The Mishlei Podcast

Philosophy Podcasts

My name is Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss, and this is the hub for all of my shiurim (classes) on Sefer Mishlei, a.k.a. The Book of Proverbs! Generally speaking we will follow the approach to Mishlei outlined by Saadia Gaon who views Mishlei as a guide for intelligent decision-making in everyday life with the goal of maximizing long-term pleasure and minimizing long-term pain. Each shiur will typically focus on one pasuk (verse), which we will attempt to analyze on our own before turning to the meforshim (commentators). If you have any questions feel free to email me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thanks for listening!

My name is Rabbi Matt Schneeweiss, and this is the hub for all of my shiurim (classes) on Sefer Mishlei, a.k.a. The Book of Proverbs! Generally speaking we will follow the approach to Mishlei outlined by Saadia Gaon who views Mishlei as a guide for intelligent decision-making in everyday life with the goal of maximizing long-term pleasure and minimizing long-term pain. Each shiur will typically focus on one pasuk (verse), which we will attempt to analyze on our own before turning to the meforshim (commentators). If you have any questions feel free to email me at rabbischneeweiss at gmail. Thanks for listening!

Location:

United States

Genres:

Philosophy Podcasts

Description:

Language:

English

Website:

https://mishlei.buzzsprout.com/

Email:

rabbischneeweiss@gmail.com

Episodes

Mishlei 22:6 - Mishlei's Approach to Chinuch ... Whatever That Term Means (Part 2)

5/19/2022

Mishlei 22:6 - Mishlei's Approach to Chinuch ... Whatever That Term Means (Part 2) חֲנֹךְ לַנַּעַר עַל פִּי דַרְכּוֹ גַּם כִּי יַזְקִין לֹא יָסוּר מִמֶּנָּה: This morning (5/19/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we continued learning yesterday's pasuk - and boy did we get a TON of ideas about teaching and parenting! After reviewing what we came up with yesterday, we learned the commentaries of Saadia Gaon, Meiri, and Rabbeinu Yonah, all of which were supplemented with ideas from Rabbi...

Duration:00:47:55

Mishlei 22:6 - Mishlei's Approach to Chinuch ... Whatever That Term Means (Part 1)

5/18/2022

Mishlei 22:6 - Mishlei's Approach to Chinuch ... Whatever That Term Means (Part 1) חֲנֹךְ לַנַּעַר עַל פִּי דַרְכּוֹ גַּם כִּי יַזְקִין לֹא יָסוּר מִמֶּנָּה: This morning (5/18/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we began learning one of the most frequently quoted pesukim in all of Mishlei. Because this pasuk lends itself to "fire from the hip" interpretations, we had to make a concerted effort to slow down and really LISTEN to what the pasuk has to say - and it paid off! We came up with...

Duration:00:47:29

Mishlei 22:5 - The Perilous Path of the Crooked (Part 2)

5/17/2022

Mishlei 22:5 - The Perilous Path of the Crooked (Part 2) צִנִּים פַּחִים בְּדֶרֶךְ עִקֵּשׁ שׁוֹמֵר נַפְשׁוֹ יִרְחַק מֵהֶם: This morning (5/17/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we continued learning yesterday's pasuk. After reviewing what we did yesterday, we were delighted to see that Rabbeinu Yonah said almost EXACTLY what we said. After refining yesterday's idea, in light of the meforshim and in light of last night's pasuk (which also involved the "crooked" individual), we suggested a...

Duration:00:46:32

Mishlei 11:20 - Hashem Hates Crooked Hearts

5/16/2022

Mishlei 11:20 - Hashem Hates Crooked Hearts תּוֹעֲבַת י"י עִקְּשֵׁי לֵב וּרְצוֹנוֹ תְּמִימֵי דָרֶךְ: This evening (5/16/22), in our Monday Night Mishlei Shiur, we learned a difficult pasuk which several of our "go to" meforshim deemed to be so obvious that they felt they didn't need to comment. Thankfully, we were able to arrive at one complete idea and several other strong approaches. As it so happens, one of the terms in our pasuk also showed up in the pasuk we learned in my Morning...

Duration:01:20:02

Mishlei 22:5 - The Perilous Path of the Crooked (Part 1)

5/16/2022

Mishlei 22:5 - The Perilous Path of the Crooked (Part 1) צִנִּים פַּחִים בְּדֶרֶךְ עִקֵּשׁ שׁוֹמֵר נַפְשׁוֹ יִרְחַק מֵהֶם: This morning (5/16/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we began learning a very strange-sounding pasuk. Despite having only three people in shiur, we came up with a really good explanation which answered all of our questions. We briefly took a look at how Chazal interpret our pasuk, which we hope to revisit tomorrow, and we concluded with the Malbim's radically...

Duration:00:42:37

Mishlei 15:31-33 - The Developmental Trajectory of One Who Listens to Tochachah

5/12/2022

Mishlei 15:31-33 - The Developmental Trajectory of One Who Listens to Tochachah (לא) אֹזֶן שֹׁמַעַת תּוֹכַחַת חַיִּים בְּקֶרֶב חֲכָמִים תָּלִין. (לב) פּוֹרֵעַ מוּסָר מוֹאֵס נַפְשׁוֹ וְשׁוֹמֵעַ תּוֹכַחַת קוֹנֶה לֵּב. (לג) יִרְאַת י"י מוּסַר חׇכְמָה וְלִפְנֵי כָבוֹד עֲנָוָה: This morning (5/12/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we (ambitiously) set out to learn not one, not two, but THREE pesukim, chosen because the third one came up earlier this week and I thought it would be beneficial...

Duration:00:42:15

Mishlei 22:4 - The Benefits of Humility (Part 3)

5/11/2022

Mishlei 22:4 - The Benefits of Humility (Part 3) עֵקֶב עֲנָוָה יִרְאַת י"י עֹשֶׁר וְכָבוֹד וְחַיִּים: This morning (5/11/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we continued working on yesterday's pasuk. We learned three similar approaches from Metzudas David, Ralbag, and the Malbim, then attempted to synthesize what we learned into a fully formed idea, factoring in other approaches that were raised over the past two days. Did we succeed? I believe so! But even if we didn't, we definitely...

Duration:00:44:07

Mishlei 22:4 - The Benefits of Humility (Part 2)

5/10/2022

Mishlei 22:4 - The Benefits of Humility (Part 2) עֵקֶב עֲנָוָה יִרְאַת י"י עֹשֶׁר וְכָבוֹד וְחַיִּים: This morning (5/10/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we continued working on yesterday's pasuk. If Mishleic fruitfulness is measured by how many finalized ideas we arrive at, then today's session was fruitless. Thankfully, I define Mishleic fruitfulness by the richness of the discussion, and by that standard, today's shiur was VERY fruitful. We developed a number of approaches and...

Duration:00:45:34

Mishlei 11:19 - True Tzedakah and Its Opposite

5/9/2022

Mishlei 11:19 - True Tzedakah and Its Opposite כֵּן צְדָקָה לְחַיִּים וּמְרַדֵּף רָעָה לְמוֹתוֹ: Last night (5/9/22), in our Monday Night Mishlei Shiur, we learned a tough pasuk - tough because of its wording, and because of its generality. It took us a little while to find our footing, but when we did, we ended up developing three (or, at least, two and a half) ideas. Unfortunately, we didn't have time to delve into the meforshim, but there's nothing stopping anyone from doing so on their...

Duration:01:32:58

Mishlei 22:4 - The Benefits of Humility (Part 1)

5/9/2022

Mishlei 22:4 - The Benefits of Humility (Part 1) עֵקֶב עֲנָוָה יִרְאַת י"י עֹשֶׁר וְכָבוֹד וְחַיִּים: This morning (5/9/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we began learning what looks to be a foundational pasuk about two important qualities: humility and fear of Hashem. The fact that the pasuk speaks in such generalities makes it difficult to approach, but we raised a few possibilities and I'm optimistic about tomorrow (בג"ה). ---------- מקורות: משלי א:ז; טו:לג; כב:ד; לא:ל מצודת...

Duration:00:45:44

Mishlei 22:3 - The Opposite of Seeing Evil and Hiding (Part 2)

5/5/2022

Mishlei 22:3 - The Opposite of Seeing Evil and Hiding (Part 2) עָרוּם רָאָה רָעָה [וְנִסְתָּר] (ויסתר) וּפְתָיִים עָבְרוּ וְנֶעֱנָשׁוּ: This morning (5/5/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we continued working on our pasuk from yesterday and we came up with three (or four, depending on who you ask) nice ideas! More importantly, we emerged with a greater understanding of and appreciation for the Mishleic personality of the arum. ---------- מקורות: משלי כב:ג מאירי מצודת דוד The Torah...

Duration:00:46:59

Mishlei 22:3 - The Opposite of Seeing Evil and Hiding (Part 1)

5/4/2022

Mishlei 22:3 - The Opposite of Seeing Evil and Hiding (Part 1) עָרוּם רָאָה רָעָה [וְנִסְתָּר] (ויסתר) וּפְתָיִים עָבְרוּ וְנֶעֱנָשׁוּ: This morning (5/4/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we began a rather tricky pasuk. Lots of questions and ambiguity. We made a few moves and discussed some nice methodology, but we're going to need to work on the pasuk some more on our own tomorrow (בג"ה) before we consult the meforshim. ---------- מקורות: משלי כב:ג תרגום רס"ג תרגום כתובים מצודת...

Duration:00:45:36

Mishlei 22:2 - Hashem Makes the Rich and the Poor (Part 2)

5/3/2022

Mishlei 22:2 - Hashem Makes the Rich and the Poor (Part 2) עָשִׁיר וָרָשׁ נִפְגָּשׁוּ עֹשֵׂה כֻלָּם יי: This morning (5/3/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we continued our analysis of yesterday's pasuk, and learned through not one, not two, but SIX meforshim! We didn't manage to define how each one was learning the pasuk, but gleaned a little bit from all of them to sharpen our own ideas and to gain insights from their approaches. We also coined a new set of methodology terms: the...

Duration:00:48:02

Mishlei 11:18 - False Deeds and True Seeds

5/2/2022

Mishlei 11:18 - False Deeds and True Seeds רָשָׁע עֹשֶׂה פְעֻלַּת שָׁקֶר וְזֹרֵעַ צְדָקָה שֶׂכֶר אֱמֶת: This evening (5/2/22), in our Monday Night Mishlei Shiur, we learned another pasuk about reshaim and tzadikim ... or at least, those who do tzedakah. The questions we came up with pointed us in some clear directions, and we were able to come up with several approaches of our own - one of which was echoed by Rabbeinu Yonah. We also learned Saadia Gaon's commentary, which ended up being...

Duration:01:31:09

Mishlei 22:2 - Hashem Makes the Rich and the Poor (Part 1)

5/2/2022

Mishlei 22:2 - Hashem Makes the Rich and the Poor (Part 1) עָשִׁיר וָרָשׁ נִפְגָּשׁוּ עֹשֵׂה כֻלָּם יי: This morning (4/29/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur (which was slightly shorter than usual, due to Rosh Chodesh davening), we began learning a pasuk whose translation, questions, and problems were quite clear. We developed several fruitful approaches, one of which was Saadia Gaon's. Tomorrow we'll see what the other meforshim have to say (בג"ה). ---------- מקורות: משלי כב:ב תרגום...

Duration:00:37:02

Mishlei 22:1 - A Good Name is Preferable to Wealth (Part 2)

4/29/2022

Mishlei 22:1 - A Good Name is Preferable to Wealth (Part 2) נִבְחָר שֵׁם מֵעֹשֶׁר רָב מִכֶּסֶף וּמִזָּהָב חֵן טוֹב: This morning (4/29/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we revisited the pasuk we learned yesterday. In contrast to yesterday, not only did we come up with several ideas on our own, but we also learned some ideas from the meforshim! Note: towards the end of this shiur, I was in the middle of explaining an idea, when some aniyim came in. I nodded to one of the dorm guys to take...

Duration:00:46:14

Mishlei 22:1 - A Good Name is Preferable to Wealth (Part 1)

4/28/2022

Mishlei 22:1 - A Good Name is Preferable to Wealth (Part 1) נִבְחָר שֵׁם מֵעֹשֶׁר רָב מִכֶּסֶף וּמִזָּהָב חֵן טוֹב: This morning (4/28/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we began a new pasuk comparing wealth with a good name and good favor. The good news is that the pasuk is fairly straightforward. The bad news ... is that the pasuk is fairly straightforward. Metzudas David barely commented. The Meiri gave a very general interpretation. Rabbeinu Yonah provided us with what to work with,...

Duration:00:44:53

Mishlei 21:30-31 - You Can't Outsmart Hashem (Part 2)

4/7/2022

Mishlei 21:30-31 - You Can't Outsmart Hashem (Part 2) אֵין חׇכְמָה וְאֵין תְּבוּנָה וְאֵין עֵצָה לְנֶגֶד יְיָ: סוּס מוּכָן לְיוֹם מִלְחָמָה וְלַיְיָ הַתְּשׁוּעָה: This morning (4/7/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we began by reviewing yesterday's pasuk and learning Saadia Gaon's commentary which generously furnished us with five interpretations! We then learned the final pasuk in the perek, which most meforshim learn in concert with the previous pasuk. We came up with our own approach,...

Duration:00:44:18

Mishlei 21:30-31 - You Can't Outsmart Hashem (Part 1)

4/6/2022

Mishlei 21:30 - You Can't Outsmart Hashem אֵין חׇכְמָה וְאֵין תְּבוּנָה וְאֵין עֵצָה לְנֶגֶד יְיָ: This morning (4/6/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we began learning a pasuk which we knew would be either very straightforward or very technical. It ended up being the former. We learned several different but related approaches on this pasuk as a standalone. The plan for tomorrow (בג"ה) is to learn the next pasuk as a standalone, and then learn the meforshim who take the two pesukim...

Duration:00:43:46

Mishlei 21:29 - The Visible Brazenness of the Rasha (Part 2)

4/5/2022

Mishlei 21:29 - The Visible Brazenness of the Rasha (Part 2) הֵעֵז אִישׁ רָשָׁע בְּפָנָיו וְיָשָׁר הוּא [יָבִין] (יכין) [דַּרְכּוֹ] (דרכיו): This morning (4/5/22), in our Morning Mishlei shiur, we continued our analysis of yesterday's pasuk. After reviewing our explanation of Saadia Gaon yesterday, we learned two more approaches: that of the Metzudos, who learns this to be a pasuk about anger, and that of the Rid and Rabbeinu Yonah who learn this to be about how reshaim lie. We concluded...

Duration:00:45:33