Bible in 90 Days

²⁷ “‘And if, for all this, you still will not listen to me, but go against me; ²⁸ then I will go against you furiously, and I also will chastise you yet seven times more for your sins. ²⁹ You will eat the flesh of your own sons, you will eat the flesh of your own daughters. ³⁰ I will destroy your high places, cut down your pillars for sun-worship, and throw your carcasses on the carcasses of your idols; and I will detest you. ³¹ I will lay waste to your cities and make your sanctuaries desolate, so as not to smell your fragrant aromas. ³² I will desolate the land, so that your enemies living in it will be astounded by it. ³³ You I will disperse among the nations, and I will draw out the sword in pursuit after you; your land will be a desolation and your cities a wasteland. ³⁴ Then, at last, the land will be paid its Shabbats. As long as it lies desolate and you are in the lands of your enemies, the land will rest and be repaid its Shabbats. ³⁵ Yes, as long as it lies desolate it will have rest, the rest it did not have during your Shabbats, when you lived there. ³⁶ As for those of you who are left, I will fill their hearts with anxiety in the lands of their enemies. The sound of a driven leaf will frighten them, so that they will flee as one flees from the sword and fall when no one is pursuing. ³⁷ Yes, with no one pursuing they will stumble over each other as if fleeing the sword — you will have no power to stand before your enemies. ³⁸ And among the nations you will perish; the land of your enemies will devour you.

³⁹ Those of you who remain will pine away in the lands of your enemies from guilt over your misdeeds and those of your ancestors. ⁴⁰ Then they will confess their misdeeds and those of their ancestors which they committed against me in their rebellion; they will admit that they went against me. ⁴¹ At that time I will be going against them, bringing them into the lands of their enemies. But if their uncircumcised hearts will grow humble, and they are paid the punishment for their misdeeds; ⁴² then I will remember my covenant with Ya‘akov, also my covenant with Yitz’chak and my covenant with Avraham; and I will remember the land. ⁴³ For the land will lie abandoned without them, and it will be paid its Shabbats while it lies desolate without them; and they will be paid the punishment for their misdeeds, because they rejected my rulings and loathed my regulations. ⁴⁴ Yet, in spite of all that, I will not reject them when they are in the lands of their enemies, nor will I loathe them to the point of utterly destroying them and thus break my covenant with them, because I am Adonai their God. ⁴⁵ Rather, for their sakes, I will remember the covenant of their ancestors whom I brought out of the land of Egypt — with the nations watching — so that I might be their God; I am Adonai.’”

⁴⁶ These are the laws, rulings and teachings that Adonai himself gave to the people of Isra’el on Mount Sinai through Moshe.

27 (RY: vi; LY: iv) Adonai said to Moshe, ² “Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘If someone makes a clearly defined vow to Adonai to give him an amount equal to the value of a human being, ³ the value you are to assign to a man between the ages of twenty and sixty years is to be fifty shekels of silver [one-and-a-quarter pounds], with the sanctuary shekel being the standard, ⁴ if a woman, thirty shekels. ⁵ If it is a child five to twenty years old, assign a value of twenty shekels for a boy and ten for a girl; ⁶ if a baby one month to five years of age, five shekels for a boy and three for a girl; ⁷ if a person past sixty, fifteen shekels for a man and ten for a woman. ⁸ If the person is too poor to be evaluated, set him before the cohen, who will assign him a value in keeping with the means of the person who made the vow.

⁹ “‘If the vow is for the value of an animal of the kind used when people bring an offering to Adonai, all that a person gives of such animals to Adonai will be holy. ¹⁰ He is not to exchange or replace it by substituting a good animal for a bad one or vice versa; if he does make such a substitution, both the original animal and the one replacing it will be holy. ¹¹ If the animal is an unclean one, such as may not be used in an offering to Adonai, he must set it before the cohen; ¹² and the cohen is to set a value on it in relation to its good and bad points; the value set by you the cohen will stand. ¹³ But if the person making the vow wishes to redeem the animal, he must add one-fifth to your valuation.

¹⁴ “‘When a person consecrates his house to be holy for Adonai, the cohen is to set a value on it in relation to its good and bad points; the value set by the cohen will stand. ¹⁵ If the consecrator wishes to redeem his house, he must add one-fifth to the value you have set on it; and it will revert to him.

(RY: vii, LY: v) ¹⁶ “‘If a person consecrates to Adonai part of a field belonging to his tribe’s possession, you are to value it according to its production, with five bushels of barley being valued at fifty shekels of silver [one-and-a-quarter pounds]. ¹⁷ If he consecrates his field during the year of yovel, this valuation will stand. ¹⁸ But if he consecrates his field after the yovel, then the cohen is to calculate the price according to the years remaining till the next yovel, with a corresponding reduction from your valuation. ¹⁹ If the one consecrating the field wishes to redeem it, he must add one-fifth to your valuation, and the field will be set aside to revert to him. ²⁰ If the seller does not wish to redeem the field, or if [the treasurer for the cohanim] has already sold the field to someone else, it can no longer be redeemed. ²¹ But when the purchaser has to vacate the field in the yovel, it will become holy to Adonai, like a field unconditionally consecrated; it will belong to the cohanim.

(LY: vi) ²² “‘If he consecrates to Adonai a field which he has bought, a field which is not part of his tribe’s possession, ²³ then the cohen is to calculate its value according to the years remaining until the year of yovel; and the man will on that same day pay this amount; since it is holy to Adonai. ²⁴ In the year of yovel the field will revert to the person from whom it was bought, that is, to the person to whose tribal possession it belongs.

²⁵ “‘All your valuations are to be according to the sanctuary shekel [two-fifths of an ounce], twenty gerahs to the shekel.

²⁶ “‘However, the firstborn among animals, since it is already born as a firstborn for Adonai, no one can consecrate — neither ox nor sheep — since it belongs to Adonai already. ²⁷ But if it is an unclean animal, he may redeem it at the price at which you value it and add one-fifth; or if he does not redeem it, it is to be sold at the price at which you value it. ²⁸ However, nothing consecrated unconditionally which a person may consecrate to Adonai out of all he owns — person, animal or field he possesses — is to be sold or redeemed; because everything consecrated unconditionally is especially holy to Adonai. (LY: vii) ²⁹ No person who has been sentenced to die, and thus unconditionally consecrated, can be redeemed; he must be put to death.

³⁰ “‘All the tenth given from the land, whether from planted seed or fruit from trees, belongs to Adonai; it is holy to Adonai. ³¹ If someone wants to redeem any of his tenth, he must add to it one-fifth.

(Maftir) ³² “‘All the tenth from the herd or the flock, whatever passes under the shepherd’s crook, the tenth one will be holy to Adonai. ³³ The owner is not to inquire whether the animal is good or bad, and he cannot exchange it; if he does exchange it, both it and the one he substituted for it will be holy; it cannot be redeemed.’”

³⁴ These are the mitzvot which Adonai gave to Moshe for the people of Isra’el on Mount Sinai.

Haftarah B’chukkotai: Yirmeyahu (Jeremiah) 16:19–17:14

B’rit Hadashah suggested readings for Parashah B’chukkotai: Yochanan (John) 14:15–21; 15:10–12; 1 Yochanan (1 John)

Hazak, hazak, v’nit’chazek!

Be strong, be strong, and let us be strengthened!

Parashah 34: B’midbar (In the desert) 1:1–4:20

1 Adonai spoke to Moshe in the Sinai Desert, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month of the second year after they had left the land of Egypt. He said, ² “Take a census of the entire assembly of the people of Isra’el, by clans and families. Record the names of all the men ³ twenty years old and over who are subject to military service in Isra’el. You and Aharon are to enumerate them company by company.

⁴ Take with you from each tribe someone who is head of a clan. ⁵ These are the men to take with you:

¹⁶ These were the ones called from the assembly, the chiefs of their fathers’ clans and heads of thousands in Isra’el. ¹⁷ So Moshe and Aharon took these men who had been designated by name; ¹⁸ and, on the first day of the second month, they gathered the whole assembly to state their genealogies by families and clans and recorded the names of all those twenty years old and over, as well as their total numbers. ¹⁹ Moshe counted them in the Sinai Desert, just as Adonai had ordered him.

(ii) ²⁰ The men twenty years old and over who were subject to military service were recorded by name, family and clan, starting with the descendants of Re’uven, Isra’el’s firstborn. Here are the totals:

⁴⁴ Moshe, Aharon and the twelve leaders of Isra’el, each from a clan, ⁴⁵ counted the people of Isra’el by their clans, those twenty years old and over, eligible for military service in Isra’el; ⁴⁶ and the grand total came to 603,550.

⁴⁷ But those who were L’vi’im, according to the clan of their fathers, were not counted in this census; ⁴⁸ because Adonai had told Moshe, ⁴⁹ “Do not include the clan of Levi when you take the census of the people of Isra’el. ⁵⁰ Instead, give the L’vi’im charge over the tabernacle of the testimony, its equipment and everything else connected with it. They are to carry the tabernacle and all its equipment, serve in it and set up their camp around it. ⁵¹ When the tabernacle is to be moved onward, it is the L’vi’im who are to take it down and set it up in the new location; anyone else who involves himself is to be put to death. ⁵² The rest of Isra’el are to set up camp, company by company, each man with his own banner. ⁵³ But the L’vi’im are to camp around the tabernacle of the testimony, so that no anger will come upon the assembly of the people of Isra’el. The L’vi’im are to be in charge of the tabernacle of the testimony.”

⁵⁴ This is what the people of Isra’el did — they did everything that Adonai had ordered Moshe.

2 (iii) Adonai said to Moshe and Aharon, ² “The people of Isra’el are to set up camp by clans, each man with his own banner and under his clan’s symbol; they are to camp around the tent of meeting, but at a distance.

^3-9 “Those camping on the east side toward the sunrise are to be under the banner of the camp of Y’hudah; they are to camp according to companies; by tribe and leader they are as follows:

“This group is to set out first.

^10-16 “Those camping on the south are to be under the banner of the camp of Re’uven; they are to camp according to companies; by tribe and leader they are as follows:

“This group is to set out second.

¹⁷ “Then the tent of meeting, with the camp of the L’vi’im, will set out, with the other camps in front and behind. They will go in the same order as their camps are set up — each man will go forward in his position, under his banner.

^18-24 “Those camping on the west are to be under the banner of the camp of Efrayim; they are to camp according to companies; by tribe and leader they are as follows:

“This group is to set out third.

^25-31 “Those camping on the north are to be under the banner of the camp of Dan; they are to camp according to companies; by tribe and leader they are as follows:

“This group is to set out last with their banners.”

³² These are the ones counted from the people of Isra’el by clans; the total number recorded in the camps, company by company, was 603,550. ³³ But, as Adonai ordered Moshe, the L’vi’im were not counted with the rest of Isra’el.

³⁴ The people of Isra’el did everything Adonai had ordered Moshe: they set up camp under their banners, and they set out, each according to his family and clan.

3 (iv) These are the descendants of Aharon and Moshe as of the day when Adonai spoke with Moshe on Mount Sinai. ² The names of the sons of Aharon are: Nadav the firstborn, Avihu, El‘azar and Itamar. ³ These were the names of the sons of Aharon the cohen, whom he anointed and ordained as cohanim. ⁴ But Nadav and Avihu died in the presence of Adonai when they offered unauthorized fire before Adonai in the Sinai Desert, and they had no children; El‘azar and Itamar served as cohanim in the presence of Aharon their father.

⁵ Adonai said to Moshe, ⁶ “Summon the tribe of Levi, and assign them to Aharon the cohen, so that they can help him. ⁷ They are to carry out his duties and the duties of the whole community before the tent of meeting in performing the service of the tabernacle. ⁸ They are to be in charge of all the furnishings of the tent of meeting and to carry out all the duties of the people of Isra’el connected with the service of the tabernacle. ⁹ Assign the L’vi’im to Aharon and his sons; their one responsibility in regard to the people of Isra’el is to serve him. ¹⁰ You are to appoint Aharon and his sons to carry out the duties of cohanim; anyone else who involves himself is to be put to death.”

¹¹ Adonai said to Moshe, ¹² “I have taken the L’vi’im from among the people of Isra’el in lieu of every firstborn male that is first from the womb among the people of Isra’el; the L’vi’im are to be mine. ¹³ All the firstborn males belong to me, because on the day that I killed all the firstborn males in the land of Egypt, I separated for myself all the firstborn males in Isra’el, both human and animal. They are mine; I am Adonai.”

(v) ¹⁴ Adonai said to Moshe in the Sinai Desert, ¹⁵ “Take a census of the tribe of Levi by clans and families. Count every male a month old or over.” ¹⁶ Moshe counted them in the manner Adonai had said, as he had been ordered. ¹⁷ The names of the sons of Levi were Gershon, K’hat and M’rari. ¹⁸ The names of the sons of Gershon were Livni and Shim‘i; they fathered their respective clans; ¹⁹ likewise the sons of K’hat — ‘Amram,Yitz’har, Hevron and ‘Uzi’el — ²⁰ and the sons of M’rari — Machli and Mushi. These fathered the clans of the L’vi’im.

²¹ Gershon fathered the clans of Livni and Shim‘i; these were the Gershon clans. ²² Of them, 7,500 males a month old and over were counted. ²³ The Gershon clans were to camp behind the tabernacle, toward the west. ²⁴ The chief of the Gershon clan was Elyasaf, the son of La’el. ²⁵ In connection with the tent of meeting, the descendants of Gershon were to be in charge of the following: the tabernacle itself, its inner and outer coverings, the screen for the entrance of the tent of meeting, ²⁶ the curtains surrounding the courtyard, the screen for the entrance of the courtyard surrounding the tabernacle and the altar, all the fixtures and ropes for these items, and their maintenance.

²⁷ K’hat fathered the clans of ‘Amram, Yitz’har, Hevron and ‘Uzi’el; these were the K’hat clans. ²⁸ Of them, 8,600 males a month old and over were counted; they were in charge of the Holy Place. ²⁹ The K’hat clans were to camp next to the tabernacle, toward the south. ³⁰ The chief of the K’hat clan was Elitzafan the son of ‘Uzi’el. ³¹ They were responsible for the ark, the table, the menorah, the altars, the utensils the cohanim use when they serve in the Holy Place, the curtain, and everything involved with the maintenance of these things. ³² El‘azar the son of Aharon the cohen was first among the chiefs of the L’vi’im and supervised those in charge of the Holy Place.

³³ M’rari fathered the clans of Machli and Mushi; these were the M’rari clans. ³⁴ Of them, 6,200 males a month old and over were counted. ³⁵ The chief of the M’rari clan was Tzuri’el the son of Avichayil. They were to camp next to the tabernacle, toward the north. ³⁶ The M’rari clans were assigned responsibility for the frames of the tabernacle, along with its crossbars, posts, sockets and fittings, together with their maintenance; ³⁷ also the posts of the surrounding courtyard, with their sockets, pegs and ropes.

³⁸ Those who were to camp in front of the tabernacle on the east, in front of the tent of meeting toward the sunrise, were Moshe, Aharon and his sons who were in charge of the Holy Place. They carried out their responsibility on behalf of the people of Isra’el, and anyone else who involved himself was to be put to death.

³⁹ The total number of L’vi’im whom Moshe and Aharon counted by their clans, all the males a month old and over, was 22,000.

(vi) ⁴⁰ Adonai said to Moshe, “Register all the firstborn males of the people of Isra’el a month old and over, and determine how many there are. ⁴¹ Then you are to take the L’vi’im for me, Adonai, in place of all the firstborn among the people of Isra’el, and the cattle of the L’vi’im in place of the firstborn of the cattle belonging to the people of Isra’el.” ⁴² Moshe counted, as Adonai had ordered him, all the firstborn among the people of Isra’el. ⁴³ The total number of firstborn males registered, a month old and over, of those who were counted, was 22,273.

⁴⁴ Adonai said to Moshe, ⁴⁵ “Take the L’vi’im in place of all the firstborn among the people of Isra’el, and the cattle of the L’vi’im in place of their cattle; the L’vi’im are to belong to me, Adonai. ⁴⁶ Since there were 273 more firstborn males from Isra’el than male L’vi’im, in order to redeem them, ⁴⁷ you are to take five shekels [two ounces] for each of these (use the sanctuary shekel, which is equal to twenty gerahs). ⁴⁸ Give the redemption money for these extra people to Aharon and his sons.” ⁴⁹ Moshe took the redemption money from those who were over and above those redeemed by the L’vi’im; ⁵⁰ the amount of money he took from the firstborn of the people of Isra’el was 1,365 shekels, using the sanctuary shekel. ⁵¹ Moshe gave the redemption-money to Aharon and his sons, in keeping with what Adonai had said, as Adonai had ordered Moshe.

4 (vii) Adonai said to Moshe and Aharon, ² “Take a census of the descendants of K’hat, who are among the descendants of Levi, by clans and families, ³ all those from thirty to fifty years old; these will enter the corps doing the work in the tent of meeting.

⁴ “Here is how the descendants of K’hat are to serve in the tent of meeting and deal with the especially holy things: ⁵ when the time comes to break camp, Aharon is to go in with his sons, take down the curtain which serves as a screen, and cover the ark of the testimony with it. ⁶ On that they are to place a covering of fine leather, and on top of that spread an all-blue cloth. Then they are to insert the carrying-poles. ⁷ On the table of showbread they are to spread a blue cloth and place on it the dishes, incense pans, offering bowls and pitchers. The perpetual bread is to remain on the table. ⁸ They are to spread on these things a scarlet cloth, cover them with a covering of fine leather and insert the poles. ⁹ They are to take a blue cloth and cover the menorah for the light, its lamps, its tongs, its trays and the jars used to add oil to it. ¹⁰ They are to wrap it and all its accessories in fine leather and place them on a carrying-frame. ¹¹ On the gold altar they are to spread a blue cloth, cover it with a covering of fine leather and insert its carrying-poles. ¹² They are to take all the utensils they use when serving in the sanctuary and put them in a blue cloth, cover them with fine leather and place them on a carrying-frame. ¹³ After removing the greasy ashes from the altar, they are to spread a purple cloth over it ¹⁴ and place on it all the utensils required for their altar service — the fire pans, meat-hooks, shovels, basins and other utensils for the altar. Then they are to spread over it a fine leather covering and insert its carrying-poles. ¹⁵ When Aharon and his sons have finished covering the holy furnishings and all the holy utensils, when the camp is about to move forward, then the descendants of K’hat are to come and carry them. But they are not to touch the holy things, so that they won’t die. These things are the responsibility of the descendants of K’hat in the tent of meeting.

¹⁶ “El‘azar the son of Aharon the cohen is to be responsible for the oil for the light, the fragrant incense, the continuing grain offering and the anointing oil. He is to be in charge of the entire tabernacle and everything in it, including the sanctuary and its furnishings.”

(Maftir) ¹⁷ Adonai said to Moshe and Aharon, ¹⁸ “Do not cut off the clan of K’hat from among the L’vi’im; ¹⁹ rather, do this for them, so that they will live and not die: when they approach the especially holy things, Aharon and his sons are to go in — and you are to assign each one his task; ²⁰ but the descendants of K’hat are not to go in and look at the holy things as they are being covered; if they do, they will die.”

Haftarah B’midbar: Hoshea (Hosea) 2:1(1:10)–2:22(20)

B’rit Hadashah suggested readings for Parashah B’midbar: Luke 2:1–7; 1 Corinthians 12:12–31

Parashah 35: Naso (Take) 4:21–7:89

²¹ Adonai said to Moshe, ²² “Take a census of the descendants of Gershon also, by clans and families; ²³ count all those between thirty and fifty years old, all who will enter the corps doing the work of serving in the tent of meeting.

²⁴ “The Gershon families are to be responsible for serving and for transporting loads. ²⁵ They are to carry the curtains of the tabernacle, the tent of meeting, its covering, the fine leather covering above it, the screen for the entrance to the tent of meeting, ²⁶ the tapestries for the courtyard, and the screen for the entrance to the courtyard by the tabernacle and around the altar, along with the ropes and all the utensils they need for their service; and they are to do the work connected with these things. ²⁷ Aharon and his sons are to supervise all the work of the Gershon clan in transporting loads and serving, and to assign them who is to carry what. ²⁸ This is how the Gershon families are to serve in the tent of meeting, and they are to be under the direction of Itamar the son of Aharon the cohen.

²⁹ “As for the descendants of M’rari, take a census by clans and families ³⁰ of all those between thirty and fifty years old, all who will be in the corps doing the work of serving in the tent of meeting.

³¹ “Their service for the tent of meeting will be to carry the frames, crossbars, posts and sockets of the tabernacle; ³² also the posts for the surrounding courtyard, with their sockets, tent pegs, ropes and other accessories, and everything having to do with their service. You are to assign particular loads to specific persons by name. ³³ This is how the M’rari families are to serve in the tent of meeting, directed by Itamar the son of Aharon the cohen.”

(S: ii) ³⁴ Moshe, Aharon and the community leaders took a census of the descendants of K’hat by their clans and families, ³⁵ all those between thirty and fifty years old who were part of the corps serving in the tent of meeting. ³⁶ Registered by their families, they numbered 2,750. ³⁷ These are the ones counted from the K’hat families of all those serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moshe and Aharon enumerated, in keeping with the order given by Adonai through Moshe.

(A: ii) ³⁸ The census of the descendants of Gershon, by their clans and families, ³⁹ all those between thirty and fifty years old who were part of the corps serving in the tent of meeting, ⁴⁰ yielded 2,630, registered by their clans and families. ⁴¹ These are the ones counted from the families of the descendants of Gershon of all those serving in the tent of meeting, whom Moshe and Aharon enumerated, in keeping with the order given by Adonai.

⁴² The census of the families of the descendants of M’rari, by their clans and families, ⁴³ all those between thirty and fifty years old who were part of the corps serving in the tent of meeting, ⁴⁴ yielded 3,200, registered by their families. ⁴⁵ These are the ones counted from the families of the descendants of M’rari, whom Moshe and Aharon enumerated, in keeping with the order given by Adonai through Moshe.

⁴⁶ The census of the L’vi’im, whom Moshe, Aharon and the leaders of Isra’el enumerated by their clans and families, ⁴⁷ all those between thirty and fifty years old who were part of those working to serve and working to carry loads in the tent of meeting, ⁴⁸ yielded a total of 8,580 persons.

⁴⁹ According to Adonai’s order they were appointed by Moshe, each one to his specific service or work. They were also enumerated, as Adonai had ordered Moshe.

5 (iii) Adonai said to Moshe, ² “Order the people of Isra’el to expel from the camp everyone with tzara‘at, everyone with a discharge and whoever is unclean because of touching a corpse. ³ Both male and female you must expel; put them outside the camp; so that they won’t defile their camp, where I live among you.” ⁴ The people of Isra’el did this and put them outside the camp — the people of Isra’el did what Adonai had said to Moshe.

⁵ Adonai said to Moshe, ⁶ “Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘When a man or woman commits any kind of sin against another person and thus breaks faith with Adonai, he incurs guilt. ⁷ He must confess the sin which he has committed; and he must make full restitution for his guilt, add twenty percent and give it to the victim of his sin. ⁸ But if the person has no relative to whom restitution can be made for the guilt, then what is given in restitution for guilt will belong to Adonai, that is, to the cohen — in addition to the ram of atonement through which atonement is made for him.

⁹ “‘Every contribution which the people of Isra’el consecrate and present to the cohen will belong to him. ¹⁰ Anything an individual consecrates will be his own [to allocate among the cohanim], but what a person gives to the cohen will belong to him.’”

(A: iv) ¹¹ Adonai said to Moshe, ¹² “Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘If a man’s wife goes astray and is unfaithful to him; ¹³ that is, if another man goes to bed with her without her husband’s knowledge, so that she becomes impure secretly, and there is no witness against her, and she was not caught in the act; ¹⁴ then, if a spirit of jealousy comes over him, and he is jealous of his wife, and she has become impure — or, for that matter, if the spirit of jealousy comes over him, and he is jealous of his wife, and she has not become impure — ¹⁵ he is to bring his wife to the cohen, along with the offering for her, two quarts of barley flour on which he has not poured olive oil or put frankincense, because it is a grain offering for jealousy, a grain offering for remembering, for recalling guilt to mind. ¹⁶ The cohen will bring her forward and place her before Adonai. ¹⁷ The cohen will put holy water in a clay pot, and then the cohen will take some of the dust on the floor of the tabernacle and put it in the water. ¹⁸ The cohen will place the woman before Adonai, unbind the woman’s hair and put the grain offering for remembering in her hands, the grain offering for jealousy; while the cohen has in his hand the water of embitterment and cursing. ¹⁹ The cohen will make her swear by saying to her, “If no man has gone to bed with you, if you have not gone astray to make yourself unclean while under your husband’s authority, then be free from this water of embitterment and cursing. ²⁰ But if you have in fact gone astray while under your husband’s authority and become unclean, because some man other than your husband has gone to bed with you . . .” ²¹ then the cohen is to make the woman swear with an oath that includes a curse; the cohen will say to the woman, “. . .may Adonai make you an object of cursing and condemnation among your people by making your private parts shrivel and your abdomen swell up! ²² May this water that causes the curse go into your inner parts and make your abdomen swell and your private parts shrivel up!” — and the woman is to respond, “Amen! Amen!” ²³ The cohen is to write these curses on a scroll, wash them off into the water of embitterment ²⁴ and make the woman drink the water of embitterment and cursing — the water of cursing will enter her and become bitter. ²⁵ Then the cohen is to remove the grain offering for jealousy from the woman’s hand, wave the grain offering before Adonai and bring it to the altar. ²⁶ The cohen is to take a handful of the grain offering as its reminder portion and make it go up in smoke on the altar; afterwards, he is to make the woman drink the water. ²⁷ When he has made her drink the water, then, if she is unclean and has been unfaithful to her husband, the water that causes the curse will enter her and become bitter, so that her abdomen swells and her private parts shrivel up; and the woman will become an object of cursing among her people. ²⁸ But if the woman is not unclean but clean, then she will be innocent and will have children. ²⁹ This is the law for jealousy: when either a wife under her husband’s authority goes astray and becomes unclean, ³⁰ or the spirit of jealousy comes over a husband and he becomes jealous of his wife, then he is to place the woman before Adonai, and the cohen is to deal with her in accordance with all of this law. ³¹ The husband will be clear of guilt, but the wife will bear the consequences of her guilt.’”

6 Adonai said to Moshe, ² “Tell the people of Isra’el, ‘When either a man or a woman makes a special kind of vow, the vow of a nazir, consecrating himself to Adonai; ³ he is to abstain from wine and other intoxicating liquor, he is not to drink vinegar from either source, he is not to drink grape juice, and he is not to eat grapes or raisins. ⁴ As long as he remains a nazir he is to eat nothing derived from the grapevine, not even the grape-skins or the seeds.

⁵ “‘Throughout the period of his vow as a nazir, he is not to shave his head. Until the end of the time for which he has consecrated himself to Adonai he is to be holy: he is to let the hair on his head grow long.

⁶ “‘Throughout the period for which he has consecrated himself to Adonai, he is not to approach a corpse. ⁷ He is not to make himself unclean for his father, mother, brother or sister when they die, since his consecration to God is on his head. ⁸ Throughout the time of his being a nazir he is holy for Adonai.

⁹ “‘If someone next to him dies very suddenly, so that he defiles his consecrated head, then he is to shave his head on the day of his purification; he is to shave it on the seventh day. ¹⁰ On the eighth day he is to bring two doves or two young pigeons to the cohen at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ¹¹ The cohen is to prepare one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering and thus make atonement for him, inasmuch as he sinned because of the dead person. That same day he is to re-consecrate his head; ¹² he is to consecrate to Adonai the full period of his being a nazir by bringing a male lamb in its first year as a guilt offering. The previous days will not be counted, because his consecration became defiled.

¹³ “‘This is the law for the nazir when his period of consecration is over: he is to be brought to the entrance of the tent of meeting, ¹⁴ where he will present his offering to Adonai — one male lamb in its first year without defect as a burnt offering, one female lamb in its first year without defect as a sin offering, one ram without defect as peace offerings, ¹⁵ a basket of matzah, loaves made of fine flour mixed with olive oil, unleavened wafers spread with olive oil, their grain offering and their drink offerings. ¹⁶ The cohen is to bring them before Adonai, offer his sin offering, his burnt offering, ¹⁷ and his ram as a sacrifice of peace offerings to Adonai, with the basket of matzah. The cohen will also offer the grain offering and drink offering that go with the peace offering. ¹⁸ The nazir will shave his consecrated head at the entrance to the tent of meeting, take the hair removed from his consecrated head and put it on the fire under the sacrifice of peace offerings. ¹⁹ When the ram has been boiled, the cohen is to take its shoulder, one loaf of matzah from the basket and one unleavened wafer, and place them in the hands of the nazir, after he has shaved his consecrated head. ²⁰ The cohen is to wave them as a wave offering before Adonai; this is set aside for the cohen, along with the breast for waving and the raised-up thigh. Following that, the nazir may drink wine.

²¹ “‘This is the law for the nazir who makes a vow and for his offering to Adonai for his being a nazir — in addition to anything more for which he has sufficient means. In keeping with whatever vow he makes, he must do it according to the law for the nazir.’”

²² Adonai said to Moshe, ²³ “Speak to Aharon and his sons, and tell them that this is how you are to bless the people of Isra’el: you are to say to them,

²⁷ “In this way they are to put my name on the people of Isra’el, so that I will bless them.”

7 (A: v, S: iv) On the day Moshe finished putting up the tabernacle, he anointed and consecrated it, all its furnishings, and the altar with its utensils. After anointing and consecrating them, ² the leaders of Isra’el, who were heads of their father’s clans, made an offering. These were the tribal leaders in charge of those counted in the census. ³ They brought their offering before Adonai, six covered wagons and twelve oxen — a wagon for every two leaders and for each an ox — and presented them in front of the tabernacle.

⁴ Adonai said to Moshe, ⁵ “Receive these from them; they are to be used for the service in the tent of meeting. Give them to the L’vi’im, to each as needed for his duties.” ⁶ So Moshe took the wagons and oxen and gave them to the L’vi’im. ⁷ He gave two wagons and four oxen to the descendants of Gershon, in keeping with the needs of their duties. ⁸ Four wagons and eight oxen he gave to the descendants of M’rari, in keeping with the needs of their duties, directed by Itamar the son of Aharon the cohen. ⁹ But to the descendants of K’hat he gave none, because their duties involved the holy articles, which they carried on their own shoulders.

¹⁰ The leaders brought the offering for dedicating the altar on the day it was anointed. The leaders brought their offering before the altar, ¹¹ and Adonai said to Moshe, “They are to present their offerings to dedicate the altar, each leader on his own day.”

(S: v) ¹² Nachshon the son of ‘Amminadav, from the tribe of Y’hudah, presented his offering on the first day. ¹³ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ¹⁴ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ¹⁵ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ¹⁶ one male goat as a sin offering, ¹⁷ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Nachshon the son of ‘Amminadav.

¹⁸ On the second day N’tan’el the son of Tzu‘ar, leader of Yissakhar, presented his offering. ¹⁹ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ²⁰ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ²¹ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ²² one male goat as a sin offering, ²³ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of N’tan’el the son of Tzu‘ar.

²⁴ On the third day Eli’av the son of Helon, leader of Z’vulun, presented his offering. ²⁵ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ²⁶ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ²⁷ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ²⁸ one male goat as a sin offering, ²⁹ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Eli’av the son of Helon.

³⁰ On the fourth day was Elitzur the son of Sh’de’ur, leader of the descendants of Re’uven. ³¹ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ³² one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ³³ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ³⁴ one male goat as a sin offering, ³⁵ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Elitzur the son of Sh’de’ur.

³⁶ On the fifth day was Shlumi’el the son of Tzurishaddai, leader of the descendants of Shim‘on. ³⁷ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ³⁸ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ³⁹ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁴⁰ one male goat as a sin offering, ⁴¹ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Shlumi’el the son of Tzurishaddai.

(vi) ⁴² On the sixth day was Elyasaf the son of De‘u’el, leader of the descendants of Gad. ⁴³ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ⁴⁴ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ⁴⁵ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁴⁶ one male goat as a sin offering, ⁴⁷ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Elyasaf the son of De‘u’el.

⁴⁸ On the seventh day was Elishama the son of ‘Ammihud, leader of the descendants of Efrayim. ⁴⁹ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ⁵⁰ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ⁵¹ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁵² one male goat as a sin offering, ⁵³ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Elishama the son of ‘Ammihud.

⁵⁴ On the eighth day was Gamli’el the son of P’dahtzur, leader of the descendants of M’nasheh. ⁵⁵ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ⁵⁶ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ⁵⁷ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁵⁸ one male goat as a sin offering, ⁵⁹ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Gamli’el the son of P’dahtzur.

⁶⁰ On the ninth day was Avidan the son of Gid‘oni, leader of the descendants of Binyamin. ⁶¹ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ⁶² one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ⁶³ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁶⁴ one male goat as a sin offering, ⁶⁵ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Avidan the son of Gid‘oni.

⁶⁶ On the tenth day was Achi‘ezer the son of ‘Ammishaddai, leader of the descendants of Dan. ⁶⁷ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ⁶⁸ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ⁶⁹ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁷⁰ one male goat as a sin offering, ⁷¹ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Achi‘ezer the son of ‘Ammishaddai.

(vii) ⁷² On the eleventh day was Pag‘i’el the son of ‘Okhran, leader of the descendants of Asher. ⁷³ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ⁷⁴ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ⁷⁵ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁷⁶ one male goat as a sin offering, ⁷⁷ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Pag‘i’el the son of ‘Okhran.

⁷⁸ On the twelfth day was Achira the son of ‘Enan, leader of the descendants of Naftali. ⁷⁹ He offered one silver dish weighing 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and one silver basin of seventy shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-and-three-quarters pounds], both full of fine flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering; ⁸⁰ one gold pan of ten shekels [one-quarter pound], full of incense; ⁸¹ one young bull, one ram, one male lamb in its first year as a burnt offering, ⁸² one male goat as a sin offering, ⁸³ and, for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats and five male lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Achira the son of ‘Enan.

⁸⁴ This was the offering for dedicating the altar which was given by the leaders of Isra’el on the day of its anointing: twelve silver dishes, twelve silver basins and twelve gold pans. ⁸⁵ Each silver dish weighed 130 shekels [three-and-a-quarter pounds] and each basin seventy shekels [one-and-three-quarters pounds]; all the silver of the vessels weighed 2,400 shekels (using the sanctuary shekel) [just over sixty pounds]. ⁸⁶ The twelve gold pans, full of incense, weighed ten shekels apiece (using the sanctuary shekel) [one-quarter pound]; all the gold of the pans weighed 120 shekels [three pounds]. (Maftir) ⁸⁷ The livestock for the burnt offering consisted of twelve bulls, twelve rams and twelve male lambs in their first year, with their grain offering. There were twelve male goats for a sin offering. ⁸⁸ The livestock for the sacrifice of peace offerings consisted of twenty-four bulls, sixty rams, sixty male goats and sixty male lambs in their first year. This was the offering for dedicating the altar after it had been anointed.

⁸⁹ When Moshe went into the tent of meeting in order to speak with Adonai, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the ark-cover on the ark for the testimony, from between the two k’ruvim; and he spoke to him.

Haftarah Naso: Shof’tim (Judges) 13:2–25

B’rit Hadashah suggested readings for Parashah Naso: Yochanan (John) 7:53–8:11; Acts 21:17–32

Parashah 36: B’ha‘alotkha (When you set up) 8:1–12:16

8 Adonai said to Moshe, ² “Tell Aharon, ‘When you set up the lamps, the seven lamps are to cast their light forward, in front of the menorah.’” ³ Aharon did this: he lit its lamps so as to give light in front of the menorah, as Adonai had ordered Moshe. ⁴ Here is how the menorah was made: it was hammered gold from its base to its flowers, hammered work, following the pattern Adonai had shown Moshe. This is how he made the menorah.

⁵ Adonai said to Moshe, ⁶ “Take the L’vi’im from among the people of Isra’el and cleanse them. ⁷ Here is how you are to cleanse them: sprinkle the purification water on them, have them shave their whole body with a razor, and have them wash their clothes and cleanse themselves. ⁸ Then they are to take a young bull with its grain offering, which is to be fine flour mixed with olive oil; while you take another bull for a sin offering. ⁹ You are to present the L’vi’im in front of the tent of meeting, and assemble the entire community of the people of Isra’el. ¹⁰ You will present the L’vi’im before Adonai, the people of Isra’el will lay their hands on the L’vi’im, ¹¹ and Aharon will offer the L’vi’im before Adonai as a wave offering from the people of Isra’el, so that they may do Adonai’s service. ¹² The L’vi’im will lay their hands on the heads of the bulls; the one you will offer as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering to Adonai to make atonement for the L’vi’im. ¹³ You are to place the L’vi’im before Aharon and his sons, and offer them as a wave offering to Adonai. ¹⁴ In this way you will separate the L’vi’im from the people of Isra’el, and the L’vi’im will belong to me.