Ki Tavo
Deuteronomy 26:1 – 29:8
Upon entering the Land, the Israelite must bring first fruits to the Temple and recite a declaration beginning 'My father was a wandering Aramean' — a capsule history from Jacob's descent to Egypt through the Exodus. The parasha then describes the ceremony at Mounts Gerizim and Ebal, where the tribes pronounce blessings and curses. The Tochachah (Rebuke) of Deuteronomy follows — a harrowing prophecy of the consequences of disobedience that is even more severe than Leviticus's warnings, foretelling siege, starvation, exile, and dispersion among the nations. Moses concludes by reminding the people that despite forty years of miracles, 'Hashem has not given you a heart to understand or eyes to see or ears to hear until this day.'
Key figures
- Moses — Prescribes the first-fruits ceremony and delivers the Tochachah
- The Levites — Pronounce the curses on Mount Ebal
Famous verses
- 26:5 And you shall speak and say before Hashem your God: "Laban the Aramean sought to destroy my father, and he went down into Egypt, and sojourned there, few in number; and he became there a nation, great, mighty, and populous.
- 29:3 but Hashem has not given you a heart to know, and eyes to see, and ears to hear, to this day.
- 28:9 Hashem will establish you for a holy people to Himself, as He has sworn to you; if you shall keep the commandments of Hashem your God, and walk in His ways.
Haftarah: {'ref': 'Isaiah 60:1-22', 'connection': "The sixth Haftarah of consolation; Isaiah proclaims 'Arise, shine, for your light has come' — a vision of Jerusalem's restoration and glory that counterbalances the devastating curses of the Tochachah."}
Total gematria 482,040 is divisible by 26, the value of the divine name (Hashem).