Sample Sources
The sources below are those contained in our three curated collections—covering themes of Passover, Gender Roles, and Holocaust Resistance. They represent a fraction of the thousands of sources that will be available when the full site launches in 2024.
A Pilgrimage for a Rite of Purification
When we arrived in Jerusalem, the brothers welcomed us warmly. The next day Paul went with us to visit James; and all the elders were present. After greeting them, he related one by one the…
The Nobility of Priestly Lineage
Now my lineage is not an obscure one, having descended from the priests since the beginning, and just as nobility of birth has a different foundation for each people, among us, membership in the…
Agony and Comfort
In the thirtieth year after the destruction of the city, I was in Babylon—I, Salathiel, who am also called Ezra. I was troubled as I lay on my bed, and my thoughts welled up in my heart,
Sanctifying Objects for Use in the Synagogue
14. One who makes a candelabrum or a lamp for a synagogue: until the name of the owners has been forgotten from them, it is not permitted to change them for another purpose; once the name of the…
Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice
For the Master. Song of the sacrifice of the seventh Sabbath on the sixteenth of the month. Praise the God of the exalted heights, O exalted ones among all the divine beings of knowledge. Let the…
Manasseh’s Prayer for Forgiveness
O Lord Almighty,
God of our ancestors,
of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob
and of their righteous offspring;
you who made heaven and earth
with all their order;
who shackled the sea by your word of…
Qumran Blessings
Words of blessi[ng]. Of the Instructor. To bless those who fear [God, do] his will, keep his commandments, remain constant in his holy co[ven]ant and walk with perfection [on all the paths…
Afterlife of the Righteous
But the souls of the righteous are in the hand of God,
and no torment will ever touch them.
In the eyes of the foolish they seem to have died,
and their departure was thought to be a disaster,
and…
The Good in the Bad Inclination
Naḥman [taught] in the name of R. Samuel: Behold, it was very good (Genesis 1:31). This refers to the good inclination. And behold it was very good. This refers to the evil inclination. And is the…
Torah with Work Is Best
R. Gamaliel the son of R. Judah the Prince said: Excellent is the study of Torah when combined with a worldly occupation, for toil in them both keeps sin out of one’s mind. But [study of] Torah that…
Commerce Breeds Sin
A merchant can hardly keep from wrongdoing,
nor is a tradesman innocent of sin.
Many have committed sin for gain,
and those who seek to get rich will avert their…
Attendance at Festivals
Further, he does not consent to those who wish to perform the rites in their houses, but bids them rise up from the ends of the earth and come to this temple. In this way he also applies the severest…