From the Sea to Sinai: Tests of the Wilderness
Rabbi Alex Israel
Rabbi Alex Israel teaches Tanakh at Yeshivat Eretz Hatzvi, Midreshet Lindenbaum and Matan, and director of Community Education, Summer Programs, and the Elmad online learning platform at the Pardes Institute of Jewish Studies.
Born and raised in London, Rabbi Israel moved to Israel in 1991 and received S’micha (Rabbinic ordination) from the Israeli Chief Rabbinate following several years of study at Yeshivat Har Etzion. Rabbi Israel holds degrees from London School of Economics, the Institute of Education, London, and Bar Ilan University.
His first book “I Kings – Torn in Two” was published in 2013 to great acclaim, and its companion volume “II Kings – In a Whirlwind” in 2019. Rabbi Israel has lectured widely at campuses and communities on five continents. His writings may be found at www.alexisrael.org.
Click here to access podcasts recorded by Alex Israel.
Why did the Israelites complain so bitterly when they were in the Wilderness? Did they doubt God?
If God could split a sea, then why did He fail to provide their basic commodities like water and food? Was it all part of God’s plan? Rabbi Alex Israel explores how God designed the Israelites’ journey through the wilderness as a test and a transformative learning experience.
This Rapoport Memorial Lecture, taught by Rabbi Alex Israel, is sponsored by Dr. Samuel and Sanda E. Rapoport.
It was originally recorded on 03/14/2021.