What the Chizkuni actually is
Chizkuni is not a person teaching today — it is a classic commentary on the Chumash, written by Rabbi Chizkiyahu ben Manoach, a French Torah scholar of the mid-thirteenth century. The work is known by the name Chizkuni, and studying it means learning the parsha through his eyes.
The author set out to compile a clear, running explanation of the Torah drawn from Rashi and roughly two dozen earlier commentators. Notably, he generally did not name those sources, choosing instead to weave them into one smooth, accessible commentary aimed at the plain reader of the verse.
Its approach: the plain meaning of the verse
The Chizkuni is above all a peshat commentary — it seeks the straightforward, contextual meaning of the words. It attends to grammar, to the flow of the narrative, and to the small textual difficulties that a careful reader notices, offering resolutions that keep close to the verse itself.
In practice it reads as a natural companion to Rashi. Where Rashi is terse, the Chizkuni often fills in the reasoning; where a question lingers, it supplies a clean answer rooted in the pshat. That reliability is why it has remained a go-to commentary for centuries of learners.
Studying the Chizkuni today
A shiur series built on the Chizkuni walks through the weekly parsha using his explanations as the lens. Because his focus is the plain meaning, it makes for excellent parsha preparation — you come away understanding what the verses are actually saying before layering on deeper interpretation.
It suits learners of every level. A beginner gains a clear reading of the text; a more advanced student appreciates how the Chizkuni gathers and resolves the classic difficulties. Either way, the reward is the same: a steadier, more grounded grasp of the Chumash, week after week.
Finding kosher Torah video for your family
FilteredTube is a kosher video service built for Jewish families — every single video is approved against one written standard before it can appear, with no open feed, no comments, and no surprises. It is a calm, safe place to look for the Torah and Jewish music you love.
If your family enjoys the peshat commentary of the Chizkuni, search FilteredTube for the speakers and topics that matter most to you. With a daf yomi shelf, a weekly parsha shelf, topic shelves, audio-only listening for the car, and a kids mode with a PIN, kosher Jewish video is easy to reach — and the approved catalog keeps growing every day.
At a glance
Key takeaways
- Chizkuni is a classic Chumash commentary, not a present-day speaker.
- It was written by Rabbi Chizkiyahu ben Manoach in 13th-century France.
- The commentary focuses on peshat — the plain, contextual meaning of the verse.
- It reads as a natural companion to Rashi and is excellent for parsha preparation.
- Search FilteredTube for kosher, approved Torah video — the catalog grows every day.