Parashah 43: Masa‘ei (Stages) 33:1–36:13

[In regular years read with Parashah 42, in leap years read separately]

33 These are the stages in the journey of the people of Isra’el as they left the land of Egypt divided into groups under the leadership of Moshe and Aharon. ² Moshe recorded each of the stages of their journey by order of Adonai ; here are the starting-points of each stage:

³ They began their journey from Ram’ses in the first month. On the fifteenth day of the first month, the morning after the Pesach, the people of Isra’el left proudly in view of all the Egyptians; ⁴ while the Egyptians were burying those among them whom Adonai had killed, all their firstborn; Adonai had also executed judgment on their gods. ⁵ The people of Isra’el moved on from Ram’ses and camped at Sukkot.

⁶ They moved on from Sukkot and camped at Etam, by the edge of the desert. ⁷ They moved on from Etam and turned back to Pi-Hachirot, in front of Ba‘al-Tz’fon, and camped before Migdol. ⁸ They moved on from P’nei-Hachirot, passed through the sea to the desert, continued three days’ journey into the Etam Desert and camped at Marah. ⁹ They moved on from Marah and came to Eilim; in Eilim were twelve springs and seventy palm trees, so they camped there. ¹⁰ They moved on from Eilim and camped by the Sea of Suf.

(LY: ii) ¹¹ They moved on from the Sea of Suf and camped in the Seen Desert. ¹² They moved on from the Seen Desert and camped at Dofkah. ¹³ They moved on from Dofkah and camped at Alush. ¹⁴ They moved on from Alush and camped at Refidim, where there was no water for the people to drink. ¹⁵ They moved on from Refidim and camped in the Sinai Desert. ¹⁶ They moved on from the Sinai Desert and camped at Kivrot-HaTa’avah. ¹⁷ They moved on from Kivrot-HaTa’avah and camped in Hatzerot. ¹⁸ They moved on from Hatzerot and camped at Ritmah. ¹⁹ They moved on from Ritmah and camped at Rimmon-Peretz. ²⁰ They moved on from Rimmon-Peretz and camped at Livnah. ²¹ They moved on from Livnah and camped at Rissah. ²² They moved on from Rissah and camped at K’helah. ²³ They moved on from K’helah and camped at Mount Shefer. ²⁴ They moved on from Mount Shefer and camped at Haradah. ²⁵ They moved on from Haradah and camped at Mak’helot. ²⁶ They moved on from Mak’helot and camped at Tachat. ²⁷ They moved on from Tachat and camped at Terach. ²⁸ They moved on from Terach and camped at Mitkah. ²⁹ They moved on from Mitkah and camped at HaShmonah. ³⁰ They moved on from HaShmonah and camped at Moserot. ³¹ They moved on from Moserot and camped at B’nei-Ya‘akan. ³² They moved on from B’nei-Ya‘akan and camped at Hor-HaGidgad. ³³ They moved on from Hor-HaGidgad and camped at Yotvatah. ³⁴ They moved on from Yotvatah and camped at Avronah. ³⁵ They moved on from Avronah and camped at ‘Etzyon-Gever. ³⁶ They moved on from ‘Etzyon-Gever and camped in the Tzin Desert, that is, Kadesh.

³⁷ They moved on from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor, at the border of the land of Edom. ³⁸ At Adonai’s order Aharon the cohen went up on Mount Hor, and he died there on the first day of the fifth month of the fortieth year after the people of Isra’el had left the land of Egypt. ³⁹ Aharon was 123 years old when he died on Mount Hor. ⁴⁰ The Kena‘ani king of ‘Arad, who lived in the Negev in the land of Kena‘an, had heard that the people of Isra’el were coming; ⁴¹ so they moved on from Mount Hor and camped at Tzalmonah.

⁴² They moved on from Tzalmonah and camped at Punon. ⁴³ They moved on from Punon and camped at Ovot. ⁴⁴ They moved on from Ovot and camped ‘Iyei-Ha‘Avarim, at the border of Mo’av. ⁴⁵ They moved on from ‘Iyim and camped at Divon-Gad. ⁴⁶ They moved on from Divon-Gad and camped at ‘Almon-Divlatayim. ⁴⁷ They moved on from Almon-Divlatayim and camped in the ‘Avarim Range, in front of N’vo. ⁴⁸ They moved on from the ‘Avarim Range and camped in the plains of Mo’av by the Yarden, across from Yericho. ⁴⁹ Their camp by the Yarden extended from Beit-HaYeshimot all the way to Avel-HaSheetim in the plains of Mo’av.

(RY: v; LY: iii) ⁵⁰ Adonai spoke to Moshe in the plains of Mo’av by the Yarden, across from Yericho. He said ⁵¹ to tell the people of Isra’el, “When you cross the Yarden into the land of Kena‘an, ⁵² you are to expel all the people living in the land from in front of you. Destroy all their stone figures, destroy all their metal statues and demolish all their high places. ⁵³ Drive out the inhabitants of the land, and live in it, for I have given the land to you to possess. ⁵⁴ You will inherit the land by lot according to your families. You are to give more land to the larger families and less to the smaller ones. Wherever the lot falls to any particular person, that will be his property. You will inherit according to the tribes of your ancestors. ⁵⁵ But if you don’t drive out the inhabitants of the land from in front of you, then those you allow to remain will become like thorns in your eyes and stings in your sides — they will harass you in the land where you are living. ⁵⁶ And in this event, I will do to you what I intended to do to them.”