In this episode of Torah in Context: Lech Lecha, Nehemia and Lynell discuss the legend that Tahor was an idolmaker, explore a famous rabbinic debate over how old Abraham was when he came to know his Creator, and uncover a hidden double meaning in the promise that all the families of the earth will be blessed through him.
In this Shemini Atzeret teaching - Convocation vs Assembly, Nehemia and Lynell ask what the eighth day of assembly really is. Nehemia explains why the Hebrew phrase mikra kodesh means a time proclaimed to be holy rather than a “holy convocation,” and traces where that translation came from. He also shows why the King James made up the word “solemn,” and how Simchat Torah grew into a separate holiday that was never commanded in the Torah.
In this Bonus Episode of Torah in Context: Noach, Nehemia and Lynell look at the commandments God gave Noah, explore how medieval rabbis identified the nations of Genesis 10, and reveal how the Tower of Babel is reversed in Zephaniah’s prophecy.
In this episode of Hebrew Voices #254 - October 8th Jew Makes Aliyah: Part 1, Nehemia sits down with his niece, Maayan Gordon, who made aliyah to Israel in the middle of a war. Maayan shares how October 7th awakened her Jewish identity, the warm welcome she found at a Chabad event in Birmingham, Alabama, and how rediscovering the weekly Torah portion turned the commandments into vehicles for connection.
In this Partner Study of Torah in Context: Noach, Nehemia and Lynell show how the 150 days of the flood point to the Biblical lunisolar calendar, discuss whether God created us with a desire to do evil, and look at David's prayer in 1 Chronicles 29 asking God to prepare our hearts.
In this episode of Torah in Context: Noach, Nehemia and Lynell uncover the Hebrew wordplay behind Noah's name, explore why flood traditions appear all over the ancient world, and close with a sobering account from Auschwitz and a warning not to ignore the signs of our own time.
In The Truth About Sukkot | 2026, Nehemia and Lynell answer the most-asked questions about the Feast of Booths. They look at what the word sukkah means in the Hebrew Bible and why a tent counts. Nehemiah 8 shows how the "four species" were used to build the booths rather than to wave them. Along the way, Nehemia tells the story of his father's famous U-Haul sukkah.
In this episode of Torah in Context: Bereshit, Nehemia and Lynell dive deep into the first verse of the Bible- Who created what? When? How long did it take? Let’s see what the original Hebrew and the commentators have to say!
In this Partner Study of Torah in Context: Bereshit, Nehemia and Lynell consider the ancient debate over whether an infinite God can interact with the universe directly or only through intermediaries as well as the importance of understanding all possibilities before rejecting them.
In this Bonus episode of Torah in Context: Bereshit, Lynell puts Nehemia through a lightning round of questions touching on what the Torah actually commands us to believe, the first “fence around the Torah,” and why God’s “book of instructions” actually starts out with a whole book plus 11 chapters of storytelling.