Va'eira, Va'era, or Vaera (—Hebrew for "and I appeared," the first word that God speaks in the , in Exodus 6:3) is the fourteenth weekly Torah portion () in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the second in the Book of Exodus. It constitutes Exodus 6:2–9:35. The parashah tells of the first seven Plagues of Egypt.
Religious Jews read it the fourteenth Shabbat after Simchat Torah—generally in January, or rarely, in late December.Fred Reiss, The Standard Guide to the Jewish and Civil Calendars: A Parallel Jewish and Civil Calendar from 1899 to 2050 with Parashiyyot and Haftarot and Candle-Lighting Times for Selected Cities (West Orange, New Jersey): Behrman House, 1986); "Parashat Vaera," Hebcal.
It is composed of 6,701 Hebrew letters, 1,748 Hebrew words, 121 verses, and 222 lines in a Torah scroll, and is part of the Hebrew Bible.
Readings In traditional Sabbath Torah reading, the "portion" (parashah) is divided into seven readings, or , aliyot. In the Masoretic Text of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh), Parashat Va'eira has nine "open portion" (, petuchah) divisions (roughly equivalent to paragraphs, often abbreviated with the Hebrew letter (peh)). Parashat Va'eira has seven further subdivisions, called "closed portion" (, setumah) divisions (abbreviated with the Hebrew letter (samekh)) within the open portion divisions. The first and second open portion divisions divide the first reading. The third open portion covers the balance of the first and part of the second readings. The fourth open portion covers the balance of the second reading. The fifth open portion divides the fourth reading. The sixth open portion covers the balance of the fourth, all of the fifth, and part of the sixth readings. The seventh open portion separates part of the sixth reading. The eighth open portion covers the balance of the sixth and part of the seventh readings. The ninth open portion covers the balance of the seventh reading. Closed portion divisions separate the first and second readings, split the second and third readings, and divide the fourth, fifth, and sixth readings.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, The Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus (Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2008), pages 31–57.
First reading—Exodus 6:2–13 In the first reading, God spoke to Moses, identified God's Self as the God of the Patriarchs, and acknowledged hearing the moaning of the Israelites.. God instructed Moses to tell the Israelites that God would free them, make them God's people, and bring them to the Promised Land.. But the Israelites would not listen because of their distress and hard labor.. The first open portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 33.
In the continuation of the reading, God told Moses to tell Pharaoh to let the Israelites go, but Moses complained that Pharaoh would not heed him, a man of impeded speech.. The second open portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 34.
In the continuation of the reading, God commanded Moses and Aaron to bring the Israelites out of Egypt. The first reading and a closed portion end here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, pages 34–35.
Second reading—Exodus 6:14–28 The second reading interjects a partial genealogy of Reuben, Simeon, and Levi, including Moses and his family..
The second reading and a closed portion end with the genealogy.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 37.
Third reading—Exodus 6:29–7:7 In the third reading, God instructed Moses to tell Pharaoh all that God would tell Moses, but Moses protested that he had a speech impediment.. The third open portion ends here.
In the continuation of the reading, God placed Aaron in the role of Moses' prophet to speak to Pharaoh.. God intended to harden Pharaoh's heart, so that God might show signs and marvels so that the Egyptians would know that the Lord was God.. Moses and Aaron did as God commanded.. Moses was 80 years old, and Aaron 83 years old, when they spoke to Pharaoh.. The third reading and the fourth open portion end here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 39.
Fourth reading—Exodus 7:8–8:6 In the fourth reading, God told how Aaron could cast down his rod, and it would turn into a snake, and Aaron did so before Pharaoh.. Pharaoh caused his magicians to do the same, but Aaron's rod swallowed their rods.. Pharaoh's heart stiffened.. A closed portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 40.
In the continuation of the reading, God began visiting ten plagues on Egypt. God told Moses to go to Pharaoh at his morning bath, demand that he let the Israelites go to worship in the wilderness, and have Aaron strike the Nile with his rod and turn it into blood.. A closed portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 41.
In the continuation of the reading, God told Moses to tell Aaron to stretch his rod over the waters of Egypt and turn them into blood.. Moses and Aaron did so, killing the marine life and rendering the water unusable.. But when the Egyptian magicians did the same, Pharaoh's heart stiffened.. Seven days passed.. The fifth open portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 43.
As the reading continues, God told Moses to have Aaron hold his arm with the rod over the river and bring up frogs, and they did so.. The magicians did the same.. Pharaoh summoned Moses and Aaron to plead with God to remove the frogs and said he would let the Israelites go.. Moses asked Pharaoh when Moses should ask God. Pharaoh replied the next day, and Moses said that he would do so the next day so that Pharaoh would know that there is none like God.. The fourth reading ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 45.
Fifth reading—Exodus 8:7–18 In the fifth reading, the frogs departed, but Pharaoh became stubborn and did not let the Israelites leave.. A closed portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 46.
In the continuation of the reading, God told Moses to have Aaron strike the dust with his rod, to turn it to lice throughout the land, and they did so.. The magicians tried to do the same, but they could not.. The magicians told Pharaoh, "This is the finger of God!" But Pharaoh's heart stiffened.. A closed portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 47.
In the continuation of the reading, God told Moses to rise early and stand before Pharaoh as he came to the water and tell him that God said, "Let My people go," or else God would send swarms of insects and wild animals on Egypt, but not on Goshen.. The fifth reading ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 48.
Sixth reading—Exodus 8:19–9:16 In the sixth reading, God loosed swarms of insects and wild animals against the Egyptians, but not Goshen, where the Israelites dwelt.. Pharaoh told Moses and Aaron to go sacrifice to God within Egypt, but Moses insisted on going three days into the wilderness.. Pharaoh agreed, in exchange for Moses' prayer to lift the plague.. But when God removed the insects and wild animals, Pharaoh became stubborn again.. The sixth open portion ends here with the end of chapter 8.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 50.
As the reading continues with chapter 9, God struck the Egyptian's livestock with a pestilence, sparing the Israelites' livestock.. But Pharaoh remained stubborn.. The seventh open portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 51.
In the continuation of the reading, God told Moses to take handfuls of soot from the kiln and throw it toward the sky so that it would become fine dust, causing boils on man and beast throughout Egypt, and he did so.. But God stiffened Pharaoh's heart.. A closed portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 52.
In the continuation of the reading, God told Moses to rise early and tell Pharaoh that God said, "Let My people go," or this time God would send all God's plagues upon Pharaoh and his people to demonstrate God's power.. The sixth reading ends here,See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 53.
Seventh reading—Exodus 9:17–35 In the seventh reading, God instructed Moses to threaten hail such as Egypt had never seen and to teach the Egyptians to bring their cattle in from the field so that they would not die.. Those who feared God's word brought their slaves and livestock indoors, and those who did not fear God's word left them in the field.. The eighth open portion ends here.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 54.
In the continuation of the reading, God told Moses to stretch out his hand, and God sent thunder and hail, which struck down all exposed in Egypt, but did not strike Goshen.. Pharaoh confessed his wrong, agreed to let the Israelites go, and asked Moses and Aaron to pray to end the hail.. Moses told Pharaoh that he would do so, and the hail would end so that Pharaoh would know that the earth is God's, but Moses knew that Pharaoh and his servants would not yet fear God.. The hail had destroyed the flax and the barley, but not the wheat and the spelt, which ripened later..
In the maftir () reading that concludes the parashah,See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, pages 56–57. Moses spread forth his hands to God, and the thunders and hail ceased, but when Pharaoh saw, he hardened his heart and did not let the Israelites go.. The seventh reading, the ninth open portion, and the parashah end here with the end of chapter 9.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Shemos/Exodus, page 57.
Readings according to the triennial cycle Jews who read the Torah according to the triennial cycle of Torah reading read the parashah according to the following schedule:See, e.g., Richard Eisenberg, "A Complete Triennial Cycle for Reading the Torah," Proceedings of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Conservative Movement: 1986–1990 (New York: The Rabbinical Assembly, 2001), pages 383–418. Year 1Year 2Year 32023, 2026, 2029 . . .2024, 2027, 2030 . . .2025, 2028, 2031 . . .Reading6:2–7:77:8–8:158:16–9:3516:2–57:8–138:16–2326:6–97:14–188:24–2836:10–137:19–259:1–746:14–197:26–299:8–1656:20–258:1–69:17–2166:26–288:7–119:22–2676:29–7:78:12–159:27–35Maftir7:5–78:12–159:33–35
In ancient parallels The parashah has parallels in these ancient sources:
Exodus chapter 8 Reading the Egyptian magicians' words in Exodus 8:15, "This is the finger of God!" Gunther Plaut reported that in Egyptian literature, a plague is called "the hand of God," while among Babylonians, the expression was the name of a sickness.W. Gunther Plaut, The Torah: A Modern Commentary: Revised Edition, revised edition edited by David E.S. Stern (New York: Union for Reform Judaism, 2006), page 388.
In inner-biblical interpretation