Bo (בא – Va)
Exodus 10:1–13:16 • Jeremiah 46:13–28
The last plagues strike Egypt, and Israel prepares for deliverance.
Jeremiah announces judgment on proud nations and affirms the promise of restoration for Israel.
Exodus 10:1–2
וַיֹּאמֶר ה’ אֶל-מֹשֶׁה, בֹּא אֶל-פַּרְעֹה …
The Lord said to Moses: “Go to Pharaoh…”
וּלְמַעַן תְּסַפֵּר בְּאָזְנֵי בִנְךָ וּבֶן-בִּנְךָ …
“…so that you may tell your son and your grandson…”
The Jewish community (Tiāo jīn jiào, “those who remove the sinew”) of Kaifeng (Kāi-Fēng, “open – seal,” evoking the idea of a gate or passage) left manuscripts of exceptional value. Among these treasures is a 17th-century copy of the Torah portion Bo (1) 🔗, preserved at the Museum of the Bible in Washington. Other objects and documents are housed in several international museums, notably at the Bridwell Library (5) 🔗 in Dallas.
Attested[1] during the Song dynasty (960–1279), a period of great economic and cultural prosperity, the Jewish community of Kaifeng—then the imperial capital—developed. It later benefited from the protection of the Mongol Yuan rulers (1271–1368), known for their religious tolerance and openness to foreign populations. Under the Ming dynasty (1368–1644), an era of political stability and artistic and commercial growth, it reached its golden age. It eventually declined under the Qing dynasty (1644–1911), the last imperial dynasty, whose increased centralization and suspicion of foreign influences contributed to its weakening.
In the 19th century, the Taiping Rebellion[2] devastated the region. The synagogue was destroyed—location (1) and scale model at the Museum of the Jewish People (4) in Tel Aviv—and the last rabbi died, leading to the disappearance of organized communal life.
Seven clans[3], whose names are inscribed on synagogue steles (2), still claim Jewish ancestry today and strive to preserve the memory of this unique community.
[1] Jewish presence in Kaifeng is directly attested only from the Song dynasty, notably through synagogue steles (2). Some historians, however, consider an earlier arrival possible, given Kaifeng’s role as a commercial crossroads since the Tang dynasty (618–907) and the likelihood that Radhanites—Jewish merchants active along the Silk Roads—may have reached China before this period. Oral traditions of the community trace their origin to the time of the First Temple (586 BCE).
[2] Taiping Rebellion (1850–1864): one of the deadliest in history, with about 30 million deaths. Led by Hong Xiuquan, the Tàipíng Tiānguó movement (Heavenly Kingdom of Great Peace) advocated the establishment of a messianic kingdom. The rebellion profoundly destabilized the Qing dynasty and ravaged vast regions of central China, including Kaifeng, contributing to the disappearance of the last Jewish communal structures.
[3] The seven Jewish clans of Kaifeng: Ai (艾), Shi (石), Gao (高), Jin (金), Li (李), Zhao (趙), and Zhou (周).