“Zebulun . . . and Issachar . . . shall suck the abundance of the seas and the hidden treasures of the sand.”
This is a little different piece of Torah – it’s the section we read to finish the Torah before we start again! V’zot HaBerachah (V’zos Habracha) tells of the blessings that Moshe gave to the shevatim (twelve tribes of Israel) before his death. It remembers Jacob’s blessings to his twelve sons and gives each tribe its strength and place in our nation.
Here are the brachot:
- Reuven is blessed with life
- Judah with success in battle, Hashem’s help, and the Kingship
- Levi with serving in the Temple and being teachers of Torah
- Benjamin is “beloved” by G-d
- Joseph is blessed with sweet fruits on his land
- Zebulun with success in trade
- Issachar with success in Torah study
- Gad with a lot of land,
- Dan with the might of a lion and sons
- Naftali with fertile land and sea
- Asher with sons and olive oil.
- (Shimon is missing! Rashi comments that he is included with Yehuda – see here, about halfway down the page)
Then we hear that Moshe ascended Mount Nebo to see the promised land and died, and was buried by Hashem. The parsha ends by praising Moshe, who knew Hashem “face to face.”
Links: Here are the Aish, Torah.org, and Chabad pages on V’Zot HaBerachah. Here are some coloring sheets, a parsha song, and a fun video from Itche Kadoozy.
- Here is a very good synopsis of the brachot, helping answer the question of order and Shimon’s lot.
- Find some parsha copywork here (scroll down to the right parsha)
That’s not the end, though – we start right back up with Beresheit!
