Bereishis
Book 1: Genesis
LECH LECHA
Chapter 12
Verse 1: Ad-noy said to Avram,
"Go from your land, from your birthplace,
and from your father's house,
[and go] to the land that I will show you.
Verse 2: I will make you into a great nation,
I will bless you and make your name great;
and you will be a blessing.
Verse 3: I will bless those who
bless you,
and he who curses you, I will curse;
and through you, will be blessed
all the families of the
earth."
Verse 4: Avram went as Ad-noy had told him,
and Lot went with him.
Avram was seventy-five years old
when he left Charan.
Verse 5: Avram took his wife Sarai,
Lot, his brother's son,
all their possessions they had acquired,
and the souls [people]
that they had made [converted] in Charan,
and they set out to go
to the land of Canaan.
They came to the land of Canaan.
Verse 6: Avram passed
[traveled] through the land
until the place of Shechem, until the Plain of Moreh.
The Canaanites were then in the land.
Verse 7: Ad-noy appeared to Avram and said:
"To your descendants I will give this land."
There he built an altar
to Ad-noy Who had appeared to him.
Verse 8: From there he moved to
the mountain
that was east of Beis-Eil and set up his tent.
Beis-Eil was to the west
and Ai was to the east.
There he built an altar to Ad-noy,
and he proclaimed the Name, Ad-noy.
Verse 9: Avram journeyed, traveling steadily southward.
Verse 10: There was a famine
in the land.
Avram went down to Egypt to live there temporarily,
for the famine was severe in the land.
Verse 11: As he came near and was about to enter Egypt,
he said to his wife Sarai,
"Behold, I now realize
that you are a woman of beautiful appearance.
Verse 12: It will happen when the Egyptians see you
that they will say: 'This is his wife.'
They will kill me and let you live.
Verse 13: Please say
[therefore] that you are my sister,
so that it will go well with me for your sake,
and my life will be spared because of you."
Sheini (Second Aliyah)
Verse 14: And it was when Avram was entering Egypt,
that the Egyptians beheld the woman,
because she was very beautiful.
Verse 15: Pharaoh's officials saw her
and praised her to Pharaoh.
The woman was taken to Pharaoh's house.
Verse 16: He treated Avram
well for her sake.
He thus acquired sheep, oxen, donkeys,
male and female slaves, female donkeys and camels.
Verse 17: Ad-noy afflicted Pharaoh with severe plagues,
and also his household,
because of Sarai, Avram's wife.
Verse 18: Pharaoh summoned Avram and said:
"What is this that you have done to me?
Why did you not tell me that she is your wife?
Verse 19: Why did you say, 'She is my sister,'
so that I should take her to myself for a wife?
Now here is your wife, take [her] and go."
Verse 20: Pharaoh
assigned men to him
and they escorted him and his wife
and all that was his.
Chapter 13
Verse 1: Avram went up from Egypt;
he, his wife, and all that he had,
together with Lot into the south.
Verse 2: Avram was very wealthy
in livestock, silver and gold.
Verse 3: He continued on his travels
from the south to
Beis-Eil,
until the place
where he originally had his tent,
between Beis-Eil and Ai.
Verse 4: To the site of the altar
which he made there at first;
and there Avram called in the Name of Ad-noy.
Sh'lishi (Third Aliyah)
Verse 5: Lot who accompanied Avram also
had sheep, cattle and tents.
Verse 6: The land was unable to support them
that they might dwell
together,
for their wealth was so great
that they were unable to dwell together.
Verse 7: There was a quarrel
between the herdsmen of Avram's flocks
and the herdsmen of Lot's flocks.
The Canaanites and the Perizzites
were then living in the land.
Verse 8: Avram said to Lot:
"Please, let there not be strife
between me and you,
and between my herdsmen and your herdsmen,
for we are kinsmen.
Verse 9: Is not all the land
before you?
Please separate from me,
if [you go] to the left, I [will go] to the right,
and if [you go] to the right, I [will go] to the left."
Verse 10: Lot raised his eyes
and saw the entire Jordan Plain,
that it was abundantly watered;
before Ad-noy destroyed Sedom and Amorah,
it was like Ad-noy's
garden,
like the land of Egypt, going towards Zoar.
Verse 11: Lot chose for himself the entire Jordan Plain;
Lot journeyed from the east,
and they separated one from another.
Verse 12: Avram lived in the land of Canaan;,
and Lot lived in the cities of the Plain,
setting up his tents as far as Sedom.
Verse 13: The people of Sedom were wicked and sinful
towards Ad-noy,
exceedingly.
Verse 14: Ad-noy said to Avram
after Lot had separated from him:
"Raise your eyes
and look about from the place where you are,
to the north, to the south to the east and to the west.
Verse 15: For all the land that you see
I give to you
and to your descendants forever.
Verse 16: I will make your descendants
as the dust of the earth;
so that if a man can count
the dust of the
earth,
then your descendants too will be countable.
Verse 17: Rise, walk through the land---
its length and breadth,
for to you I will give it."
Verse 18: Avram set up his tent,
and he came and settled in the Plains of Mamrei
which are in Chevron,
and he built there an altar to Ad-noy.
Revi'i (Fourth Aliyah)
Chapter 14
Verse 1: This happened in the days of Amraphel,
king of Shinar,
Aryoch, king of Elasar,
Kedorlaomer, king of Ailam,
and Tidal, king of Goyim.
Verse 2: They waged war against Bera, king of Sedom,
Birsha, king of Amorah,
Shinav, king of Admah,
Shemeiver, king of Tzevoyim,
and the king of Bela, which is Zoar.
Verse 3: All these joined together at the valley of Siddim,
which is [now] the Salt Sea.
Verse 4: [For] twelve years
they had served Kedorlaomer,
and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
Verse 5: In the fourteenth year, Kedorlaomer came
together with the kings
that were with him
and they defeated the Rephaim in Ashteros Karnayim,
the Zuzim in Ham,
the Aimim at Shaveh Kiryasayim,
Verse 6: And the Chorites in their hills of Seir,
as far as Eil Paran
which borders the wilderness.
Verse 7: They turned back and
came to Ein Mishpat
which is Kadeish,
and they struck all the territory of Amaleik,
as well as the Emorites
who lived in Chazazon Tamar.
Verse 8: The king of Sedom set out,
along with the king of Amorah,
the king of Admah, the king of Tzevoyim,
and the king of Bela, which is Zoar,
and engaged them in
battle
in the Valley of Siddim.
Verse 9: Against Kedarlaomer, king of Eilam,
Sidal, king of Goyim,
Amraphel, king of Shinar,
and Aryoch, king of Elasar;
[there were] four kings against the five.
Verse 10: The Valley of Siddim
was [full of] mortar pits;
[and when] the Kings of Sedom and Amorah fled
they fell there [into the pits],
while the remainder fled to the mountains.
Verse 11: They took all the
wealth of Sedom and Amorah
and all their provisions and they went on their way.
Verse 12: They took Lot and his wealth.
[Lot was] Avram's nephew.
Then they went on their way.
He had been living in Sedom.
Verse 13: The one who had escaped came
and told Avram the
Ivri,
who was living in the Plains of Mamrei the Emorite,
the brother of Eshkol and Aneir.
They were Avram's allies.
Verse 14: When Avram heard
that his kinsman was taken captive,
he armed his trained servants
who were born in his
household,
three hundred and eighteen [men],
and he pursued [them] until Dan.
Verse 15: He divided [his
men] against them at night,
he and his servants and he attacked them.
He pursued them until Chovah,
which is to the left of Damascus.
Verse 16: He brought back all the property.
His kinsman Lot and his possessions
he also brought back,
as well as the women and the people.
Verse 17: The King of Sedom went out to meet him
after his return from defeating Kedarlaomer
and the kings that
were with him,
to the Valley of Shaveh which is the King's Valley.
Verse 18: Malki Zedek, king of Shaleim,
brought out bread and wine.
He was a Kohein of
the Most High Almighty.
Verse 19: He blessed him and said:
"Blessed be Avram to the Most High, Almighty
Possessor of heaven
and earth.
Verse 20: And blessed be the Most High Almighty
Who has delivered your enemies into your hand."
[Avram] gave him a tenth of everything.
Chamishi (Fifth Aliyah)
Verse 21: The King of Sedom said to Avram:
"Give me the people,
and take the possessions for yourself."
Verse 22: Avram said to the King of Sedom:
"I have lifted my hand
to Ad-noy the Most
High Almighty,
Possessor of heaven and earth.
Verse 23: Neither a thread nor a shoelace!
I will not take anything of yours,
so you will not [be able] to say,
"I have made Avram wealthy."
Verse 24: I am excluding myself;
only what the lads have eaten,
and the portion
of the men who went with me
Aneir, Eshkol and Mamrei,
they may take their portion."
Chapter 15
Verse 1: After these events,
the word of Ad-noy came to Avram
in a vision, saying:
"Fear not Avram, I am your shield,
your reward is very great."
Verse 2: Avram said: "My Master,
G-d,
what will You give me
since I continue to be childless,
and the manager of my household
is Eliezer of Damascus."
Verse 3: And Avram said:
"Behold, You have not given me children,
and thus one of my household will be my heir.
Verse 4: Suddenly the word of Ad-noy came to him, saying:
"That one will not be your heir;
only he that will come from within your body
will be your heir."
Verse 5: He [then] took him outside and said:
"Look towards the
heavens and count the stars
if you are able to count them."
He then said to him:
"So [numerous] will your descendants be."
Verse 6: He believed in Ad-noy,
and this He accounted to him for righteousness.
Shishi (Sixth Aliyah)
Verse 7: He said to him:
"I am Ad-noy
who brought you out of Ur Kasdim,
to give to you this land
as an inheritance.
Verse 8: And he said:
"My Master, G-d,
how will I know that I will inherit it?"
Verse 9: He said to him: "Bring Me three heifers,
three goats and three rams,
a dove, and a young pigeon."
Verse 10: He brought all these to
Him;
he split them in the middle,
and placed each piece opposite the other.
The bird, however, he did not split.
Verse 11: Birds of prey [vultures]
descended
upon the carcasses,
but Avram drove them away.
Verse 12: As the sun was
setting,
a deep sleep fell upon Avram;
and behold,
a dread of deep darkness fell upon him.
Verse 13: And He [Ad-noy] said to Avram:
"Know for sure
that your descendants will be foreigners
in a land that is not
theirs.
They will enslave them and oppress them
[for] four hundred years.
Verse 14: But also that nation whom they will serve
I will judge;
afterwards they will leave with great wealth.
Verse 15: You will join
your fathers in peace;
you will be buried at a good old age.
Verse 16: The fourth generation will return here,
for the sin of the
Emorites will not be complete
until then."
Verse 17: The sun set and it became very dark;
and behold, a smoking furnace and a flaming torch
had passed between these pieces.
Verse 18: On that day
Ad-noy made a covenant with Avram, saying:
"To your descendants I have given this land,
from the river of
Egypt
as far as the great river, the Euphrates.
Verse 19: [The lands of] the Kenites, Kenizites, Kadmonites,
Verse 20: The Chittites, Perizites,
the Refa'im,
Verse 21: The Emorites, Canaanites
Girgashites and Yevusites.
Chapter 16
Verse 1: Avram's
wife Sarai
had not borne him children.
She had an Egyptian handmaid
whose name was Hagar.
Verse 2: Sarai said to Avram:
"See now,
Ad-noy has restrained me from having children;
pray, come to my handmaid
perhaps I will be built-up through her."
Avram hearkened to the voice of Sarai.
Verse 3: Sarai, the wife of Avram took
Hagar the Egyptian, her
handmaid,
at the end of ten years
that Avram had lived in the Land of Canaan
and gave her to Avram her husband to be his wife.
Verse 4: He came to Hagar and she conceived.
When she realized that she was pregnant,
her mistress became slighted in her eyes.
Verse 5: Sarai said to Avram:
"The insult against me is your fault.
I gave my maid to you
and when she saw that she had conceived,
I became slighted in her eyes.
Let Ad-noy judge between me and you."
Verse 6: Avram said to Sarai:
"[The fate of] your maid is in your hands,
do with her as you see fit."
Sarai dealt harshly with her,
and she [Hagar] ran
away from her.
Verse 7: An angel of Ad-noy found her
by a spring of water in the desert,
at the spring on the road to Shur.
Verse 8: And he said: "Hagar, handmaid of Sarai,
from where have you come and where are you going?"
She said:
"I am running away from my mistress, Sarai."
Verse 9: The angel of Ad-noy said to her:
"Return to your mistress
and submit yourself to her."
Verse 10: The angel of Ad-noy said to her:
"I will greatly multiply your descendants
that they can not be counted
because of their great number.
Verse 11: The angel of Ad-noy said to her:
"Behold you will
conceive, and give birth to a son.
You shall name him Yishmael,
for Ad-noy has heard your prayer.
Verse 12: He will be a wild, uncivilized man.
His hand [will be] against everyone
and everyone's hand will be against him;
and in the presence of all his brothers
he will dwell."
Verse 13: She called the
Name Ad-noy
Who had spoken to her:
"You are Almighty Who sees,"
for she said:
"Have I also seen here [a vestige]
after my having seen?"
Verse 14: Therefore the well was called:
"Be'er Lachai Ro'i;"
it is between Kadeish and Bared.
Verse 15: Hagar bore
Avram a son
and Avram named his son,
that Hagar bore him, Yishmael.
Verse 16: Avram was eighty-six years old
when Hagar bore Yishmael to Avram.
Chapter 17
Verse 1: When Avram was
ninety-nine years old,
Ad-noy appeared to Avram and said to him:
"I am Almighty Sh-ddai,
walk before Me and be
perfect.
Verse 2: I will give My covenant between Me and you,
and I will multiply you[r descendants] exceedingly.
Verse 3: Avram fell on his face.
El-him spoke with him,
saying:
Verse 4: "As for Me, here is My covenant with you;
you shall be the father of a multitude of nations.
Verse 5: No longer shall your name be called Avram,
but your name shall be Avraham,
for the father of a multitude of nations
I have appointed you.
Verse 6: I will make you exceedingly fruitful
and I will make you into nations;
and kings will descend
from you.
Shevi'i (Seventh Aliyah)
Verse 7: I will sustain My covenant between Me and you,
and between your descendants after you
throughout their generations as an eternal covenant,
to be a G-d to you,
and to your descendants after you.
Verse 8: I will give to you,
and to your descendants after you,
the land of your temporary residence,
all the land of Canaan as an eternal possession,
and I will be a G-d to them."
Verse 9: El-him said to Avraham:
"And as for you, you must preserve My covenant,
you and your descendants after you
throughout their generations.
Verse 10: This is My
covenant which you must preserve
between Me and you, and your descendants after you:
every male among you shall be circumcised.
Verse 11: You shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin.
This shall be the sign of the covenant
between Me and you.
Verse 12: At the age of eight days
every male among you must be circumcised,
throughout your generations;
he that is a house-born [slave]
or one that was
bought with money
from any stranger
who is not your descendant.
Verse 13: Your house-born slaves must be circumcised,
and also those bought with your money.
This shall be My covenant in your flesh
as an eternal covenant.
Verse 14: An uncircumcised male,
who will not circumsise his foreskin,
that soul shall be
cut off from its people;
he has broken My covenant."
Verse 15: And El-him said to Avraham
"[As for] Sarai your wife,
do not call her by the name Sarai,
for Sarah is her name.
Verse 16: I will bless her,
and I will also give you a son through her.
I will bless her,
and she will be [a mother] of nations,
kings of peoples will descend from her."
Verse 17: Avraham fell on his face
and laughed.
He said in his heart:
"Can a hundred year old man have children?
Shall Sarah, who is ninety years old give birth?"
Verse 18: And Avraham said
to El-him:
"May it be granted that Yishmael live before You."
Verse 19: El-him said:
"Indeed, your wife Sarah will bear you a son,
and you will name him Yitzchok.
I will establish My covenant with him
as an eternal
covenant to his descendants after him.
Verse 20: And as for Yishmael, I have heard you.
I have blessed him, and I will make him fruitful,
and will increase him exceedingly.
He will become the father of twelve princes,
and I will make him into a great nation.
Verse 21: But I will establish My covenant with Yitzchok,
who Sarah will bear to you
at this time next year."
Verse 22: And when He
finished speaking with him,
El-him ascended from Avraham.
Verse 23: Avraham took his son, Yishmael,
and all those that were born in his household,
and all that he had bought with his money,
every male member of Avraham's household,
and he circumcised the flesh of their foreskin
on that very day
as El-him had said to him.
Maftir
Verse 24: Avraham was ninety-nine years old
when he circumcised the flesh of his foreskin.
Verse 25: And his son
Yishmael was thirteen years old
when he circumcised the flesh of his foreskin.
Verse 26: On that very day
Avraham and his son Yishmael were circumcised.
Verse 27: All the men of his household,
those born in his household,
and bought with money from a stranger,
were circumcised with him.
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