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Exodus 21:28-29 (and onward) gives us laws concerning the ox that gores. If it happens once, they kill the ox but do not punish the owner. But if the ox has a pattern of goring and the owner has ...
In several locations (example: Yoma 75a.14 ), Chazal mention that Bnei Yisroel had slaves even while they were in the midbar. Where did they get them from? Did they take them from Egypt? Did they t...
I have often wondered about the meaning of David's name. I believe Da'at Mikra write that it may be a short form of Dodvahu (דודוהו), which also appears somewhere in Tanach and means Dod (friend) o...
One of the songs commonly sung on Friday night, which begins Kol Mekadesh Shevi'i, follows an alphabetic acrostic. After the introductory stanza, each stanza contains four phrases: the first three ...
I understand there was a little fence in Bayit Sheni called "HaSoreg"/"The Grille" which was meant to warn away gentiles and tme'im from entering the Chayil part of Har Habayit (according to the mi...
In Eruvin 74b.2, the Gemara rejects a proof by saying: לְעוֹלָם אֵימָא לָךְ קַיבְּלַהּ מִינֵּהּ, וְהָכָא חַזָּנָא הוּא דַּהֲוָה אָכֵיל נַהֲמָא בְּבֵיתֵיהּ וְאָתֵי בָּיֵית בְּבֵי כְנִישְׁתָּא The G...
Growing up I was taught that the reason for the various restrictions on how a woman is supposed to dress according to orthodox standards, dubbed 'tzniut' was because lack of doing so was 'lifnei ee...
In the Seder Oneg Shabbos Bentcher the translation for ״זעיר אנפין״ is "The Impatient One". What's the basis of this translation? Sources that support the reading would be appreciated.
The Rambam writes (Hilchot Teshuvah 2:10, Sefaria's translation): אָסוּר לָאָדָם לִהְיוֹת אַכְזָרִי וְלֹא יִתְפַּיֵּס אֶלָּא יְהֵא נוֹחַ לִרְצוֹת וְקָשֶׁה לִכְעֹס וּבְשָׁעָה שֶׁמְּבַקֵּשׁ מִמֶּנּו...
If a street has 600,000 people travelling on it during the week, but on weekends it does not since people aren't working, is it considered a Reshus Harabbim? Do we say that just because there are 6...
Are there any printed or audio/visual collections of Shabbos Zemiros which didn't make it into the standard repertoire?
I bought a package of frozen salmon filet pieces in Israel; they'd been imported from Poland. The package reads, in part: מטעמי הכשרות חובה לשטוף את העור או להסירו לפני השימוש. In my own tra...
In Mishnah Ketubot 1:1, it says: בְּתוּלָה נִשֵּׂאת לַיּוֹם הָרְבִיעִי, וְאַלְמָנָה לַיּוֹם הַחֲמִישִׁי. A virgin is married on the fourth day [of the week] and a widow on the fifth day Why don't...
I was reading about driving a car on Chol Hamo'ed and the article stated that many see the melacha of driving as tied to havarah (which I assume to refer to the burning of gas via combustion). The ...
I learned what I understand to be a S'fardi or maybe Israeli pronunciation of Hebrew. I'm aware of the differences between this and the usual Ashkenazi pronunciation. My question is about variati...
When the Torah lists Eisav's family tree, it calls a lot of people "aluf" (often translated champion): טו אלה אלופי בני עשו בני אליפז בכור עשו אלוף תימן אלוף אומר אלוף צפו אלוף קנז: טז אלוף קרח...
Mishnayot Tamid 6:3 says that the kohen who wins the right to offer the daily incense brings a buddy with him to hold one of the vessels and help him retrieve any dropped incense: מִי שֶׁזָּכָה בַ...
When giving matanot l'evyonim on Purim, I know that the mitzvah is fulfilled by giving money out on THAT day -- but must it be money that was set aside to be given on that day? If I have a box and...
I've heard (but don't remember where) that the music that is prohibited during the three weeks is one or both of: music with instruments, recorded music. I've heard conflicting things about a cape...
Does a woman fulfill the obligation to hear the shofar during Elul if she blows it for herself, or is this one of the mitzvot where a man (must? should?) perform the action on behalf of others? Fo...
In Joshua 15:16-19, it is related a short episode of Caleb, Othniel and Achsah. In Judges 1:12-15, it is related the same story (almost copy paste). Why do you think this story was considered sign...
In his commentary on Beresheet 36:31, Ibn Ezra writes: "ואלה המלכים. יש אומרים כי בדרך נבואה נכתבה זאת הפרשה. ויצחקי אמר בספרו כי בימי יהושפט נכתבה זאת הפרשה. ופי' הדורות כרצונו הכי קרא שמו יצחק כ...
Are there any vegans/vegetarians that we know of anywhere in Tanach? (Not someone that just took a neder)
Today I saw this question: History of Birkas haMinim, which got me thinking: Nowadays, that we don't have Tzdokim or little Judaic Temple-cults like the Essenes, whom is the Birkat Haminim directed...
Mishneh Torah, Talmud Torah, 6:14 lists 24 reasons for excommunication. # 20 is: טַבָּח שֶׁלֹּא בָּדַק סַכִּינוֹ לִפְנֵי חָכָם A Shochet who does not have his knife checked by a wise man. (general...
I have heard there are some who refrain from referring to their children by nicknames. This was a very long time ago, and I cannot recall the reason nor the source. What could be the reason for th...
Due to the pandemic, on Rosh Hashana1 some congregations will be blowing the shofar outdoors to mitigate the health risks. In an urban area, this means someone could stay safely far away and yet s...
There are multiple references to the "Satan" in Jewish texts, most notably in the book of Eyov (Job), where God allows the Satan to devastate Eyov's life, including killing his family. We also have...
The Shulchan Aruch in Orach Chaim 173:2 writes: בין בשר ×œ×“×’×™× ×—×•×‘×” ליטול ×ž×©×•× ×“×§×©×” לדבר ×חר ×•×—×ž×™×¨× ×¡×›× ×ª× ×ž××™×¡×•×¨× There is an obligation to wash...
If I am doing my ‘like-living’ in the Succah, is there any benefit to closing the door? Meaning, the open door is the only thing standing between the Succah becoming an entirely sealed structure. I...
Nun, the father of Yehoshua, is apparently named after a word for fish in Aramaic (for example, Beresheet Rabbah 97:3; Divrei Emet, Matot). His father Elishama (according to Divrei Hayamim 1:7:26-2...
The 4 letter name for Hashem is replaced with the word a/d-/nai (3 syllables). But my siddur doesn't put vowels under each instance, so I'm not sure how to say the word when it is preceded b a pref...
Like many Jews, I have been taught that Jews don't bow; many people trace this prohibition to Mordechai not bowing to Haman. This custom can be further traced to Exodus 20:5 - "You shall not bow do...
Kind of a weird question. Does anyone have any idea what happened to the fruit brought by the spies from Israel to the desert? Was it eaten by specific people? Buried? Left behind?
I have heard that when dietary laws and serious medical conditions interact, there are grounds to be lenient on the basis of pikuach nefesh. I'm pretty sure I've heard this with respect to ingredi...
In various places on this site, including the FAQ, we have the following disclaimer: Like Wikipedia, this site makes no guarantee of validity, and does not offer professional (particularly rabbini...
When bringing first fruits we are commanded to say the following to the priest: וּבָאתָ֙ אֶל־הַכֹּהֵ֔ן אֲשֶׁ֥ר יִהְיֶ֖ה בַּיָּמִ֣ים הָהֵ֑ם וְאָמַרְתָּ֣ אֵלָ֗יו הִגַּ֤דְתִּי הַיּוֹם֙ לַיהוָ֣ה אֱלֹה...
This past year I grew some vegetables for the first time. I don't live in Eretz Yisrael, so I know I don't have to tithe my produce, but it made me wonder: what if I did? How would I go about tha...
The weekday amida has thirteen request benedictions in the middle, according to the usual count. Some of these end, after their respective requests, with "כי אתה…", "for you are…". Here's the rund...
Bechorot 8a discusses a species called dolfinim, which, in Rashi's understanding, are merpeople and can bear viable offspring with humans. Let's suppose that merpeople actually exist as Rashi descr...
Last week I took a class on priorities in triage -- one ventilator, two people who will die without it, who gets it? We reviewed sources in talmud and later commentaries, some of which I remember ...
Suppose someone started reading a haftara for a different week, or according to a different custom for the same week, or a piece of navi that's not a haftara at all. What should the community do? ...
In the book of D'varim I've been noticing a lot more uses of אנכי instead of אני. Both words mean "I". I've heard that אנכי is more formal, and I know it begins the revelation at Sinai, though in...
ותשא כל העדה ויתנו את קולם ויבכו העם בלילה ההוא (במדבר יד, א) אמר רבה א"ר יוחנן אותו ליל ט' באב היה אמר להן הקב"ה לישראל אתם בכיתם בכיה של חנם ואני אקבע לכם בכיה לדורות (סנהדרין קד:, תענית כט.) "...
Sanhedrin 101a.2 teaches: תנו רבנן הקורא פסוק של שיר השירים ועושה אותו כמין זמר והקורא פסוק בבית משתאות בלא זמנו מביא רעה לעולם מפני שהתורה חוגרת שק ועומדת לפני הקב"ה ואומרת לפניו רבונו של עולם עש...
Pesachim 68b teaches: רבי אליעזר אומר אין לו לאדם ביום טוב אלא או אוכל ושותה או יושב ושונה רבי יהושע אומר חלקהו חציו לאכילה ושתיה וחציו לבית המדרש R' Eliezer says, "A person on Yom Tov can either ...
In Bereishit 2:19 God brings all the animals to Adam to see what he will name them. This has long puzzled me, because: God created them and already knows their functions (He doesn't need Adam to ...
In Nitzavim, Devarim 29:23-27 it says: "all nations will ask, “Why did the LORD do thus to this land? Wherefore that awful wrath?” They will be told, “Because they forsook the covenant that the LO...
The Septuagint's version of Jeremiah is one eighth shorter than the Masoretic Text's version. In the Dead Sea Scrolls is evidence of both versions. Did any ancient Jewish writers (such as in the M...
If there is someone who does not yet own a Tallis (prayer shawl), and he is davening for the amud (so he wears a shul tallis), when he gets to the places in davening where you are supposed to kiss ...
