Daily Bread — Monday, May 13, 2024
If a man has committed a sin deserving of death, and he is put to death, and you hang him on a tree, his body shall not remain overnight on the tree, but you shall surely bury him that day, so that you do not defile the land which the Lord your God is giving you as an...
4 Iyar — It Isn’t That Hard To Grasp
In 1939, the English apologist C. S. Lewis made this statement in a letter: “The process of living seems to consist in coming to realize truths so ancient and simple that, if stated, they sound like barren platitudes.” Here’s my translation of what Mr. Lewis was...
Daily Bread — Sunday, May 12, 2024
And they shall say to the elders of his city, “This son of ours is stubborn and rebellious; he will not obey our voice; he is a glutton and a drunkard.” (Deuteronomy 21:20) As I mentioned yesterday, the severity of this command has fueled objections to the usefulness...
3 Iyar — A Different Kind of Spanish Lesson
It was on this day that King Ferdinand and Queen Isabella of Spain issued a warning to Jews that, beginning on the following day and by the end of July, all Jews must depart their country. Even as they were issuing this edit to expel all Jews from their country, they...
Daily Bread — Saturday, May 11, 2024
If a man has a stubborn and rebellious son who will not obey the voice of his father or the voice of his mother, and who, when they have chastened him, will not heed them, then his father and his mother shall take hold of him and bring him out to the elders of his...
2 Iyar — The Sound of War
It was on this day that Solomon began construction of the Temple in Jerusalem. The Holy Temple was one of the most magnificent structures that existed in the ancient world. Though the wealth and treasure that went into the building of this Temple were vast, one of the...
Daily Bread — Friday, May 10, 2024
If a man has two wives, one loved and the other unloved ... and if the firstborn son is of her who is unloved, then it shall be, on the day he bequeaths his possessions to his sons, that he must not bestow firstborn status on the son of the loved wife in preference...
1 Iyar — Get Rid of Your Idols
Today is the first day of the month of Iyar and it was on this day, according to tradition, that the first of the ten plagues to strike Egypt occurred. It is recorded in Exodus 7: Then the Lord spoke to Moses, “Say to Aaron, ‘Take your rod and stretch out your hand...
Daily Bread — Thursday, May 9, 2024
If you see among the captives a beautiful woman, and desire her and would take her for your wife, then you shall bring her home to your house, and she shall shave her head and trim her nails. (Deuteronomy 21:11-12) I realize we've dealt with some interesting verses...
30 Aviv — Our Daily Bread
Today is the final day of the month of Aviv and we are currently in the time of “counting the Omer.” The word, עמר omer, is a unit of dry measure for things like grains and other dry commodities that was used in the era of the Sanctuary. It is estimated to be...
Daily Bread — Wednesday, May 8, 2024
When you besiege a city for a long time, while making war against it to take it, you shall not destroy its trees by wielding an ax against them; if you can eat of them, do not cut them down to use in the siege, for the tree of the field is man’s food. (Deuteronomy...
29 Aviv — Our Sins Will Find Us Out
It was on this day, in 1945, that U.S. forces under the command of General George S. Patton, Jr., liberated the concentration camp at Buchenwald and its 21,000 inmates. A few days later, the citizens of nearby Weimar were forced to march five miles to the camp and...