevet
Tenth of Tevet
Tenth of Tevet , the tenth day of the Hebrew month of Tevet, is a minor fast day in Judaism. It is a "low fast" observed from sunrise to sunset. The day has no relationship to Hanukkah, but it happens to follow that festival by a week...
, the Fast of Esther
Fast of Esther
The Fast of Esther is a Jewish fast from dawn until dusk on Purim eve, commemorating the three-day fast observed by the Jewish people in the story of Purim...
, the Seventeenth of Tammuz
Seventeenth of Tammuz
The Seventeenth of Tammuz is a minor Jewish fast day commemorating the breach of the walls of Jerusalem before the destruction of the Second Temple. It falls on the 17th day of the Hebrew month of Tammuz and marks the beginning of the three-week mourning period leading up to Tisha B'Av.The day...
, and the Fast of Gedalia
Fast of Gedalia
The Fast of Gedalia , also spelled Gedaliah, is a Jewish fast day from dawn until dusk to lament the assassination of the righteous governor of Judah of that name, which ended Jewish rule following the destruction of the First Temple.-Origins:...
h, and for the afternoon (Mincha) prayer service
Jewish services
Jewish prayer are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
on Tisha B'Av
Tisha B'Av
|Av]],") is an annual fast day in Judaism, named for the ninth day of the month of Av in the Hebrew calendar. The fast commemorates the destruction of both the First Temple and Second Temple in Jerusalem, which occurred about 655 years apart, but on the same Hebrew calendar date...
. Jews read another part of the parshah, which addresses the Three Pilgrim Festivals (Shalosh Regalim), as the initial Torah reading on the third intermediate day (Chol HaMoed
Chol HaMoed
Chol HaMoed, a Hebrew phrase meaning "weekdays [of] the festival" , refers to the intermediate days of Passover and Sukkot. During Chol HaMoed the usual restrictions that apply to the Biblical Jewish holidays are relaxed, but not entirely eliminated...
) of Passover
Passover
Passover is a Jewish holiday and festival. It commemorates the story of the Exodus, in which the ancient Israelites were freed from slavery in Egypt...
. And Jews read a larger selection from the same part of the parshah, as the initial Torah reading on a Sabbath that falls on one of the intermediate days of Passover or Sukkot
Sukkot
Sukkot is a Biblical holiday celebrated on the 15th day of the month of Tishrei . It is one of the three biblically mandated festivals Shalosh regalim on which Hebrews were commanded to make a pilgrimage to the Temple in Jerusalem.The holiday lasts seven days...
.
Summary
Building the Holy Place
God instructed Moses that when he took a censusCensus
A census is the procedure of systematically acquiring and recording information about the members of a given population. It is a regularly occurring and official count of a particular population. The term is used mostly in connection with national population and housing censuses; other common...
of the Israelites, each person 20 years old or older, regardless of wealth, should give a half-shekel offering. God told Moses to assign the proceeds to the service of the Tent of Meeting.
God told Moses to place a copper
Copper
Copper is a chemical element with the symbol Cu and atomic number 29. It is a ductile metal with very high thermal and electrical conductivity. Pure copper is soft and malleable; an exposed surface has a reddish-orange tarnish...
laver between the Tent of Meeting and the altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
, so that Aaron
Aaron
In the Hebrew Bible and the Qur'an, Aaron : Ααρών ), who is often called "'Aaron the Priest"' and once Aaron the Levite , was the older brother of Moses, and a prophet of God. He represented the priestly functions of his tribe, becoming the first High Priest of the Israelites...
and the priests
Kohen
A Kohen is the Hebrew word for priest. Jewish Kohens are traditionally believed and halachically required to be of direct patrilineal descent from the Biblical Aaron....
could wash their hand
Hand
A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered extremity located at the end of an arm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs...
s and feet in water
Water
Water is a chemical substance with the chemical formula H2O. A water molecule contains one oxygen and two hydrogen atoms connected by covalent bonds. Water is a liquid at ambient conditions, but it often co-exists on Earth with its solid state, ice, and gaseous state . Water also exists in a...
when they entered the Tent of Meeting or approached the altar to burn a sacrifice
Korban
The term offering as found in the Hebrew Bible in relation to the worship of Ancient Israel is mainly represented by the Hebrew noun korban whether for an animal or other offering...
, so that they would not die.
God directed Moses to make a sacred anointing oil from choice spice
Spice
A spice is a dried seed, fruit, root, bark, or vegetative substance used in nutritionally insignificant quantities as a food additive for flavor, color, or as a preservative that kills harmful bacteria or prevents their growth. It may be used to flavour a dish or to hide other flavours...
s — myrrh
Myrrh
Myrrh is the aromatic oleoresin of a number of small, thorny tree species of the genus Commiphora, which grow in dry, stony soil. An oleoresin is a natural blend of an essential oil and a resin. Myrrh resin is a natural gum....
, cinnamon
Cinnamon
Cinnamon is a spice obtained from the inner bark of several trees from the genus Cinnamomum that is used in both sweet and savoury foods...
, cassia — and olive oil
Olive oil
Olive oil is an oil obtained from the olive , a traditional tree crop of the Mediterranean Basin. It is commonly used in cooking, cosmetics, pharmaceuticals, and soaps and as a fuel for traditional oil lamps...
. God told Moses to use it to anoint the Tent of Meeting, the furnishings of the Tabernacle
Tabernacle
The Tabernacle , according to the Hebrew Torah/Old Testament, was the portable dwelling place for the divine presence from the time of the Exodus from Egypt through the conquering of the land of Canaan. Built to specifications revealed by God to Moses at Mount Sinai, it accompanied the Israelites...
, and the priests. God told Moses to warn the Israelites not to copy the sacred anointing oil’s recipe for lay purposes, at pain of exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
.
God directed Moses make sacred incense
Incense
Incense is composed of aromatic biotic materials, which release fragrant smoke when burned. The term "incense" refers to the substance itself, rather than to the odor that it produces. It is used in religious ceremonies, ritual purification, aromatherapy, meditation, for creating a mood, and for...
from herb
Herb
Except in botanical usage, an herb is "any plant with leaves, seeds, or flowers used for flavoring, food, medicine, or perfume" or "a part of such a plant as used in cooking"...
s — stacte, onycha, galbanum
Galbanum
Galbanum is an aromatic gum resin, the product of certain umbelliferous Persian plant species, chiefly Ferula gummosa and Ferula rubricaulis. Galbanum-yielding plants grow plentifully on the slopes of the mountain ranges of northern Iran...
, and frankincense
Frankincense
Frankincense, also called olibanum , is an aromatic resin obtained from trees of the genus Boswellia, particularly Boswellia sacra, B. carteri, B. thurifera, B. frereana, and B. bhaw-dajiana...
— to burn in the Tent of Meeting. ) As with the anointing oil, God warned against making incense from the same recipe for lay purposes.
God informed Moses that God had endowed Bezalel
Bezalel
In Exodus 31:1-6, Bezalel |transcribed]] as Betzalel and most accurately as Beẓal'el), is the chief artisan of the Tabernacle. Elsewhere in the Bible the name occurs only in the genealogical lists of the Book of Chronicles, but according to cuneiform inscriptions a variant form of the same,...
of the Tribe of Judah
Tribe of Judah
According to the Hebrew Bible, the Tribe of Judah was one of the Tribes of Israel.Following the completion of the conquest of Canaan by the Israelite tribes after about 1200 BCE, Joshua allocated the land among the twelve tribes....
with divine skill in every kind of craft. God assigned to him Oholiab of the Tribe of Dan
Tribe of Dan
The Tribe of Dan, also sometimes spelled as "Dann", was one of the Tribes of Israel. Though known mostly from biblical sources, they were possibly descendants of the Denyen Sea Peoples who joined with Hebrews...
and granted skill to all who are skillful, that they might make the furnishings of the Tabernacle, the priests’ vestments, the anointing oil, and the incense. God told Moses to admonish the Israelites nevertheless to keep the Sabbath, on pain of death. Then God gave Moses two stone tablets inscribed by the finger of God.
The Golden Calf
Meanwhile, the people became impatient for the return of Moses, and implored Aaron to make them a god. Aaron told them to bring him their goldGold
Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au and an atomic number of 79. Gold is a dense, soft, shiny, malleable and ductile metal. Pure gold has a bright yellow color and luster traditionally considered attractive, which it maintains without oxidizing in air or water. Chemically, gold is a...
earring
Earring
Common locations for piercings, other than the earlobe, include the rook, tragus, and across the helix . The simple term "ear piercing" usually refers to an earlobe piercing, whereas piercings in the upper part of the external ear are often referred to as "cartilage piercings"...
s, and he cast them in a mold and made a molten golden calf
Golden calf
According to the Hebrew Bible, the golden calf was an idol made by Aaron to satisfy the Israelites during Moses' absence, when he went up to Mount Sinai...
. They exclaimed, “This is your god, O Israel, who brought you out of the land of Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
!” Aaron built an altar before the calf, and announced a festival of the Lord. The people offered sacrifices, ate, drank, and danced.
God told Moses what the people had done, saying “let Me be, that My anger may blaze forth against them and that I may destroy them, and make of you a great nation.” But Moses implored God not to do so, lest the Egyptians say that God delivered the people only to kill them off in the mountains. Moses called on God to remember Abraham
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
, Isaac
Isaac
Isaac as described in the Hebrew Bible, was the only son Abraham had with his wife Sarah, and was the father of Jacob and Esau. Isaac was one of the three patriarchs of the Israelites...
, and Jacob
Jacob
Jacob "heel" or "leg-puller"), also later known as Israel , as described in the Hebrew Bible, the Talmud, the New Testament and the Qur'an was the third patriarch of the Hebrew people with whom God made a covenant, and ancestor of the tribes of Israel, which were named after his descendants.In the...
, and God’s oath to make their offspring as numerous as the star
Star
A star is a massive, luminous sphere of plasma held together by gravity. At the end of its lifetime, a star can also contain a proportion of degenerate matter. The nearest star to Earth is the Sun, which is the source of most of the energy on Earth...
s, and God renounced the planned punishment.
Moses went down the mountain bearing the two tablets. Joshua
Joshua
Joshua , is a minor figure in the Torah, being one of the spies for Israel and in few passages as Moses's assistant. He turns to be the central character in the Hebrew Bible's Book of Joshua...
told Moses, “There is a cry of war in the camp,” but Moses answered, “It is the sound of song that I hear!”
When Moses saw the calf and the dancing, he became enraged and shattered the tablets at the foot of the mountain. He burned the calf, ground it to powder, strewed it upon the water, and made the Israelites drink it. When Moses asked Aaron how he committed such a great sin, Aaron replied that the people asked him to make a god, so he hurled their gold into the fire, “and out came this calf!”
Seeing that Aaron had let the people get out of control, Moses stood in the camp gate and called, “Whoever is for the Lord, come here!” All the Levite
Levite
In Jewish tradition, a Levite is a member of the Hebrew tribe of Levi. When Joshua led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, the Levites were the only Israelite tribe that received cities but were not allowed to be landowners "because the Lord the God of Israel himself is their inheritance"...
s rallied to Moses, and at his instruction killed 3,000 people, including brother, neighbor, and kin.
Moses went back to God and asked for God either to forgive the Israelites or kill Moses too, but God insisted on punishing only the sinners, which God did by means of a plague.
God’s Nature Revealed
Then God dispatched Moses and the people to the Promised LandPromised land
The Promised Land is a term used to describe the land promised or given by God, according to the Hebrew Bible, to the Israelites, the descendants of Jacob. The promise is firstly made to Abraham and then renewed to his son Isaac, and to Isaac's son Jacob , Abraham's grandson...
, but God decided not to go in their midst, for fear of destroying them on the way. Upon hearing this, the Israelites went into mourning. Now Moses would pitch the Tent of Meeting outside the camp, and Moses would enter to speak to God, face to face. Moses asked God whom God would send with Moses to lead the people. Moses further asked God to let him know God’s ways, that Moses might know God and continue in God’s favor. And God agreed to lead the Israelites. Moses asked God not to make the Israelites move unless God were to go in the lead, and God agreed. Moses asked God to let him behold God’s Presence. God agreed to make all God’s goodness pass before Moses and to proclaim God’s name and nature, but God explained that no human could see God’s face and live. God instructed Moses to station himself on a rock, where God would cover him with God’s hand until God had passed, at which point Moses could see God’s back.
God came down in a cloud
Cloud
A cloud is a visible mass of liquid droplets or frozen crystals made of water and/or various chemicals suspended in the atmosphere above the surface of a planetary body. They are also known as aerosols. Clouds in Earth's atmosphere are studied in the cloud physics branch of meteorology...
and proclaimed: “The Lord! The Lord! A God compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness and faithfulness, extending kindness to the thousandth generation, forgiving iniquity, transgression, and sin; yet He does not remit all punishment, but visits the iniquity of parents upon children and children’s children, upon the third and fourth generations.”
Moses bowed low and asked God to accompany the people in their midst, to pardon the people’s iniquity, and to take them for God’s own. God replied by making a covenant to work unprecedented wonders and to drive out the peoples of the Promised Land. God warned Moses against making a covenant with them, lest they become a snare and induce the Israelites’ children to lust after their gods.
God commanded that the Israelites not make molten gods, that they consecrate or redeem every first-born, that they observe the Sabbath, that they observe the Three Pilgrim Festivals, that they not offer sacrifices with anything leavened
Leavening agent
A leavening agent is any one of a number of substances used in doughs and batters that cause a foaming action which lightens and softens the finished product...
, that they not leave the Passover lamb
Sacrificial lamb
A sacrificial lamb is a metaphorical reference to a person or animal sacrificed for the common good. The term is derived from the traditions of Abrahamic religion where a lamb is a highly valued possession, but is offered to God as a sacrifice for the forgiveness of Sin.-In politics:In politics, a...
lying until morning, that they bring choice first fruits to the house of the Lord, and that they not boil a kid in its mother’s milk
Milk
Milk is a white liquid produced by the mammary glands of mammals. It is the primary source of nutrition for young mammals before they are able to digest other types of food. Early-lactation milk contains colostrum, which carries the mother's antibodies to the baby and can reduce the risk of many...
.
Moses Became Radiant
Moses stayed with God 40 days and 40 nights, ate no breadBread
Bread is a staple food prepared by cooking a dough of flour and water and often additional ingredients. Doughs are usually baked, but in some cuisines breads are steamed , fried , or baked on an unoiled frying pan . It may be leavened or unleavened...
, drank no water, and wrote down on the tablets the terms of the covenant. As Moses came down from the mountain bearing the two tablets, the skin of his face was radiant, and the Israelites shrank from him. Moses called them near and instructed them concerning all that God had commanded. When Moses finished speaking, he put a veil
Veil
A veil is an article of clothing, worn almost exclusively by women, that is intended to cover some part of the head or face.One view is that as a religious item, it is intended to show honor to an object or space...
over his face. Whenever Moses spoke with God, Moses would take his veil off. And when he came out, he would tell the Israelites what he had been commanded, and then Moses would then put the veil back over his face again.
Exodus chapters 25–39
This is the pattern of instruction and construction of the Tabernacle and its furnishings:| Item | Instruction | Construction | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Order | Verses | Order | Verses | |
| Contributions | 1 | 2 | ||
| Ark | 2 | 5 | ||
| Table | 3 | 6 | ||
| Menorah | 4 | 7 | ||
| Tabernacle | 5 | 4 | ||
| Altar of Sacrifice | 6 | 11 | ||
| Tabernacle Court | 7 | 13 | ||
| Lamp | 8 | 16 | Numbers Book of Numbers The Book of Numbers is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah/Pentateuch.... |
|
| Priestly Garments | 9 | 14 | ||
| Ordination Ritual | 10 | 15 | Leviticus | |
| Altar of Insense | 11 | 8 | ||
| Laver | 12 | 12 | ||
| Anointing Oil | 13 | 9 | ||
| Incense | 14 | 10 | ||
| Craftspeople | 15 | 3 | ||
| The Sabbath | 16 | 1 | ||
Exodus chapters 32
The report of that “the people assembled” (וַיִּקָּהֵל הָעָם, vayikahel ha’am) is echoed in which opens, “And Moses assembled” (וַיַּקְהֵל מֹשֶׁה, vayakhel Mosheh).1 Kings
Books of Kings
The Book of Kings presents a narrative history of ancient Israel and Judah from the death of David to the release of his successor Jehoiachin from imprisonment in Babylon, a period of some 400 years...
reports a parallel story of golden calves. King Jeroboam
Jeroboam
Jeroboam was the first king of the northern Israelite Kingdom of Israel after the revolt of the ten northern Israelite tribes against Rehoboam that put an end to the United Monarchy....
of the northern Kingdom of Israel made two calves of gold out of a desire to prevent the kingdom from returning to allegiance to the house of David and the southern Kingdom of Judah
Kingdom of Judah
The Kingdom of Judah was a Jewish state established in the Southern Levant during the Iron Age. It is often referred to as the "Southern Kingdom" to distinguish it from the northern Kingdom of Israel....
. In the people said of the Golden Calf, “This is your god, O Israel, that brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” Similalrly, in Jeroboam told the people of his golden calves, “You have gone up long enough to Jerusalem; behold your gods, O Israel, that brought you up out of the land of Egypt.” Jeroboam set up one of the calves in Bethel
Bethel
Bethel was a border city described in the Hebrew Bible as being located between Benjamin and Ephraim...
, and the other in Dan, and the people went to worship before the calf in Dan. Jeroboam made houses of high place
High place
High Place, in the English version of the Old Testament, the literal translation of the Hebrew במה .This rendering is etymologically correct, as appears from the poetical use of the plural in such expressions as to ride, or stalk, or stand on the high places of the earth, the sea, the clouds, and...
s, and made priests from people who were not Levite
Levite
In Jewish tradition, a Levite is a member of the Hebrew tribe of Levi. When Joshua led the Israelites into the land of Canaan, the Levites were the only Israelite tribe that received cities but were not allowed to be landowners "because the Lord the God of Israel himself is their inheritance"...
s. He ordained a feast like Sukkot on the fifteenth day of the eighth month (a month after the real Sukkot), and he went up to the altar at Bethel to sacrifice to the golden calves that he had made, and he installed his priests there.
Passover
refers to the FestivalJewish holiday
Jewish holidays are days observed by Jews as holy or secular commemorations of important events in Jewish history. In Hebrew, Jewish holidays and festivals, depending on their nature, may be called yom tov or chag or ta'anit...
of Passover, calling it “the Feast of Unleavened Bread.” In the Hebrew Bible
Tanakh
The Tanakh is a name used in Judaism for the canon of the Hebrew Bible. The Tanakh is also known as the Masoretic Text or the Miqra. The name is an acronym formed from the initial Hebrew letters of the Masoretic Text's three traditional subdivisions: The Torah , Nevi'im and Ketuvim —hence...
, Passover is called:
- “Passover” (Pesach, פֶּסַח) ( 21, 27, 43, 48; 4–6, 10, 12–14; Deuteronomy 5–6; JoshuaBook of JoshuaThe Book of Joshua is the sixth book in the Hebrew Bible and of the Old Testament. Its 24 chapters tell of the entry of the Israelites into Canaan, their conquest and division of the land under the leadership of Joshua, and of serving God in the land....
2 KingsBooks of KingsThe Book of Kings presents a narrative history of ancient Israel and Judah from the death of David to the release of his successor Jehoiachin from imprisonment in Babylon, a period of some 400 years...
EzekielBook of EzekielThe Book of Ezekiel is the third of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, following the books of Isaiah and Jeremiah and preceding the Book of the Twelve....
EzraBook of EzraThe Book of Ezra is a book of the Hebrew Bible. Originally combined with the Book of Nehemiah in a single book of Ezra-Nehemiah, the two became separated in the early centuries of the Christian era...
2 ChroniclesBooks of ChroniclesThe Books of Chronicles are part of the Hebrew Bible. In the Masoretic Text, it appears as the first or last book of the Ketuvim . Chronicles largely parallels the Davidic narratives in the Books of Samuel and the Books of Kings...
5, 15, 17–18; 6–9, 11, 13, 16–19); - “The Feast of Unleavened Bread” (Chag haMatzot, חַג הַמַּצּוֹת) ( 21; ); and
- “A holy convocation” or “a solemn assembly” (mikrah kodesh, מִקְרָא-קֹדֶשׁ) ( 25).
Some explain the double nomenclature of “Passover” and “Feast of Unleavened Bread” as referring to two separate feasts that the Israelites combined sometime between the Exodus
The Exodus
The Exodus is the story of the departure of the Israelites from ancient Egypt described in the Hebrew Bible.Narrowly defined, the term refers only to the departure from Egypt described in the Book of Exodus; more widely, it takes in the subsequent law-givings and wanderings in the wilderness...
and when the Biblical text became settled. (See, e.g., W. Gunther Plaut
Gunther Plaut
Wolf Gunther Plaut, CC, O.Ont is a Reform rabbi and author. Plaut was the rabbi of Holy Blossom Temple in Toronto for several decades and since 1978 is its Senior Scholar....
. The Torah: A Modern Commentary, 456. New York: Union of American Hebrew Congregations, 1981. ISBN 0-8074-0055-6.) and indicate that the dedication of the firstborn also became associated with the festival.
Some believe that the “Feast of Unleavened Bread” was an agricultural festival at which the Israelites celebrated the beginning of the grain harvest. Moses may have had this festival in mind when in and he petitioned Pharaoh to let the Israelites go to celebrate a feast in the wilderness. (Plaut, at 464.)
“Passover,” on the other hand, was associated with a thanksgiving sacrifice of a lamb, also called “the Passover,” “the Passover lamb,” or “the Passover offering.” ( 21, 27, 43, 48; 5–6; 17–18; 6–9, 11, 13.)
and and 5, and direct “Passover” to take place on the evening of the fourteenth of Aviv (Nisan
Nisan
Nisan is the first month of the ecclesiastical year and the seventh month of the civil year, on the Hebrew calendar. The name of the month is Babylonian; in the Torah it is called the month of the Aviv, referring to the month in which barley was ripe. It is a spring month of 30 days...
in the Hebrew calendar
Hebrew calendar
The Hebrew calendar , or Jewish calendar, is a lunisolar calendar used today predominantly for Jewish religious observances. It determines the dates for Jewish holidays and the appropriate public reading of Torah portions, yahrzeits , and daily Psalm reading, among many ceremonial uses...
after the Babylonian captivity
Babylonian captivity
The Babylonian captivity was the period in Jewish history during which the Jews of the ancient Kingdom of Judah were captives in Babylon—conventionally 587–538 BCE....
). and confirm that practice. and and direct the “Feast of Unleavened Bread” to take place over seven days and and direct that it begin on the fifteenth of the month. Some believe that the propinquity of the dates of the two festivals led to their confusion and merger. (Plaut, at 464.)
and 27 link the word “Passover” (Pesach, פֶּסַח) to God’s act to “pass over” (pasach, פָסַח) the Israelites’ houses in the plague
Plagues of Egypt
The Plagues of Egypt , also called the Ten Plagues or the Biblical Plagues, were ten calamities that, according to the biblical Book of Exodus, Israel's God, Yahweh, inflicted upon Egypt to persuade Pharaoh to release the ill-treated Israelites from slavery. Pharaoh capitulated after the tenth...
of the firstborn. In the Torah, the consolidated Passover and Feast of Unleavened Bread thus commemorate the Israelites’ liberation from Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
. ( 3, 6.)
The Hebrew Bible frequently notes the Israelites’ observance of Passover at turning points in their history. reports God’s direction to the Israelites to observe Passover in the wilderness of Sinai
Biblical Mount Sinai
The Biblical Mount Sinai is the mountain at which the Book of Exodus states that the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God...
on the anniversary of their liberation from Egypt. reports that upon entering the Promised Land
Promised land
The Promised Land is a term used to describe the land promised or given by God, according to the Hebrew Bible, to the Israelites, the descendants of Jacob. The promise is firstly made to Abraham and then renewed to his son Isaac, and to Isaac's son Jacob , Abraham's grandson...
, the Israelites kept the Passover on the plains of Jericho
Jericho
Jericho ; is a city located near the Jordan River in the West Bank of the Palestinian territories. It is the capital of the Jericho Governorate and has a population of more than 20,000. Situated well below sea level on an east-west route north of the Dead Sea, Jericho is the lowest permanently...
and ate unleavened cakes and parched corn, produce of the land, the next day. reports that King Josiah
Josiah
Josiah or Yoshiyahu or Joshua was a king of Judah who instituted major reforms. Josiah is credited by most historians with having established or compiled important Jewish scriptures during the Deuteronomic reform that occurred during his rule.Josiah became king of Judah at the age of eight, after...
commanded the Israelites to keep the Passover in Jerusalem as part of Josiah’s reforms, but also notes that the Israelites had not kept such a Passover from the days of the Biblical judges
Biblical judges
A biblical judge is "a ruler or a military leader, as well as someone who presided over legal hearings."...
nor in all the days of the kings of Israel or the kings of Judah
Kings of Judah
The Kings of Judah ruled the ancient Kingdom of Judah after the death of Saul, when the tribe of Judah elevated David to rule over it. After seven years, David became king of a reunited Kingdom of Israel. However, in about 930 BC the united kingdom split, with ten of the twelve Tribes of Israel...
, calling into question the observance of even Kings David
David
David was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...
and Solomon
Solomon
Solomon , according to the Book of Kings and the Book of Chronicles, a King of Israel and according to the Talmud one of the 48 prophets, is identified as the son of David, also called Jedidiah in 2 Samuel 12:25, and is described as the third king of the United Monarchy, and the final king before...
. The more reverent however, reports that Solomon offered sacrifices on the festivals, including the Feast of Unleavened Bread. And reports King Hezekiah
Hezekiah
Hezekiah was the son of Ahaz and the 14th king of Judah. Edwin Thiele has concluded that his reign was between c. 715 and 686 BC. He is also one of the most prominent kings of Judah mentioned in the Hebrew Bible....
’s observance of a second Passover anew, as sufficient numbers of neither the priests nor the people were prepared to do so before then. And reports that the Israelites returned from the Babylonian captivity observed Passover, ate the Passover lamb, and kept the Feast of Unleavened Bread seven days with joy.
Shavuot
refers to the Festival of ShavuotShavuot
The festival of is a Jewish holiday that occurs on the sixth day of the Hebrew month of Sivan ....
. In the Hebrew Bible, Shavuot is called:
- The Feast of Weeks (חַג שָׁבֻעֹת, Chag Shavuot) ( see also (חַג הַשָּׁבֻעוֹת, Chag haShavuot));
- The Day of the First-fruits (יוֹם הַבִּכּוּרִים, Yom haBikurim) ;
- The Feast of Harvest (חַג הַקָּצִיר, Chag haKatzir) ; and
- A holy convocation (מִקְרָא-קֹדֶשׁ, mikrah kodesh)
associates Shavuot with the first-fruits (בִּכּוּרֵי, bikurei) of the wheat harvest. (See also ) In turn, set out the ceremony for the bringing of the first fruits.
To arrive at the correct date, instructs counting seven weeks from the day after the day of rest of Passover, the day that they brought the sheaf of barley for waving. Similarly, directs counting seven weeks from when they first put the sickle to the standing barley.
sets out a course of offerings for the fiftieth day, including a meal-offering of two loaves made from fine flour from the first-fruits of the harvest; burnt-offerings of seven lambs, one bullock, and two rams; a sin-offering of a goat; and a peace-offering of two lambs. Similarly, sets out a course of offerings including a meal-offering; burnt-offerings of two bullocks, one ram, and seven lambs; and one goat to make atonement. directs a freewill-offering in relation to God’s blessing.
and ordain a holy convocation in which the Israelites were not to work.
reports that Solomon offered burnt-offerings on the Feast of Weeks.
Sukkot
And refers to the Festival of Sukkot, calling it “the Feast of Ingathering.” In the Hebrew Bible, Sukkot is called:- “The Feast of Tabernacles (or Booths)” ( 16; ZechariahBook of ZechariahThe Book of Zechariah is the penultimate book of the twelve minor prophets in the Hebrew and Christian Bible, attributed to the prophet Zechariah.-Historical context:...
18, 19; ); - “The Feast of Ingathering” ;
- “The Feast” or “the festival” ( 65; );
- “The Feast of the Lord” ( JudgesBook of JudgesThe Book of Judges is the seventh book of the Hebrew bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its title describes its contents: it contains the history of Biblical judges, divinely inspired prophets whose direct knowledge of Yahweh allows them to act as decision-makers for the Israelites, as...
); - “The festival of the seventh month” ( NehemiahBook of NehemiahThe Book of Nehemiah is a book of the Hebrew Bible. Told largely in the form of a first-person memoir, it concerns the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem by Nehemiah, a Jew who is a high official at the Persian court, and the dedication of the city and its people to God's laws...
); and - “A holy convocation” or “a sacred occasion” .
Sukkot’s agricultural origin is evident from the name "The Feast of Ingathering," from the ceremonies accompanying it, and from the season and occasion of its celebration: "At the end of the year when you gather in your labors out of the field" ; "after you have gathered in from your threshing-floor and from your winepress." It was a thanksgiving for the fruit harvest. (Compare .) And in what may explain the festival’s name, Isaiah
Isaiah
Isaiah ; Greek: ', Ēsaïās ; "Yahu is salvation") was a prophet in the 8th-century BC Kingdom of Judah.Jews and Christians consider the Book of Isaiah a part of their Biblical canon; he is the first listed of the neviim akharonim, the later prophets. Many of the New Testament teachings of Jesus...
reports that grape harvesters kept booths in their vineyards. (Isaiah
Book of Isaiah
The Book of Isaiah is the first of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, preceding the books of Ezekiel, Jeremiah and the Book of the Twelve...
) Coming as it did at the completion of the harvest, Sukkot was regarded as a general thanksgiving for the bounty of nature in the year that had passed.
Sukkot became one of the most important feasts in Judaism, as indicated by its designation as “the Feast of the Lord” or simply “the Feast.” ( 65; ) Perhaps because of its wide attendance, Sukkot became the appropriate time for important state ceremonies. Moses instructed the children of Israel to gather for a reading of the Law during Sukkot every seventh year. King Solomon dedicated the Temple in Jerusalem
Temple in Jerusalem
The Temple in Jerusalem or Holy Temple , refers to one of a series of structures which were historically located on the Temple Mount in the Old City of Jerusalem, the current site of the Dome of the Rock. Historically, these successive temples stood at this location and functioned as the centre of...
on Sukkot. And Sukkot was the first sacred occasion observed after the resumption of sacrifices in Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity.
In the time of Nehemiah
Nehemiah
Nehemiah ]]," Standard Hebrew Nəḥemya, Tiberian Hebrew Nəḥemyāh) is the central figure of the Book of Nehemiah, which describes his work rebuilding Jerusalem and purifying the Jewish community. He was the son of Hachaliah, Nehemiah ]]," Standard Hebrew Nəḥemya, Tiberian Hebrew Nəḥemyāh) is the...
, after the Babylonian captivity, the Israelites celebrated Sukkot by making and dwelling in booths, a practice of which Nehemiah reports: “the Israelites had not done so from the days of Joshua.” In a practice related to that of the Four Species
Four Species
The four species are four plants mentioned in the Torah as being relevant to Sukkot. Karaite Jews build their Sukkot out of branches from the four specified plants , while Talmudic Jews take three types of branches and one type of fruit which are held together and waved in a special ceremony...
, Nehemiah also reports that the Israelites found in the Law the commandment that they “go out to the mountains and bring leafy branches of olive
Olive
The olive , Olea europaea), is a species of a small tree in the family Oleaceae, native to the coastal areas of the eastern Mediterranean Basin as well as northern Iran at the south end of the Caspian Sea.Its fruit, also called the olive, is of major agricultural importance in the...
trees, pine
Pine
Pines are trees in the genus Pinus ,in the family Pinaceae. They make up the monotypic subfamily Pinoideae. There are about 115 species of pine, although different authorities accept between 105 and 125 species.-Etymology:...
trees, myrtle
Myrtle
Myrtus is a genus of one or two species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae, native to southern Europe and north Africa. The plant is an evergreen shrub or small tree, growing to 5 m tall. The leaf is entire, 3–5 cm long, with a fragrant essential oil. The star-like flower has five...
s, palms
Arecaceae
Arecaceae or Palmae , are a family of flowering plants, the only family in the monocot order Arecales. There are roughly 202 currently known genera with around 2600 species, most of which are restricted to tropical, subtropical, and warm temperate climates...
and [other] leafy trees to make booths.” In God told Moses to command the people: “On the first day you shall take the product of hadar trees, branches of palm trees, boughs of leafy trees, and willow
Willow
Willows, sallows, and osiers form the genus Salix, around 400 species of deciduous trees and shrubs, found primarily on moist soils in cold and temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere...
s of the brook,” and “You shall live in booths seven days; all citizens in Israel shall live in booths, in order that future generations may know that I made the Israelite people live in booths when I brought them out of the land of Egypt.” The book of Numbers, however, indicates that while in the wilderness, the Israelites dwelt in tents. Some secular scholars consider (the commandments regarding booths and the four species) to be an insertion by a later redactor. (E.g., Richard Elliott Friedman
Richard Elliott Friedman
Richard Elliott Friedman is a biblical scholar and the Ann and Jay Davis Professor of Jewish Studies at the University of Georgia. He joined the faculty of the UGA Religion Department in 2006. Prior to his appointment there, he was the Katzin Professor of Jewish Civilization: Hebrew Bible; Near...
. The Bible with Sources Revealed, 228–29. New York: HarperSanFrancisco, 2003.)
King Jeroboam of the northern Kingdom of Israel, whom describes as practicing “his evil way,” celebrated a festival on the fifteenth day of the eighth month, one month after Sukkot, “in imitation of the festival in Judah.” “While Jeroboam was standing on the altar
Altar
An altar is any structure upon which offerings such as sacrifices are made for religious purposes. Altars are usually found at shrines, and they can be located in temples, churches and other places of worship...
to present the offering, the man of God, at the command of the Lord, cried out against the altar” in disapproval.
According to the prophet Zechariah, in the messianic era, Sukkot will become a universal festival, and all nations will make pilgrimages annually to Jerusalem to celebrate the feast there.
Exodus chapter 30
Rabbi AbbahuAbbahu
Abbahu was a Jewish Talmudist, known as an amora, who lived in the Land of Israel, of the 3rd amoraic generation , sometimes cited as R. Abbahu of Caesarea . His rabbinic education was acquired mainly at Tiberias, in the academy presided over by R. Johanan, with whom his relations were almost...
taught that Moses asked God how Israel would be exalted, and God replied in the words of (about collecting the half-shekel tax), “When you raise them up,” teaching that collecting contributions from the people elevates them. (Babylonian Talmud
Talmud
The Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
Bava Batra 10b.) The first four chapters of Tractate Shekalim in the Mishnah
Mishnah
The Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
, Tosefta
Tosefta
The Tosefta is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the period of the Mishnah.-Overview:...
, and Talmud interpreted the law of the half-shekel head tax commanded by (Mishnah Shekalim 1:1–4:9; Tosefta Shekalim 1:1–3:1; Babylonian Talmud Shekalim 2a–13a.)
Exodus chapter 31
Rabbi Samuel bar NahmaniSamuel ben Nahman
Samuel ben Nahman or Samuel Nahmani was a rabbi of the Talmud, known as an amora, who lived in the Land of Israel from the beginning of the 3rd century until the beginning of the 4th century. He was a pupil of R. Jonathan ben Eleazar and one of the most famous haggadists of his time...
said in the name of Rabbi Johanan
Yochanan bar Nafcha
Rabbi Yochanan ;...
that Bezalel (whose name can be read betzel El, “in the shadow of God”) was so called because of his wisdom. When God told Moses (in ) to tell Bezalel to make a tabernacle, an ark, and vessels, Moses reversed the order and told Bezalel to make an ark, vessels, and a tabernacle. Bezalel replied to Moses that as a rule, one first builds a house and then brings vessels into it, but Moses directed to make an ark, vessels, and a tabernacle. Bezalel asked where he would put the vessels. And Bezalel asked whether God had told Moses to make a tabernacle, an ark, and vessels. Moses replied that perhaps Bezalel had been in the shadow of God (betzel El) and had thus come to know this. (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 55a.)
Tractate Shabbat
Moed
Moed is the second Order of the Mishnah, the first written recording of the Oral Torah of the Jewish people . Of the six orders of the Mishna, Moed is the third shortest. The order of Moed consists of 12 tractates:# Shabbat: or Shabbath deals with the 39 prohibitions of "work" on the Shabbat...
in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud
Jerusalem Talmud
The Jerusalem Talmud, talmud meaning "instruction", "learning", , is a collection of Rabbinic notes on the 2nd-century Mishnah which was compiled in the Land of Israel during the 4th-5th century. The voluminous text is also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud de-Eretz Yisrael...
, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of the Sabbath in and 29; (20:8–11 in the NJPS); and (5:12 in the NJPS). (Mishnah Shabbat 1:1–24:5; Tosefta Shabbat 1:1–17:29; Jerusalem Talmud Shabbat 1a–; Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 2a–157b.)
Reading the words “everyone who profanes [the Sabbath] shall surely be put to death” in (in which the verb for death is doubled), Samuel
Samuel of Nehardea
Samuel of Nehardea or Samuel bar Abba was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an Amora of the first generation; son of Abba bar Abba and head of the Yeshiva at Nehardea. He was a teacher of halakha, judge, physician, and astronomer. He was born about 165 at Nehardea, in Babylonia...
deduced that the Torah decreed many deaths for desecrating the Sabbath. The Gemara
Gemara
The Gemara is the component of the Talmud comprising rabbinical analysis of and commentary on the Mishnah. After the Mishnah was published by Rabbi Judah the Prince The Gemara (also transliterated Gemora or, less commonly, Gemorra; from Aramaic גמרא gamar; literally, "[to] study" or "learning by...
posited that perhaps refers to willful desecration. The Gemara answered that is not needed to teach that willful transgression of the Sabbath is a capital crime, for says, “Whoever does any work therein shall be put to death.” The Gemara concluded that thus must apply to an unwitting offender, and in that context, the words “shall surely be put to death” mean that the inadvertent Sabbath violator will “die” monetarily because of the violator’s need to bring costly sacrifices. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 70a.)
Exodus chapter 32
A BaraitaBaraita
Baraita designates a tradition in the Jewish oral law not incorporated in the Mishnah. "Baraita" thus refers to teachings "outside" of the six orders of the Mishnah...
taught that because of God’s displeasure with the Israelites, the north wind did not blow on them in any of the 40 years during which they wandered in the wilderness. Rashi
Rashi
Shlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
attributed God’s displeasure to the golden calf, although the Tosafot
Tosafot
The Tosafot or Tosafos are medieval commentaries on the Talmud. They take the form of critical and explanatory glosses, printed, in almost all Talmud editions, on the outer margin and opposite Rashi's notes...
attributed it to the incident of the spies in (Babylonian Talmud Yevamot 72a.)
Abbahu
Abbahu was a Jewish Talmudist, known as an amora, who lived in the Land of Israel, of the 3rd amoraic generation , sometimes cited as R. Abbahu of Caesarea . His rabbinic education was acquired mainly at Tiberias, in the academy presided over by R. Johanan, with whom his relations were almost...
interpreted David
David
David was the second king of the united Kingdom of Israel according to the Hebrew Bible and, according to the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, an ancestor of Jesus Christ through both Saint Joseph and Mary...
’s last words, as reported in 2 Samuel
Books of Samuel
The Books of Samuel in the Jewish bible are part of the Former Prophets, , a theological history of the Israelites affirming and explaining the Torah under the guidance of the prophets.Samuel begins by telling how the prophet Samuel is chosen by...
where David reported that God told him, “Ruler over man shall be the righteous, even he that rules through the fear of God.” Rabbi Abbahu read to teach that God rules humankind, but the righteous rule God, for God makes a decree, and the righteous may through their prayer annul it. (Babylonian Talmud Moed Katan 16b.)
Rava
Rava (amora)
For the third generation Amora sage of Babylon, with a similar name, see: Joseph b. Hama .Abba ben Joseph bar Ḥama, who is exclusively referred to in the Talmud by the name Rava , was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora, born in 270. He is one of the most often-cited Rabbis...
employed to interpret which says: “And Moses besought (va-yechal) the Lord his God” in connection with the incident of the golden calf. Rava noted that uses the term “besought” (va-yechal), while uses the similar term “break” (yachel) in connection with vows. Transferring the use of to Rava reasoned that meant that Moses stood in prayer before God until Moses annulled for God God’s vow to destroy Israel, for a master had taught that while people cannot break their vows, others may annul their vows for them. (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 32a.) Similarly, Rabbi Berekiah taught in the name of Rabbi Helbo
Rabbi Helbo
Rabbi Helbo was an amora who flourished about the end of the 3rd century, and who is frequently mentioned in both Talmuds. It seems that Ḥelbo was at first in Babylon, where he studied under Rav Huna, the head of the Academy of Sura, and that, like the other Babylonian amoraim, he was called "Rab"...
in the name of Rabbi Isaac that Moses absolved God of God’s vow. When the Israelites made the golden calf, Moses began to persuade God to forgive them, but God explained to Moses that God had already taken an oath in that “he who sacrifices to the gods . . . shall be utterly destroyed,” and God could not retract an oath. Moses responded by asking whether God had not granted Moses the power to annul oaths in by saying, “When a man vows a vow to the Lord, or swears an oath to bind his soul with a bond, he shall not break his word,” implying that while he himself could not break his word, a scholar could absolve his vow. So Moses wrapped himself in his cloak and adopted the posture of a sage, and God stood before Moses as one asking for the annulment of a vow. (Exodus Rabbah
Exodus Rabbah
Exodus Rabbah is the midrash to Exodus, containing in the printed editions 52 parashiyyot. It is not uniform in its composition.- Structure :In parashiyyot i.-xiv...
43:4.)
The Gemara deduced from the example of Moses in that one should seek an interceding frame of mind before praying. Rav Huna
Rav Huna
Rav Huna , a Kohen, was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the second generation and head of the Academy of Sura; He was born about 216, died in 296-297 ).-Youth:...
and Rav Hisda
Rav Chisda
Rav Chisda was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the third generation , mentioned frequently in the Talmud.-Youth:...
were discussing how long to wait between recitations of the Amidah
Amidah
The Amidah , also called the Shmoneh Esreh , is the central prayer of the Jewish liturgy. This prayer, among others, is found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book...
prayer if one erred in the first reciting and needed to repeat the prayer. One said: long enough for the person praying to fall into a suppliant frame of mind, citing the words “And I supplicated the Lord” in The other said: long enough to fall into an interceding frame of mind, citing the words “And Moses interceded” in (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 30b.)
Interpreting on the “tablets that were written on both their sides,” Rav Chisda
Rav Chisda
Rav Chisda was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the third generation , mentioned frequently in the Talmud.-Youth:...
said that the writing of the tablets was cut completely through the tablets, so that it could be read from either side. Thus the letters mem
Mem
Mem is the thirteenth letter of many Semitic abjads, including Phoenician, Aramaic, Hebrew and Arabic...
and samekh
Samekh
Samekh or Simketh is the fifteenth letter in many Semitic alphabets, including Phoenician, Hebrew, and Aramaic, representing . The Arabic alphabet, however, uses a letter based on Phoenician šin to represent ; however, that glyph takes Samekh's place in the traditional Abjadi order of the Arabic...
, which each form a complete polygon, left some of the stone tablets in the middle of those letters standing in the air where they were held stable only by a miracle. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 104a.)
A midrash
Midrash
The Hebrew term Midrash is a homiletic method of biblical exegesis. The term also refers to the whole compilation of homiletic teachings on the Bible....
explained why Moses broke the stone tablets. When the Israelites committed the sin of the Golden Calf, God sat in judgment to condemn them, as says, “Let Me alone, that I may destroy them,” but God had not yet condemned them. So Moses took the tablets from God to appease God’s wrath. The midrash compared the act of Moses to that of a king’s marriage-broker. The king sent the broker to secure a wife for the king, but while the broker was on the road, the woman corrupted herself with another man. The broker (who was entirely innocent) took the marriage document that the king had given the broker to seal the marriage and tore it, reasoning that it would be better for the woman to be judged as an unmarried woman than as a wife. (Exodus Rabbah 43:1.)
A Baraita taught that when Moses broke the tablets in it was one of three actions that Moses took based on his own understanding with which God then agreed. The Gemara explained that Moses reasoned that if the Passover lamb, which was just one of the 613 commandments, was prohibited by to aliens, then certainly the whole Torah should be prohibited to the Israelites, who had acted as apostates with the golden calf. The Gemara deduced God’s approval from God’s mention of Moses’ breaking the tablets in Resh Lakish interpreted this to mean that God gave Moses strength because he broke the tablets. (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 87a.)
Reading the report of that Moses “took the calf . . . ground it to powder, and sprinkled it on the water, and made the children of Israel drink it,” the Sages interpreted that Moses meant to test the Israelites much as the procedure of tested a wife accused of adultery (sotah). (Babylonian Talmud Avodah Zarah 44a.)
The Rabbis taught that through the word “this,” Aaron became degraded, as it is said in “And Aaron said: ‘. . . I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf,’” and through the word “this,” Aaron was also elevated, as it is said in “This is the offering of Aaron and of his sons, which they shall offer to the Lord on the day when he is anointed” to become High Priest. (Leviticus Rabbah
Leviticus Rabbah
Leviticus Rabbah, Vayikrah Rabbah, or Wayiqra Rabbah is a homiletic midrash to the Biblical book of Leviticus . It is referred to by Nathan ben Jehiel in his Aruk as well as by Rashi in his commentaries on , and elsewhere. According to Leopold Zunz, Hai Gaon and Nissim knew and made use of it...
8:1.)
A midrash noted that Israel sinned with fire in making the Golden Calf, as says, “And I cast it into the fire, and there came out this calf.” And then Bezalel came and healed the wound (and the construction of the Tabernacle made atonement for the sins of the people in making the Golden Calf). The midrash likened it to the words of “Behold, I have created the smith who blows the fire of coals.” The midrash taught that Bezalel was the smith whom God had created to address the fire. And the midrash likened it to the case of a doctor's disciple who applied a plaster to a wound and healed it. When people began to praise him, his teacher, the doctor, said that they should praise the doctor, for he taught the disciple. Similarly, when everybody said that Bezalel had constructed the Tabernacle through his knowledge and understanding, God said that it was God who created him and taught him, as says, “Behold, I have created the smith.” Thus Moses said in “see, the Lord has called by name Bezalel.” (Exodus Rabbah 48:5.)
Rav Nahman bar Isaac
Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak
Rav Nachman bar Yitzchak or Rabh Naħman bar Yişħaq in actual Talmudic and Classical Hebrew was an amora who lived in Babylonia. He was a disciple of Abaye and Rava and the dean of the yeshiva at Pumbedita....
derived from the words “if not, blot me, I pray, out of Your book that You have written” in that three books are opened in heaven on Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah , , is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora'im which occur in the autumn...
. Rav Kruspedai said in the name of Rabbi Johanan that on Rosh Hashanah, three books are opened in heaven — one for the thoroughly wicked, one for the thoroughly righteous, and one for those in between. The thoroughly righteous are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of life. The thoroughly wicked are forthwith inscribed definitively in the book of death. And the fate of those in between is suspended from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur. If they deserve well, then they are inscribed in the book of life; if they do not deserve well, then they are inscribed in the book of death. Rabbi Abin said that Psalm
Psalms
The Book of Psalms , commonly referred to simply as Psalms, is a book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Bible...
tells us this when it says, “Let them be blotted out of the book of the living, and not be written with the righteous.” “Let them be blotted out from the book” refers to the book of the wicked. “Of the living” refers to the book of the righteous. “And not be written with the righteous” refers to the book of those in between. Rav Nahman bar Isaac derived this from where Moses told God, “if not, blot me, I pray, out of Your book that You have written.” “Blot me, I pray” refers to the book of the wicked. “Out of Your book” refers to the book of the righteous. “That you have written” refers to the book of those in between. (Babylonian Talmud Rosh Hashanah 16b.)
Exodus chapter 33
Reading Rabbi SimlaiSimlai
Rabbi Simlai was a talmudic sage from Palestine in the early 3rd century. The calculation of 613 Mitzvot is attributed to him. He was a student of Rabbi Judah I, the grandson of the author of the Mishnah. A famous Haggadist, Simlai endeavored to induce Judah II to abrogate the prohibition against...
taught that when the Israelites gave precedence to “we will do” over “we will hear,” 600,000 ministering angels came and set two crowns on each Israelite man, one as a reward for “we will do” and the other as a reward for “we will hearken.” But as soon as the Israelites committed the sin of the golden calf, 1.2 million destroying angels descended and removed the crowns, as it is said in “And the children of Israel stripped themselves of their ornaments from mount Horeb.” (Babylonian Talmud Shabbat 88a.)
The Gemara reported a number of Rabbis’ reports of how the Land of Israel did indeed flow with “milk and honey,” as described in and 17, and and and and 15, and Once when Rami bar Ezekiel visited Bnei Brak, he saw goats grazing under fig trees while honey was flowing from the figs, and milk dripped from the goats mingling with the fig honey, causing him to remark that it was indeed a land flowing with milk and honey. Rabbi Jacob ben Dostai said that it is about three miles from Lod
Lod
Lod is a city located on the Sharon Plain southeast of Tel Aviv in the Center District of Israel. At the end of 2010, it had a population of 70,000, roughly 75 percent Jewish and 25 percent Arab.The name is derived from the Biblical city of Lod...
to Ono
Ono, Benjamin
Ono - a town of Benjamin, in the "plain of Ono" ; now Kiryat-Ono, 5 miles north of Lydda , and about 30 miles northwest of Jerusalem. Not succeeding in their attempts to deter Nehemiah from rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem, Sanballat and Tobiah resorted to stratagem, and pretending to wish a...
, and once he rose up early in the morning and waded all that way up to his ankles in fig honey. Resh Lakish said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey of Sepphoris
Tzippori
Tzippori , also known as Sepphoris, Dioceserea and Saffuriya is located in the central Galilee region, north-northwest of Nazareth, in modern-day Israel...
extend over an area of sixteen miles by sixteen miles. Rabbah bar Bar Hana said that he saw the flow of the milk and honey in all the Land of Israel and the total area was equal to an area of twenty-two parasang
Parasang
The parasang is a historical Iranian unit of itinerant distance comparable to the European league.In antiquity, the term was used throughout much of the Middle East, and the Old Iranian language from which it derives can no longer be determined...
s by six parasangs. (Babylonian Talmud Ketubot 111b–12a.)
Rav Judah
Judah ben Ezekiel
Judah ben Ezekiel , was a Babylonian amora of the 2nd generation. He was the most prominent disciple of Rav , in whose house he often stayed, and whose son Hiyya was his pupil...
taught in the name of Rav
Abba Arika
Abba Arika was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an amora of the 3rd century who established at Sura the systematic study of the rabbinic traditions, which, using the Mishnah as text, led to the compilation of the Talmud...
that as Moses was dying, Joshua quoted back to Moses the report of about how Joshua stood by the side of Moses all the time. Rav Judah reported in the name of Rav that when Moses was dying, he invited Joshua to ask him about any doubts that Joshua might have. Joshua replied by asking Moses whether Joshua had ever left Moses for an hour and gone elsewhere. Joshua asked Moses whether Moses had not written in “The Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as one man speaks to another. . . . But his servant Joshua the son of Nun departed not out of the Tabernacle.” Joshua’s words wounded Moses, and immediately the strength of Moses waned, and Joshua forgot 300 laws, and 700 doubts concerning laws arose in Joshua’s mind. The Israelites then arose to kill Joshua (unless he could resolve these doubts). God then told Joshua that it was not possible to tell him the answers (for, as tells, the Torah is not in Heaven). Instead, God then directed Joshua to occupy the Israelites’ attention in war, as reports. (Babylonian Talmud Temurah 16a.)
Rav Nachman
Rav Nachman
Rav Nachman bar Yaakov was a Jewish Talmudist who lived in Babylonia, known as an Amora of the third generation, and pupil of Samuel of Nehardea. He was chief justice of the Jews who were subject to the exilarch , and was also head of the school of Nehardea...
taught that the angel
Angel
Angels are mythical beings often depicted as messengers of God in the Hebrew and Christian Bibles along with the Quran. The English word angel is derived from the Greek ἄγγελος, a translation of in the Hebrew Bible ; a similar term, ملائكة , is used in the Qur'an...
of whom God spoke in was Metatron
Metatron
Metatron or Mattatron is the name of an angel in Judaism and some branches of Christian mythology. There are no references to him in the Jewish Tanakh or Christian Scriptures...
(מטטרון). Rav Nahman warned that one who is as skilled in refuting heretics as Rav Idit should do so, but others should not. Once a heretic asked Rav Idit why says, “And to Moses He said, ‘Come up to the Lord,’” when surely God should have said, “Come up to Me.” Rav Idit replied that it was the angel Metatron who said that, and that Metatron’s name is similar to that of his Master (and indeed the gematria
Gematria
Gematria or gimatria is a system of assigning numerical value to a word or phrase, in the belief that words or phrases with identical numerical values bear some relation to each other, or bear some relation to the number itself as it may apply to a person's age, the calendar year, or the like...
(numerical value of the Hebrew letters) of Metatron (מטטרון) equals that of Shadai (שַׁדַּי), God’s name in Genesis and elsewhere) for says, “for my name is in him.” But if so, the heretic retorted, we should worship Metatron. Rav Idit replied that also says, “Be not rebellious against him,” by which God meant, “Do not exchange Me for him” (as the word for “rebel,” (tamer,תַּמֵּר) derives from the same root as the word “exchange”). The heretic then asked why then says, “he will not pardon your transgression.” Rav Idit answered that indeed Metatron has no authority to forgive sins, and the Israelites would not accept him even as a messenger, for reports that Moses told God, “If Your Presence does not go with me, do not carry us up from here.” (Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 38b.)
A Baraita taught in the name of Rabbi Joshua ben Korhah that God told Moses that when God wanted to be seen at the burning bush
Burning bush
The burning bush is an object described by the Book of Exodus as being located on Mount Sinai; according to the narrative, the bush was on fire, but was not consumed by the flames, hence the name...
, Moses did not want to see God’s face; Moses hid his face in for he was afraid to look upon God. And then in when Moses wanted to see God, God did not want to be seen; in God said, “You cannot see My face.” But Rabbi Samuel bar Nahmani said in the name of Rabbi Jonathan
Rabbi Jonathan
Rabbi Jonathan was a Palestinian tanna of the 2nd century and schoolfellow of R. Josiah, apart from whom he is rarely quoted. Jonathan is generally so cited without further designation; but there is ample reason for identifying him with the less frequently occurring Jonathan b. Joseph Rabbi...
that in compensation for three pious acts that Moses did at the burning bush, he was privileged to obtain three rewards. In reward for hiding his face in his face shone in In reward his fear of God in the Israelites were afraid to come near him in In reward for his reticence “to look upon God,” he beheld the similitude of God in (Babylonian Talmud Berakhot 7a.)
Rabbi Jose ben Halafta
Jose ben Halafta
Rabbi Jose ben Halafta or Yose ben Halafta was a Tanna of the fourth generation . Jose was a student of Rabbi Akiba and was regarded as one of the foremost scholars of halakha and aggadah of his day...
employed to help explain how God can be called “the Place.” Reading the words, “And he lighted upon the place,” in to mean, “And he met the Divine Presence (Shechinah
Shekhinah
Shekinah is the English spelling of a grammatically feminine Hebrew word that means the dwelling or settling, and is used to denote the dwelling or settling divine presence of God, especially in the Temple in Jerusalem.-Etymology:Shekinah is derived...
),” Rav Huna asked in Rabbi Ammi
Rabbi Ammi
Ammi, Aimi, Immi is the name of several Jewish Talmudists, known as amoraim, who lived in the Land of Israel and Babylonia. In the Babylonian Talmud the first form only is used; in the Jerusalem Talmud all three forms appear, Immi predominating, and sometimes R. Ammi is contracted into "Rabmi" or...
's name why assigns to God the name “the Place.” Rav Huna explained that it is because God is the Place of the world (the world is contained in God, and not God in the world). Rabbi Jose ben Halafta taught that we do not know whether God is the place of God’s world or whether God’s world is God’s place, but from which says, “Behold, there is a place with Me,” it follows that God is the place of God’s world, but God’s world is not God’s place. Rabbi Isaac taught that reading “The eternal God is a dwelling place,” one cannot know whether God is the dwelling-place of God’s world or whether God’s world is God’s dwelling-place. But reading “Lord, You have been our dwelling-place,” it follows that God is the dwelling-place of God’s world, but God’s world is not God’s dwelling-place. And Rabbi Abba ben Judan taught that God is like a warrior riding a horse with the warrior’s robes flowing over on both sides of the horse. The horse is subsidiary to the rider, but the rider is not subsidiary to the horse. Thus Habakkuk
Book of Habakkuk
The Book of Habakkuk is the eighth book of the 12 minor prophets of the Hebrew Bible. It is attributed to the prophet Habakkuk, and was probably composed in the late 7th century BC. A copy of chapters 1 and 2 is included in the Habakkuk Commentary, found among the Dead Sea Scrolls.Chapters 1-2...
says, “You ride upon Your horses, upon Your chariots of victory.” (Genesis Rabbah 68:9.)
Exodus chapter 34
Rabban Johanan ben ZakkaiYochanan ben Zakai
Johanan ben Zakai , also known as Johanan B. Zakkai was one of the tannaim, an important Jewish sage in the era of the Second Temple, and a primary contributor to the core text of Rabbinical Judaism, the Mishnah. He is widely regarded as one of the most important Jewish figures of his time...
explained why God carved the first two tablets but Moses carved the second two, as God instructed in Rabban Johanan ben Zakkai compared it to the case of a king who took a wife and paid for the paper for the marriage contract, the scribe, and the wedding dress. But when he saw her cavorting with one of his servants, he became angry with her and sent her away. Her agent came to the king and argued that she had been raised among servants and was thus familiar with them. The king told the agent that if he wished that the king should become reconciled with her, the agent should pay for the paper and the scribe for a new wedding contract and the king would sign it. Similarly, Moses spoke to God after the Israelites had committed the sin of the golden calf. Moses argued that God knew that God had brought the Israelites out of Egypt, a house of idolatry. Then God answered that if Moses desired that God should become reconciled with the Israelites, then Moses would have to bring the tablets at his own expense and God would append God’s signature, as God says in “And I will write upon the tables.” (Deuteronomy Rabbah 3:17.)
In Moses foretold that “A prophet will the Lord your God raise up for you . . . like me,” and Rabbi Johanan thus taught that prophets would have to be, like Moses, strong, wealthy, wise, and meek. Strong, for says of Moses, “he spread the tent over the tabernacle,” and a Master taught that Moses himself spread it, and reports, “Ten cubit
Cubit
The cubit is a traditional unit of length, based on the length of the forearm. Cubits of various lengths were employed in many parts of the world in Antiquity, in the Middle Ages and into Early Modern Times....
s shall be the length of a board.” Similarly, the strength of Moses can be derived from in which Moses reports, “And I took the two tablets, and cast them out of my two hands, and broke them,” and it was taught that the tablets were six handbreadths in length, six in breadth, and three in thickness. Wealthy, as reports God’s instruction to Moses, “Carve yourself two tablets of stone,” and the Rabbis interpreted the verse to teach that the chips would belong to Moses. Wise, for Rav and Samuel both said that 50 gates of understanding were created in the world, and all but one were given to Moses, for said of Moses, “You have made him a little lower than God.” Meek, for reports, “Now the man Moses was very meek.” (Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 38a.)
The Sifre
Sifre
Sifre refers to either of two works of Midrash halakhah, or classical Jewish legal Biblical exegesis, based on the biblical books of Bamidbar and Devarim .- The Talmudic-Era Sifre :The title "Sifre debe Rab" is used by R. Hananeel on Sheb. 37b, Alfasi on Pes...
taught that demonstrates one of God’s attributes that humans should emulate. (Sifre to Deuteronomy 49:1.) Rabbi Hama son of Rabbi Hanina asked what means in the text, “You shall walk after the Lord your God.” How can a human being walk after God, when says, “[T]he Lord your God is a devouring fire”? Rabbi Hama son of Rabbi Hanina explained that the command to walk after God means to walk after the attributes of God. As God clothes the naked — for says, “And the Lord God made for Adam
Adam
Adam is a figure in the Book of Genesis. According to the creation myth of Abrahamic religions, he is the first human. In the Genesis creation narratives, he was created by Yahweh-Elohim , and the first woman, Eve was formed from his rib...
and for his wife coats of skin, and clothed them” — so should we also clothe the naked. God visited the sick — for says, “And the Lord appeared to him by the oaks of Mamre
Mamre
Mamre , full Hebrew name Elonei Mamre , refers to a Canaanite cultic shrine dedicated to the supreme, sky god of the Canaanite pantheon, El. Talmudic sources refer to the site as Beth Ilanim or Botnah. it was one of the three most important "fairs", market place or caravanserai, in Palestine...
” (after Abraham was circumcised in ) — so should we also visit the sick. God comforted mourners — for says, “And it came to pass after the death of Abraham, that God blessed Isaac his son” — so should we also comfort mourners. God buried the dead — for says, “And He buried him in the valley” — so should we also bury the dead. (Babylonian Talmud Sotah 14a.) Similarly, the Sifre on taught that to walk in God’s ways means to be (in the words of ) “merciful and gracious.” (Sifre to Deuteronomy 49:1.)
Jose ben Halafta
Rabbi Jose ben Halafta or Yose ben Halafta was a Tanna of the fourth generation . Jose was a student of Rabbi Akiba and was regarded as one of the foremost scholars of halakha and aggadah of his day...
interpreted the words “forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin; and that will by no means clear the guilty” in to teach that a person who sins once, twice, or even three times is forgiven, but one who sins four times is not forgiven. Rabbi Jose cited for support Amos
Book of Amos
The Book of Amos is a prophetic book of the Hebrew Bible, one of the Twelve Minor Prophets. Amos, an older contemporary of Hosea and Isaiah, was active c. 750 BCE during the reign of Jeroboam II, making the Book of Amos the first biblical prophetic book written. Amos lived in the kingdom of Judah...
where God says, “for three transgressions of Israel,” God would not reverse God’s forgiveness, and Job
Book of Job
The Book of Job , commonly referred to simply as Job, is one of the books of the Hebrew Bible. It relates the story of Job, his trials at the hands of Satan, his discussions with friends on the origins and nature of his suffering, his challenge to God, and finally a response from God. The book is a...
which says, “God does these things twice, yea thrice, with a man.” (Tosefta Kippurim (Yoma) 4:13.)
A Baraita taught that when Moses ascended to receive the Torah from God, Moses found God writing “longsuffering” among the words with which describes God. Moses asked God whether God meant longsuffering with the righteous, to which God replied that God is longsuffering even with the wicked. Moses exclaimed that God could let the wicked perish, but God cautioned Moses that Moses would come to desire God’s longsuffering for the wicked. Later, when the Israelites sinned at the incident of the spies, God reminded Moses that he had suggested that God be longsuffering only with the righteous, to which Moses recounted that God had promised to be longsuffering even with the wicked. And that is why Moses in cited to God that God is “slow to anger.” (Babylonian Talmud Sanhedrin 111a–b.)
Tractate Beitzah in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws common to all of the Festivals
Jewish holiday
Jewish holidays are days observed by Jews as holy or secular commemorations of important events in Jewish history. In Hebrew, Jewish holidays and festivals, depending on their nature, may be called yom tov or chag or ta'anit...
in 43–49; and (Mishnah Beitzah 1:1–5:7; Tosefta Yom Tov (Beitzah) 1:1–4:11; Jerusalem Talmud Beitzah 1a–49b; Babylonian Talmud Beitzah 2a–40b.)
The Mishnah interpreted to allow money in exchange for redemption of a first-born son to be given to any priest
Kohen
A Kohen is the Hebrew word for priest. Jewish Kohens are traditionally believed and halachically required to be of direct patrilineal descent from the Biblical Aaron....
(kohen). (Mishnah Challah 4:9.)
Rabbi Akiva interpreted to prohibit plowing prior to the Sabbatical year (Shmita) that would reap benefits in the Sabbatical year and to prohibit reaping in the year after the Sabbatical year produce that grew in the Sabbatical year. Rabbi Ishamel
Ishmael ben Elisha
Rabbi Ishmael or Ishmael ben Elisha was a Tanna of the 1st and 2nd centuries . A Tanna is a rabbinic sage whose views are recorded in the Mishnah.-Disposition:...
argued, however, that applied to the Sabbath, and limited its prohibition to plowing and reaping not elsewhere required by commandment. (Mishnah Sheviit 1:4.)
Tractate Sukkah
Sukkah (Talmud)
Sukkah is a book of the Mishnah and Talmud. It is the sixth volume in the Order of Moed. Sukkah deals primarily with laws relating to the Jewish holiday of Sukkot...
in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of Sukkot in and and and (Mishnah Sukkah 1:1–5:8; Tosefta Sukkah 1:1–4:28; Jerusalem Talmud Sukkah 1a–33b; Babylonian Talmud Sukkah 2a–56b.)
Tractate Pesachim
Pesahim
Pesahim is the third tractate of Seder Moed of the Mishnah and of the Talmud. It is concerned mainly with the laws of the Jewish holiday Passover as well as the Passover lamb offering...
in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of the Passover in 43–49; and and and (Mishnah Pesachim 1:1–10:9; Tosefta Pisha 1:1–10:13; Jerusalem Talmud Pesachim 1a–; Babylonian Talmud Pesachim 2a–121b.)
Rabbi Simeon ben Yohai taught that because the generation of the Flood transgressed the Torah that God gave humanity after Moses had stayed on the mountain for 40 days and 40 nights (as reported in and and 18, 25, and ), God announced in that God would “cause it to rain upon the earth 40 days and 40 nights.” (Genesis Rabbah 32:5.)
Commandments
According to Sefer ha-ChinuchSefer ha-Chinuch
The Sefer ha-Chinuch , often simply "the Chinuch" is a work which systematically discusses the 613 commandments of the Torah. It was published anonymously in 13th century Spain...
, there are 4 positive and 5 negative commandments
Mitzvah
The primary meaning of the Hebrew word refers to precepts and commandments as commanded by God...
in the parshah:
- To give a half shekel annually
- A Kohen must wash his hands and feet before service.
- To prepare the anointing oil
- Not to anoint with anointing oil
- Not to reproduce the anointing oil
- Not to reproduce the incense formula
- Not to eat or drink anything from an offering to an idol
- To let the land lie fallow in the Sabbatical year
- Not to cook meat and milk together
(See Sefer HaHinnuch: The Book of [Mitzvah] Education. Translated by Charles Wengrov, 1:397–431. Jerusalem: Feldheim Pub., 1991. ISBN 0-87306-179-9.)
Maimonides
Maimonides
Moses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
, however, attributed to this parshah only the following 4 positive and 3 negative commandments:
- To give a half shekel annually
- A Kohen must wash his hands and feet before service.
- To prepare the anointing oil
- Not to reproduce the anointing oil
- Not to anoint with anointing oil
- Not to reproduce the incense formula
- To let the land lie fallow in the Sabbatical year
(See Maimonides. The Commandments: Sefer Ha-Mitzvoth of Maimonides. Translated by Charles B. Chavel, 1:33–34, 45, 143, 180–81; 2:82–84, 182–83. London: Soncino Press, 1967. ISBN 0-900689-71-4.)
Generally
The haftarahHaftarah
The haftarah or haftoroh is a series of selections from the books of Nevi'im of the Hebrew Bible that is publicly read in synagogue as part of Jewish religious practice...
for the parshah is:
- for Ashkenazi JewsAshkenazi JewsAshkenazi Jews, also known as Ashkenazic Jews or Ashkenazim , are the Jews descended from the medieval Jewish communities along the Rhine in Germany from Alsace in the south to the Rhineland in the north. Ashkenaz is the medieval Hebrew name for this region and thus for Germany...
: - for Sephardi JewsSephardi JewsSephardi Jews is a general term referring to the descendants of the Jews who lived in the Iberian Peninsula before their expulsion in the Spanish Inquisition. It can also refer to those who use a Sephardic style of liturgy or would otherwise define themselves in terms of the Jewish customs and...
:
Connection to the Parshah
Both the parshah and the haftarah in First Kings describe God’s prophet confronting idolatry to restore worship of God, the parshah in Moses’ anger at the golden calf , and the haftarah in the prophet Elijah’s confrontation with the prophets of BaalBaal
Baʿal is a Northwest Semitic title and honorific meaning "master" or "lord" that is used for various gods who were patrons of cities in the Levant and Asia Minor, cognate to Akkadian Bēlu...
. In both the parshah and the haftarah, the prophet was on a mountain ; the prophet invoked the names of Abraham and Isaac in prayer to God ; sound (kol) is observed ; the prophet called on the Israelites to choose between God and the false god ; and God manifested God’s choice .
On Shabbat Parah
When the parshah coincides with Shabbat Parah (the special SabbathSpecial Sabbaths
Special Shabbatot are fixed Jewish Shabbat days, which precede or coincide with certain Jewish holidays during the year. Each one has a special name.-Shabbat Shuvah:...
prior to Passover — as it does in 2009, 2010, 2013, and 2017), the haftarah is On Shabbat Parah, the Sabbath of the red heifer
Red heifer
The red heifer or red cow was a sacrifice in the Hebrew Bible the ashes of which are used for the ritual purification of an ancient Israelite who had come into contact with a corpse.- Hebrew Bible :...
, Jews read which describes the rites of purification using the red heifer (parah adumah). Similarly, the haftarah in Ezekiel also describes purification. In both the special reading and the haftarah in Ezekiel, sprinkled water cleansed the Israelites.
In the liturgy
Some Jews read the descriptions of the laver in and Aaron’s incense offerings in and after the Sabbath morning blessings. (Menachem Davis. The Schottenstein Edition Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals with an Interlinear Translation, 216–17, 223–24. Brooklyn: Mesorah PublicationsArtScroll
ArtScroll is an imprint of translations, books and commentaries from an Orthodox Jewish perspective published by Mesorah Publications, Ltd., a publishing company based in Brooklyn, New York...
, 2002. ISBN 1-57819-697-3.)
Some Jews sing of the Sabbath’s holiness, reflecting as part of the Baruch El Elyon song (zemer) sung in connection with the Sabbath day meal. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 466.)
Jews recite the account of the Sabbath’s significance in as the final reading concluding the blessings of the Shema
Shema Yisrael
Shema Yisrael are the first two words of a section of the Torah that is a centerpiece of the morning and evening Jewish prayer services...
before the punctuating half-Kaddish
Kaddish
Kaddish is a prayer found in the Jewish prayer service. The central theme of the Kaddish is the magnification and sanctification of God's name. In the liturgy different versions of the Kaddish are used functionally as separators between sections of the service...
and the Amidah prayer in the Friday Sabbath evening (Maariv
Jewish services
Jewish prayer are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
) prayer service. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 104.) The exhortation to “observe” (V’shamru, ושמרו) the Sabbath that this reading concludes reflects God’s command in to “keep My Sabbaths,” even to the exclusion of other apparently worthy causes. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 103.) Again, Jews recite the account of the Sabbath’s significance in as part of the V’shamru paragraph of the Amidah prayer in the Sabbath morning (Shacharit
Jewish services
Jewish prayer are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
) prayer service. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 345.) And once again, Jews recite the account of the Sabbath’s significance in as part of the V’shamru paragraph of the Kiddusha Rabba
Kiddush
Kiddush , literally, "sanctification," is a blessing recited over wine or grape juice to sanctify the Shabbat and Jewish holidays.-Significance:...
blessing for the Sabbath day meal. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 458.)
Reuven Hammer
Reuven Hammer is a Conservative Jewish rabbi, scholar of Jewish liturgy, author and lecturer. He is a founder of the Masorti movement in Israel and a past president of the International Rabbinical Assembly. He served many years as head of the Masorti Beth Din in Israel...
. Or Hadash: A Commentary on Siddur Sim Shalom
Siddur Sim Shalom
Siddur Sim Shalom may refer to any siddur in a family of siddurim, Jewish prayerbooks, and related commentaries on these siddurim, published by the Rabbinical Assembly and the United Synagogue of Conservative Judaism....
for Shabbat and Festivals, 29. New York: Rabbinical Assembly
Rabbinical Assembly
The Rabbinical Assembly is the international association of Conservative rabbis. The RA was founded in 1901 to shape the ideology, programs, and practices of the Conservative movement. It publishes prayerbooks and books of Jewish interest, and oversees the work of the Committee on Jewish Law and...
, 2003. ISBN 0-916219-20-8.)
Jews recite the account of how Moses brought down two tablets of stone reported in as part of the Amidah prayer in the Sabbath morning (Shacharit) prayer service. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 344–45.)
Some Jews refer to the inscription on the two tablets of stone reported in as they study Pirkei Avot chapter 5 on a Sabbath between Passover and Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah
Rosh Hashanah , , is the Jewish New Year. It is the first of the High Holy Days or Yamim Nora'im which occur in the autumn...
. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 571.) And thereafter, some quote as they study Pirkei Avot chapter 6 on a succeeding Sabbath between Passover and Rosh Hashanah. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 584.)
God’s characteristics of graciousness and compassion in are reflected in and in turn in the Ashrei prayer in the morning (Shacharit) and afternoon (Mincha
Jewish services
Jewish prayer are the prayer recitations that form part of the observance of Judaism. These prayers, often with instructions and commentary, are found in the siddur, the traditional Jewish prayer book....
) prayer services. Similarly, Jews call on God’s characteristic of forgiveness in with the words “forgive us, our Guide” in the weekday Amidah prayer in each of the three prayer services. And again, Jews cite God’s characteristic of “steadfast lovingkindness (rav chesed)” in in the Kedushah D’Sidra section of the Minchah service for Shabbat. (Hammer, at 1, 4, 228.)
Jews recite three times the 13 attributes of mercy in after removing the Torah from the Ark on Passover, Shavuot, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur , also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest and most solemn day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue...
, Sukkot, and Hoshana Rabbah. (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 359.)
During the Amidah prayer in the Sabbath morning (Shacharit) prayer service, Jews refer to the “crown of splendor” that God placed on Moses in (Davis, Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals, at 344.)
The weekly maqam
In the Weekly MaqamThe Weekly Maqam
In Mizrahi and Sephardic Middle Eastern Jewish prayer services, each Shabbat the congregation conducts services using a different maqam. A maqam , which in Arabic literally means 'place', is a standard melody type and set of related tunes. The melodies used in a given maqam aims effectively to...
, Sephardi Jews each week base the songs of the services on the content of that week's parshah. For Parshah Ki Tisa, Sephardi Jews apply Maqam Hijaz, the maqam that expresses mourning and sorrow. This is appropriate, because it is the parshah that contains the episode of the golden calf, a sad and embarrassing episode in the history of the Israelite people.
Biblical
(20:5 in NJPS) (punishing children for fathers’ sin); 43–49 (Passover); (Passover); (three pilgrim festivals). (three pilgrim festivals). (drinking the accursed thing); (Passover); (attributes of God; punishing children for fathers’ sin); (sacrifices to another god; zealots kill apostates; zealots rewarded with priestly standing; plague as punishment; leader makes atonement); (Passover, Shavuot); (Sukkot). (5:9 in NJPS) (punishing children for fathers’ sin); 25–29 (golden calf); (second set of tablets); (three pilgrim festivals); (no capital punishment of children for fathers’ sin); (Sukkot). (cult object from molten jewelry); (Sukkot). (Sukkot); (golden calves); (northern feast like Sukkot). (keeping the Sabbath); (universally-observed Sabbath).- JeremiahBook of JeremiahThe Book of Jeremiah is the second of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, following the book of Isaiah and preceding Ezekiel and the Book of the Twelve....
(31:29–30 in NJPS) (not punishing children for fathers’ sin). (idols from molten jewelry); (not punishing children for fathers’ sin); (Sukkot). - NahumBook of NahumThe book of Nahum is the seventh book of the 12 minor prophets of the Hebrew Bible. It is attributed to the prophet Nahum, and was probably written in Jerusalem in the 8th century BC.-Background:...
(God’s attributes). (Sukkot). (“Show me Your ways”); (“Teach me Your way”); (cassia); (ransom to God); (God’s book); (blot out of the book of the living); (God drove out the nations before them); (God drove out the nations before them); (“Teach me . . . Your way”); (holy anointing oil); (God’s covert; God covering with God’s limb); (Israel as God’s inheritance); (God’s rest); (God spoke to Moses from a cloud); (“The Lord is full of compassion and gracious, slow to anger, and plenteous in mercy”); (God’s truth); (“Teach me . . . the way”); (anointing oil); (God’s book); (God’s attributes); (God’s separate treatment of Israel). (Sukkot). (Sukkot). (Sukkot); (Sukkot); (three Pilgrim festivals).
Early nonrabbinic
- PhiloPhiloPhilo , known also as Philo of Alexandria , Philo Judaeus, Philo Judaeus of Alexandria, Yedidia, "Philon", and Philo the Jew, was a Hellenistic Jewish Biblical philosopher born in Alexandria....
. Allegorical Interpretation 2:15:54–55; 3: 15:46, 31:95, 32:101, 48:140–42; That the Worse Is Wont To Attack the Better 44:159–60; On the Posterity of Cain and His Exile 4:13, 5:15–16, 41:136, 46:158, 48:169; On the Giants 5:2–3, 12:53–55; On the Unchangableness of God 24:109–10; Concerning Noah's Work as a Planter 6:26; On Drunkenness 15:66–67, 24:96; On the Migration of Abraham 2:7–8, 15:84–85, 31:170–71; Who Is the Heir of Divine Things? 4:19–20, 35:167–68, 38:186–39:189, 41:196; On Flight and Finding 17:88–90, 29:165; On the Change of Names 2:7–10, 17:108–09; On the Life of Moses 2:49:270–74; The Special Laws 3:22:124–27. AlexandriaAlexandriaAlexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
, Egypt, early 1st Century C.E.. Reprinted in, e.g., The Works of Philo: Complete and Unabridged, New Updated Edition. Translated by Charles Duke YongeCharles Duke YongeCharles Duke Yonge was an English historian, classicist, and cricketer. He wrote numerous works of modern history, and translated several classical works.-Life:...
, 43, 55, 61, 66, 129, 133, 145, 148–49, 153, 156, 167, 193, 212, 215, 253, 261, 269, 277, 290–92, 329, 336, 341, 350, 515, 606. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Pub., 1993. ISBN 0-943575-93-1. - RomansEpistle to the RomansThe Epistle of Paul to the Romans, often shortened to Romans, is the sixth book in the New Testament. Biblical scholars agree that it was composed by the Apostle Paul to explain that Salvation is offered through the Gospel of Jesus Christ...
1st Century. (“I will have mercy on whom I have mercy”). - MarkGospel of MarkThe Gospel According to Mark , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Mark or simply Mark, is the second book of the New Testament. This canonical account of the life of Jesus of Nazareth is one of the three synoptic gospels. It was thought to be an epitome, which accounts for its place as the second...
(Passover). Circa 70 C.E. - MatthewGospel of MatthewThe Gospel According to Matthew is one of the four canonical gospels, one of the three synoptic gospels, and the first book of the New Testament. It tells of the life, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth...
(Passover). Circa 70–100 C.E. - LukeGospel of LukeThe Gospel According to Luke , commonly shortened to the Gospel of Luke or simply Luke, is the third and longest of the four canonical Gospels. This synoptic gospel is an account of the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth. It details his story from the events of his birth to his Ascension.The...
(Passover). Circa 80–150 C.E. - JohnGospel of JohnThe Gospel According to John , commonly referred to as the Gospel of John or simply John, and often referred to in New Testament scholarship as the Fourth Gospel, is an account of the public ministry of Jesus...
(Sukkot).
Classical rabbinic
- MishnahMishnahThe Mishnah or Mishna is the first major written redaction of the Jewish oral traditions called the "Oral Torah". It is also the first major work of Rabbinic Judaism. It was redacted c...
: Sheviit 1:1–4; Challah 4:9; Pesachim 1:1–10:9; Shekalim 1:1–4:9; Sukkah 1:1–5:8; Megillah 3:4, 4:10; Avot 5:6; Zevachim 9:7; Menachot 9:2; Chullin 8:4; Bekhorot 1:1–7; Keritot 1:1–2. Land of Israel, circa 200 C.E. Reprinted in, e.g., The Mishnah: A New Translation. Translated by Jacob NeusnerJacob NeusnerJacob Neusner is an American academic scholar of Judaism who lives in Rhinebeck, New York.-Biography:Born in Hartford, Connecticut, Neusner was educated at Harvard University, the Jewish Theological Seminary of America , the University of Oxford, and Columbia University.Neusner is often celebrated...
, 69, 157, 229–58, 279–91, 321, 324, 686, 721, 751, 781, 788–89, 836. New Haven: Yale University Press, 1988. ISBN 0-300-05022-4. - ToseftaToseftaThe Tosefta is a compilation of the Jewish oral law from the period of the Mishnah.-Overview:...
: Challah 2:9; Shabbat 15:16; Pisha (Pesachim) 1:1–10:13; Shekalim 1:1–3:1; Kippurim (Yoma) 1:18, 2:1, 4:9, 13–14; Sukkah 1:1–4:28; Megillah 3:1, 36; Sotah 3:10, 6:6, 11; Bava Kamma 7:4; Sanhedrin 4:9, 13:3; Avodah Zarah 3:19, 4:6; Menachot 1:12, 7:1; Parah 4:4. Land of Israel, circa 300 C.E. Reprinted in, e.g., The Tosefta: Translated from the Hebrew, with a New Introduction. Translated by Jacob Neusner, 1:339, 418, 471–533, 546, 548, 564–84, 644, 652, 841, 856, 860; 2:986–87, 1160, 1182, 1189, 1273, 1276, 1409, 1433, 1754. Peabody, Mass.: Hendrickson Pub., 2002. ISBN 1-56563-642-2. - Mekhilta According to Rabbi IshmaelMekhiltaThis article refers to the Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael. There is a separate article on the Mekhilta de-Rabbi ShimonMekhilta or Mekilta is a halakic midrash to the Book of Exodus...
81:1. Land of Israel, late 4th Century. Reprinted in, e.g., Mekhilta According to Rabbi Ishmael. Translated by Jacob Neusner, vol. 2, 251–57. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1988. ISBN 1-55540-237-2. - Jerusalem TalmudJerusalem TalmudThe Jerusalem Talmud, talmud meaning "instruction", "learning", , is a collection of Rabbinic notes on the 2nd-century Mishnah which was compiled in the Land of Israel during the 4th-5th century. The voluminous text is also known as the Palestinian Talmud or Talmud de-Eretz Yisrael...
: Peah 3a, 8a, 10a, 22b, 31b; Sheviit 1a, 4a; Bikkurim 1a, 23a; Pesachim 1a–44b; Yoma 21b, 23b, 30a, 49b, 55a, 57a; Sukkah 1a–33b; Beitzah 1a–49b. Land of Israel, circa 400 CE. Reprinted in, e.g., Talmud Yerushalmi. Edited by Chaim Malinowitz, Yisroel Simcha Schorr, and Mordechai Marcus, vols. 3, 6a, 12, 18, 21–23. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2006–2011.
- Babylonian TalmudTalmudThe Talmud is a central text of mainstream Judaism. It takes the form of a record of rabbinic discussions pertaining to Jewish law, ethics, philosophy, customs and history....
: Berakhot 7a–b, 10b, 30b, 32a–b, 55a, 62b, 63b; Shabbat 10b, 30a, 33a, 69b–70a, 86a, 87a, 89a, 119b, 132a; Eruvin 22a, 54a, 96a; Pesachim 2a–121b; Shekalim 2a–22b; Yoma 3b, 22a, 28a, 32b, 36b–37a, 43b, 45a, 66b, 85b–86b; Sukkah 2a–56b; Beitzah 2a–40b; Rosh Hashanah 9a, 16b, 17b; Taanit 8a, 21b, 27b, 28b; Megillah 6b, 10b, 15a–b, 19b, 25a–b, 29b–30a, 31a; Moed Katan 3b–4a, 9a, 15a, 16b, 18b; Chagigah 6b, 11b, 12b, 16a; Yevamot 6b–7a, 49b, 62a, 72a; Ketubot 30a, 31a, 34a, 106a; Nedarim 10b, 32a, 33a, 38a; Nazir 47a; Sotah 13b–14a; Gittin 60b; Kiddushin 17a, 29a–b, 33b; Bava Kamma 34b, 50a, 55a, 71a, 92a, 112a, 119a; Bava Batra 10b, 15a–b, 75a; Sanhedrin 7a, 13a, 27b, 35b, 38b, 56b, 60b, 63a, 74a, 78b, 83b, 102a, 108a, 110a, 111a; Makkot 8b, 11a, 12a, 13a, 14b, 23a–24a; Shevuot 10b, 15a, 39a; Avodah Zarah 8a, 10b, 44a, 53b; Horayot 4a–b, 6b, 11b; Zevachim 15b, 18a, 19b, 21a, 112b; Menachot 5b–6a, 21b, 35b, 36b, 53b, 72a, 84b, 87b–88a, 89a, 99b, 101b; Chullin 62b, 106b, 114a, 115a, 139b; Bekhorot 3a, 6a, 50a, 51b; Arakhin 4a, 15b, 16b; Temurah 14b, 16a; Keritot 2a, 3a, 5a–6b; Meilah 19a; Niddah 40a, 41a. Babylonia, 6th Century. Reprinted in, e.g., Talmud Bavli. Edited by Yisroel Simcha Schorr, Chaim Malinowitz, and Mordechai Marcus, 72 vols. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2006.
Medieval
- Exodus RabbahExodus RabbahExodus Rabbah is the midrash to Exodus, containing in the printed editions 52 parashiyyot. It is not uniform in its composition.- Structure :In parashiyyot i.-xiv...
39:1–47:9. 10th Century. Reprinted in, e.g., Midrash Rabbah: Exodus. Translated by S. M. Lehrman, 3:458–545. London: Soncino Press, 1939. ISBN 0-900689-38-2. - Solomon ibn GabirolSolomon ibn GabirolSolomon ibn Gabirol, also Solomon ben Judah , was an Andalucian Hebrew poet and Jewish philosopher with a Neoplatonic bent. He was born in Málaga about 1021; died about 1058 in Valencia.-Biography:...
. A Crown for the King, 26:322–23. Spain, 11th Century. Translated by David R. Slavitt, 42–43. New York: Oxford University Press, 1998. ISBN 0-19-511962-2. - RashiRashiShlomo Yitzhaki , or in Latin Salomon Isaacides, and today generally known by the acronym Rashi , was a medieval French rabbi famed as the author of a comprehensive commentary on the Talmud, as well as a comprehensive commentary on the Tanakh...
. Commentary. Exodus 30–34. TroyesTroyesTroyes is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town...
, France, late 11th Century. Reprinted in, e.g., Rashi. The Torah: With Rashi’s Commentary Translated, Annotated, and Elucidated. Translated and annotated by Yisrael Isser Zvi Herczeg, vol. 2, 423–86. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 1994. ISBN 0-89906-027-7. - Judah HaleviYehuda HaleviJudah Halevi was a Spanish Jewish physician, poet and philosopher. He was born in Spain, either in Toledo or Tudela, in 1075 or 1086, and died shortly after arriving in Palestine in 1141...
. KuzariKuzariThe Kitab al Khazari, commonly called the Kuzari, is one of most famous works of the medieval Spanish Jewish philosopher and poet Rabbi Yehuda Halevi, completed around 1140. Its title is an Arabic phrase meaning Book of the Khazars...
. 1:97; 2:2, 26, 80; 4:3, 15. ToledoToledo, SpainToledo's Alcázar became renowned in the 19th and 20th centuries as a military academy. At the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War in 1936 its garrison was famously besieged by Republican forces.-Economy:...
, Spain, 1130–1140. Reprinted in, e.g., Jehuda Halevi. Kuzari: An Argument for the Faith of Israel. Intro. by Henry Slonimsky, 68–69, 83, 105, 132, 211, 221–22. New York: Schocken, 1964. ISBN 0-8052-0075-4.
- MaimonidesMaimonidesMoses ben-Maimon, called Maimonides and also known as Mūsā ibn Maymūn in Arabic, or Rambam , was a preeminent medieval Jewish philosopher and one of the greatest Torah scholars and physicians of the Middle Ages...
. Guide for the PerplexedGuide for the PerplexedThe Guide for the Perplexed is one of the major works of Rabbi Moshe ben Maimon, better known as Maimonides or "the Rambam"...
, 1:4, 8, 15, 16, 18, 21, 37, 46, 48, 54, 64, 66, 2:32, 45, 47; 3:17, 24, 32, 41, 45, 48, 49, 51, 53. CairoCairoCairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
, Egypt, 1190. Reprinted in, e.g., Moses Maimonides. The Guide for the Perplexed. Translated by Michael FriedländerMichael FriedländerMichael Friedländer was an Orientalist and principal of Jews' College, London. He is best known for his English translation of Maimonides' Guide to the Perplexed, which was the most popular such translation until the more recent work of Shlomo Pines, and still remains in print.Friedländer was...
, 3, 17, 21, 26–27, 30–31, 52–53, 61, 65, 75–76, 96, 98, 221, 245, 248, 287, 304, 323, 346, 358, 371, 380, 385, 392–93. New York: Dover Publications, 1956. ISBN 0-486-20351-4. - ZoharZoharThe Zohar is the foundational work in the literature of Jewish mystical thought known as Kabbalah. It is a group of books including commentary on the mystical aspects of the Torah and scriptural interpretations as well as material on Mysticism, mythical cosmogony, and mystical psychology...
2:187b–193b. Spain, late 13th Century. Reprinted in, e.g., The Zohar. Translated by Harry Sperling and Maurice Simon. 5 vols. London: Soncino Press, 1934.
Modern
- Niccolò MachiavelliNiccolò MachiavelliNiccolò di Bernardo dei Machiavelli was an Italian historian, philosopher, humanist, and writer based in Florence during the Renaissance. He is one of the main founders of modern political science. He was a diplomat, political philosopher, playwright, and a civil servant of the Florentine Republic...
. The PrinceThe PrinceThe Prince is a political treatise by the Italian diplomat, historian and political theorist Niccolò Machiavelli. From correspondence a version appears to have been distributed in 1513, using a Latin title, De Principatibus . But the printed version was not published until 1532, five years after...
, ch. 6. FlorenceFlorenceFlorence is the capital city of the Italian region of Tuscany and of the province of Florence. It is the most populous city in Tuscany, with approximately 370,000 inhabitants, expanding to over 1.5 million in the metropolitan area....
, Italy, 1532.
- Thomas HobbesThomas HobbesThomas Hobbes of Malmesbury , in some older texts Thomas Hobbs of Malmsbury, was an English philosopher, best known today for his work on political philosophy...
. LeviathanLeviathan (book)Leviathan or The Matter, Forme and Power of a Common Wealth Ecclesiasticall and Civil — commonly called simply Leviathan — is a book written by Thomas Hobbes and published in 1651. Its name derives from the biblical Leviathan...
, 1:12; 3:34, 36, 40; 4:45; Review & Conclusion. England, 1651. Reprint edited by C. B. MacphersonC. B. MacphersonCrawford Brough Macpherson O.C. M.Sc. D. Sc. was an influential Canadian political scientist who taught political theory at the University of Toronto.-Life:...
, 181, 431, 437–38, 460–61, 503–04, 672, 676–77, 723. Harmondsworth, England: Penguin Classics, 1982. ISBN 0-14-043195-0. - Moses MendelssohnMoses MendelssohnMoses Mendelssohn was a German Jewish philosopher to whose ideas the renaissance of European Jews, Haskalah is indebted...
. JerusalemJerusalem (Mendelssohn)Jerusalem or On Religious Power and Judaism is the title of a book written by Moses Mendelssohn, which was first published in 1783 – the same year, when the Prussian officer Christian Wilhelm von Dohm published the second part of his Mémoire Concerning the amelioration of the civil status of the...
, § 2. Berlin, 1783. Reprinted in Jerusalem: Or on Religious Power and Judaism. Translated by Allan Arkush; introduction and commentary by Alexander AltmannAlexander AltmannAlexander Altmann was an Orthodox Jewish scholar and rabbi born in Kassa, Austria-Hungary, today Košice, Slovakia. He emigrated to England in 1938 and later settled in the United States, working productively for a decade and a half as a professor within the Philosophy Department at Brandeis...
, 120, 122–23, 129. Hanover, N.H.: Brandeis Univ. Press, 1983. ISBN 0-87451-264-6. - Henry Wadsworth LongfellowHenry Wadsworth LongfellowHenry Wadsworth Longfellow was an American poet and educator whose works include "Paul Revere's Ride", The Song of Hiawatha, and Evangeline...
The Jewish Cemetery at Newport . Boston, 1854. Reprinted in Harold BloomHarold BloomHarold Bloom is an American writer and literary critic, and is Sterling Professor of Humanities at Yale University. He is known for his defense of 19th-century Romantic poets, his unique and controversial theories of poetic influence, and his prodigious literary output, particularly for a literary...
. ‘‘American Religious Poems’’, 80–81. New York: Library of America, 2006. ISBN 978-1-931082-74-7. - Shlomo GanzfriedShlomo GanzfriedShlomo Ganzfried was an Orthodox rabbi and posek best known as author of the work of Halakha , the Kitzur Shulchan Aruch , by which title he is also known.- Biography :Ganzfried was born in the year 1804 in Uzhhorod in the Carpathian region of the...
. Kitzur Shulchon Oruch, ch. 140. Hungary, 1864. Translated by Eliyahu Touger, 2:587. New York: Moznaim Publishing Corp., 1991. ISBN 0-940118-63-7.
- Emily DickinsonEmily DickinsonEmily Elizabeth Dickinson was an American poet. Born in Amherst, Massachusetts, to a successful family with strong community ties, she lived a mostly introverted and reclusive life...
. Poem 1247 (To pile like Thunder to its close). Circa 1873. Poem 1260 (Because that you are going). Circa 1873. Poem 1719 (God is indeed a jealous God —). 19th Century. Poem 1733 (No man saw awe, nor to his house). 19th Century. In The Complete Poems of Emily Dickinson. Edited by Thomas H. Johnson, 547, 551–52, 698, 703. New York: Little, Brown & Co., 1960. ISBN 0-316-18414-4. - Louis GinzbergLouis GinzbergRabbi Louis Ginzberg was a Talmudist and leading figure in the Conservative Movement of Judaism of the twentieth century. He was born on November 28, 1873, in Kovno, Lithuania; he died on November 11, 1953, in New York City.-Biographical background:...
. Legends of the Jews, 3:119–44. Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1911. - Abraham Isaac KookAbraham Isaac KookAbraham Isaac Kook was the first Ashkenazi chief rabbi of the British Mandate for Palestine, the founder of the Religious Zionist Yeshiva Merkaz HaRav, Jewish thinker, Halachist, Kabbalist and a renowned Torah scholar...
. The Moral Principles. The Lights of Holiness. Early 20th Century. Reprinted in Abraham Isaac Kook: the Lights of Penitence, the Moral Principles, Lights of Holiness, Essays, Letters, and Poems. Translated by Ben Zion BokserBen Zion Bokser-Biography:Bokser was born in Lubomi, Poland, and emigrated to the United States at the age of 13 in 1920. He attended City College of New York and Rabbi Isaac Elhanan Theological Seminary, followed by the Jewish Theological Seminary of America and Columbia University...
, 148, 207. Mahwah, N.J.: Paulist Press 1978. ISBN 0-8091-2159-X. - Morris Adler. The World of the Talmud, 28–29, 50–51, 91–92. B’nai B’rith Hillel Foundations, 1958. Reprinted Kessinger Publishing, 2007. ISBN 0-548-08000-3.
- Bob DylanBob DylanBob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet, film director and painter. He has been a major and profoundly influential figure in popular music and culture for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was an informal chronicler and a seemingly...
. Gates of EdenGates Of Eden (song)"Gates of Eden" is a song by Bob Dylan that appears on his fifth studio album Bringing It All Back Home, released on March 22, 1965 by Columbia Records. It was also released as a single as the B-side of "Like a Rolling Stone". Dylan plays the song solo, accompanying himself on acoustic guitar and...
. Columbia RecordsColumbia RecordsColumbia Records is an American record label, owned by Japan's Sony Music Entertainment, operating under the Columbia Music Group with Aware Records. It was founded in 1888, evolving from an earlier enterprise, the American Graphophone Company — successor to the Volta Graphophone Company...
, 1965. (golden calf). - Phyllis Trible. God and the Rhetoric of Sexuality, 31–59. Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1978. ISBN 0-8006-0464-4. (God’s feminine merciful quality, or rachum).
- Jacob MilgromJacob MilgromJacob Milgrom was a prominent American Jewish Bible scholar and Conservative rabbi, best known for his comprehensive Torah commentaries and work on the Dead Sea Scrolls.-Biography:...
. “‘You Shall Not Boil a Kid in Its Mother’s Milk’: An archaeological myth destroyed.” Bible ReviewBible ReviewBible Review was a publication that sought to connect the academic study of the Bible to a broad general audience. Covering both the Old and New Testaments, Bible Review presented critical and historical interpretations of biblical texts, and “reader-friendly Biblical scholarship” from 1985 to...
. 1 (3) (Fall 1985): 48–55. - Aaron WildavskyAaron WildavskyAaron Wildavsky was an American political scientist known for his pioneering work in public policy, government budgeting, and risk management....
. Assimilation versus Separation: Joseph the Administrator and the Politics of Religion in Biblical Israel, 3–4. New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers, 1993. ISBN 1-56000-081-3. - Marc Gellman. “Gluing the Broken Commandments Back Together.” In God’s Mailbox: More Stories About Stories in the Bible, 68–72. New York: Morrow Junior Books, 1996. ISBN 0-688-13169-7.
- Baruch J. Schwartz. “What Really Happened at Mount Sinai? Four biblical answers to one question.” Bible Review. 13 (5) (Oct. 1997).
- Menachem Davis. The Schottenstein Edition Siddur for the Sabbath and Festivals with an Interlinear Translation, XXVII. Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2002. ISBN 1-57819-697-3. (Sabbath as a source of holiness).
- Katharine Doob Sakenfeld. The Meaning of Hesed in the Hebrew Bible: A New Inquiry. Wipf & Stock Publishers, 2002. ISBN 1-57910-927-6.
- Alan Lew. This Is Real and You Are Completely Unprepared: The Days of Awe as a Journey of Transformation, 53–55, 136. Boston: Little, Brown and Co., 2003. ISBN 0-316-73908-1.
- Jack M. Sasson. “Should Cheeseburgers Be Kosher? A Different Interpretation of Five Hebrew Words.” Bible Review 19 (6) (Dec. 2003): 40–43, 50–51.
- Suzanne A. Brody. “Bloody Water.” In Dancing in the White Spaces: The Yearly Torah Cycle and More Poems, 83. Shelbyville, Kentucky: Wasteland Press, 2007. ISBN 1-60047-112-9.
- Esther JungreisEsther JungreisEsther Jungreis is the founder of the international Hineni movement in America. A Holocaust survivor, she has made it her life's mission to bring back Jews to Orthodox Judaism.-Biography:...
. Life Is a Test, 86, 98–99, 144–46, 208–09. Brooklyn: Shaar Press, 2007. ISBN 1-4226-0609-0. - Gloria London. “Why Milk and Meat Don’t Mix: A New Explanation for a Puzzling Kosher Law.” Biblical Archaeology ReviewBiblical Archaeology ReviewBiblical Archaeology Review is a publication that seeks to connect the academic study of archaeology to a broad general audience seeking to understand the world of the Bible and the Near and Middle East . Covering both the Old and New Testaments, BAR presents the latest discoveries and...
. 34 (6) (Nov./Dec. 2008): 66–69. - Jonathan GoldsteinJonathan Goldstein (author)Jonathan Stuart Goldstein is an American-Canadian author, humourist and radio producer. Goldstein is known for his work on the radio programs This American Life and WireTap.-Biography:...
. “The Golden Calf.” In Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible!Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible!Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible! is a book written by author and radio presenter Jonathan Goldstein. The book is a comedic retelling of the Old Testament stories such as Adam and Eve, Samson, Noah, and David and Goliath. Ladies and Gentlemen, the Bible! also includes a story narrated by Joseph,...
115–28. New York: Riverhead Books, 2009. ISBN 978-1-59448-367-7. - Joe LiebermanJoe LiebermanJoseph Isadore "Joe" Lieberman is the senior United States Senator from Connecticut. A former member of the Democratic Party, he was the party's nominee for Vice President in the 2000 election. Currently an independent, he remains closely affiliated with the party.Born in Stamford, Connecticut,...
and David KlinghofferDavid KlinghofferDavid Klinghoffer is an author and essayist, and a proponent of intelligent design. He is a Senior Fellow of the Discovery Institute, the organization that is the driving force behind the intelligent design movement...
. The Gift of Rest: Rediscovering the Beauty of the Sabbath. New York: Howard Books, 2011. ISBN 1-4516-0617-1.
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