This portion begins with God instructing Aaron on how to light the lamps of the Menorah in the Tabernacle. It then describes the purification and dedication of the Levites, who are formally set apart to serve in the Tabernacle in place of the firstborn of Israel. God commands the observance of a second Passover for those who were ritually unclean or on a journey during the first Passover. The Torah then details how the cloud and pillar of fire guided the Israelites, when the cloud rested, they camped; when it lifted, they journeyed. Moses is also commanded to make two silver trumpets to be used for calling the assembly, signaling the camps to move, and sounding alarms during war. The portion continues with the orderly departure from Sinai. Soon after, the people begin complaining about the manna, longing for the food of Egypt. Moses petitions God over how overwhelmed he feels. God instructs him to appoint seventy elders to help share the leadership and God puts the same Spirit that was on Moses on them and they begin prophesying. God also sends quail to the people but strikes them with a plague for their greed in collecting it. Finally, Miriam and Aaron speak against Moses regarding his Cushite wife, and God hears it and punishes Miriam with tzara’at (leprosy). Moses prays for her healing, but God says she must remain outside the camp seven days. So, the entire camp waits seven days for her until she is healed before moving on. Want to support me? www.ashsoular.com/donate

This portion continues the census of the Levites that began in the previous portion, Bamidbar. God commands Moses to count the sons of Gershon, Merari, and Kohath by their families and age (from thirty to fifty years old), assigning each group their specific duties in carrying the Tabernacle and its holy vessels when the camp moves. Next, the Torah gives the laws of the Sotah, the suspected adulteress. It details the ritual a husband must follow if he suspects his wife of unfaithfulness, including the bitter water she must drink and the consequences depending on her guilt or innocence. The portion then outlines the laws of the Nazirite (Nazir), a person who makes a special vow to separate themselves to the Lord. This includes abstaining from wine and all grape products, not cutting their hair, and avoiding contact with the dead. God then instructs Aaron and his sons with the beautiful Priestly Blessing they are to give to the children of Israel. "The LORD bless you and keep you..." Finally, the portion describes the dedication offerings brought by the twelve tribal leaders. Each leader brings the exact same gifts: silver platters, bowls, golden spoons, animals for burnt offerings, sin offerings, and peace offerings, presented one leader per day over twelve days. Want to support these videos? www.ashsoular.com/donate Thank you!

👂🏼 Listen to this week's Torah Portion! 📖 Parashat Bamidbar (“In the Wilderness”) Numbers 1:1–4:20 (PART 1) We are officially in the book of Numbers or in Hebrew this book is called, "Bamidbar" which means "In the Wilderness". This portion opens in the wilderness of Sina where God commands Moses to take a census of all the men of Israel twenty years old and upward who are able to go out to war. Each tribe is counted separately, with the exception of the tribe of Levi. The Levites are set apart to serve in the Tabernacle and to guard it. Instead of being numbered among the fighting men, they are appointed over the Tabernacle and all its furnishings. We also learn about the redemption of the firstborn: the Levites serve as substitutes for the firstborn males, and the extra firstborn beyond the number of Levites are redeemed with five shekels of silver each. The portion then details the organization of the Israelite camp: how the twelve tribes are arranged around the Tabernacle in four directional groups, each led by its own banner. This then will become the formation they will journey through the wilderness in. Finally, God gives specific instructions regarding the duties of the three Levite families, the Kohathites, Gershonites, and Merarites, and their responsibilities in carrying and caring for the different parts of the Tabernacle when the camp moves. If you feel led to support my work: www.ashsoular.com/donate

👂🏼 Listen to this week's Torah Portion! 📖 Parashat Behar-Bechukotai (“On the Mountain” / “In My Statutes”) Leviticus 25:1–27:34 This double portion begins with the commandments for the land of Israel. When the children of Israel enter the Promised Land, they must observe a Sabbath year for the land every seventh year. For six years they may sow their fields and prune their vineyards, but in the seventh year the land must have a complete rest. God then establishes the Jubilee year. The fiftieth year is proclaimed as the Year of Jubilee on the Day of Atonement with the sounding of the shofar. In that year, property returns to its original owner, indentured servants are set free, and the land rests once again. The portion continues with laws concerning the redemption of property, rules for Israelite servants, helping and redeeming a poor brother, and the prohibition against charging interest. It then presents the great blessings that will come if the people obey God’s commandments, and the severe punishments that will follow if they disobey. The portion ends with the laws regarding vows and valuations made to the Lord, detailing how people, animals, houses, and fields are to be valued and redeemed. Like my page to read the weekly Torah Portions with me! Support these Torah Videos: www.ashsoular.com/donate

👂🏼 Listen to this week's Torah Portion! 📖 Parashat Emor (“Speak”) Leviticus 21:1–24:23 "Emor" means speak because this portion begins with God telling Moses to speak to the priests, the sons of Aaron, the commandments for preserving their holiness. The Portion details when a priest is permitted to become ritually unclean by approaching a dead body (only for his closest relatives: mother, father, son, daughter, brother, or an unmarried sister). It also explains who among the priest’s family may eat the holy offerings and includes laws regarding who a priest may marry. God further lists the physical defects that disqualify a priest from offering the bread of God. Next, the Portion outlines what makes an offering acceptable to God. For example a young animal must remain with its mother for seven days before it can be offered, and there are certain defects that make an animal unfit for an offering. God then gives the children of Israel His appointed feasts that they are to observe every year, from the weekly Shabbat, and Passover through Sukkot (the Feast of Tabernacles). We are also given the ordinances for the placing of the showbread in the Tabernacle. Finally, it concludes with the story of a man who blasphemed the Name of God and the penalty for anyone who blasphemes the Name of God. Support these weekly Torah videos: www.ashsoular.com/donate

This week is another double portion: Acharei Mot which means after the death and Kedoshim which means holy ones. It picks up after the death of Aaron's sons Nadab and Abihu. God instructs Aaron on the service of Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It details the ritual of the two goats: one is sacrificed to God, and the other (the scapegoat) is sent into the wilderness bearing the sins of the people of Israel. Then this portion gives us many more laws including not eating blood, the list of unlawful sexual relationships, commands when dealing with your neighbor, punishment for child sacrifice, punishment for seeking spiritists, and much more. God tells the people why these laws are given: "You shall be holy to me, for I the LORD am holy and have separated you from the peoples, that you should be mine." Support my work: www.ashsoular.com/donate

This double portion is all about the laws of ritual purity and impurity in the context of the Tabernacle. Tazria starts off detailing the laws of purification for a woman after childbirth, including different periods of impurity for the birth of a boy or a girl, followed by offerings to complete her return to ritual cleanness. The majority of both portions centers on tzara’at, often translated as leprosy, as well as other infections of the same type that can appear on clothing or the walls of a house. The Torah details how the priest examines, diagnoses, quarantines, and ultimately purifies the affected person, garment, or home. Metzora continues with the purification ceremony for someone healed from tzara’at and concludes with the laws about various bodily discharges, both normal and abnormal, that render a person unclean and the process for becoming clean again. These chapters emphasize the importance of distinguishing between clean and unclean and the path to restoration and return to holiness.

Shemini means “eighth.” This portion opens on the eighth day following the seven days of ordination for Aaron and his sons described in Parashat Tzav. On this day, the offerings are carried out exactly as the Lord had commanded. The service begins successfully: Aaron blesses the people, God’s glory appears before the entire congregation, and fire from the Lord consumes the burnt offerings on the altar. | However, tragedy strikes when Aaron’s sons Nadab and Abihu offer unauthorized “strange fire” before the Lord, and fire comes forth from the Lord and consumes them. Later, Aaron refrains from eating the sin offering as commanded. When Moses becomes angry, Aaron explains his grief over the death of his two sons, and Moses accepts his reasoning. The portion concludes with the detailed laws distinguishing between clean and unclean animals that the children of Israel may eat. Support my work! www.ashsoular.com/donate