Commentary-Bible

Rabbi Yaakov Bender believes in you. And in me. And in every Jew. He believes in our potential for greatness. In our capacity to face challenges with joy and courage. In our ability to change, to grow, to achieve. And he knows that all these things come from the spirit and power of the Torah and the beis medrash. In Rabbi Yaakov Bender on the Chumash, this distinguished Rosh Yeshivah explores many of the Chumash’s timely and contemporary messages of strength, hope and chizuk. He begins with an insight on the parashah, and then shows us how the eternal and holy words of the Chumash are so relevant to us. He gently helps us find our own strengths and reach ever higher. And he tells stories. So many stories! Rabbi Bender shares personal memories of his illustrious family. He brings us rare and often unknown stories about the gedolim we know and revere. There are “everyday gedolim” as well -- people like you and me, men and women who take achrayus, courageously face what life brings them, and often achieve greatness. And, of course, he draws inspiring life lessons from the talmidim who are so central to his life. We know Rabbi Bender is a gifted mechanech, a distinguished talmid chacham, a visionary Rosh Yeshivah, a man completely devoted to his talmidim. We are amazed by his initiatives, his ceaseless effort for the Klal, his never-ending mission to strengthen Torah learning and give chizuk to those who need it. We admire his warmth, his passion, and the love he has for Klal Yisrael.

The Complete Hebrew text, illuminated by English translation and commentary.

קול רנה - Dear Children may be the most engaging, enlightening, and inspirational English sefer on the Parsha you will ever read! The author's fascinating insights and refreshingly out-of-the-box observations are based on his conversations with gedolim, his own extensive Hirschian background, and his broad-based knowledge of the world and the universe around us. Culled from years of warm and loving correspondence written to his own children, these mini-essays were adapted for the Torah world at large. Each of the diverse divrei Torah ends with a practical "take-home" lesson that is ideal for your Shabbos table - and for yourself

Samuel David Luzzatto (1800-1865), known by his Hebrew acronym Shadal, was the leading Italian Jewish scholar of the 19th century. A linguist, educator, and religious thinker, he devoted his talents above all to the interpretation of the Bible. As a master of Hebrew grammar and usage, he focused on the plain meaning of the text. Although he was a devout believer in the divinity, unity, and antiquity of the Torah, Shadal approached the text in a remarkably free spirit of inquiry, drawing upon a wide variety of sources, ancient and contemporary, Jewish and non-Jewish. As a result, his interpretations may strike even the modern reader as fresh and novel. Among the highlights of Shadal’s Exodus (Shemot) commentary are his view of the Ten Plagues as nature-based phenomena that nevertheless contained supranatural qualities, his discerning literary analysis of the Song of the Sea, and his daring willingness—despite his acceptance of rabbinic halakhah in practice—to look behind the Rabbis’ interpretation of the book’s legal sections and examine their literal meanings. Shadal’s treatment of Exodus, as well as the other books of the Torah, consisted of his Italian translation of the text and his Hebrew-language commentary. Here, for the first time, is an all-English version of both the text translation and the unabridged commentary, the first complete edition of Shadal’s Exodus since its original publication in 1872. The translator-editor has supplied explanatory notes and a list identifying the sources cited.

Shalom Rav is a compilation of Rabbi Rosner's inspiring and thought-provoking ideas on the weekly parasha, selected and adapted by Marc Lesnick. Drawing on an extraordinarily wide spectrum of sources, these essays offer relevant and refreshing insights for every Jewish home.

Whether you are looking for something meaningful on the Parsha, an uplifting thought for Yom Tov, or have been asked to speak at a Simcha – “Short Vort” is the book for you! With over 140 incredible short vorts packed with stories and valuable life messages, you will never be lost for something inspiring to say. Rabbi Moshe Kormornick is a popular writer whose words are enjoyed by thousands of readers every week.

The Song at the Sea According to Rashi by Boruch Yonah Lipton sefer speaks on Shirat HaYam with Rashi and Targum Onkelos and gives comments also on the Aramaic. Many details and insights on Shirat HaYam when am yisrael was passing through the Yam Suf with the Egyptians behind them. Read and sing along the Song of Redemption, Freedom and Love for Hashem in Shirat HaYam.

The most powerful Hasidic teachings made accessible--from some of the world's preeminent authorities on Jewish thought and spirituality.

"The teachings of Torah, from beginning to end, are read here as a path toward liberation, a way of uplifting your soul and allowing it to journey homeward, back to its Source in the oneness of all being. Or, even better, to discover that oneness right here, in a loving but transformative embrace of both world and self."
--from "To the Reader"

While Hasidic tales have become widely known to modern audiences, the profound spiritual teachings that stand at the very heart of Hasidism have remained a closed book for all except scholars. This fascinating selection--presented in two volumes following the weekly Torah reading and the holiday cycle, and featured in English and Hebrew--makes the teachings accessible in an extraordinary way.

Volume 1 covers Genesis, Exodus and Leviticus, and includes a history of early Hasidism and a summary of central religious teachings of the Maggid's school. Volume 2 covers Numbers and Deuteronomy and the holiday cycle, and includes brief biographies of the Hasidic figures. Each teaching is presented with a fresh translation and contemporary commentary that builds a bridge between the eighteenth and twenty-first centuries. And each teaching concludes with a dynamic round-table discussion between distinguished Jewish scholar Arthur Green and his closest students--the editors of this volume. They highlight the wisdom that is most meaningful for them, thus serving as a contemporary circle's reflections on the original mystical circle of master and disciples who created these teachings.

Volume 1 of a 2-volume set

A renowned authority on Jewish business ethics, Rabbi Dr. Aaron Levine, of blessed memory, was also a distinguished pulpit rabbi. In his sermons he would urge his congregants to seize nobility, to leap toward greater achievement in religious observance and refinement of character. In his personal conduct, he was the very embodiment of those ideals. Spirit of Nobility is a selection of Rabbi Dr. Aaron Levine's sermons on the weekly Torah portion, transcribed from his manuscripts dating from 1982 to 2011. The sermons offer original insights into the Torah and haftarah readings and present novel and scholarly applications of the weekly portion to contemporary political, social, and economic issues. These stirring messages of faith, Jewish unity, and aspiration for redemption remain as relevant today as when they were first delivered.