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Parasha Overview: Ki Tisa (Videos)

Weekly Sidra: Ki Tisa (when you lift up) Torah Portion: Shemot / Exodus 30:1-34:35 Haftorah: Melachim Alef / Kings I 18:1-39 Ki Tisa (כי תשא), the twenty-first reading from the Torah, literally means “when you lift up.” It comes from the first words of the second verse of the reading, which could be literally rendered, “When you lift up the head of the sons of Israel to reckon them” (Shemot / Exodus 30:12). The phrase “lift up the head” is an idiom for taking a head count. The portion begins with instructions for taking a census, finishes up the instructions for making the Mishkan / Tabernacle, reiterates the commandment of Shabbat and then proceeds to tell the story of the egel hazahav / golden calf. The majority of Ki Tisa is concerned with the sin of the golden calf, the breach in the covenant between God and Israel, and how Moshe [...]