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MaseiBamidbar (numbers)

"God became angry with Israel, and He made them wander in the desert for 40 years, until the entire generation who had done evil in the eyes of God had died out."

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This double parsha—Matot and Masei—begins with Moses recounting the laws of the annulment of vows to the heads of the twelve tribes. The Israelites go to war against the Midianites, and receive a detailed account of the laws of the spoils of war. 

 

The tribes of Reuben and Gad, and half of the tribe of Manasseh, ask for land east of the Jordan, which features better pastures. Their request angers Moses, but he agrees on the condition that they partake in conquering all of the land west of the Jordan first. 

 

The Israelites’ journeys are listed in great detail, from the Exodus to their camping in Moab, across the river from the Promised Land. The Promised Land’s boundaries are detailed, and cities of refuge are established as safe havens for those who have taken a life by mistake. The daughters of Tzelafchad marry within their own tribe, making sure the estate they inherited from their father remains the property of the tribe of Manasseh. 

 

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Numbers 33:7The Kehot Chumash
7

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאֵתָם וַיָּשׇׁב עַל־פִּי הַחִירֹת אֲשֶׁר עַל־פְּנֵי בַּעַל צְפוֹן וַיַּחֲנוּ לִפְנֵי מִגְדֹּל׃

They journeyed from Eitam and returned to Pi HaChirot, which faces Ba’al Tzefon, and camped before Migdol.

10

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאֵילִם וַיַּחֲנוּ עַל־יַם־סוּף׃

They journeyed from Eilim and camped by the Sea of Reeds.

11

וַיִּסְעוּ מִיַּם־סוּף וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּמִדְבַּר־סִין׃

They journeyed from the Sea of Reeds and camped in the Sin desert.

12

וַיִּסְעוּ מִמִּדְבַּר־סִין וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּדׇפְקָה׃

They journeyed from the Sin desert and camped at Dofkah.

13

וַיִּסְעוּ מִדׇּפְקָה וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּאָלוּשׁ׃

They journeyed from Dofkah and camped at Alush.

14

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאָלוּשׁ וַיַּחֲנוּ בִּרְפִידִם וְלֹא־הָיָה שָׁם מַיִם לָעָם לִשְׁתּוֹת׃

They journeyed from Alush and camped at Refidim, but there was no water there for the people to drink.

15

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵרְפִידִם וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּמִדְבַּר סִינָי׃

At Mount Sinai
They journeyed from Refidim and camped in the Sinai desert.

16

וַיִּסְעוּ מִמִּדְבַּר סִינָי וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּקִבְרֹת הַתַּאֲוָה׃

They journeyed from the Sinai desert and camped at Kivrot HaTa’avah.

17

וַיִּסְעוּ מִקִּבְרֹת הַתַּאֲוָה וַיַּחֲנוּ בַּחֲצֵרֹת׃

They journeyed from Kivrot HaTa’avah and camped at Chatzeirot.

18

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵחֲצֵרֹת וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּרִתְמָה׃

They journeyed from Chatzeirot and camped at Ritmah. The word ritmah means “slander”; this place was so named because it was here that the spies slandered the Land of Israel.

37

וַיִּסְעוּ מִקָּדֵשׁ וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּהֹר הָהָר בִּקְצֵה אֶרֶץ אֱדוֹם׃

They journeyed from Kadeish and camped at Mount Hor, at the edge of Edom.

38

וַיַּעַל אַהֲרֹן הַכֹּהֵן אֶל־הֹר הָהָר עַל־פִּי יְהֹוָה וַיָּמׇת שָׁם בִּשְׁנַת הָאַרְבָּעִים לְצֵאת בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם בַּחֹדֶשׁ הַחֲמִישִׁי בְּאֶחָד לַחֹדֶשׁ׃

Aaron’s Death
Aaron the priest ascended Mount Hor at GOD’s bidding and died there “by God’s kiss,on the first day of Av, the fifth month, in the 40th year of the Israelites’ exodus from Egypt.

39

וְאַהֲרֹן בֶּן־שָׁלֹשׁ וְעֶשְׂרִים וּמְאַת שָׁנָה בְּמֹתוֹ בְּהֹר הָהָר׃ {ס}        

Aaron was 123 years old when he died at Mount Hor.

40

וַיִּשְׁמַע הַכְּנַעֲנִי מֶלֶךְ עֲרָד וְהוּא־יֹשֵׁב בַּנֶּגֶב בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן בְּבֹא בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃

Amalek Attacks
The Amalekite king of Arad, disguised as a Canaanite, who dwelt in the south of Canaan, heard that Aaron died when the Israelites came to Mount Hor, and therefore attacked them.

41

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵהֹר הָהָר וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּצַלְמֹנָה׃

They journeyed from Mount Hor and camped at Tzalmonah.

42

וַיִּסְעוּ מִצַּלְמֹנָה וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּפוּנֹן׃

They journeyed from Tzalmonah and camped at Punon.

44

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵאֹבֹת וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּעִיֵּי הָעֲבָרִים בִּגְבוּל מוֹאָב׃

They journeyed from Ovot and camped by The Ruins of the Passes, on the Moabite border.

48

וַיִּסְעוּ מֵהָרֵי הָעֲבָרִים וַיַּחֲנוּ בְּעַרְבֹת מוֹאָב עַל יַרְדֵּן יְרֵחוֹ׃

At the Threshold of the Land of Israel
They journeyed from The Mountains of the Passes and camped in the plains of Moab by the Jordan River, opposite Jericho.

49

וַיַּחֲנוּ עַל־הַיַּרְדֵּן מִבֵּית הַיְשִׁמֹת עַד אָבֵל הַשִּׁטִּים בְּעַרְבֹת מוֹאָב׃ {ס}        

They camped along the Jordan River; their encampment extended from Beit Yeshimot to Aveil, the plain of Shitim, in the plains of Moab, a distance of 24,000 cubits. From this chronicle, it is clear that God did not exhaust the people by making them wander continuously during the 38 years between the sin of the spies and the entry into the land. Of the 42 stations, 14 occurred between the Exodus (15 Nisan 2448) and the decree (9 Menachem Av, 2449), and 8 between Kadeish (1 Nisan 2487) and the plains of Moab (after Tishrei 2488). The people spent 19 years at Ritmah (from 2449 to 2468), so, in the remaining 19 years (between 2469 and 2487), they camped at only 20 stations. They thus spent an average of a year at each of these stations.

54

וְהִתְנַחַלְתֶּם אֶת־הָאָרֶץ בְּגוֹרָל לְמִשְׁפְּחֹתֵיכֶם לָרַב תַּרְבּוּ אֶת־נַחֲלָתוֹ וְלַמְעַט תַּמְעִיט אֶת־נַחֲלָתוֹ אֶל אֲשֶׁר־יֵצֵא לוֹ שָׁמָּה הַגּוֹרָל לוֹ יִהְיֶה לְמַטּוֹת אֲבֹתֵיכֶם תִּתְנֶחָלוּ׃

You will be privileged to give the land as an inheritance to your families by lot, as I have told you: you will give a larger inheritance to the large tribe and you will give a smaller inheritance to the small tribe; wherever the lot falls for a person, that will be his inheritance; you will inherit according to the tribes of your fathers who came out of Egypt, and furthermore, you will inherit the land in 12 districts, according to the tribes of your fathers.

1

וַיְדַבֵּר יְהֹוָה אֶל־מֹשֶׁה לֵּאמֹר׃

The Boundaries of the Land
GOD spoke to Moses, saying:

22

וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־דָן נָשִׂיא בֻּקִּי בֶּן־יׇגְלִי׃

The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Dan, Buki son of Yogli.

23

לִבְנֵי יוֹסֵף לְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־מְנַשֶּׁה נָשִׂיא חַנִּיאֵל בֶּן־אֵפֹד׃

For the descendants of Joseph: the prince for the tribe of the descendants of Manasseh, Chani’eil son of Eifod;

24

וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־אֶפְרַיִם נָשִׂיא קְמוּאֵל בֶּן־שִׁפְטָן׃

and the prince for the tribe of the descendants of Ephraim, Kemu’eil son of Shiftan.

25

וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־זְבוּלֻן נָשִׂיא אֱלִיצָפָן בֶּן־פַּרְנָךְ׃

The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Zebulun, Elitzafan son of Parnach.

26

וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־יִשָּׂשכָר נָשִׂיא פַּלְטִיאֵל בֶּן־עַזָּן׃

The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Issachar, Palti’eil son of Azan.

27

וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־אָשֵׁר נָשִׂיא אֲחִיהוּד בֶּן־שְׁלֹמִי׃

The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Asher, Achihud son of Shelomi.

28

וּלְמַטֵּה בְנֵי־נַפְתָּלִי נָשִׂיא פְּדַהְאֵל בֶּן־עַמִּיהוּד׃

The prince for the tribe of the descendants of Naphtali, Pedah’eil son of Amihud.

29

אֵלֶּה אֲשֶׁר צִוָּה יְהֹוָה לְנַחֵל אֶת־בְּנֵי־יִשְׂרָאֵל בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן׃ {פ}

These are the ones whom GOD commanded to assign the Israelites their estates in Canaan.”

2

צַו אֶת־בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וְנָתְנוּ לַלְוִיִּם מִנַּחֲלַת אֲחֻזָּתָם עָרִים לָשָׁבֶת וּמִגְרָשׁ לֶעָרִים סְבִיבֹתֵיהֶם תִּתְּנוּ לַלְוִיִּם׃

Since the tribe of Levi will receive no portion of the land, command the rest of the Israelites that they give the Levites cities in which to dwell from their hereditary estates, and tell them also: ‘You must give the Levites open spaces around the cities, which are not to be used for residential purposes.

14

אֵת ׀ שְׁלֹשׁ הֶעָרִים תִּתְּנוּ מֵעֵבֶר לַיַּרְדֵּן וְאֵת שְׁלֹשׁ הֶעָרִים תִּתְּנוּ בְּאֶרֶץ כְּנָעַן עָרֵי מִקְלָט תִּהְיֶינָה׃

God foresaw that there would be a similar number of incidences of unintentional murder on both sides of the Jordan River, even though only two and a half of the 12 tribes settled on the east side, so He told Moses to tell the people, “You must provide three of the cities in Transjordan and three of the cities in Canaan to serve as cities of refuge.

18

אוֹ בִּכְלִי עֵץ־יָד אֲשֶׁר־יָמוּת בּוֹ הִכָּהוּ וַיָּמֹת רֹצֵחַ הוּא מוֹת יוּמַת הָרֹצֵחַ׃

Or if he struck him with a fist-sized wooden instrument, which is large enough to be deadly, and he dies, he is a full murderer; such a murderer must be put to death. (If, however, the stone or wooden instrument was not large enough to cause death normally, but the victim died of the blow anyway, the assailant is not guilty of intentional murder.)

22

וְאִם־בְּפֶתַע בְּלֹא־אֵיבָה הֲדָפוֹ אוֹ־הִשְׁלִיךְ עָלָיו כׇּל־כְּלִי בְּלֹא צְדִיָּה׃

Inadvertent Murder
The law is different, however, in the case of inadvertent murder. If the assailant pushed the victim down accidentally, without malice, or threw an object in a downward motion at him and not in ambush,

34

וְלֹא תְטַמֵּא אֶת־הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר אַתֶּם יֹשְׁבִים בָּהּ אֲשֶׁר אֲנִי שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹכָהּ כִּי אֲנִי יְהֹוָה שֹׁכֵן בְּתוֹךְ בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃ {פ}

You must not defile the land where you reside, in which I dwell, for this will cause Me to dwell in defilement, inasmuch as I am GOD, who continues to dwell among the Israelites even if they are defiled.”

1

וַיִּקְרְבוּ רָאשֵׁי הָאָבוֹת לְמִשְׁפַּחַת בְּנֵי־גִלְעָד בֶּן־מָכִיר בֶּן־מְנַשֶּׁה מִמִּשְׁפְּחֹת בְּנֵי יוֹסֵף וַיְדַבְּרוּ לִפְנֵי מֹשֶׁה וְלִפְנֵי הַנְּשִׂאִים רָאשֵׁי אָבוֹת לִבְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל׃

The Laws of Inheritance
The paternal heads of the family of the sons of Gilead son of Machir son of Manasseh, one of the families of the sons of Joseph, approached and spoke before Moses and the princes, the paternal heads of the Israelites, when they were all assembled for study. They asked Moses about the law and addressed the princes as litigants.

As the Book of Numbers comes to a close, and as the Israelites are standing at the gates of the Promised Land, Moses faces what is arguably his greatest challenge as a leader. Two of the tribes, Reuben and Gad, have a lot of cattle, and they quite like the fertile land east of the Jordan River. Might it be possible, they ask an irate Moses, for them to simply remain there rather than crossing the river and inheriting the land they’d been promised on the other side?  

 

“Moses,” wrote the late Rabbi Lord Jonathan Sacks, “was instantly alert to the risks. These two tribes were putting their own interests above those of the nation as a whole. They would be seen as abandoning their people at the very time they were needed most. There was a war—in fact a series of wars—to be fought if the Israelites were to inherit the Promised Land.” A lesser leader may have lost his cool, shouted the two tribes down, and demanded compliance. Moses, instead, gave us all a lesson in leadership for the ages.  

 

His first move is surprising. He reminds the two tribes of the sin of the spies, those ten emissaries who didn’t believe the Promised Land was conquerable and condemned the Israelites to 40 years of wandering in the desert. “And here you are,” Moses thunders, “a brood of sinners, standing in the place of your fathers and making the Lord even more angry with Israel. If you turn away from following Him, He will again leave all these people in the wilderness, and you will be the cause of their destruction.”  

 

Moses, Rabbi Sacks concluded, was “blunt, honest, and confrontational.” And the two tribes, in return, offered a compromise: If Moses lets them inherit the swaths of land they desire, they will make sure their men go and fight alongside the other tribes and not return home until all the wars have been won. They establish, Rabbi Sacks observed, the Jewish legal principle of zeh neheneh vezeh lo chaser, or one benefits and the other does not lose.

 

Moses hears them out. He repeats their position, to make sure he understood it in full. And then, he tells them precisely what will happen if they keep their commitment, and also what will happen if they fail to honor it. The crisis is averted. 

 

The dialogue between Moses and the two tribes, Rabbi Sacks noted, “follows closely the principles arrived at by the Harvard Negotiation Project,” which found that a successful negotiation always has four components: separating the people from the problem; focusing on interests, not positions; coming up with win-win situations; and insisting on objective criteria for measuring outcome. Moses intuits all of that, averts a potential crisis, and leaves any of us who had ever had to handle a disagreement an unbeatable blueprint for conflict resolution.  

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