Sunday, October 6, 2024

Week of Yom Kippur

Yom Kippur


Torah Reading:  Leviticus 16:1-34

Haftarah: Isaiah 57:14-21

Apostolic Writings: Matthew 12:38-45, Matthew 25:31-46


Yom Kippur: October 11-12, 2024

Sukkot: October 16-23, 2024

Shmini Atzeret - October 23-24, 2024

Simchat Torah - October 24-25, 2024


We will publish the Torah Portion V'Zot HaBerachah starting Sunday October 13, 2024.

And our new year of Torah Portions including Beresheit will continue the following week.


“G'mar chatima tovah!” (A good final sealing). We are in the high holiday week of Yom Kippur.


There aren’t any daily Torah Parashat (portions) this week. There is, however, a Torah Reading, Haftarah, and Apostolic Reading for Yom Kippur (read below). I encourage you to read it every day this week and ask Hashem to reveal something special to you!


Torah Reading:  Leviticus 16:1-34

16 Hashem to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they came near before Hashem, and died; 2 and Hashem said to Moses, “Tell Aaron your brother not to come at just any time into the Most Holy Place within the veil, before the mercy seat which is on the ark; lest he die; for I will appear in the cloud on the mercy seat.

3 “Aaron shall come into the sanctuary with a young bull for a sin offering, and a ram for a burnt offering. 4 He shall put on the holy linen tunic. He shall have the linen trousers on his body, and shall put on the linen sash, and he shall be clothed with the linen turban. They are the holy garments. He shall bathe his body in water, and put them on. 5 He shall take from the congregation of the children of Israel two male goats for a sin offering, and one ram for a burnt offering.

6 “Aaron shall offer the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself and for his house. 7 He shall take the two goats, and set them before Hashem at the door of the Tent of Meeting. 8 Aaron shall cast lots for the two goats: one lot for Hashem, and the other lot for the scapegoat. 9 Aaron shall present the goat on which the lot fell for Hashem, and offer him for a sin offering. 10 But the goat on which the lot fell for the scapegoat shall be presented alive before Hashem, to make atonement for him, to send him away as the scapegoat into the wilderness.

11 “Aaron shall present the bull of the sin offering, which is for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house, and shall kill the bull of the sin offering which is for himself. 12 He shall take a censer full of coals of fire from off the altar before Hashem, and two handfuls of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veil. 13 He shall put the incense on the fire before Hashem, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is on the covenant, so that he will not die. 14 He shall take some of the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it with his finger on the mercy seat on the east; and before the mercy seat he shall sprinkle some of the blood with his finger seven times.

15 “Then he shall kill the goat of the sin offering that is for the people, and bring his blood within the veil, and do with his blood as he did with the blood of the bull, and sprinkle it on the mercy seat and before the mercy seat. 16 He shall make atonement for the Holy Place, because of the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and because of their transgressions, even all their sins; and so he shall do for the Tent of Meeting that dwells with them in the middle of their uncleanness. 17 No one shall be in the Tent of Meeting when he enters to make atonement in the Holy Place, until he comes out, and has made atonement for himself and for his household, and for all the assembly of Israel.

18 “He shall go out to the altar that is before Hashem and make atonement for it, and shall take some of the bull’s blood, and some of the goat’s blood, and put it around on the horns of the altar. 19 He shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and make it holy from the uncleanness of the children of Israel.

20 “When he has finished atoning for the Holy Place, the Tent of Meeting, and the altar, he shall present the live goat. 21 Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the live goat, and confess over him all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions, even all their sins; and he shall put them on the head of the goat, and shall send him away into the wilderness by the hand of a man who is ready. 22 The goat shall carry all their iniquities on himself to a solitary land, and he shall release the goat in the wilderness.

23 “Aaron shall come into the Tent of Meeting, and shall take off the linen garments which he put on when he went into the Holy Place, and shall leave them there. 24 Then he shall bathe himself in water in a holy place, put on his garments, and come out and offer his burnt offering and the burnt offering of the people, and make atonement for himself and for the people. 25 The fat of the sin offering he shall burn on the altar.

26 “He who lets the goat go as the scapegoat shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp. 27 The bull for the sin offering, and the goat for the sin offering, whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the Holy Place, shall be carried outside the camp; and they shall burn their skins, their flesh, and their dung with fire. 28 He who burns them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp.

29 “It shall be a statute to you forever: in the seventh month, on the tenth day of the month, you shall afflict your souls, and shall do no kind of work, whether native-born or a stranger who lives as a foreigner among you; 30 for on this day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you. You shall be clean from all your sins before Hashem. 31 It is a Sabbath of solemn rest to you, and you shall afflict your souls. It is a statute forever. 32 The priest, who is anointed and who is consecrated to be priest in his father’s place, shall make the atonement, and shall put on the linen garments, even the holy garments. 33 Then he shall make atonement for the Holy Sanctuary; and he shall make atonement for the Tent of Meeting and for the altar; and he shall make atonement for the priests and for all the people of the assembly.

34 “This shall be an everlasting statute for you, to make atonement for the children of Israel once in the year because of all their sins.”

It was done as Hashem commanded Moses.

Haftarah: Isaiah 57:14-21


He will say, “Build up, build up, prepare the way!

    Remove the stumbling-block out of the way of My people.”

15 For the high and lofty One who inhabits eternity,

    whose name is Holy, says:

“I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also who is of a contrite and humble spirit,

    to revive the spirit of the humble,

    and to revive the heart of the contrite.

16 For I will not contend forever, neither will I always be angry;

    for the spirit would faint before me,

    and the souls whom I have made.

17 I was angry because of the iniquity of his covetousness and struck him.

    I hid myself and was angry;

    and he went on backsliding in the way of his heart.

18 I have seen his ways, and will heal him.

    I will lead him also,

    and restore comforts to him and to his mourners.

19 I create the fruit of the lips:

    Peace, peace, to him who is far off and to him who is near,”

    says Hashem; “and I will heal them.”

20 But the wicked are like the troubled sea;

    for it can’t rest and its waters cast up mire and mud.

21 “There is no peace”, says my Elohim,

    “for the wicked.”


Matthew 12:38-45

38 Then certain of the scribes and Pharisees answered, “Teacher, we want to see a sign from you.”

39 But He answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks after a sign, but no sign will be given to it but the sign of Jonah the prophet. 40 For as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the huge fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth. 41 The men of Nineveh will stand up in the judgment with this generation and will condemn it, for they repented at the preaching of Jonah; and behold, someone greater than Jonah is here. 42 The Queen of the South will rise up in the judgment with this generation and will condemn it, for she came from the ends of the earth to hear the wisdom of Solomon; and behold, someone greater than Solomon is here.

43 “When an unclean spirit has gone out of a man, he passes through waterless places seeking rest, and doesn’t find it. 44 Then he says, ‘I will return into my house from which I came;’ and when he has come back, he finds it empty, swept, and put in order. 45 Then he goes and takes with himself seven other spirits more evil than he is, and they enter in and dwell there. The last state of that man becomes worse than the first. Even so will it be also to this evil generation.”

Matthew 25:31-46


31 “But when the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then he will sit on the throne of his glory. 32 Before him all the nations will be gathered, and he will separate them one from another, as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will set the sheep on his right hand, but the goats on the left. 34 Then the King will tell those on his right hand, ‘Come, blessed of my Father, inherit the Kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world; 35 for I was hungry and you gave Me food to eat. I was thirsty and you gave Me drink. I was a stranger and you took Me in. 36 I was naked and you clothed Me. I was sick and you visited Me. I was in prison and you came to Me.’

37 “Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you a drink? 38 When did we see you as a stranger and take you in, or naked and clothe you? 39 When did we see you sick or in prison and come to you?’

40 “The King will answer them, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you did it to one of the least of these my brothers,[a] you did it to me.’ 41 Then he will say also to those on the left hand, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire which is prepared for the devil and his angels; 42 for I was hungry, and you didn’t give Me food to eat; I was thirsty, and you gave Me no drink; 43 I was a stranger, and you didn’t take Me in; naked, and you didn’t clothe Me; sick, and in prison, and you didn’t visit Me.’

44 “Then they will also answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry, or thirsty, or a stranger, or naked, or sick, or in prison, and didn’t help you?’

45 “Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Most certainly I tell you, because you didn’t do it to one of the least of these, you didn’t do it to Me.’ 46 These will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”