The Parsha Podcast - With Rabbi Yaakov Wolbe

We kickstart the Book of Numbers with a census of the twelve tribes of Israel – not including the tribe of Levi who is counted independently – conducted by Moses, Aaron, and the most distinguished leaders of said tribes. Subsequently, we read about the banners of the tribes and their assigned encampments, the transference of […]

I don’t know many farmers. This country used to be an agrarian society, but today fewer than 2% of Americans are farmers. This was not the case in antiquity. In antiquity, making a living effectively meant growing crops. The Almighty makes seemingly unreasonable demands of us when it asks us to cease working the field […]

The Land of Israel is special: It is the land of God. All other lands were given by God to humanity. The land of Israel He reserved for himself. The Torah gives us comprehensive laws regarding every element of our life. Many of the laws are only applicable in the land of Israel. The commentaries […]

This week’s double-Parsha closes out the Book of Leviticus. Parshas Behar begins at Mount Sinai, where the Almighty instructed Moshe to convey a series of laws to the Jewish people. The first is the mitzvah of Shemittah, the prohibition of engaging in any agricultural work every seven years. In two chapters in the Torah (Leviticus […]

The Priests are the noblest amongst us, direct descendants of Aaron, the legendary first priest. They have a very important role to play amongst their people. They have a special blessing that they can bestow upon the people, and they can process sacrifices on our behalf in the Temple. They are spiritual leaders of men. […]

Humans have a very important role to play in God’s world. The Almighty created a world in which He is obfuscated. It is possible to live a whole life without acknowledging the one, singular reality of existence: God. The world was designed with the capacity for that reality being ignored. But we are here to […]

Parshas Emor contains a staggering 56 mitzvos, nearly all of them relating to either to the Kohanim, the priests, or to the Festivals, and the parsha ends with a very unusual episode that happened at Sinai. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]

Yom Kippur is a different day than every other day of the year. It is the holiest day, the day of atonement, a day of fasting and prayer and repentance. When the Temple was extant, the Nations’ attention was oriented around the high priest’s services in God’s holy Temple. This was the one time a […]

The first verse of our Parsha revisits a tragic event from the past. The Torah tells us that after the death of Aaron’s sons Nadav and Avihu, Moshe was instructed to command Aaron about the prohibition against entering the Holy of Holies unauthorized. What is the significance of the tragic demise of Aaron’s two sons […]

This week’s double-parsha contains a smorgasbord of mitzvos. The three chapters of Parshas Acharei cover three general categories. First we read about the Yom Kippur sacrifices and procedures; then we learn about the prohibitions against the consumption of blood among other ritualistic and sacrificial laws, and the final chapter is oriented around the many prohibited […]

The subject of purity and impurity is not the most exciting one. The hallmark of these subjects is their intricacies and complexities, but our parsha has nothing but the laws of purity and impurity. It talks about impurity spawned by childbirth; the impurity of tzaraas of the body, of the garments, and of the home; […]

Like much of Leviticus hitherto, tzaraas – the skin malady that is a physical manifestation of a spiritual flaw – is a concept distant from our consciousness. The Torah tells us that when a person commits one of several sins, they can be stricken with a wide range of skin afflictions that qualify as tzaraas. […]

A very large percentage of Torah is dedicated to the laws of purity and impurity. This week’s double Parshas of Tazria and Metzora largely deal with these laws. One variant of impurity that is discussed in both parshas is that of a metzora, A metzora is someone who is stricken with the tangible illness of tzaraas […]

The 2026 annual TORCH fundraiser is happening right now at giveTORCH.org. Every donation is doubled at giveTORCH.org. Every donation is matched at giveTORCH.org Please support TORCH and the Parsha Podcast with a generous contribution right now at giveTORCH.org. Give what you can give at giveTORCH.org and ensure that the Parsha Podcast and the other great work of TORCH continues in 2026. […]

The 2026 annual TORCH fundraiser is happening right now at giveTORCH.org. Every donation is doubled at giveTORCH.org. Every donation is matched at giveTORCH.org Please support TORCH and the Parsha Podcast with a generous contribution right now at giveTORCH.org. Give what you can give at giveTORCH.org and ensure that the Parsha Podcast and the other great work of TORCH continues in 2026. […]

The 2026 annual TORCH fundraiser is happening right now at giveTORCH.org. Every donation is doubled at giveTORCH.org. Every donation is matched at giveTORCH.org Please support TORCH and the Parsha Podcast with a generous contribution right now at giveTORCH.org. Give what you can give at giveTORCH.org and ensure that the Parsha Podcast and the other great work of TORCH continues in 2026. […]

This Parsha podcast is dedicated in the merit of a speedy recovery of Yosef Shraga Halevi Ben Esther. May he have a Refuah Sheleima. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – The final service performed in the Tabernacle and Temple […]

The subject matter of Parshas Tzav is – like Parshas Vayikra – sacrifices. Before today you may have thought that sacrifices are a boring snooze fest. In this Parsha Podcast your perception of Parshas Tzav and sacrifices will be permanently transformed. In the podcast we share three deep and powerful insights: How to sheath the […]

In continuation of the themes of last week, Parshas Tzav details the procedures of processing many of the sacrifices enumerated in Parshas Vayikra, teaches us about new sacrifices, and we read about the seven days of inauguration of the Tabernacle. – – – – – – – – – – – – – – – […]

The concept of sacrifices is quite foreign to us. It’s been nearly 2,000 years since our nation merited to bring a sacrifice in God’s Temple. We hope and pray and yearn for the rebuilding of the temple and the resumption of sacrifices. But as of today, sacrifices are hard for us to appreciate. The Torah […]

Sacrifices. Who is excited?? We embark on the Book of Leviticus with a bang. We learn three marvelous lessons from our Parsha: The subtle summons of God; how to remedy a bad case of Cainitis and Abelitis; and the Secret of the Shelamim. – – – – – – – – – – – – […]

In Parshas Vayikra, the first Torah section in The Book of Leviticus, we learn about the processes and procedures of many different varieties of sacrifices: There are three different types of elevation offerings; three types of peace-offerings; six types of meal-offerings; and numerous sin and guilt offerings. Our exploration of the parsha begins with a […]

The latter half of the Book of Exodus is almost exclusively oriented around the Tabernacle. In this week’s double Parsha, the nation executes the plans given to Moshe. It begins with a fundraising drive. The nation is offer the opportunity to contribute the 15 different materials needed for the Tabernacle. Fourteen of the fifteen materials […]

There are three ways to achieve transcendental greatness: There is the path of intense practice and training in your desired field of excellence; there is the path of Bezalel who was endowed with supernatural abilities and preordained to greatness; and there is a third path — the path of the ascension of heart. In our […]

After the Torah delineates the instructions to assemble the materials for the construction of the Tabernacle in Parshas Terumah and the creation of the vestments of the high priest in Parshas Tetzaveh, Parshas Vayakhel outlines the implementation those plans: The massive fundraising efforts, and the actual building of the Tabernacle and its vessels under the […]