יום שלישי, ט״ו תמוז תשפ״וTuesday, June 30, 2026
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No, I will not go home until this house is repaired and made fit for people to live in. Are these people any worse than me?
When Shammai heard these words he was deeply hurt and was sure that the man had come only to offend and mock him.
His wife being the prototype of an aishes chayil hurried and diligently prepared a truly delicious meal, fit for the finest table.
The story goes back over 150 years to the days of Catherine the Great, who ruled all of Russia with a firm but fair hand.
With cries of joyful anticipation, the soldiers ran for the storks and climbed on their horses.
Nikanos now turned to the south side only to meet a terrible disaster as the hordes of snakes and scorpions wreaked havoc on his foot soldiers.
The fact is that people create idols out of many things and it is literally impossible to destroy them without destroying the whole world.
Yehudis understood that her only hope lay in her willingness to risk her very life.
Many long hours were spent carefully planning for the Greek attack. Finally, all that could be done was done and the city waited tensely for the Greek hordes to come.
Mattisyahu knew that Antiochus would be enraged when he heard what had happened, so he and his sons fled to the Judean Hills.
In the end, the kingdom was divided into three main parts and the tiny kingdom of Judea fell to the Syrian-Greeks.
On the way home from the funeral, the crowd surrounded Reb Pinchas and demanded to know why he had attended.
Though he wanted a child more than anything in the whole world, Rav Yitzchak never complained, but continued to live his life according to the dictates of the Torah.
It is related that one of his customs was to wrap himself in his tallis and cover his eyes with it while judging of a case of law.
Taking pity on the pilot, the Ramban wrote the Holy Name on a piece of paper and told the pilot to place it in a corner of the boat, and when he arrived at the city of Barcelona, to make sure to destroy the note.
Realizing that he couldn’t fulfill Avram’s request, Nimrod then decided upon another line of reasoning.
Realizing the grave danger they were in, Terach asked the king for three days time to discuss the matter with his wife and family.
The young woman was stunned at her father’s words and her heart was filled with bitterness at this apparent ill will.
Four ladders led up to each candlestick, and four youths from a family of Kohanim went up, holding in their hands 24-log jars of oil, which they poured into the bowls.
While they were distributing relief to the poor, they saw a man give money to his divorced wife.
Nadav was lifted on the horse and he hung on for dear life as the soldiers charged swiftly through the city streets.
The community leaders were taken from their cells and brought before the governor. He shouted at them, accusing them of plotting the prisoner’s escape.
The people looked at each other in amazement. What did he mean? Why was this Rosh Hashanah so special?
If the earthly court decreed that today is Rosh Hashanah, Hashem commands the angels to call the heavenly court into session.
They protested their innocence, but the tax collector would not listen to them and they were subsequently jailed.
Even if a king greets you, you should not answer him. Even if a snake winds itself about you, you must not interrupt your prayers.
But what did the foolish servants do? They put on the royal robes and went about their work. Being very busy with their work, they forgot that they were wearing the king’s garments.
A few weeks later, the master killed the hog and made a banquet for his friends.
One Shavuos, the people of Slutzk walked their beloved rav home and ate with gusto the foods that the rebbetzin had cooked. When they had finished they waited for the customary divrei Torah.
Despite all the evil that she had done to him in the years gone by, Rabi Yosi now forgot the past.
Rushing over to the table, he saw a precious diamond, magnificent in its sparkling beauty, inside the fish.
The question bothered him very much and he decided to go to the town square where all the poor were gathered and ask them.
Running into his house, he told the good news to his wife and then sat down to say Tehillim in praise to the Almighty.
What you have given me is not really mine. At any moment you can grow angry with me and take it back. How can I list it then as my own?
It was only worth a few marks, but you had no money for it and you said that if I gave it to you, you would give me all the money you would eventually have over 10,000 marks.
David’s face fell and he said: “Dov, you know my financial position. I am a poor man. How can I get 1,000 marks?”
Taking out a penknife from his pocket, David showed it to Daniel. Never had the latter seen anything so lovely.
“Hoy! Kol tzmaei l’chu lamaim – All who thirst, go to water” (Yeshayahu 50:1). The words of the navi refer to the concept of dedication and cleaving to Torah. For there is no thirst like that of a man parched for lack of learning and there is no water like that of Torah. This remarkable […]
Rav Nathan immediately thought that this would be a wonderful opportunity to meet some political figures who might be able to help him free the Benjamin Bainash.
“Very well,” answered Purus, “you may join my armies and watch as we destroy Alexander with our animals.”
This person was hotheaded and when he heard this mild request, he exclaimed: “You mind your own affairs; I will do as I please!”
The fair closed and spring turned into summer and the peddler never came to call for his sack. The rebbetzin soon forgot about it.
But the people understood Yisro’s real reason for wishing to step down and they grew angry.
“With either of these two plans you can keep the Children of Israel in Egypt forever.”
The man vehemently proclaimed his innocence, but the loser would not hear of it.
The king felt bad and he tried to argue against such a harsh verdict being meted out to so prominent a man as Daniel.
The king ordered the three brought before him and asked, “Is it true you do not worship my image?”
G-d gave Daniel and his companions knowledge and skill in all learning and wisdom, and to Daniel, especially he gave understanding of all visions and dreams.
You are called both sons and servants. When you carry out the desires of the Omnipresent, you are called ‘sons.’ When you do not carry out the desires of the Omnipresent, you are called, ‘servants.’
Noticing the bearded Abarbanel in the coach, the Jew felt relieved as he entered the coach.
When Catherine annexed the city of Shklob, she appointed a general to govern as a reward for the many heroic campaigns he fought on her behalf.
“No, I am just passing through,” replied Hershel, “and I wanted to see how the wine business prospered in this city.”
Suddenly a thought entered his mind. Of course, that was the way. It could yet save their lives.
“Did you not read the proclamation requesting that the restoration of the jewelry be made within 30 days?”
It happened that Reb Moshe was once staying at an inn, together with a great scholar who was a misnaged.
And as he shouted, he began running toward the startled thief, who stood petrified and uncomprehending.
How could he violate the sanctity of the holiest day of the year by carrying money and a staff on the day he knew to be Yom Kippur?
The Gaon Rabi Yaakov, known throughout Europe as the Dubno Maggid, was a brilliant orator and scholar. He was never at a loss for words, and he always had a parable or a story from the Torah to fit the occasion. In his younger years he was a merchant and often traveled around the country. […]
The merchant realized he had done something wrong by nearly causing the holy rav to commit a sin, so he was crestfallen as he took the box and departed.
The communal leader hesitated for a moment because the total amount was very large and what would he do if he found it impossible to pay later?
Encouraged by those words, the judges ordered the slave to stand trial for murder.
By the time Yonason was four years old he already knew Sefer Bereshis by heart.
The farmer was amazed. “The great Chofetz Chaim! Just wait till I tell people in my village that I saw him. Tell me, where was he sitting?”
‘Look at that hypocrite; he does not have a kosher home. He eats treif, it is a mitzvah to complain about him to the government.’
In front of all the people, the traveler gave the rav the money and he went away perfectly confident that his treasure was in good hands.
As the cantor began to chant the Eichah Rebbe Avraham began to wail bitterly, and then, putting his head between his knees, was silent.
That fall he harvested the crops and stored them in a warehouse. He did this for seven years.
Is There A Drunk In Here? One Yom Kippur Eve, as the sun began to set and the congregation prepared to say Kol Nidrei, everyone was astonished to behold Reb Levi Yitzchok of Berdichev leave his seat and walk down the aisle. He bent down and began looking under each bench; he looked in every […]
There lived in his time a Ukrainian Jew who had strayed from the path of Torah.
The poor farmer was thunderstruck and mortified. He ran back to the Chofetz Chaim and fell on his knees before the tzaddik, his eyes filled with tears.
“Every year when I do the service in the Kodesh HaKedashim I behold a figure, that of an old man – an angel – who is always dressed in white and who enters and leaves with me.
The sages asked them, “Why are you unwilling to instruct others?”
Shimon HaTzaddik was appalled that the young man had become a nazir knowing that his hair would be cut.
“Let us ask that gentleman to explain this difficult passage to us,” they said to one another.
Her deed found great favor in the eyes of the Almighty and He sent blessings on the work of her hands so that she became wealthy.
On the third day, while waiting outside, they again heard a noise from the room.
“What!” she cried. “Didn’t you know that the ring contained an expensive diamond, which was worth a lot of money?”
Ptolemy, King of Egypt, had requested that 72 sages be sent to his country to translate the Torah. They were wined and dined and then the king put to them 72 questions, to test their wisdom. The Second Day On the second day, the king made a grand feast and he again began questioning the […]
The first question the king asked was, “What shall a king do to make his rule successful so that he can reign all of his life in peace and happiness?”
Aristeas remained in Jerusalem viewing the sights. He was honored by being permitted to view the kohanim doing the avodah in the Beis HaMikdash.
“In Chad Gadya we find that the shochet kills the ox and is immediately killed in turn by the Malach HaMaves.
His fifth stage of life starts when he is 18 years of age. He is then compared to a mule.
To his amazement and disappointment, however, David HaMelech showed not the slightest indication of stopping for even a moment.
When his students saw the mule, they decided to clean it and smooth it for their teacher.
Rav Yosef Shmuel looked at the guests and said, “I am very sorry, but I am hired to do the holy work of teaching children Torah. I am not allowed to waste even a moment from this work. This evening, when I have finished, I will be glad to see you and talk with you.”
Finally, his wife came in with the dinner that she had hurriedly prepared and which was not comparable to the wonderful repast she had given away.
The great giant of his time, the Vilna Gaon, once said that the Shaagas Aryeh had the entire Talmud and its commentators at his fingertips and that he could relate the gist of all of them and their sources in one hour.
As for myself, I can only answer that the yetzer hara has persuaded me to take the position because of the honor.
“It must be that beggar,” he exclaimed. “He probably stole my cane.”
“If, however, he rules the other way – that something is not kosher when in reality it is kosher – and thus robs a poor man of his money, this is a far more serious thing.
“Come now, I insist. Tell me what errand of mercy you are on so that I too may have a share in the mitzvah.”
One of the most remarkable men in chassidic lore was Rav Yaakov Yitzchak Horowitz, known as the Chozeh of Lublin. Rav Yaakov Yitzchak was responsible for chassidus capturing the hearts of the vast majority of Polish Jewry. He was not only a great scholar but also possessed humility and modesty, traits that drew many other […]
The story of the Bnei Yisrael in the land of Mitzrayim is a tale that has become tragically repetitive in the history of our people. It is the story of a land which allows Jews to enter, devote their talents and energies to building that land and making it strong, only to have the inhabitants […]
The man has been found guilty and his soul is bitter because of it.
But the words would penetrate their hearts and each would say to himself: “But I, too, am doing this terrible thing.” In this way Reb Elimelech would inspire the people to teshuvah.
“I will tell you,” replied the rav. “I am very puzzled at why you suddenly desire to honor me and have me as your guest. What quality do you find in me that is new and worthy of merit?
“I wanted you to have a taste of the cold,” answered Rav Chaim. “This way, you too can feel the intense cold and realize the suffering of this man and his wife, who are now residing in a bitterly cold house.”
June 26, 2026 
