Introducing 929: Learn a chapter of Tanakh each day🌟

Published: Tue, 09/09/25

Updated: Wed, 09/10/25

“When you come into the land that the Lord your God is giving you for an inheritance and have taken possession of it and live in it, you shall take some of the first of all the fruit of the ground, which you harvest from your land that the Lord your God is giving you, and you shall put it in a basket, and you shall go to the place that the Lord your God will choose, to make his name to dwell there."

Deuteronomy 26:1,2

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Hi friend,

This coming Shabbat's Torah portion, read on Saturday, September 13th, is Parashat Ki Tavo. The Israelites are commanded to bring the first of their fruit to the Temple, and to deliver all tithes to their proper recipients. Moses explains how the blessings and curses are to be proclaimed on Mts. Grizzim and Ebal when the Jewish nation enters into Israel. He then details the blessings they will receive for following the commandments of the Torah, and the calamities which will result from disregarding them.

Join us in exploring the Weekly Bible Chapter: Introducing 929: Learn a chapter of Tanakh each day with Rabbi Avraham Norin, and let’s learn and reflect together!

Please enjoy this teaching of our beloved Root Source teacher, Rabbi Adin Steinsaltz of blessed memory, about this week's Torah portion, Ki Tavo, and share your thoughts with us!

Last week, our popular Root Source teacher Rabbi Gedalia Meyer talked about Ki Teitzei. Watch it below.

Take part in the inspiring lesson Introduction to Jewish Prayer with Teacher Gidon Ariel. Learn more below.

Check below to hear what Gidon Ariel and Dr. Richard Booker have to share.

We sign off with a nice comment and a beautiful photo of Garden of Gethsemane, Israel.

Shalom,

Gidon Ariel and Bob O’Dell
Root Source Founders

Parashat Ki Tavo

During Temple times, Jewish farmers were required to separate from their produce several different tithes. These were distributed to the priests, the Levites, the poor, and one tithe which was eaten by its owners in Jerusalem. The different tithes were not all given each year, rather there was a three-year cycle. In this aliyah, the Torah gives the procedure to be followed on the day before Passover during those years which followed the conclusion of a cycle. The farmer was to declare that he has performed all his tithing duties and then beseeches G‑d to bless His people and the Land.

Introducing 929: Learn a chapter of Tanakh each day

929: Tanakh B'yachad (or, Bible Together, 929) is a project for learning one chapter of Tanakh (Jewish Bible, aka Old Testament) per day (except Friday and Saturday), totaling 5 chapters per week. The name 929 refers to the total number of chapters in the Tanakh. The project was announced by the Israeli Education Ministry, and began on December 21, 2014. The first cycle was completed on April 18, 2018, coinciding with Israel's 70th Independence Day. Root Source is grateful to our good friend Rabbi Avraham Norin, who will curate one article a week (from the hundreds available on that site!). Your comments are appreciated!

Read Here!

Parashat Ki Tavo: The Torah's Harsh Preparation for Reality

Parashat Ki Tavo confronts us with an uncomfortable truth: curses are far easier to create than blessings because the margin for perfection is impossibly narrow. The moment anything deviates from its optimal state, whether too hot, too cold, too much prosperity, or too little, it can transform into a curse. Even abundance may become a burden when it exceeds the delicate balance required for genuine blessing. As our sages taught, people “can endure neither too much good nor too much punishment,” revealing that the path of blessing requires precise calibration that the physical world rarely provides. Think of Goldilocks – the porridge that’s too hot or too cold is both wrong, but only one temperature is “just right.” The same applies to money, weather, health, relationships – there’s usually only one small range that feels like a blessing, while everything else (too much or too little) can feel like a curse. This explains why the Torah lists so many specific curses but doesn’t spell out the blessings.

Learn here

Ki Teitzei:
Rabbi Gedalia Meyer's Weekly Torah Study

Part and parcel with the gift of free will is the eternal struggle with the evil inclination. The Torah takes this into account and offers a way to rein in the evil urge in the case of the beautiful captive woman.

Watch the video

Introduction to Jewish Prayer

What is the foundational scripture that commands Jews to pray? You may be very surprised! How often do Jews pray each day, and where did this idea come from in scripture? What do the prayer books look like, and why are there two of them? Enjoy part 1 of this introduction, as you take your very first first step in understanding Jewish Prayer!

Learn here

Conversations:

Gidon Ariel and Dr. Richard Booker - Sep 8, 2025

Gidon and Richard discuss the Verse from Hebrews 11:6, “God rewards those who diligently seek him,” and especially the first part of that verse, “Without faith it is impossible to please God,” and how that compares and contrasts to the passage in Mishna Pirkei Avot (Chapters of the Fathers), chapter 3 mishna 10: “those who are pleasing to others are pleasing to God, and those who are not pleasing to others are not pleasing to God.”

Watch the video

Comments

We get so many comments!
Here is one from Linda Traylor on
Situation Update from the Orbachs in Israel:

"Thank you for this very personal look at what your life is like and how it has been for so long, You did come as close as possible to allowing us to live with you for a few moments, I only wish I could share this with others who want to know. But I do know I can now pray with more understanding and compassion. All I can say to you besides “Thank you” is “Hang on! You are showing everyone how to survive with your positive mental outlook and inner joy in tact.”

Garden of Gethsemane, Israel

Enjoy this photo taken in Garden of Gethsemane, Israel by Stacey Franco.

Blessings and Shalom,
Bob and Gidon

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