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Maftir is the final aliyah before the haftarah reading, which concludes the Torah portion and honors the Torah. Learn the meaning, reason and procedure of maftir from a Chabad.org article by Rabbi Mendel Adelman.
- Mendel Adelman
Maftir is a reading from an extra scroll on holidays and special Shabbatot. Learn about the maftir for Sukkot, Shemini Atzeret and Simchat Torah, and its connection to the festival sacrifices and kiddush.
Maftir is the last person to read the Torah and the haftarah on Shabbat and holidays. Learn about the maftir portion, the blessings, the holiday selections and the double maftir on special occasions.
Background and Explanation of the Maftir Reading. Play MP3. It is customary on Shabbat to call up seven Aliyot, and to then call up an eighth Aliya, called Maftir, and the one who receives this Aliya reads a portion from the Nabi (Prophets), which we call the Haftara.
On festivals and certain special Shabbatot, the maftir is a different reading from another part of the Torah. Unlike the other aliyot, a boy under thirteen years old can be called to read the maftir.
Name Of PortionVersesHaftarah PortionBereshit1:1–6:8Isa. 42:5–43:11 (42:5–21)No'aḥ6:9–11:32Isa. 54:1–55:5 (54:1–10)Lekh Lekha12:1–17:27Isa. 40:27–41:16Va-Yera18:1–22:24II Kings 4:1–37 (4:1–23)Learn how reading the haftarah can redeem a deceased parent from Gehinnom, according to a story from the Zohar Chadash. Find out why the haftarah is preferred over a regular aliyah and what blessings are recited for it.
On Shabbat Shekalim we read a maftir taken from Parashat Ki Tissa (Shemot 30:11-16). The maftir describes a census of the Israelites during the time that they were wandering in the wilderness.
