God’s anger is so great that He says He will destroy the Israelites and start again with Moses and his family. Moses entreaties God and begs him to change his mind. What will people say? That he took the Israelites out to kill them? That He was incapable of fulfilling His promise? In style, it is very similar to Abraham’s…
Author: Jeremy Rosen
Desperation Maapilim
The episode of the spies who returned from Canaan showed beyond doubt that the Children of Israel were not yet ready psychologically to start the invasion of Canaan. A whole generation had to pass before the actual invasion under Joshua. But after they had all crumbled when ten of the spies said they faced the prospect of a hard battle,…
Breaking Shabbat
After the Children of Israel panic at the prospect of invading Canaan, they are sent back into the wilderness for another forty years. Soon afterwards we read about a man (his identity is not revealed in the text though the Midrash names him as Zelopchad) who went out in public to gather wood on Shabbat in contravention of two principles…
The Menorah
The seven-branch menorah that stood in the Tabernacle and the Temple, made of solid gold, was the symbol of God’s presence amongst us. One light, the westernmost, was kept burning all the time, the wicks were changed, oil added once every twenty-four hours. In the desert where the people wandered after they left Egypt, this Divine presence was represented by…
Jethro
The Children of Israel are ready to march. Trumpets of silver are made to add to the means of communication. Up to now movement was decided by Cloud and Fire agents of God. Now, as they prepare to invade and stand on their own, they need a new method. And once again, as just before the crucial Sinai experience, at…
Complaints
The phrase “Vayehi Binsoah HaAron” is bracketed by two letters Nun upside down. One explanation is that this is a separate section of the Torah. But Rashi says it is a marker between two eras. The one before the Spies when they were ready to invade the first time. And then the period of a generation in the wilderness before…