In Exodus 25, verse 8, Hashem says, veasu li Mikdash veshakhanti betokham – “and they shall make me a sanctuary, and I will dwell in the midst of them.” It struck me that after giving instructions, God charged Israel to build him a Mikdash. He expects them to be able to...
This is part 2 of a longer conversation. (Part 1 here). What was Jesus meditating on when he was in the wilderness for 40 days? It is speculation, but I like to think he was dwelling on the verses from Deuteronomy as he was contemplating Israel's tests, as...
This is Part 1 of a longer conversation... Professor Shir has a great fondness for the book of Deuteronomy and its connections throughout the Bible. He authored a course that provides a small taste of how influential Deuteronomy is in the theology portrayed in the gospels. Take the concept of...
A witness, or a testimony, the bare facts of something, is connected to the idea of empirical account, reporting, and an audit, a story one can see for himself. All the items: the altar, the water basin, Aaron’s clothes, the jewels, gold, all people, sacrifices, and rituals that were...
In Exodus 35:31, the craftsmen received abilities to do melakha “work” or “labor” or “craft” that was assigned to them. But besides all the knowledge and abilities, the Torah says in Exodus 35:35 ulehoret natan belibo “he put the ability to teach into his heart.” Betzalel was to...
Torah says that Olah was to be brought to the entrance of the tent. Why? Because not every offering is automatically accepted. The priests carefully examined offerings at the entrance, and only then were they presented to God on the altar. Today, people rarely think that their worship can be...
Sometimes we get tired of fighting for just about everything in life. Moses was at the end of his life, well over a hundred, and yet he was still in a fight. In Numbers 31, Moses was told that he must exact vengeance for what Midian did to Israel, and...
In Torah, in parsha Shemot (Exodus 6), we read how a new king arose in Egypt, a king who did not know Joseph. This was not great for Jacob's family. His fear of the Unknown (in his case, foreigners living in his land) led to panic, and panic...
The story of Pinchas can be hard to take in. Pinchas intervened by taking on God’s jealousy, and that changed everything. And in verse 12, God rewards him, and he says, hineni notein lo et biriti shalom “behold I give to him my covenant of peace.” Peace is not...