4 Sivan 5781
May 15, 2021

Parashat Bamidbar
“In the wilderness”

Here are the Torah, Haftarah and suggested Brit Chadasha (New Testament) and Tehillim (Psalms) readings for this week.

• Numbers 1:1-4:20
• Hosea 2:1(1:10)-2:22(20)
• Luke 2:1-7
• Romans 9:22-33
• Psalm 122

Our feet are standing in your gates, Jerusalem—
Jerusalem, built as a city joined together.
There the tribes go up, the tribes of Adonai
—as a testimony to Israel—
to praise the Name of Adonai.
(Psalm 122:2-4 TLV)

The seven aliyot readings from the Torah begin at these verses:

1. Numbers 1:1
2. Numbers 1:20
3. Numbers 2:1
4. Numbers 3:1
5. Numbers 3:14
6. Numbers 3:40
7. Numbers 4:1

Maftir: Numbers 4:17

In Bamidbar

The Key People include Moshe (Moses), Aharon (Aaron), heads of the tribes (1:5-15); Aharon’s sons Nadav (Nadab), Avihu (Abihu), El’azar (Eleazer) and Itamar (Ithamar); Levi’s sons Gershon, K’hat (Kohath), M’rari (Merari), all their sons; and firstborn males.

The Scene is b’midbar Sinai, in the wilderness of Sinai.

The Main Events include a census for the army; tent arrangement in the camp; Levites replacing firstborns as God’s own, then set apart for tabernacle service; Kohathites counted; and instructions for Aharon and son’s to cover holy items, so Kohathites carrying them do not see them and die.

In the wilderness of Sinai, on the first day of the second month in the second year from the Exodus from the land of Egypt, Adonai spoke to Moses in the Tent of Meeting saying, “Do a head count of all the community of Bnei-Yisrael by their families and their ancestral house, with a total of every male one by one. You and Aaron are to muster by their divisions every son from 20 years and upward available to serve in the army of Israel.
(Numbers 1:1-3 TLV)

The Haftarah

“Yet the number of Bnei-Yisrael will be like the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured or counted. Instead of ‘You are not My people’ being said to them, they will be called ‘Children of the living God.’ Then the descendants of Judah and descendants of Israel will be gathered together. They will appoint themselves one head And they will go up from the land. For the day of Jezreel will be great. Say you to your brothers, ‘Ammi’ and to your sisters, ‘Ruhamah’.
(Hosea 2:1-3 TLV)

The Brit Chadasha

Everyone was traveling to be registered in his own city. Now Joseph also went up from the Galilee, out of the town of Natzeret to Judah, to the city of David, which is called Bethlehem, because he was from the house and family of David.
(Luke 2:3-4 TLV)

Torah Portion readings and the associated Haftarah readings generally follow the Stone Edition Chumash and/or the Complete Jewish Bible. Verse numbering generally follows the Hebrew tradition, and where modern Christian traditions differ those verse numbers are shown in parentheses (). Haftarah readings generally follow the Ashkenazi tradition. Where the Sephardic tradition differs, the Haftarah portions are designated as (A) and (S). Suggested New Testament readings are taken from various sources. Suggested Psalm readings are from the Messianic Siddur for Shabbat by Daniel Perek. The Key People, The Scenes, and The Main Events are taken from the Walk! series of Messianic Devotion Commentaries by Dr. Jeffrey Enoch Feinberg. Scripture taken from the Tree of Life Version (TLV) © 2015 by the Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society. Used by permission of the Messianic Jewish Family Bible Society.