Portion Summary Chukat is the thirty-ninth reading from the Torah. The word chukat means “statute.” The name is derived from the second verse of the reading: “This is the statute of the law which the LORD has commanded” (Numbers 19:2). Chukat presents the mysterious laws of the red-heifer ceremony for purification after contact with human death. This […]
Portion Summary Balak was the name of a Moabite king in the days of Moses. It is also the name of the fortieth reading from the Torah. It comes from the second verse of this week’s reading, which says, “Now Balak the son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorites” (Numbers […]
Portion Summary Pinchas is the Hebrew name translated in English Bibles as Phinehas. It is also the name of the forty-first reading from the Torah because of the second verse of the reading, which says, “Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned away My wrath” (Numbers 25:11). In this […]
Portion Summary The name of the forty-second reading from the Torah is Mattot, which means “tribes.” The name is derived from the words of Numbers 30:1, which says, “Then Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes of the sons of Israel.” Numbers 30 discusses the laws of vows and oaths. Numbers 31 tells the […]
Portion Summary Devarim is both the title for the last book from the scroll of the Torah and the title of the first Torah portion therein. Devarim means “words.” The English-speaking world calls this book Deuteronomy. The Hebrew title for the book comes from the opening phrase of the book: “These are the words (devarim) which Moses […]
Portion Summary The forty-fifth reading from the Torah and the second reading from the book of Deuteronomy is named Va’etchanan, which means “and I besought.” The title comes from the first verse of the reading, which says, “I also pleaded with the LORD at that time” (Deuteronomy 3:23). The portion completes the historical prologue of […]
Portion Summary The forty-sixth reading from the Torah and the third reading from the book of Deuteronomy is named Ekev, a word from the first verse of the portion. Deuteronomy 7:12 says, “Then it shall come about, because you listen to these judgments and keep and do them, that the LORD your God will keep […]
Portion Summary The forty-seventh reading from the Torah and the fourth reading from the book of Deuteronomy is named Re’eh, an imperative form of the word “see.” It is the first word of the Torah portion: “See , I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse” (Deuteronomy 11:26). This reading contains admonitions […]
Beginning of Elul
Portion Summary The word shoftim means “judges.” It is also the name of the forty-eighth reading from the Torah, which begins with the words “You shall appoint for yourself judges ” (Deuteronomy 16:18). Within this Torah portion are several laws governing the judicial process and other institutions of the state: the establishment of law courts, the clerical […]
Portion Summary The forty-ninth reading from the Torah is called Ki Tetze, which means “when you go.” It is named after the first words of Deuteronomy 21:10, which are “When you go out to battle against your enemies.” Deuteronomy is organized as an ancient Near Eastern covenant-treaty document. Previous chapters of Deuteronomy formed a preamble, […]
Portion Summary Deuteronomy 26 begins the fiftieth reading from the Torah with the words, “Then it shall be, when you enter the land which the LORD your God gives you as an inheritance” (26:1). In Hebrew, the words for “when you enter” are ki tavo. This Torah portion begins with laws regarding first fruits and tithes. […]
Portion Summary The name of the fifty-first reading from the Torah is Nitzavim, which means “you are standing.” The name is derived from the first verse of the portion in which Moses says, “You stand (nitzavim) today, all of you, before the LORD your God” (Deuteronomy 29:10). In this portion, Moses invites the entire assembly […]
Portion Summary The name of the fifty-second reading from the Torah is Vayelech, which means “and he went.” The name is derived from the first word of the first verse of the portion: “So Moses went and spoke these words to all Israel.” In this short portion, Moses commands an assembly for a public Torah […]