Vezot HaBerachah (Deuteronomy 33:1–34:12)
This week, we finish our year-long march through the Torah. We have followed the Jewish reading calendar throughout the entire year, without fail, and now we have arrived at the last two chapters of Deuteronomy. In synagogues, as soon as the final words of Deuteronomy...
Ha’azinu (Deuteronomy 32)
This week’s Torah Portion covers Deuteronomy 32:1–52. This is our second-to-last reading in Deuteronomy, which means we are almost to the finish line in our goal to read the first five books of the Bible in one year. The portions are getting shorter each week because...
Bible Fiber: Are shofars in the Bible?
This week, we are taking a brief pause from our regular Torah reading portion. This Friday evening and Saturday mark the eve and celebration of Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year. Because of the festival, synagogues around the world set aside the regular weekly...
Nitzavim−Vayelech (Deuteronomy 29:9–31:30)
This week we are reading a double Torah portion. The reading portions are called Nitzavim and Vayelech, and together they cover Deuteronomy 29:10–31:30. They capture Moses’s final charge to the assembled Israelites as his life nears its end. For the last time as their...
Ki Tavo (Deuteronomy 26:1–29:8)
This week’s Torah portion covers Deuteronomy 26:1 to 29:8. It takes its name, Ki Tavo, from its opening Hebrew words, which mean “When you come” or “When you enter.” The commandments that follow are for when Israel crosses the Jordan River, takes possession of the...
Ki Tetze (Deuteronomy 21:10–25:19)
We are nearing the end of our yearlong Torah reading cycle. Over the last ten months, we have worked our way through Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, and Numbers. Now, we only have nine chapters left in Deuteronomy. This week’s Torah portion covers Deuteronomy 21:10–25:19....
Re’eh (Deuteronomy 11:26–16:17)
This week’s Torah portion covers Deuteronomy 11:26 to 16:17. The Torah portion is called Re’eh, which is the imperative to look. It begins, “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse” (11:26). Until now, many of the laws of the covenant have seemed...
Eikev (Deuteronomy 7:12−11:25)
This week’s Torah portion is called Eikev, and it covers Deuteronomy 7:12 to 11:25. The name Eikev translates to “because” or “as a consequence of.” Much of its message is about the cause-and-effect relationship between Israel’s obedience and God’s blessings and her...
Va’etchanan (Deuteronomy 3:23–7:11)
This week’s Torah portion covers Deuteronomy 3:23–7:11. It is called Va’etchanan, which translates to “I pleaded,” because it begins with Moses pleading with God for permission to cross the Jordan River. Deuteronomy 3:22–25 records Moses saying: At that time, I...
Devarim (Deuteronomy 1:1–3:22)
We have finally made it to the last book of the Torah. Deuteronomy is Moses’s magnum opus, his farewell speeches to the people he has led out of Egypt and into the wilderness. They are finally at the cusp of entering the promised land, and what Moses and everyone with...