Torah Scholar

Search and explore Jewish texts (Torah, Tanach, Talmud, Midrash, commentaries) via Sefaria API. Use when researching Torah sources, looking up verses, finding commentaries, cross-references, or preparing divrei Torah. Supports Hebrew and English. Handles references like "Genesis 1:1", "Berakhot 2a", "Mishnah Avot 1:1".

Research Jewish texts with full access to the Sefaria library: Tanach, Talmud Bavli/Yerushalmi, Mishnah, Midrash, Zohar, and thousands of commentaries.

Quick Start

bash

# Search across all texts
torah search "love your neighbor"

# Get specific verse with Hebrew + English
torah verse "Leviticus 19:18"

# Find commentaries on a verse
torah links "Genesis 1:1"

# This week's parsha
torah parsha

# Today's learning schedule (Daf Yomi, etc.)
torah today

Commands

Command	Description	Example
torah search <query>	Full-text search	torah search "tikkun olam"
torah verse <ref>	Get text + translation	torah verse "Psalms 23"
torah links <ref>	Commentaries & cross-refs	torah links "Exodus 20:1"
torah related <ref>	Related texts & topics	torah related "Deuteronomy 6:4"
torah parsha	This week's portion	torah parsha
torah today	Daily learning schedule	torah today
torah dvar	Generate dvar Torah	torah dvar
torah dvar ref <ref>	Dvar on specific verse	torah dvar ref "Genesis 12:1"
torah dvar theme <theme>	Dvar with theme focus	torah dvar theme "leadership"

Reference Formats

Tanach (Hebrew Bible)

• Books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy (Torah)
• Nevi'im: Joshua, Judges, Samuel, Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, etc.
• Ketuvim: Psalms, Proverbs, Job, Song of Songs, Ruth, Ecclesiastes, etc.
• Format: Book Chapter:Verse or Book Chapter:Start-End
• Examples: Genesis 1:1, Psalms 23, Isaiah 40:1-5

Talmud

• Bavli (Babylonian): Tractate DafNumber + a or b
• Examples: Berakhot 2a, Shabbat 31a, Bava Metzia 59b
• Major tractates: Berakhot, Shabbat, Eruvin, Pesachim, Yoma, Sukkah, Beitzah, Rosh Hashanah, Taanit, Megillah, Moed Katan, Chagigah, Yevamot, Ketubot, Nedarim, Nazir, Sotah, Gittin, Kiddushin, Bava Kamma, Bava Metzia, Bava Batra, Sanhedrin, Makkot, Shevuot, Avodah Zarah, Horayot, Zevachim, Menachot, Chullin, Bekhorot, Arakhin, Temurah, Keritot, Meilah, Tamid, Niddah

Mishnah

• Format: Mishnah Tractate Chapter:Mishnah
• Examples: Mishnah Avot 1:1, Mishnah Berakhot 1:1

Midrash

• Midrash Rabbah: Genesis Rabbah 1:1, Exodus Rabbah 1:1
• Midrash Tanchuma: Tanchuma Bereshit 1
• Other: Pirkei DeRabbi Eliezer 1

Commentaries

• Access via torah links <ref> to see Rashi, Ramban, Ibn Ezra, Sforno, etc.

Research Workflows

Find Sources on a Topic

bash

# 1. Search for topic
torah search "repentance teshuvah"

# 2. Get full text of relevant result
torah verse "Maimonides Hilchot Teshuvah 2:1"

# 3. Find related commentaries
torah links "Maimonides Hilchot Teshuvah 2:1"

Prepare a Dvar Torah

bash

# 1. Get this week's parsha
torah parsha

# 2. Read the opening verses
torah verse "Genesis 12:1-5"  # (adjust to actual parsha)

# 3. Find commentaries for insights
torah links "Genesis 12:1"

# 4. Search for thematic connections
torah search "lech lecha journey"

Study Daf Yomi

bash

# 1. Check today's daf
torah today

# 2. Get the text
torah verse "Berakhot 2a"  # (from calendar)

# 3. See what it connects to
torah links "Berakhot 2a"

Generate a Dvar Torah

bash

# Quick dvar for this week's parsha
torah dvar

# Focus on specific verse
torah dvar ref "Exodus 28:1"

# Explore a theme across sources
torah dvar theme "holiness and service"

The dvar generator outputs:

• Opening verses with Hebrew + English
• Key commentaries (Rashi, Ramban, Sforno, etc.)
• Related sources across the library
• Suggested structure (hook → problem → sources → resolution → application)
• Themes to explore further

Python API

For advanced usage, import directly:

python

from scripts.sefaria import get_text, search, get_links, get_parsha

# Get verse
result = get_text("Genesis 1:1")
print(result.get("he"))  # Hebrew
print(result.get("text"))  # English

# Search
results = search("golden rule", limit=5)

# Get commentaries
links = get_links("Leviticus 19:18")

Tips

• Hebrew search: Sefaria supports Hebrew queries: torah search "ואהבת לרעך כמוך"
• Partial refs: torah verse "Psalms 23" returns entire chapter
• Ranges: torah verse "Genesis 1:1-5" for multiple verses
• Talmud context: Daf refs include both amud a and b context

Limitations

• Rate-limited by Sefaria (be respectful of their free API)
• Some texts may have Hebrew only (no English translation)
• Search is full-text, not semantic (exact/stemmed matches)

Source

Powered by Sefaria — the free, open-source library of Jewish texts.