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Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur (Hebrew: יוֹם כִּפּוּר or יום הכיפורים), Also known as Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the year for the Jews. Its central themes are atonement and repentance. Jews traditionally observe this holy day with a 25-hour period of fasting and intensive prayer, often spending most of the day in synagogue services. Yom Kippur completes the annual period known in Judaism as the High Holy Days (or sometimes “the Days of Awe”).
Yom Kippurיוֹם כִּפּוּר
1:
Leviticus 16:1 - 16:6
· 6 p’sukim
2:
Leviticus 16:7 - 16:11
· 5 p’sukim
3:
Leviticus 16:12 - 16:17
· 6 p’sukim
4:
Leviticus 16:18 - 16:24
· 7 p’sukim
5:
Leviticus 16:25 - 16:30
· 6 p’sukim
6:
Leviticus 16:31 - 16:34
· 4 p’sukim
Maftir:
Numbers 29:7 - 29:11
· 5 p’sukim
Haftarah:
Isaiah 57:14 - 58:14
· 22 p’sukim
Yom Kippur (on Shabbat)יוֹם כִּפּוּר (בְּשַׁבָּת)
1:
Leviticus 16:1 - 16:3
· 3 p’sukim
2:
Leviticus 16:4 - 16:6
· 3 p’sukim
3:
Leviticus 16:7 - 16:11
· 5 p’sukim
4:
Leviticus 16:12 - 16:17
· 6 p’sukim
5:
Leviticus 16:18 - 16:24
· 7 p’sukim
6:
Leviticus 16:25 - 16:30
· 6 p’sukim
7:
Leviticus 16:31 - 16:34
· 4 p’sukim
Maftir:
Numbers 29:7 - 29:11
· 5 p’sukim
Haftarah:
Isaiah 57:14 - 58:14
· 22 p’sukim
Yom Kippur (Mincha, Traditional)יוֹם כִּפּוּר מִנחָה
1:
Leviticus 18:1 - 18:5
· 5 p’sukim
2:
Leviticus 18:6 - 18:21
· 16 p’sukim
Maftir:
Leviticus 18:22 - 18:30
· 9 p’sukim
Haftarah Part 1:
Jonah 1:1 - 4:11
· 48 p’sukim
Haftarah Part 2:
Micah 7:18 - 7:20
· 3 p’sukim
Yom Kippur (Mincha, Alternate)יוֹם כִּפּוּר מִנחָה
1:
Leviticus 19:1 - 19:4
· 4 p’sukim
2:
Leviticus 19:5 - 19:10
· 6 p’sukim
Maftir:
Leviticus 19:11 - 19:18
· 8 p’sukim
Haftarah Part 1:
Jonah 1:1 - 4:11
· 48 p’sukim
Haftarah Part 2:
Micah 7:18 - 7:20
· 3 p’sukim
About Yom Kippur
Beyond the fast and prayer, Yom Kippur is the climax of the Ten Days of Repentance (the Days of Awe) that open on Rosh Hashanah. Its themes are atonement (kapparah) and repentance (teshuvah): tradition holds that the divine judgment opened on Rosh Hashanah is sealed on this day, so the liturgy is built around confession (vidui) and a plea for forgiveness. A crucial principle distinguishes the day's reach: Yom Kippur atones for transgressions between a person and God, but for wrongs done to other people one must first seek reconciliation and forgiveness directly from the person harmed. In Temple times it was the single day each year on which the High Priest (Kohen Gadol) entered the Holy of Holies to offer incense and effect atonement for all Israel — a service the modern liturgy recalls in the Avodah.
When it’s observed
Yom Kippur falls on 10 Tishrei, the tenth day of the Hebrew month of Tishrei. Unlike most festivals, it is observed as a single day in both Israel and the Diaspora — it is not doubled outside Israel because of the severity of adding a second fast day. The observance begins at sundown on the evening of 9 Tishrei (Erev Yom Kippur / Kol Nidre night) and ends at nightfall the following day, spanning an approximately 25-hour fast. In recent Gregorian years it falls around late September to early October (for example, sundown September 20 through nightfall September 21, 2026); exact dates shift each year with the Hebrew calendar, so confirm against a current Jewish calendar.
The readings & trope
The morning (Shacharit) Torah reading is Leviticus 16:1-34 — the High Priest's Yom Kippur Temple service and the two-goats / scapegoat ritual — read in 6 aliyot (7 when Yom Kippur falls on Shabbat). The Maftir, from a second scroll, is Numbers 29:7-11 (the day's offerings), and the morning Haftarah is Isaiah 57:14-58:14, on the sincere fast that God desires. In the afternoon (Mincha), the Torah reading is Leviticus 18:1-30 on forbidden relationships (read in 3 aliyot; some communities or rites read Leviticus 19 instead), and the Haftarah is the entire Book of Jonah (1:1-4:11), concluding with Micah 7:18-20 on repentance and divine mercy. The Torah is chanted in the special High Holiday Torah trope — a distinct, solemn melody shared with Rosh Hashanah morning and different from the everyday Torah cantillation — while the Haftarot are chanted in the standard Haftarah trope. TropeTrainer lets you hear and practice these cantillations, including the special High Holiday Torah melody, so you can prepare your aliyah or full reading at your own pace.
Customs
The day is marked by five traditional prohibitions ("afflicting the soul"): no eating or drinking (the full ~25-hour fast), no washing or bathing, no anointing with oils or cosmetics, no wearing leather shoes, and no marital relations. Many wear white, often a kittel (the same white robe worn at weddings and burials), to symbolize purity, drawing on Isaiah 1:18 ("though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be white as snow"). Five prayer services structure the day: Maariv with Kol Nidre (the one weekday evening a tallit is worn), Shacharit, Musaf (which includes the Avodah re-enacting the High Priest's Temple service, and the Martyrology), Mincha, and the unique closing service Neilah ("the locking of the gates"), recited with the ark open and the congregation standing. The communal confession (Vidui, including Ashamnu and Al Chet) is recited repeatedly in the plural with a symbolic striking of the chest. Yizkor memorial prayers are recited (primarily in Ashkenazi practice). The fast ends with a single long blast of the shofar, followed by a break-fast meal.
Frequently asked questions
What is Yom Kippur?
Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is the holiest day of the Jewish year, devoted to atonement (kapparah) and repentance (teshuvah). It is the climax of the Ten Days of Repentance that begin on Rosh Hashanah, and Jews observe it with an approximately 25-hour fast, intensive prayer, and confession. Yom Kippur atones for sins between a person and God; wrongs done to other people must first be made right with them directly.
When is Yom Kippur?
Yom Kippur falls on 10 Tishrei in the Hebrew calendar and is observed as a single day in both Israel and the Diaspora. It begins at sundown the evening before (Kol Nidre night) and ends at nightfall the next day. On the Gregorian calendar it lands in late September or early October — for example, sundown September 20 through nightfall September 21, 2026 — so check a current Jewish calendar for the exact date in a given year.
What is read on Yom Kippur?
In the morning, the Torah reading is Leviticus 16:1-34 (the High Priest's Temple service and the scapegoat ritual), the Maftir is Numbers 29:7-11, and the Haftarah is Isaiah 57:14-58:14. In the afternoon, the Torah reading is Leviticus 18:1-30 (some rites read Leviticus 19), and the Haftarah is the entire Book of Jonah, ending with Micah 7:18-20. The Torah is chanted in the special High Holiday trope, which you can hear and practice in TropeTrainer.
Why do Jews fast on Yom Kippur?
Fasting is one of five traditional acts of "afflicting the soul" on Yom Kippur, alongside refraining from washing, anointing, wearing leather shoes, and marital relations. The roughly 25-hour fast frees the day for repentance and prayer, expressing humility before God as the year's judgment is sealed. The fast ends at nightfall with a single long shofar blast, followed by a break-fast meal.
Where to go next
How the Haftarah, the Five Megillot, and the High Holiday Torah readings are chanted.
Guided lessons on Torah cantillation, from the basic symbols to advanced phrases.