FIRST ALIYA, FIRST READING
12:1. Hashem said to Abram: “Go from your land, your birthplace, and your father’s house to the land I will show you.
12:2. I will make you into a great nation, I will bless you and make your name great; and you will be a blessing.
12:3. I will bless those who bless you, and whoever curses you I will curse; and in you all the families of the earth will be blessed.”
12:4. Abram set out as the Lord had told him, and Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he left Haran.
12:5. Abram took Sarai, his wife, Lot, his nephew, all the possessions they had acquired, and the people they had brought to Haran. They set out for the land of Canaan, and they arrived in the land of Canaan.
12:6. Abram traveled through the land as far as the place of Shechem, to the oak of Moreh. At that time the Canaanites were living in the land.
12:7. God appeared to Abram and said, “To your descendants I will give this land.” There he built an altar to God, who had appeared to him.
12:8. From there he moved to the mountain east of Bethel and pitched his tent, with Bethel to the west and Ai to the east. There he built an altar to the Lord and called on the name of the Lord.
12:9. Abram continued his journey, advancing in stages towards the Negev.
12:10. There was a famine in the land, and Abram went down to Egypt to live there temporarily, because the famine was severe in the land.
12:11. When he was about to enter Egypt, he said to Sarai, his wife: "Look, I know that you are a beautiful woman.
12:12. When the Egyptians see you, they will say, “This is his wife”; then they will kill me but let you live.
12:13. Please say that you are my sister, so that I may prosper because of you and my life may be preserved thanks to you.
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SECOND ALIYA, SECOND READING
12:14. When Abram arrived in Egypt, the Egyptians saw that the woman was very beautiful.
12:15. Pharaoh's officials saw her and praised her to him; and the woman was taken into Pharaoh's house.
12:16. He treated Abram well for her sake, and Abram had sheep, cattle, donkeys, male and female servants, and camels.
12:17. But Hashem afflicted Pharaoh and his household with great plagues because of Sarai, Abram's wife.
12:18. Pharaoh summoned Abram and said, “What is this you have done to me? Why didn’t you tell me she was your wife?”
12:19. Why did you say, “She is my sister,” so that I took her as my wife? Now, here is your wife; take her and go.”
12:20. The Pharaoh gave orders to his men concerning Abram, and they sent him away along with his wife and all that he had.
13:1. Abram went up from Egypt to the Negev, along with his wife and all that he had; and Lot went with him.
13:2. Abram was very rich in livestock, silver, and gold.
13:3. He continued his journey in stages from the Negev to Beth El, to the place where his tent had been at the beginning, between Beth El and Ai.
13:4. He came to the place of the altar that he had built there earlier; and there Abram called on the name of Hashem.
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THIRD ALIYA, THIRD READING
13:5. Lot, who went with Abram, also had sheep, cattle, and tents.
13:6. The land could not support them to live together, because their possessions were too many for them to live together.
13:7. There was a dispute between the herdsmen of Abram's livestock and the herdsmen of Lot's livestock. At that time, the Canaanites and the Perizzites lived in the land.
13:8. Abram said to Lot, “Please let there be no strife between you and me, or between my herders and your herders, for we are relatives.
13:9. Isn't the whole land before you? Please separate from me. If you go to the left, I'll go to the right; and if you go to the right, I'll go to the left.
13:10. Lot looked up and saw the whole plain of the Jordan, well watered on all sides. Before the Lord destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah, it was like the garden of the Lord, like the land of Egypt, as far as Zoar.
13:11. Lot chose for himself the whole plain of the Jordan and journeyed eastward. Thus they separated from each other.
13:12. Abram lived in the land of Canaan, while Lot lived in the cities of the plain and extended his tents as far as Sodom.
13:13. The men of Sodom were very wicked and sinful against Hashem.
13:14. Hashem said to Abram, after Lot had separated from him: “Lift up your eyes and look from the place where you are, to the north, to the south, to the east, and to the west.
13:15. For all the land that you see I will give to you and your descendants forever.
13:16. I will make your descendants as the dust of the earth: if one could count the dust of the earth, then one could also count your descendants.
13:17. "Arise, walk through the length and breadth of the earth, for I will give it to you."
13:18. Abram moved his tents and went to live near the oaks of Mamre, which are in Hebron. There he built an altar to the Lord.
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FOURTH ALIYA, FOURTH READING
14:1. In the days of Amraphel, king of Shinar; Arioch, king of Ellasar; Chedorlaomer, king of Elam; and Tidal, king of Goiim,
14:2. These made war against Bera, king of Sodom; Birsha, king of Gomorrah; Shinab, king of Admah; Shemever, king of Zevoim; and the king of Bela, who is Zoar.
14:3. All these gathered in the valley of Siddim, which is the Sea of Salt.
14:4. For twelve years they had served Kedorlaomer, but in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
14:5. In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him arrived, and defeated the Rephaim in Ashtaroth Karnaim, the Zuzim in Ham, and the Emim in Shaveh Kiriathaim,
14:6. and the Joritas in their mountainous region of Seir, as far as El Paran, which is next to the desert.
14:7. Then they returned and came to Ein Mishpat, which is Kadesh, and devastated all the territory of the Amalekites, and also defeated the Amorites who lived in Hazezon Tamar.
14:8. The king of Sodom, the king of Gomorrah, the king of Admah, the king of Zeboiim, and the king of Bela (that is, Zoar) went out and drew up to fight in the Valley of Siddim.
14:9. against Chedorlaomer, king of Elam; Tidal, king of Goiim; Amraphel, king of Shinar; and Arioch, king of Ellasar: four kings against five.
14:10. The Valley of Siddim was full of bitumen pits. The kings of Sodom and Gomorrah fled and fell into them, while the rest escaped to the mountains.
14:11. The victors took all the goods of Sodom and Gomorrah and all their food, and left.
14:12. They also took Lot, Abram’s brother’s son, and his possessions, and departed, for he lived in Sodom.
14:13. A fugitive arrived and told Abram the Hebrew, who was living near the oaks of Mamre the Amorite, brother of Eshkol and brother of Aner. These were allies of Abram.
14:14. When Abram heard that his relative had been taken captive, he mobilized his trained men, born in his house, three hundred and eighteen, and pursued the invaders as far as Dan.
14:15. During the night he divided his forces against them, he and his servants defeated them and pursued them as far as Jovah, which is north of Damascus.
14:16. He recovered all the goods and also rescued Lot, his relative, with his possessions, as well as the women and the rest of the people.
14:17. After Abram returned from defeating Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him, the king of Sodom came out to meet him in the valley of Shaveh, which is the King's Valley.
14:18. Malki-Tzedek, king of Shalem, brought out bread and wine; he was priest of El Elyon, the Most High God.
14:19. He blessed him and said, “Blessed be Abram by El Elyon, Lord of heaven and earth.
14:20. And blessed be El Elyon, who delivered your enemies into your hand.” Then Abram gave him a tenth of everything.
FIFTH ALIYA, FIFTH READING
14:21. The king of Sodom said to Abram, "Give me the people and keep the goods for yourself."
14:22. Abram answered the king of Sodom: “I have lifted up my hand to Hashem, El Elyon, the Most High God, owner of heaven and earth,
14:23. I swear that I will not take anything that belongs to you, not even a thread or a sandal strap, so that you cannot say, “I made Abram rich.”
14:24. Nothing for me, except what the young men have eaten and the share of the men who went with me: Aner, Eshkol, and Mamre. They will take their share.”
15:1. After these events, the word of Hashem came to Abram in a vision, saying, “Do not be afraid, Abram. I am your shield; your reward will be very great.”
15:2. Abram said, “Lord Hashem, what will you give me, since I remain childless and Eliezer of Damascus is the steward of my house?”
15:3. Abram added, "Look, you have given me no offspring, and one of my house shall be my heir."
15:4. Then the word of the Lord came to him, saying, “This man will not be your heir; the one who will come from your own body will be your heir.”
15:5. He took him outside and said, “Look up at the sky and count the stars—if indeed you can count them.” Then he said to him, “So shall your offspring be.”
15:6. Abram believed in Hashem, and He credited it to him as righteousness.
SIXTH ALIYA, SIXTH READING
15:7. He said to him, “I am Hashem, who brought you out of Ur of the Chaldeans to give you this land as your possession.”
15:8. Abram replied, "Lord Hashem, how will I know that I will possess it?"
15:9. He said to her, "Bring me a three-year-old heifer, a three-year-old goat, a three-year-old ram, a turtledove, and a young pigeon."
15:10. Abram took all these animals, cut them in half, and placed each half opposite the other; but he did not cut the birds in half.
15:11. The birds of prey descended upon the corpses, and Abram drove them away.
15:12. As the sun was setting, a deep sleep fell upon Abram; and terror, a great darkness, fell upon him.
15:13. Hashem said to Abram: “You must know for certain that your descendants will be foreigners in a land that does not belong to them; they will be enslaved and oppressed for four hundred years.
15:14. But I will also judge the nation they serve, and afterward they will leave with great riches.
15:15. You will go to your ancestors in peace; you will be buried at a good old age.
15:16. In the fourth generation they will return here, because the iniquity of the Amorites has not yet reached its fullness.”
15:17. When the sun set and darkness fell, a smoking furnace appeared, and a torch of fire passed between those pieces.
15:18. That day the Lord made a covenant with Abram, saying, “To your descendants I have given this land, from the river of Egypt to the great river, the Euphrates:
15:19. the territory of the Kenites, the Kenizites, and the Cadmonites,
15:20. the Hittites, the Perizzites, and the Rephaim,
15:21. the Amorites, the Canaanites, the Girgashites, and the Jebusites."
16:1. Sarai, Abram's wife, had not borne him any children. She had an Egyptian servant named Hagar.
16:2. Sarai said to Abram, “Look, the Lord has kept me from bearing children. Go in to my servant; perhaps I can build a family through her.” And Abram listened to Sarai’s voice.
16:3. After Abram had been living in the land of Canaan for ten years, Sarai, his wife, took Hagar, her Egyptian servant, and gave her to Abram, her husband, as a wife.
16:4. He slept with Hagar, and she conceived. When he saw that she was pregnant, he began to despise his mistress.
16:5. Sarai said to Abram, “May the wrong I have suffered be on you! I put my servant in your arms, and when you saw that I was pregnant, you despised me. May the Lord judge between you and me!”
16:6. Abram answered Sarai, “Your servant is in your hands; do with her as you please.” Sarai mistreated her, and she fled from him.
16:7. An angel of Hashem found her by a spring of water in the desert, by the spring on the way to Shur.
16:8. He said to her, “Hagar, servant of Sarai, where have you come from and where are you going?” She answered, “I am fleeing from Sarai, my mistress.”
16:9. The angel of Hashem said to him, "Return to your mistress and submit to her authority."
16:10. The angel of the Lord said to him, “I will greatly multiply your descendants, and they will be so numerous that they cannot be counted.”
16:11. The angel of Hashem said to her, “You are pregnant and will give birth to a son; you will name him Ishmael, because Hashem has heard your affliction.
16:12. He will be like a wild donkey among men; his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live opposite all his brothers.
16:13. She called to Hashem, who had spoken to her: “You are El Roi, the God who sees me,” for she said, “Have I continued seeing here after I have seen the one who sees me?”
16:14. That is why that well was called Beer Lachai Roi. It is located between Kadesh and Bered.
16:15. Hagar bore Abram a son, and Abram named the son Hagar had borne him Ishmael.
16:16. Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar gave birth to Ishmael.
17:1. When Abram was ninety-nine years old, Hashem appeared to him and said, “I am El Shaddai, the Almighty God. Walk before Me and be upright.
17:2. I will establish My covenant between you and Me, and I will greatly multiply you.”
17:3. Abram fell face down to the ground, and God spoke to him, saying:
17:4. "As for me, this is my covenant with you: you will be the father of a multitude of nations.
17:5. Your name will no longer be Abram, but Abraham, for I have made you the father of a multitude of nations.
17:6. I will make you exceedingly fruitful; nations will come from you, and kings will come from you.”
SEVENTH ALIYA, SEVENTH READING
17:7. "I will establish My covenant between you and Me, and with your descendants after you, throughout their generations, as an everlasting covenant, to be your God and the God of your descendants after you.
17:8. I will give to you and your descendants after you the land where you reside as a foreigner, all the land of Canaan, as an eternal possession; and I will be their God.”
17:9. God said to Abraham, “You shall keep My covenant, you and your descendants after you, throughout their generations.
17:10. This is My covenant that you shall keep between you and Me, and with your descendants after you: Every male among you shall be circumcised.
17:11. You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin, and it shall be a sign of the covenant between you and me.
17:12. Every male among you shall be circumcised when he is eight days old, throughout your generations, whether born in your house or bought with money from any foreigner who is not of your offspring.
17:13. Both the one born in your house and the one bought with your money must be circumcised. My covenant will be in your flesh as an everlasting covenant.
17:14. “Any uncircumcised male who has not had the flesh of his foreskin circumcised shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”
17:15. God said to Abraham, “As for Sarai, your wife, you shall no longer call her Sarai, but Sarah shall be her name.
17:16. I will bless her and also give you a son by her. I will bless her, and nations will come from her; kings of peoples will come from her.”
17:17. Abraham fell facedown to the ground and laughed, and said in his heart, “Can a son be born to a man who is a hundred years old? Can Sarah, who is ninety years old, bear a child?”
17:18. Abraham said to God, "Oh, that Ishmael might live before You!"
17:19. God answered, “Your wife Sarah will bear you a son, and you will name him Isaac. I will establish my covenant with him as an everlasting covenant for his descendants after him.
17:20. As for Ishmael, I have heard you. I have blessed him, I will make him fruitful and multiply him greatly. He will be the father of twelve princes, and I will make him into a great nation.
17:21. But I will establish My covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you by this time next year.”
17:22. When he had finished speaking with him, God ascended from Abraham.
17:23. Abraham took Ishmael, his son, all those born in his house and all those bought with his money, every male of the house of Abraham, and circumcised the flesh of their foreskins that same day, just as God had told him.
17:24. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
17:25. Ishmael, his son, was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
17:26. That same day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised.
17:27. And all the males of his household, both those born in his house and those bought with money from foreigners, were circumcised with him.
MAFTIR, LAST READING
17:24. Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
17:25. Ishmael, his son, was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
17:26. That same day Abraham and his son Ishmael were circumcised.
17:27. And all the males of his household, both those born in his house and those bought with money from foreigners, were circumcised with him.
HAFTARA READING ACCORDING TO SEPHARDIC TRADITION: ISAIAH 40:27–41:16
40:27. Why do you say, Jacob, and declare, Israel, “My way is hidden from the Lord, and my God ignores my cause”?
40:28. Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the eternal God, Creator of the ends of the earth. He does not grow tired or weary; His understanding is unsearchable.
40:29. He gives strength to the weary and increases the vigor of those who have no strength.
40:30. Young men grow tired and weary, and boys stumble and fall.
40:31. But those who wait on the Lord will renew their strength; they will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not faint.
41:1. "Be silent before Me, you islands, and let the nations renew their strength. Let them draw near and then speak; let us appear together in judgment."
41:2. Who stirred up from the east him whom justice summons to his path? He gives nations before him and subdues kings; he turns them to dust with his sword and scatters them with his bow.
41:3. He pursues them and advances safely along a path his feet had not traveled.
41:4. Who has worked and accomplished this, calling the generations from the beginning? I, Hashem, am the first, and with the last, I am he.
41:5. The islands saw him and were afraid; the ends of the earth trembled. They drew near and came to his aid.
41:6. Each one helps his companion and says to his brother, "Be strong!"
41:7. The craftsman encourages the goldsmith; the one who smooths with the hammer encourages the one who strikes the anvil. He says of the soldering, "It's good," and secures the idol with nails so that it won't move.
41:8. “But you, Israel, My servant; Jacob, whom I have chosen; offspring of Abraham, who loved Me,
41:9. You, whom I took from the ends of the earth and called from its farthest reaches, to whom I said, “You are My servant”; I chose you and did not reject you.
41:10. Do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, I will help you, I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.
41:11. All who rage against you will be put to shame and humiliated; those who contend with you will be as nothing and will perish.
41:12. You will search for those who fight against you and you will not find them; those who wage war against you will be like nothing, like something nonexistent.
41:13. For I, Hashem, your God, take hold of your right hand and say to you, “Do not fear; I will help you.”
41:14. Do not fear, you worm of Jacob, you men of Israel. I will help you—declares the Lord—; your redeemer is the Holy One of Israel.
41:15. Look, I've made you a new threshing sledge, sharp and double-edged. You'll thresh mountains and pulverize them, and turn hills into chaff.
41:16. You will winnow them, the wind will carry them away, and the whirlwind will scatter them. But you will rejoice in the Lord and glory in the Holy One of Israel.”
