Weekly Bible Reading
Parashat Ki Tisa | Exodus 30:11-34:35
Census and Ransom Money
11Then Adonai spoke to Moses saying,
12“When you tally the sum of Bnei-Yisrael by numbering them, then every man must pay a ransom for his soul to Adonai when you count them, so that no plague will fall on them.
13Everyone among them who crosses over must give half a shekel according to the Sanctuary shekel (which is 20 gerahs): half a shekel as an offering to Adonai.
14Everyone who crosses over among them who is counted, from 20 years old and upward, is to give the offering to Adonai.
15The rich are not to give more and the poor are not to give less than the half shekel, when they present the offering of Adonai to make atonement for your souls.
16You are to take the atonement money from Bnei-Yisrael and give it for the service of the Tent of Meeting, so that it may be a memorial for Bnei-Yisrael before Adonai, to make atonement for your souls.”
Basin for Washing
17Adonai spoke to Moses saying,
18“You will also make a basin of bronze with a bronze stand for washing. You are to place it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar and put water in it.
19Aaron and his sons are to wash their hands and their feet there.
20Whenever they go into the Tent of Meeting or come near to the altar to minister, to present an offering made by fire in smoke to Adonai, they are to wash with water so that they do not die.
21They are to wash their hands and their feet, so that they do not die. It is to be an eternal statute for them, to him and to his offspring throughout their generations.”
Holy Anointing Oil
22Moreover Adonai spoke to Moses saying,
23“Now take for yourself the best spices: 500 shekels of flowing myrrh, half as much sweet cinnamon (250), also 250 shekels of sweet calamus,
24500 of cassia, after the Sanctuary shekel, plus a hin of olive oil.
25You are to make holy anointing oil from it, a fragrant mixture, blended as the work of a perfumer. It will be holy anointing oil.
26You are to anoint the Tent of Meeting with it, the Ark of the Testimony,
27as well as the table and all its articles, the menorah and its articles, the altar of incense,
28the altar of burnt offering with all its utensils, and the basin along with its stand.
29You are to consecrate them so that they will be most holy. Whatever touches them will become holy.
30“You are to anoint Aaron and his sons and consecrate them, so that they may minister to Me as kohanim.
31Speak to Bnei-Yisrael saying, ‘This is to be a holy anointing oil to Me throughout your generations.
32It must not be poured on human flesh, nor are you to make any like it, with its formula. It is holy and it must be holy to you.
33Whoever mixes any like it, or whoever puts any of it on anyone unauthorized, will be cut off from his people.’”
34Then Adonai said to Moses, “Take the sweet spices—stacte, onycha and galbanum. The spices and pure frankincense are to be in equal measures.
35Make a fragrant mixture from them, a blend like the work of the perfumer, seasoned with salt, pure and holy.
36You are to beat some of it into powder, and set it before the Testimony in the Tent of Meeting, where I will meet with you. It is to be most holy to you.
37But the incense which you make, with its formula, you are not to make for yourselves. It is to be holy to you, for Adonai.
38Whoever makes any like it, to breathe in its smell, will be cut off from his people.”
Chapter 31
Ruach-filled Craftsmen
1Then Adonai spoke to Moses saying,
2“See, I have called by name Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,
3and I have filled him with the Spirit of God, with wisdom, understanding and knowledge in all kinds of craftsmanship,
4to make ingenious designs, to forge with gold, silver and bronze,
5as well as cutting stones for setting and carving wood, to work in all manner of craftsmanship.
6Also look, I Myself have appointed with him Oholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan. Within the hearts of all who are wise-hearted I have placed skill, so that they may make everything that I have commanded you:
7the Tent of Meeting, the Ark of the Testimony, the atonement cover that is to be on it, all the furnishings of the Tabernacle,
8the table and its utensils, the menorah of pure gold with all of its utensils, the altar of incense,
9the altar of burnt offering with all of its utensils, the basin and its stand,
10the woven garments, the holy garments for Aaron the kohen, the garments for his sons to minister as kohanim,
11the anointing oil, and the incense of sweet spices for the holy place. They are to make them just as how I commanded you.”
Shabbat: A Perpetual Covenant Sign
12Then Adonai spoke to Moses saying,
13“Speak now to Bnei-Yisrael saying, ‘Surely you must keep My Shabbatot, for it is a sign between Me and you throughout your generations, so you may know that I am Adonai who sanctifies you.
14Therefore you are to keep the Shabbat, because it is holy for you. Everyone who profanes it will die, for whoever does any work during Shabbat, that soul will be cut off from the midst of his people.
15Work is to be done for six days, but on the seventh day is a Shabbat of complete rest, holy to Adonai. Whoever does any work on the Shabbat will surely be put to death.
16So Bnei-Yisrael is to keep the Shabbat, to observe the Shabbat throughout their generations as a perpetual covenant.
17It is a sign between Me and Bnei-Yisrael forever, for in six days Adonai made heaven and earth, and on the seventh day He ceased from work and rested.’”
18When He had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, He gave the two tablets of the Testimony to Moses—tablets of stone, written by the finger of God.
Chapter 32
Molten Calf and Smashing Tablets
1Now when the people saw that Moses delayed coming down from the mountain, they gathered around Aaron and said to him, “Get up, make us gods who will go before us. As for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we do not know what’s become of him!”
2So Aaron said to them, “Break off the golden rings that are in the ears of your wives, your sons and your daughters, and bring them to me.”
3So all the people broke off the golden rings that were in their ears and brought them to Aaron.
4He received them from their hand, and made a molten calf, fashioned with a chiseling tool. Then they said, “This is your god, Israel, which brought you up out of the land of Egypt!”
5When Aaron saw it, he built an altar before it. Then Aaron made a proclamation saying, “Tomorrow will be a feast to Adonai.”
6They rose up early the next morning, sacrificed burnt offerings and brought fellowship offerings. The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to make merry.
7Then Adonai said to Moses, “Go down! For your people, whom you brought up out of the land of Egypt, have become debased.
8They quickly turned aside from the path that I commanded for them. They have made a molten calf, worshipped it, and sacrificed to it, and said, ‘This is your god, O Israel, that brought you up out of the land of Egypt.’”
9Adonai said to Moses, “I have seen this people, and behold, it is a stiff-necked people.
10Now therefore, leave Me alone, so My wrath may burn hot against them, and so I may consume them—and make from you a great nation!”
11Then Moses sought Adonai his God and said, “Adonai, why should Your wrath burn hot against Your people, whom You have brought forth out of the land of Egypt with great power and with a mighty hand?
12Why should the Egyptians say, ‘He brought them out to do evil, to slay them in the mountains, and to annihilate them from the face of the earth?’ Turn from Your fierce wrath, and relent from this destruction against Your people.
13Remember Abraham, Isaac and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your own self, and said to them, ‘I will multiply your seed as the stars of heaven, and all this land that I have spoken of I will give to your offspring, and they will inherit it forever.’”
14So Adonai relented from the destruction that He said He would do to His people.
15Then Moses turned and went down from the mountain, with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hand, tablets that were written on both sides, on one and on the other.
16The tablets were the work of God, and the writing was the writing of God, engraved on the tablets.
17When Joshua heard the noise of the people as they shouted, he said to Moses, “There is the sound of war within the camp.”
18But Moses said: “It is not the voice of a shout of victory, nor is it the voice of crying from defeat, but I hear the sound of singing.”
19Then it happened, as soon as Moses came near the camp, he saw the calf and the dancing, and his anger burned hot. So he threw the tablets out of his hands, and smashed them at the foot of the mountain.
20Then he took the calf that they had made, burned it with fire, ground it to powder, scattered it on the surface of the water and made Bnei-Yisrael drink it.
21Then Moses said to Aaron, “What did this people do to you, to make you bring such a great sin upon them?”
22Aaron said, “Don’t be angry, my lord! You know these people yourself, and how they are set on evil.
23They said to me, ‘Make gods for us, to go before us! As for this Moses, the man that brought us up out of the land of Egypt, we don’t know what happened to him.’
24So I said to them, ‘Whoever has any gold, let them break it off.’ So they gave it to me and I threw it into the fire—and out came this calf!”
25When Moses saw that the people were unrestrained, because Aaron had let them run wild, to become a joke among their enemies,
26Moses stood at the gate of the camp and said, “Whoever is on Adonai’s side, let him come to me.” Then all the sons of Levi gathered themselves together to him.
27He said to them, “This is what Adonai, the God of Israel says, ‘Every man put on his sword, and go to and fro, from gate to gate throughout the camp, and slay his brother, his friend, and his neighbor.’”
28So the sons of Levi did as Moses said, and that day from among the people there fell about 3,000 men.
29Then Moses said, “Consecrate your hands today to Adonaiso that He may give you a blessing today, for every man has been against his son and his brother.”
30So it happened the following day, Moses said to the people, “You have committed a horrendous sin. So now I will go up to Adonai—perhaps I can make atonement for your sin.”
31Then Moses returned to Adonai and said, “Alas, these people have sinned greatly, and made gods of gold!
32Yet now, please forgive their sin. But if not, please blot me out of Your book that You have written.”
33Adonai said to Moses, “Whoever has sinned against Me, I will blot out of My book.
34Now go, lead the people to the place that I told you about. My angel will go before you. Nevertheless, on the day when I take account, I will hold them accountable for their sin.”
35So Adonai struck the people because of what they did with the calf that Aaron had made.
Chapter 33
1Then Adonai said to Moses, “Leave, get out of this place, you and the people that you have brought out of the land of Egypt, into the land which I swore to Abraham, Isaac and Jacob saying, ‘I will give it to your seed.’
2I will send an angel before you. I will drive out the Canaanites, Amorites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and the Jebusites.
3Head up into a land flowing with milk and honey, but I will not move within the midst of you, so that I do not destroy you along the way, for you are a stiff-necked people.”
4When the people heard these dreadful words, they mourned, and no one put on any ornaments.
5Adonai said to Moses, “Say to Bnei-Yisrael, ‘You are a stiff-necked people. If I were going up among you for one moment, I would consume you. Take off your ornaments, so that I may consider what to do to you.’”
6So Bnei-Yisrael stripped themselves of their ornaments from Mount Horeb onward.
Show Me Your Glory!
7Now Moses used to take the tent and pitch it outside the camp, far off from the camp, and he called it the Tent of Meeting. So it happened, everyone who sought Adonai would go out to the Tent of Meeting, which was outside the camp.
8Whenever Moses went out to the tent, all the people would arise and stand, everyone at the door of his own tent, and look after Moses, until he had gone into the Tent.
9After Moses entered, the pillar of cloud descended, stood at the door, and He would speak with Moses.
10When all the people saw the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the Tent, they all rose up and worshipped, every man at the entrance of his own tent.
11So Adonai spoke with Moses face to face, as a man speaks with his friend. Then he would return to the camp, but his servant Joshua, the son of Nun, a young man, did not leave the Tent.
12So Moses said to Adonai “You say to me, ‘Bring up this people,’ but You have not let me know whom You will send with me. Yet You have said, ‘I know you by name, and you have also found grace in My eyes.’
13Now then, I pray, if I have found grace in Your eyes, show me Your ways, so that I may know You, so that I might find favor in Your sight. Consider also that this nation is Your people.”
14“My presence will go with you, and I will give you rest,” He answered.
15But then he said to Him, “If Your presence does not go with me, don’t let us go up from here!
16For how would it be known that I or your people have found favor in Your sight? Isn’t it because You go with us, that distinguishes us from all the people on the face of the earth?”
17Adonai answered Moses, “I will also do what you have said, for you have found favor in My sight, and I know you by name.”
18Then he said, “Please, show me Your glory!”
19So He said, “I will cause all My goodness to pass before you, and call out the Name of Adonai before you. I will be gracious toward whom I will be gracious, and I will show mercy on whom I will be merciful.”
20But He also said, “You cannot see My face, for no man can see Me and live.”
21Then Adonai said, “See, a place near Me—you will stand on the rock.
22While My glory passes by, I will put you in a cleft of the rock, and cover you with My hand, until I have passed by.
23Then I will take away My hand, and you will see My back, but My face will not be seen.”
Chapter 34
1Adonai said to Moses, “Carve for yourself two tablets of stone like the first ones, and I will write upon them the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke.
2Be ready by the morning, come up to Mount Sinai, and present yourself to Me there on the top of the mountain.
3No one is to come up with you, and do not let anyone be seen throughout the entire mountain. Even the flocks and herds must not graze in front of that mountain.”
4So he carved two tablets of stone like the first. Then Moses rose up early in the morning, went up onto Mount Sinai as Adonaihad commanded him, and took in his hand the two tablets of stone.
5Then Adonai descended in the cloud, stood with him there, as he called on the Name of Adonai.
Thirteen Attributes of God
6Then Adonai passed before him, and proclaimed, “Adonai, Adonai, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, and abundant in lovingkindness and truth,
7showing mercy to a thousand generations, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin, yet by no means leaving the guilty unpunished, but bringing the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, and upon the children’s children, to the third and fourth generation.”
8Then Moses quickly bowed his head down to the earth and worshipped.
9 He said, “If now I have found grace in Your eyes, my Lord, let my Lord please go within our midst, even though this is a stiff-necked people. Pardon our iniquity and our sin, and take us for Your own inheritance.”
Exclusive Covenant
10Then He said, “I am cutting a covenant. Before all your people I will do wonders, such as have not been done in all the earth, or in any nation. All the people you are among will see the work of Adonai—for what I am going to do with you will be awesome!
11Obey what I am commanding you today. Behold, I am going to drive out the Amorites, Canaanites, Hittites, Perizzites, Hivites and Jebusites before you.
12Watch yourself, and make no covenant with the inhabitants of the land where you are going, or they will become a snare among you.
13Instead you must break down their altars, smash their pillars and cut down their Asherah poles.
14For you are to bow down to no other god, because Adonai is jealous for His Name—He is a jealous God.
15“See that you do not make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land. Otherwise when they prostitute themselves with their gods and sacrifice to their gods, someone will invite you, and you will eat from their sacrifice.
16Do not take their daughters for your sons, for their daughters will prostitute themselves with their own gods, and cause your sons to prostitute themselves with their gods.
17“You are not to make for yourselves metal gods.
18“You are to keep the Feast of Matzot. For seven days you are eat matzot , as I commanded you, at the time appointed in the month Aviv, for in the month Aviv you came out from Egypt.
19“Every firstborn of the womb is Mine, and from all your cattle you are to sanctify the males, the firstborn of the ox and sheep.
20A firstborn donkey you are to redeem with a lamb, but if you do not redeem it, then you are to break its neck. You must redeem all your firstborn sons. No one should appear before Me empty-handed.
21“For six days you will work, but on the seventh day you will rest. During plowing time and harvest you must rest.
22“You are to observe the Feast of Shavuot, which is the firstfruits of the wheat harvest, as well as the Feast of Ingathering at the turn of the year.
23Three times during the year all your males are to appear before Adonai Elohim, God of Israel.
24For I am going to cast out nations before you, then enlarge your territory. So no one will covet your land when you go up to appear before Adonai your God three times in the year.
25“You are not to offer the blood of My sacrifice with hametz, nor should the sacrifice of the Passover Festival remain until morning.
26“You are to bring the choicest firstfruits of your land to the House of Adonai your God. “You must not boil a kid in its mother’s milk.”
27Then Adonai said to Moses, “Write these words, for based on these words I have cut a covenant with you and with Israel.”
28So he stayed there with Adonai for 40 days and 40 nights, and he did not eat bread or drink water. He wrote on the tablets the words of the covenant: the Ten Words.
29Now it happened, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai with the two tablets of the Testimony in his hand when he came down from the mountain, that Moses did not know that the skin of his face was radiant, because God had spoken with him.
30When Aaron and all Bnei-Yisrael saw Moses, the skin of his face shone in rays, so they were afraid to come near him.
31But Moses called out to them, so Aaron and all the rulers of the congregation returned to him, and Moses spoke to them.
32Afterward all Bnei-Yisrael came near, and he gave them all the mitzvot that Adonai had spoken to him in Mount Sinai.
33When Moses was done speaking with them, he put a veil over his face.
34But when Moses went before Adonai, so that He could speak with him, he took the veil off until he came out. When he came out and spoke to Bnei-Yisrael what he was commanded,
35Bnei-Yisrael saw the face of Moses and that the skin of his face glistened. So Moses put the veil back over his face until he went in to speak with Him.