Shows / YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
A short thought for each chapter/perek in Tanach for Tanach yomi/daily Bible study by Josh Blechner
Episodes
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Yehoshua 3: River Jordan
Chapter three and chapter four comprise one long story detailing the crossing of the Jordan river. The story parallels the story of the Israelites crossing the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Yehoshua 2: Total Recall
The second chapter of Yehoshua is the perfect example of the books of the Prophets referencing stories in the Torah. These references show both contrasts and…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Yehoshua 1: Live Strong
Joshua had the unenviable task of following up Moshe’s leadership. How does one take over from the first and greatest leader of a nation? The book of Joshua…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 34: Alls well that ends well
I will admit it. Every year on Simchat Torah I get emotional listening to the last chapter of the Torah. The chapter is both beautiful and mournful at the same…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 33: Moshe's Time to Bless
At the end of his life, Yaacov was given the opportunity to bless his 12 sons. At the time, his family was just that- a small family living in a strange land…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 32: Dew Wop Dew Wop
It is fitting that Moshe’s trajectory ends with a song. Back in Exodus 15, Moshe’s leadership role began with a song—Az Yashir. That song was sung in…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 31: Comings and Goings
The final message is nigh. Moshe begins the introduction tohis song and blessings: “I am now one hundred and twenty years old, I can notgo out and come in.”…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 30: No Backsees
The Talmud in Bava Metzia 59b discusses a dispute between Rabbi Eliezer and Rabbi Yehoshua regarding the ritual purity of a stove. Rabbi Eliezer called upon…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 29: Covenants of Future Past
Moshe’s final farewell address commences in chapter 29. He begins by reaffirming the covenant of the Torah itself: “I make this covenant, with its…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 28: Observe. Faithfully Observe.
Chapter 28 addresses the other half of the covenantal equation: the blessings and the curses. At first glance, the two lists seem to parallel one another…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 27: Why These 12?
God commands the people to split onto two mountains with six tribes on one and six on the other. One side answers amen to the blessings and one side answers…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 26: What Does Ara-mean?
The chapter begins with the commandment to bring the first fruits, but it also contains a passage that is a significant part of the Pesach Haggadah. The…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 25: I-malek or U-malek
Chapter 25 contains the commandment to remember Amalek. This is fulfilled every year by a special reading of the end of this chapter on the Shabbat before…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 24: Remember Miriam
In the middle of chapter 24, the Torah discusses tzaraat. “In cases of tzaraat be most careful to do exactly as the Levitical priests instruct you. Take care…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 23: Taney did not do 929
The struggle between the southern slave holding states and the northern mostly free states reached a boiling point in the mid 19th century before the start of…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 22: Bird is the Word
“If, along the road, you chance upon a bird’s nest, in any tree or on the ground, with fledglings or eggs and the mother sitting over the fledglings or on the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 21: A Tale of Two Cities
Chapter 21 details the unique case of the Eglah Arufah, the calf with a broken neck. When a dead body is found between two cities, the leaders of both cities…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 20: I am the Lorax I Speak for the Trees.
Chapter 20 details the various laws of war. After outlining who is exempt from battle and the rules of engagement, the Torah commands: “When in your war…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 19: Encroachment! Five Yard Penalty
“You shall not move your neighbor’s landmarks, set up by previous generations, on the property that will be allotted to you in the land that your God is giving…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 18: You're Not a Wizard Harry!
The second half of chapter 18 returns to the well-trodden restrictions against false prophets, witches, wizards, and soothsayers. The Torah is very specific…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 17: Courtroom Drama
A Few Good Men (1992) The entire film builds to Jessup’s testimony, culminating in the famous “You can’t handle the truth!” moment. To Kill a Mockingbird…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 16: Truth, Justice, Justice, and the Torah Way
“Justice, justice shall you pursue, that you may thrive and occupy the land that your God has given you” (verse 20). צֶדֶק צֶדֶק תִּרְדֹּף לְמַעַן תִּחְיֶה…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 15: Give me a Break!
“Every seventh year you shall make a shmita.” (verse 1) מִקֵּץ שֶׁבַע שָׁנִים תַּעֲשֶׂה שְׁמִטָּה (Deuteronomy 15:1) The Shmita year appeared twice before—the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 14: Three Boiled Goats Gruff
“Do not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.” This is the third time the Torah relays this exact commandment. The first was in Exodus, the second also in Exodus…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 13: Goldilocks and the Three Bad Influences
Idol worship is one of Moshe’s central concerns in his farewell speech, and for good reason. The people are about to enter a land filled with entrenched idol…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 12: Seeing the Patterns
At first glance, Deuteronomy 12 feels repetitive and disorganized. The chapter moves back and forth between destroying idolatry, prohibiting private altars…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 11: Two Roads Diverged in the Yellow Wilderness
Moshe concludes the chapter by framing Israel’s future as a stark choice. God presents the people with two possible paths: “See, I place before you today the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 10: Out of Ahron
The first half of the chapter has an odd chronology. The chapter opens with Moshe carving the new tablets and coming down from the mountain: “At that time the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 9: We're not Worthy! We're not Worthy!
Imagine the excitement as the people are about to enter the land, finally, after forty years of wandering. Moshe seems to throw some cold water on this…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 8: Will Work for Food
Food is the theme of chapter 8. Moshe tells the people that God intentionally challenged them in the desert by withholding food and water, in order to test…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 7: The Fly!
During Moshe’s description of the Exodus and the miracles of the wilderness, he reminds the people that God will continue to assist them in conquering the land…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 6: Wrap, Pray, Love
Chapter six contains many important sections that correspond to essential elements of prayer: the Shema, the first paragraph of the Shema, and tefillin. Shema…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 5: The Ten (slightly different) Commandments
There are a few differences between the Exodus and Deuteronomy versions of the Ten Commandments. The most striking differences appear in the fourth…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 4: Recreating Creation
Moshe also focuses a great deal on idol worship. He warns the people that they must not attempt to represent God through images, since God revealed Himself…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 3: Enough!
At the end of Chapter 3, Moshe talks about his own punishment. He does not discuss the rock and the water here. Instead, he tells the people that it was…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 2: A Beautiful Day in the Neighborhood
In the second chapter, Moshe continues his review of the nation’s travels. This chapter serves a double purpose. The first is to recount the travels, but the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Devarim 1: Moshe's POV
The last book of the Torah takes place at the very end of Moshe’s life and is told from Moshe’s perspective. The book begins where Numbers left off. The nation…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 36: The New Normal
The book of Numbers ends in a seemingly very odd way with the continuation of the very personal story of the Tzelofchad sisters. The rest of the tribe comes to…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 35:Fugees
The arai miklat were special cities for the Leviim who did not have a tribal portion in Canaan. These cities doubled as a place of refuge for individuals who…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 34: Mama Mia Here We Go Again
Chapter 34 is split into two parts. The first is the delineation of the borders of the land of Israel and the second is the list of the new princes. This…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 33:Don't Stop Believing
As Numbers comes to a close, the Torah goes back and lists all the journeys that the Israelites made from the time they left Egypt. “These are the marches of…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 32: Half and Half
Earlier, God decreed that each tribe would receive a proportional part of the Land. As the nation makes its way around the Jordan river to enter the land, they…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 31: Hidden Stories Hidden Threats
Chapter 31 returns to the previous story of the Midyanite woman and Baal Peor. God has not forgotten the evil plot to seduce the population and cause them to…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 30: I Vow this is a Good Episode
Chapter 30 can be a difficult read from a more modern standpoint. The chapter offers various scenarios in which a father has the ability to nullify the vows of…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 29: Is Shmini Atzeret its own Holiday?
“On the eighth day you shall hold an atzeret; you shall not work at your occupations” (verse 35). בַּיּוֹם הַשְּׁמִינִי עֲצֶרֶת תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם כָּל־מְלֶאכֶת…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 28: KAAAEEEELEEHHH!!!
Sit in most shuls during the Passover holiday and you probably experienced this phenomena. After the initial reading, the second Torah scroll is opened up for…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 27: Our Daughters' Daughters will Adore us
Chapter 26 discussed the census that would set the boundaries of the land of Canaan. Everything seemed to make sense. The land would be apportioned by the size…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 26: Count-ering Authority
Why is there yet another census in chapter 26? This census happens after the plague in chapter 25. After another mass death, God wants another census. There…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 25: Peace in our Time
After the brief interlude to the story of Balaam and Balak, the story returns to the Israelite camp. Chaos reigns again, as the people are consumed by the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 24: Balaam and Lavan
Chapter 24 opens with Balaam understanding that he no longer needed to seek God. He knows what God wanted. So instead, he turns to see the Israelites and…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 23: Poetic Justice
Chapter 23 begins with Balaam preparing to say whatever God commands. He tells Balak: “Stay here besides your offerings while I am gone. Perhaps God will grant…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 22: Big Bad Balaam
According to the Midrash, Balaam was a prophet almost on the level of “Moshe” for the other nations. Balaam is also universally regarded as a villain of the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 21: Flying Solo
Last chapter saw the decree that Moshe would not lead the people into Canaan. Abarbanel’s explanation followed Moshe’s growing impatience with the people and…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 20: School of Rock
Why was Moshe not allowed to enter Canaan? The simple answer is that God commanded Moshe to speak to the rock and instead not only did he hit the rock like he…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Bamidbar 19: Seeing Red
“This is a chok that God has commanded: Instruct the Israelite people to bring you a red cow without blemish, in which there is no defect and on which no yoke…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Numbers 18: 1/10th
Chapter 18 begins with the now oft repeated pronouncement that the kohamin and the Leviim are holy for God. At first this chapter seems to repeat what the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Numbers 17: Inside Out
Chapter 17 can be split into two parts- the first is God’s instruction to Elazar and Aaron concerning the incense pans and incense and the second is the test…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Numbers 16: The Usual Suspects
National murmuring turns into outright rebellion in chapter 16 with Korach and his crew directly confronting Moshe. Their question is simple- why is Moshe the…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Numbers 15: and the Beat Goes On
Numbers 14 was a devastating chapter. The entire nation finds out that they will not be entering the land for forty years until almost all of the adults pass…
- YINR 929: Tanach Yomi
Numbers 14: We Have to Go Back
Chaos reigns in the Israelite camp following the report of the spies. The people are distraught, and Moshe and Aaron are besides themselves. The only ones…