PART ONE<\/p>\n
The People of Israel in the Sinai Desert<\/p>\n
1. THE COMMUNITY OF ISRAEL<\/p>\n
The census of the tribes
\n1:1\u201310:36. The first ten chapters of the book of Numbers extend and complete the narrative contained in the last chapters of Exodus about the Israelites\u2019 stay in the Sinai desert after God made the Covenant with the people and before they set out again on their journey. Here we see them preparing to move out. They form a holy community, perfectly organized and congregated around the tent of meeting, where the Levites perform their ministry with care and dedication.<\/p>\n
1:2\u201346. God calls for the census to show that Israel belongs to him. A count is made of all the men capable of bearing arms. However, in the context of the Pentateuch this military census is seen as having a religious dimension, given that the people constitute the army of the Lord (cf. Ex 7:4). We already saw in Exodus 38:25\u201326 that the overall result of this census was taken account of when it came to calculating the contribution each person should make to the cost of building the tabernacle.
\nThe figures reflect the people\u2019s memory of the relative strength of the tribes. The tribe of Judah is depicted as being the largest. The place where this census is put in the final redaction of the Pentateuch has significance: it comes at the point when Israel is making its pilgrimage through the desert to the promised land. The high total number suggests that of the two promises the Lord made to Jacob (to give him the Land and numerous descendants: cf. Gen 28:13\u201314), the second has already come about, and the first is about to happen.
\nThe Jewish reader of this passage can see the splendid unity and diversity of the chosen people, while at the same time identifying with the particular group to which family tradition tells him he belongs.
\nThe Christian reader sees in that people of the twelve tribes a prefiguring of the Church which was founded by Christ on the twelve apostles (cf. Mt 19:28) and which is the new people of God. In view of this, neither the Church nor the Christian can feel a stranger to that people, whose census in the wilderness proclaims the symbolic \u201ccensus\u201d of those who are saved by the blood of Christ (cf. Rev 7:5\u20138).<\/p>\n
A special statute for the tribe of Levi
\n1:47\u201354. The members of the tribe of Levi are not included in the census of the children of Israel. The census had a military purpose, and the Levites, whose role it was to perform functions directly connected with the sanctuary, were not allowed to engage in other activities so that contact with profane things would not render them unclean. The tribe of Levi was set aside to be exclusively at the service of the tabernacle.
\nLiturgical functions to be carried out by the Levites in the sanctuary and particularly in the temple of Jerusalem have their roots in the Covenant; that is why the text recalls the fact that those functions began at the time when Israel was in the desert.
\nExtraordinary importance is given to the care of the tabernacle, such that, according to the sacred text, an entire tribe was allocated to looking after all its equipment and attending to its service. The text even points out that this watchfulness redounds to the benefit of all because it ensures that the wrath of God will not fall \u201cupon the congregation of the people of Israel\u201d (v. 53).
\nThis passage is an invitation to reflect on the care that should be given to everything having to do with worship. The tabernacle in the desert was a sign of God\u2019s presence among his people. Christians use the same word, \u201ctabernacle\u201d, to refer to that sacred place of the \u201creal presence\u201d, where Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is present under the sacramental species. The care that the Levites took of that earlier tabernacle is an example for Christians of the veneration they should have for the tabernacle of the Real Presence. \u201cThe dignity, placing and security of the Eurcharistic tabernacle should foster adoration before the Lord really present in the Blessed Sacrament of the altar\u201d (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1183).<\/p>\n
The order of the tribes in the camp
\n2:1\u201334. The people are described as being drawn up in formation around the tabernacle, a holy people, in perfect array, encamped in the desert, and on the move, united to their Lord. Whether encamped or on the march, the twelve tribes keep this formation, in the shape of a square. There are three tribes on each of the four sides and at the centre are the Levites, surrounding the tent. The city of Jerusalem is depicted in the same kind of way by the prophet Ezekiel (cf. Ezek 48:30\u201335), and the heavenly Jerusalem by the book of Revelation (cf. Rev 21:12\u201313). The passage contains a key teaching: God is always present in the midst of his people; there he has his dwelling.
\nIn the prologue to his Gospel St John says: \u201cAnd the Word became flesh and dwelt [literally, \u201ccamped\u201d] among us\u201d (Jn 1:14). Jesus, perfect God and perfect man, brings into full effect something which is just hinted at in this passage\u2014the fact that \u201cThe God of our faith is not a distant being who contemplates indifferently the fate of men\u2014their desires, their struggles, their sufferings. He is a Father who loves his children so much that he sends the Word\u201d (St J. Escriv\u00e1, Christ Is Passing By, 84).<\/p>\n
The priests
\n3:2\u20134 These verse show how the lawful priesthood came to be assigned to the family of Eleazar, from which will come Zadok (the priest whose line exclusively exercised the priesthood in the temple of Jerusalem down to the time of the Exile) and the family of Ithamar, from which will come Abiathar (a priest who was Zadok\u2019s contemporary\u2014cf. 2 Sam 8:17\u2014and whose line shared the priestly ministry with the Zadokites after the Exile: cf. 1 Chron 24:1\u20136).
\nLike other offices, the priesthood in ancient Israel was hereditary. The words \u201cwhom he ordained\u201d (v. 3) is literally \u201cwhose hand he filled\u201d, a very early wording for the investiture of someone as a priest. Apparently, it was not until much later, after the Exile, that the rite of anointing came to be used in the sense of equipping someone to perform sacred functions (cf. Ex 40:12\u201315). Originally only a king was anointed, and when this rite was transferred to the priest, it not only served to underline the fact that he was a sacred person but also to prepare the way for people to see that the Anointed par excellence, the Messiah (a title that originally applied only to kingship), would also be the only true priest.<\/p>\n
The Levites
\n3:5\u201310. This passage provides the basis for the differentiation of priests and Levites (this will be gone into in more detail in 18:1\u20137). On the one hand, we can see that priests and Levites share the same origin: they are all descendants of Levi and therefore are all of equal dignity; and, on the other, the difference between their functions goes right back to the very constitution of the people at Sinai. The Levites, the text tells us, are of lower rank because God chose \u201cto give them\u201d to Aaron and his sons (cf. 3:9) to minister to them; by performing their functions, humble though they be, they are doing what the Lord commanded Moses to do, that is, obeying the Law of God.<\/p>\n
3:11\u201313. The end of chapter 1 (cf. 1:49\u201353) spoke of the distinction between the Levites and the rest of the children of Israel. The Levites were set apart to devote themselves to the service of the tabernacle. Here another feature of their special calling is underlined: God has taken them as a ransom for the first-born sons of the whole people. As we should remember, all first-born (of men as well as livestock) had to be offered to God (cf. Ex 13:1). Moreover, the first-born of the sons of Israel belong to the Lord in a special way because he preserved them from death during the tenth plague that beset Egypt (cf. Ex 13:14\u201315; Num 8:17). In exchange for these first-born the Lord took the Levites into his service. So, it is made very plain that they are the Lord\u2019s possession (just as the first-born are), and they minister to the whole community, insofar as they also have this vicarious role of taking the place of others.<\/p>\n
The census of the Levites
\n3:14\u201339. This passage specifies how the various Levite families are to be positioned within the camp. Pride of place (on the east, in front of the entrance to the sanctuary) are Moses, Aaron and his sons, the priests. Other Levite families are ranged around the other sides of the sanctuary. Each of them is given a specific part of the tabernacle to look after.<\/p>\n
Redeeming the first-born of Israel
\n3:40\u201351. See the note on 3:11\u201313.<\/p>\n
The Kohathites, The Gershonites, The Merarites, The result of the census of the Levites
\n4:1\u201349. Whereas in the general census which counted males aged twenty and more, in the census of Levites there is an upper and lower age limit. This is a way of showing the importance of their ministry: they have to be of mature age and in the fullness of their health.
\nOne cannot help noticing how detailed the text is as regards the respect owed to liturgical objects; and it points out that this is the will of God. The Fathers of the Church point out that there is even more reason to look after objects to do with eucharistic worship. St Jerome, for example says that \u201cthe testimonies borne by the Holy Scriptures show the veneration that should be given to holy things and to those things which are used in the ministry of the altar. For the sacred vessels, the sacred linens and everything else to do with the liturgy of the Lord\u2019s Passion should not be regarded as ordinary everyday objects which have no holiness attaching to them: on account of their being in contact with the Body and Blood of the Lord they should be venerated with the same respect as is shown his Body and his Blood\u201d (Epistle 114, 2).<\/p>\n
2. LAWS ABOUT RITUAL UNCLEANNESS<\/p>\n
Expulsion of the unclean
\n5:1\u20134. The first legislative section of the book begins at this point. This is the first of a series of dispositions about the ritual cleanness required of individuals in general. The message is clear: where God is present, everything has to be clean. Because God dwells in the camp, every effort must be made to ensure that it is clean. Therefore, any sin or uncleanness (even if only external) must be removed.
\nAt that time the view was that the following were to be put out of the camp\u2014a leper (cf. Lev 13), anyone who had a seminal discharge (cf. Lev 15:1\u201318) or had touched a corpse (cf. 21:1; Num 19:11\u201316), probably because of the danger of contagion involved.
\nLike many others in the Pentateuch, the rule about the expulsion of the unclean was a temporary one. Jesus Christ, who brought the Law to perfection, welcomed lepers and made them clean (cf. Mk 1:40\u201342); he taught that the only things which made men unclean were evil thoughts which arose in their hearts (cf. Mt 25:18\u201319); and filled with compassion he approached the dead (cf. Mt 9:25; Lk 7:14). However, the teaching underlying these rules, that is, the need for purity if one is to draw near to the Lord, has enduring value (cf. Mt 5:8).<\/p>\n
Restitution
\n5:5\u20138. More important than ritual cleanness (vv. 1\u20134) is moral purity in one\u2019s relationships with others. And so now come instructions about the ownership of material things, and about fidelity in marriage (vv. 11\u201331).
\nLeviticus 5:20\u201326 gives a more elaborate account of the law about the unjust taking of others\u2019 property. This passage specifies that when making restitution one needs to give back not only what one stole but a fifth more (twenty per cent); this goes to the injured party or, in his absence, to his goel (the relative responsible for asserting the rights of a dead person) and, if there is no goel, to the priest. Offences against a neighbour were severely punished; also, they also put a person in the Lord\u2019s debt and therefore he was obliged to make a guilt offering (cf. the note on Lev 5:14\u201326).
\nThe detail the text goes into is important: the man who wrongs his neighbour not only sins against him but is also guilty of \u201cbreaking faith with the Lord\u201d (v. 6).<\/p>\n
Offering in cases of jealousy
\n5:11\u201331. The people\u2019s cleanness also entails marital fidelity. Adultery is a very serious offence (cf. the note on Ex 20:14); if proven, the guilty parties were condemned to death (cf. Lev 20:10). The particular rite described here was established in the case where a husband had a reasonable doubt about his wife\u2019s faithfulness but had no evidence against her. The ceremonies prescribed are reminiscent of the rites of ordeals or magical tests used in an attempt to expose the guilt or innocence of a suspect against whom there was no clear evidence. Among Israel\u2019s neighbours, a women under suspicion might be thrown into a river to see if she survived; so, this rite was relatively mild: in addition to listening to the terrible curses calling on God to make her barren forever if she had been unfaithful, the only thing she was obliged to do was drink water mixed with a little dust and some scraps of the papers on which the curses had been written.<\/p>\n
The Nazirite
\n6:1\u201321. The Nazirite vow spoken about here was practised from very early on. Samson was a Nazirite for life (cf. Judg 13:2\u20137) and Samuel may have been also (cf. 1 Sam 1:28); there were Nazirites in the time of Amos (Amos 2:11) and in that of the Maccabees (1 Mac 3:49\u201350). It is probable that some Jewish converts to Christianity had taken this vow (cf. Acts 21:24) and perhaps even St Paul himself took it (cf. Acts 18:18). If someone took the vow, it meant he was consecrated to God, at least for a period of time.
\nThe Nazirite committed himself to three things\u2014to let his hair grow, to abstain from all alcohol, and to avoid contact with dead bodies. Of these, the most specific was the one about not cutting his hair, which is always mentioned when there is reference to a Nazirite; the term even enters into profane vocabulary in the Bible, which in Hebrew describes undressed vines (cf. Lev 25:5) as \u2018Nazarite\u2019 vines. It is not quite clear what the significance was of letting one\u2019s hair grow long; perhaps it was a sign of strength (cf. Judg 5:2) or of closeness to God, because there are some passages which imply that priests wore long hair (Lev 21:5). Abstinence from alcoholic drinks does not imply that it was considered sinful to drink wine, since it is permissible to drink wine during the sacred meal which marks the end of the Nazirite ceremony; it is probably meant to show that the consecrated person does without unessential earthly things in order to devote him to the things of God. It was, undoubtedly, a sign of dedicating oneself entirely to God. The requirement to avoid contact with dead bodies was one that applied also to priests (cf. Lev 21:1) and it protected the person from falling into ritual uncleanness.
\nThe ceremonies that mark the end of the vow are particularly solemn and reflect the joy of someone who has tried to be closer to God. The priests and the man\u2019s friends join with him in his communion offering and in his joy.<\/p>\n
Blessing by priests<\/p>\n
6:23\u201327. This is one of the earliest blessing formulae that the Bible has conserved for us. It is referred to in some psalms (cf. Ps 31:16; 67:1; etc.) and it was used by priests in the temple liturgy. It consists of three petitions, each beginning with the name of the Lord. Some ancient authors saw in this triple invocation an advance announcement of the Blessed Trinity. It goes on to pray for protection, grace and peace\u2014three gifts which sum up man\u2019s aspirations and which God alone can provide in all their fullness.
\nThe Church carries on the tradition of blessing the faithful during liturgical ceremonies, especially at the end of the eucharistic celebration, beseeching God to show them his favour. The Roman Missal includes this text as one of the optional blessings the priest can use at the end of Mass.<\/p>\n
3. OFFERINGS AT THE CONSECRATION OF THE SANCTUARY<\/p>\n
Presentation of offerings, Offerings of leaders
\n7:1\u201388. In the Pentateuch there are two ways of conveying the rules that are to govern the life of the people\u2014one, in legalistic terms (as in the two preceding chapters); the other, by means of narratives about what the people did in their pilgrimage through the desert (as in this section, which recounts the events of the day when the sanctuary was built and dedicated: cf. Ex 40). Once the Israelites settle down in Canaan they will always look back to their ancestors, in order to imitate them; in this particular case, to emulate their generosity in divine worship and the refinement with which they brought their offerings to the Lord in the temple.<\/p>\n
The golden lampstand
\n8:1\u20134. The lampstand or menor\u00e1h was a rich golden artifact (cf. Ex 25:31\u201340) placed beside the table of the offertory bread. Although the exact meaning of this candelabra is unclear, it was obviously a very important feature of divine worship, given that the lamps had to be kept burning all the time (cf. Lev 24:2\u20134). The fact that the arms were seven in number indicates completeness. Flavius Josephus comments that the lampstand symbolized the creative power of God because the seven branches stood for the moon and the planets (cf. Antiquitates Iudaicae, 3, 144\u20136). In the tradition of the Church, the lamps are said to typify Christ. Clement of Alexandria comments: \u201cThe golden lampstand has another symbolic meaning\u2014that of being a sign of Christ [\u2026] not because of its unique nature but because it provides light \u2018in many and various ways\u2019 (Heb 1:1) to those who believe and hope in him\u201d (Stromata, 5, 6, 35). For his part, Rabanus Maurus says that \u201cthe seven lamps are the seven gifts of the Holy Spirit, which abide forever in the Lord, our Redeemer, and in his members, that is, in all those chosen in keeping with his will\u201d (Commentarium in Numeros, 14).<\/p>\n
The purification and offering of the Levites
\n8:5\u201322. The ceremony of the dedication of the Levites is in many ways similar to that of priests (cf. Lev 8), with this difference\u2014that priests are consecrated (cf. Lev 8:12) whereas Levites are only cleansed (v. 6). Levites were held in high regard. Levi is a son of Leah, like Judah and Simeon. In the episode of the golden calf, the Levites stayed loyal to Moses in his confrontation with the idolators (cf. Ex 32:25\u201329). They were co-operators of the priests, but the functions they performed in the temple were secondary ones (cf. Num 3:6\u20139 and Ezek 44:11\u201331). Due to their special status they were omitted from the census (cf. Num 1:47\u201349; 4:1\u201349) and no territory was allocated to them when the land was distributed (cf. Josh 14:3\u20134); instead, their income consisted in tithes from the other tribes (cf. Num 18:21\u201324). Because of their dedication to the service of the Lord, they had to be very scrupulous about ritual cleanness, as can be seen from this very detailed ceremony. The water of expiation (literally, \u201cwater of sin\u201d: v. 7) may have been a kind of lustral water, water used for the purification of persons or objects, similar to that whose preparation is described in 19:1\u201310. There were probably different ways of preparing the water, depending on the type of ablution (cf. 31:23) and the people involved in them. The detailed rules about the cleansing of Levites prior to starting their ministry in divine worship has given the Church food for thought. What type of cleansing is called for when the liturgy is no longer one of shadows and figure but has as its victim Christ himself? \u201cWhat should the purity not be of him who offers so great a sacrifice,\u201d St John Chrysostom asks. \u201cOught not the hand which cuts the victim be more splendid than the sun? And what of the mouth, which is filled with this spiritual fire, and the tongue, which is reddened by such precious blood?\u201d (Homiliae in Matthaeum, 82, 5).
\nThe laying-on of hands showed that the offering being made to God was the property of the offerer: the children of Israel were transferring to God their ownership of the Levites (v. 10), just as the Levites did with the young bulls (v. 12).
\n\u201cAaron shall offer the Levites before the Lord as a wave offering\u201d (vv. 11, 13, 15). Once a wave offering was presented before the Lord, what was offered became the property of the priests (cf. Ex 29:24\u201328). In the present case the same system of waving as applied when cereals or animals were being offered was not used. Anyway, what this ceremony showed was that the Levites would always be at the service of the priests. It made it clear that they were a gift that all Israel was making to the Lord in place of the first-born (v. 18; cf. 3:12\u201313).<\/p>\n
4. PREPARATION FOR THE DEPARTURE<\/p>\n
The second celebration of the Passover, Individual cases
\n9:1\u201314. This account of the second celebration of the Passover includes rules to be followed when a person is unable to celebrate the feast at the right time either because he has contracted uncleanness through contact with a dead body, or because he is travelling on the day. These rulings seem to particularly fit the circumstances Israel found itself in after it was sent into exile\u2014when the Passover was held in scattered communities and it was difficult to meet together for the feast. According to the book of Chronicles (2 Chron 3), Hezekiah applied these rules when re-establishing the Passover in the temple as part of his religious reform.
\nThe Passover was the most specific of Israel\u2019s feasts: if someone was able to take part in it and failed to do so, he was regarded as excluded from the people; on the other hand, strangers who took part in it were considered fellow citizens. This feast means a great deal to the chosen people: it is the memorial of their deliverance from bondage in Egypt; every time it is celebrated it reminds them how God came to his people\u2019s rescue; each member of the community tailors his life to the events of the first Passover (cf. also the notes on Ex 23:14\u201317; Lev 23:5\u20138; and Deut 16:1\u20138).
\nTherefore, just as it was essential for the Israelites to take part in the Passover in order to recall how God intervened on their behalf, the Church now, following a apostolic tradition, has laid it down that Christians should take part at least on Sundays in the re-enactment of the paschal mystery which takes place in the Eucharist (cf. Code of Canon Law, can. 1246, 1).<\/p>\n
The cloud covers the tabernacle
\n9:15\u201323. The cloud which at night took on the appearance of fire and which stayed with the Israelites on their journey through the desert, symbolizes the protective presence of the Lord and, at the same time, his transcendence. The children of Israel were convinced that God\u2019s constant protection was what mattered most\u2014more than just shielding them from the torrid heat of the desert. As well as this, the cloud is a sign of the Supreme Being, whom no one on this earth can see face to face.
\nHere we see how Holy Scripture shows that God uses ordinary visible things as signs to manifest invisible supernatural realities: the cloud which shelters the people from the sun manifests God\u2019s presence among them, his providential guidance and his care and protection. The people of God do not walk alone nor do they wander aimlessly, for God accompanies them and guides them.
\nThe archangel Gabriel seems to allude to the symbolism of the cloud when he announces to Mary that she is to be the mother of the Messiah through the action of God: \u201cThe Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you; therefore the child to be born will be called holy, the Son of God\u201d (Lk 1:35). In the person of Jesus we can see the sign of the tabernacle in all its fullness: he is the Word, who establishes his home among men (cf. Jn 1:14). Like the people of Israel, the Church does not walk alone: the presence of God stays in her midst protecting her and guiding her on her pilgrimage in this world.<\/p>\n
The silver trumpets
\n10:1\u201310. These silver trumpets were used to summon the assembly and as an element in divine worship; but they were also used to call people to arms. They took the form of a long pipe opening out at the end. The sound of alarm (vv. 5, 7) was a sharp, penetrating noise which could be heard at a distance or above the noise of battle.
\nBut, most of all, the trumpets were a call to God, an appeal to him to come to the aid of his people. They were designed to remind them that God was always with them and would give them victory (v. 10).<\/p>\n
PART TWO<\/p>\n
The People in Kadesh<\/p>\n
5. THE MARCH THROUGH THE DESERT<\/p>\n
Departure from Sinai, The order of the march
\n10:11\u201328. The Israelites have been at the foot of Mount Sinai for almost a year (cf. Ex 19:1). Now they set out again, heading for the wilderness of Paran, in the north-east of the Sinai peninsula, to the south of the Negeb. The text makes it clear that the initiative lies with the Lord, his presence symbolized by the cloud. The Lord himself is the one who guides them to their destination. The caravan, which has features of a liturgical procession, keeps the order of the camp described in chapter 2, but with the special feature that the Levites, whose responsibility it is to carry the tabernacle, are divided into two groups. Thus, at the head of the march go the tribes that formed the eastern wing of the camp, and these are followed by part of the tribe of Levi carrying the tent of meeting. Then come those who made up the southern wing, and then the rest of the tribe of Levi with the ark and the sacred furniture. In this way, when the people carrying the ark reach the stopping point they find the tent already set up. This was a clever way of complying with the Lord\u2019s instructions in 2:17 about where the tent should be during the journey, while avoiding any need to leave the ark in the open air when the tent was being set up. The rest of the caravan was made up of those who formed the northern and western wings of the camp.<\/p>\n
Moses\u2019 proposal to Hobab
\n10:33\u201336. The people of Israel were given special divine protection against their enemies. Later, when they were in the promised land and things were particularly difficult, they carried the ark onto the field of battle and acclaimed the Lord to implore his help and to offer him thanks. Moses\u2019 acclamations (10:35\u201336) are two very ancient poetic pieces which were probably used in the early liturgy of the ark and which inspired Psalm 132 (c. v. 8), which was written to praise the Lord at commemorations of the transfer of the ark to the temple of Jerusalem.<\/p>\n
6. REBELLIONS<\/p>\n
The fire at Taberah
\n11:1\u201312:16. Rather than being a description of the journey through the desert from Sinai to Kadesh (cf. 13:26), these chapters tell us things of great importance regarding the relationship between God and his people\u2014the repeated protest and rebellion of the Israelites over the difficulties of the long journey, the punishments God sends them, and finally the forgiveness they receive as a result of Moses\u2019 intercession.
\nThese accounts incorporate memories of various events\u2014the quails and the manna (cf. Ex 16), the appointment of the seventy elders (cf. Ez 18:13\u201326; Ex 24:9), the case of the prophets Eldad and Medad, and the grumbling of Aaron and Miriam against Moses. The chain of events is as follows: the people complain about having no meat to eat and about the manna; they wear Moses out and he turns to the Lord; and the Lord replies by doing two things: he gives Moses seventy elders to aid him in governing the people, and he sends quails to satisfy their hunger.
\nWhen the people were on the march they were described as maintaining a perfect order, almost like an army keeping formation; there is no sign of that now, when they feel beset by hunger and are under the influence of hangers-on who had joined them. A \u201crabble\u201d (cf. v. 4), stirs them to rebel. Their protest arises from their sense of insecurity: What are God\u2019s real intentions? (cf. Ex 16:3); and they express their feelings by bemoaning the fact that they ever left Egypt; they want to retrace their steps and return to bondage (cf. v. 4). Their great sin is to give in to this temptation.
\nThe experiences of the people of God during their desert pilgrimage help us to understand the life of the new people of God: \u201cAdvancing through trials and tribulations, the Church is stenghened by God\u2019s grace, promised to her by the Lord so that she may not waver from perfect fidelity\u201d (Vatican II, Lumen gentium, 9).<\/p>\n
11:1\u20133. Teberah in Hebrew means \u201cfire, blaze\u201d. In the traditions of Israel Taberah always evokes the complaint of the people when they were disheartened on their journey, and how it provoked the Lord\u2019s anger. What the passage highlights is the absolute sovereignty of God and his plans (which man should go along with, no matter what the cost). It also stresses Moses\u2019 role as mediator. No particular reason is given for the people\u2019s complaints other than what it says immediately after this (v. 4); but they are clearly tired out and have lost their enthusiasm since they left Egypt.
\nAs the children of God make their way through life, they can sometimes feel the temptation to discouragement. That should not alarm them. \u201cAfter initial enthusiasm, the doubts, hesitations and anxieties have begun. You are worried about your studies, your family, your financial situation, and, above all, the thought that you are not up to it, that perhaps you are of no use, that you lack experience in life. I will give you a sure means of overcoming such fears, which are temptations coming from the devil or from your lack of generosity! Despise them: remove those recollections from your memory. The Master already poignantly preached this twenty centuries ago: \u2018No one who looks behind him \u2026\u2019 \u201d (St J. Escriv\u00e1, Furrow, 133).<\/p>\n
Craving for Egyptian food
\n11:7\u20139. The people dream of the sort of food they had in Egypt. The manna was a sign of the providence of God, who supplied his people with food in the arid desert. Therefore, their lack of appreciation for the manna, and on top of that their protest against God, show their blindness, their inability to appreciate the gifts God is giving them. Regarding the manna, cf. the note on Exodus 16:1\u201336.<\/p>\n
Moses\u2019 prayer
\n11:10\u201315. Despite the tone of complaint, in Moses\u2019 words we can glimpse God\u2019s relationship to his people: he is their father, he made them into a people. And the passage also shows the heavy responsibility he put on Moses\u2019 shoulders\u2014to the point that he feels unable to carry it any longer.
\nThe imagery used here to describe God\u2019s concern for his people will later be used by St Paul when he speaks of his concern for all the Christian communities which grew from his preaching and which he has to guide towards Christ (cf. 1 Thess 2:7\u201311).<\/p>\n
11:16\u201323. We already saw in Exodus 18:13\u201327 how Moses needed help in governing the people. There he gathered able men around him, on the advice of Jethro; but here it is God himself who tells him to choose seventy elders, or heads of family, and he passes to them some of the spirit that was Moses\u2019. We already heard about the seventy in Exodus 24:9, but now the point is made that Moses had the spirit of prophecy to such a degree that even a share of it given to someone else causes that person to fall into a prophetic trance. In Deuteronomy 18:18 Moses will be portrayed as a great prophet, and in Numbers 12 his special relationship with God is what is highlighted. In this way the tradition of Israel builds up its profile of the greatness of Moses. However, the passage we are discussing makes it clear that the people can be governed only through the spirit of God.
\n\u201cIs the Lord\u2019s hand shortened?\u201d (v. 23). This is an expression that the Bible often uses to show that God is almighty and magnanimous (cf. Is 50:2; 59:1). When Moses meets an apparently insuperable obstacle, God calms him down by making him realize that nothing is impossible for God. We too should keep calm, because \u201c \u2018The arm of the Lord has not been shortened\u2019 (Is 59:1). God is no less powerful today than he was in other times; his love for man is no less true\u201d (St J. Escriv\u00e1, Christ Is Passing By, 130).<\/p>\n
The appointment of the seventy elders
\n11:24\u201330. God himself is the source of the spirit and he can give it to whomever he chooses, irrespective of human qualifications. Moses, for his part, has absolutely the right attitude: he has no desire to monopolize the spirit or to be its only channel; he seeks only the people\u2019s welfare and is delighted to see signs of the spirit in other people; indeed, he would like all the Israelites to have it.
\nCommenting on this passage, St Cyril of Jerusalem teaches: \u201cthere is a hint here of what happened at Pentecost among us\u201d (Catechesis ad illuminandos, 16, 26). God did indeed promise the spirit to all the people (cf. Joel 3:1\u20132) and the day came when that promise was fulfilled through Jesus Christ who, after his ascension into heaven, sent the Holy Spirit to the Church (cf. Acts 1:13). Therefore, the Church, \u201cthe holy people of God shares also in Christ\u2019s prophetic office: it spreads abroad a living witness to him especially by a life of faith and love [\u2026]. It is not only through the sacraments and the ministrations of the Church that the Holy Spirit makes holy the people, leads them and enriches them with his virtues. Allotting his gifts according as he wills (cf. Cor 12:11), he also distributes special graces among the faithful of every rank. By these gifts he makes them fit and ready to undertake various tasks and offices for the renewal and building up of the Church\u201d (Vatican II, Lumen gentium, 12).<\/p>\n
The quails
\n11:31\u201334. In recounting this episode, what is highlighted is the care that God takes of his own. In the present context God\u2019s care is in sharp contrast with the rebellious and sinful attitude of the people, whose greed is such that what is a gift from God becomes a form of punishment.
\nThe name of the place\u2014Kibroth-hattavah means \u201cgraves of greed\u201d\u2014links the episode of the quails to the way the people were punished for their gluttony and hardness of heart.
\nA homer (v. 32) was a donkey\u2019s load (cf. the note on Lev 27:16). The text shows that the Israelites gathered an enormous amount of meat.<\/p>\n
The complaint of Miriam and Aaron against Moses, Moses intercedes
\n12:1\u201316. Aaron and Miriam\u2019s complaints about Moses begin with the subject of his marriage to a foreigner. (The Hebrew text says \u201cCushite\u201d, which means \u201cfrom Ethiopia\u201d, but if we look at Habakkuk 3:7, which links Cushan to the Midianites, perhaps we can read this passage as referring to Zipporoah: cf. Ex 2:16\u201321.) But their complaints are really aimed at something much deeper\u2014Moses\u2019 unique authority as intermediary between God and his people. He is not the only prophet, they say; however, unlike Moses, they have not the humility to see that prophecy is a charism, a gift to be exercised on behalf of the people; rather, they see it as a privilege from which they can gain advantage. This negative feature of Aaron, along with what Exodus 32 has to tell about him, seems to suggest that his place in folk memory is less positive than might appear at first sight.
\nThe passage really shows what a unique personality Moses was in the history of Israel. He was the one who most put his trust in the Lord (perhaps that is the meaning of the Hebrew word anaw, here translated as \u201cmeek\u201d: v. 3). Such was his trust that he became the most long-suffering of men; and it brought God to his defence. The severity of Miriam\u2019s punishment and the swiftness of her cure at Moses\u2019 intercession, serve to show how great Moses is. What really makes him great is the fact that God speaks directly to him and not through visions or dreams as in the case of the prophets. So, Moses is greater than the prophets. According to the Hebrew text, Moses saw the \u201cform\u201d of the Lord (v. 8); the Greek translation (presumably because of the spiritual nature of God and his transcendence) says that Moses saw \u201cthe glory of the Lord\u201d. Similarly St John will say that \u201cno one has ever seen God\u201d (Jn 1:18), in order then to go on and stress that only Jesus Christ, the Son of God and himself true God, could reveal to us all the truth about God.
\nHowever, God\u2019s spirituality and transcendence does not mean we cannot enter into direct conversation with him through prayer. \u201cMoses\u2019 prayer is characteristic of contemplative prayer by which God\u2019s servant remains faithful to his mission. Moses converses with God often and at length, climbing the mountain to hear and entreat him and coming down to the people to repeat the words of his God for their guidance. Moses \u2018is entrusted with all my house. With him I speak face to face, clearly, not in riddles\u2019, for \u2018Moses was very humble, more so than everyone else on the face of the earth\u2019 (Num 12:3, 7\u20138)\u2019 \u201d (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2576).<\/p>\n
Reconnoitring the promised land<\/p>\n
13:1\u201314:45. The general background of the people\u2019s rebelliousness, and God\u2019s forgiveness (chapters 13 and 14) helps to explain why the Israelites did not enter the promised land immediately from Kadesh, but had to make a detour and enter via Transjordan. The cause for this detour was, basically, their faltering obedience to the Lord, their disdain for the promised land and their nostalgia for Egypt. In the account given here we find memories that go back to the earliest times, such as, for example, the leadership shown by Caleb (from the tribe of Judah), a reconnoitring of the Land which does not extend beyond the zone of Hebron, and a failed attempt to enter it via the Negeb (cf. 14:39\u201345).<\/p>\n
13:16. The name Joshua means \u201cYahweh saves\u201d. The fact that it is Moses who confers this name on him gives a hint of his future mission: acting on God\u2019s behalf, Joshua will save the people as he had already done in the battle against the Amalekites according to Exodus 17:9\u201313. Joshua\u2019s name and his mission to lead the people into the Land gave the Fathers of the Church grounds for seeing in him an advance announcement of Christ, whose name, Jesus, means the same as Joshua (cf. Mt 1:21; Lk 1:31).<\/p>\n
13:24. The \u201cValley of Eschol\u201d, literally \u201cTorrent of the Cluster\u201d, is located near Hebron.
\nSome Fathers gave an allegorical interpretation to this: the cluster of grapes grown in the promised land stands for Jesus Christ, born of the Virgin Mary. And its being hung on a pole stands for Christ hung from the cross. \u201cThe two bearers\u201d, St Caesarius of Arles comments, \u201care the two Testaments\u2014the Jews lead the way, the Christians come behind; the latter can see salvation in front of them [\u2026]. We, who come behind, have merited to adore and to bear the Lord Jesus. [\u2026] Let us work as best we can with his help; let us not try to shed such a sweet burden\u201d (Sermons, 107, 3).<\/p>\n
The spies return
\n13:27\u201329. The spies\u2019 report confirms all God promised about the Land (cf. Ex 3:8). In stressing the strength of the peoples who live there, God\u2019s own strength is being highlighted, as also his love for his people, because he will be the one who uproots the present occupiers (cf. Deut 7:1); and, besides, it gives the background to the protests the text goes on to describe.
\nThe descendants of Anak (v. 28) are the giants who, according to Israelite tradition, occupy the southern part of Canaan; an explanation of their origin is given in Genesis 6:1\u20134.
\nThe Amalekites were a semi-nomadic people who moved to the south of the Negeb; the Israelites fought with them more than once (cf. Ex 17:8\u20136). The Hittites had ruled a huge empire in the 14th century BC, and the Amorites occupied the Tigris and Euphrates valleys. The Jebusites were earlier occupiers of Jerusalem. The description given of where each of these peoples lived in the Land is a very sketchy one.<\/p>\n
13:30\u201333. There are two opposed attitudes here\u2014that of Caleb, who is influenced by faith, and that of the other scouts who, when they come up against obstacles, fail to count on God and in fact question the value of the gift God has promised, the gift of the Land. This last point is what provokes their open rebellion against God and Moses.
\nIt is often easy to see the obstacles to any human or supernatural project. The way to deal with these difficulties is not to close one\u2019s eyes but to fight bravely and faithfully to overcome them. The Israelites were filled with fear at the prospect of having to conquer the Land (because their enemies were so powerful); so frightened were they that some came to reject and disparage the Land itself. Something similar happens to a Christian when fearfulness makes him go into reverse in his efforts to attain perfection. \u201cI know that the moment we talk about fighting we recall our weakness and we foresee falls and mistakes. God takes this into account. As we walk along, it is inevitable that we will raise dust; we are creatures and full of defects. I would almost say that we will always need defects. They are the shadow which shows up the light of God\u2019s grace and our resolve to respond to God\u2019s kindness. And this chiaroscuro will make us human, humble, understanding and generous\u201d (St Josemar\u00eda Escriv\u00e1, Christ Is Passing By, 76).<\/p>\n
The rebellion of Israel, God\u2019s threat and Moses\u2019 appeal
\n14:1\u201325. The rebellion reaches its climax; the people want to replace Moses with someone else, return to Egypt and stone those who encourage trust in God. We see Aaron backing up Moses, and Joshua sharing Caleb\u2019s enthusiasm (vv. 5\u20136). However, it will be the glory and might of God that sorts things out: he threatens punishment and (the most terrible thing of all) to disinherit the people: he is ready to create a new people, starting with Moses (vv. 11\u201312). But once more Moses pleads on the people\u2019s behalf; this time he uses the strongest argument he can find\u2014the very reputation of Yahweh among the nations, and his gracious and merciful nature (according to his own description: cf. Ex 34:6\u20137). And God in fact does forgive his people yet another time; he does not destroy them; but he has to act in a just way, distinguishing between those who put their trust in him (like Caleb) and those who rebelled against him as many as \u201cten times\u201d (v. 22), that is, totally and deliberately.<\/p>\n
God\u2019s new reply
\n14:26\u201338. Once again the text mentions God\u2019s reaction to the people\u2019s complaints and low spirits, and we are told about the punishment, which takes into account the census held previously: except for Caleb and Joshua, no one over twenty will escape the wrath of God. The forty years\u2019 pilgrimage in the desert is going to start now, and it corresponds to the forty days it took them to spy out the Land: so it is a severe punishment and it is at the same time proportionate to the crime. The first to receive this punishment were those who, although they had the good fortune to actually see the Land, undermined the morale of the others and instigated their protest\u2014that is, those who, although they in some way experienced the gift of God, failed to appreciate it out of cowardice and even discredited it to others.<\/p>\n
A frustrated attempt to enter the promised land
\n14:39\u201345. Hormah is a Hebrew word meaning \u201cdestruction\u201d.
\nBehind this account there seems to lie a memory of a failed attempt to enter Canaan from the Negeb. The reason behind the failure was primarily religious: the people repented, but not soon enough; their basic attitude continued to be one of disobedience to the Lord; they would not listen to Moses; in fact, they did not want to be dependent on God, Moses or the Covenant but to rely on their own resources. As things turned out, they made a big mistake\u2014which can be a lesson to us: \u201cWithout the Lord you will not be able to take one sure step forward. This conviction that you need his help will lead you to be more united to him, with a strong, enduring confidence, accompanied by joy and peace, even if the road might become hard and steep\u201d (St J. Escriv\u00e1, Furrow, 770).<\/p>\n
7. LAWS FOR PRIESTS AND LEVITES<\/p>\n
Rules about offerings
\n15:1\u201319:22. The narrative is interrupted again to give a series of prescriptions, most of them to do with religious worship. As on other occasions, ordinances to do with the temple during the monarchy period (v. 2) and particularly after the return from exile, are attributed to Moses, to give them maximum authority.<\/p>\n
15:1\u201316. This section specifies which cereal offerings and libations are to accompany offerings of animals. The latter were of two kinds\u2014burnt offerings (holocausts) in which the victims were burned, and peace offerings (where the offerers and the priests share the offerings, as explained in the Leviticus ritual (Lev 1\u20137). Both kinds were offered for three possible reasons (v. 3)\u2014to fulfil a vow; as a freewill offering; or in thanksgiving (particularly on feast days).
\nCereal and drink offerings go very far back in Israelite tradition, though it is possible that many details may have been borrowed from Canaanite rites. The basic idea is that the offering\/sacrifice is the sacred meal in which God and the offerers share, thereby entering into communion. Although some expressions, like \u201ca pleasing odour to the Lord\u201d (v. 3), are very anthropomorphic (as if God needed to smell it), the Old Testament again and again takes issue with that way of thinking: it teaches that sacrifices are not designed to satisfy any need on God\u2019s part; they are, rather, an acknowledgment by man of God\u2019s sovereignty, covenant, reconciliation, friendship etc. But sacrifices are not merely external affairs: they should come from the heart, as the prophets reminded the Jews and as Jesus stressed: \u201cI desire mercy, and not sacrifice\u201d (Mt 9:13 and note).
\nThe \u201ctenth\u201d (v. 4) of an ephah: an ephah was about 21 litres (4.6 gallons): see the note on Ex 16:32\u201336. A hin was a liquid measure\u2014approximately 3.5 litres (just under a gallon).<\/p>\n
15:17\u201321. The \u201cpresent\u201d or tribute of the first fruits was very much a religious affair: we find the same word being used in liturgical terminology. It is an acknowledgment of the sovereignty and absolute dominion of God: he is given a share in the first and best of the crop, in recognition of the fact that it is thanks to him that men enjoy the good things of the earth.<\/p>\n
Atonement for faults of inadvertence
\n15:22\u201331. What is said here about offerings to atone for sins committed unwittingly (by the community or by an individual) needs to be complemented by Leviticus 4\u20135. It is worth noting the importance that awareness of a sin has when it comes to deciding its gravity. If a sin is committed unwittingly, remission can be obtained by making the prescribed offerings; but if the action is a deliberate one, ritual offerings are incapable of bringing about forgiveness, and anyone who commits such a sin is excluded from the community.
\nSomething which the New Testament will make clear is already being implied here\u2014that not all sins are of equal gravity. Thus, the Catechism of the Catholic Church distinguishes mortal from venial sins: \u201cMortal sin destroys charity in the heart of man by a grave violation of God\u2019s law; it turns man away from God, who is his ultimate end and his beatitude, by preferring an inferior good to him. Venial sin allows charity to subsist, even though it offends and wounds it\u201d (no. 1855). It also establishes that \u201cFor a sin to be mortal, three conditions must together be met: \u2018Mortal sin is sin whose object is grave matter and which is also committed with full knowledge and deliberate consent\u2019 (Reconciliatio et poenitentia, 17)\u201d (no. 1837); whereas, \u201cone commits venial sin when, in a less serious matter, one does not observe the standard prescribed by the moral law, or when one disobeys the moral law in a grave matter, but without full knowledge or without complete consent\u201d (no. 1862).<\/p>\n
Penalty for breaking the sabbath
\n15:32\u201336. This section deals with a sin committed deliberately, and where the matter is serious (as can be seen from the fact that the death penalty applies: cf. Ex 31:14\u201315). In this particular case the method of executing the sentence is specified\u2014by stoning, the usual method in ancient Judaism. The harshness of the penalty helps to show how grave an offence against God a mortal sin is.<\/p>\n
Tassels on garments
\n15:37\u201341. Here is another instance of the sacred text giving a religious explanation for customs of the period\u2014this time the use of tassels on the fringes of clothes. These coloured tassels will act as a reminder to the Israelites that they are different from all other nations, and they will be a sign of their resolve to faithfully obey the precepts of the Law, unafraid of being seen to be different. Jesus himself probably used them: this seems to be implied in the episode of the woman with the hemorrhage (cf. Mt 9:20); but he criticized people who hypocritically wore them only for show (cf. Mt 23:5).<\/p>\n
The rebellion of Korah, Dathan and Abiram; their punishment
\n16:1\u201335. This section interweaves accounts of the rebellion of the Levites, led by Korah, and that of the Reubenites, laymen, led by Dathan and Abiram. It carries a lesson that the Israelites will never forget: only those who are docile to the will of God will stay on the path that leads to the promised land. It makes it crystal clear that Moses is the pre-eminent leader of the people, put by God in that position; that worship is the priests\u2019 prerogative; and that the Levites\u2019 role in worship is secondary to that of priests.
\nThe Levites\u2019 grievance seems to be twofold\u2014on the one hand, against Moses and Aaron whose privilege it is to approach the sanctuary (v. 3), even though the entire congregation of Israel is also sanctified by the presence of God (cf. Ex 19:16); and, on the other, against the priests who perform functions to which the Levites feel they have a right (v. 10). The fact that the rebels were \u201ctwo hundred and fifty well-known men\u201d from among the leaders of the congregation shows the seriousness of the incident. They will all receive the same punishment (16:35).
\nMoses justifies his mission on the grounds that he has been chosen for it, and he proposes to the rebels that they offer incense (v. 7; cf. vv. 17\u201319). The offering of incense was regarded as being the exclusive prerogative of priests; therefore, Moses\u2019 proposal is a bold one because it leaves it up to God himself to decide whether to accept or reject these men as priests. It turns out that he rejects them (v. 35).
\nThe mutiny of the Reubenites is recounted with all its aggravating details: they refuse to attend the meeting called by Moses (v. 12); they describe Egypt as a \u201cland flowing with milk and honey\u201d\u2014words that apply to the promised land (v. 13); they despair of inheriting fields and vineyards (v. 14). So, their attack on Moses\u2019 leadership is a frontal one. And they will pay heavily for it: not even Moses\u2019 intercession can save them (v. 22), just as Abraham failed to prevent the destruction of Sodom (cf. Gen 18:16\u201333); the punishment extends to the families and property of the ringleaders (vv. 26, 32), and it means not just death but annihilation (vv. 31\u201332). This underscores the message contained in this account: the penalty imposed is a terrible one because rebellion against God\u2019s plans is a most grievous offence.
\n\u201cGod of the spirits of all flesh\u201d (v. 22) is a circumlocution found only here and in 27:16; it graphically conveys the idea that God is the only one who has power over the life (spirit) of all men (flesh). That is, he is the Creator and he is Providence.
\nThe overall message of the chapter is that God chooses whomsoever he wishes, and he allots each person his or her role. All should be faithful to their designated roles. However, ambition for power or love of the limelight can lead people to claim a right to positions to which they are not called. Rebelliousness against the order established by God is a serious matter; so the text makes it clear that there are severe penalties for it.<\/p>\n
16:6\u20137 Censers were used in religious worship. However, censers hanging from chains, of the type used nowadays, were unknown: at that period the censer was a simple metal bowl or basin with hot embers in it, on to which incense was put; archaeological excavations have yielded various primitive censers of this type.<\/p>\n
Recovering the altar
\n16:36\u201341 This short account explains why the altar for burnt offerings had a metal covering (cf. Ex 27:2): on this altar the expiation offerings were made, and therefore even the material of which the sheeting was made (\u201cthe censers of these men who have sinned\u201d: v. 38) should reflect its purpose; besides, this sheeting would remind people that no one other than a priest should in the future approach the altar (v. 40), to make sure that no one suffered the same fate as these Levites.<\/p>\n
The people complain and are punished
\n16:42\u201351. One of the functions reserved to priests was to perform atonement rites, as this episode makes plain. We are told here about a mutiny, although its punishment is not described in detail: there is just a mention of a \u201cplague\u201d, that is, a misfortune which, like the plagues of Egypt, would show the Lord\u2019s dominion over created beings and how he intervenes in the history of the Israelites. However, the passage goes into detail about the offering of incense (vv. 46\u201348), to make the point that the primary function of a priest is to perform the rite of atonement for the people\u2019s sins. The book of Wisdom (cf. Wis 18:20\u201325) refers to this fact, underlining the figure and role of the Aaronic priesthood.<\/p>\n
Aaron\u2019s rod
\n17:1\u201310. The prodigy of the sprouting rod demonstrates the pre-eminence of the tribe of Aaron. However, the rod does not sprout because it was any different from the other rods (vv. 2\u20133), but because God singled it out gratuitously. Flowering and bearing fruit symbolize vitality and divine blessing (cf. Gen 1:11, 22, 28).
\nThis account is a beautiful paradigm of divine vocation; thus, an ancient apocryphal text tells of St Joseph\u2019s rod flowering as Aaron\u2019s did (Protoevangelium Iacobi, 9). This has passed into Christian iconography, as can be seen from depictions of St Joseph. Church tradition also applies this idea to the Blessed Virgin: \u201cThe rod, which is neither planted nor cultivated, flourishes; it bears fruit and, as the Prophet said, it grows out of the root of Jesse and produces a flower on which rests the septiform spirit of the Lord. Who, then, is that rod if not the Royal Virgin of the line of David, who, according to evangelical faith, without the action of man gave unto us Christ, the true flower and glory of mankind, in whom all the fullness of divinity dwells bodily?\u201d (Rupert of Deutz, Commentarium in Numeros, 2, 4).<\/p>\n
17:12\u201313. As a tail-piece to these two chapters, the sacred writer records the moral the people have drawn: no one other than a priest may approach the altar. The language is blunt because the rule is an important one. It should be remembered that many of these prescriptions to do with worship have a pedagogical purpose\u2014to teach people the transcendence of God; this lesson will ensure that no one thinks he can use religious cult to manipulate the Lord to his own advantage.<\/p>\n
Priests and Levites
\n18:1\u20137. The message contained in narrative form in the previous two chapters is now spelt out in the form of regulations about the rights and duties of priests and Levites. This section specifies the roles of each: priests exercise a ministry which has greater dignity\u2014to do with the altar and the holy of holies (v. 7); Levites are at the service of priests, to whom they have been given as a \u201cgift\u201d (vv. 2\u20136). These rules are handed down directly to Aaron and not, as is normally the case, to Moses.
\nSee also the note on Num 3:5\u201310.<\/p>\n
Tithes and portions
\n18:8\u201332. The rights of priests are spelled out in detail (vv. 8\u201319) and then those of the Levites (vv. 21\u201332). Priests always get their upkeep from their share in the people\u2019s sacrifices and offerings, as specified in various texts (cf. Deut 18:3\u20135; Lev 6\u20137; Ezek 44:29\u201331). The shares allocated here are very advantageous to priests. Levites, for their part, receive only the tithes specified. Priests are regarded as being a \u201cgift\u201d to God in place of the first-born (cf. 3:12; 8:16). Underlying these regulations is the idea that service in the temple redounds to the benefit of the whole community, and therefore the community has a duty to ensure that ministers have a suitably dignified standard of living. St Paul makes the same point: without going into detail he tells Christians that they should help meet church expenses (cf. 1 Cor 9:8\u201314).
\n\u201cA covenant of salt\u201d (v. 19): a covenant sealed with salt was permanent and inviolable. Salt was a very precious commodity in desert life because it prevented dehydration; sharing a meal and using the same salt was the way pacts between individuals were sealed. Salt was also used in offerings (cf. Lev 2:13) because, given its preservative properties, it acted as a symbol of permanence and fidelity. Our Lord used salt as a metaphor with this same meaning (cf. Mt 5:13).<\/p>\n
The rite of the red heifer
\n19:1\u201310 The common thread in this chapter is ceremonies having to do with ritual cleansing; it contains three sections\u2014the ashes of the red heifer (vv. 1\u201310); rules for various types of ritual cleansing (vv. 11\u201316); the preparation and use of lustral water (vv. 17\u201322).
\nThe rite of the red heifer contains elements so old that their meaning is not entirely clear; however, the notion of protection is dominant throughout: the colour red symbolized the absence of evil, and the cedarwood, hyssop and red dye were regarded as medicinal. The heifer had to be slaughtered with great care\u2014outside the camp, by a layman in the presence of a priest, burned so that it was reduced to ashes, etc. This may have been originally a pagan rite but one which, when brought into use in Israel, was divested of any magical element; it is mentioned only in two places\u2014here, and in connexion with the cleansing of war booty (cf. 31:23). The heifer was killed \u201coutside the camp\u201d (v. 3). Some Fathers see this immolation which is part of an atonement rite as a prefiguring of the sacrifice of Jesus who \u201calso suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood\u201d (Heb 13:12).<\/p>\n
Purification with water
\n19:11\u201316. Contact with a dead body was regarded as a serious uncleanness and it called for two washings with lustral water (\u201cwater for impurity\u201d) prior to entering the sanctuary (vv. 12\u201313). The Nazarite (cf. 6:9\u201311) and the priest (cf. Lev 21:1\u20134) were forbidden to touch a dead body, and the high priest was not even allowed to go near his own father\u2019s body (cf. Lev 21:11). Regulations of this sort show the deep respect people had at that time for anything to do with life or death: both come from God, but he alone is the author of life. Therefore, even those who had touched a dead body out of family piety or because it was a duty of their office, had to be carefully purified before approaching the altar of God. It is very likely that the background to all this was a desire to avoid contagion; like other peoples of antiquity, the Hebrews may well have had a taboo about contact with bodies of the dead. However, over and above that, the rules laid down in the Bible are really designed with religious worship in mind (rather than any possible contagion etc.): its dignity was such that people needed to be cleansed of anything that in the popular mind implied contamination, even though there was no scientific basis for it.<\/p>\n
8. VARIOUS EVENTS IN KADESH<\/p>\n
Moses brings water from the rock
\n20:1\u201319. When the spies sent to explore the land of Canaan returned to base, the people of Israel were in the desert of Paran, in Kadesh (13:26). The desert of Zin, which is referred to here, and which is different from that of a very similar name (Sin) mentioned in Exodus 16:1 and 17:1, was the north-west part of the wilderness of Paran, to which the cloud had led the Israelites from Sinai (cf. 10:12). Kadesh was not really a town but an area containing leafy oases. It was a key point of reference for the people of Israel\u2019s route towards Canaan. From Kadesh they will leave for the plains of Moab (cf. 22:1). Kadesh marks the end of the desert trek (cf. chaps. 33\u201338); from now on the land is inhabited and the Israelites will have contact with those who live there.
\nAs they make their way, the people encounter both external and internal difficulties, but that does not stop their advance to the promised Land, because God is their guide and he is helping them. In this sense the people of Israel prefigures the Church, for \u201cas Israel according to the flesh which wandered in the desert was already called the Church of God (cf. Num 20:4; etc.), so too, the new Israel which advances in this present era in search of a future and permanent city (cf. Heb 13:14), is called also the Church of Christ (cf. Mt 16:18). It is Christ indeed who had purchased it with his own blood (cf. Acts 20:28); he has filled it with his Spirit; he has provided means adapted to its visible and social union\u201d (Vatican II, Lumen gentium, 9).<\/p>\n
20:2\u201313. Unlike Exodus 17:1\u201317, here it is Aaron who accompanies Moses, so that both of them share in the sin of mistrusting God (cf. v. 12). The text does not say what their sin was exactly: presumably it was because they struck the rock twice due to lack of faith, instead of once (cf. vv. 11\u201312) or in the fact that they struck the rock whereas God had told them to speak to the rock (cf. v. 8)\u2014although in Exodus 17:6 Moses was in fact told to hit it. In v. 24 we are told it was a sin of rebellion, and in Psalm 106:32\u201333 it says that Moses \u201cspoke words that were rash\u201d. In Deuteronomy 1:37 and elsewhere, the punishment inflicted on Moses is, however, attributed to the people\u2019s disobedience. At any event, the event is recounted here, just before the narrating of the death of Aaron (as it will also be mentioned in Deuteronomy 32:51 before the account of Moses\u2019 death). Here the episode is connected with two place-names\u2014Kadesh, which means in fact \u201choliness\u201d and which would remind people of the holiness of God (cf. v. 13), and Meribah, which means \u201crebellion\u201d and would evoke Moses\u2019 sin. The two names appear linked (Meri-bath-kadesh) in Deuteronomy 32:51 and Exodus 47:19.
\nThis rock prefigured Christ, according to 1 Corinthians 10:4\u20135. The Fathers gave an allegorical interpretation: the rock is Jesus, and the water the grace which flows from the open side of our Lord; the double strike stands for the two beams of the cross. Moses stands for the Jews, because just as Moses doubted and struck the rock, the Jewish people crucified Christ, not believing that he was the Son of God (cf. St Augustine, Contra Faustum, 16, 15; Questiones in Heptateuchum, 35).<\/p>\n
Edom refuses right of way
\n20:14\u201321. Chapters 13\u201314 already explained why the Israelites did not enter Canaan directly by following the route from Egypt to Beer-sheba and Hebron (cf. 14:26\u201338). Another difficulty is mentioned here which forced them yet again to avoid the shortest route. Because Edom blocked their way, they had to skirt the country of the Edomites, going south again, towards the gulf of Akabah (cf. 21:4), so as to enter the Land from the other side of the Jordan.
\nEdom was the nation descended from Esau, just as Israel came from Jacob. So, they were brother nations; but there was a traditional enmity between them, as can be seen even in the story of their ancestors (cf. Gen 32). To Edom Israel depicts its own history as a \u201chistory of salvation\u201d (cf. vv. 15\u201316), but Edom will not listen and refuses to open a corridor. Israel, however, keeps on going, but by another route, undeterred by difficulty.<\/p>\n
The death of Aaron
\n20:22\u201329. It is not possible to say exactly where Aaron died (the place-name given in Deuteronomy is Moserah). However, the main thing in this passage is the fact that God passes Aaron\u2019s priesthood to his son through the rite of the transfer of garments (cf. Deut 10:6).<\/p>\n
PART THREE<\/p>\n
From Kadesh to Moab<\/p>\n
The destruction of the Aradites
\n21:1\u20133. On top of grief at losing one of its leaders comes this attack from an outsider; but Israel seeks the Lord\u2019s help and comes out victorious. The capture of this city takes on special significance: it is the first-fruits of the victory over the Canaanites, and it comes prior to the long trek to Moab.
\nThe name of the city, Hormah, is linked to the custom of the anathema (in Hebrew, jerem). (Regarding the anathema cf. 31:1\u201353.) It has to do with the idea that war booty belongs to God and therefore must not benefit the victors: it should be destroyed to show that it is dedicated to the Lord.<\/p>\n
The bronze serpent
\n21:4\u20139. The people continue to complain against Moses, this time because they have to go right around Edom. But their protest is also directed against God. When they are punished, Moses once again intercedes on their behalf. The events covered in this account may have taken place in the region of Araba, where copper mines existed from the 13th century BC onwards. In the town now called Timna, an Egyptian shrine has been unearthed which contained a copper serpent, indicating that some sort of magical power was attributed to these serpents.
\nThis passage in Numbers is interpreted in Wisdom 16:5\u201312, where the point is emphasized that it was not the bronze serpent that cured them but the mercy of God; the serpent was a sign of the salvation which God offers all men. The bronze serpent is mentioned later, in the Gospel, as typifying Christ raised up on the cross, the cause of salvation for those who look at him with faith: \u201cAs Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up; that whosoever believes in him may have eternal life\u201d (Jn 3:14\u201315). When Christ is raised above all human things, he draws them towards himself; so his glorification is the means whereby all mankind obtain healing for ever more.<\/p>\n
Movements in the region of Moab
\n21:10\u201320. Nomadic shepherds had the custom of celebrating a newly dug water-hole. The lyrical tone the text takes on here evidences the joy the people feel as they near the promised land. Beer (v. 16) means \u201cwell\u201d; the song shows the people\u2019s joy at having all the water they need.
\nIt is not possible to say exactly what route they took, or how much time they spent, on the way from Kadesh to the plains of Moab. According to Deuteronomy 2:14, they spend thirty-eight years on this journey; that figure does not seem to include the time spent going from Sinai to Kadesh. On this, see the \u201cIntroduction\u201d (pp. 521ff above). It seems reasonable to suppose that during this period they lived the life of nomadic shepherds.<\/p>\n
Sihon and Og defeated
\n21:21\u201335. This small Canaanite kingdom, to the north of Arnon, in Transjordan, was the first territory the Israelites captured, a kind of foretaste of their conquest of the promised Land. Hence the importance that this victory over Sihon, king of the Amorites, will take on in biblical traditions. The conquered territory was occupied by the tribes of Reuben and Gad (cf. chap. 32). After this victory, we are told about the victory over Og, the king of Bashan (referred to in Deuteronomy 2:26\u20133:11). The scale of these victories was God\u2019s response to the obstinacy these kingdoms showed by putting obstacles in the way of his plan (for Israel to enter the promised land).<\/p>\n
PART FOUR<\/p>\n
Israel on the Plains of Moab<\/p>\n
9. THE STORY OF BALAAM<\/p>\n
Balak calls in Balaam
\n22:1\u201336:13. The rest of the book of Numbers and all of Deuteronomy is taken up with accounts of events on the plains of Moab, in front of Jericho, a city which would be the gateway to the promised land. Taken together, they describe at length the detailed preparations the Israelites made prior to crossing the Jordan.<\/p>\n
22:1\u201324:25. The account of Israel\u2019s stay in Moab begins with the oracles of Balaam, in which its glorious future is painted. The editor has produced an extensive narrative which is an important piece of the Bible.
\nJoyful acknowledgment of God\u2019s special love for his people underlies the whole story of Balaam. That the initiative comes from God is emphasized by the fact that he chooses a soothsayer who is not an Israelite and that he causes Balaam to make prophecies which, contrary to what one would have expected, are increasingly favourable to Israel.
\nBalaam is typical of the soothsayers and utterers of curses for which Mesopotamia was famous (that was where the king of Moab\u2019s messengers went to obtain his services: cf. 22:5). It is surprising that he should know the God of Israel, Yahweh, and speak with him; but this detail serves to highlight that the God of Israel is also the Lord of pagan magi and can use even them to make his plans known. Besides, the story of Balaam taken as a whole shows that God saves his people from both foreign armies and from the dark forces of magic.
\nThe main thing about the passage is the four oracles spoken by Balaam in which Israel\u2019s glorious future is linked to the fact that God is its special protector\u2014oracles in which we can glimpse the figure of the Messiah King. These oracles, which are couched in the form of poetry, may have originally come from an ancient collection of oracles against Moab; they are very similar to a literary style developed later by the prophets.<\/p>\n
22:4. Midian was a group of nomadic tribes which moved around the south of Moab and around Edom, but which also made incursions further north (cf. Judg 6:1\u20136): this explains their presence at this place. It was to a group of Midianite traders that Joseph was sold (cf. Gen 37:28), and it was with Midianites that Moses lived after he fled from the pharaoh (cf. Ex 2:11\u201322). Later on, the Midianites will settle to the east of the gulf of Akabah.<\/p>\n
22:6. In the cultural context of the ancient Middle East a curse or a blessing was considered to take instant effect, especially when it came from someone in authority, as for example from the father of a family (cf. Gen 27:37). In the case of Balaam his words were thought to be exceptionally effective.<\/p>\n
22:20. Earlier, in v. 12, God forbade Balaam to curse Israel as Balak had asked him to do. Now, however, God tells him to go with Barak\u2019s messengers, thus using him to further his own (God\u2019s) plans, not those of Balaam himself (who is interested only in money) or those of Balak.<\/p>\n
Balaam\u2019s ass<\/p>\n
22:31\u201333. The ass seems to have more sense than Balaam. There is an implied dismissiveness here towards the power of magic. Just as in the rest of the account, the point is plainly made that God is the one who guides events. It makes no sense to try to put into effect plans which run contrary to God\u2019s: any such attempt is bound to fail.<\/p>\n
22:40. This sacrifice was offered with a view to a communion meal between Balaam and Balak. However, the sacrifice that the text goes on to mention (cf. 23:2) is a burnt offering which prepares the way for God to make himself manifest.<\/p>\n
Balaam\u2019s first oracle
\n23:7\u201310. Balaam will make three attempts to curse Israel, each time taking a different vantage-point so he can see as many of the people as possible. But in fact he pronounces three blessings, not curses. The first oracle, which begins with a reference to the background, highlights Israel\u2019s status as God\u2019s chosen people, different from other nations (cf. Ex 19:5), and in which God\u2019s promise of fruitfulness to Abraham has become a reality (cf. Gen 15:5).<\/p>\n
Balaam\u2019s second oracle
\n23:18\u201334. The second poem recalls the Covenant and Israel\u2019s deliverance from Egypt. The lion imagery presages Israel\u2019s future victories.<\/p>\n
Balaam\u2019s third oracle
\n24:3\u20139. This third oracle consists not so much in words placed by God on Balaam\u2019s lips, as in the vision given to him, which shows the splendour of Israel (expressed in images of luxuriant scenery); it also alludes to a victorious king and recalls, once more, deliverance from Egypt.<\/p>\n
Balaam\u2019s fourth oracle
\n24:15\u201324. The three blessings are now followed by four oracles about nations\u2014Israel, Amalek, the Kainites and Asshur. The first tells about the coming of a king, symbolized by a star and a sceptre (v. 17). In the ancient East stars were considered to be gods and goddesses. This passage of Numbers may contain a reference to David and his star: in fact, from very early on this text was given a messianic interpretation; Jewish traditions link the coming of the Messiah with the appearing of a star\u2014cf. some Aramaic translations (targumin) of this text. In St Matthew\u2019s Gospel there is mention of a star in the episode of the Magi who came to adore Jesus (cf. Mt 2:1\u201312). And in the second Jewish revolt against Rome (132\u2013135 AD), a famous Jewish teacher, Rabbi Akiba, changed the name of the Jewish leader of the rebellion from Ben Kosheba, to Bar Kokheba, that is, \u201cson of the star\u201d\u2014another indication of the connexion between the star and the expected Messiah.
\nThe Fathers interpreted the star that Balaam speaks about, as being the one the Magi saw. From this they went on to deduce that the Wise Men came from Mesopotamia, which was where Balaam came from.<\/p>\n
24:21\u201322. In the Hebrew this prophecy involves a play on words. The Kainite capital was Kain, a word which in Hebrew means \u201cnest\u201d, and thus, before the name of the city is given, there is mention of the \u201cnest\u201d (Kain) being solidly built on rock. Yet despite this the city will be destroyed and its inhabitants sold into slavery.<\/p>\n
Israel\u2019s idolatry is punished, Phinehas\u2019 jealousy
\n25:1\u201318 Israel had proved victorious over enemy armies (cf. 21:21\u201335) and it had also been freed from the powers of magic (cf. chaps. 22\u201324); now it has to face another enemy, whom there is even more reason to fear\u2014seduction by idolatrous cults. The text deals with two accounts which show Israel\u2019s reaction to contamination by pagan cults: the first tells how the Israelites prostituted themselves with the Moabites both in a physical sense (by fornication) and in a spiritual one (by adoring their idols): cf. 25:1\u20134; the second, on the other hand, acclaims the punishment meted out to an Israelite man for marrying a Midianite woman (cf. 25:6\u201315). Both stories are a stern warning against taking part in Canaanite rites (a constant temptation to the Israelites).
\nPhinehas\u2019 action is depicted as something very fine and as meriting a divine promise in his favour. Allowances must be made for the way things were done at that time, but the biblical message is designed to explain why a house of the tribe of Levi, the Zadokites or descendants of Zadok, a priest of the temple at Jerusalem in the time of David and Solomon (cf. 2 Sam 8:17), held legitimate priesthood (cf. Ezek 44:15): the reason was that they were descended from Phinehas, with whom God had made a priestly covenant (cf. 1 Chron 5:30\u201334; Ezra 7:1\u20135). It also made the point that the basis for that legitimate priesthood was zeal for Yahweh. On priestly families, cf. Num 3:1\u20134.<\/p>\n
10. FURTHER LEGISLATION<\/p>\n
The census on the plains of Moab
\n26:1\u201356. The census held at the start of the great desert journey (cf. chaps. 1\u20134) needed to be updated forty years on, with a view to the partition of the Land, because the previous generation had died in the desert on account of its sin (cf. chaps. 13\u201314). This new census is designed to show that God kept the promise he made in Kadesh after that sin (cf. 14:30\u201331). Strictly speaking it was a military census, like the previous one, and it depicts Eleazar as carrying out the functions previously discharged by Aaron. One prominent feature is the considerable reduction in the numbers belonging to the tribe of Simeon, and the increase in the tribe of Manasseh\u2014possibly a reflection of the later history of those tribes.<\/p>\n
The inheritance of daughters
\n27:1\u201311. This deals with a particular incident and with Moses\u2019 decision, after consulting the Lord, about the inheritance laws that will apply in the Land. Because it is a gift from God, their part of the Land must continue to be owned by the same family or by the same tribe. This aim is furthered by the law which allows a daughter to inherit when there is no son, provided of course that she marries within her father\u2019s tribe (cf. chap. 36). That was also the idea behind the law concerning the jubilee (cf. Lev 25), the levirite law (cf. Deut 25:5\u201310), and the right of the nearest relative to acquire land if it had to be sold. All this conspired to maintain a social structure in which everyone shared in the great gift God had given his people\u2014the Land. This idea is applicable by analogy to all human beings as regards the goods of the earth: everyone has a right to obtain what he or she needs for personal development: in the beginning God gave the earth to all mankind (cf. Gen 1:18).<\/p>\n
Moses\u2019 successor
\n27:17\u201323. Like the entire generation of those who came out of Egypt (except for Caleb and Joshua), Moses too will die before entering the promised land. However, unlike Aaron, God gives him the very special grace of being able to set his eyes on the Land from a distance before he dies. But Moses\u2019 thoughts are on the people and, as a result of his mediation, God gives them a new leader, so that even though they lose Moses the promise will be kept.
\nJoshua already possesses the spirit, that is, the ability to act with the strength of God, a superhuman strength. Now, by laying his hands on Joshua, Moses will give him part of his authority, to equip him to lead the people. Yet Joshua does not receive all the authority that is Moses\u2019, for Moses is someone quite unique, the only man who spoke face to face with God (cf. 12:6\u20138).
\nIn addition to Eleazar\u2019s being a special witness, he performs the rite of the Urim (cf. Ex 28:30 and Lev 8:8) by which God confirms what he personally instructed Moses to do.
\nMoses and Joshua are the key protagonists in the events of the Exodus and the conquest of the Land. For the Christian reader, Moses represents a first step on the road to salvation, because of his close connexion with the Law\u2014and the Law was, as it were, a teacher which led mankind to Christ; Joshua, for his part, is also a precursor of Christ, who, by his victory over death, opens up for us the path that leads to the rest we are promised in eternal life (cf. 13:1\u201324).<\/p>\n
Rules about sacrifices, Daily sacrifices, Sabbath sacrifices, The feast of the new moon, The feast of the unleavened bread, The feast of Weeks, The day to blow the trumpet, The day of atonement, The feast of Tabernacles
\n28:1\u201329:39. The death of Moses is not going to be recounted here, at the point where God announces it (whereas Aaron\u2019s death was, after its announcement) or after he names his successor: it won\u2019t be covered until the end of Deuteronomy (cf. Deut 34). This creates a literary space where Moses can continue to be portrayed as a legislator who makes regulations about divine worship and about the application of the Law just prior to the entry into the Land.
\nChapters 28 and 29 provide a liturgical calendar very much on the lines of that given in Leviticus 23; but this time it goes into detail about what offerings were to be made to the Lord daily and on the occasion of each feast. Unlike the calendar in Leviticus 23, this one prescribes a monthly feast, on the day of the new moon which marks the start of each month; however, it does not include the feast of the offering of the first sheaf (cf. Lev 23:9\u201314). On the meaning of these feasts cf. the note on Leviticus 23.<\/p>\n
30:1\u201316. On vows in general cf. Lev 27; Num 6; Deut 23:22\u201327. This is the only passage which specifically deals with vows made by women. Underlying it is the idea that an unmarried woman comes under the authority of her father, and a married woman under that of her husband; this is true even in matters to do with God when these involve offering something external (as by a vow) which belonged by right to the father or the husband. So a widow or a repudiated wife was seen as having the same responsibility as a man as far as fulfilment of vows was concerned. The discrimination which this custom might imply was not discrimination against women as such; it stemmed from the familial position of women in a specific socio-cultural setting.<\/p>\n
11. PREPARATIONS FOR ENTERING THE PROMISED LAND<\/p>\n
Vengeance on Midian; division of the booty
\n31:1\u201354. This chapter continues the narrative of chapter 25 which was interrupted to cover the military census, the appointment of Joshua and the rules about worship, which reflect of the holiness of Israel. Now we see the Israelites, in response to God\u2019s command, taking action to eradicate something which represented an occasion of sin.
\nThe sacred text, which has been constructed on folk-memories, epic in style, talks about the rules for holy war and division of booty, specifying what should go to priests. The passage must have to do with the victory of some Hebrew group over the Midianites, Israel\u2019s declared enemies during the conquest of the Land (cf. Judg 6\u20138); that is why the encounter has the nature of a holy war, a war ordered by God for the annihilation of Midian. Only young women who are still virgins are spared: to ensure that Midian will have offspring no more. Unlike the anathema dealt with in 21:1\u20133, in this instance part of the booty is reserved (after being cleansed) for the sanctuary, and the rest is distributed among the army, the community and the priests.
\nThe notion of holy war as found in this passage and elsewhere (cf., e.g., the note on Lev 27:28\u201329) in the Bible derives from the idea that those against whom the Israelites were fighting were enemies of God who sought to frustrate his plans. Thus, the war was seen as obedience to a divine decree, and the final outcome was annihilation of the enemy, to show the strength of the wrath of God. This interpretation of war, adding a religious dimension to an already existing phenomenon, will gradually be corrected as time goes on until eventually, in the New Testament it no longer holds any meaning: the New Testament does speak of war, not against men (who are all children of the same Father), but against sin and evil. In the light of that teaching the Church regards war as something caused by sin, and the Second Vatican Council \u201cproposes to outline the true and noble nature of peace, to condemn the savagery of war, and earnestly to exhort Christians to cooperate with all in securing a peace based on justice and charity and in promoting the means necessary to attain it, under the help of Christ, author of peace\u201d (Gaudium et spes, 77).<\/p>\n
31:6. This verse has given rise to a beautiful allegorical interpretation: the holy vessels are the angels who encourage and help upright and devout people in their struggle against demons and sins; the trumpets are the preaching and exhortations of the apostles sent out by Jesus; Phinehas the priest is Christ, the leader and captain in this war. Similarly the ark of the Covenant, which contains the manna, Christ, is interpreted as standing for the Blessed Virgin, who brings us victory over the devil.<\/p>\n
The tribes of Transjordania
\n32:1\u201342. Chapter 32 taken as a whole is designed to show that the tribes of the Transjordan and therefore that whole area also belong to Israel, even though the Jordan might normally be seen as the eastern frontier of the promised land. The text also wants to underline (as the book of Joshua does) that all twelve tribes play their part in the conquest of the Land, for all have a share in this gift from God to his people.<\/p>\n
The stages of Israel\u2019s journey
\n33:1\u201349. The journey through the wilderness to the promised Land was a vitally important folk memory for Israel. God used Moses to guide them stage by stage over a period of forty years, making forty-two stops. It made sense to list all these stages as a testimony to God\u2019s and Israel\u2019s great adventure: that is the purpose of this chapter. To reconstruct the stages of that journey, the redaction of Numbers drew on material to be found in ancient traditional accounts. Thus, to begin with (vv. 5\u201315) the redactor gives the names which appeared in Exodus 12:37\u201319:2 (except for the two new names given in v. 13); later (vv. 16\u201336) he mentions places which for the most part we have never heard of; and then (vv. 37\u201338) he slots in names previously mentioned in Numbers 20:22\u201329. However, in the last two stages (vv. 41\u201349), that is, in the journey from Kadesh to Moab, he recalls how Israel crossed through Edom and Moab without making any mention of the detour via the south of the Araba referred to in 20:14\u201321 (the Araba is a low-lying desert, covering the whole area from the Dead Sea to the gulf of Akaba).
\nThe stages in Israel\u2019s journey through the desert were interpreted by some Fathers such as St Ambrose and by other Christian writers such as Tertullian as prefiguring the forty days of the Lenten fast, en route to the resurrection of the Lord. St Jerome, going further with this line of interpretation, saw each of the forty-two names of these stopping places in the desert as one of the forty-two points or virtues along the Christian\u2019s way to heaven. Thus, Rameses or \u201cthe joy of thunder\u201d stands for the joy of conversion through listening to preaching; Marah or \u201cbitterness\u201d stands for penance; Sinai or \u201cbramble\u201d means the difficulties ones meets which are in fact an indication of the will of God; Kadesh or \u201choly\u201d, where God punished Moses and Aaron, reminds us that we all have to die on account of sin; etc. (cf. St Peter Damian, De XLII Hebraeorum mansionibus).<\/p>\n
The Lord\u2019s orders to drive out the Canaanites
\n33:50\u201356. By passing through these stages the people reach the promised land. So, by recalling them, the people are also reminded of the conditions God imposed for obtaining the Land and dwelling there in peace: the people are required to be absolutely faithful to God, and to uproot anything which might draw them away from him\u2014in particular, idols and places where Canaanite religious ceremonies took place. In some way the underlying tone of these verses is that the opposite was what really happened\u2014that Israel often took part in idolatrous practices.
\nThe distribution of land by lot shows that, since Canaan was God\u2019s gift to Israel, all the people had a share in it, each possessing the portion assigned by lot. This sharing by all in the promised land is in a way an application of the fact that the earth and all it contains were given to mankind (cf. the note on Num 27:1\u201311).<\/p>\n
The boundaries of the promised land
\n34:1\u201315. The Lord himself fixes the frontiers of the Land; this shows that he is the One who gives Israel its inheritance. In this passage, not all the borders are easy to identify. Some places, especially on the northern border, we cannot identify at all. Mount Hor, different from the mountain of the same name in 20:22, seems to be the northern massif of Lebanon. Basically, these frontiers are those of the Egyptian province of Canaan around the end of the 13th century BC, as remembered by later generations of Israelites.<\/p>\n
The leaders in charge of allocating the land
\n34:16\u201329. Of all the names on this list, only those of Joshua and Caleb have appeared before (cf. 14:30). The others are new, for the very good reason that this is a different generation from that which set out on the great journey. The previous generation has already died out due to its rebellion against God or, as the Letter to the Hebrews tells us, due to its unbelief (Heb 3:19). In that Letter we are told that the promised land was a symbol for eternal rest, and what happened in the wilderness is an encouragement to us not to falter, as the Hebrews did; if we stay true, we will be able to enter that everlasting rest: God\u2019s promise still holds (Heb 3\u20134).<\/p>\n
Cities for the Levites
\n35:1\u20138. Once again we can see here concern for the material needs of the Levites: they are the responsibility of all the tribes, so much so that they are to be given part of what the other tribes inherit.<\/p>\n
Cities of refuge
\n35:9\u201334. It is God himself, through Moses, who decides how the people of Israel are to be organized in the promised land, and the kinds of cities they are to have. This passage deals with cities of refuge; later when the distribution of the land is reported, it is specified which cities these are to be (cf. Josh 20:7\u20138).
\nThe purpose of these cities is linked to what it says in Exodus 21:13; it establishes a limit on the law of vengeance for violent death which laid down that a man who died violently was to be avenged by his nearest male relative. In the Exodus text referred to, it was God who protected the avenger; here it is the community designated by God to act as protector.<\/p>\n
Laws about wives\u2019 inheritance
\n36:1\u20132. This passage marks a development in the law of inheritance as applied to women (cf. 27:1\u201311). This specific case is used to make a rule about the marriage of a daughter who has inheritance rights, a rule designed to ensure that that ownership of the Land does not pass to another tribe. Once again it reflects belief in the fact that the Land is a gift from God, not to the people in general but to each family and each individual. It follows that the portion allotted to each has to be carefully looked after as a gift from God.<\/p>\n
collection The Navarre Bible<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
PART ONE The People of Israel in the Sinai Desert 1. THE COMMUNITY OF ISRAEL The census of the tribes 1:1\u201310:36. The first ten chapters of the book of Numbers extend and complete the narrative contained in the last chapters of Exodus about the Israelites\u2019 stay in the Sinai desert after God made the Covenant … <\/p>\n