In this chapter, after 7 days of silence, Job begins to speak. He 1. curses the day he was born, and the night of his conception. 2. Longs for death when his pain will be over.

If ch.1 gave us the awful loss of Job's wealth and the death of his ten children, today we see Satan take a step forward and afflict Job with the agony of boils or sores over his entire body, from head to the soles of his feet. We discuss his conversation with his wife, and witness the visit of his 3 friends who sit with him for seven days in absol…

What happens when the man who has it all loses everything? What happens when a world of order turns to disarray? What happens when Satan makes a wager with God?

We move from Sefer Mishlei, an ordered, ethical world, to Iyov - a cruel world in which the righteous suffer. Today we offer a few words of introduction to the book.

Who is this "woman of valour" who we sing about every Shabbat? How does this alphabetical poem fit into Sefer Mishlei?

We are getting to the end of Mishlei. Here we have a collation of proverbs from 3 sages: Agur, Aluka and Lemuel. In this podcast we study 30:1-14 understanding the sage wisdom of Agur. We also scan the numerical riddles of Aluka.

Today we discuss the importance of integrity, fairness, and empathy of leaders and judges.

How do we balance healthy fear with unhealthy anxiety? How do we balance caution with rigidity?

Our chapter is filled with proverbs about friends (and enemies), about when rebuke is positive guidance from a person who cares, or conversely, when expressions of affection are in fact bogus, and the gestures of friendship are a mere facade.

Chapter 25 speaks of Solomon's proverbs republished in the time of King Hizkiyahu. What is the story behind the re-publishing of Shlomo Ha-melekh's literary works? We offer two possibilities.

"The Tzaddik falls seven times, and rises."What happens when disaster strikes?What does a person do when they are experiencing a string of failures?That is our theme today.

Is chapter 22-24 of Proverbs plagiarized from the Egyptian teachings of Amenemope? A striking resemblance is found between the two texts. If this does have its origin in Egyptian wisdom literature, how did it find its way to King Solomon? And does it belong in the Tanakh?

"Educate a child according to his way; Even when he gets old he will not veer from it." The idea of Jewish Education has shifted over time. We will look at some traditional and modern conceptions of education.

"Knowledge, wisdom and counsel are nothing before God!" Yes! God is the ultimate authority. Man plans and God's designs will prevail. But man is also endowed with the same divine features: Knowledge, wisdom and insight - and this creates an intriguing tension.

Today we address v.27 which is as spiritual as it is cryptic: "The soul of man is the candle of God." What does that mean? We offer FOUR interpretations.

Our chapter presents many points of proverbial advice that relate to the financial sphere. Here we present 9 guiding proverbs.

18:22 - "He who finds a wife finds what is good". Today we discuss marriage.

What are the virtues and actions that create and reinforce friendship? And what are the behaviours that have the capacity to drive friends apart? This is the topic that we address today.

This chapter is thematically ordered. But one of the overarching themes is that whatever man intends, ultimately God is in control; even evil has been placed in the world for God's designs. Alongside this is a running theme about justice and integrity.

Today we discuss the pleasures and perils of our social environment.

Can we ever understand another person? Can others ever understand us?

Are we affected by our society, by our associates and friends, or do we influence them? When are we subject to social pressure? When are we influnced and when are we influencers? Today we examine the question of social pressure through the lens of the Midrash, the Rambam, and Rabb Sacks z"l

Words are powerful. Words are creative. Mishlei contains many metaphors: Words can be like fruit, like daggers; and as we will discuss, language, conversation can also be a way of ridding oneself of worry.

Today we address the notion of privacy vs. discretion as Mishlei decries the gossip and revealer of information, and praises the discreet individual who knows how to keep a secret. What does this say to us in our social-media age?

We open the second segment of Mishlei which shifts the entire tempo and character of the book. Today we offer a short introduction.

Mishlei contains several sterotypes or archetypal characters. Our chapter offers three personality types and charts 3 varying ways to engage them.

In our chapter, "wisdom" speaks in the grammatical first person, telling us her autobiography - how she advises kings, and how she was present prior to the founding of the world.

Mishlei chapter 7 brings us back to the temptress. It issues a stern warning to avoid contact with this woman and to steer clear of her path. How are we to deal with distractions and addictive habits? How do we steer clear?

Today we speak about making our time count. Do we want to spend our days relaxing or working?

Mishlei returns time after time, to the imagery of an attractive, seductive woman who leads the "son" astray from his pursuit of wisdom.

Today we deal with 3 themes 1. 3 Generations. The speaker, possibly King Solomon, speaks of messages that he heard from his father that he is passing down to his son. This is a deeply touching image. 2. The Joy of Torah 3. The metaphor of the necklace and the wreath/crown - Mishlei repeatedly speaks of wisdom as jewellery. What does that intend to …

Today we discuss several features of Mishlei: 1. The engagement with a Judaism that is far wider than ritual moments and encompasses all avenues of life 2. That Mishlei incentivizes the path of Torah 3. We speak of a fascinating intertextual polemic about the "Tree of Life"

We address two themes: 1. The notion of parent and child; wisdom which comes through the family, through sage adavice rather than direct divine revelation 2. The presentation of choices and consequences; good paths and bad paths; straight and crooked.

Today we discuss 1:7 - "The beginning of wisdom is fear of God"

We start Mishlei today - Proverbs. What is this book about? Who wrote it? What is a "mashal" or a "proverb"? Today we introduce the sefer.

We made it! Mizmor 150!Awe, Dance, Breath!Today we speak about how our essence, our breath, reaches out to the Divine in an attempt to transcend our human limits.

This chapter has 2 stanzas. 1. The victory of the righteous, their joy and dance 2. A battle of justice against the forces of evil and regimes of violence Both are enacted by the "hassidim" - the ethical, pious and righteous.

We wake up every morning and celebrate the wonderful world we inhabit.

Chapter 147 is a weave of intersecting harmonious themes that blend to praise God.

We live in a world where celebrity, status and fame are highly prized. This mizmor challenges that impression and presents other values as central in God's perspective.

Chapter 145 a.k.a "Ashrei" is THE "Tehilla Le-David. It is the ultimate praise of God. But paradoxically, it doesn't give us earth-shattering depictions of God, but rather the image of a caring, nurturing deity.

This Mizmor celebrates a country in which wars have ceased, in which children grow up in calm and peace, and in which the economy is booming... "Happy the people who have it so; happy the people whose God is the LORD."

In this almost classic Mizmor, we draw upoon 3 themes: 1. The character of the "Servant of God" 2. The meaning of the word "nefesh" in Tanakh 3. The posture of prayer - hands extended.

Here David is on the run, hiding in a cave, and calling to God. we speak about the despair of isolation and loneliness, and the transformation - religious and social - the shift of mindset that such a situation might engender.

David expresses his concerns and worries that he might succumb to the methods and morals of his adversaries. Today we speak about the virtue of self-doubt.

This chapter resonates strongly with contemporary events. It is a wonderful example of how Psalms written millennia ago can resonate afresh in other times.

God knows everything about me. That can be such a crushing burden that at times a person wishes to run away from God. What insights and understandings help a person to find his way back?

Chapter 138 is filled with gratitude. We stop to think today about the power of appreciation

Jews never forgot Jerusalem, though they wandered the globe for 2000 years. What was the formula for their survival? This chapter gives us some key tools for the Jewish art of making Jerusalem our home no matter where we lived.