Joshua Berman, at The Blogs

Joshua Berman

Jul 21, 2026, 12:53 PM

The Book of Lamentations offers a surprising message for Tisha B'Av: When belief is on the verge of collapse, protest may be its strongest lifeline

Apr 4, 2026, 11:48 PM

Iran and the Politics of the Plague of Locusts

In the latest stage of the war, the author of the Art of the Deal takes a page from the Art of the Plague in the Book of Exodus

Jun 27, 2025, 4:20 PM

Not Ending the War May Have Saved Israel

Ending the war to bring home the hostages held the moral high ground—now we see what it might have cost us. We are the narrators of our own lives, endlessly retelling our stories with each passing year. What once seemed...

Dec 31, 2024, 12:35 PM

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Biblical grammar enters the culture wars

Part of a document said by an Italian expert to be the oldest known complete Torah scroll. (photo credit: AP/Alma Mater Studiorum Universita' di Bologna)

Could a new book’s deep dive into biblical grammar challenge modern ideas about when the Torah was written?

Sep 22, 2024, 5:07 PM

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When we appeal to God as victims of rape

Illustrative: A soldier kneels next to the Israeli flag during the a ceremony marking Memorial Day, at the site of the Supernova music festival near Kibbutz Re'im, where revelers were brutalized, murdered and kidnapped during Hamas's October 7 massacre in southern Israel, May 13, 2024. (AP/Leo Correa)

Until now, pre-Rosh Hashanah penitential prayers evoked suffering that echoed a bygone era. After October 7th, it's as if they were written for us

Jan 7, 2024, 3:01 PM

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Lessons from our soldiers’ last letters

The final letter of First Sgt. Adi Leon, z"l (Screenshot: used in accordance with Clause 27a of the Copyright Law)

As our fallen heroes reflected on the possibility of death, their words teach us about purpose and meaning in life

Dec 24, 2023, 4:05 PM

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Is this war a divine punishment?

People hold photographs of Israelis held hostage by Hamas terrorists in Gaza, as they attend a protest calling for the government to find a solution to have the hostages released, outside Military Defense Headquarters in Tel Aviv, December 19, 2023. (Miriam Alster/Flash90)

Are we prepared to stand before God as Jews always did in times of trauma and affirm that our suffering stems from our deeds?

Jul 27, 2023, 2:38 PM

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Healing means hearing the other side’s pain

Pro-government demonstrators hold a protest in support of the judicial overhaul, at Tel Aviv's Kaplan Street, on July 23, 2023. (Jack Guez/ AFP)

Consider how fast the coalition revoked the 'reasonableness' clause and see a history of discrimination and humiliation writ large

Jul 25, 2023, 1:56 PM

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Crushed by denial: Zion in the Book of Lamentations

From 'The Prophet Jeremiah,' by Michelangelo.

When everything you believe comes crumbling down, and you still can't get past your beliefs, that is when you are susceptible to destruction

Jul 24, 2022, 3:29 PM

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Messengers from the Russian moral abyss

Russian President Vladimir Putin greets people after his speech at the concert marking the eighth anniversary of the referendum on the state status of Crimea and Sevastopol and its reunification with Russia, in Moscow, March 18, 2022. (Ramil Sitdikov/Sputnik Pool Photo via AP)

At our Shabbat table, cousins of mine embarking on their new life in Israel shared chilling accounts of a country that resembles prewar Germany

About Me

Joshua Berman is a professor of Bible at Bar-Ilan University and is the author of Lamentations (Cambridge University Press, 2023) and is host of the podcast, The Bible Bar.