SECTION XXI.

 

KI THISSA.

 

AND the Lord spake with Mosheh, saying, When thou takest the account of the sons of Israel according to their number, they shall give every man a ransom for his soul before the Lord, when thou numberest them, that there may not be death among them when thou numberest them. This they shall give: every one who cometh over to the adnumberment, a half shekel, of the shekel of the sanctuary, of twenty mayin the shekel, half a shekel shall be set apart before the Lord. Every one who cometh over to the adnumberment, from a son of twenty years and above, shall give the separation before the Lord. He who is rich shall not increase (it), and he who is poor shall not diminish from the half shekel in presenting the separation before the Lord to propitiate for your souls. And thou shalt take the silver of the propitiation from the sons of Israel, and appoint it for the service of the tabernacle of ordinance and it shall be to the sons of Israel for a memorial before the Lord to propitiate for your souls.

 

And the Lord spake with Mosheh, saying, Thou shalt make a LAVER of brass, and its foundation of brass for purifying; and set it between the tabernacle of ordinance and the altar, and put water therein. And Aharon and his sons shall purify at it their hands and their feet. In their entering into the tabernacle of ordinance they shall cleanse themselves with water, that they die not; or when they approach the altar to minister, to offer an oblation before the Lord; and (thus) they shall purify their hands and their feet, that they may not die. And it shall be to them an everlasting statute, to him and to his sons unto their generations.

 

And the Lord spake with Mosheh, saying, Take thou also to thee choice (first or principal) aromatics: pure myrrh, five hundred (shekels' weight); and sweet cinnamon, one half (as much), two hundred and fifty (shekelsÕ) weight; of sweet calamus, two hundred and fifty (shekels') weight; and cassia, five hundred (shekelsÕ) weight, of the shekels of the sanctuary; and olive oil, a hina full; and make it a holy anointing oil, most fragrant, the work of the perfumer; it shall be the holy oil for anointing. And thou shalt anoint therewith the tabernacle of ordinance and the ark of the testimony, and the table and all its vessels, and the candelabrum and its vessels, and the altar of sweet incense, and the altar of burnt offering and all its vessels, and the laver and its foundation, and consecrate them. They shall be most holy; whoever approacheth them shall be sanctified. And Aharon and his sons thou shalt anoint, and consecrate them to minister before Me. And thou shalt speak to the sons of Israel, saying, A holy anointing oil shall thus be unto Me for your generations. Upon the flesh of man it shall not be poured, nor the like to it be made; sacred is it, and sacred shall it be to you. The man who compoundeth the like to it, or who putteth it upon an alien, shall be destroyed from his people.

 

And the Lord said to Mosheh, Take thee spices, stachte[1] and onycha, and galbanum spices, and pure frankincense, weight for weight shall they be; and thou shalt make it a sweet incense, fragrant, the work of the, perfumer, mixed, pure, for consecration. And thou shalt beat some of it and make it fine, and put thereof before the testimony in the tabernacle of ordinance, where I will appoint My Word to be with thee; to you it shall be most holy. And of the sweet incense which thou shalt make you must not make the like for yourselves; it shall be sacred to thee before the Lord. The man who maketh the like of it, to smell thereto, shall be destroyed from his people.

 

XXXI. And the Lord spake with Mosheh, saying, Behold, I have named by name Bezalel bar Uri bar Hur, of the tribe of Jehudah, and have fulfilled him with the spirit of prophecy from before the Lord, with wisdom and with intelligence, and with knowledge, and in all work (to excel), to Instruct artificers to work in gold, and in silver, and in brass, and in artisanship of precious stone, to fill in, and in carving of wood, to accomplish all the work. And I, behold, have given with him Ahaliab bar Achisamak, of the tribe of Dan; and in the heart of all the wise of heart have I ingiven wisdom, that they may make all that I have commanded thee: The tabernacle of ordinance, and the ark of the testimony, and the propitiatory that is upon it, and all the vessels of the tabernacle; and the table and its vessels, and the pure candelabrum and all its vessels, and the altar of sweet incense, and the altar of burnt offering and all its vessels, and the laver and its foundation. And the vestments of ministration, and the holy vestments of Aharon the priest, and the vestments of his sons for ministry; and the oil of anointing and the sweet incense for the sanctuary, according to all that I have commanded thee, they shall make.

 

And the Lord spake with Mosheh, saying, Speak thou also with the sons of Israel, saying, The days of My Sabbaths ye shall indeed keep; for it is a sign between My Word and you, unto your generations, that ye may know that I am the Lord who sanctifieth you. And you shall keep the Sabbath, for it is holy unto you; whosoever profaneth it, dying, he shall die; for whosoever doeth work therein, that man shall be destroyed from among his people. Six days shalt thou do work, and the seventh day is Sabbath, the Holy Sabbath before the Lord: whosoever doeth work on the day of the Sabbath, dying, he shall die. And the sons of Israel shall keep the Sabbath to fulfil (lit., perform) the Sabbath unto their generations, a statute for ever. Between My Word and the sons of Israel it is a sign for ever for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth; and in the seventh day rested and was refreshed.[2] And He gave to Mosheh, when He had finished to speak with him on Mount Sinai, two tablets of the testimony, tablets of stone inscribed with the finger of the Lord.

 

        XXXII. But the people saw that Mosheh delayed to come down from the Mount; and the people gathered together unto Aharon, and said to him, Arise, make us gods (dachalan, pl., objects to be venerated) that may proceed before us;[3] for this Mosheh, the man who brought us up from the land of Mizraim, we know not what hath been to him. And Aharon said to them, Take off the golden ear‑rings which are in the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters, and bring them to me. And all the people took off the golden rings which were in their ears and brought them unto Aharon. And he took them from their hands, and formed it with a graver, and made it a molten calf. And they said, These are thy gods, Israel, which brought thee up from the land of Mizraim. And Aharon saw,[4] and builded an altar before it; and

Aharon proclaimed and said, A feast shall be held before the Lord to‑morrow. And they arose next day, and sacrificed burnt offerings and offered oblations; and the people sat around to eat and drink, and rose up to disport.

 

And the Lord spake with Mosheh, Go, descend, for thy people whom thou broughtest up from the land of Mizraim have corrupted themselves; they have quickly warped from the way which I had taught them; they have made a molten calf, and have worshipped it, and sacrificed unto it and have said, These are thy gods, Israel, which have brought thee up from the land of Mizraim. And the Lord said to Mosheh, It is seen before Me that this people are hard-necked. And now refrain from thy prayer before Me, and My anger shall prevail against them, and I will destroy them, and will make thee to a great people. But Mosheh prayed before the Lord his God, and said, Why, Lord, is Thy anger strong against Thy people, whom Thou didst bring up from the land of Mizraim with great power and with might hand? Where fore should the Mizraee speak to say, With evil (purpose) He led them out to kill them among the mountains, and to consume them from the face of the earth? Turn from the strength of Thine anger, and revert from the evil which Thou hast threatened to do unto Thy people. Remember Abraham, Izhak, and Israel, Thy servants to whom Thou hast sworn by Thy Word, and to whom Thou hast said, I will multiply your sons as the stars of the heavens, and all this land of which I have spoken I will give unto your sons, and they shall own it for ever.

 

And the Lord did turn from the evil which He had threatened to do unto the people. And Mosheh returned and went down from the Mount, and the two tablets of testimony were in his hand: the tablets were inscribed on their two sides, here and there were they inscribed. And the tablets were the work of the Lord, and the writing was the writing of the Lord set forth distinctly upon the tablets.

 

And Jehoshua heard the voice of the people as they made outcry, and he said to Mosheh, The voice of war is in the camp. But he said, It is not the voice of men who are victorious, nor is it the voice of the weak who are beaten, but it is the voice of revelers that I hear. And it was that as he drew nigh the camp, and saw the calf and the dancing, that the anger of Mosheh grew strong, and he cast from his hands the tablets, and brake them at the declivity of the mountain. And he took the calf which they had made, and burned it in fire, and ground it until it was powder, and spread it on the face of the water, and made the sons of Israel drink it. And Mosheh said to Aharon, What did this people to thee, that thou hast brought upon them so great a sin? And Aharon said, Let not my lordÕs anger be violent: thou knowest the people, that it is prone to evil. And they said to me, Make us gods that shall go before us: for this Mosheh, the man who brought us up form the land of Mizraim, we know not what hath been done to him. And I said to them, Whoever hath gold let him deliver, and give it to me; and I cast it into the fire, and this calf came forth. And Mosheh saw that the people were undone (or, made empty); for Aharon had undone them, to defile them with an evil name in their generations; and Mosheh stood at the gate of the camp, and said, Let those who fear the Lord come to me. And all the sons of Levi gathered together to him. And he said to them., Thus saith the Lord the God of Israel, Let every man put his sword upon his thigh, pass through, and return, from gate to gate in the camp, and slay, a man his brother, and a man his companion, and a man his neighbour. And the sons of Levi did according to the word fo Mosheh, and there fell of the people in that day as three thousand men. And Mosheh said, Present your hands[5] this day an offering before the Lord, every man with (or, on account of) his son and his brother, that you may bring blessings upon you this day.

 

And it was on the day following that Mosheh said to the people, You have sinned a great sin; but now I will go up before the Lord, if haply I may propitiate for your sin. And Mosheh returned before the Lord, and said in his prayer, This people have sinned a great sin, for they have made to them gods of gold. But now, if Thou wilt forgive their sin! But if not, blot me now out of the Book which Thou hast written. And the Lord said to Mosheh, Him who hath sinned before Me, will I blot from My book. But now, go, lead the people to the place that I have told thee of: behold, My Angel shall proceed before thee; and in the day that I visit, I will visit upon them their sin. And the Lord smote the people because they had worshipped (or served) the calf which Aharon had made.

 

XXXIII. And the Lord said to Mosheh, Go, descend from hence, thou and the people thou hast brought up from the land of Mizraim, unto the land which I have covenanted unto Abraham, to Izhak, and to Jakob, saying, To thy sons will I give it. Arid I will send My Angel before thee, and will drive oat the Kenaanaee, the Amoraee, and Hittaee, and the Pherizaee, the Hivaee, and the Jebusaee; to the land producing milk and honey: for My Shekinah shall not go up among you, because thou art a hard‑necked people, lest I destroy thee in the way. And the people heard these words of evil, and lamented, and no man put on his usual ornaments. And the Lord said to Mosheh, Say to the children of Israel, Ye are a hard‑necked people; if one hour My Shekinah go up among thee, I should destroy thee. And now take off thy garnishing from thee, and it will appear before me what I shall do with thee. Arid the children of Israel removed their usual ornaments (on their return) from the mount of Horeb. Arid Mosheh took a tabernacle, and spread it for himself without the camp, at a distance from the camp, and called it the Tabernacle of the House of Instruction: and it was that every one who sought instruction from before the Lord, went forth to the tabernacle of the house of instruction without the camp. And it came to pass that when Mosheh went forth to the tabernacle, all the people rose up, and stood, every man at the door of his tent, and looked after Mosheh until he had entered into the tabernacle. And it was when Mosheh had entered the tabernacle, the column of the Cloud descended and stood at the door of the tabernacle, and (He) spake with Mosheh. And all the people saw the column of the Cloud standing at the door of the tabernacle, and all the people arose and worshipped, every man at the door of his tent. And the Lord spake with Mosheh word with word, as a man speaketh with his companion. And he returned to the camp; but his minister, Jehoshua bar Nun, a young man, did not remove from the tabernacle.

 

And Mosheh said before the Lord, See, Thou hast said to me, Take this people up; but Thou hast not let me know whom Thou wilt send with me; yet Thou hast said, I have ordained thee by name, and thou hast found mercy before Me. And if now I have found mercy before Thee, show me, I pray, Thy good way,[6] that I may know Thy loving‑kindness, and may find mercy before Thee, and make it manifest before Thee that this people is Thy people. And He said, My Shekinah shall go, and I will give thee rest. And he said before Him, If Thy Shekinah goeth not among us, let us not ascend from hence. And in what shall it be known that I and Thy people have found mercy before Thee, if Thy Shekinah go not up with us, to make for us the distinction, and to distinguish me and Thy people from every people that is upon the face of the earth? And the Lord said to Mosheh, This thing that thou hast spoken will I do, because thou hast found mercy before Me, and I have ordained thee by mane. And he said, Show me, I pray, Thy Glory! And He said, I will make all My Goodness pass before thy face,[7] and I will proclaim the Name of the Lord before thee, and I will be gracious to whom I will be gracious, and have mercy on whom I will have mercy. And He said, Thou canst not see the Face of My Shekinah; for no man can see Me and abide alive. And the Lord said, Behold, there is a place prepared before Me, and thou shalt stand upon the rock, and it shall be, when My Glory passeth, I will put thee in a cavern of the rock, and My Word shall overshadow thee until I have passed; and I will take away the word (dibberath) of My Glory, and thou shalt see that which is after Me,[8] bu My Aspect[9] shall not be seen.

 

XXXIV. And the Lord said to Mosheh, Hew thee two tablets of stone as the first ones, and I will write upon the tablets the words that were upon the former tablets which thou hast broken. And be ready in the morning, and go up at morn to Mount Sinai, and stand there before Me on the summit of the mountain. Let no man ascend with thee; let no man be seen upon all the mountain, nor sheep nor oxen be grazing upon the mountain. And hew two tablets of stone like the former ones.

 

And Mosheh arose in the morning, and ascended Mount Sinai, as the Lord had commanded him, and took in his hand two tablets of stone. And the Lord was revealed in the Cloud, and He stood with him there, and He proclaimed the Name of the Lord.[10] And the Lord made His Shekinah pass before his face; and he proclaimed, The Lord, the Lord God, Merciful and Gracious, slow to anger, and making goodness and truth to abound; Keeping goodness for thousands of generations; Forgiving iniquity and rebellion and guilt; Pardoning them who convert unto His law, but acquitting not them who convert not; Visiting the guilt of fathers upon the children and upon the childrenÕs children of the rebellious, upon the third and upon the fourth generation. And Mosheh made haste, and bowed upon the ground and worshipped.

 

And he said, If now I have found mercy before Thee, O Lord, let, I pray, the Shekinah of the Lord go among us; for it is a hard-necked people; but forgive Thou our guilty and our sin, and take possession of us. And He said, Behold, I make a covenant before all thy people that I will do wonders which were never created upon all the earth, nor among any of the people; and all peoples among whom thou art shall see the work of the Lord; for terrible shall that be which I will do with thee. Observe thou that which I command thee this day. Behold, I will drive out from before thee the Amoraee, and Kenaanaee, and Hittaee, and Pherizaee, and Hivaee, and Jebusaee. Beware lest thou make a covenant with the inhabitants of the land upon which thou shalt enter, lest it become a stumbling-block in the midst of thee: but their altars thou shalt destroy, and their statues break, and their groves cut down;[11] for thou shalt not worship the idols of the peoples; for the Lord, Zealous is His Name, a zealous God is He. Lest thou strike a covenant with the inhabitants of the land, and go erring after their idols, and to their idols offer sacrifices, and they invite thee, and thou eat of their sacrifices, and thou take of their daughters for thy sons, and they make thy daughters go erring after their idols, and thy sons to go erring after their idols. Molten gods thou shalt not make to thee.

 

The feast of the unleavened thou shalt keep. Seven days thou shalt eat unleavened (bread) as I have commanded thee, in the time of the month of Abiva; for in the month of Abiva thou didst come out of Mizraim. All that openeth the womb is Mine; all males of cattle thou shalt sanctify, the first‑born of oxen and of sheep. But the firstling of an ass thou mayest redeem with a lamb; but if thou redeem him not, thou shalt cut him off. All the first‑born of thy sons thou shalt redeem.

 

And let none appear before Me empty. Six days thou shalt labour, and on the seventh day rest; in sowing (time) and in reaping thou shalt rest. And the feast of Weeks thou shalt make to thee, of the firsts of the wheat harvest, and the feast of ingathering in the cycle of the year. Three times in the year shall all your males appear before the Master of the World, the Lord God of Israel. For I will drive out the nations before thee, and enlarge thy borders, and no man shall covet thy land when thou goest up to appear before the Lord thy God three times in the year. Thou shalt not sacrifice the blood of My Pascha with leaven, nor shall the fat of the sacrifices of the Paschal feast be left without the altar till the morning. The chief of the firstfruits of thy land thou shalt bring to the sanctuary of the Lord thy God. Thou shalt not eat flesh with milk. And the Lord said to Mosheh, Write for thee these words; for upon the expression of these words I make covenant with thee and with Israel.

 

And he was there before the Lord forty days and forty nights; bread he ate not, nor water did he drink; and he wrote upon the tablets the words of the covenant., the Ten Words. And it was when Mosheh descended from the mountain of Sinai with the two tablets of the testimony in the hand of Mosheh, in his descending from the mount, that Mosheh knew not how great was the splendour of the glory of his countenance through His speaking with him. And Aharon and all the sons of Israel saw Mosheh, and, behold, great was the splendour of the glory of his countenance, and they were afraid to approach him. But Mosheh called to them, and Aharon and all the chiefs of the congregation returned to him, and Mosheh conversed with them. And afterward all the sons of Israel drew near, and he taught them all that the Lord had said to him on Mount Sinai. And when Mosheh had completed to speak with them, he put a veil upon his face. But when Mosheh went in before the Lord to speak with Him, he removed the veil until he came out. And he went forth and spake with the sons of Israel of that which was commanded. And the children of Israel saw the face of Mosheh, that the splendour of the glory of Mosheh's face was great; and Mosheh put the veil again upon his face until he went in to speak with Him.

 

 

 

 



[1] Sam. Vers., Òbalsam.Ó

[2] Sam. Vers., Òbreathed.Ó

[3] Sam. Vers., Òas it may please us.Ó

[4] Sam. Vers., Òfeared.Ó

[5] Some copies omit Òyour hands,Ó and read, ÒPresent your offerings.Ó

[6] Or, Òthe way of Thy Goodness.Ó

[7] Sam. Vers., ÒMy loving-kindness shall go before, and will lead thee.Ó

[8] De-bathrai.

[9] De-kadamai.

[10] Or, Òproclaimed in the Name of the Lord,Ó

[11] Sam. Vers., Òroot up.Ó