Parsha Overview
I’d like to give a brief overview of all the topics contained in this week’s portion, and then focus in and elaborate on one of the topics.
The Longest
This week’s Torah portion, Parshat Nasso, is the longest Torah portion in the whole Torah, with 176 verses, 2264 words, and 8632 letters. In contrast to this week’s 176 verses, the shortest Torah portion, Parshat Vayailech, has only 30 verses. Many a Bar Mitzvah boy has prayed to be born the week of the shortest portion and not during the longest! It’s interesting to note that the longest tractate in the Talmud, Tractate Baba Basra, has 176 double sided pages. And the longest chapter in Psalms, chapter 119, has 176 verses. What is the significance of the number 176, that all three of these categories share it as the common number to hold the record as “the longest”? I’m not quite sure, but I’d love to hear what you and your partner are able to come up with!
Counting the Levite Families
There is a special census taken of the three Levite families; Gershon, Kehas and Merari, taken for those between the ages of 30 and 50. The significance of this age is peak adult strength. When a person hits 30 they hit the zenith of their physical strength and remain at this plateau until the age of 50. At the age of 50, sorry to say this folks, a person’s physical strength begins to decline. Since throughout the Jewish sojourn in the desert, the Levites were tasked with assembling and dismantling the Tabernacle, and carrying it, only those at the height of their strength were eligible to serve. Last week we were told about the family of Kehas, that there job was to carry on shoulder the most sacred items, like the Ark of the Covenant and Menorah, and how many members of Family Kehas were between 30 and 50. This week, we learn about the age 30-50 count for the families of Gershon and Merari. Gershon was tasked with handling the varied curtains and tapestries, while Merari carried the heaviest items, like the beams and sockets that made up the structure of the Tabernacle.
Purity of the Camp
The Torah instructs us to make sure that the environment where the Jewish people encamped in the desert remained pure. That required people with ritual impurities, either through coming in contact with the dead, experiencing bodily emissions, or contracting tzaraas (skin discolorations caused by sinful behaviors- most commonly by speaking negatively of others) be sent out of the encampments. There were three levels of sanctity in the encampments, think of it as three rings. The center ring, the most sacred, was the environ of the Tabernacle. Someone who came in contact with the dead had to exit just this most sacred encampment. One who experienced bodily emissions was sent out from the Tabernacle ring, and also from the second ring, the encampment of the Levites. Someone impure from tzaraas had to leave even the third encampment, which was the ring where all of the 12 tribes sent up camp.
Stealing From a Convert
There is a passage mentioned earlier in the Torah where one receives an item to safeguard, but when the owner returns and asks for it back, the custodian denies ever having received it and swears to that effect. The punishment is that he must pay back the owner the original item plus add on 20% to the repayment. In addition, he is obligated to bring a guilt offering. In repeating the topic here, the Torah adds two novel points to the aforementioned law. First, we learn here that the extra 20% and the guilt offering are required only when the perpetrator confesses on his own, and wishes to make the situation right, not if he is caught by the testimony of witnesses. The second novel point is that in a standard situation, if the victim dies and then the perpetrator looks to make amends, he will pay the heirs of the deceased victim. But what if the victim is a convert to Judaism who leaves behind no heirs? Who then is the payment made to? The Torah teaches that the payment is made to the Kohanim, the priests, who are serving their shift in the Temple at the time the perpetrator confesses. (The reason this scenario is possible only by a convert, is that every Jewish person has relatives. We are all part of one family, and have someone we are related to, even if it may only be a distant relative. A convert, on the other hand, is not considered to be related to his blood relatives from before he converted. He is considered to have been reborn at the time of his conversion. So a convert who dies without any children, will die with no remaining relatives.)
Sotah
This topic speaks of a case where a man suspects that his wife and the guy living next door, named Jim, (or any man other than him) are spending too much time together. He tells her not to be alone with Jim, but soon after, witnesses report that they spent the night together in a hotel room. What happened behind the closed door? She says they were just eating popcorn and watching television. But is she telling the truth? Did something more sinister take place at the hotel? Because of this suspicion, husband and wife cannot resume their marriage until her innocence is proven. But how can this be proven? No one but she and Jim were in the room? The Torah provides a method for her to prove that she’s innocent of adultery. Her husband brings her to the Temple and she drinks a special potion containing water from the sacred copper washbasin and some earth from the Temple floor. Then we take this passage in the Torah and scrape off the words, erasing them into the water. She drinks this potion. If she is innocent she can return to her marriage and is showered with blessings, for us having falsely suspected her. If she is guilty, then both she and Jim will die a supernatural death. If at any point she admits her guilt, she need not drink. The consequence of her admission will result in her needing to get divorced from her husband, forfeiting the collection of her Ketubah, and never be allowed to marry Jim.
Nazir
A Nazir is a man or woman who takes a vow to become a Nazir, which will result in the following laws, which usually last for 30 days. They are: No wine or grape products. No contact with the dead, even to one’s close relatives. And not cutting one’s hair or shaving. At the end of the Nazarite term (usually 30 days), a series of offerings are brought and from that point on, the Nazir reverts back to his previous status.
The Priestly Blessing
Aaron and his sons were chosen to be the Kohanim, the priests of the Jewish people. They served in the Temple and were supported by the tithes and gifts of the nation. They are also tasked with bestowing blessings to the nation. In the Land of Israel, this custom is still practiced on a daily basis, where the Kohanim, every morning remove their shoes, take their place at the front of the synagogue, raise their hands and arms, and bless the people. Outside of Israel, in the Diaspora, the Kohanim offer their blessing on holiday mornings.
This formula is also used by parents to give blessings to their children. Some parents have the custom of blessing their children every Friday night, on Shabbat. Others bless their children only on the Eve of Yom Kippur before the holy day begins. The formula for the blessing is contained in three verses, here in our Torah portion. Let’s take a closer look:
יְבָרֶכְךָ יְיָ וְיִשְׁמְרֶךָ׃
יָאֵר יְיָ פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וִיחֻנֶּךָּ׃
יִשָּׂא יְיָ פָּנָיו אֵלֶיךָ וְיָשֵׂם לְךָ שָׁלוֹם׃
May G-d bless you and protect you.
May G-d illuminate His countenance to you and give you favor.
May G-d raise His countenance to you and grant you peace.
There is an infinite amount of depth in the words and letters of this blessing, much of which includes mystical secrets of the Torah. I’d like to share the commentary of the Ba’al Ha’Turim on just the first verse:
- In the first verse, the combined numeric value of the first letters of each word is 26 (ייו), this is the same numeric value as the four letter name of God. The combined value of the last letters of each word is 45 (ךהך), which alludes to the 45 word Kabbilistic name of God. This is the meaning of the verse in the Torah, “Hashem will guard your departure and your arrival” (Psalms 121:8) Since the name of God is alluded to with the first letters, the departure, and in the last letters, the arrival.
- There are 3 words in the verse, alluding to our 3 Patriarchs, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. In alluding to them in the blessing, we are looking to evoke their merit.
- These three words contain 15 letters, alluding to the 15 years total that our 3 Patriarchs were all present and alive in the world together. And the number 15 also alludes to the merit of the three Patriarchs combined with the 12 tribes, for a total of 15.
- The first word, יְבָרֶכְךָ, God will bless you, is in the merit of Abraham, about whom the verse in Genesis states, וַֽהֹ’ בֵּרַ֥ךְ אֶת־אַבְרָהָ֖ם בַּכֹּֽל And God Blessed Abraham with everything. And the three words of the verse, can also apply to just Abraham, and refer to the three times that Hashem blessed him.
- The words יברכך ה , May God bless you, have the same numeric value, 278, as the Hebrew words בנכסים ובגוף, in your assets and in your body. Implying that this first verse of blessing, is directed at material things, a person’s body and assets.
Friends, this is just the first of the three verses of the Priestly Blessing, and these are just the words of one of the hundreds of commentaries on the Torah!
Why the Kohanim?
Why is it that the Kohanim are chosen to bless the nation? Why is it not the most righteous or devout people? Also, why is it parents who bless their children? Maybe instead they should seek out the greatest Tzaddik, the most pious man in town, and bring the children over to him for a blessing? It is well known that the potency of a blessing is not only in the words spoken, but also in the sincerity and heart that goes into the blessing. The more the blessing is truly meant, the stronger it will be. This explains why parents are the ones to bless their children. No one loves a child more than the parent, and the parents blessing will be the most heartfelt. But still why the Kohanim? As we mentioned before, the Kohanim, who spent their days and nights serving in the Temple, were supported by tithes of the rest of our nation, who spent their time in agriculture. A tithe is a percentage of the crop. The more bountiful the crop of the rest of the nation, the more bundles of grain the Kohen received. His success was hinged upon the success of the nation. That is why the Kohen is chosen to bless the nation. To ensure the sincerity of the blessing. The kohen will bless with deep and genuine intent, because the blessing of the nation’s crop will ensure that the kohen also receives a bountiful sustenance.
Blessing, Danger and Safeguards
- Let’s take a look at the first verse of blessing. May God bless you. The question is, with what will God bless you? What kind of blessing is the verse referring to? Rashi (the classic Torah commentator) explains that it is a material blessing; your assets will be blessed. The second part of the verse is that God will safeguard or protect you. Rashi goes on to explain that this blessing is connected to the first half of the verse. You see, the blessing of material wealth also comes with certain dangers. A rich man becomes a target for thieves. Wealth also has the ability to alter one’s personality, sometimes leading to arrogance. Within the blessing mentioned in the first half of the verse, there come dangers. The second half of the verse is Hashem assuring us that He will also protect us from these dangers. Protecting the material blessing that He bestowed.
- Now let us analyze the second verse. May Hashem illuminate… This verse speaks of light. What is the blessing of light. The first verse spoke of material and physical blessing. Light often symbolizes things that are spiritual and intangible. In this blessing we are assured a spiritual blessing. Growing in our service of the Divine. But this too comes with a danger. What is the danger in spiritual growth you may ask? We often find that when one grows spiritually, by connecting to Hashem through the Torah, people around him will begin resenting him. They may make comments like, “Does he think he’s a rabbi all of a sudden?” Or, “Does he think he’s better than us?” Unfortunately, religious tolerance is often reserved for those that are less religious than us, but not for those that are more religious. In a person’s spiritual journey, he may fall out of favor with his peers and family. That is where the second half of this verse comes in. “God will grant you favor.” After the blessing of spiritual light, we are promised that we will still find favor in the eyes of those around us.
- Now that we seem to have it all, having been blessed with material sustenance and spiritual radiation, what more can we want? But alas, we are human and as humans, we are guaranteed to make mistakes. Sometimes we can take the very gifts that God has given us and use them to stray from God. Think of all the abuses that can be accomplished through wealth. We can take advantage of those less fortunate than us. Think of lending money to those who are desperate at unreasonably high rates. Perhaps we put the small guys, our competitors who can’t really manage to compete, out of business, with overly ruthless aggression. Sometimes we may flaunt our spiritual achievements in order to seek honor and privileges. To be human is to be flawed, and in need of Hashem’s forgiveness. This can be the meaning of the third blessing; “May God raise His countenance to you”. In Hebrew, the word שא doesn’t only mean to raise or lift, it can also mean to forgive, like it is used at the end of the Book of Genesis, when Joseph’s brothers beg his forgiveness, they say:
Genesis 50:17
Please forgive now the sin of your brothers and their iniquity, for they have done you evil, so now please forgive the spiteful deed of the servants of your father’s God.
בראשית נ:יז
אָ֣נָּ֡א שָׂ֣א נָ֠א פֶּ֣שַׁע אַחֶ֤יךָ וְחַטָּאתָם֙ כִּי־רָעָ֣ה גְמָל֔וּךָ וְעַתָּה֙ שָׂ֣א נָ֔א לְפֶ֥שַׁע עַבְדֵ֖י אֱלֹהֵ֣י אָבִ֑יךָ
We see that the word שא can be a plea for forgiveness. Here, in the third verse of the priestly blessing, the Kohanim bless us that we should always merit to find God’s forgiveness.
The closing words of the Priestly blessing, the second half of this third verse, is a request for peace. We find that all of the well known Jewish prayers always end by asking for Shalom- peace. This is how the Shemonah Esrei concludes. The Kaddish ends with the words: “Oseh Shalom Bimromav”, an entreaty for peace. And the Grace after Meals ends with the words, “Hashem Y’vareich es Amo Bashalom”- May God bless His nation with peace.
Why is it that all of these prayers conclude with a plea for peace? Our Sages teach us that a person can be granted every gift and blessing in the world, but if he doesn’t have peace, he doesn’t really have anything. Think of a wealthy man who lives in a glamorous home, drives an expensive car and has a lovely wife, but if she doesn’t talk to him, and his children won’t even look at him, then what really does he have? We can have everything, but there is one blessing that is crucial to enjoy anything, and that is peace. Once we have peace, we have it all, and need not ask for anything else. That is why peace comes at the end. It’s like the Mic drop at the end of a talk. Now that we’ve asked for peace, we don’t need to say anything else, because now we have it all!
Dedication of the Altar
Now to finish our summary of the Torah portion. The final and very lengthy next and final theme of the Parsha is the dedication of the altar in the Temple by the Tribal leaders. First, they donate 6 wagons and 12 bulls, 2 bulls to pull each wagon. These were used to load and carry the structure and curtains of the Tabernacle and the Jews journeyed in the desert. Then the Torah goes on to describe the elaborate and very detailed offerings that each Tribal Leader donated. Each leader brought the exact same donation, but the Torah lists the details of each one, to show that each gift was precious and that each leader came up with the same idea on his own.
