Every Monday there will be a midrashic fable posted from Louis Ginzberg’s classic collection Legends of the Jews. This week the midrash concerns the punishment of Nebuchadnezzar.
This midrash is interesting because of its irony: Nebuchadnezzar was so arrogant that he thought himself to be a god and, as a result, God causes him to act like an animal. In other parts of the midrash, this almost seems to connect to the story of Adam and Eve: they ate the fruit in order to “be like God” and then they are clothed in animal skins. In a way, and read in light of some of the Psalms, this represents both their fall from glory and their identification Read the rest of this entry »
