Megillah 30b (ל:) — the Talmud in English

And which is the fourth Shabbat? —

Any Shabbat that contains the first of Nisan, even if it falls on Friday.

In this case even Shmuel agrees, since “Friday” is analogous to “within it”—and they advance the reading to the preceding Shabbat. For otherwise, the performance of taking the Paschal offering on the first of Nisan, mentioned in the portion “This month,” would precede the reading.

We learned in our Mishna:

On the fifth, they return to their regular order, etc.

And we raise a question concerning this:

To which order?

That is, which order had they interrupted, to which they now return?

Rabbi Ami said: They return to the order of the weekly portions

of the entire year;

they return to it.

For until then they had read only the four special portions, and had not read the portions of the regular yearly order.

Rabbi Yirmeya said: They return to the order of the haftarot.

For until then they had read haftarot corresponding to the four special portions, as stated above in the beraita. But they need not return to the order of the weekly portions, as he maintains that even on these Shabbatot of the four special portions, they also read the portion from the regular yearly order.

Abaye said: The opinion of Rabbi Ami is more reasonable. For we learned: For all these occasions one interrupts the regular order: for the New Moons, for Hanukkah, and for Purim; for fast days, for the ma'amadot, and for Yom Kippur .

Granted, according to the one who says that they return to the order of the weekly portions, this is the meaning

that it teaches that on fast days and at the ma'amadot as well they interrupt, even though these take place specifically on weekdays,

as

there

is a portion on weekdays,

on Mondays and Thursdays, and it is therefore applicable to say that they interrupt the reading of the regular yearly order and read the reading for fast days and ma'amadot.

But according to the one who says that they return to the order of the haftarot, is there a haftara on a weekday—

is there?

And what relevance does interruption on a weekday have with regard to the haftara?!

And the other one,

Rabbi Yirmeya, could say to you:

This

is as it is there, and this

is as it is there.

On a weekday, when a haftara is not applicable, the interruption is certainly in the weekly portions. But on Shabbat, when a haftara is applicable, the interruption is in the haftarot; wherever it is possible to interrupt only in the haftarot, they do not interrupt the reading of the regular yearly order.

And we challenge Rabbi Yirmeya, who said that wherever possible, we do not interrupt:

And on fast days,

when there is a reading at the afternoon service,

why do I need an interruption

at all?

Let them read in the morning concerning the matter of the day

of the regular yearly order,

and at the afternoon service—

let them read

the passage for the fast day?!

And we say:

This supports Rav Huna.

For Rav Huna said: In the morning

of the fast day

there is an assembly

[a gathering].

In the morning they gather the community and examine and admonish them as to whether they have sins in their possession, so that they will desist, in order that the fast be accepted. Therefore, there is no time to read from the Torah at the morning service .

What do they do?

Abaye said: From the morning until midday—

they investigate the affairs of the city,

whether there are sins in their possession, as we said above.

From midday

until evening

[until evening],

a quarter of the day

they read and recite the haftara

[they read from the Torah and recite the haftara].

And a quarter of the day

they plead for mercy. As it is stated: “They read in the scroll of the Torah of the Lord their God for a quarter of the day, and for a quarter they confessed and bowed down.”

And we challenge this:

But perhaps I should reverse it,

and say that from the morning until midday they read and recite the haftara, and from midday until evening they investigate the affairs of the city?

And we answer:

It cannot enter your mind. For it is written: “And there gathered to me all who trembled at the words of the God of Israel over the faithlessness of the exiles, while I sat desolate until the evening offering,” and it is written

at the end of that verse:

“And at the evening offering

I rose from my fast,

etc., and I spread out my palms to the Lord.” We see that prayer takes place toward evening.

Mishna:

On Passover—

they read from the portion concerning the festivals in Torat Kohanim,

namely, “An ox, or a sheep, or a goat, etc.” [Leviticus 22]; and this refers to the first day of the festival of Passover. On the other days of Passover, one selects and reads a passage concerning Passover, as is stated in a beraita in the Gemara .

On Shavuot—

“Seven weeks”

[Deuteronomy 16].

On Rosh Hashanah—

“In the seventh month, on the first day of the month.” On Yom Kippur—

they read from the portion

“After the death.” On the first day of the festival of Sukkot

of Sukkot—

they read from the portion concerning the festivals in Torat Kohanim. And on all the other days of the festival —

from the offerings of the festival

in the portion of Pinhas .

On Hanukkah—

they read

from the section of the tribal leaders,

namely, “And the tribal leaders brought the dedication of the altar, etc.” [Numbers 7] .

On Purim—

we read:

“And Amalek came.”

On the New Moons—

“And on your New Moons.”

At the ma'amadot—

the account of Creation,

and in Masekhet Ta'anit it explains the reason: because the heavens and earth endure on account of the offerings.