In the Shabbat afternoon service, the Torah is read again. Generally, the reading, like the readings during the morning service on Mondays and Thursdays, consists of the first aliya of the upcoming week’s Torah portion. This reading was instituted by Ezra the Scribe as an extra reading for the benefit of laborers who were unable to come to the synagogue during the week to listen to the Torah reading that is conducted on Mondays and Thursdays.

This reading, unlike the one on Shabbat morning, is divided among only three people: A kohen, a Levite, and an Israelite. When there are no kohanim or Levites, three Israelites are called up.