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Parashah: Ki Tetse” (when you go out) DEUT 21:10-25:19 In this Bible/Torah study, we encounter numerous common-sense commandments that are relevant today, and we can also examine some commandments to see how we can apply them, perhaps not so much literally, but spiritually and morally. In some...

Torah (Bible) portion: “Shoftim” (judges) DEUT: 16:18: -21:9 This parashah starts off with; “Judges (shoftim) and officers (shoterim) (We could also call them police) shalt thou make thee at thy gates, which YHVH thy Elohim giveth thee…. they shall judge the people with 'righteous judgment…”...

A SCRIBE'S STORY (This is one of my longer short stories, so if you feel overwhelmed, you can read it a little at a time, and come back later to read more) My name is Nakhti Ankh Yah, a scribe to Pharaoh, king of Upper and Lower Egypt. I’m old now, and Pharaoh does not call upon me as...

THE RADIO As far as I can remember, the radio was always on top of grandfather's oak cabinet downstairs in the basement. The basement in our house in Chappaqua, N.Y., was a lonely, quiet place of boxed up memories of the past. A place of boxed up stuff, this-and-thats, decorations, furniture...

THE RUN-AWAY CHICKENS The account of the “Runaway chickens” goes back to the early 1960s. It took place at the home of one of my family’s dearest friends, the “Teal” family. The family consisted of Earl Teal, who was from Germany, his wife, who was from Sweden, and their daughter, Glenda, who...

Parashah: “Re’eh” (see) DEUT: 11:26-16:17 Re’eh means “see,” yet it is not so much “physical sight” but “insight” To be aware of following the LORD , his commandments, through our faith walk. It is also about “understanding” (Binah) Adonai’s will for us, understanding more Torah...

ISAIAH 49:14-51:3 Israel cries out, “The LORD hath forsaken me and forgotten me,” but the prophet, through the Holy Spirit, assures the people, NO, the LORD has NOT forsaken you. There is a big difference between “abandonment, forgetfulness, and chastisement”. The fact that YHVH has...

IN MY COUSIN'S HOUSE My cousin John lived in a nice, quiet suburb in Flushing, N.Y. His house, or rather my aunt and uncle's house, was, to me, neither small nor big, rather medium-sized, as seen in the eyes of a child back in the early and mid-1960s. It lay nestled in a nice little...

PARASHAH; “V’et’ Chanan” (and I pleaded) DEUT 3:23-7:11 Moses continues to recount the experiences of his life to the Children of Israel as his life comes to a close. He is like a father on his deathbed, and causes all of his children to come near and listen to their father’s experiences, or...

Torah Study: “D’varim” (Words) DEUTERONOMY 1:1-3:22… The word "Deuteronomy" comes from the Greek words "Deuter" and "Nomo" (Second or repetition and "law") Not that there is a different "law" from what was received on Mt. Sinai, it is the same, yet a repetition of the same, reminding the...

PSALM 23: "A verse-by-verse understanding" (part 6) VS 6: "GOODNESS AND GRACE WILL PURSUE ME EVERY DAY OF MY LIFE, AND I WILL LIVE IN THE HOUSE OF ADONAI FOR YEARS TO COME" CJSB (Complete Jewish Study Bible) "SURELY GOODNESS AND MERCY SHALL FOLLOW ME ALL THE DAYS OF MY LIFE AND I WILL DWELL IN...

Bible study portions “Matot v’ Masei” (Tribes and Journeys of) Numbers 30:1-32:42, 33:1-36:13 We need to be careful when making “vows.” Adonai takes seriously “promises” that we make, especially using “His” Holy Name (YHVH). We might have said in times before words like: “I swear to God that...

PSALM 23: A VERSE-BY-VERSE UNDERSTANDING" (Part 5) "Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of my enemies; Thou anointest my head with oil, my cup runneth over" (verse 5) KJV " You prepare a table for me even as my enemies watch. You anoint my head with oil from an overflowing cup"...

PARASHA: “Pinchas” NUMBERS 25:10-29:40 This Torah portion starts with a somewhat surprising promotion in rank for an execution committed, and rather suddenly. Pinchas, the grandson of Aaron was a Levite, and during the time of the “weakness and falling away of the men of Israel, He took matters...

SQUEEDUNK "(a little bit of "life") These are short stories that are very true, going back to my own life experiences with my family. Kind of like the "Waltons" or "Little House on the Prairie." Well, I don't mind sharing these times with readers, I mean, there is nothing so private that I...

THE SHORT ROUTE OR THE LONG ROUTE? Mendel and Motel lived with their wives in a small town near the great city of Lodz. They were next-door neighbors and got along splendidly. Although they had no children, they still loved their wives despite their barren wombs. Now it came to pass that...

PARASHAH: “Balak” NUMBERS 22:2-25:9 This is the famous story of Bilam, who was asked to “curse” Israel, and instead, “Blessed” Israel, yet before this, his donkey spoke to him. The name “Bilam” or Balaam” might be a shorter version of the name “Baal-haAm” (lord of the people). Some believe...

OLD SHEM, THE STORYTELLER..... By J. Ben Avraham Old Shem, the son of Noah, Son of Methuselah, slowly made his way up the grassy hill which overlooked the wide expanse of the plains of Shinar. He would make this trip every day, after all, he had a lot to tell the youths. At the top...

PSALM 23; A VERSE-BY-VERSE UNDERSTANDING (Part 4) (verse 4) " EVEN THOUGH I PASS THROUGH THE VALLEY OF THE SHADOW OF DEATH, I SHALL FEAR NO EVIL, FOR THOU ART WITH ME. THY ROD AND THY STAFF, THEY COMFORT ME" (KJV) "EVEN IF I PASS THROUGH DEATH DARK RAVINES, I WILL FEAR NO...

PARASHA: “Hukat” (ordinance of) Numbers 19:1-22:1 Before we get into this study, I would like to point out that within the 613 commandments that exist between Genesis and Deuteronomy, there are "Mishpatim" (commandments which make perfect sense) "Eidut" (commandments that symbolize: " The...