Re'eh - We begin with Moses setting before Israel “a blessing and a curse,” a covenant ceremony tied to Mount Ebal and Mount Gerizim. Our discussion dives into the age-old debate over the true location of these mountains before considering the interruption that follows—the sudden insertion of the central Law Code (Deut 12–26). Is this…
Ekev (Deuteronomy 7:12–11:25) - We track Deuteronomy’s recurring four-verb covenant formula (שמע–למד–שמר–עשה), its call to love God, and its heart-focused theology. We wrestle with the debated “hornet” (MT) versus “plague” (Shapira/Valediction) in 7:20, revisit the Hebrew behind “leprosy” (is it really a plague?), and ask who actually made the Ark—contrasting Deuteronomy’s account with the Priestly…
This week on Torah Pearls (Deuteronomy 3:23–7:11), we explore Va’etchanan through the lenses of the Documentary Hypothesis and the Moses Scroll. Moses says God was angry with him “because of you” (Deut 1:37; 3:26; 4:21)—but is that what Numbers reports? We’ll unpack the meaning of “statutes and judgments,” the command not to add or take…
As we open the Book of Deuteronomy, something shifts. Moses begins to speak—but so does a narrator. Whose voice are we hearing? And is this the same story we’ve heard before? In this episode, Ross, Jono, and Ezra work through the first portion of Deuteronomy (1:1–3:22), tracing familiar events—Horeb, the spies, the wilderness journeys, battles…
Matot & Masei - wrapping up the Book of Numbers with a double portion that’s as provocative as it is puzzling. From the complex laws of vows and their echoes in the New Testament to the grim account of holy war and its troubling arithmetic, no subject is off limits. Why does a chapter once…
A plague strikes. A spear is thrust into sinners. A priestly silence is broken. This week, Ross, Jono, and Ezra ask: What’s the real point of Pinchas? We explore the sudden return of the Priestly source, possible contradictions in the Midianite saga, the strange stability of Israel’s census, and words from ancient scrolls that shed light on…