Parashat Mishpatim: In This Week's Parashah

Illustration Credit: Elad Lifshitz, Dov Abramson Studio

In This Week’s Parashah: מָה בַּפָּרָשָׁה

Full Parashah Reading: Shemot 21:1-24:18

This parashah contains many laws dealing with work, money, property, and courts of law. For example, what happens when something that belongs to you causes damage to others? What if you borrow something, and the thing you borrowed gets broken or stolen?
The Torah emphasizes not to take advantage of גֵּרִים (gerim, strangers), since we, too, were gerim in מִצְרַיִם (Mitzrayim, Egypt). Widows, orphans, and people who are poor must be treated with compassion.
Another principle is to help people even when you don’t want to. If you see someone who had been your “enemy” struggling with something, you still have to help them.
The seventh year will be a שְׁמִיטָה (shemittah, year of release), when farmers should not work their land. People who are poor may gather and eat whatever grows in the fields.
בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל (Benei Yisrael, the Israelites) will celebrate Pesah, Shavuot, and Sukkot at the בֵּית הַמִּקְדָּשׁ (Beit Ha-Mikdash, Temple in Jerusalem).
The story flips back to הַר סִינַי (Har Sinai, Mount Sinai), where Benei Yisrael receive the Torah. They agree to observe it, saying נַעֲשֶׂה וְנִשְׁמָע (na’aseh ve-nishma, we will do and we will listen).
God appears in fire on Har Sinai. Moshe climbs the mountain, and stays there for 40 days and 40 nights.

Aliyah #1 (Shemot 21:1-19)

Aliyah #3 (Shemot 22:4-26)

Aliyah #5 (Shemot 23:6-19)

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