Exodus · Weekly Torah portion
Parashat Boבֹּא
Torah reading
Exodus 10:1-13:16
Haftarah
Jeremiah 46:13-28
What happens in Bo
The final plagues fall: locusts, a darkness so thick it can be felt, and the death of the firstborn. On that last night, the Israelites mark their doorposts with lamb's blood, eat in haste with staff in hand, and receive their first mitzvot as a people — the Passover offering, the calendar's first month, and the charge to tell the Exodus story to their children in every generation. After 430 years, Pharaoh finally relents, and Israel marches out of Egypt.
Big themes
- Freedom and its price
- Memory as commandment
- Becoming a people
If this is your bar or bat mitzvah portion
Before the Israelites are even free, they're commanded to become storytellers — 'And you shall tell your child.' Judaism bets its future on memory passed between generations. A bar or bat mitzvah is exactly that bet paying off, one more link in the chain.
Learning to chant Bo?
Ready 13 builds a verse-by-verse practice plan for this exact portion — chanted reference audio, karaoke highlighting, trope games, and a countdown that keeps the big day on track.
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