The 42 journeys and encampments of the Israelites in the desert are listed, the boundaries of the Promised Land are described, and the laws of the cities of refuge—safe havens for inadvertent murderers—are explained. The five daughters of Tzelafchad, who successfully petitioned to inherit their father in the absence of male heirs, marry within their own tribe so that their father’s inheritance doesn’t end up as the property of another tribe.

MaseiBamidbar (numbers)
“These are the journeys of the Israelites who left Egypt, organized by their troops, under the leadership of Moses and Aaron.”
Read the full text
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאֵתָם וַיָּשׇׁב עַל־פִּי הַחִירֹת אֲשֶׁר עַל־פְּנֵי בַּעַל צְפוֹן וַיַּחֲנוּ לִפְנֵי מִגְדֹּל׃
They journeyed from Eitam and returned to Pi HaChirot, which faces Ba’al Tzefon, and camped before Migdol.
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאֵילִם וַיַּחֲנוּ עַל־יַם־סוּף׃
They journeyed from Eilim and camped by the Sea of Reeds.
וַיִּסְעוּ מִיַּם־סוּף וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּמִדְבַּר־סִין׃
They journeyed from the Sea of Reeds and camped in the Sin desert.
וַיִּסְעוּ מִמִּדְבַּר־סִין וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּדׇפְקָה׃
They journeyed from the Sin desert and camped at Dofkah.
וַיִּסְעוּ מִדׇּפְקָה וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּאָלוּשׁ׃
They journeyed from Dofkah and camped at Alush.
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאָלוּשׁ וַיַּחֲנוּ בִּרְפִידִם וְלֹא־הָיָה שָׁם מַיִם לָעָם לִשְׁתּוֹת׃
They journeyed from Alush and camped at Refidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink.
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵרְפִידִם וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּמִדְבַּר סִינָי׃
At Mount Sinai
They journeyed from Refidim and camped in the Sinai desert.
וַיִּסְעוּ מִמִּדְבַּר סִינָי וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּקִבְרֹת הַתַּאֲוָה׃
They journeyed from the Sinai desert and camped at Kivrot HaTa’avah.
וַיִּסְעוּ מִקִּבְרֹת הַתַּאֲוָה וַיַּחֲנוּ בַּחֲצֵרֹת׃
They journeyed from Kivrot HaTa’avah and camped at Chatzeirot.
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵחֲצֵרֹת וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּרִתְמָה׃
They journeyed from Chatzeirot and camped at Ritmah. The word ritmah means “slander”; this place was so named because it was here that the spies slandered the Land of Israel.
וַיִּסְעוּ מִקָּדֵשׁ וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּהֹר הָהָר בִּקְצֵה אֶרֶץ אֱדוֹם׃
They journeyed from Kadeish and camped at Mount Hor, at the edge of Edom.
וַיַּעַל אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן אֶל־הֹר הָהָר עַל־פִּי יְהֹוָה וַיָּמׇת שָׁם בִּשְׁנַת הָאַרְבָּעִים לְצֵאת בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם בַּחֹדֶשׁ הַחֲמִישִׁי בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ׃
Aaron’s Death
Aaron the priest ascended Mount Hor at GOD’s bidding and died there “by God’s kiss,” on the first day of Av, the fifth month, in the 40th year of the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt.
וְאַהֲרֹן בֶּן־שָׁלֹשׁ וְעֶשְׂרִים וּמְאַת שָׁנָה בְּמֹתוֹ בְּהֹר הָהָר׃ {ס}
Aaron was 123 years old when he died at Mount Hor.
וַיִּשְׁמַע הַכְּנַעֲנִי מֶלֶךְ עֲרָד וְהוּא־יֹשֵׁב בַּנֶּגֶב בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן בְּבֹא בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃
Amalek Attacks
The Amalekite king of Arad, disguised as a Canaanite, who dwelt in the south of Canaan, heard that Aaron died when the Israelites came to Mount Hor, and therefore attacked them.
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵהֹר הָהָר וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּצַלְמֹנָה׃
They journeyed from Mount Hor and camped at Tzalmonah.
וַיִּסְעוּ מִצַּלְמֹנָה וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּפוּנֹן׃
They journeyed from Tzalmonah and camped at Punon.
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאֹבֹת וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּעִיֵּי הָעֲבָרִים בִּגְבוּל מוֹאָב׃
They journeyed from Ovot and camped by The Ruins of the Passes, on the Moabite border.
וַיִּסְעוּ מֵהָרֵי הָעֲבָרִים וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּעַרְבֹת מוֹאָב עַל יַרְדֵּן יְרֵחוֹ׃
At the Threshold of the Land of Israel
They journeyed from The Mountains of the Passes and camped in the plains of Moab by the Jordan River, opposite Jericho.
וַיַּחֲנוּ עַל־הַיַּרְדֵּן מִבֵּית הַיְשִׁמֹת עַד אָבֵל הַשִּׁטִּים בְּעַרְבֹת מוֹאָב׃ {ס}
They camped along the Jordan River; their encampment extended from Beit Yeshimot to Aveil, the plain of Shitim, in the plains of Moab, a distance of 24,000 cubits. From this chronicle, it is clear that God did not exhaust the people by making them wander continuously during the 38 years between the sin of the spies and the entry into the land. Of the 42 stations, 14 occurred between the Exodus (15 Nisan 2448) and the decree (9 Menachem Av, 2449), and 8 between Kadeish (1 Nisan 2487) and the plains of Moab (after Tishrei 2488). The people spent 19 years at Ritmah (from 2449 to 2468), so, in the remaining 19 years (between 2469 and 2487), they camped at only 20 stations. They thus spent an average of a year at each of these stations.
וְהִתְנַחַלְתֶּם אֶת־הָאָרֶץ בְּגוֹרָל לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתֵיכֶם לָרַב תַּרְבּוּ אֶת־נַחֲלָתוֹ וְלַמְעַט תַּמְעִיט אֶת־נַחֲלָתוֹ אֶל אֲשֶׁר־יֵצֵא לוֹ שָׁמָּה הַגּוֹרָל לוֹ יִהְיֶה לְמַטּוֹת אֲבֹתֵיכֶם תִּתְנֶחָלוּ׃
You will be privileged to give the land as an inheritance to your families by lot, as I have told you: you will give a larger inheritance to the large tribe and you will give a smaller inheritance to the small tribe; wherever the lot falls for a person, that will be his inheritance; you will inherit according to the tribes of your fathers who came out of Egypt, and furthermore, you will inherit the land in 12 districts, according to the tribes of your fathers.
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהֹוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר׃
The Boundaries of the Land
GOD spoke to Moses, saying:
וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־דָן נָשִׂיא בֻּקִּי בֶּן־יׇגְלִי׃
The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Dan, Buki son of Yogli.
לִבְנֵי יוֹסֵף לְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־מְנַשֶּׁה נָשִׂיא חַנִּיאֵל בֶּן־אֵפֹד׃
For the descendants of Joseph: the prince for the tribe of the descendants of Manasseh, Chani’eil son of Eifod;
וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־אֶפְרַיִם נָשִׂיא קְמוּאֵל בֶּן־שִׁפְטָן׃
and the prince for the tribe of the descendants of Ephraim, Kemu’eil son of Shiftan.
וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־זְבוּלֻן נָשִׂיא אֱלִיצָפָן בֶּן־פַּרְנָךְ׃
The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Zebulun, Elitzafan son of Parnach.
וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־יִשָּׂשכָר נָשִׂיא פַּלְטִיאֵל בֶּן־עַזָּן׃
The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Issachar, Palti’eil son of Azan.
וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־אָשֵׁר נָשִׂיא אֲחִיהוּד בֶּן־שְׁלֹמִי׃
The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Asher, Achihud son of Shelomi.
וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־נַפְתָּלִי נָשִׂיא פְּדַהְאֵל בֶּן־עַמִּיהוּד׃
The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Naphtali, Pedah’eil son of Amihud.
אֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה יְהֹוָה לְנַחֵל אֶת־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן׃ {פ}
These are the ones whom GOD commanded to assign the Israelites their estates in Canaan.”
צַו אֶת־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְנָתְנוּ לַלְוִיִּם מִנַּחֲלַת אֲחֻזָּתָם עָרִים לָשָׁבֶת וּמִגְרָשׁ לֶעָרִים סְבִיבֹתֵיהֶם תִּתְּנוּ לַלְוִיִּם׃
“Since the tribe of Levi will receive no portion of the land, command the rest of the Israelites that they give the Levites cities in which to dwell from their hereditary estates, and tell them also: ‘You must give the Levites open spaces around the cities, which are not to be used for residential purposes.
אֵת ׀ שְׁלֹשׁ הֶעָרִים תִּתְּנוּ מֵעֵבֶר לַיַּרְדֵּן וְאֵת שְׁלֹשׁ הֶעָרִים תִּתְּנוּ בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן עָרֵי מִקְלָט תִּהְיֶינָה׃
God foresaw that there would be a similar number of incidences of unintentional murder on both sides of the Jordan River, even though only two and a half of the 12 tribes settled on the east side, so He told Moses to tell the people, “You must provide three of the cities in Transjordan and three of the cities in Canaan to serve as cities of refuge.
אוֹ בִּכְלִי עֵץ־יָד אֲשֶׁר־יָמוּת בּוֹ הִכָּהוּ וַיָּמֹת רֹצֵחַ הוּא מוֹת יוּמַת הָרֹצֵחַ׃
Or if he struck him with a fist-sized wooden instrument, which is large enough to be deadly, and he dies, he is a full murderer; such a murderer must be put to death. (If, however, the stone or wooden instrument was not large enough to cause death normally, but the victim died of the blow anyway, the assailant is not guilty of intentional murder.)
וְאִם־בְּפֶתַע בְּלֹא־אֵיבָה הֲדָפוֹ אוֹ־הִשְׁלִיךְ עָלָיו כׇּל־כְּלִי בְּלֹא צְדִיָּה׃
Inadvertent Murder
The law is different, however, in the case of inadvertent murder. If the assailant pushed the victim down accidentally, without malice, or threw an object in a downward motion at him and not in ambush,
וְלֹא תְטַמֵּא אֶת־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם יֹשְׁבִים בָּהּ אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹכָהּ כִּי אֲנִי יְהֹוָה שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ {פ}
You must not defile the land where you reside, in which I dwell, for this will cause Me to dwell in defilement, inasmuch as I am GOD, who continues to dwell among the Israelites even if they are defiled.”
וַיִּקְרְבוּ רָאשֵׁי הָאָבוֹת לְמִשְׁפַּחַת בְּנֵי־גִלְעָד בֶּן־מָכִיר בֶּן־מְנַשֶּׁה מִמִּשְׁפְּחֹת בְּנֵי יוֹסֵף וַיְדַבְּרוּ לִפְנֵי מֹשֶׁה וְלִפְנֵי הַנְּשִׂאִים רָאשֵׁי אָבוֹת לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃
The Laws of Inheritance
The paternal heads of the family of the sons of Gilead son of Machir son of Manasseh, one of the families of the sons of Joseph, approached and spoke before Moses and the princes, the paternal heads of the Israelites, when they were all assembled for study. They asked Moses about the law and addressed the princes as litigants.
As the book of Numbers draws to a close, the Torah chooses to take a strange detour, stopping the action of the Israelites preparing to enter the Promised Land to recall all of their sojourns—the word Masei means journeys—in the wilderness. The Israelites, we are told, went on 42 separate journeys in the desert. And 42, our parsha explains, is also the number of the cities of the Levites, the holy servants of God who, unlike all other tribes, do not receive their own portion of the land.
The repetition of this number is far from a coincidence. It’s a reminder, and a sorely needed one, that life, to riff on that old cliché, is all about the journey, not the destination. Sure, the parsha is telling us, the Israelites are about to finally enter the Promised Land, after 40 years of arduous travel in the heat. But even once they inherit the land and settle down, their journey will be far from over, because their journey is first and foremost a spiritual journey. And if they continue on their spiritual journey, then the Promised Land, too, will continue to change and grow, fulfilling its inherent promise.
Here's how the great Rabbi Yaakov Moshe Charlap explained this idea. “Just as the Jews can never rest still but must always strive to transcend and go from strength to strength, so, too, does the Land of Israel must always reveal new and divine light, because its very essence is to constantly renew itself. At every moment, it becomes some brand new land, a land no one has seen before…” This is why, he concluded, if we live a life of constant spiritual seeking, every moment, for us, too, would be like that first and momentous moment of entering the Promised Land, shining new light on new possibilities and new ways of being in the world.


Each week, Israeli journalist and Torah scholar Sivan Rahav-Meir and Tablet’s Liel Leibovitz discuss the week’s parsha, giving practical advice from our holiest book.
Hear the first aliyah of this week's Torah portion chanted by Rabbi Jeremy Weider of Vayavinu.com using Ashkenazi trope
Each week, Israeli journalist and Torah scholar Sivan Rahav-Meir and Tablet’s Liel Leibovitz discuss the week’s parsha, giving practical advice from our holiest book.