Masei מַסְעֵי
Commandments in this portion: positive — 2 · negative — 4counted by Sefer HaChinuch
Which commandments
- 408The commandment on Israel to give cities within which the Levites may dwell, and they shelterמצות ישראל לתת ערים ללוים לשבת בהן והן קולטותpos.
- 409To not kill someone liable before he is brought to justiceשלא להרג מחיב קדם שיעמוד בדיןneg.
- 410The commandment on the court to send one who smites a soul inadvertently from his city to the cities of refuge and upon the killer himself to go thereמצות בית דין לשלוח מכה נפש בשגגה מעירו לערי מקלט ועל הרוצח בעצמו ללכת שםpos.
- 411That the witness not issue a ruling in the case that he is testifying about in capital punishmentsשלא יורה העד בדין שהעיד בו בדיני נפשותneg.
- 412Not to take ransom to save the murderer from the death penaltyשלא לקח כפר להציל ממות הרוצחneg.
- 413Not to take ransom from one liable for exile to exempt him from exileשלא נקח כפר ממחיב גלות לפטרו מן הגלותneg.
Numbering, order and division follow Sefer HaChinuch; the number links to the text.
The forty-two stages of the journey are listed one by one, from Rameses to the plains of Moav. The borders of the land are drawn, the cities of the Levites and the six cities of refuge are appointed, the difference between murder and manslaughter is set out, and the daughters of Tzelofchad marry within their tribe.
Read next on 31 July 2027, 22 July 2028. By the Israeli reading cycle.
People of the portion
Echoes in the Prophets and history
These events themselves live in other books and other centuries; each is tied to this portion by the verse shown beside it: the early ones the portion recalls, in the later ones its word resounds:
How it is read
| First | Bamidbar 33:1—33:10 | 10 verses |
|---|---|---|
| Second | Bamidbar 33:11—33:49 | 39 verses |
| Third | Bamidbar 33:50—34:15 | 22 verses |
| Fourth | Bamidbar 34:16—34:29 | 14 verses |
| Fifth | Bamidbar 35:1—35:8 | 8 verses |
| Sixth | Bamidbar 35:9—35:34 | 26 verses |
| Seventh | Bamidbar 36:1—36:13 | 13 verses |
| Maftir | Bamidbar 36:11—36:13 | 3 verses |
| Haftarah | Jeremiah 2:4—2:28 on Sefaria | 25 verses |
| Haftarah | Jeremiah 3:4—3:4 on Sefaria | 1 verses |
The text
The English edition does not yet carry the text of the portion. The Hebrew with translation is on Sefaria; the Russian page of this portion carries the full text verse by verse — открыть по-русски →.