An Invitation to Intimacy
Parashat Bamidbar, Numbers 1:1–4:20
Joe Miterko, Kol Mashiach, Melbourne, FL
Adonai spoke to Moshe in the Sinai Desert, in the tent of meeting, on the first day of the second month of the second year after they had left the land of Egypt. He said, “Take a census of the entire assembly of the people of Isra’el, by clans and families. Record the names of all the men twenty years old and over who are subject to military service in Isra’el. You and Aharon are to enumerate them company by company.” (Numbers 1:1–3)
A Special Season
This time of year is so exciting for us. Summer is on its way with its joys and frivolities; we begin a new book in our Torah cycle; and Shavuot is approaching next week. I always look forward to Shavuot. As a kid, one of my favorite traditions was our dessert oneg with Mount Sinai Sundaes & Moishemallows! That was way more exciting than matzo and maror, as matzo can make me bored and is pretty crumby.
All jokes aside, the afterglow of Pesach seems distant at this point, yet we remember our wanderings between redemption from Egypt and revelation at Sinai. We are commanded to keep a simple act of obedience for this time: we count the Omer! Moreover, we make these days of Omer count as we prepare ourselves to receive the gifts of the Torah and Ruach all over again, renewing our commitment to God’s Word. He desires us to order our days so we can see his work in our lives.
Order and Shalom
Hashem loves and desires order. Paul writes “For God is not a God of unruliness but of shalom. . . . Let all things be done in a proper and orderly way” (1 Cor 14:33, 40). In the Torah, we see God’s order dispel chaos (see Gen 1:2) and then we see creation blossoming thereafter. Vayikra took us on a journey of instruction about holiness and proper worship. Priests, purity, holiness, and everyday matters were discussed at length within its chapters. These newly freed people needed to learn what true worship, avodah, looked like. Moreover, they needed to free themselves from a mindset of slavery. We even see the consequences of those who break this order of worship: Aaron’s two sons, Nadav and Avihu, were consumed for not following Hashem wholeheartedly (Lev 10).
A People of Order and Shalom
Now we come to our parasha, Bamidbar. Bnei-Yisrael are set to leave Mount Sinai, ready for their next leg of the journey towards the Land of Promise. After all, it has been two years since leaving slavery in Egypt. Before the people can move, Hashem instructs Moshe and Aharon to number them. Specifically, he directs that all the men twenty years and older be counted for military service. The rest of our text this week describes this census, the formation of the tribes, and the unique roles and responsibilities of the Levites.
At first glance, this parasha seems mundane and uneventful. Yet this is such an exciting part of the journey for Bnei-Yisrael.! Hashem takes a people who are scattered, still shaking off the chains and dust of Egyptian oppression, and creates a people for himself. The same God who ordered each day of creation is making sure his people are accounted for. Indeed, Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks comments, “It is almost as if the Torah were describing the Israelites the way it describes the cosmos in the first chapter of Genesis, everything in its due proportion and proper place.” Not only is this an important step towards unity of the Jewish people; it also shows that Hashem cares for every single individual within the camp.
A Call to Intimacy
This call to enumerate the people goes beyond checking off boxes and creating physical order. Hashem invites his people into a covenantal relationship through intimacy. He wants each person standing at Sinai to know that they are beloved, cared for, and treasured by him. Even when times get tough, even when the wilderness seems endless without food, water, and shelter, the people are invited to know that Hashem’s arm is continuously fighting for them. `
The text of our Haftarah passage in Hosea dives more deeply into this concept. It opens:
Nevertheless, the people of Isra’el will number as many as the grains of sand by the sea, which cannot be measured or counted; so that the time will come when, instead of being told, “You are not my people,” it will be said to them, “You are the children of the living God.” (Hos 2:1 [1:10])
Later on, the Lord makes a beautiful promise:
I will betroth you to me forever; yes, I will betroth you to me in righteousness, in justice, in grace and in compassion; I will betroth you to me in faithfulness, and you will know Adonai. (Hos 2:21–22 [2:19–20])
The people being as numerous as the grains of sand by the sea harkens back to the census taken at Sinai. Further, the Lord draws them into a relationship as a groom with a bride. This concept of betrothal is critical to the Biblical narrative. In fact, on Pesach we read Song of Songs to remember this.
Recommitment through Intimacy
In the New Testament, we read how the resurrected Yeshua would appear to his talmidim during the days of the Omer. In fact, Rav Sha’ul said he appeared to over five hundred people (1 Cor 15:6). Yet, he revealed himself in a more intimate way to some of his followers. John 21 highlights an episode of particular interest. We see a close dialogue between Yeshua and Peter, even after Peter’s bitter denial from a few nights beforehand. Yeshua wants his love to restore Peter and meet him where he is. After they ate breakfast that the Master prepared on the shores of the Galil, he took time to have a very important conversation that Peter needed to hear.
God is not just a God of order; he desires for us to draw near to him. As we begin Sefer Bamidbar, we remember how he cared for our ancestors by numbering them and giving them freedom from bondage. Further, he invites them into intimacy, into a covenant that is alive and well today. Our challenge is: Will we accept it? Will we draw close as God desires to know us even more deeply? Will we love this beautiful heritage he has given us? My answer is a hearty Ken y’hi ratzon—Yes, may it be your will!
Shabbat Shalom!
All Scripture references are from Complete Jewish Bible (CJB).