When Yoseph is sending provisions with his brothers back with them to their father (“וַיִּתֵּ֨ן לָהֶ֥ם יוֹסֵ֛ף עֲגָל֖וֹת עַל־פִּ֣י פַרְעֹ֑ה וַיִּתֵּ֥ן לָהֶ֛ם צֵדָ֖ה לַדָּֽרֶךְ Joseph gave them wagons as Pharaoh had commanded, and he supplied them with provisions for the journey” (Gen. 45.21)), he provides his brothers with changes of clothing and Binyamin with silver […]
Why Do Yoseph’s Brothers Get Drunk?
When attending a royal banquet or any sort of special feast, one would probably not want to get drunk. However, we see Yoseph’s brothers doing exactly that (Gen. 43.34): “וַיִּשְׁתּ֥וּ וַֽיִּשְׁכְּר֖וּ עִמּֽוֹ and they drank and got drunk with him.” Sure, they are all together, but they don’t know that Yoseph is their brother, nor […]
What Did Pharoah’s Drink-Purveyor Do to Land Him in Prison?
We read of Pharoah’s drink-purveyor and baker as sinning to land themselves in prison in this week’s parashah: “חָֽטְא֛וּ מַשְׁקֵ֥ה מֶֽלֶךְ־מִצְרַ֖יִם וְהָאֹפֶ֑ה לַאֲדֹנֵיהֶ֖ם לְמֶ֥לֶךְ מִצְרָֽיִם the drinks-purveyor of the king of Egypt and the baker sinned to their lord, to the king of Egypt” (Gen. 40.1). What did they do to land themselves in prison? […]
Pshats For Shots Parashah Sheet Up For Hayey Sarah
Check out this week’s Pshats for Shots Parashah Sheet for Parashat Hayey Sarah – in addition to a drinking halakhah and d’var Torah, there is also – for the first-time ever, a bottle of the week!
Discussing Lot’s Drinking with His Daughters, featuring Rabbi Eryn London
For this week’s podcast/video episode, we have on featured guest Rabbi Eryn London, who is currently serving as the scholar-in-residence for JOFA UK, and is a graduate of Yeshivat Maharat. After last week’s episode discussing the incident of Lot’s drinking with his daughters, there is still strikingly more to discuss about this incident in the […]
Lot Gets Drunk with His Daughters
Discussing Lot’s getting drunk with his daughters (Gen. 19:30-38), guest Aaron Roller, co-host of The Portion podcast, chats with Jewish Drinking: The Show host, Rabbi Drew Kaplan, in both podcast and video versions:
Malkitzedek’s Bringing of Wine & Bread to Avram
Following Avram’s involvement in the war between the four kings vs the five kings, when Avram rescued Lot (Gen. 14:14-16), we read of the king of S’dom coming out to meet Avram (Gen. 14:17). However, before the king of S’dom speaks with Avram (Gen. 14:21-24), there is a brief narrative interruption where Malkitzedek, the king […]
What Did Noah Begin Doing with a Vineyard Upon Disembarking From the Ark?
In the course of the first story of drinking in the entirety of the Bible, we see Noah disembarking from the ark and doing something with regard to a vineyard: וַיָּ֥חֶל נֹ֖חַ אִ֣ישׁ הָֽאֲדָמָ֑ה וַיִּטַּ֖ע כָּֽרֶם Noah, man of the soil, [something] to plant a vineyard. It’s unclear how to translate the word ויחל here, […]
Exploring Noah’s Getting Drunk: What Did Ham Do To Noah?
In the very first instance of drinking wine in the Bible (Gen. 9), we read of Noah drinking, getting drunk, and then his son, Ham, doing something to him. What did Ham do to Noah? In this episode of Jewish Drinking: The Show, I (Rabbi Drew Kaplan) discuss this Noah-Ham incident with Professor John Bergsma, a […]
Drinking in the Book of Ecclesiastes: A Conversation with Rabbi Daniel Epstein
With the Shabbat of Sukkot coming up this weekend when the book of Ecclesiastes (ספר קהלת) is traditionally read, I invited Rabbi Daniel Epstein for a conversation on drinking in the book of Ecclesiastes for the newest video and podcast episode for JewishDrinking: Podcast Episode: Video: