Parashat Bamidbar
Rabbi Shmuel Rabinowitz, Rabbi of the Western Wall and Holy Sites
The book of Numbers, Bamidbar, which we begin reading this Shabbat, tells of the long journey of our ancestors, the children of Israel, in the desert. In the book of Exodus we read about the first year of this journey, in which the formative event of the Revelation at Mount Sinai took place and preparations were completed for the construction of the Tabernacle – the temporary temple that accompanied the children of Israel on the journey; Leviticus was devoted to matters related to the priesthood and the Tabernacle; And the book of Numbers describes the journey, from the end of the first year to the fortieth year when they reached the border of Canaan—the Land of Israel.
The first stage of this journey, to which this week’s Torah portion “Bamidbar” is dedicated, was a census of the entire nation, after which the book of Numbers is named. The Torah does not specify the purpose of the census and commentators have made various suggestions. Thus, for example, Nachmanides interpreted that the census was of a military nature and was carried out in preparation for the conquest of the Land of Israel. The Ralbag, on the other hand, suggested that the census was done for social benefit, so that each family would come together, and the family members would help each other. Rashi saw the census as an expression of G-d’s affection for the children of Israel, that because of His affection for them, He counts them every hour.
Rabbi Isaac Arama was a rabbi and rosh yeshiva in Spain in the 15th century. During his time, Jews in Spain were obliged to go to church every Sunday and listen to Christian sermons. Rabbi Isaac, seeing the impact of these sermons on the Jews, began to preach Jewish sermons in a profound philosophical style, hoping that by doing so he would give his listeners strong foundations in Jewish faith that would enable them to deal with the Christian theology that they were being coerced to hear. From these sermons he wrote his book The Binding of Isaac which became a foundational book in both sermons and biblical commentary. He comprehensively addressed issues at the heart of human and national existence and presented philosophical essays based on the Bible, the words of our sages, biblical commentators, and philosophical tenets. In 1492, Rabbi Yitzhak was one of the Jews expelled from Spain. He moved to Portugal and from there to Italy, where he died about two years after the expulsion. The tragic end of his life, which was part of the great national tragedy of the expulsion from Spain, receives a measure of consolation when we know that his book became one of the cornerstones of Jewish thought for centuries.
Rabbi Isaac Arama provided a new interpretation of the census described in the parasha. The census, he says, carries a double meaning. On the one hand, the census indicates equality. Each is counted equally to the other. In a census, there is no difference between number 1 and number 10,000. The first and last are equal. On the other hand, the census is conducted on individuals, not families or groups. In this way, Rabbi Isaac Arama sees the individual and unique aspect of each person – “the virtue of each one is separate from the virtue of his fellow.”
He bases this on the Midrashic comparison between the children of Israel and the stars of heaven. When we look at the stars, it seems to us that they are all small dots in the sky. The star in the east is no more important than the one we see in the west. But we know that each star has its own uniqueness, in size, position, and role in the astronomical system.
Thus, says Rabbi Isaac Arama, the children of Israel were counted before embarking on the journey to inculcate in the people these two important values: equality and uniqueness. Equality that does not tolerate discrimination and grants equal basic status to each person; and the uniqueness that does not assume that the person is only part of a group: each has his own virtues and unique contribution to society.
