Naso or Nasso (—Hebrew for "take a census" or "lift up," the sixth word, and the first distinctive word, in the parashah) is the 35th weekly Torah portion (, parashah) in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the second in the Book of Numbers. It constitutes Numbers 4:21–7:89. The parashah addresses priestly duties, camp purification, restitution for wrongs committed, the wife accused of unfaithfulness (, sotah), the nazirite, the Priestly Blessing, and consecration of the Tabernacle. Naso has the largest number of letters, words, and verses of any of the 54 weekly Torah portions. The parashah is made up of 8,632 Hebrew letters, 2,264 Hebrew words, 176 verses, and 311 lines in a Torah Scroll.

Jews generally read it in late May or June, typically (though not always) on the first Sabbath after Shavuot. As this parashah includes the story of the consecration of the Tabernacle, Jews also read parts of it as Torah readings on the eight days of Hanukkah, when they commemorate the reconsecration of the Temple in Jerusalem. Numbers 7:1–17 is the Torah reading for the first day of Hanukkah; Numbers 7:18–29 is the Torah reading for the second day; Numbers 7:24–35 is the Torah reading for the third day; Numbers 7:30–41 is the Torah reading for the fourth day; Numbers 7:36–47 is the Torah reading for the fifth day; Numbers 7:42–47 is the second Torah reading for the sixth day (which, because it falls on Rosh Chodesh, has Numbers 28:1–15 as its first reading); Numbers 7:48–59 is the Torah reading for the seventh day when it does not fall on Rosh Chodesh; and Numbers 7:48–53 is the second Torah reading for the seventh day when it does fall on Rosh Chodesh (in which case Numbers 28:1–15 is the first reading); and Numbers 7:54–8:4 is the Torah reading for the eighth day. When a day of Hanukkah falls on a Sabbath, however, the regular weekly Torah reading for that Sabbath is the first Torah reading for that day, and the following readings from Parashat Naso are the maftir Torah readings: Numbers 7:1–17 is the maftir Torah reading for the first day of Hanukkah; Numbers 7:18–23 is the maftir Torah reading for the second day; Numbers 7:24–29 is the maftir Torah reading for the third day; Numbers 7:30–35 is the maftir Torah reading for the fourth day; Numbers 7:36–41 is the maftir Torah reading for the fifth day; Numbers 7:42–47 is the maftir Torah reading for the sixth day (which, because it falls on Rosh Chodesh, has Numbers 28:9–15 as its sixth reading); Numbers 7:48–53 is the maftir Torah reading for the seventh day; and Numbers 7:54–8:4 is the maftir Torah reading for the eighth day.

Readings In traditional Sabbath Torah reading, the parashah is divided into seven readings, or , aliyot.See, e.g., Menachem Davis, editor, The Schottenstein Edition Interlinear Chumash: Bamidbar/Numbers (Brooklyn: Mesorah Publications, 2007), pages 28–59.

First reading—Numbers 4:21–37 In the first reading, God told Moses to take a census of the Gershonites between 30 and 50 years old, who were subject to service for the Tabernacle.. The Gershonites had the duty, under the direction of Aaron's son Ithamar, to carry the cloths of the Tabernacle, the Tent of Meeting with its covering, the covering of tachash skin on top of it, the screen for the entrance of the Tent of Meeting, the hangings of the enclosure, the screen at the entrance of the gate of the enclosure surrounding the Tabernacle, the cords thereof, the altar, and all their service equipment and accessories.. Moses was also to take a census of the Merarites between 30 and 50 years old.. The Merarites had responsibility, under the direction of Ithamar, for the planks, the bars, the posts, and the sockets of the Tabernacle, and the posts around the enclosure and their sockets, pegs, and cords.. Moses, Aaron, and the chieftains recorded 2,750 Kohathites age 30 to 50.. +Relative Population and Adult Population of the Levite Divisions+(from Numbers 3:22–34 and 4:34–39) Division Population Share of Total Rank by Pop. Adults Share of Total Rank by Adults Adult Share of Division Kohathites 8,600 38.6 1 2,750 32.1 2 32.0 Gershonites 7,500 33.6 2 2,630 30.6 3 35.1 Merarites 6,200 27.8 3 3,200 37.3 1 51.6 Total 22,300 100.0 8,580 100.0 38.5

Second reading—Numbers 4:38–49 In the second reading, Moses, Aaron, and the chieftains recorded the Levites age 30 to 50 as follows: Kohathites: 2,750, Gershonites: 2,630, and Merarites: 3,200, making a total of 8,580 undertaking the work of service and the work of bearing burdens..

Third reading—Numbers 5:1–10 In the third reading, God directed the Israelites to remove from camp anyone with an eruption or a discharge and anyone defiled by a corpse, so that they would not defile the camp.. God told Moses to direct the Israelites that when they wronged fellow Israelites, thus breaking faith with God, and realized their guilt, they were to confess the wrong and make restitution to those wronged in the principal amount plus one-fifth.. If the one wronged had died, it was implied that restitution was to be made to a kinsman, and if there was no kinsman to whom restitution could be made, the amount repaid was to go to the priest, along (in any case) with a ram of expiation..

Similarly, any gift among the sacred donations that the Israelites offered was to be the priest's to keep..

Fourth reading—Numbers 5:11–6:27 In the fourth reading, God told Moses to instruct the Israelites about the test where a husband, in a fit of jealousy, accused his wife of being unfaithful—the ordeal of the bitter water. The man was to bring his wife to the priest, along with barley flour as a meal offering of jealousy. The priest was to dissolve some earth from the floor of the Tabernacle into some sacral water in an earthen vessel. The priest was to bare the woman's head, place the meal offering on her hands, and adjure the woman: if innocent, to be immune to harm from the water of bitterness, but if guilty, to be cursed to have her thigh sag and belly distend. The woman was to say, "Amen, amen!" The priest was to write these curses down, rub the writing into the water of bitterness, and make the woman drink it. The priest was to elevate the meal offering, present it on the altar, and burn a token part of it on the altar. If she had broken faith with her husband, the water would cause her belly to distend and her thigh to sag, and the woman was to become a curse among her people, but if the woman was innocent, she would remain unharmed and be able to bear children.

In the continuation of the fourth reading, God told Moses to instruct the Israelites about the vows of a nazirite ( nāzīr) who wishes to set themselves apart for God. The nazirite was to abstain from wine, intoxicants, vinegar, grapes, raisins, or anything obtained from the grapevine. No razor was to touch the nazirite's head until the completion of the nazirite term. The nazirite was not to go near a corpse, even a father, mother, brother, or sister. If a person died suddenly near a nazirite, the nazirite was to shave his or her head on the seventh day. On the eighth day, the nazirite was to bring two turtledoves or two pigeons to the priest, who was to offer one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. That same day, the nazirite was to reconsecrate his or her head, rededicate the nazirite term, and bring a lamb in its first year as a penalty offering. On the day that a nazirite completed his or her term, the nazirite was to be brought to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and present a male lamb in its first year for a burnt offering, a ewe lamb in its first year for a sin offering, a ram for an offering of well-being, a basket of unleavened cakes, unleavened wafers spread with oil, and meal offerings. The priest was to present the offerings, and the nazirite was to shave his or her consecrated hair and put the hair on the fire under the sacrifice of well-being.

In the conclusion of the fourth reading, God told Moses to instruct Aaron and his sons that they should bless the Israelites, which is known as the Priestly Blessing: "The Lord bless you and protect you! The Lord deal kindly and graciously with you! The Lord bestow His favor upon you and grant you peace!"

Fifth reading—Numbers 7:1–41 In the fifth reading, Moses finished setting up the Tabernacle, and anointed and consecrated it, its furnishings, the altar, and its utensils.. The chieftains of the tribes then brought their offerings—6 carts and 12 oxen—and God told Moses to accept them for use by the Levites in the service of the Tent of Meeting.. He allocated two carts and four oxen to the Gershonites and the remaining four carts and eight oxen to the Merarites.. None were allocated to the Kohathites, 'because the sacred objects they took care of had to be carried on their shoulders'..

The chieftains then each on successive days brought the same dedication offerings for the altar: a silver bowl and silver basin filled with flour mixed with oil, a gold ladle filled with incense, a bull, 2 oxen, 5 rams, 5 goats, and 5 lambs..

Sixth reading—Numbers 7:42–71 In the sixth reading, the chieftains continued to bring dedication offerings for the altar..

Seventh reading—Numbers 7:72–89 In the seventh reading, the chieftains from the remaining tribes bought their dedication offerings for the altar. When Moses went into the Tent of Meeting to speak with God, Moses would hear the Voice addressing him from above the cover that was on top of the Ark between the two cherubim, and thus God spoke to him..

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," in Proceedings of the Committee on Jewish Law and Standards of the Conservative Movement: 1986–1990 (New York: Rabbinical Assembly, 2001), pages 383–418. Year 1Year 2Year 32023, 2026, 2029 ...2024, 2027, 2030 ...2025, 2028, 2031 ...Reading4:21–5:105:11–6:277:1–8914:21–245:11–157:1–1124:25–285:16–267:12–2334:29–335:27–6:47:24–3544:34–376:5–87:36–4754:38–496:9–157:48–5965:1–46:16–217:60–7175:5–106:22–277:72–89Maftir5:8–106:22–277:87–89

In inner-Biblical interpretation The parashah has parallels or is discussed in these Biblical sources:For more on inner-Biblical interpretation, see, e.g., Benjamin D. Sommer, “Inner-biblical Interpretation,” in Adele Berlin and Marc Zvi Brettler, editors, The Jewish Study Bible, 2nd edition (New York: Oxford University Press, 2014), pages 1835–41.

Numbers chapter 4

Numbers 4:21–33 refers to duties of the Levites. Deuteronomy 33:10 reports that Levites taught the law.See also 2 Chronicles ; and ; ; and . Deuteronomy 17:9–10 reports that they served as judges.See also and ; ; and (officers) And Deuteronomy 10:8 reports that they blessed God's name. 1 Chronicles 23:3–5 reports that of 38,000 Levite men aged 30 and up, 24,000 were in charge of the work of the Temple in Jerusalem, 6,000 were officers and magistrates, 4,000 were gatekeepers, and 4,000 praised God with instruments and song. 1 Chronicles 15:16 reports that King David installed Levites as singers with musical instruments, harps, lyres, and cymbals, and 1 Chronicles 16:4 reports that David appointed Levites to minister before the Ark, to invoke, to praise, and to extol God. And 2 Chronicles 5:12 reports at the inauguration of Solomon's Temple, Levites sang dressed in fine linen, holding cymbals, harps, and lyres, to the east of the altar, and with them 120 priests blew trumpets. 2 Chronicles 20:19 reports that Levites of the sons of Kohath and of the sons of Korah extolled God in song. Eleven Psalms identify themselves as of the Korahites.; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; ; and .

Numbers chapter 5 Corpse contamination