The Mitzvah of Hakhel (Gathering)

(10) And Moses commanded them, saying: ‘At the end of every seven years, in the set time of the year of release, in the feast of tabernacles, (11) when all Israel is come to appear before the LORD thy God in the place which He shall choose, thou shalt read this law before all Israel in their hearing. (12) Assemble the people, the men and the women and the little ones, and thy stranger that is within thy gates, that they may hear, and that they may learn, and fear the LORD your God, and observe to do all the words of this law; (13) and that their children, who have not known, may hear, and learn to fear the LORD your God, as long as ye live in the land whither ye go over the Jordan to possess it.’

(8) The portion read by the king: How so? At the conclusion of the first day of the festival (Sukkot) in the eighth [year], at the end of the seventh year, they made a wooden platform in the Temple court, and he sits upon it, as it is said, “At the end of seven years, in the set time” etc (Deuteronomy 31:10). The sexton takes a Torah scroll and passes it to the head of the synagogue, the head of the synagogue passes it to the deputy, who passes it to the high priest, and the high priest passes it to the king and the king stands and receives it, but reads it while sitting. King Agrippa stood and received it and read standing, and the sages praised him. When he reached, “You shall not place a foreigner over you” (ibid 17:15) his eyes ran with tears. They said to him, “Fear not, Agrippas, you are our brother, you are our brother, you are our brother!” He reads from the beginning of “These are the words” (ibid 1:1) until the Shema (ibid 6:4-9), and the Shema, and “It will come to pass if you hear” (ibid 11:13-21), and “You shall surely tithe” (ibid 14:22-29), and “When you have finished tithing” (ibid 26:12-15) and the portion of the king (ibid 17:14-20) and the blessings and curses (ibid 28), until he finishes all the section. The blessings that the high priest blesses, the king recites, except that he substitutes one for the festivals instead of one for the pardon of sin.

(1) The men: to learn.

(2) and the women: to listen.

(3) and the taf (youngsters): Why should he come? To give reward to those that bring them."

(1) That they may hear, and that they may learn: [refers to] the men and the women, since [the women] also learn to fear God. And their children, who have not known, may hear, and learn (verse 13): Those are the taf ("the little ones" referred to in verse 12), as they will hear and inquire and the fathers will [help them understand] and teach them. As these taf are not suckling babes, but [rather] they are those of few years that are close to being [old enough to be] educated. And this is the explanation of "and learn to fear" - that it is in the future, as above [concerning the men and the women] it states, "and they will learn and fear" [immediately as they learn]. But our rabbis said (Hagigah 3), "'the men' to learn 'and the women' to listen 'and the taf,' why should he come? To give reward to those that bring them."

(1) למען ישמעו, in order that the wise men in the congregation would understand.

(2) ולמען ילמדו, and in order that the less intelligent members of the people would learn it from them.

(3) ויראו את ה' אלוקיכם, once they have understood the greatness of Torah they will automatically revere and be in awe of its author, G’d, whose supreme intelligence they will admire.

(2) and your stranger: Maybe he will convert to Judaism. And when they hear, the one who is not wise and the small children will ask and learn.

(1) It is a positive commandment to assemble all of Israel - men, women and youngsters - at the end of every sabbatical year, when they come up for the pilgrimage [on Sukkot], and to read sections from the Torah in their ears; sections which enthuse them about the commandments and strengthen them in the true religion. As it is stated (Deuteronomy 31:10-12), "At the end of seven years at the time of the sabbatical year on the festival of Sukkot. When all of Israel come to appear, etc... Assemble all of the people, the men, the women and the youngsters and your stranger that is in your gates, etc."

(2) Anyone who is exempt from appearing [on the holiday] is exempt from the commandment of hakhel (assembly), except for the women and the youngsters and the uncircumcised [who are obligated]. But the impure are exempt from the commandment of hakhel, as it is stated (Ibid.), "When all of Israel come" - and this one is not fitting to come. And it is a clear matter that those of indeterminate sex and the hermaphrodites are obligated [in the commandment], since, behold, the women are obligated.

(3) When would they read? At the end of the first-day holiday of the festival of Sukkot, which is the beginning of [the festival's] intermediate days, on the eight year [of the sabbatical cycle]. And the king would be the one to read in their ears, and they would read in the women's courtyard. And he would read while sitting, but if he read while standing, behold, this is praiseworthy. From where would he read? He would read from the beginning of the [book] of Deuteronomy until the end of the Shema section (6:9) and skip to "Vehaya eem shamoa, etc." (11:13) and [then] skip to "aser te-aser" (14:22) and read from "aser te-aser" in order, until the end of the blessings and curses - until "beside the covenant which He made with them at Horev"(28:69) and stop.

(4) How would he read? They would blow trumpets in all of Jerusalem in order to assemble the people and bring a large pedestal and it was [made] of wood. And they would place it in the middle of the women's courtyard and the king would go up and sit upon it so that they could hear his reading, and all of Israel that would go up [on the festival pilgrimage] would gather around him. And the sexton of the [Temple] synagogue would take the Torah scroll and give it to the head of the synagogue, and the head of the synagogue would give it to the Assistant [High Priest], and the Assistant to the High Priest, and the High Priest to the king, in order to enhance it with the multitude of people [involved]. And the king would receive it while standing and, if he wanted, he would [then] sit, and [then he would] open and see [it] and bless in the way that every reader would bless in a synagogue. And he would read the sections that we stated, until he finishes and rolls [it] and blesses after it, in the way that we bless in synagogues. And he adds seven [other] blessings and these are them: Accept, Lord our God, Your people Israel, etc.; We thank You, etc.; You have chosen us from all of the nations, etc. until, Who has sanctified Israel and the [special] times - in the way that we bless in prayer, behold these are three blessings according to their [usual] structure; the fourth is [that] he prays for the Temple, that it should stand, and concludes it, "Blessed are You, Lord, Who dwells in Zion;" the fifth is [that] he prays for Israel, that their kingdom should stand, and concludes it, "Who chooses Israel;" the sixth is [that] he prays for the priests, that the Power should accept their service, and concludes it, "Blessed are You, Lord, Who sanctifies the priests; the seventh is that he supplicates and prays within it according to what he can, and concludes it, "Save, Lord, Your people, Israel, since Your people needs to be saved, Blessed are You, Lord, Who hears prayer."

(5) The reading and the blessings should be in the Holy Tongue, as it is stated (Deuteronomy 31:11), "and you shall read this Torah." [Implying that it be] in its language, even though there are those that speak [other] languages present.

(6) And converts who do not recognize that they are obligated to direct their hearts and to attune their ears to hear with fear and reverence and joy trembling like the day on which [Torah] was given at Sinai. Even great sages that know the Torah completely are obligated to listen with exceptionally great concentration. And one who is unable to listen should direct his heart to the reading, that Scripture is established to strengthen true faith. And he should see himself as if now he is commanded and from God he heard it, that the king is an agent to cause the words of God to be heard.

(7) When the day of hakhel falls out on Shabbat, we push it off to after Shabbat, because of the blowing of trumpets and supplications, which do not preempt the Shabbat. We have finished the laws of the holiday offering, with Heaven's help.