\u05d1\u05de\u05e8\u05d1\u05e8<\/p>\n
THE BOOK OF NUMBERS<\/p>\n
The Hebrew title of Numbers\u2014\u05d1\u05de\u05d3\u05d1\u05e8 (B\u2019midbar) or \u201cin the wilderness\u201d\u2014says it all. The book opens in the wilderness of Sinai \u201con the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt\u2026\u201d (Num. 1:1), or less than a year after the Israelites arrived at Sinai (Exod. 19:1). It concludes in the wilderness, not at the foot of Mount Sinai, but \u201cin the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho\u201d (Num. 36:13). Most of the forty-year period of desert wanderings, plus the reasons for it, are comprised within the book of Numbers.
\nWilderness is not just the setting of Numbers, but one of its dominant themes. The wilderness and its challenges shape Israel into the holy nation God has called it to be. The forty years of wandering seem to be a tragic delay, the result of distrust in God\u2019s promise to give Israel the land of Canaan. But the same forty years prepare Israel to take the land. The desert, which seems to be a place of exile and fruitlessness, is also a place of encounter with God.
\nThe Hebrew text provides a remez, or hint, of this remarkable quality. Wilderness is midbar, or \u05de\u05d3\u05d1\u05e8 in Hebrew. We can detect within this word another Hebrew word, davar, or \u05d3\u05d1\u05e8, which means \u201cword.\u201d In many Hebrew words, the prefix mem, or \u05de, signifies location. For example, the root for \u201cdwell\u201d is shachan or \u05e9\u05db\u05df. The word for place of dwelling is mishkan, \u05de\u05e9\u05db\u05df, the term used for the tabernacle in the wilderness. Lamp is ner, \u05e0\u05e8; the place of lamps is menorah, \u05de\u05e0\u05d5\u05e8\u05d4, the lampstand within the tabernacle.
\nThis pattern in the Hebrew language allows us to make an imaginative word study. Desert, midbar, is the place of the word, davar\u2014the place of revelation. Accordingly, B\u2019midbar, \u201cin the wilderness,\u201d continues the story of God\u2019s self-revelation that began in Genesis. It also records, with realism and honesty, Israel\u2019s repeated failure to respond to that self-revelation, a failure that seems to threaten the heart of the divine plan. In the end, however, the plan goes forward and a new generation prepares to enter the Promised Land.
\nThis story unfolds in Numbers in three major sections.<\/p>\n
\u2022 1:1\u201310:10. Here we read of the great census that gives the book its name in English, which also makes it seem rather unapproachable to many readers. The census takes up the first four chapters, and then is followed after a break by a repetitious list of the offerings of the tribes that have been counted. This seems tedious to a modern reader, but it conveys a sense of pageantry and splendor as Israel is about to begin its journey from Sinai to the Promised Land.<\/p>\n
\u2022 10:11\u201319:22. This section picks up the itinerary suspended after Exodus 19, when Israel arrived at Sinai. Wilderness is the place of testing and of revelation because it is also the terrain of journeying. The journey in the wilderness provides a metaphor that prepares us for the warnings of Exile that become dominant in the next book of the Torah, Deuteronomy, and the writings of the Prophets that follow.<\/p>\n
\u2022 20:1\u201336:13. In chapter 20, Miriam and Aaron die, signifying that a new generation has arisen, the generation that will finally enter the Promised Land. In this section, the Israelites engage in their first battles, defeating the kings Og and Sihon, who become symbols of the conquest to come. These accounts are followed by the story of Balaam, sent to curse Israel, who instead provides a blessing. After he and his Midianite handlers are defeated, Israel prepares to cross the Jordan.<\/p>\n
This narrative is interspersed with sections of commandments and judgments that will guide Israel\u2019s future in the Promised Land. \u201cThese are the commandments and the judgments which the LORD commanded the children of Israel by the hand of Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho\u201d (Num. 36:13). Here, at the eastern bank of the Jordan, Israel is poised to fulfill the plan God set in motion when he called to Moses from the Burning Bush to deliver his people from Egypt. Numbers reminds us that at the heart of this plan is davar, the word, God revealing himself to his people Israel and, through them, to the world.<\/p>\n
WILDERNESS OF REVELATION
\nParashat B\u2019midbar, Numbers 1:1\u20134:20<\/p>\n
All those who freely devote themselves to His truth shall bring all their knowledge, powers, and possessions into the Community of God, that they may purify their knowledge in the truth of God\u2019s precepts and order their powers according to His ways of perfection and all their possessions according to His righteous counsel. (From the Dead Sea Scrolls)<\/p>\n
When I am in Israel, I love to visit the Dead Sea and surrounding area. It is desolate but beautiful at the same time\u2014a refuge from the hectic and crowded streets of Jerusalem.
\nOne of the sites by the Dead Sea is Qumran, the ruins of a large communal center connected with the Dead Sea Scrolls, which were found in a number of nearby caves. These scrolls are one of the greatest archaeological finds of the twentieth century, containing the earliest manuscripts that we possess of most of the Hebrew Scriptures, plus numerous other writings from the centuries just before the coming of Messiah. From scrolls like \u201cThe Community Rule\u201d quoted above, we also learn about the communal life of Qumran, where pious Jews fled from the growing corruption of Jerusalem to seek God in the desert beginning in the second century BCE.
\nYeshua began his ministry in this same region, where Yochanan (John) appeared as \u201ca voice crying in the wilderness\u201d (Isa. 40:3), a favorite phrase of the Qumran sect. He called Israel to turn away from sin, turn back to God, and be immersed in the waters of the Jordan. All the people of Judah and Jerusalem went out to the wilderness in response to Yochanan\u2019s preaching, and there Yeshua appeared to receive immersion and initiate his ministry.
\nThe area around Qumran reminds us of \u201cthe great and awesome desert, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions and thirsty land where there was no water\u201d (Deut. 8:15). Wilderness holds a special place in the continuing story of Creation and renewal that began in the book of Genesis. Indeed, Mark\u2019s account of the life of Messiah links the wilderness, which seems so uninhabitable, with the Garden of Eden, the site of humankind\u2019s first habitation. After Yeshua\u2019s immersion at the hand of Yochanan, we read:<\/p>\n
Immediately the Spirit drove Him into the wilderness. And He was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted by Satan, and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered to Him. (Mark 1:12\u201313)<\/p>\n
As we noted in Parashat Mishpatim, the wording here is significant. In the other gospels, Yeshua is \u201cled\u201d by the Spirit into the wilderness; only in Mark is he \u201cdriven out.\u201d This phrase echoes the language of Genesis 3, in which Adam and Eve are \u201cdriven out\u201d of the Garden after their great transgression. Another element unique to Mark is his mention of the \u201cwild beasts.\u201d Perhaps this is a reminder of Adam\u2019s naming of the beasts in Genesis 2, his first activity within the Garden of Eden. And both accounts, of course, center on temptation, the temptation that defeats Adam and Eve, but which Messiah overcomes.
\nSo, we can read the temptation of Messiah in Mark as a reversal of the sin of Adam and Eve. Adam is in the Garden, he names the beasts, he is tempted and defeated, and then he is driven out. In reverse order, Yeshua is driven out into the wilderness, then he is tempted and victorious, then he is with the beasts, and the angels minister to him, in contrast with the angelic cherubim that guard the way back into the Garden from Adam and Eve.
\nThe wilderness in Mark is the place of restoration. It seems to be the opposite of Eden, but paradoxically becomes Eden-like as the place of restored fellowship with God. This vision of the wilderness led some Jews of the second Temple period out to the desert to find God\u2019s \u201cways of perfection and \u2026 righteous counsel,\u201d as the Dead Sea Scrolls stated.
\nThe wilderness is barren and remote, but there\u2014because of these very qualities\u2014we can hear God\u2019s word. Thus, we come to the opening words of Numbers or B\u2019midbar. \u201cAnd the LORD spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai\u201d (Num. 1:1, emphasis added).
\nIn the wilderness God speaks. Torah is teaching us that it is in the places of difficulty, challenge, and temptation that we find God. Adam and Eve lost God in a garden, but Yeshua regained God in the wilderness. Likewise, in our own lives, the difficulties that we face can become the source of new understanding and communion with God.
\nBut the book of B\u2019midbar reveals that the wilderness is also a place of complaining, rebellion, and failure. Life\u2019s difficulties can bring us into an encounter with God, but they can also embitter and destroy us.
\nB\u2019midbar reveals some of Israel\u2019s greatest failures. The opening chapters describe the census that Moses takes at God\u2019s command as part of the military preparation to take the Promised Land. Not long after the census, Moses\u2019 brother and sister, Aaron and Miriam, rebel against him. Then, scouts sent out to assess the Land come back with an evil report, leading the people to rebel against God\u2019s plan of conquest. Shortly after the rebellion the scouts set in motion, a Levite named Korach leads another, massive rebellion that brings great destruction upon the tribes of Israel. Finally, before the book closes, Moses himself will rebel and lose his right to enter the Promised Land. Interspersed among these low points of disobedience are numerous complaints and murmurings among the children of Israel.
\nThe same geography can be the place of revelation or rebellion. What makes the difference? Our response. The drama of Numbers turns on whether the Israelites in their desert wanderings will trust the Lord who has revealed himself to be so trustworthy, or will let the desert wanderings push them into complaining and disobedience.
\nOur greatest challenges in life can lead us into either revelation or rebellion. We can emerge from the wilderness experience as better and stronger people, or embittered and defeated. What makes the difference? Our response. As we trust in the God who reveals himself as trustworthy throughout the Torah, our wilderness becomes a place of encounter with him.<\/p>\n
For the journey: Difficulties and disappointments in life can draw us into greater understanding of God and his ways\u2014or they can drive us away from God altogether. It all depends on our response. How am I responding to the tough, frustrating situations that are in my life right now, and how will I respond to difficulties in the next few days or months?<\/p>\n
A MERCIFUL CURSE
\nParashat Naso, Numbers 4:21\u20137:89<\/p>\n
A king had some empty goblets. He said: \u201cIf I put hot water in them, they will burst. If I put cold water in, they will crack.\u201d So the king mixed cold and hot water together and poured it in, and the goblets were uninjured.
\nEven so, God said, \u201cIf I create the world with the attribute of mercy alone, sin will multiply; if I create it with the attribute of justice alone, how can it endure? So I will create it with both, and thus it will endure.\u201d<\/p>\n
The longing for justice seems to be part of our human nature. We yearn to see the standards of right and wrong enforced in the world around us, and yet are disappointed more often than not. When the wicked escape punishment, it troubles us almost as much as when the innocent suffer.
\nThis longing for justice lies at the root of the ordinance of the unfaithful wife in Parashat Naso. It not only answers the suspicions of a jealous husband, but it also restores justice to the community.<\/p>\n
If any man\u2019s wife goes astray and behaves unfaithfully toward him and a man lies with her carnally, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed that she has defiled herself, and there was no witness against her, nor was she caught\u2014if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, who has defiled herself; or if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, although she has not defiled herself\u2014then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. (Num. 5:12\u201315a)<\/p>\n
The priest takes some of the dust from the floor of the tabernacle, mixes it with holy water in an earthen vessel to make \u201cbitter water\u201d (Num. 5:18). He gives it to the alleged adulteress declaring, \u2018 \u201cMay this water that causes the curse go into your stomach, and make your belly swell and your thigh rot.\u2019 Then the woman shall say, \u2018Amen, so be it.\u2019 Then the priest shall write these curses in a book, and he shall scrape them off into the bitter water\u201d (Num. 5:22\u201323). If the woman is guilty, the curse will enter her with the water, but if she is innocent, she will remain unharmed.
\nRamban notes the miraculous element in this ordinance:<\/p>\n
Now there is nothing amongst all the ordinances of the Torah which depends upon a miracle, except for this matter, which is a permanent wonder and miracle that will happen in Israel, when the majority of the people live in accordance with the Will of G-d \u2026 so that they are worthy that the Divine Presence dwell among them.<\/p>\n
Normally justice depends on the wisdom of human judges. But no one can know whether the accused woman is guilty or innocent. Her husband has become infected by \u201cthe spirit of jealousy.\u201d Something must be done to restore justice, and God makes a special provision. Ramban notes that the miraculous nature of this ordinance reflects the unique condition of Israel at the time, newly delivered from bondage and living in the presence of the Shechinah, the glory-cloud of God. Later, as the spiritual condition of Israel declined and adultery became more widespread, the Talmud says, the bitter water ceased to be effective (Sotah 47b). But in better days, God intervenes to restore justice.
\nWe saw a similar intervention in the case of Nadab and Abihu, who were struck down by a fire from the Lord\u2019s presence because they offered \u201cstrange fire\u201d (Lev. 10), and we will see it again shortly in the rebellion of Korach (Num. 16). Centuries later, the early Messianic community experiences divine intervention in the judgment of Ananias and Sapphira (Acts 5). In each of these cases, God acts supernaturally to restore justice because he is so present within the community that he cannot allow disorder to remain. Later, as sin increases, God ceases to intervene so directly.
\nGod\u2019s miraculous intervention in the ordinance of the accused woman does not come directly, however, but at the hands of the priest, who is empowered to call down a curse upon the guilty. In contrast, in the next chapter, God appoints this same priest as the agent of blessing.<\/p>\n
Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, \u201cThis is the way you shall bless the children of Israel. Say to them:
\n\u2018The LORD bless you and keep you;
\nThe LORD make His face shine upon you,
\nAnd be gracious to you;
\nThe LORD lift up His countenance upon you,
\nAnd give you peace.\u201d \u2019 (Num. 6:24\u201326)<\/p>\n
The same priests who are the instruments of cursing pronounce the blessing. Both judgment and blessing can be signs of God\u2019s presence among his people.
\nOnce some scribes and Pharisees brought a woman caught in adultery, \u201cin the very act,\u201d to Yeshua, saying: \u201cNow Moses, in the law, commanded us that such should be stoned. But what do You say?\u201d (John 8:5). Instead of answering, Yeshua wrote in the dirt, perhaps as a reminder of the dust stirred into the bitter water of Numbers 5. Then he said, \u201cHe who is without sin among you, let him throw a stone at her first\u201d (John 8:7). At this word, the woman\u2019s accusers slipped off one by one, and the woman was not condemned. Where sin is abundant, God may delay his judgment. Instead, he provides a time of forgiveness so that the holiness of the community can be reestablished.
\nComplete justice awaits the Age to Come when the purity and holiness of Creation are fulfilled. In the meantime, the ordinance of bitter water reminds us of the pervasiveness of sin, which requires that justice be tempered with mercy. God mixes mercy with judgment so the world may endure. No priest in Israel has employed the bitter water for nearly two thousand years, but the descendants of Aaron continue to pronounce the blessing of Numbers 6:24\u201326 to this day. We may wonder why the wicked go unpunished, but we must thank God that his mercy prevails over judgment.<\/p>\n
For the journey: Yeshua said, \u201cBlessed are the merciful for they shall see God.\u201d Am I merciful? How often have I longed for God\u2019s justice without realizing that I myself was in need of mercy?<\/p>\n
GUIDE AND GLORY-CLOUD
\nParashat B\u2019ha\u2018alotkha, Numbers 8:1\u201312:16<\/p>\n
In the traditional morning service, before the Torah scroll is removed from the ark and carried out among the congregation, the worship leader calls out, \u201cVay\u2019hi binsoa ha\u2019aron, vayomer Moshe\u2014And it came to pass, whenever the ark went forward, that Moses would say: \u2018Arise, O LORD! Let Your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate You flee before You\u2019 \u201d (Num. 10:35).
\nThe traditional Torah service reenacts the scene at Mount Sinai, when all Israel stood before the mountain to receive the word of the Lord from the hand of Moses. As the Torah scroll is carried through the congregation, we touch it with a prayer book, or the fringe of the prayer shawl, and then touch that object to our lips. Through this ancient custom, we repeat the words that our ancestors spoke when the Torah was first brought down from the mountain and offered to them: \u201cAll that the Lord has said, we will do\u201d (Exod. 24:17).
\nThe words from Numbers 10 that introduce the Torah service were first spoken as the Israelites prepared to depart from Mount Sinai and begin the final stages of the journey to the Promised Land. Since the middle of the book of Exodus, they have been encamped at the foot of Mount Sinai, receiving the instructions of Torah, especially those for building the tabernacle and establishing the priesthood and sacrifices. There, the Israelites build the tabernacle, inaugurate the sacrifices, and receive further instructions in the life of the holy community. All of this takes us through the rest of Exodus, all of Leviticus, and well into the book of Numbers.
\nFinally, in Numbers 10, Israel prepares to move on. The book opened with the census of Israel\u2019s fighting men because Israel is about to come into contact with its enemies, as Moses says, \u201cRise up, O LORD! Let your enemies be scattered.\u201d Hence, just as the Torah service reenacts the divine encounter at Mount Sinai, so it anticipates the day when the Torah will go forth throughout the world. Indeed, after we chant the line from Numbers beginning, \u201cArise, O LORD \u2026\u201d we recite Isaiah 2:3, \u201cFor from Mount Zion will go forth the Torah, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.\u201d The ark of God goes before Israel, not just to push back the enemy tribes in the desert, but also to further the process of world redemption, which reaches fulfillment in the return of Messiah Yeshua to rule over all nations.
\nNumbers 10:35\u201336 captures a prophetic moment. This may explain why an inverted form of the Hebrew letter nun brackets these verses in the Torah scroll (as reproduced in JPS Hebrew-English Tanakh).<\/p>\n
\u05d4\u05b7\u05bd\u05de\u05b7\u05bc\u05d7\u05b2\u05e0\u05b6\u05bd\u05d4\u05c3 \u05c6* \u05e1
\n\u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05b4\u059b\u05d9 \u05d1\u05b4\u05bc\u05e0\u05b0\u05e1\u05b9\u05a5\u05e2\u05b7 \u05d4\u05b8\u05d0\u05b8\u05e8\u05b9\u0596\u05df \u05d5\u05b7\u05d9\u05b9\u05bc\u05a3\u05d0\u05de\u05b6\u05e8 \u05de\u05b9\u05e9\u05b6\u05c1\u0591\u05d435
\n\u05e7\u05d5\u05bc\u05de\u05b8\u05a3\u05d4 \u05c0 \u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05d5\u05b8\u05c4\u05d4
\n\u05d5\u05b0\u05d9\u05b8\u05e4\u05bb\u05a8\u05e6\u05d5\u05bc\u0599 \u05d0\u05b9\u05bd\u05d9\u05b0\u05d1\u05b6\u0594\u05d9\u05da\u05b8
\n\u05d5\u05b0\u05d9\u05b8\u05e0\u05bb\u05a5\u05e1\u05d5\u05bc \u05de\u05b0\u05e9\u05b7\u05c2\u05e0\u05b0\u05d0\u05b6\u0596\u05d9\u05da\u05b8 \u05de\u05b4\u05e4\u05b8\u05bc\u05e0\u05b6\u05bd\u05d9\u05da\u05b8
\n\u05d5\u05d1\u05e0\u05d7\u05d4 \u05d5\u05bc\u05d1\u05b0\u05e0\u05bb\u05d7\u0596\u05d5\u05b9 \u05d9\u05b9\u05d0\u05de\u05b7\u0591\u05e836
\n\u05e9\u05c1\u05d5\u05bc\u05d1\u05b8\u05a5\u05d4 \u05d9\u05b0\u05d4\u05d5\u05b8\u0594\u05d4
\n\u05e8\u05b4\u05bd\u05d1\u05b0\u05d1\u0596\u05d5\u05d5\u05b9\u05d7 \u05d0\u05b7\u05dc\u05b0\u05e4\u05b5\u05a5\u05d9 \u05d9\u05b4\u05e9\u05b0\u05c2\u05e8\u05b8\u05d0\u05b5\u05bd\u05dc\u05c3 \u05c6\u0597* \u05e4<\/p>\n
The commentators provide various explanations for this ancient, but unusual, feature of the Torah scroll. It is clear, however, that these verses mark a major turning point in the narrative flow. Moses pronounces these words as the ark goes forth to launch a completely new phase in Israel\u2019s journey, which will end only with the fulfillment of God\u2019s purposes for all humankind.
\nIt seems strange, then, to remember that just a few verses earlier Moses had asked his father-in-law, Hobab (appearing in earlier passages as Jethro), to continue to guide the Israelites: \u201cSo Moses said, \u2018Please do not leave, in as much as you know how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you can be our eyes\u2019 \u201d (Num. 10:31).
\nWhy does Moses ask Hobab to guide them, when the LORD himself is about to go before them as guide? \u201cThe ark of the covenant of the Lord went before them for the three days\u2019 journey, to search out a resting place for them. And the cloud of the Lord was above them by day when they went out from the camp\u201d (Num. 10:33\u201334). It is this very reality that Moses invokes when he says, \u201cArise, O LORD, and let your enemies be scattered.\u201d
\nSome interpreters suggest that Moses\u2019 words to his father-in-law should be translated in the past tense: \u201cSo Moses said, \u2018Please do not leave, inasmuch as you have known how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you have been our eyes\u2019 \u201d (Num. 10:31). Perhaps he is not saying that the Israelites still need him as a guide, now that the ark goes before them, but simply that they want him to travel with them in honor of his past contributions.
\nThe text, however, is more straightforward. The Israelites will follow the glory-cloud of God, and they will also follow Hobab, who has already proven himself a reliable guide. The Israelites do not choose between the guidance of God\u2019s cloud and the guidance of Moses\u2019 father-in-law. Rather, God guides his people through both means, acting together.
\nWe see something similar in the Book of Ruth, read during Shavuot, not long before we read this parashah in the synagogue. Boaz employs a striking metaphor in his words to Ruth, \u201cThe LORD repay your work, and a full reward be given you by the LORD God of Israel, under whose wings you have come for refuge\u201d (Ruth 2:12). The LORD is like a protecting eagle, sheltering its offspring under mighty, outstretched wings. Later, when Ruth approaches Boaz for help, she uses the same metaphor: \u201cI am Ruth, your maidservant. Take your maidservant under your wing, for you are a close relative\u201d (Ruth 3:9, emphasis added). Does Ruth come under the wing of the LORD, or under the wing of Boaz? But, of course, it is not an either\/or situation. Ruth seeks refuge in the Lord, and the Lord brings her to Boaz, who will provide refuge. In a similar way, the Lord guides the Israelites and brings Hobab into the camp of Israel to be their eyes.
\nIn the divine program of world redemption, everything depends on God\u2019s mercy and grace, but human beings have a genuine part to play. As Paul writes, \u201cFor we are of God\u2019s making, created in union with the Messiah Yeshua for a life of good actions already prepared by God for us to do\u201d (Eph. 2:10, CJB). We are not passive observers, simply waiting for God to act, but are \u201ccreated for good works.\u201d We even have a share in the plan of world redemption, the Word of God going out to all the world as pictured in the Torah service. Yet we cannot perform these works apart from him. Indeed, the Lord gives us genuine responsibility in his plan, so that we discover that we cannot fulfill this responsibility without his help. In the divine-human partnership of world redemption, we discover how dependent we are upon God.<\/p>\n
For the journey: If I take someone under my wing, who knows whether he or she has really come under the wings of the Lord God of Israel? I will be on the watch for real-life opportunities to cooperate with God\u2019s redemptive purposes.<\/p>\n
CLOTHES MAKE THE MAN
\nParashat Shlach L\u2019kha, Numbers 13:1\u201315:41<\/p>\n
Years ago, when I worked as a salesman, our manager gave everyone a copy of the book Dress for Success. This was more than a fashion book. Rather, it was a study of how different styles and colors influenced one\u2019s effectiveness. In one test, a man wearing a beige raincoat asked people passing by for handouts and collected a tidy sum. Later he did the same in a gray raincoat and came up empty-handed. The book abounds with examples like this. Apparently, at least on a human level, clothes do make the man.
\nThe Torah turns this principle around\u2014clothing cannot make us something we are not, but it can remind us what we are supposed to be. Moses instructs the Israelites \u201cto make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the LORD and do them\u201d (Num. 15:38\u201339).
\n\u201cTassel\u201d is tzitzit in Hebrew, and such tassels are worn by Jewish men to this day. Traditional Jews wear a four-cornered undergarment with tassels that either appear on the outside of their pants, hanging down from the waist, or remain under the outer clothing, out of sight. The traditional prayer shawl, or tallit, has a tzitzit at each corner, thus providing another way to fulfill the commandment.
\nIn the ancient world, nobles wore garments with ornate hems as a sign of their status. \u201cThe more important the individual, the more elaborate the embroidery of his hem. Its significance lies not in its artistry but in its symbolism as an extension of its owner\u2019s person and authority.\u201d Thus, a husband would divorce his wife by cutting off the hem of her garment. A seer in ancient Mari would send his report to the king and include a lock of his hair and a portion of his hem to attest its authenticity. From this we understand the significance of David\u2019s cutting a piece of the hem off the robe of Saul, why David\u2019s heart troubled him after he did so, and why Saul took it as a sign that David would succeed him as king (1 Sam. 14:6, 20). Likewise, we see more clearly why a woman in need of healing grabbed the hem of Yeshua\u2019s garment (Matt. 9:20).
\n\u201cThus the significance of the tzitzit lies in this: It was worn by those who counted; it was the identification tag of nobility.\u201d In Israel, the Torah decrees, it is not only the nobles, but every Israelite who is to wear such fringes on their garments.
\nThe requirement to wear a thread of blue among the other threads of the tzitzit heightens its noble quality. Blue is the color of nobility, largely because of the cost of the dye in the ancient world. Indeed, the dye was so costly that the rabbis of the Talmudic era decreed that the blue thread was no longer to be worn, and the fringe should be white, so that all Jewish men would enjoy equal dignity. Nevertheless, the original significance remains. Blue is the color of royalty, and therefore the color of the priestly garments and the tabernacle itself. The single blue thread of the tzitzit reflects the single blue thread that held the golden head plate of the High Priest, on which were inscribed the words kodesh l\u2019Adonai, \u201cHoly to the LORD\u201d (Exod. 28:36). Just as the priestly garment was made of both linen and woolen strands\u2014a combination forbidden to the ordinal y Israelites\u2014so the early rabbis ordained that the tzitzit contain both white linen and blue woolen strands. \u201cThus the tzitzit, according to the rabbis, are modeled after a priestly garment that is taboo for the rest of Israel!\u201d
\nIt is clear, then, that the tzitzit not only reminds the Israelites to obey the commandments, but it also reveals that they receive these commandments as a holy priesthood. Obedience is not just a way to keep the Israelites in line. Rather, it expresses the holiness of their calling and the purpose of their redemption from Egypt. Hence, the Lord concludes the instruction of the tzitzit with the words, \u201cI am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the LORD your God\u201d (Num. 15:41).
\nThis is indeed a lofty calling. Yet, even more striking is its position in the text of Numbers. We are in Parashat Shlach L\u2019kha, which opens with Moses sending twelve men, one from each tribe, to scout out the Land of Israel in preparation for its conquest The story ends, of course, in disaster. Ten of the twelve scouts bring back an evil report. Only Joshua and Caleb encourage the people to take the Land. The people believe the majority, refuse to take the La id as God has commanded, and end up being condemned to perish in the wilderness. This incident is not the first trial Moses faces in the book of Numbers. In the chapter before we learned of the complaints of his own siblings, Aaron and Miriam, and the Lord\u2019s chastisement upon Miriam. Finally, just before the ordinance of the tzitzit, we hear of a man who breaks the Shabbat and is condemned to be stoned to death.
\nAfter the ordinance is given, things do not improve at all. The following chapter tells of the rebellion of Korach, who joins with Dathan, Abiram, and others to challenge the authority of Moses and Aaron. The Lord puts down this rebellion in the most drastic way, with the earth swallowing up Korach and his family, and fire from heaven striking down 250 other rebels.
\nThe way Numbers tells the story makes it clear that when the Lord clothes the Israelites as priests, he does so fully knowing their tendency to rebel. The holy garment is not a reward for faithfulness because they have hardly been faithful. Instead, the tzitzit expresses the faithfulness of God. By it, he calls into being a holy priesthood out of the unqualified and unworthy.
\nIs it possible that God still views Israel as a holy priesthood, despite its corporate failure to acknowledge Yeshua as Lord and Messiah, and still has a holy destination in mind for the whole people? As Paul reminded the Gentiles who believed in Yeshua, \u201cConcerning the gospel they are enemies for your sake, but concerning the election they are beloved for the sake of the fathers. For the gifts and the calling of God are irrevocable\u201d (Rom. 11:28\u201329).
\nClothes make the man. The tzitzit not only reminds Israel of the irrevocable commandments of the Lord, but of their irrevocable calling as a royal priesthood and a holy nation.
\nIn our day, we are seeing a great move of reconciliation between Christians and Jews. Despite the Jewish \u201cno\u201d to Yeshua, God still has a glorious plan for them, a plan that will ultimately be fulfilled in this same Yeshua. As the tzitzit is a reminder to Israel of their holy calling, so nay it be a reminder to Christians, after centuries of anti-Jewish attitudes and actions, to love and honor the Jewish people.<\/p>\n
For the journey: God has an unchangeable purpose that brings together Jews and Christians. There are visible reminders of this purpose in the world around me. How might I display such a reminder, like the tzitzit, in my own life?<\/p>\n
LAND OF MILK AND HONEY
\nParashat Korach, Numbers 16:1\u201318:32<\/p>\n
\u201cI don\u2019t think we want any more Kings \u2026 no more than we want any Aslans. We\u2019re going to look after ourselves from now on and touch our caps to nobody. See?\u201d
\n\u201cThat\u2019s right,\u201d said the other Dwarfs. \u201cWe\u2019re on our own now. No more Aslan, no more Kings, no more silly stories about other worlds. The Dwarfs are for the Dwarfs.\u201d And they began to fall into their places and to get ready for marching back to wherever they had come from.<\/p>\n
In the C.S. Lewis classic The Last Battle, Aslan the lion is the Messiah figure. A false messiah disguised as Aslan appears and misleads the people, including a band of Dwarfs whom he has taken captive. The followers of the true Aslan, led by King Tirian, arise, overturn the false messiah, and liberate the Dwarfs. They expect the Dwarfs to rejoice and welcome Aslan\u2019s imminent return, but the Dwarfs reject both the King and Aslan. From now on, \u201cthe Dwarfs are for the Dwarfs.\u201d
\nParashat Korach records a similar disillusionment among the Israelites. They grow weary of wandering in the wilderness, living off manna and miraculous supplies of water, and begin to long for the well-watered bounty of Egypt. \u201cWe remember the fish which we ate freely in Egypt, the cucumbers, the melons, the leeks, the onions, and the garlic; but now our whole being is dried up; there is nothing at all except this manna before our eyes!\u201d (Num. 11:5\u20136).
\nOne of the Levites, Korach, leads a rebellion that takes this complaining even further, even calling Egypt, instead of Cam .an, the \u201cland of milk and honey\u201d (Num. 16:13). With this phrase, they reveal the wicked heart of their rebellion and call down the unprecedented divine judgment that will end it.
\nWe live in an era that exhorts us\u2014in the words of a popular bumper sticker\u2014to \u201cQuestion Authority.\u201d The American Revolution gave birth to a great nation through resistance to authority, which seems in retrospect to have been principled and noble. Yet such resistance is risky. It can easily lead to anarchy and the reaction that inevitably follows, as evidenced by the French Revolution, which came just a few years after the American, and gave birth to the Reign of Terror and the career of Napoleon.
\nQuestion authority, perhaps, but beware of the rebellion of Korach, which would overturn all authority. Korach\u2019s followers equate Egypt with the Promised Land and accuse Moses, God\u2019s appointed leader, of mocking them when he speaks of another Promised and.<\/p>\n
Not only have you perpetrated evil against us by taking us out of a land flowing with milk and honey and bringing us into the wilderness, but you also jest with us\u2014for you have not brought us to the Land into which you said you would bring us and still you speak to us as though you have given us \u201can inheritance of fields and vineyards,\u201d by commanding us those commandments which are connected only to the Land \u2026 as though it was already ours and we have fields and vineyards in it!<\/p>\n
Korach\u2019s followers not only question the authority of Moses, but they turn all authority on its head. They see Moses, the self-sacrificing leader, as Moses the self-serving leader, who even mocks those who follow him. The real Promised Land is no longer the place to which Moses is leading them, but Egypt, the place of servitude from which they had fled, It was all a big mistake, and the best course is to go back.
\nThe Last Battle pictures the ultimate rebellion led by the false messiah at the end of the age (Rev. 13), which leads to the rejection of al. authority. Likewise, Korach\u2019s rebellion does not simply propose to replace one authority structure with another, which at times may be a legitimate course of action. Instead, it questions authority altogether, even God\u2019s authority, and refuses to live under any of it. As a result, it undermines the divine project launched in Genesis of establishing the order and blessing of Creation over all the earth. In the end, the Dwarfs are for the Dwarfs and no one else.
\nWhen Moses speaks of the Promised Land in the book of Deuteronomy, he uses language that evokes the abundance of Creation and Eden before the exile of Adam and Eve:<\/p>\n
For the LORD your God is bringing you into a good land, a land of brooks of water, of fountains and springs, that flow out of valleys and hills; a land of wheat and barley, of vines and fig trees and pomegranates, a land of olive oil and honey; a la id in which you will eat bread without scarcity, in which you will lack nothing. (Deut. 8:7\u20139)<\/p>\n
By delivering Israel from Egypt and giving them the Torah, the Lord is raising up Israel as a restored humanity, to dwell in the Eden of the Promised Land and bear the divine image on behalf of the rest of humankind. Korach sees all this as a fairy tale and yearns instead for the security and control of life in Egypt.
\nNow we can understand why God\u2019s judgment upon Korach is so harsh.<\/p>\n
Now it came to pass \u2026 that the ground split apart under them, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, with their households and all the men with Korah, with all their goods. So they and all those with them went down alive into the pit; the earth closed over them, and they perished from among the assembly. (Num. 16:31\u201333)<\/p>\n
The very earth must swallow up Korach because his rebellion is infectious. It would undermine the entire purpose of the Exodus from Egypt.
\nIn the end, however, God desires to remind the Israelites; that his purpose is one of blessing and life, even though his judgment against the rebels has been so severe. He directs the Israelites to gather twelve rods, one representing each tribe, and place them within the tabernacle. In the morning, they discover that Aaron\u2019s rod has come to life and produced blossoms and buds and ripe almonds (Num. 17:23), thus vindicating the leadership of Moses and Aaron. God\u2019s final answer to rebellion is not suppression, but abundant life that only he can bring forth, life which only the obedient can experience.<\/p>\n
For the journey: Authority needs to be exercised with humility and the fear of God. But rejection of authority can lead to mistaking Egypt for the Promised Land. Have I in any way embraced the anti-authority attitude that is so prevalent in our day?<\/p>\n
WATER FROM THE ROCK
\nParashat Hakkat, Numbers 19:1\u201322:1<\/p>\n
Surely it was taught: Ten things were created on the eve of the [first] Sabbath at twilight. These are they: the well, the manna, the rainbow, the writing and the writing instruments, the Tables, the sepulcher of Moses, the cave in which Moses and Elijah stood, the opening of the ass\u2019s mouth, and the opening of the earth\u2019s mouth to swallow up the wicked.<\/p>\n
On a recent trip to Israel, our tour group was driving north along the western shore of the Dead Sea. Our guide pointed to the mountains of Moab across the sea in present-day Jordan. Through the haze, we could see Pisgah, the high point to which the Lord directed Moses in Deuteronomy 3:27: \u201cGo up to the top of Pisgah, and lift your eyes toward the west, the north, the south, and the east; behold it with your eyes, for you shall not cross over this Jordan.\u201d There, Moses begged the Lord for the chance to set foot in the land that had been the focus of his hopes and yearnings for the past forty years, but it was not to be. In an unknown and unmarked spot on that mountain, Moses lies buried to this day. Here is \u201cthe sepulcher of Moses \u2026 created on the eve of the first Sabbath.\u201d
\nThis scene is sadly ironic. The great deliverer of his people has no share in the final stage of their deliverance. After bearing with the people for so long in their trials, he cannot partake of their joy with them. Ironic though it is, the scene is most fitting. Moses has been the mediator for Israel, representing the people before God in all their sins and shortcomings. It is fitting that he remain with his own generation, even in exile. Perhaps the Torah is anticipating here that much of Israel\u2019s history will be experienced outside the Promised Land. Moses our teacher dies in exile to identify not only with the generation that he led out of Egypt, but also with countless generations of Jews who have died in exile. His teachings guide us, whether in the Land or in dispersion.
\nNevertheless, the question remains, why does God treat Moses so harshly? The answer lies in a familiar story in this week\u2019s parashah.
\nThe people have arrived at Kadesh in the wilderness of Zin only to discover that there is no water. They raise their voices in complaint against Moses, and the Lord instructs him: \u201cTake the rod; you and your brother Aaron gather the congregation together. Speak to the rock before their eyes, and it will yield its water; thus you shall bring water for them out of the rock, and give drink to the congregation and their animals\u201d (Num. 20:8).
\nMoses and Aaron, however, deviate from this instruction, with terrible consequences:<\/p>\n
And Moses and Aaron gathered the assembly together before the rock; and he said to them, \u201cHear now, you rebels! Must we bring water for you out of this rock?\u201d Then Moses lifted his hand and struck the rock twice with his rod; and water came out abundantly, and the congregation and their animals drank. Then the LORD spoke to Moses and Aaron, \u201cBecause you did not believe me, to hallow me in the eyes of the children of Israel, therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the and which I have given them.\u201d (Num. 20:10\u201312)<\/p>\n
Now we know why Moses must die on the far side of the Jordan, in the land of Moab.
\nThe passage from the Talmud cited above provides further insight. The \u201cwell \u2026 created on the eve of the first Sabbath\u201d is the rock that Moses struck. We first read of it in Exodus 17, when the previous generation of Israelites arrived at a waterless place\u2014perhaps the very same place as in Numbers 20\u2014and the Lord supplied them with water from the rock. From that time on, despite all their wanderings and difficulties, the Israelites always had a supply of water \u2026 until now.
\nA midrash portrays this rock following the children of Israel in all their wanderings, a miraculous well created from the very beginning to supply them with water. One variation of the story links this miraculous supply to Miriam. In Exodus 15, she is the prophetess who leads the daughters of Israel in dance and exalted praise before the lord. In her honor, the Lord supplies water to Israel in Exodus 17. But when the Israelites arrive at Kadesh in Numbers 20, Miriam dies and the water ceases.
\nApparently, a form of this midrash was current when Paul wrote his letter to the Corinthians:<\/p>\n
For, brothers, I don\u2019t want you to miss the significance of what happened to our fathers. All of them were guided by the pillar of cloud, and they all passed through the sea, and in connection with the cloud and with the sea they all immersed themselves into Moses, also they all ate the same food from the Spirit, and they all drank the same drink from the Spirit\u2014for they drank from a Spirit-sent Rock which followed them, and that Rock was the Messiah. (1 Cor. 10:1\u20134, CJB)<\/p>\n
The rock, then, is created from the very beginning as an emblem of God\u2019s gracious and unlimited supply. Ultimately, the supply of water does not depend on Miriam, but on God\u2019s overflowing goodness. The people in their complaining and unbelief may be unworthy, but the Lord still intends to provide life-giving water. Moses needs only to speak to the rock and waters will come forth. Paul is reading the story well when he pictures the rock as Messiah, through whom God supplies the life-giving Spirit without measure even to the undeserving.
\nThrough his subtle disobedience, however, Moses misrepresent; God\u2019s gracious intentions toward Israel. Perhaps he is thinking of their entire history of complaint, and God\u2019s earlier acts of judgment against them. Perhaps Moses pictures waters gushing forth from the rock to sweep away the worst complainers, just as the Lord had earlier provided so much quail meat to those who complained about food that they choked upon it (Num. 11).
\nHere is a lesson for us. The Lord says to Moses, \u201cBecause you did not believe me, to hallow me in the eyes of the children of Israel therefore you shall not bring this assembly into the land which I have given them.\u201d Certainly, Moses believed in the Lord, and believed his word. At this point, however, he could not believe his kindness toward his people. Where God intended mercy, Moses believed in judgment and wrath.
\nGod says to Moses, \u201cYou did not make me holy in their sight\u201d We might imagine holiness as a pure and uncompromising divine standard. But the Lord wanted to display his holiness by being kind to undeserving Israel. Let us beware of misrepresenting God, as Moses did, by making him the mouthpiece of our own self-righteousness.<\/p>\n
For the journey: Self-righteousness is the pitfall of religious folk, which Yeshua spoke against constantly. We appoint ourselves the upholders of righteousness and truth, and enforce them at times with a harshness that far exceeds the Lord\u2019s. How can we embrace both God\u2019s righteousness and his grace at the same time?<\/p>\n
THE MEEK AND THE MIGHTY
\nParashat Balak, Numbers 22:2\u201325:9<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t be so humble; you\u2019re not that great. (Golda Meir)<\/p>\n
Now the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth. (Num. 12:3)<\/p>\n
We sometimes joke about this verse declaring the humility of Moses, because Moses is the one who wrote it. He seems like the man who received the medal for humility, only to have it taken away because he wore it! But no, the humility of which Scripture speaks is not that sort of false modesty, which Golda Meir, the iron lady of Israeli politics in the early decades of the Jewish state, also lampooned. Rather, true humility means knowing who we are in relationship to the Almighty.
\nMoses displays such humility when he faces criticism from his own siblings, Aaron and Miriam. He says nothing when they issue their challenge, \u201cHas the LORD indeed spoken only through Moses? Has He not spoken through us also?\u201d (Num. 12:2). He does nothing to vindicate himself, but the Lord acts decisively, striking Miriam with leprosy because she has spoken against Moses. Moses continues to display humility by praying for Miriam until she is healed of the leprosy and restored to the camp of Israel.
\nThroughout the book of Numbers, Moses repeats this sort of behavior. Two chapters after the challenge from Miriam and Aaron, ten scouts return with an evil report after spying out the land of Canaan. After hearing this report, the Israelites rebel against Moses and Aaron and clamor for a new leader who will take them back to Egypt. Moses and Aaron refrain from defending themselves and instead fall on their faces before the Lord (Num. 14:5). The glory of the Lord appears to vindicate Moses and his leadership. In the end, Moses again prays for the very ones who have resisted his authority, asking God to forgive them.
\nAnother two chapters pass and we come to the notorious rebellion under the leadership of Korach. During this incident, Moses again falls on his face three times, twice joined by Aaron. They know who they are before God, so their response to rebellion is to seek God in the posture of prayer and submission. This is the posture of humility, which reveals Moses as \u201cvery humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth,\u201d and God again vindicates them.
\nFinally, when a new generation rises up to complain against Moses and Aaron, they again \u201cfell on their faces\u201d in the presence of the Lord (Num. 20:5). In this last incident, of course, Moses fail; to follow through in his humility. Instead, he rises up in anger against his people and is punished severely: he will not be allowed to enter the Promised Land.
\nThe word we are translating as \u201chumble\u201d is anav, referring to affliction and weakness, and also to the result of affliction, which is meekness. The same word appears in Psalm 37:11, repeated unforgettably by Yeshua in the Sermon on the Mount: \u201cThe meek shall inherit the earth.\u201d Just as Moses defers to God\u2019s power and wisdom and is vindicated by him, so shall the Lord vindicate those who fall on their faces before him and await his deliverance.
\nIn the light of this clear teaching of the Torah, what are we to make of the behavior of Phinehas at the end of this week\u2019s parashah? The Israelites have just been blessed by the seer Balaam, whom the Midianites originally hired to curse them. Instead of moving on, the Israelites begin to worship the gods of their enemies and commit harlotry with their women. One of them even brings a foreign woman into his tent in the presence of the whole assembly.<\/p>\n
Now when Phinehas the son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, saw it, he rose from among the congregation and took a javelin in his hand; and he went after the man of Israel into the tent and thrust both of them through, the man of Israel, and the woman through her body. So the plague was stopped among the children of Israel. (Num. 25:7\u20138)<\/p>\n
However we may define the word anav, this behavior seems its opposite. Yet this deed stops the plague of judgment among the Israelites, and Phinehas is highly praised for it, receiving for his family an everlasting priesthood \u201cbecause he was zealous for his God\u201d (Num. 25:13).
\nPhinehas is passionate for God, and Moses behaves at times like a an without passion. When people challenge him, he falls on his face before the Lord. What a disappointment to his foes! What satisfaction could they gain from fighting with a man who wouldn\u2019t fight back? Yet Moses reveals great passion when the reputation of God is at stake, praying for the fulfillment of God\u2019s plan. Indeed, it is precisely when Moses becomes passionate on his own behalf, and scolds the rebels to whom God desires to supply water, that he errs and is punished.
\nPhinehas, on the other hand, shows a passion that seems too intense, until we understand it in context:<\/p>\n
The rabbis were uncomfortable with Phinehas\u2019s act. Having slain a man impulsively, without either trial or prior warning, he took the law into his own hands, thereby creating a dangerous precedent. No wonder certain sages claim that Moses and the religious leaders would have excommunicated Phinehas were it not for the divine decree declaring that he had acted on God\u2019s behalf (Jerusalem Talmud, Sanhedrin 27b). However, Phinehas can be defended: He did not act on his own initiative but followed God\u2019s command.<\/p>\n
Phinehas follows God\u2019s command that the offenders should be impaled in his presence. Moses directed the judges of Israel to kill all those who \u201cwere joined to Baal of Peor\u201d (Num. 25:4\u20135). He takes action when action is needed and receives a reward. As the Lord says \u201che was zealous with My zeal\u201d (Num. 25:11).
\nBoth Moses the meek and Phinehas the mighty put all their passion into God\u2019s reputation and none into their own. Whenever the Israelites challenge Moses, he rushes, with one exception, to defend not himself, but the divine master plan. Likewise, Phinehas take; the great challenge to God\u2019s reputation personally. When Israel joins itself to the Baal of Peor, Phinehas does not hesitate to respond.
\nYeshua, like Moses, described himself as humble: \u201cTake My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart\u201d (Matt. 11:29). And like Phinehas, he was consumed by zeal for God. When Yeshua drove the money-changers from the Temple courts, \u201cHis disciples remembered that it was written, \u2018Zeal for your house has eaten me up\u2019 \u201d (John 2:17). Yeshua himself is the meek and the mighty, and an example for us to be so as well.<\/p>\n
For the journey: Golda Meir reminds us that we don\u2019t need to be so humble, because we\u2019re not that great. But we can follow Moses, Phinehas, and Messiah in showing more concern for God\u2019s reputation than for our own. How would such a shift in emphasis change my outlook today?<\/p>\n
A WORD FOR THE WISE
\nParashat Pinchas, Numbers 25:10\u201330:1<\/p>\n
Seven things distinguish a fool and seven things distinguish a wise person. The wise person does not speak in the presence of one who is wiser. The wise person does not interrupt when another is speaking. The wise person is not in a hurry to answer. The wise person asks according to the subject and answers according to the Law. The wise person speaks about the first matter first and the last matter last. If there is something the wise person has not heard, the wise person says, \u201cI have never heard.\u201d The wise person acknowledges what is true. The opposite of all these qualities is found in a fool.<\/p>\n
Three times in the narrative of Torah, the Israelites encounter legal cases that the statues and ordinances they have received from God do not directly cover. The cases involve a blasphemer (Lev. 24:10\u201322), some men who were ritually unclean at the time of the Passover sacrifice (Num. 9:6\u201314), and a violator of Shabbat (Num. 15:32\u201336). Each time when the people ask Moses for a ruling, he must answer \u201cI have never heard,\u201d until the Lord gives him additional instructions. Now, in Parashat Pinchas, a fourth case comes before Moses.
\nZelophehad, of the tribe of Manasseh, has died leaving no heir\u2014that is, leaving no son. His surviving daughters, however, appeal to Moses. As women, they cannot inherit land directly, and so they are concerned that their father\u2019s name and inheritance among the tribes will be lost to his family forever. Accordingly, they make their request: \u201cGive us a possession among our father\u2019s brothers\u201d (Num. 27:4). Moses seeks the Lord, who rules in favor of the daughters, and against the patriarchal assumption of the times, thus adding a new instruction to Torah: \u201cIf a man dies and has no son, then you shall cause his inheritance to pass to his daughter\u201d (Num. 27:8).
\nMoses fulfills the description of the \u201cwise person\u201d in the quote above from Pirke Avot. When he does not know, he says \u201cI do not know.\u201d The Midrash comments that Moses thereby provides an example for \u201cthe heads of the Sanhedrin of Israel that were destined to arise after him, that\u2026 they should not be embarrassed to ask for assistance in cases too difficult for them. For even Moses, who was Master of Israel, had to say, \u2018I have not understood.\u2019 Therefore Moses brought their cases before the Lord.\u201d
\nThe ability to admit \u201cI have not heard; I do not know\u201d is rare among leaders, especially in our day of spin and talking points. It seems to be an unspoken rule of politics that you don\u2019t admit mistakes, and you don\u2019t say \u201cI don\u2019t know,\u201d even when you don\u2019t. How refreshing it would be to see those in power simply admit their mistakes and acknowledge the gaps in their knowledge!
\nThe Psalmist says \u201cThe Torah of the LORD is perfect\u201d (Ps. 19:7 [8]). A thousand years later, Paul writes, \u201cAll Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for rection, for instruction in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work\u201d (2 Tim. 3:16\u201317). But Scripture\u2019s perfection, its ability to make us complete and thoroughly equipped, does not mean that it spells out everything in detail. Sometimes it directs us back to the Lord for more instruction, or to another provision laid down toward the end of the Torah:<\/p>\n
If a matter arises which is too hard for you to judge \u2026. then you shall arise and go up to the place which the LORD your God chooses. And you shall come to the priests, the Levites, and to the judge there in those days, and inquire of them; they shall pronounce upon you the sentence of judgment. (Deut. 17:8\u20139)<\/p>\n
Traditional Judaism often cites these verses as a basis for the Oral Torah, rabbinic teachings and interpretations not found in the written Torah, but seen as essential to properly applying it in the various times and places of the Jewish story. This tradition sees the Torah\u2014written and oral\u2014as given once for all, but discovered anew in every generation through discussion and friendly argument. Students in yeshiva, a Jewish school for Torah study, continue to study in this way today.<\/p>\n
To an outsider this method of study can appear chaotic. Each pair works at its own pace; everyone is talking out loud; boys are constantly jumping up to find books or consult with other students; people come and go seemingly at random. But that\u2019s how yeshiva students have been learning for centuries.<\/p>\n
In the case of the daughters of Zelophehad, of course, the answer comes not through study and debate, but through an oracle of God. Nevertheless, their story establishes a truth that remains vital for us. God\u2019s word does not address every specific circumstance we will encounter in life, but it provides all the direction that we need. A wise student of Scripture must sometimes say \u201cI have not heard; I do not know\u201d and seek to learn more.
\nThus, right after Paul tells Timothy that Scripture equips completely, he charges him, \u201cPreach the word! Be ready in season and out of season. Convince, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching\u201d (2 Tim. 4:2). Scripture itself ordains teaching, study, exhortation as the means of revealing all that it has to offer.
\nAs we consider these general applications of the story, however, we should not overlook the specific ruling regarding daughters of Zelophehad, for it echoes the theme of Creation to completion that sounds throughout Torah.
\nThe twelve tribes are about to enter the Promised Land, where each is to receive a divine allotment, and sin breaks into the story again. Zelophehad \u201cdied in his own sin,\u201d according to his daughters, leaving no heir (Num. 27:3). Thus, the division of the land is disrupted, and divine order is threatened. But God takes action to restore the wholeness of the land and people of Israel. What is most striking here is that he does so through the daughters, those who normally are marginalized. Women are generally subject to men in the Mosaic legislation, but God reveals that they are able to inherit, to bear the family name, and to preserve the legacy. God\u2019s ruling in this case reminds us that he originally created woman out of man, not to be subservient, but to be \u201ca sustainer beside him\u201d (Gen. 2:18 Alter). Here again the big story moves forward not on the strength of human custom or insight, but on the wisdom of God.<\/p>\n
For the journey: How willing am I to say, \u201cI have not heard; I do not know\u201d? As we seek to learn Scripture more deeply, the traditional Jewish way of study through conversation and exploration remains a valid model for us. This sort of study does not mean always having he right answer, but having the wisdom to admit that we don\u2019t.<\/p>\n
PATHWAY TO PROMISE
\nParashat Mattot, Numbers 30:2\u201332:42<\/p>\n
May it be pleasing in your sight, O Lord our God and God of our fathers, that as I have fulfilled the commandment and dwelt in this sukkah, so may I merit next year to dwell in the sukkah of the skin of Leviathan. Next year in Jerusalem! (Fare-well to the sukkah, from the Siddur)<\/p>\n
At the conclusion of Sukkot, the Feast of Tabernacles, Jewish tradition provides a prayer of farewell to the sukkah, the booth in which we are commanded to dwell through the eight days of the festival. But what in the world is the skin of Leviathan, and what does it have to do with Sukkot?
\nLeviathan is the great sea-creature mentioned in Job 3:8 and 41:1 and Psalms 74 and 104. Isaiah sees Leviathan as an embodiment of anti-God forces of chaos that will be subdued in the Age to Come: \u201cIn that day the LORD with his severe sword, great and strong, will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, Leviathan that twisted serpent; and he will slay the reptile that is in the sea\u201d (Isa. 27:1). In the Talmud, Leviathan appears as a monstrous fish, vanquished in the Age to Come, when the Lord will make a banquet for the righteous from its flesh, and a tabernacle for the righteous from its skin. With the slaying of Leviathan, the forces of disorder are finally subdued.
\nThis project of vanquishing chaos began at Creation itself. The second verse of Torah tells us that the newly-created earth was tohu vavohu, \u201cwild and waste.\u201d Through the six days of Creation, God orders and divides all the elements of heaven and earth, so that at the end he can declare that it is very good. But the work of Creation does not altogether end with the seventh day. When God creates humankind, he assigns them to \u201csubdue\u201d the earth (Gen. 1:28). Even before Adam and Eve fall into disobedience in the Garden of Eden, they have work to do. The primal state of humankind is not passive innocence, but active cooperation with God in bringing creation to its fulfillment. The human being as divine image-bearer has a share in the divine task of ordering Creation.
\nThis same picture emerges in the second account of Creation, in Genesis 2. God places the newly-created Adam in the Garden of Eden \u201cto tend and keep it\u201d (Gen. 2:15) or more literally \u201cto work and guard it.\u201d Eden is not the place of primal innocence, but of primal responsibility. The divine human encounter there is not only one of intimate fellowship, but also one of shared effort. God has so designed Creation that it does not reach completion apart from the effort and diligence of humankind.
\nThis truth is summed up in the phrase cited above from Genesis 1:28, \u201csubdue the earth.\u201d Significantly, the same phrase appears twice in this week\u2019s parashah. Moses is speaking with the tribes of Gad and Reuben, who desire to settle east of the Jordan, outside of the and promised to the tribes of Israel. Moses tells them they cannot abandon the rest of the tribes, but must participate in the conquest of the land. Only later, when \u201cthe land is subdued before the LORD, then you may return and be blameless before the LORD and before Israel\u201d (Num. 32:22, emphasis added). Moses then instructs Eleazar the priest, Joshua, and the chiefs of the rest of the tribes, \u201cIf the children of Gad and the children of Reuben cross over the Jordan with you, every man armed for battle before the LORD, and the land is subdued before you, then you shall give them the land of Gilead as a possession\u201d (Num. 32:29, emphasis added).
\n\u201cSubdued\u201d in this passage is from the Hebrew root \u05db\u05d1\u05e9 kavash, the same verb commanded to Adam in Genesis 1. Significantly, it appears in Torah only in these two instances. Furthermore, \u201cland\u201d here is aretz, the same noun usually translated as \u201cearth\u201d in Genesis 1:28. Moses is repeating the phrase \u201csubdue the earth\u201d to apply to the conquest of the Promised Land. When the conquest is finally completed under Joshua, the phrase will appear again: \u201cAnd the whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled together at Shiloh, and set up the tabernacle of the congregation there. And the land was subdued before them\u201d (Josh. 18:1, emphasis added).
\nThe conquest of the Promised Land is an extension of the foundational human task of subduing the earth, of bringing divine order to a Creation not yet perfected. The conquest of the land anticipates the reign of God over all the earth in the Age to Come. The tribes of Israel cannot fulfill their destiny in some quiet or hidden fashion, but only through struggle and perseverance.
\nLikewise, for us, the promise of God does not appear on a silver platter, but is reserved for the diligent and persevering. As Paul instructed his disciples, \u201cWe must through many tribulations enter the kingdom of God\u201d (Acts 14:22). Tribulations are not simply obstacles to overcome on the way to the kingdom of God. Rather, they provide the essential pathway to the kingdom. There is no other route.
\nAccordingly, when Reuben and Gad request an inheritance east of the Jordan, outside the place of endurance and conquest, Moses says they can only have an inheritance if they have a share in the task of subduing. \u201cThen afterward you may return and be blameless before the LORD and before Israel; and this land shall be your possession before the LORD\u201d (Num. 32:22).
\nIn the same way, Messiah Yeshua instructs us, \u201cFrom the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force\u201d (Matt. 11:12), and \u201cEnter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it\u201d (Matt. 7:13\u201314).
\nThe two gates not only address how many will enter the life of the kingdom of heaven. They also reveal the nature of the journey to life in the kingdom. It must at times be narrow and difficult, because narrowness and difficulty prepare us for God\u2019s fullness. Yeshua, who is the gate, reveals in his own death and resurrection the essential path to the promise of God.<\/p>\n
For the journey: Sometimes the things that frustrate us the most are the most essential to our spiritual progress. What lies before me that I must subdue on my way to the kingdom of God?<\/p>\n
COURAGE IS CONTAGIOUS
\nParashat Masa\u2018ei, Numbers 33:1\u201336:13<\/p>\n
Perseverance and spirit have done wonders in all ages. (General George Washington)<\/p>\n
The final parashah in Numbers opens with a recap of the history of the previous generation: \u201cThese are the journeys of the children of Israel, who went out of the land of Egypt by their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron\u201d (Num. 33:1). It concludes with the new generation encamped on the plains of Moab and ready to enter the Promised Land. \u201cThese are the commandments and the judgments which the LORD commanded the children of Israel by the hand of Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan, across from Jericho\u201d (Num. 36:13).
\nTwo generations with two very different destinies share the space of this final parashah. Our first reading, however, strikes us not with the contrast between the two, but with their similarities. Since the decade of the sixties, we\u2019ve been accustomed to speak of a generation gap, the vast and sometimes irreconcilable differences between generations. In Numbers, however, instead of encountering a generation gap, we discover to our disappointment that the new generation repeats the sins of its parents\u2019 generation. They both complain against Moses and Aaron and mistrust their leadership and, ultimately the Lord himself. They even go so far as to protest their deliverance from Egypt!
\nThe waters of Meribah highlight this similarity between generations. Just as the generation that \u201cwent out of the land of Egypt\u201d complained about lack of water at this site in Exodus 17, so did the new generation in Numbers 20. It may have been shock at the unredeemed quality of the new generation that led Moses to transgress in his response to them, as we saw in Parashat Hukkat.
\nNevertheless, despite such similarities, the new generation will enter the Promised Land, the very thing that the older generation failed to do. What is the difference between these generations? It may be summed up in one word: courage.
\nCourage, we are often told, is not the absence of fear. Rather, it is doing the right thing despite fear, inability, and uncertainty about the outcome. Such courage is contagious.
\nIn the United States, we remember 1776 as the year of independence, but we forget that it was also a year of military defeat and near-disaster for the new republic. The British easily drove Washington and his troops out of New York City, which both sides saw as a strategic key to the entire war. The Continental Army fled across New Jersey, barely evading the far superior forces of the British army. Finally, it crossed the Delaware River into Pennsylvania for safety. Even then, the Continental Congress, meeting in nearby Philadelphia, felt so threatened that it fled to Baltimore. Finally, Washington saw an opportunity to turn things around. On Christmas night 1776, in the midst of a freezing storm, he led 2400 of his ill-clad, hungry, discouraged troops back across the Delaware, boatload by boatload, to attack the Hessian garrison at Trenton in the morning. It was the first clear victory for the Americans. A few days later, in response to a British counter-attack, Washington led his troops behind the front to attack Princeton. This led to a second American victory, but only after the field commander was killed and Washington took personal command. One of his officers describes the scene: \u201cI shall never forget what I felt \u2026 when I saw him brave all the dangers of the field and his important life hanging as it were by a single hair with a thousand deaths flying around him. Believe me, I thought not of myself.\u201d
\nCourage is contagious. Washington\u2019s display of courage inspired his officers and men to think not of themselves or the danger they faced, but only of the glorious cause.
\nWithout courage there can be no obedience to God\u2019s word, no leadership of God\u2019s people. The first generation lacks the courage to enter the Promised Land; the new generation moves forward and enters in. When the twelve spies were sent to scout out the land, Moses instructed them, \u201cv\u2019hit\u2019chazaktem\u201d \u201cand be of good courage\u201d (from the root \u05d7\u05d6\u05e7 or hazak). But only Joshua and Caleb had the courage to believe that they could actually take the land as God had commanded. Later, when Joshua is appointed to lead the people, God tells Moses, \u201coto hazek\u2014encourage him, for he shall cause Israel to inherit it\u201d (Deut. 1:38).
\nWe have already seen that the wilderness is the place of both testing and blessing. Courage determines which will dominate. The same trials that wear down the fainthearted and lead them into sin motivate the courageous and lead them into new strength and dedication.
\nThe Midrash captures both possibilities in its commentary on the opening words of our parashah, \u201cThese are the journeys.\u2026\u201d First, it says, \u201cThe Holy One Blessed Be He said to Moses: \u2018Write down the stages by which Israel journeyed in the wilderness, in order that they shall know what miracles I wrought for them.\u2019 \u201d Immediately after, it says, \u201cThe Holy One Blessed Be He said to Moses: \u2018Recount to them all the places where they provoked Me.\u2019 \u201d
\nThe same locations can be places of miracle and scenes of provocation. Trials and difficulties inevitably come our way, but these are not what wear us down, for they also are occasions for miraculous intervention.
\nCourage is contagious, and so is its opposite, discouragement. Numbers teaches us that we lose courage, or become discouraged, when we respond in certain ways to our trials.<\/p>\n
\u2022 We lose courage when we second-guess ourselves. Like our fore bears, we contemplate a return to Egypt instead of preparing for the future into which God is leading us.<\/p>\n
\u2022 We lose courage when we allow ourselves to complain and cast blame upon others instead of taking responsibility for our problems and seeking a solution.<\/p>\n
\u2022 We lose courage when we listen to negativity and unbelief instead of remembering God\u2019s promise and all that he has already brought us through on the way to its fulfillment.<\/p>\n
The first generation listened to words of discouragement and failed to enter the Promised Land. The next generation gradually learned to listen to and speak words of encouragement themselves, saying to Joshua: \u201cAll that you command us, we will do \u2026. Only be strong and of good courage\u201d (Josh. 1:16\u201318).
\nCourage is contagious. It is good to have models like Joshua or Washington, but the ultimate source of our courage is Messiah himself.<\/p>\n
Let us, too, put aside every impediment\u2014that is, the sin which easily hampers our forward movement\u2014and keep running with endurance in the contest set before us, looking away to the Initiator and Completer of that trusting, Yeshua\u2014who, in exchange for obtaining the joy set before him, endured execution on a stake as a criminal, scorning the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Yes, think about him who endured such hostility against himself from sinners, so that you won\u2019t grow tired or become despondent. (Heb. 12:lb\u20133 CJB)<\/p>\n
We can gain courage and we pass courage on to others through words of encouragement. Hence, as we conclude our reading of Numbers, as at the end of each book of the Torah, we repeat the traditional words: \u05d7\u05d6\u05e7 \u05d7\u05d6\u05e7 \u05d5\u05e0\u05ea\u05d7\u05d6\u05e7\u2014Hazak! Hazak\u200d! V\u2019nit\u2019chazek! Be strong! Be courageous! And let us encourage one another!<\/p>\n
For the journey: Courage is contagious. It\u2019s not enough just to survive our trials and difficulties, for if we view them courageously they become the site of miracles. How can I encourage myself and those around me today?<\/p>\n
title Creation to completion: A Guide to Life\u2019s Journey From the Five Books of Moses
\npublisher Messianic Jewish Publishers<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
\u05d1\u05de\u05e8\u05d1\u05e8 THE BOOK OF NUMBERS The Hebrew title of Numbers\u2014\u05d1\u05de\u05d3\u05d1\u05e8 (B\u2019midbar) or \u201cin the wilderness\u201d\u2014says it all. The book opens in the wilderness of Sinai \u201con the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt\u2026\u201d (Num. 1:1), or less than a year after … <\/p>\n