Matot, Mattot, Mattoth, or Matos (—Hebrew for "tribes", the fifth word, and the first distinctive word, in the parashah) is the 42nd weekly Torah portion (, parashah) in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the ninth in the Book of Numbers. It comprises Numbers 30:2–32:42. It discusses laws of vows, the destruction of Midianite towns, and negotiations of the Reubenites and Gadites to settle land outside of Israel.
The parashah is made up of 5,652 Hebrew letters, 1,484 Hebrew words, 112 verses, and 190 lines in a Torah Scroll (, Sefer Torah). Jews generally read it in July or early August. The lunisolar Hebrew calendar contains up to 55 weeks, the exact number varying between 50 in common years and 54 or 55 in leap years. In some leap years (for example, 2014), parashah Matot is read separately. In most years (all coming years until 2035 in both the Diaspora and Israel), parashah Matot is combined with the next parashah, Masei, to help achieve the number of weekly readings needed.
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 206–26.
First reading—Numbers 30:2–17 In the first reading, Moses told the heads of the Israelite tribes God's commands about commitments (, nedarim, commonly translated, or some say mistranslated, as "vows").. If a man made a vow to God, he was to carry out all that he promised.. If a girl living in her father's household made a vow to God, and her father learned of it and did not object, her vow would stand.. But if her father objected on the day that he learned of it, her vow would not stand, and God would forgive her.. If she married while her vow was still in force, and her husband learned of it and did not object on the day that he found out, her vow would stand.. But if her husband objected on the day that he learned of it, her vow would not stand, and God would forgive her.. The vow of a widow or divorced woman was binding.. If a married woman made a vow and her husband learned of it and did not object, then her vow would stand.. But if her husband objected on the day that he learned of it, her vow would not stand, and God would forgive her.. If her husband annulled one of her vows after the day that he learned of it, he would bear her guilt..
Second reading—Numbers 31:1–12
In the second reading, God directed Moses to attack the Midianites, after which he would die.. At Moses' direction, a thousand men from each tribe, with Phinehas son of Eleazar serving as priest on the campaign with the sacred utensils and trumpets, attacked Midian and slew every man, including five kings of Midian and the prophet Balaam.. The Israelites burned the Midianite towns, took the Midianite women and children captive, seized all their beasts and wealth as booty, and brought the captives and spoil to Moses, Eleazar, and the Israelite community at the steppes of Moab..
Third reading—Numbers 31:13–24 In the third reading (, aliyah), Moses became angry with the army's commanders for sparing the women, as they were the ones who, at Balaam's bidding, had induced the Israelites to trespass against God in the sin of Peor.. Moses then told the Israelites to kill every boy and every woman who had had sexual relations, but to spare the virgin girls.. Moses directed the troops to stay outside the camp for 7 days after that, directed every one of them who had touched a corpse to cleanse himself on the third and seventh days, and directed them to cleanse everything made of cloth, hide, or wood.. Eleazar told the troops to take any article that could withstand fire—gold, silver, copper, iron, tin, and lead—and pass them through fire to clean them, and to cleanse everything with the water of lustration.. Eleazar directed that on the seventh day they should wash their clothes and be clean, and thereafter be free to enter the camp..
Fourth reading—Numbers 31:25–41 In the fourth reading (, aliyah), God told Moses to work with Eleazar and the family heads to inventory and divide the booty equally between the combatants and the rest of the community.. God told them to exact a levy for God of one item in 500 of the warriors' captive persons and animals to be given to Eleazar, and one in every 50 of the other Israelites' captive persons and animals to be given to the Levites.. The total booty came to 675,000 sheep, 72,000 head of cattle, 61,000 donkeys, and 32,000 virgin women, which Moses and Eleazar divided as God had commanded.
Fifth reading—Numbers 31:42–54 In the fifth reading (, aliyah), the Israelites' half of the booty came to 337,500 sheep, 36,000 head of cattle, 30,500 donkeys, and 16,000 virgin women, which Moses and Eleazar divided as God had commanded:.
+Division of the Midianite Spoils Type of Spoils Total Booty Warrior Share Eleazar's Portion Congregation's Share Levites' Portion Sheep 675,000 337,500 675 337,500 6,750 Cattle 72,000 36,000 72 36,000 720 Donkeys 61,000 30,500 61 30,500 610 Persons 32,000 16,000 32 16,000 320
The commanders of the troops told Moses that they had checked the warriors, and not one was missing, so they brought as an offering to God the gold that they came upon—armlets, bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and pendants—to make expiation for their persons before God.. Moses and Eleazar accepted from them 16,750 shekels of gold, but the warriors in the ranks kept their booty for themselves..
Sixth reading—Numbers 32:1–19 In the sixth reading (, aliyah), the Reubenites and the Gadites, who owned much cattle, noted that the lands of Jazer and Gilead on the east side of the Jordan River suited cattle, and they approached Moses, Eleazar, and the chieftains and asked that those lands be given to them as a holding.. Moses asked them if the rest of the Israelites were to go to war while they stayed on the east bank, and would that not undermine the enthusiasm of the rest of the Israelites for crossing into the Promised Land.. Moses likened their position to that of the scouts who surveyed the land and then turned the minds of the Israelites against invading, thus incensing God and causing God to swear that none of the adult Israelites (except Caleb and Joshua) would see the land.. They replied that they would build their sheepfolds and towns east of the Jordan and leave their children there, but then serve as shock-troops in the vanguard of the Israelites until the land was conquered and not seek a share of the land west of the Jordan..
Seventh reading—Numbers 32:20–42 In the seventh reading (, aliyah), Moses then said that if they would do this, and every shock-fighter among them crossed the Jordan, then they would be clear before God and Israel, and this land would be their holding.. But Moses continued, if they did not do as they promised, they would have sinned against God.. Moses instructed Eleazar, Joshua, and the family heads of the Israelite tribes to carry out the agreement.. So Moses assigned the Gadites, the Reubenites, and half the tribe of Manasseh lands on the east side of the Jordan.. The Gadites and Reubenites built cities on the east side of Jordan, and some leaders of Manasseh conquered cities on the east of the Jordan so half the tribe of Manasseh could settle there..
Readings according to the triennial cycle Jews who read the Torah according to the triennial cycle of Torah reading read the parashah according to a different 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: The Rabbinical Assembly, 2001), pages 383–418.
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 31 Vows, discussed in Numbers 30:2–17, also appear in Genesis 28:20–22, Numbers 21:2, Judges 11:30–40, 1 Samuel 1:11; 14:24. Deuteronomy 23:22, 24 and Ecclesiastes 5:3Ecclesiastes 5:4 in the King James Version. echo the admonition of Numbers 30:3 that those who make vows must keep their word. And Deuteronomy 23:23 and Ecclesiastes 5:4Ecclesiastes 5:5 in the KJV. counsel that one does better by not vowing altogether.
In early nonrabbinic interpretation The parashah has parallels or is discussed in these early nonrabbinic sources:For more on early nonrabbinic interpretation, see, e.g., Esther Eshel, "Early Nonrabbinic Interpretation," in Adele Berlin and Marc Brettler, editors, Jewish Study Bible, 2nd edition, pages 1841–59.
Numbers chapter 30 The Damascus Document of the Qumran community prohibited a man from annulling an oath about which he did not know whether or not it should be carried out.Lawrence H. Schiffman, Reclaiming the Dead Sea Scrolls: The History of Judaism, the Background of Christianity, the Lost Library of Qumran (Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society, 1994), page 130–31 (citing Zadokite Fragments 16:10–11 = Df 2 II 10–11).
In classical rabbinic interpretation The parashah is discussed in these rabbinic sources from the era of the Mishnah and the Talmud:For more on classical rabbinic interpretation, see, e.g., Yaakov Elman, "Classical Rabbinic Interpretation," in Adele Berlin and Marc Brettler, editors, Jewish Study Bible, 2nd edition, pages 1859–78.
Numbers chapter 30 Tractates Nedarim and Shevuot in the Mishnah, Tosefta, Jerusalem Talmud, and Babylonian Talmud interpreted the laws of vows and oaths in Exodus 20:7, Leviticus 5:1–10 and 19:12, Numbers 30:2–17, and Deuteronomy 23:24.Mishnah Nedarim 1:1–11:11; Tosefta Nedarim 1:1–7:8; Jerusalem Talmud Nedarim 1a–42b; Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 2a–91b; Mishnah Shevuot 1:1–8:6; Tosefta Shevuot 1:1–6:7; Jerusalem Talmud Shevuot 1a–49a; Babylonian Talmud Shevuot 2a–49b.
The Mishnah taught that saying any substitute for the formulas of a vow has the validity of a vow. If one says to another, "I am barred from you by a vow," or, "I am separated from you," or, "I am removed from you, in respect of anything that I might eat of yours or that I might taste of yours," the one vowing is prohibited. Rabbi Akiva was inclined to give a stringent ruling when a person says, "I am banned to you."Mishnah Nedarim 1:1; Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 2a. The Gemara taught that a vow (, neder) makes a thing forbidden to a person, while an oath (, shevuah) binds a person to a relationship to a thing.Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 2b.
Rabbi Akiva taught that vows are a fence for self-restraint.Mishnah Avot 3:13. But the Jerusalem Talmud asked whether it was not enough that the Torah had forbidden us things that we should seek to forbid yet other things to ourselves.Jerusalem Talmud Nedarim 9:1. The Gemara discouraged vows. Rabbi Nathan taught that one who vows is as if he built a high place, and he who fulfils a vow is as if he sacrificed on that high place. And the Gemara deduced from Rabbi Nathan's teaching that it is meritorious to seek absolution from vows.Babylonian Talmud Nedarim 22a, 59a. And a midrash told the tale of King Jannai, who owned two thousand towns, all of which were destroyed because of true oaths. A man would swear to his friend that he would eat such-and-such a food at such-and-such a place and drink such-and-such a drink at such-and-such a place. And they would go and fulfill their oaths and would be destroyed (for swearing to trifles). The midrash concluded that if this was the fate of people who swore truthfully, how much more would swearing to a falsehood lead to destruction.Numbers Rabbah 22:1.