Numbers B'midbar

B’midbar
Numbers 1:1 – 4:20

I. Summary

A. B’midbar = (God spoke to Moses) “in the wilderness” (of Sinai). Hebrew name for entire book = Bemidbar v. English name = Numbers (from Greek translation). Takes place one month after erection of Tabernacle and one year after exodus from Egypt. Numbers covers beginning and end of 40-year wandering in desert (little on intervening 38 years).

B. God commands Moses to take a census of all the Israelite males over the age of twenty. (Num 1:1-46)

C. The duties of the Levites, who are not included in the census, are detailed. (Num 1:47-51)

D. Each tribe is assigned specific places in the camp around the Tabernacle. (Num 1:52-2:34)

E. Levites are counted and their responsibilities are set forth. (Num 3:1-3:39)

F. A census of the firstborn males is taken and a special redemption tax is levied on them to allow Levites to be substituted for first-borns who were traditionally consecrated for service to God. (Num 3:40-51)

G. Duties of Kohathites (one of 3 sub-divisions of Levites) are described. (Num 4:1-20)

II. Commentary (Plaut, various websites, Jewish Study Bible, Hevreh discussions)

A. Purposes of census –

1. Census was one of God's ways of showing love for the people (Hebrew word for "count" is pakod which also means to "remember" and "be concerned with).

2. Census determined the military might of the community.

3. Census was an instrument for enhancing the Israelites’ confidence and feelings of self-worth since everyone from that generation would then be thought of by his name and thus by his own unique, personal qualities.

4. Given that survival of the community was dependent on every person's fulfilling his or her responsibility, census established a pattern for community organization by using the genealogical background and tribal affiliation of the Israelites to determine one's role in the community, to set standards for leadership, to define the role of the individual and to catalogue resources, talents, and abilities.

B. Census’ recognition of families - Census done according to families to counter mindset of slavery which denies the security of family life v. “civilized” people who use family as instrument for building identity, ethical commitment and devotion to tradition.

C. Military focus of census - Reflects pending conquest of Canaan (though 38 years later is not “pending”). Reminiscent of other militaristic countings: 1) Jacob prepares for Esau’s arrival by dividing his people and into groups so that at least one group may escape if the other is attacked and then he precisely counts the flocks that he will offer as gifts to Esau. The presumed aggressor is measured in the number of warriors and in the quantity of the gifts it may take to appease him. (Gen. 32:4-32) 2) Jacob's issue (all who entered Egypt) numbered a mere seventy persons but four hundred years later numbered so many that Pharaoh became alarmed by the burgeoning number Israelite slaves and therefore chose to oppress them to prevent them from becoming a military threat. (Exod. 1:1-12)

D. Other instances of God taking census of Israelites – At the time when 1) Israelites left Egypt, 2) Israelites sinned with golden calf and 3) Tabernacle was erected (though midrash cites ten instances of census).

E. Number of people - Census results of 600,000 arms-bearing men (Num 1:46) suggests total of two million Israelites. Logistics for this many people make this number unlikely. Explanations: 1) Israelites spreads out over entire Arabian peninsula rather than just Sinai. 2) Early conditions of Negev could support this many people 3) “Elef” traditionally translated as “thousands” but may be “contingents”, i.e. less than thousands (resulting in total of 20,000 rather than two million).

F. Order to chaos to order – Census and numbers implies that through measuring and counting, drawing up lists and keeping records, we can create order, imitating God’s ability to create order; however, the gap between the Divine and the human is immense and the order we can create is only partial. We can hold a vision, but we cannot hold to it. The best of our plans are often rendered insignificant by forces beyond our control. Yet by the end of B'midbar, the Israelites have coalesced into a community. B'midbar affirms, even in the midst of chaos and disorientation, the possibility of progress and the triumph of ideals.

G. “Middle” 38 years of wandering in desert - Why does Numbers almost ignore 38 middle years of Israelites’ desert wandering? Especially interesting since the 38-year wilderness experience of our ancestors was crucial to the development of our self- understanding as a people … years that would be remembered as an ideal time when, despite the struggles for material survival, we were especially close to God.

H. Tribe of Judah – Largest in size (Num 1:27 says 74,600) reflects tribe’s later importance. Positioned on eastern side of Tabernacle facing Tabernacle entrance = mark of distinction as progenitor of Davidic royal house.

I. Importance of wilderness - The wilderness is the place where most of Torah happens. Torah itself is the gift that comes from wilderness. You must “make yourself like a wilderness” in order to receive Torah. Receiving Torah involves dangers of a wilderness experience … the danger of being vulnerable to the unknown and confronting your fears. It is a place for introspection, and that frightens us. Receiving Torah requires an attitude of humility … laying yourself vulnerable to the possibility that your assumptions are wrong. Becoming a wilderness means that you lay your ego low and allow Torah to enter. Wilderness experience also requires self-reliance, i.e. existentially we stand alone and live in the “desert,” where we must learn how to use our inner resources to overcome the challenges facing us in life.

J. Marriage of God and Israel - Prophets often refer to the wilderness of Sinai as the place where God and Israel fall in love, and that love is consummated at the sacred mountain. Mount Sinai is the chuppah, "the bridal canopy," and the Torah is the k'tubah, "the marriage contract." And so we find Isaiah declaring to Israel, "Your husband is the one who created you" (Isaiah 54:5), and Jeremiah reminding Israel of "your love as a bride, how you followed me in the wilderness" (Jeremiah 2:2). Metaphor reinforced by haftarah re: unfaithful wife (Hosea 2:1-22).

K. Significance of “forty” - Forty is an important number. Examples are plentiful: “the rain fell for “forty days and forty nights in the Flood” (Gen 7:4); both Isaac and Esau were forty when they got married (Gen 25:20, 26:34); it took forty days to embalm Joseph (Genesis 50:3); Moses spent forty days and forty nights on Mount Sinai (Ex 34:28); the Israelites were made to wander in the wilderness for forty years (Num 32:13); and so on. Forty connotes a fairly long period of time in terms of human experience or endurance.

L. Why the Levites? - What was inherent in Levites to justify their selection by God to be the priestly tribe? Midrash says their prestigious responsibilities = reward for not participating in golden calf worship.

M. Assigned spot at Tabernacle reinforces freedom – Each tribe is assigned a fixed place around Tabernacle. Constancy of “place” reinforces each tribe’s identity and “ownership” of its own turf … attributes of free existence v. slavery.

III. Lessons for today

A. Benefit from wilderness experiences - Living “in the wilderness” can be a metaphor for the difficult times we all inevitably experience; however, just as the Israelites evolved into a people during their wilderness experience, so we learn from our difficult times and become better people as a result of our experience. A little adversity helps us grow; however, how much adversity is enough? Do we learn more from more extreme “wilderness” experiences? Not necessarily … the ability to draw lessons from an experience is more important than the extremity of the experience.

B. Always be the same person - The statement “As they camp, so shall they march…” (Num 2:17) has been interpreted homiletically to teach that one should be the same person at home and away; in private and in public; on the inside and on the outside; in our thoughts and our intentions; and in our speech and our behavior.

C. Importance of family connection – God’ instruction to Israelites to group themselves by family and maintain strong family identities during wilderness travels suggests to us today that our family is not just a group of people we happen to have been born into and live with but rather they are connected to us in a deep and powerful way giving us an opportunity to gain much when we value our families and make them a big part of our lives.

D. Being helpful is a privilege - The Levites were singled out by God for special greatness and importance; however, they had extra jobs to do to serve the community. This suggests that being able to help and give to others is a privilege rather than a burden.

E. Every person has intrinsic uniqueness and value – In taking census of Israelites, Moses was careful to divide the census up into the different groups, tribes and families that made up the one unified, yet quite diverse nation. This teaches us the important lesson of the uniqueness of each group within the whole, and how everyone has something special to offer. God doesn't want or expect everyone to be the same. Further, census having being taken following both golden calf and dedication of Tabernacle suggests that each individual is unique and priceless not only at moments of consecration, but even when fallible and fallen.

(Revised 5/19/09)