Congregation Shema Yisrael - Torah Parasha Commentaries

This week’s Parasha is entitled HaAzeenu which means “Give Ear”.  It covers Deuteronomy, chapter 32, and consists primarily of the Song of Moses, which can be seen as both a love song to Adonai, and a chastisement of the people of Israel. Today’s parasha falls on the Shabbat between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. It’s […] Source

This week’s we have a double parasha.  Nitzavim, meaning “Standing,” covers Deuteronomy 29:10 – 30:20.  Vayelech, meaning, “And He Went,” covers Deuteronomy 31:1 – 31:30. In chapter 29, the people are gathered before the Lord to enter into covenant with Him.   In verse 15, we find that not only does this covenant involve those present […] Source

This week’s Torah portion is entitled Kee Taytzay, which means, “when you go out,” and covers Deuteronomy 21:10 – 25:19. This passage deals with issues related to morality, marriage, divorce, following through on vows, and other issues. Chapter 21 deals with a woman captured in battle.  If the soldier is pleased with this woman, she […] Source

Our parasha this morning is entitled Shoftim, which is translated “Judges.” This passage covers Deuteronomy 16:18 – 21:9. Our parasha opens in chapter 16:18 with a discussion of the role of judges and how they are to administer justice and this discussion is continued in the first half of chapter 17. Dispensing fair and impartial […] Source

Our parasha passage for today is entitled R’eh, meaning “See” and covers Deuteronomy 11:26 – 16:17.  The title “see” comes from the first verse of the parasha, where Moses reminds the people, saying, “See, I am setting before you today a blessing and a curse…” And this is the key theme of the parasha.  Blessings […] Source

The text of this parasha will be posted later. Source

This week our parasha is Va’etchanan, meaning “and I pleaded,” and covers Deuteronomy 3:23-7:11. This parasha contains many laws, the Shema, and the Ten Commandments. This morning I will focus on Moses’s plea and how it speaks to us today. In the previous parasha, Moses recapped the history of our people. At the end of […] Source

D’varim means “words” and is also the Hebrew name of the 5th and final book of the Torah. The title comes from the first verse in chapter 1: “These are the words…” Deuteronomy contains Moses’ written account (his words) of Israel’s journey through the wilderness after leaving Egypt. It also contains deeper explanations of the […] Source

The Torah readings for this week consist of two parasha. First, we have Mattot, meaning “tribes,” taken from Numbers 30:1–32:42. Secondly, we have Masei meaning “journeys,” which begins in Numbers 33:1 and continues through 36:13. Moses was instructed to speak to all the leaders of Israel and tell them the commands of Adonai concerning vows. If […] Source

The parasha for this Shabbat, entitled Pinchas, covers Numbers chapters 25-29, and is named after a man some might suggest took the law into his own hands. In the previous chapters, the King of Moab attempted to hire Balaam to curse Israel – something God was never going to allow, since He had already blessed […] Source

This week, we have a double parasha.  Chukat, which means “statute,” Numbers, 19:1 – 22:1, and Balak, Numbers 22:2 – 25:9, the Moabite king who wants to destroy Israel. I’m just going to focus on some major points from each parasha. Chapter 19 explains the sacrifice of the red heifer. The red heifer was designated […] Source

This week’s parasha is titled Korach, named for the leader of one of the largest and most severe revolts against the leadership of Moses and Aaron during the wilderness journey.  Our passage for this week covers Numbers, Chapter 16:1 – Chapter 18:32. While all those who served at the Tabernacle and later at the Temple […] Source

The parasha for this week is entitled B’ha-alotecha, meaning “when you raise up”, and covers Numbers chapters 8 through 12. It begins with God’s command to consecrate B’nai Levi, the Levites, for the service of the Tabernacle. God chose the entire tribe of Levi to belong to Him in place of all the firstborn sons […] Source

Today’s passage is titled, B’Midbar (in the wilderness), and covers Numbers 1:1–4:20.  Numbers 1 starts off with Adonai commanding that a census be taken among the people of Israel.  The purpose of this census, as given in verse 3, is to determine the number of fighting men, ages 20 and above, who can go to […] Source

This week we have a double parasha, Behar and Bechukotai, covering Leviticus 25:1–27:34 and ending the book of Leviticus. Our parashas for this week remind us of the importance of keeping our promises to the Lord. We begin in Leviticus 25, which records the Sabbath year and the year of Jubilee. The Lord commanded that […] Source

Holiness. This single word bridges our two parashas for this week. Acharei Mot (‘After the Death’) and Kedoshim (‘Holy Ones’), which cover Leviticus 16–20. These parashas contain many commandments from the Yom Kippur service to the command to love our neighbor. This morning, we will examine Adonai’s holiness and what it means that He calls […] Source

This week’s Torah portion is a double portion entitled Tazria-M’tzora, which translates to “She conceives” and “Leper”, respectively. To briefly summarize the portions, Adonai describes the rituals of purification for a woman after childbirth. He sets forth methods for diagnosing and treating a variety of skin diseases, as well as methods for purifying clothing. The […] Source

Passover has passed, so I can once again enjoy toasted, buttered sourdough with my coffee. And as is traditional, during Passover we recited The Hallel. Of the psalms that make up The Hallel which I especially enjoy is Psalm 114. The parting of the Red Sea, the encounter with God at Mt. Sinai, and the […] Source

Shabbat Shalom. Our parasha for this week is Tzav, which translates to “Command” and covers Leviticus 6:1-8:36. Parasha Tzav is also the very first parasha I ever gave a commentary for at Shema, almost 16 years ago to the day on March 27, 2010. It was also my very first time preaching. Continuing from last […] Source

This week’s parasha is entitled Vayikra, meaning “And He called.” This begins the book of Leviticus and covers chapter 1:1-6:7. These opening chapters describe the various offerings brought to Adonai. Each chapter presents a different type of offering and explains how it was to be brought before the Lord. Though these detailed instructions may not […] Source

Today’s parasha is a double parasha.  Vayakhel, which means, “and he assembled,” covering Exodus 35:1 – 38:20, and Pekudei, meaning “accounts,” covering the last two and a half chapters of Exodus, 38:21 to chapter 40:38. Vayakhel covers the actual building of the tabernacle and its implements as well as the altar of sacrifice and the […] Source

This morning, we have a double-parasha: T’tzaveh, which means “Command.” It focuses on the priests, their clothing, and their anointing. Kee Tisa means “When You Take.” Adonai gives Moses the final instructions for building the Tabernacle. T’tzaveh opens with instructions concerning the oil for the lamps of the menorah; the people provided pure olive oil […] Source

This week’s Parasha is entitled T’rumah meaning “Contribution” and covers Exodus 25:1-27:19. In chapter 25, Moses receives specific and detailed instructions from Adonai concerning the materials and construction of the Tabernacle, the dimensions of the courtyard and the placement of the items that will reside there. Adonai invites the Israelis to bring offerings to contribute […] Source

Peter’s second letter was written to remind the Lord’s people of the truth of God’s Word and the certainty of His promises. In this second chapter, Peter warns against false teachers who distort the Word of God and lead people into sin. We need to understand that recognizing and resisting false teaching and moral corruption […] Source

The parashah for this week’s Sabbath is entitled Mishpatim, which means “Judgments.” It covers Exodus 21:1–24:18. These were the first laws God gave His people after the giving of the Ten Commandments in Exodus 20. These laws provide practical application of the Decalogue in daily life. They are called “judgments” or rulings. They are not […] Source