AME Zion Universal Reading March 12th 2023

Sunday School Zoom Link

First Portion

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 30

11The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:12"When you take the sum of the children of Israel according to their numbers, let each one give to the Lord an atonement for his soul when they are counted; then there will be no plague among them when they are counted.13This they shall give, everyone who goes through the counting: half a shekel according to the holy shekel. Twenty gerahs equal one shekel; half of [such] a shekel shall be an offering to the Lord.14Everyone who goes through the counting, from the age of twenty and upward, shall give an offering to the Lord.15The rich shall give no more, and the poor shall give no less than half a shekel, with which to give the offering to the Lord, to atone for your souls.16You shall take the silver of the atonements from the children of Israel and use it for the work of the Tent of Meeting; it shall be a remembrance for the children of Israel before the Lord, to atone for your souls."17The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:18"You shall make a washstand of copper and its base of copper for washing, and you shall place it between the Tent of Meeting and the altar, and you shall put water therein.19Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and feet from it.20When they enter the Tent of Meeting, they shall wash with water so that they will not die; or when they approach the altar to serve, to make a fire offering rise up in smoke to the Lord,21they shall wash their hands and feet so that they will not die; this shall be for them a perpetual statute, for him and for his descendants, for their generations."22The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:23"And you, take for yourself spices of the finest sort: of pure myrrh five hundred [shekel weights]; of fragrant cinnamon half of it two hundred and fifty [shekel weights]; of fragrant cane two hundred and fifty [shekel weights],24and of cassia five hundred [shekel weights] according to the holy shekel, and one hin of olive oil.25You shall make this into an oil of holy anointment, a perfumed compound according to the art of a perfumer; it shall be an oil of holy anointment.26And you shall anoint with it the Tent of Meeting and the Ark of Testimony,27the table and all its implements, the menorah and its implements, the altar of incense,28the altar of the burnt offering and all its implements, the washstand and its base.29And you shall sanctify them so that they become a holy of holies; whatever touches them shall become holy.30And with it you shall anoint Aaron and his sons and sanctify them to serve Me [as kohanim].31And to the children of Israel you shall speak, saying: 'This shall be oil of holy anointment to Me for your generations.32It shall not be poured upon human flesh, and according to its formula you shall not make anything like it. It is holy; it shall be holy to you.33Any person who compounds anything like it or puts any of it on an alien shall be cut off from his people.' "34And the Lord said to Moses: "Take for yourself aromatics, [namely] balsam sap, onycha and galbanum, aromatics and pure frankincense; they shall be of equal weight.35And you shall make it into incense, a compound according to the art of the perfumer, well blended, pure, holy.36And you shall crush some of it very finely, and you shall set some of it before the testimony in the Tent of Meeting, where I will arrange meetings with you; it shall be to you a holy of holies.37And the incense that you make, you shall not make for yourselves according to its formula; it shall be holy to you for the Lord.38Any person who makes anything like it, to smell it[s fragrance], shall be cut off from his people.

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 31

1The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:2"See, I have called by name Bezalel the son of Uri, the son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah,3and I have imbued him with the spirit of God, with wisdom, with insight, with knowledge, and with [talent for] all manner of craftsmanship4to do master weaving, to work with gold, with silver, and with copper,5with the craft of stones for setting and with the craft of wood, to do every [manner of] work.6And, behold, with him I have placed Oholiab the son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, and all the wise hearted into whose hearts I have instilled wisdom, and they shall make everything I have commanded you:7The Tent of Meeting and the ark for the testimony, as well as the cover that [shall be] upon it, all the implements of the tent,8the table and its implements, the pure menorah and all its implements, the altar of incense,9the altar for the burnt offering and all its implements, the washstand and its base,10the meshwork garments, the holy garments for Aaron the kohen, the garments of his sons [in which] to serve [as kohanim],11the anointing oil and the incense for the Holy; in complete accordance with everything I have commanded you they shall do."12The Lord spoke to Moses, saying:13"And you, speak to the children of Israel and say: 'Only keep My Sabbaths! For it is a sign between Me and you for your generations, to know that I, the Lord, make you holy.14Therefore, keep the Sabbath, for it is a sacred thing for you. Those who desecrate it shall be put to death, for whoever performs work on it, that soul will be cut off from the midst of its people.15Six days work may be done, but on the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest, holy to the Lord; whoever performs work on the Sabbath day shall be put to death.'16Thus shall the children of Israel observe the Sabbath, to make the Sabbath throughout their generations as an everlasting covenant.17Between Me and the children of Israel, it is forever a sign that [in] six days The Lord created the heaven and the earth, and on the seventh day He ceased and rested."

Matthew 18:1–9 (NLT): The Greatest in the Kingdom

About that time the disciples came to Jesus and asked, “Who is greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven?”

2 Jesus called a little child to him and put the child among them. 3 Then he said, “I tell you the truth, unless you turn from your sins and become like little children, you will never get into the Kingdom of Heaven. 4 So anyone who becomes as humble as this little child is the greatest in the Kingdom of Heaven.

5 “And anyone who welcomes a little child like this on my behalf is welcoming me. 6 But if you cause one of these little ones who trusts in me to fall into sin, it would be better for you to have a large millstone tied around your neck and be drowned in the depths of the sea.

7 “What sorrow awaits the world, because it tempts people to sin. Temptations are inevitable, but what sorrow awaits the person who does the tempting. 8 So if your hand or foot causes you to sin, cut it off and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one hand or one foot than to be thrown into eternal fire with both of your hands and feet. 9 And if your eye causes you to sin, gouge it out and throw it away. It’s better to enter eternal life with only one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into the fire of hell.

Mark 10:15 (NLT):

15 I tell you the truth, anyone who doesn’t receive the Kingdom of God like a child will never enter it.”

Second Portion

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 31

18When He had finished speaking with him on Mount Sinai, He gave Moses the two tablets of the testimony, stone tablets, written with the finger of God.Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 321When the people saw that Moses was late in coming down from the mountain, the people gathered against Aaron, and they said to him: "Come on! Make us gods that will go before us, because this man Moses, who brought us up from the land of Egypt we don't know what has become of him."2Aaron said to them, "Remove the golden earrings that are on the ears of your wives, your sons, and your daughters and bring them [those earrings] to me."3And all the people stripped themselves of the golden earrings that were on their ears and brought them to Aaron.4He took [them] from their hand[s], fashioned it with an engraving tool, and made it into a molten calf, upon which they said: "These are your gods, O Israel, who have brought you up from the land of Egypt!"5When Aaron saw [this], he built an altar in front of it, and Aaron proclaimed and said: "Tomorrow shall be a festival to the Lord."6On the next day they arose early, offered up burnt offerings, and brought peace offerings, and the people sat down to eat and to drink, and they got up to make merry.7And the Lord said to Moses: "Go, descend, for your people that you have brought up from the land of Egypt have acted corruptly.8They have quickly turned away from the path that I have commanded them; they have made themselves a molten calf! And they have prostrated themselves before it, slaughtered sacrifices to it, and said: 'These are your gods, O Israel, who have brought you up from the land of Egypt.' "9And the Lord said to Moses: "I have seen this people and behold! they are a stiff necked people.10Now leave Me alone, and My anger will be kindled against them so that I will annihilate them, and I will make you into a great nation."11Moses pleaded before the Lord, his God, and said: "Why, O Lord, should Your anger be kindled against Your people whom You have brought up from the land of Egypt with great power and with a strong hand?12Why should the Egyptians say: 'He brought them out with evil [intent] to kill them in the mountains and to annihilate them from upon the face of the earth'? Retreat from the heat of Your anger and reconsider the evil [intended] for Your people.13Remember Abraham, Isaac, and Israel, Your servants, to whom You swore by Your very Self, and to whom You said: 'I will multiply your seed like the stars of the heavens, and all this land which I said that I would give to your seed, they shall keep it as their possession forever.' "14The Lord [then] reconsidered the evil He had said He would do to His people.15Now Moses turned and went down from the mountain [bearing] the two tablets of the testimony in his hand, tablets inscribed from both their sides; on one side and on the other side they were inscribed.16Now the tablets were God's work, and the inscription was God's inscription, engraved on the tablets.17When Joshua heard the voice of the people in their shouting, he said to Moses: "There is a voice of battle in the camp!"18But [Moses] said: "[It is] neither a voice shouting victory, nor a voice shouting defeat; a voice of blasphemy I hear."19Now it came to pass when he drew closer to the camp and saw the calf and the dances, that Moses' anger was kindled, and he flung the tablets from his hands, shattering them at the foot of the mountain.20Then he took the calf they had made, burned it in fire, ground it to fine powder, scattered [it] upon the surface of the water, and gave [it to] the children of Israel to drink.21Moses said to Aaron: "What did this people do to you that you brought [such] a grave sin upon them?"22Aaron replied: "Let not my lord's anger grow hot! You know the people, that they are disposed toward evil.23They said to me, 'Make us gods who will go before us, because this man Moses, who brought us up from the land of Egypt we do not know what has become of him.'24I said to them, 'Who has gold?' So they took it [the gold] off and gave it to me; I threw it into the fire and out came this calf."25And Moses saw the people, that they were exposed, for Aaron had exposed them to be disgraced before their adversaries.26So Moses stood in the gate of the camp and said: "Whoever is for the Lord, [let him come] to me!" And all the sons of Levi gathered around him.27He said to them: "So said the Lord, the God of Israel: 'Let every man place his sword upon his thigh and pass back and forth from one gate to the other in the camp, and let every man kill his brother, every man his friend, every man his kinsman.' "28The sons of Levi did according to Moses' word; on that day some three thousand men fell from among the people.29And Moses said: "Initiate yourselves today for the Lord for each man with his son and with his brother so that He may bestow a blessing upon you this day. "30It came to pass on the next day that Moses said to the people: "You have committed a grave sin. And now I will go up to the Lord; perhaps I will obtain atonement for your sin."31And Moses returned to the Lord and said: "Please! This people has committed a grave sin. They have made themselves a god of gold.32And now, if You forgive their sin But if not, erase me now from Your book, which You have written."33And the Lord said to Moses: "Whoever has sinned against Me, him I will erase from My book!"34And now go, lead the people to [the place] of which I have spoken to you. Behold My angel will go before you. But on the day I make an accounting [of sins upon them], I will bring their sin to account against them."35Then the Lord struck the people with a plague, because they had made the calf that Aaron had made.Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 331The Lord spoke to Moses: "Go, ascend from here, you and the people you have brought up from the land of Egypt, to the land that I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, saying: 'I will give it to your descendants.'2I will send an angel before you, and I will drive out the Canaanites, the Amorites, the Hittites, the Perizzites, the Hivvites, and the Jebusites3to a land flowing with milk and honey; because I will not go up in your midst since you are a stiff necked people, lest I destroy you on the way."4[When] the people heard this bad news, they mourned, and no one put on his finery.5And the Lord said to Moses: "Say to the children of Israel: 'You are a stiff necked people; if I go up into your midst for one moment, I will destroy you; but now, leave off your finery, and I will know what to do to you.' "6So the children of Israel divested themselves of their finery from Mount Horeb.7And Moses took the tent and pitched it for himself outside the camp, distancing [it] from the camp, and he called it the tent of meeting, and it would be that anyone seeking the Lord would go out to the tent of meeting, which was outside the camp.8And it would be that when Moses would go out to the tent, all the people would rise and stand, each one at the entrance of his tent, and they would gaze after Moses until he went into the tent.9And it would be that when Moses entered the tent, the pillar of cloud would descend and stand at the entrance of the tent, and He would speak with Moses.10When all the people would see the pillar of cloud standing at the entrance of the tent, all the people would rise and prostrate themselves, each one at the entrance of his tent.11Then the Lord would speak to Moses face to face, as a man would speak to his companion, and he would return to the camp, but his attendant, Joshua, the son of Nun, a lad, would not depart from the tent.

Monday

Matthew 15:21–28 (NLT): The Faith of a Gentile Woman

21 Then Jesus left Galilee and went north to the region of Tyre and Sidon. 22 A Gentile woman who lived there came to him, pleading, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David! For my daughter is possessed by a demon that torments her severely.”

23 But Jesus gave her no reply, not even a word. Then his disciples urged him to send her away. “Tell her to go away,” they said. “She is bothering us with all her begging.”

24 Then Jesus said to the woman, “I was sent only to help God’s lost sheep—the people of Israel.”

25 But she came and worshiped him, pleading again, “Lord, help me!”

26 Jesus responded, “It isn’t right to take food from the children and throw it to the dogs.”

27 She replied, “That’s true, Lord, but even dogs are allowed to eat the scraps that fall beneath their masters’ table.”

28 “Dear woman,” Jesus said to her, “your faith is great. Your request is granted.” And her daughter was instantly healed.

Third Portion

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 33

12Moses said to the Lord: "Look, You say to me: 'Bring this people up!' But You have not informed me whom You will send with me. And You said: 'I have known you by name and you have also found favor in My eyes.'13And now, if I have indeed found favor in Your eyes, pray let me know Your ways, so that I may know You, so that I may find favor in Your eyes; and consider that this nation is Your people."14So He said, "My Presence will go, and I will give you rest."15And he said to Him, "If Your Presence does not go [with us], do not take us up from here.16For how then will it be known that I have found favor in Your eyes, I and Your people? Is it not in that You will go with us? Then I and Your people will be distinguished from every [other] nation on the face of the earth."

Tuesday

Matthew 19:13–22 (NLT): Jesus Blesses the Children

13 One day some parents brought their children to Jesus so he could lay his hands on them and pray for them. But the disciples scolded the parents for bothering him.

14 But Jesus said, “Let the children come to me. Don’t stop them! For the Kingdom of Heaven belongs to those who are like these children.” 15 And he placed his hands on their heads and blessed them before he left.

The Rich Man

16 Someone came to Jesus with this question: “Teacher, what good deed must I do to have eternal life?”

17 “Why ask me about what is good?” Jesus replied. “There is only One who is good. But to answer your question—if you want to receive eternal life, keep the commandments.”

18 “Which ones?” the man asked.

And Jesus replied: “ ‘You must not murder. You must not commit adultery. You must not steal. You must not testify falsely. 19 Honor your father and mother. Love your neighbor as yourself.’”

20 “I’ve obeyed all these commandments,” the young man replied. “What else must I do?”

21 Jesus told him, “If you want to be perfect, go and sell all your possessions and give the money to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow me.”

22 But when the young man heard this, he went away sad, for he had many possessions.

Fourth Portion

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 33

17And the Lord said to Moses: "Even this thing that you have spoken, I will do, for you have found favor in My eyes, and I have known you by name."18And he said: "Show me, now, Your glory!"19He said: "I will let all My goodness pass before you; I will proclaim the name of the Lord before you, and I will favor when I wish to favor, and I will have compassion when I wish to have compassion."20And He said, "You will not be able to see My face, for man shall not see Me and live."21And the Lord said: "Behold, there is a place with Me, and you shall stand on the rock.22And it shall be that when My glory passes by, I will place you into the cleft of the rock, and I will cover you with My hand until I have passed by.23Then I will remove My hand, and you will see My back but My face shall not be seen."

Wednesday

Proverbs 1:7–16 (NLT):

7 Fear of the Lord is the foundation of true knowledge,

but fools despise wisdom and discipline.

A Father’s Exhortation: Acquire Wisdom

8 My child, listen when your father corrects you.

Don’t neglect your mother’s instruction.

9 What you learn from them will crown you with grace

and be a chain of honor around your neck.

10 My child, if sinners entice you,

turn your back on them!

11 They may say, “Come and join us.

Let’s hide and kill someone!

Just for fun, let’s ambush the innocent!

12 Let’s swallow them alive, like the grave;

let’s swallow them whole, like those who go down to the pit of death.

13 Think of the great things we’ll get!

We’ll fill our houses with all the stuff we take.

14 Come, throw in your lot with us;

we’ll all share the loot.”

15 My child, don’t go along with them!

Stay far away from their paths.

16 They rush to commit evil deeds.

They hurry to commit murder.

Fifth Portion

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 34

1And the Lord said to Moses: "Hew for yourself two stone tablets like the first ones. And I will inscribe upon the tablets the words that were on the first tablets, which you broke.2Be prepared for the morning, and in the morning you shall ascend Mount Sinai and stand before Me there on the top of the mountain.3No one shall ascend with you, neither shall anyone be seen anywhere on the mountain, neither shall the sheep and the cattle graze facing that mountain."4So he [Moses] hewed two stone tablets like the first ones, and Moses arose early in the morning and ascended Mount Sinai as the Lord had commanded him, and he took two stone tablets in his hand.5And the Lord descended in the cloud and stood with him there, and He called out in the name of the Lord.6And the Lord passed before him and proclaimed: Lord, Lord, benevolent God, Who is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abundant in loving kindness and truth,7preserving loving kindness for thousands, forgiving iniquity and rebellion and sin; yet He does not completely clear [of sin] He visits the iniquity of parents on children and children's children, to the third and fourth generations."8And Moses hastened, bowed his head to the ground and prostrated himself,9and said: "If I have now found favor in Your eyes, O Lord, let the Lord go now in our midst [even] if they are a stiff necked people, and You shall forgive our iniquity and our sin and thus secure us as Your possession."

Thursday

Deuteronomy 4:7–14 (NLT):

7 For what great nation has a god as near to them as the Lord our God is near to us whenever we call on him? 8 And what great nation has decrees and regulations as righteous and fair as this body of instructions that I am giving you today?

9 “But watch out! Be careful never to forget what you yourself have seen. Do not let these memories escape from your mind as long as you live! And be sure to pass them on to your children and grandchildren. 10 Never forget the day when you stood before the Lord your God at Mount Sinai, where he told me, ‘Summon the people before me, and I will personally instruct them. Then they will learn to fear me as long as they live, and they will teach their children to fear me also.’

11 “You came near and stood at the foot of the mountain, while flames from the mountain shot into the sky. The mountain was shrouded in black clouds and deep darkness. 12 And the Lord spoke to you from the heart of the fire. You heard the sound of his words but didn’t see his form; there was only a voice. 13 He proclaimed his covenant—the Ten Commandments—which he commanded you to keep, and which he wrote on two stone tablets. 14 It was at that time that the Lord commanded me to teach you his decrees and regulations so you would obey them in the land you are about to enter and occupy.

Sixth Portion

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 34

10And He said: "Behold! I will form a covenant; in the presence of all your people, I will make distinctions such as have not been created upon all the earth and among all the nations, and all the people in whose midst you are shall see the work of the Lord how awe inspiring it is that which I will perform with you.11Keep carefully what I am commanding you today: Lo! I will drive out from before you the Amorites and the Canaanites, the Hittites and the Perizzites, the Hivvites and the Jebusites.12Beware lest you form a covenant with the inhabitant[s] of the land into which you are coming, lest it become a snare in your midst.13But you shall demolish their altars, shatter their monuments, and cut down their sacred trees.14For you shall not prostrate yourself before another god, because the Lord, Whose Name is "Jealous One," is a jealous God.15Lest you form a covenant with the inhabitant[s] of the land, and they [the gentiles] go astray after their gods, and they offer sacrifices to their gods, and they invite you, and you eat of their slaughtering,16and you take of their daughters for your sons; then their daughters will go astray after their gods and lead your sons astray after their gods.17You shall not make molten gods for yourself.18The Festival of Unleavened Cakes you shall keep; seven days you shall eat unleavened cakes which I have commanded you, at the appointed meeting time of the month of spring, for in the month of spring you went out of Egypt.19All that opens the womb is Mine, and all your livestock [that] bears a male, [by] the emergence of ox or lamb.20And a firstborn donkey you shall redeem with a lamb; if you do not redeem it, you shall decapitate it; every firstborn of your sons you shall redeem, and they shall not appear before Me empty handed.21Six days you may work, and on the seventh day you shall rest; in plowing and in harvest you shall rest.22And you shall make for yourself a Festival of Weeks, the first of the wheat harvest, and the festival of the ingathering, at the turn of the year.23Three times during the year shall all your male[s] appear directly before the Master, the Lord, the God of Israel.24When I drive out nations from before you and I widen your border, no one will covet your land when you go up, to appear before the Lord, your God, three times each year.25You shall not slaughter [or sprinkle] the blood of My sacrifice with leaven, and the offering of the Passover feast shall not remain overnight until the morning.26The choicest of the first of your soil you shall bring to the house of the Lord, your God. You shall not cook a kid in its mother's milk."

Friday

Jeremiah 1:1–10 (NLT):

These are the words of Jeremiah son of Hilkiah, one of the priests from the town of Anathoth in the land of Benjamin. 2 The Lord first gave messages to Jeremiah during the thirteenth year of the reign of Josiah son of Amon, king of Judah. 3 The Lord’s messages continued throughout the reign of King Jehoiakim, Josiah’s son, until the eleventh year of the reign of King Zedekiah, another of Josiah’s sons. In August of that eleventh year the people of Jerusalem were taken away as captives.

Jeremiah’s Call and First Visions

4 The Lord gave me this message:

5 “I knew you before I formed you in your mother’s womb.

Before you were born I set you apart

and appointed you as my prophet to the nations.”

6 “O Sovereign Lord,” I said, “I can’t speak for you! I’m too young!”

7 The Lord replied, “Don’t say, ‘I’m too young,’ for you must go wherever I send you and say whatever I tell you. 8 And don’t be afraid of the people, for I will be with you and will protect you. I, the Lord, have spoken!” 9 Then the Lord reached out and touched my mouth and said,

“Look, I have put my words in your mouth!

10 Today I appoint you to stand up

against nations and kingdoms.

Some you must uproot and tear down,

destroy and overthrow.

Others you must build up

and plant.”

Seventh Portion

Shemot (Exodus) Chapter 34

27The Lord said to Moses: "Inscribe these words for yourself, for according to these words I have formed a covenant with you and with Israel."28He was there with the Lord for forty days and forty nights; he ate no bread and drank no water, and He inscribed upon the tablets the words of the Covenant, the Ten Commandments.29And it came to pass when Moses descended from Mount Sinai, and the two tablets of the testimony were in Moses' hand when he descended from the mountain and Moses did not know that the skin of his face had become radiant while He had spoken with him30that Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses and behold! the skin of his face had become radiant, and they were afraid to come near him.31But Moses called to them, and Aaron and all the princes of the community returned to him, and Moses would speak to them.32Afterwards all the children of Israel would draw near, and he would command them everything that the Lord had spoken with him on Mount Sinai.33When Moses had finished speaking with them, he placed a covering over his face.34When Moses would come before the Lord to speak with Him, he would remove the covering until he left; then he would leave and speak to the children of Israel what he would be commanded.35Then the children of Israel would see Moses' face, that the skin of Moses' face had become radiant, and [then] Moses would replace the covering over his face until he would come [again] to speak with Him.

Saturday

Matthew 21:12–17 (NLT): Jesus Clears the Temple

12 Jesus entered the Temple and began to drive out all the people buying and selling animals for sacrifice. He knocked over the tables of the money changers and the chairs of those selling doves. 13 He said to them, “The Scriptures declare, ‘My Temple will be called a house of prayer,’ but you have turned it into a den of thieves!”

14 The blind and the lame came to him in the Temple, and he healed them. 15 The leading priests and the teachers of religious law saw these wonderful miracles and heard even the children in the Temple shouting, “Praise God for the Son of David.”

But the leaders were indignant. 16 They asked Jesus, “Do you hear what these children are saying?”

“Yes,” Jesus replied. “Haven’t you ever read the Scriptures? For they say, ‘You have taught children and infants to give you praise.’” 17 Then he returned to Bethany, where he stayed overnight.

Maftir Portion

Bamidbar (Numbers) Chapter 19

1The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:2This is the statute of the Torah which the Lord commanded, saying, Speak to the children of Israel and have them take for you a perfectly red unblemished cow, upon which no yoke was laid.3And you shall give it to Eleazar the kohen, and he shall take it outside the camp and slaughter it in his presence.4Eleazar the kohen shall take from its blood with his finger and sprinkle it toward the front of the Tent of Meeting seven times.5The cow shall then be burned in his presence; its hide, its flesh, its blood, with its dung he shall burn it.6The kohen shall take a piece of cedar wood, hyssop, and crimson wool, and cast them into the burning of the cow.7The kohen shall wash his garments and bathe his flesh in water, and then he may enter the camp, and the kohen shall be unclean until evening.8The one who burns it shall wash his clothes in water and cleanse his body in water, and he shall be unclean until evening.9A ritually clean person shall gather the cow's ashes and place them outside the camp in a clean place, and It shall be as a keepsake for the congregation of the children of Israel for sprinkling water, [used] for cleansing.10The one who gathers the cow's ashes shall wash his clothes, and he shall be unclean until evening. It shall be an everlasting statute for the children of Israel and for the proselyte who resides in their midst.11Anyone touching the corpse of a human soul shall become unclean for seven days.12On the third and seventh days, he shall cleanse himself with it, so that he can become clean. But if he does not sprinkle himself with it on the third and seventh days, he shall not become clean.13Whoever touches the corpse of a human soul which dies, and he does not cleanse himself, he has defiled the Mishkan of the Lord, and that soul shall be cut off from Israel. For the sprinkling water was not sprinkled on him, so he remains unclean, and his uncleanness remains upon him.14This is the law: if a man dies in a tent, anyone entering the tent and anything in the tent shall be unclean for seven days.15Any open vessel which has no seal fastened around it becomes unclean.16Anyone who touches one slain by the sword, or a corpse, or a human bone or a grave, in an open field, he shall be unclean for seven days.17They shall take for that unclean person from the ashes of the burnt purification offering, and it shall be placed in a vessel [filled] with spring water.18A ritually clean person shall take the hyssop and dip it into the water and sprinkle it on the tent, on all the vessels, and on the people who were in it, and on anyone who touched the bone, the slain person, the corpse, or the grave.19The ritually clean person shall sprinkle on the unclean person on the third day and on the seventh day, and he shall cleanse him on the seventh day, and he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water, and he shall become ritually clean in the evening.20If a person becomes unclean and does not cleanse himself, that soul shall be cut off from the congregation, for he has defiled the Sanctuary of the Lord; the sprinkling waters were not sprinkled upon him. He is unclean.21This shall be for them as a perpetual statute, and the one who sprinkles the sprinkling waters shall wash his clothes, and one who touches the sprinkling waters shall be unclean until evening.22Whatever the unclean one touches shall become unclean, and anyone touching him shall be unclean until evening.

Haftarah

Yechezkel (Ezekiel) Chapter 36

16And the word of the Lord came to me, saying:17"Son of man! The house of Israel, as long as they lived on their own land, they defiled it by their way and by their misdeeds, like the uncleanness of a woman in the period of her separation was their way before Me.18Wherefore I poured My wrath upon them for the blood that they had shed in the land, because they had defiled it with their idols.19And I scattered them among the nations, and they were dispersed through the countries. According to their way and their misdeeds did I judge them.20And they entered the nations where they came, and they profaned My Holy Name, inasmuch as it was said of them, 'These are the people of the Lord, and they have come out of His land.'21But I had pity on My Holy Name, which the house of Israel had profaned among the nations to which they had come.22Therefore, say to the house of Israel; So says the Lord God: Not for your sake do I do this, O house of Israel, but for My Holy Name, which you have profaned among the nations to which they have come.23And I will sanctify My great Name, which was profaned among the nations, which you have profaned in their midst; and the nations shall know that I am the Lord-is the declaration of the Lord God-when I will be sanctified through you before their eyes.24For I will take you from among the nations and gather you from all the countries, and I will bring you to your land.25And I will sprinkle clean water upon you, and you will be clean; from all your impurities and from all your abominations will I cleanse you.26And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit will I put within you, and I will take away the heart of stone out of your flesh, and I will give you a heart of flesh.27And I will put My spirit within you and bring it about that you will walk in My statutes and you will keep My ordinances and do [them].28Then will you dwell in the land that I gave your fathers, and you will be a people to Me, and I will be to you as a God.29And I will save you from all your uncleannesses, and I will call to the corn and will multiply it, and I will not decree famine again over you.30And I will multiply the fruit of the tree and the produce of the field, so that you shall no more have to accept the shame of famine among the nations.31And you shall remember your evil ways and your deeds that were not good, and you will loathe yourselves in your own eyes on account of your sins and on account of your abominations.32Not for your sake do I do it, says the Lord God, may it be known to you; be ashamed and confounded for your ways, O house of Israel.33So says the Lord God: On the day that I will have cleansed you from all your iniquities, and I will resettle the cities, and the ruins shall be built up.34And the desolate land shall be worked, instead of its lying desolate in the sight of all that pass by.35And they shall say, 'This land that was desolate has become like the Garden of Eden, and the cities that were destroyed and desolate and pulled down have become settled as fortified [cities].'36And the nations that are left round about you shall know that I, the Lord, have built up the ruined places and have planted the desolate ones; I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will perform [it].