10. Then YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,
11. "Pin'has, the son of El'azar, the son of Aharon the priest, has turned away my fury from the descendants of Israel in being zealous for my jealousy among them, so that I did not finish off the descendants of Israel in my jealousy.
Zealous: from the same root as "jealousy". The credit for saving Israel was given to one man who stood up for what YHWH is passionate about, when others were only passionate with lust or enamored with foreign religion and eager to change Israelite worship to include the same elements. Among the millions in the camp, YHWH said this was one man who thinks the same way He thinks! Jealousy has been given a bad name, but that is because it is often confused with envy. They are not the same. Envy is coveting—disobedience to the tenth commandment, wanting a specific thing someone else has been allotted. We have no right to do this. Jealousy, on the other hand, is our right and even our responsibility: it always pertains to something that does already, rightfully belong to us, which is being taken or threatened by another who does not have a right to it. Jealousy has to do with guarding the things dedicated to one and off limits to another. Ba’al means “husband”; those who were whoring with Ba’al-Peor were becoming attached to another husband. This couple was acting out a wedding of Israel to Ba’al-Peor. Another "man" had been brought into YHWH's "harem", but Pin'has longed to be longed for by YHWH, and, now that his father was the high priest, he was assigned as the chief guard of the holiness of His Dwelling-Place. He was just doing his job of making sure nothing there was touched by the wrong people, and that everything was used as intended. He acted just when the last of the generation that needed to die off before they could enter the Land had died, so that no more were killed than needed to be. YHWH told Pharaoh, “This is My people!”And He gives Israel a way to participate in His passion. But they were wrecking YHWH’s home, so he had to put an immediate end to it. The rest of this Torah portion gives us a remedy to prevent this kind of thing from occurring again, and a recipe for keeping the relationship intact.
12. "Therefore I say, ‘Watch! I am giving him my covenant of peace,
Peace, literally "completeness" (shalom). YHWH spoke up on his behalf, to make sure no one would think he had done the wrong thing.
13. "and to him and to his seed after him will belong the covenant of an eternal priesthood, because he was provoked to jealous anger for his Elohim, and atoned for the descendants of Israel.’"
This is what Pin’has’ enthusiasm for his inherited duty earned him. YHWH was so impressed with one man’s zeal that He “forgot” how angry He was with the rest of the people. Never underestimate what one person can accomplish. What made him a hero was that the other authorities (verses 4-9 above) who did go as far as killing their friends and relatives were doing so because they were commanded to. Even Moshe had to be told to act, and it took some time to get the job done because of all the “red tape” of investigating the facts, but Pin’has saw the need without having to be told, and zeal for YHWH’s house consumed him. (Psalm 69:9/10). His motive was not so much to stop the plague as to restore the honor of YHWH’s Name and sanctuary that were being profaned. This “rang YHWH’s bell” and was more valuable to Him even than mere obedience. He had a relationship with YHWH that no one else had, because he actually cared about YHWH’s heart. Of course, Pin’has had to have the authority to make such a radical move, but he was so well-trained in Torah that he saw immediately that this situation was wrong, and, as difficult as this may have been and as unpopular as it may have made him, he restored order. Like Aharon his grandfather, he stood between the living and the dead, stopped a plague, and restored order. This greatly pleased YHWH, bringing an aroma that soothed His burning nostrils. The difference between life and death was being in the proper order. Imagine how people must have respected his position after what he did here. What constituted this “covenant of completeness”? Pin'has was not originally in line to be High Priest; his uncle Nadav was. Since Nadav was killed, and the next in line, Avihu, with him, it fell to Pin'has' father, El'azar, to become the High Priest. But here YHWH promised that this kind of transfer would not occur again; the priesthood would remain in Pin'has' line, because he was the kind of high priest YHWH wanted. Eternal: Is it still in effect today, after over 3,000 years? The writers personally know one of his descendants who still knows who he is and is taking up his role again, and have heard of many others. It was the Israelite man who was guilty; the woman was just acting normally for a Midyanite (see note on v. 15). When a woman whose husband was jealous was found guilty of adultery, her belly is what swelled, and her reproductive organs ceased to function. (Chapter 5) Here, Pin'has ran his spear through her reproductive organs.
14. Now the name of the Israelite who was slain along with the Midyanite woman was Zimri [my music] the son of Sallu, a ruler of an ancestral house among the Shim'onites.
Sallu’s name means “weighed” or “made light of”. His son was now "weighed and found wanting". Shim'onites were not to be in the Tabernacle compound anyway, unless they were bringing their offerings. (18:7) How "my music" can go wrong is seen in Y'hezq'el 28:13.
15. And the name of the Midyanite woman who was slain was Kozbi [my lie], the daughter of Tzur [Rock]; he was head over a clan and from a chief household in Midyan.
Pin'has made what we would consider a poor political move, because both of the people he killed were prominent citizens. Biblically, no marriage ceremony is required; rather, once one "took a woman", by Torah he was considered married to her. (Deut. 22:28ff) So in a way this was a political marriage--very thing that later caused King Shlomo’s downfall, which then precipitated the split in the Kingdom of Israel. Kozbi probably had a clear conscience. Moavite worship involved temple prostitution, so she was merely being a "missionary" for her religion; prostitutes there came from the highest classes. The participants were trying to establish this as part of the official worship of YHWH. People commonly took pagan things and thought they were thereby worshipping YHWH, as in the case of the golden calf. Artifacts have actually been found that had written on them, "To YHWH and His asherah". But YHWH never accepted this as "kosher" worship. This “Rock” had a daughter who was a "lie" (a false bride) and a harlot--both biblical descriptions of the False Messiah and his congregation, which are built on "Jesus Christ"--a deceptive conceptual offshoot of the true Yeshua haMashiach. Moshe's father-in-law was from Midyan, so he would not have expected trouble from that quarter, but the Midyanites shared the worship of Baal with Moav.
16. So YHWH told Moshe, "Cramp the Midyanites, then strike them down,
Cramp: harass, put them in a "pinch", make things tight for them; Aramaic, "engage in hostilities against". LXX, "plague them”—based on the same word for what the messenger of YHWH did to Bilaam when his donkey was more perceptive than he. (Num. 22:26) Killing them was not enough; they had to be made to feel pain for what they did to YHWH’s people, costing Him 24,000 of them. Since they could not fix what they had broken, forgiveness was out of the question.
17. "because they cramp you in their craftiness, with which they have beguiled you in regard to the matter of Peor [the gap], and in the affair of Kozbi, the daughter of a prince of Midyan, their sister, who was struck down in the day of the plague, because of the Peor affair."
Peor affair: when Bilaam suggested luring Israel away from YHWH by seduction, since he could not curse them directly. Though it began with the daughters of Moav (v. 1), somehow the Midyanites also became involved and took precedence over them, possibly because of the added weightiness of having defiled the holy area. A severe response is called for when anyone uses deceptive techniques to lead YHWH’s people to change the worship He prescribed to something just like is done everywhere else.
CHAPTER 26
1. And what took place after the plague [was] that YHWH spoke to Moshe and to El'azar, the son of Aharon the priest, saying,
2. "Take a census of the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, from twenty years old and upward, by their father's house--all who [are able to] go out to the army in Israel."
The plague was the reason the census was requested. YHWH knew how many there were; Israel, instead, is who needs to know, and especially Moshe and El’azar, who must now select new leaders, since so many of them have recently died. It is time to take a survey of who is still an Israelite after some went off to follow Ba’al-Peor instead. Who is still loyal? Which tribes are doing well? Who can become the new leaders, especially after Moshe is no longer with them? The phrase “take a census” literally means “lift the heads”. I.e., make sure they are all paying attention. Look into their eyes: Are they generous? Stingy? The latter cannot be leaders, for they will take more for themselves than they give. Whom can we trust? Who is committed? And have them look you in the eye as you remind them clearly, “You are not married to Ba’al-Peor. You are a part of Israel, not Moav, Midyan, or Egypt, so do not help them reach their goals. You belong to YHWH. Get your focus back here.” In Israel, only those who protect the others are counted. And it is according to tribal identity that they are counted, not as individuals. Yaaqov had given particular blessings (and curses) to each tribe, indicating where their strengths and weaknesses lay. They must not dissipate their energies, but be loyal to a particular house. If they are, all Israel will be served, so they are judged by what they do in their father’s household. You cannot go to war without a commander. Israel is not to be a people loosely organized, who each go their own way. YHWH’s sheep are under His shepherds, or we are still lost sheep! The father is the leader, decision-maker, and authority in the household. Today, as we are still scattered, the temporary equivalent is the local congregation. Find the one to which YHWH has called you, then sink your tent pegs deep. With the Levitical system not yet intact and the tribes not yet organized, YHWH is also choosing leaders today based on their willingness to “give up their oil” at the first pressing, like the only olive oil fit for use in His sanctuary. Those who have been called in the first wave of the return of the Northern Kingdom must be especially ready to lead as the rest of Israel realizes their identity and follows us out. A leader is one who attacks his weaknesses by practicing until he becomes strong, because he will need to lead in many settings, not just those for which he is best suited. A true shepherd not only cares for his neighbors, but teaches others to do so as well—and, like Pin’has, enforces what YHWH has required.
3. So Moshe and El'azar the cohen told them [this] on the plains of Moav beside the Yarden [opposite] Y’rikho--
This is the first time El'azar is called the cohen rather than the son of the cohen.
4. “from twenty years old and upward”, just as YHWH commanded Moshe and the descendants of Israel who came out from the land of Egypt:
5. Reuven ["Look! A son!"] is Israel's firstborn. The sons of Reuven [are as follows]:
From Hanoch ["dedicated"] came the clan of the Hanochites; from
Pallu ["distinguished"], the clan of the Palluites;
6. from Hetzron ["surrounded by a wall"], the clan of the Hetzronites; from
Karmi ["my vineyard"], the clan of the Karmites;
7. these are the clans of the Reuvenites, and those who were mustered from
them [numbered] 43,730.
Re’uven’s numbers are down from 46,500 in the first census. He should have had every right of the firstborn, but he betrayed his father’s trust, which is very hard to repair. The children of Re’uven also rebelled along with Qorakh (16:1), so this tribe has lost ground.
8. Now Pallu's son was Eliav ["My Elohim is a father"],
9. and Eliav's sons were Nemuel ["day of Elohim"], Dathan ["belonging to a fountain"], and Aviram ["my father is exalted"]. These were the [same] Dathan and Aviram who were acclaimed in the assembly, who struggled against Moshe and Aharon in the company of Qorakh, when they struggled against YHWH,
These were the “very important persons” in their tribes, who could be called on when someone had a problem. It must have gone to their heads. When one has accomplished a little, it is best to just thank YHWH rather than thinking we have accomplished a lot. Their struggle was, in today’s terms, wanting Israel to be a democracy. They wanted everyone to have a vote, and called Moshe’s leadership style nepotism. But Moshe did not feel a need to explain anything to them. He referred the question to YHWH, who made His will very clear. One can fight the Torah all he wants, but fighting YHWH is the most foolish thing one could ever do.
10. and the earth opened up its mouth and engulfed them along with Qorakh, when that company died and fire devoured 250 men, and they became a public example,
Public example: literally, a sign lifted up on a standard.
11. but the children of Qorakh did not die.
This means that, unlike Dathan and Aviram’s children, Qorakh’s sons, though they had rebellion in their veins, had the wisdom to separate themselves from their own father, who started the rebellion, when YHWH told the whole congregation to get away from their tents. (16:24ff) They sided with Israel rather than their own family when their father was wrong. (Mat. 10:37) They were appointed to guard one side of the tabernacle, so they may not have even have been present with him when he sinned. Their descendants ended up writing numerous psalms that show their continuing love for YHWH. Today our fathers have passed on to us untruths about Yeshua that do not allow us to ascend closer to YHWH. (Yirmeyahu 16:19) If we see Yeshua as the end-all, we will not return all the way to His Father, which was His purpose. So we must respect our parents, but honor them by remaining loyal to YHWH and going beyond them in our pursuit of truth and integrity. Later their descendants ended up writing some of the psalms.
12. The sons of Shim'on ["hearing deeply"], according to their clans [were]:
for Nemuel ["day of Elohim"], the clan of the Nemuelites;
for Yamin [right hand], the clan of the Yaminites;
for Yakhin ["he will establish"], the clan of the Yakhinites;
13. for Zerakh ["rising"], the clan of the Zarkhites;
for Sha'ul ["desired, requested"], the clan of the Sha'ulites.
14. These are the clans of the Shim'onites--22,200.
When they were numbered at Sinai (ch. 1), there were nearly three times as many. When most of the tribes grew or maintained a relatively stable population between the first census and this one, why did Shim’on lose so many? Rashi speculated that all of the 24,000 who fell in chapter 25 were from that tribe, since it was their leader who was killed by Pin’has. Steve Collins theorizes that because one of their leaders, Zimri, had been executed by Pin’has (25:14), a large contingent left the camp and went off and formed a nation of their own. The historical record turns up the Milesians (also called by the more telling name Simonii) who conquered Ireland around 500 B.C.E. after living for a while in Spain. They had come from further east, and dated their migration by the number of years after Israel’s exodus from Egypt. Why would they do that if they had not been part of it? Also, their flag represented the last major event in Israel’s history prior to that—the serpent on a pole. (ch. 21) There are also drops in the sizes of Efrayim, Re’uven, Gad, Yehudah, and Nafthali, possibly explained by the loss of the 24,000 who died in the plague after the Kozbi affair. (This was a one-day plague, showing how highly contagious selfishness is, even if it falls short of actually being classified as sin itself.) Though the Levites were not to go to war, they were charged with guarding YHWH’s set-apart place. The Maccabees, who defended the faith from the Greeks’ attempt to taint it, came from the tribe of Levi. While the tribe of Shim'on was decimated, Levi's numbers increased by 1,000.
15. The sons of Gad ["troop"], by their clans:
for Tz'fon ["hidden treasure"], the clan of the Tz'fonites; for Khaggi ["festive"], the clan of the Khaggites; for Shuni ["at rest"], the clan of the Shunites;
16. for Ozni ["my ear"], the clan of the Oznites;
for Eri ["watchful, alert"], the clan of the Erites;
17. for Arod ["I will subdue, I shall roam"], the clan of the Arodites;
for Areli ["valiant one"], the clan of the Arelites.
18. These are the clans of the descendants of Gad those who were mustered from them, [which numbered] 40,500.
Gad is also reduced in number by 5,150 from the first census.
19. The sons of Y'hudah [were] Er and Onan, but Er and Onan died [while he was still] in the land of Kanaan.
20. So the sons of Y'hudah, according to their clans, were:
for Shelah ["a petition"], the clan of the Shelanites;
for Peretz ["breach"], the clan of the Partzites;
for Zerakh ["rising"], the clan of the Zarchites;
It was after Yehudah descended and lived alone that he visited an Adullamite—“the justice of the people”—and married his daughter, a Kanaanite. Her tendencies add to the way their sons turned out. Shelah, on the other hand, was born elsewhere, and his name tells us that he was requested from YHWH. After Yehudah “asked”, he was restored to his brothers, and later ended up with some sons (David and Yeshua) whom YHWH loved more than He hated Er and Onan--a reparation for these fruitless children in Kanaan.
21. and the sons of Peretz:
for Hetzron ["walled"], the clan of the Hetzronites;
for Khamul ["spared"], the clan of the Khamulites.
22. These are the families of Y'hudah; those who were mustered from them [numbered] 76,500.
23. The sons of Issachar, according to their clans: for Tola ["crimson worm"], the clan of the Tolaites; for Puwa ["splendid, dasher to pieces"], the clan of the Punites;
24. for Yashuv ["he will return"], the clan of the Yashuvites; for Shimron ["guardian"], the clan of the Shimronites.
25. These are the clans of Issachar; those who were mustered from them [numbered] 64,300.
26. The sons of Z'vulun, according to their clans:
for Sered ["fear"], the clan of the Sardites;
for Elon ["mighty oak"], the clan of the Elonites;
for Yakhle'El ["El waits in expectation"], the clan of the Yakhle'Elites.
27. These [have been] the clans of the Z'vulunites, according to those mustered for them: 60,500.
28. And the sons of Yosef, according to their clans: M’nasheh and Efrayim.
29. The sons of M’nasheh:
for Makhir ["highly valued"], the clan of the Makhirites, and Makhir fathered Gil'ad ["rocky region"];
for Gil'ad, the clan of the Gil'adites.
A different pattern is seen here, for Yosef gave a special honor to Makhir. Though Yaaqov had expressed a preference for Efrayim, Yosef still considered M’nasheh his firstborn, and honored him by naming Makhir’s sons as his own, thus forming a sort of third tribe of Yosef. (Gen. 50:23) Gil'ad: ancestor of Eliyahu the prophet and father of Yifthakh the judge. But because Makhir was a man of war (a term otherwise used in Scripture only of YHWH and David) and conquered the land of Gil’ad, half of the territory added to M’nasheh east of the Yarden was given to Makhir’s descendants. (Y’hoshua 13:29; 17:1) They were held in very high esteem. Moshe even called them the tribe of the sons of Yosef (36:1ff) when they were especially concerned that they might lose this land due to one family of their clan having no sons.
30. These are the sons of Gil'ad:
for Iy'ezer ["no help"], the clan of the Iy'ezrites;
for Kheleq ["portion"], the clan of the Khelqites;
31. and for Asriel ["I shall be prince of El"], the clan of the Asrielites;
from Sh'khem ["shoulder-blade"], the clan of the Sh'khemites;
32. for Sh'mida ["wise"], the clan of the Sh'midaites;
for Khefer ["a dug well"], the clan of the Kheferites.
33. Now Tzilafchad ["first born"], Khefer's son, had no sons, but [only] daughters, and the names of Tzilafchad's daughters were Machlah ["disease"], Noah ["moving"], Khoglah ["partridge"], Milkah ["queen"], and Tirtzah ["favorable"].
See chapter 36 for the solution to the fact that he had no sons.
34. These [have been] the clans of M’nasheh, and those who were mustered from them [numbered] 52,700.
35. These are the sons of Efrayim, by their clans:
for Shuthelah ["noise of breaking"], the clan of the Sh’talhites;
for Becher ["young camel"], the clan of the Bachrites;
for Tachan ["pitching camp"], the clan of the Tachanites.
36. And these are the sons of Shuthelah: for Eran ["watcher"], the clan of the Eranites.
37. These [have been] the clans of the sons of Efrayim according to those mustered from them: 32,500. These are the sons of Yosef according to their clans.
The tribe of Yosef is now the largest tribe, with 85,200. They are even larger than Yehudah.
38. The sons of Binyamin ["son of the right hand"], by their clans:
for Bela ["destruction"], the clan of the Belaites;
for Ashbel ["a man in El"], the clan of the Ashbelites;
for Akhiram ["my brother is exalted"], the clan of the Akhiramites;
39. for Shifufam ["serpent"], the family of the Shifufamites;
from Hufam ["coast-man"], the clan of the Hufamites.
40. And Bela's sons were Ard ["I shall subdue"] and Naaman ["pleasantness"]--the family of the Ardites, and for Naaman, the family of the Naamanites.
"For Ard" is notably missing from the pattern here. Such alterations in the text, if not to alert us to a purpose evident in the story itself, are often present so that the total of the numerical total of the words in the verse can come out to a number through which YHWH will reveal some truth on the deepest level.
41. These [have been] the sons of Binyamin according to their clans, and the ones mustered from among them [numbered] 64,400.
42. These are the sons of Dan by their clans:
for Shucham ["pit-digger"], the clans of the Shuchamites.
These are the clans of Dan according to their families.
43. All the families of the Shuchamites by those who were mustered from them, [numbering] 64,400.
Dan had this many descendants through just one son!
44. For the sons of Asher by their clans: for Yimnah, the clan of the Yimnaites;
for Yishwi ["he resembles me"], the clan of the Yishwites;
for Beri'ah, the clan of the Beri'ites.
45. For the sons of Beri'ah: for Khever ["comrade"], the clan of the Kheverites;
for Malkhiel ["my king is Elohim"], the clan of the Malkhielites.
46. Now Asher's daughter was named Serach ["my prince breathed"].
47. These [have been] the clans of the sons of Asher by those who were mustered from them, [numbering] 53,400.
48. The sons of Nafthali by their clans:
for Yakhtz'El ["El divides"], the clan of the Yachtz'Elites;
for Guni ["my defender"], the clan of the Gunites;
49. for Yetzer ["purposeful framework"], the clan of the Yetzerites;
for Shillem ["repaid"], the clan of the Shillemites.
50. These [have been] the clans of Nafthali by those who were mustered from them, [numbering] 45,400.
Nafthali, which had 53,400 in the first census, did not root all the Kanaanites out from their territory once they received it. But this was said of several other tribes. What was different about Nafthali is that they are said to have “dwelt among the Kanaanites”. (Judges 1:33) They put themselves under their influence. It may have been this tendency that reduced their numbers so greatly.
51. These [have been] the mustered ones of the descendants of Israel: 601,730.
Despite the loss of 250 people on one occasion, 14,700 on another, 24,000 another time, and those bitten by snakes who are not numbered, the whole congregation was only lessened by 1,820 people when the second generation was numbered. Moshe Harlan has noted, “What they lost in form of 1,820 men, they gained in the 1,820 occurances of [YHWH]'s name in Torah.”
52. Then YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,
53. "The Land shall be distributed to these as inherited property by the number of names.
Again, it is not the number of people, but the number of names. This may refer to arable land, because the actual territorial areas of the tribes do not correspond with the size of the tribes. However, some land was mountainous and some was wooded. Yosef’s name means “may He add”, and there are indeed more names listed under Yosef’s than any other tribe.
54. For [those that are] more numerous, you shall allot larger properties, and to [those that are] fewer, you shall allot smaller. Each will be given his inheritance according to the mouth of those he has mustered.
Mustered: literally, visited. They were thus called up individually, for each was to see himself as a warrior in Israel and to pay attention to the place he was put according to his strengths and propensities. This is not done from a distance, but soldier by soldier, by “lifting their heads” (v. 2) and looking into their eyes. They are also judged according to their mouth: What did they say when Moshe and El’azar came into their presence? And the Land is allotted according to the size of the tribes. Some of the tribes have had their numbers reduced greatly, and others had been enlarged. This, not the first census, is the time the count has a bearing on what the final division of the Land will be. Those who through the fruit they have borne have proven to have great leaders will be rewarded as a tribe with more land.
55. However, the Land shall be divided by lot. They shall inherit according to the names of the tribes [branches] of their ancestors.
56. By the mouth of the lot, possession thereof shall be distributed between the many and the few.
Mouth of the lot: i.e., it will decide by its "word".
57. Now these are the ones mustered from the Levites, by their clans:
for Gershon, the clan of the Gershonites;
for Q'hath, the clan of the Q'hathites;
for Merari, the clan of the Merarites.
58. These are the clans of the Levites:
the clan of the Livnites, the clan of the Hevronites, the clan of the Machlites, the clan of the Mushites, and the clan of the Q'hathites. And Q'hath fathered Amram,
59. and the name of Amram's wife was Yokheved, daughter of a Levite, who was born to Levi in Egypt. And she bore Aharon and Moshe to Amram, as well as their sister Miryam.
60. Then Nadav and Avihu, El'azar and Ithamar were born to Aharon,
61. but Nadav and Avihu died for bringing unauthorized fire near before [the face of] YHWH.
62. Now those mustered from them [were] 23,000, all males from a month old and upward, because they were not counted among the sons of Israel, since no inheritance was allotted to them among the sons of Israel.
Not counted among: They are a microcosm of how the nation of Israel at large relates to the whole world. Yet they were numbered from just after their birth, for they were born to do battle from the start by their unique calling to teach all of Israel to serve one another, for when we do, our enemies cannot stand.
63. These [were] the ones counted by Moshe and by El'azar the priest, who mustered the sons of Israel in the transitional lands of Moav, beside the Yarden, [opposite] Y’rikho.
64. Now among these there was not a man [left] of those numbered by Moshe and Aharon the priest, who had [previously] numbered the sons of Israel in the wilderness of Sinai,
65. because YHWH had told them they would certainly die in the desert, and not a man of them would be left except Kalev the son of Y'funeh and Y'hoshua the son of Nun.
Only two who were included in the first census were counted for the second time. Since everyone else who was more than 20 years old the first time had died, some of them could have lived no more than 60 years. While because of special circumstances there may be individual exceptions to the general rule that keeping the Torah will bring longer life (Ex. 20:12; 23:25-26; Deut. 6:1-3; Prov. 10:27), the fact that a whole generation did not get to “fulfill their days” shows just how bad their ungratefulness was in YHWH’s eyes.
CHAPTER 27
1. Then the daughters of Tz'lafkhad, the son of Chefer, the son of Gil'ad, the son of Makhir, the son of M’nasheh, belonging to the clans of M’nasheh, the son of Yosef, presented themselves. (Now these are his daughters' names: Makhlah, Noah, Khoglah, Milkah, and Tirtzah).
Note that Noah is a feminine name; Noakh (with the final consonant pronounced) is the actual masculine name commonly spelled “Noah”.
2. And they took their stand before Moshe and El'azar the priest, and before the rulers and all the congregation at the entry to the Tent of Appointment, saying,
This was the place where judgment is rendered, the equivalent of the gates of a city, into which or above which or beside which courts of justice would later be built. With millions of people in Israel, how did they get an audience there? They had to have gone through the leaders of 10, 50, 100, and 1,000 without any of them having felt he was able to make a ruling before it could be taken up to Moshe; Yithro had told him to only judge the most difficult cases, and apparently this was determined to be one of those, unless, since the lower judges would be from their own tribe, these judges had deferred to a higher court because they thought they could not be impartial in such a ruling. Each judge would probably, however, pass on to the next higher any insights into the issue that he had found.
3. "Our father died in the wilderness, but he was not among the group who gathered [to set themselves] against YHWH in the company of Qorakh; rather, he died in his own sin, having had no sons.
They acknowledged both the positive and negative aspects of their heritage; they did not leave out their father’s mistakes. But Qorakh had wanted authority YHWH had not given him, and led a national rebellion against the authority YHWH had put in place. They wanted to be sure their father was not confused with him! Tz’lafkhad’s sin was more likely that of accepting the evil report of the spies, and not taking the Land when they should have. The Talmud says that there were many who did not agree with their bad assessment, but they, too, were sentenced to die without entering the Land, because they did not speak up. But these women did speak up. They dared to push the limits when they saw that there was something conspicuously absent from the usual rules of inheritance. Considering that the children of others who had participated in this sin--and even Qorakh's descendants--were still blessed with an inheritance, how much more should their father? They had nothing to lose by asking.
4. "Why should the name of our father disappear from among his family just because he had no son? Please give us a possession among our father's brothers!"
These women were very sure of their heritage (where they came from), but were uncertain about their inheritance (where they were going). They did know the importance of their father's name living on. Since he had paid for his sin, they did not think they should have to pay for it as well. (See Y’hezq’el/Ezkl. 18.) But since there was no male child, his name would not be "remembered" (the root word for "male" in Hebrew). Having no brothers, they would in essence be left with nothing. They would, of course, inherit their husbands’ land, and they themselves would do well enough. So it was not their own well-being that they were concerned for, but their father’s honor, and YHWH had tied honor of parents to the Land which Israel would inherit. (Ex. 20:12) If their husbands should come from another tribe, some of the land of the tribe of M’nasheh would be transferred to another tribe. (See chapter 36.) They wanted to ensure that this would not take place. They wanted a place among this tribe. They did not passively bemoan the fact that their father had no heir, but were determined to do something about it. Because of lies about the Land, their father did not inherit it. And lies are again what has kept us from inheriting the Land. (Yirmeyahu 16:14ff ) The descendants of those who left the covenant of Israel are now repudiating our fathers’ defiling of the Land and recognizing that our fathers, too, left us nothing of substance to inherit. They had passed down no clue that we were connected to Israel in any physical sense, leaving the children with the assumption that they were nothing but Gentiles. The pearls of the New Yerushalayim’s gates (each bearing the name of one of the tribes of Israel, Rev. 21:12, 21) had indeed been cast before swine (cf. Mat. 7:6). But now the truth is coming to light that what we were told for so long is largely untrue. Our true brothers are those who recognize the Elohim of Israel as their own, and turn to His ways. YHWH has no covenant with anyone but Israel. (Zkh. 11:10) We do not have evidence as clear as these women had of their pedigree, nor an unbroken line of inheritance, but we do know that we have heard the voice of the shepherd who said he had come only for the lost sheep of the House of Israel. (Mat. 15:24, alluding to Yirmeyahu/Jer. 50:6) That can only mean one thing: Israel is our heritage too, and this calls for an inheritance in the Land in which our fathers would have remained if they had walked faithfully in the Torah. They did not, so we are not there, but we do again want to plead our case. This is our request, too. Until recently, the court would not even give us a hearing. But something we forgot about but YHWH remembered has again made us love His Land, His ways, and His appointed times. We again realize that we are part of the people of Israel who, along with (not instead of) Yehudah, YHWH has promised to bring back to that very Land. The precedent for our return rides on the outcome of this case. They did not whine or complain—an amazing thing for Israelites! They did not gossip about how unfair Moshe was, or go about whispering to try to win others to their point of view. They did not rebel against the men who held authority over them by going around them and deciding on their own. Rather, they approached them in the proper order. They did not say, “We prayed about it and we felt YHWH was telling us that you need to give us an inheritance, so we demand it!” They asked for a ruling that they knew would be bound by, even if it turned out to be unfavorable toward them. They did not do the wrong thing in an attempt to get the right thing done. Yeshua’s brother said, “You don’t have because you don’t ask.” (Yaaqov/James 4:2) After these women were in the right order, they asked, and for the right reason—so that their father’s name could continue in Israel. Most cannot distinguish between YHWH’s voice and what their own hearts want to hear, so we must pray that those in authority who make the rulings will be attuned to YHWH’s spirit.
5. So Moshe brought their case before YHWH,
This was a bold request, but Moshe could tell that they were not coming in rebellion. This request seemed different from the hostile ones that had preceded it, so he gave it the proper consideration. But Moshe had no precedent and felt his own wisdom was inadequate to know how this fit with the rest of Torah. So he brought it before the ultimate judge of what fits with the spirit of the Torah. This took great faith on the part of the women—to trust that the answer he came back with was really from YHWH. By chapter 36, the second part of the answer they received from Moshe, he does not ask YHWH for additional input, because he has already learned enough to be able to make a ruling. Because of that, Moshe’s answer is YHWH’s. Yeshua had something he called “Moshe”: it was the Torah that Moshe wrote. He asked it, “Is this a part of my heritage or not?” Where we recognize that we have lost our inheritance, we need to go back and ask Moshe (the Torah). We have easier access to it than anyone in history, even these women. We never have to pray about what YHWH has already revealed His opinion about. If we pray and the answer is different from what He told Moshe, all we are “hearing” is our own heart’s desires. But these women have not fallen into that trap.
6. and YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,
7. "[What] the daughters of Tz'lafkhad are saying [is] right: you shall indeed grant them hereditary property as an inheritance among their father's relatives, and you shall transfer their fathers’ inheritance to them.
YHWH considered it legitimate. Who would have thought women so long ago could have property rights? It has taken the rest of the world millennia to catch up! But it was still among their relatives: The responsibility to see that this is implemented goes back to their father’s brothers—the proper order again. Just because they received a ruling from higher up does not mean they are exempt from being under the normal authorities. What is our inheritance? A halo, harp, and wings, and a place to sit on a cloud? No, it is a very real Land, and being part of a people in YHWH’s presence. The term for “property” here comes from a root word meaning “to seize” or “grasp”, for indeed, though YHWH had designated it for them, Israel had to fight to take it from those who had forfeited their right to it but still inhabited it. In the right season, the pearls have to be taken back from the swine, and the holy things from the dogs, for they are not to secure anyone’s agenda but YHWH’s. In Hizqiyahu’s day, when he returned Israel to its heritage of YHWH’s feasts, the immediate result was that they broke down the idols that were in the Land. (2 Chron. 31:1) Only then does it say they were able to return to their possessions. YHWH gives us what we are willing to reach for. But, like Yeshua, we need to be sure we do not grab for the wrong things. (See note on Philippians 2:6.)
8. "And you shall tell the descendants of Israel, ‘If a man dies and has no son, then you shall transfer his inheritance to his daughter.
This case set a legal precedent in Israel. It “adds” to the Torah, expanding on the “how to” of what had been given at Sinai. The Torah does not change, but it is meant to be fluid like water, which rabbis have often forgotten; that is why many rulings that were appropriate for 14th-century Poland are still followed in New York today. The Torah was frozen rather than allowed to flow. It remains water, but water can and often must take a variety of paths toward its goal. (Gibor) But when these women pushed the limits, the ruling placed new restrictions on any women in Israel who had no brothers. They could no longer marry outside their tribe. But unlike those whose complaint was not legitimate, they knew when to stop asking. They wisely accepted this as a fair tradeoff and did not keep trying to push the limits further.
9. "‘And if he has no daughter, you shall give his inheritance to his brothers.
10. "‘And if he has no brothers, you shall give his inheritance to his father's brothers.
Chapter 36 clarifies further that if these brotherless women had married into other tribes, the inheritance would be dissipated, and that would go against this spirit. (This may apply to those from the returning northern tribes of Israel who consider converting to Judaism—that is, joining the tribe of Yehudah. Who, then, would do the job of the tribes that they are actually from?) While other women are free to marry into other tribes, women with no brothers must not. Interestingly, this tribe of M’nashe, which was so careful about maintaining its inheritance, was rewarded by being given the largest part of Israel. Y’hezq’el tells us that the Land will again be divided by tribes. Tribal identity is much downplayed today and “tribalism” is shunned at all costs in developing countries. But the New Yerushalayim will have twelve gates, each named for one of the tribes of Israel. Everyone who wishes to enter will need to enter through one of them.
11. "‘And if his father has no brothers, you shall pass his inheritance to his closest relative, from within his clan, and he shall take possession of it; and this shall be a prescribed [pattern] for deciding a case [justly], as YHWH has commanded Moshe.'"
If the women had had a brother, he would have received the inheritance, and would have been responsible to ensure his sisters’ well-being. The eldest son receives a double portion, not to make him wealthier than the rest, but so that he has the wherewithal to see to it that the widows, orphans, and any unmarried sisters he has are properly cared for. YHWH carries the pattern over to anyone in Israel in the same situation with this official "flowchart" by which the recipients of an inheritance in question are eliminated and narrowed down, so the Land remains in the same tribe perpetually, even when it reverts to its original owners’ family every 50 years. (Lev. 25:10)
12. Then YHWH told Moshe, "Climb up to the Mountain[s] of the Avarim and gaze upon the Land which I have given to the descendants of Israel.
“Avarim” means the “places that are across, on the other side”. Though they have not yet crossed, these hills are already named for the fact that they are still on the outside of the Land, even if they are just opposite them and are afforded a sight of the targeted soil. At least he can console himself with the fact that he has seen with his own eyes what YHWH has in store for His people. Gaze upon: or "pay close attention to". This can apply to us today as well, because the Land itself has much to teach us.
13. "Then when you have viewed it, you too shall be gathered to your people just as your brother Aharon was gathered,
14. "because in the Desert of Tzin when the congregation provoked you by the waters, you [both] rebelled against My mouth [command] to set Me apart before their eyes." (They were at the Waters of Contention in Qadesh ["holiness"] in the Desert of Tzin ["flatness"].)
The account of the daughters of Tz’lafkhad shows us we need to perpetuate some distinctions that allows some things to be kept holy. But Moshe was not allowed to partake of the inheritance of the Land, because he did not keep YHWH’s reputation holy: He did not allow YHWH to show that He could do the impossible.
15. So Moshe told YHWH,
16. "Let YHWH, the judge of the spirits belonging to all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation
Judge: literally, elohim. (Compare Yirm. 17:10; Luk. 12:5) He was searching the hearts of all men to find an appropriate shepherd to succeed Moshe. (v. 17) It did not matter whether someone looked to men like he could handle the job, as was later the case with King Sha’ul. (1 Shmuel 9:2) Only YHWH knew what was truly best for Israel. (1 Shmuel 16:7) He has to be the one to choose the leader.
17. "who will go out before them and go in before them, and who can lead them out and bring them in, so that the Congregation of YHWH may not be like sheep who have no shepherd."
Moshe had tried to persuade YHWH to relent concerning this seemingly-disproportionate punishment for merely striking the rock instead of speaking to it. (Deut. 3:23-26) But he was not going to waste his powers of persuasion with YHWH for something that would merely benefit himself. Like a tree that “shows its true colors” when it is about to “die” for the winter, when he is about to expend the last of his merit, Moshe musters every ounce of authority that he has left on the protection of the “sheep” he has shepherded, as they prepare to enter a Land full of enemies. He turns all the weight of his prayer toward what is most on his mind--the great need of the people for a worthy leader. If he sees that they are in the right hands, he can die in peace. (Gibor) Sheep without a shepherd: After this did come to be the nation's plight (1 Kings 22:17ff; Y'chezq'el 34:5ff), Yeshua picked up on this theme (Mark. 6:34; Mat. 9:36) and had compassion on the multitudes, even though he really didn’t want to be bothered by fickle crowds who could celebrate him as king one moment and be persuaded to repudiate him a few days later. (Mark 6:34) These are YHWH’s people, no matter how short-sighted and tunnel-visioned they might be.
18. So YHWH told Moshe, "[You] yourself select Y'hoshua the son of Nun, a man in whom the spirit [dwells], and lean your hand upon him,
Spirit: the spirit of shepherding the nation. He must be one who would lead his people to battle, not just send them while he stayed behind in safety. Y’hoshua had constantly been at Moshe’s side, and had no share in the golden calf. He remained jealous for Moshe’s reputation, and gave a favorable report about the Land. He was faithful to the one YHWH had set over him. The shepherd establishes the next place for the sheep to settle. Lean your hand: a symbol of conferring authority and expressing identification of your cause with his. Moshe in this sense made Y’hoshua his “son”. The Torah, as typified by Moshe, brought us out of Egypt, got us past our rebellion and to the point of readiness to enter the Promised Land. (Gal. 3:24) But the Torah cannot take us all the way home. That job is left to another named Y’hoshua; we cannot go in unless we are also following him. (Yochanan 1:14)
19. "and present him before El'azar the priest and before the whole congregation, and put him in charge before their eyes,
This would give him legitimacy at every level, in public, and leave no question who was in charge, so no one could dispute his authority.
20. "Thus you shall confer upon him [some] of your honor, so that the whole congregation may listen to [and obey] him.
At the end of the day, despite all their wavering, the people trust him, so YHWH tells him to make sure they know that Y’hoshua has his whole-hearted endorsement. Yet Y’hoshua was only given a portion of Moshe’s authority. He did not hear directly from YHWH like Moshe had; he had to go to the priest for a word from YHWH, which, though a bit harder for Y’hoshua personally, would be a step closer to the prominence that YHWH envisioned for the priests (even over kings), which was supposed to be the norm once the transition into the Land and the conquering of the Kanaanites was over. Honor: splendor, grandeur, dignity, majesty, or authority—something imposing in appearance. The term is usually used in relation to clothing (Psalm 45, Zech. 6:13) So it may have involved a special ceremony in which he placed some of his own clothing on Y’hoshua, just as Aharon had done with Pin’has, and as Eliyahu would later pass his mantle on to Elisha.
21. "Then he shall present himself before El'azar the priest, who shall consult [YHWH] for him by means of the decision of the Urim [lights]. At his word, they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in, and all the descendants of Israel with him--that is, the assembly."
Go out and come in: idioms for going to war. Though Moshe was an awesome shepherd, he was not the warrior Israel now needed. The Torah prepares us for the battles, but does not fight them for us. Urim: a lot or some other means of direct, specific revelation of YHWH's will using the components of Aharon's breastplate or its accessories. The recorded incidents of their use indeed related to whether—or how—Israel should go to war. Elsewhere "Urim" is usually mentioned in conjunction with the Thummim ("perfections"), but here only Urim are mentioned overtly. They are the part that is seen. Yeshua too said He could only do what He saw the Father doing. (Yochanan 5:19; compare 5:30.)
22. So Moshe did as YHWH commanded him: he selected Y'hoshua and presented him before El'azar the priest, and before the whole congregation,
23. leaned hands on him, and put him in charge, as YHWH had commanded by the hand of Moshe.
His final reward is that he gets to see this: a people for whom he had fallen on his face many times, though they were stiff-necked and rebellious, are being left in capable, well-trained hands.
CHAPTER 28
1. Then YHWH spoke to Moshe, saying,
2. "Give an order to the descendants of Israel, and tell them, ‘My drawing-near [offering]--My bread for My [offering made by] fire, My soothing aroma--you must be careful to bring near to Me in its appointed season.'
Moav led Israel astray by inviting them to a meal dedicated to their elohim. So YHWH brings the remedy for further temptation by telling Israel to be sure they are at His table at every mealtime. This time Moshe is told to not just speak to Israel, but to command them—i.e., make sure they carry it out. This is of higher-than-usual importance. The root word for “order” here is “army”; the Commander is speaking. We can only win our battles if YHWH goes before us. We will not see Him physically fighting, but He prepares the victory. If we want to ensure that He is among us, we must pay special attention to the particular commands that follow. Be careful: or guard, from a word meaning “build a hedge around or enclose with a fence”. He wants us to come close to Him, building a wall that defines a set-apart place which Semitic languages call a harem, and indeed this whole passage is full of wedding terminology, which is how the word is familiar even to those who do not speak Hebrew or Arabic. The “bread” of a community (cf. 1 Cor. 10:17) coming together at the appointments He has set (rather than ones we have set ourselves) is what builds this wall that serves the same purpose as a wedding ring in the modern world—to keep other would-be lovers away from His bride. Yeshayahu 55:6 tells us to “seek YHWH while He may be found; call on Him while He is near.” This implies that there are times He is less available. The dates listed below are those He has set on which to woo His bride; indeed, the root from which the Hebrew word for “appointed season” is derived can mean “to betrothe” as well. But the immediate context refers to more than just the festivals. Preparation for the festivals is not done at the time for the festivals, any more than a soldier would be sent to war before he had basic training. Preparing to keep an army fed and housed is a full-time job that must be under way well before the battles. Being careful means setting things in place in advance to make sure we can fully connect with His appointed days when they arrive—to get any obstacles out of the way to be sure that we can draw near at the same time He does. We cannot expect Him to be pleased if we do not think about how to build a sukkah until the last minute, when all we can get are shoddy materials. One traditional way to build a wall around Yom Kippur, for example, has been to spend the 40 days prior to it in a greater degree of self-examination than usual. We must guard these rituals, for this is where we learn how to be intimate with YHWH. Connecting with the gathering itself even helps ensure that He will be among us. Of course, if the wall is built so high that we cannot see what is behind it, that defeats the purpose as well. If we know we are on the right terms with Him, there should be no anxiety in the battle; if He is on our side, how can we but overcome? Don’t ask Him to send no battles, for how else could we improve our skills so we can accomplish greater things? The first step in building the hedge is actually to be done every day:
3. "And tell them, ‘This is the fire offering with which you shall draw near to YHWH: two healthy year-old lambs [without blemish] per day, as an ascending [offering] perpetually.
Now that Pin’has has proven that he is the kind of priest who can be trusted, the daily offering is first established. Y’shua told us to pray, “Give us this day our daily bread”, but if we only ask for ours, we are no more than beggars. Here YHWH is asking us to bring Him His daily bread! When Yeshua included the line about “forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors”, it is almost as if he is hinting that we should fill in the blank he left in the prayer: “Give us this day our daily bread, as we bring You Your daily bread.” This is why the righteous never need to beg for bread: YHWH feeds Pin’has because he feeds YHWH. As we draw near to Him, He will draw near to us. Ascending: sometimes called a "whole burnt offering", since it all “goes up” in smoke, but literally it is a "means of ascending", for His ways are higher than ours. It expresses the fact that one is being raised up out of a lower state or condition and empowered to enter YHWH's presence again. That this is a daily offering teaches us that there should never be a day in which we do not ascend closer to YHWH. The Temple later built in Yerushalayim vividly reflected this ascent in its architecture. Finding two perfect lambs each day requires a large pool to draw from, so many sheep had to be raised close to the Temple. But how can we offer two perfect lambs without an altar? As with everything else, we must take the command as far as we possibly can. We can do two Kingdom-related things perfectly each day, and that can really change us and propel the Kingdom toward us more quickly. It might be prayer; there is much in the Scripture to teach us how to be perfect in it. Or study—like a lover reading a letter from a soldier overseas over and over to get just one more hint of what he was feeling when he wrote.
4. "‘You shall offer one of the lambs in the morning, and the second you shall offer between the evening [oblation]s,
The day begins at evening, but the first offering is not until the morning, because there would be no priest on duty to witness the offerings after dark. “Between the evenings” (literally, "between the transitional [time]s") means between the first perceptible dimming of daylight and the time when the last bit of light is still visible mingled with the darkness. Why one lamb in the morning and one in the evening? Rashi says, “They should be slaughtered opposite the sun …the continual sacrifice of the morning to the west, and the one of the afternoon to the east of the rings [set in the floor of the Temple courtyard].” This way they would not even appear to be committing the sin of sun-worship. But the timing also teaches that our duty is not fulfilled by the middle of the day; we must give the Kingdom our attention both early and late.
5. "‘with a tenth of an eyfah of fine flour as a grain offering, commingled with a quarter of a hin of pure oil [from the first] crushing,
One tenth of an eyfah is an omer, which represents a single person, for it was valued at half a sheqel, the price for the redemption of one person, especially a warrior. (Ex. 30:13) Why does it not just say an omer, then? Because an eyfah represents a whole congregation; the emphasis is that we are each only part of the whole. You are not His bride, and I am not, but when all of are together in unity, we are. As we draw near, we need to focus on the whole congregation. But this also teaches that we are to offer ourselves along with this offering, rather than just dropping off the food for the priest and leaving. We stay and dine with him, talking with him and building a relationship. (Prager/Gibor) Pure oil represents the fact that the fine flour that makes up the loaf (1 Cor. 10:17) must be held together by the right spirit, since it is the first crushing (in an olive press), symbolizing what is given willingly when there is just a hint that YHWH wants something, not when He has had to remind us over and over. The later crushing required considerable pressure to force the oil out, and it is not as clear, having some of the pulp mixed in.
6. "‘as an ascending to carry into perpetuity what was done at Mount Sinai as a soothing aroma--an offering made by fire to YHWH--
What was done at Mt. Sinai: There, Moshe told us to purify ourselves in advance to receive the Torah. This stance of readiness and departing from selfish motives is to be carried on into every day so we can continue to have open ears to receive His orders. We did not ascend Sinai when He wanted us to, but if we bring our perfect offering twice a day, it will be as if we had all ascended the mountain with Moshe after all.
7. "‘together with its libation [offering]: a quarter of a hin for the one lamb: you shall pour out a libation of intensely-fermented beverage to YHWH in the sanctuary.
If wine is a symbol of joy, this beverage is a picture of jubilance over the fact that YHWH is our husband and that He wants us close to Him. Rabbinic writings therefore say that freshly-squeezed juice is therefore not acceptable for this offering; it must be prepared well in advance.
8. "‘Then you shall offer the other lamb between the evening [oblation]s in the same way [you did] for the grain offering in the morning, and its libations likewise. You shall prepare it as a fire offering, a satisfying aroma unto YHWH.
We cannot do this literally, not so much because there is no Tabernacle, because offerings were made elsewhere even after the Tabernacle was built, but because we are not yet gathered as a people as we were at Sinai. But when there is again a corporate Israel, we will return to the physical practice. (See Y’hezq’el/Ezk. 40-46.) Though it is only a picture of the heart of the matter, the heart is only expressed through concrete actions which He has prescribed. (Eph. 2:10) The blood of bulls and goats never took away sin. It is done for the cleansing of our conscience. So how do we begin to obey these commands meanwhile? By at the very least, giving thanks to YHWH. Male animals are offered, and the Hebrew word for “male” means to remember or recount. So remember His mercy as you start the day, and end the day by recounting what He has done for you that day.
9. "‘Now on the Sabbath day, two perfect lambs a year old, and two-tenths [of an eyfah] of fine flour, a grain offering mixed with oil, along with its drink offering--
Now we move to the next step in the betrothal process, the first of the special appointments YHWH has with Israel. YHWH gave us a double portion on the day before the Sabbath, so we return a double portion of lambs to Him on the Sabbath. He made the load lighter, because on this day we gather with more of Israel and it is easier to serve one another.
10. "‘the ascending offering of a Sabbath on its [proper] Sabbath, in addition to the ascending offering [offered] daily and its drink offering.
Four lambs were offered on the Sabbath. While everything else shut down, the sanctuary’s courts were actually a busier place on the Sabbath. Making His dwelling-place function properly should be our focus on the Sabbath too. As the double portion of manna was provided before the Sabbath, by tradition (and experience bears this out) we are given an additional soul—one with greater capacity to receive spiritual truth—on the Sabbath. We need to seek out the extra provision that we are to bring to the congregation in addition to giving ourselves completely. Bring all that you are and your increase.
11. "‘And at the heads of your months, you shall present an ascending offering to YHWH: two bulls, sons of the herd, one ram, and year-old lambs--seven perfect ones,
There are more offerings brought at the new moon, for it is considered more important than the weekly Sabbaths, though work is not forbidden thereon, because this is what tells us when the other festivals are. Each month gives us the open door for renewal (the meaning of “month” in Hebrew), and the attitude in which we bring the offerings sets the tone for where He is going to take us and what He will emphasize in that month. It fills us with a sense of expectancy. The root word for “head” means “shaking”, like an earthquake that removes everything else from our lives so the rebuilding can begin. There is an atmosphere of adventure, because we do not know exactly which day this appointment will fall until the moon is actually sighted in Israel. So as with those who waited for the cloud to move in the wilderness, we must be ready and watchful.
12. "‘Along with three-tenths [of an eyfah] of fine flour, a grain offering mixed with oil for each bull, two-tenths [of an eyfah] of fine flour as a grain offering mixed with oil for the one ram,
The ram is also more valuable than a lamb, but the bull is most valuable, so the other offerings that accompany each also increase in number.
13. "‘and a tenth [of an eyfah] of fine flour mixed with oil as a food offering for each lamb--an ascending [offering], a satisfying aroma, a fire offering to YHWH.
The Hebrew word for "fire offering" is spelled exactly like the word for "woman" or "wife", only with different vowel pointings (which were not in the original text). Thus these elements together form a "bride for YHWH” and thus a satisfying aroma--completeness or satisfaction, a repair of the damage begun by Adam's disobedience--another step in the reconstitution of the paradise that was lost. When He smells the aroma of His people in unity and wanting to draw near to Him, it is like His wife cooking dinner, and He can rest in this, as He did at the first Sabbath. What other nation can say of their elohim that He wants to “kick back” and relax with us? So we can also read verse 2 as, “Be ever so careful to feed My bride at the right time—not too early and not too late! And in the right quantities.” (Gibor) The phrase there, “My bread” is explained more precisely in Lev. 3:16, which specifies that the “food of the bride” is the fat portions that the priest burns on the altar. I.e., give her (His corporate people) the best.
14. "‘And their libations shall be half a hin of wine per bull, a third of a hin per ram, and a quarter of a hin per lamb. This shall be the ascending [offering] month by month for [all] the months of the year.
The libations for the new moon (and the three pilgrim festivals, as seen below), when carried out to the least common denominator, add up to 13/12 of a hin—a cup running over, and enough for all the tribes of Israel, which are usually described as twelve, but with Yosef’s double portion, there are actually 13. These are a lot of offerings, which shows how important the New Moon is to YHWH. If we want Him to go with us into battle, we ought to embrace this holy day as well.
15. "‘And one kid of the goats [shall serve] as a sin offering to YHWH. It shall be prepared in addition to the everyday ascending offering and its libation.
This goat is the same type offered at Yom Kippur (se’ir), showing that there is a miniature Yom haKippurim at every new moon, for we should be renewed like the moon. Yom Kippur is a day that magnifies repentance, but this does not means we should not repent at other times, and the day of the visible renewal is the perfect time to renew our commitment to YHWH. Se’ir also reminds us of Esau, for that is the name of the mountains allotted to him. As Yaaqov’s twin, he is the picture of our “left side”—our evil inclination. Though by tradition the “scapegoat” was thrown off a cliff to make sure it did not come back, the actual command only says to send it out into the wilderness—“the place of the word” in Hebrew. So as we mature to the point where our evil inclination is no longer such a temptation to us, we need to learn more and more how to bring it into subjection for YHWH’s use, for we need both hands. We need perfect balance, so that even our selfish propensities and the people who would be a bad influence on us can also be harnessed for the benefit of the Kingdom. Sin offerings have no libations, because wine is a symbol of joy, and we do not take delight in our errors.
16. "‘Now on the fourteenth day of the first month is YHWH's Passover,
The offering of the lamb begins as the light of the fourteenth is waning, for if it were on the evening as the fourteenth begins, the day it overlapped with would be the thirteenth, not the fourteenth, and unleavened bread would have to be eaten for eight days, contradicting verse 17.
17. "‘and on the fifteenth day of this month is a festival gathering; unleavened bread shall be eaten [for] seven days.
The fifteenth commences as the Passover meal is still in progress, so no leavened bread is eaten at the Passover seder either. Passover is the slaughter and eating of the lamb itself, not the whole feast as in common parlance, though it is its focal point. Elsewhere (Ex. 12:15-19 et al) we are told not to eat any leaven during this week, but this is not even mentioned here; the only emphasis here is on the positive command to eat unleavened bread (a picture of unity without corruption) on each of the seven days. This season gives us practice in partaking of one another in undefiled unity rather than of what the outside world offers us.
18. "‘On the first day [there] shall be a holy calling-together; you shall do no servile labor.
Holy calling-together: thus it cannot be celebrated properly alone. Hirsch renders it "an invitation to the Sanctuary". Servile labor: any work representing an employer. The only way to ensure that we are not working for direct profit to self is to serve one another in ways for which we will not be paid on the earthly plane. As we gather for the convocation, we will find out the specifics of how our service is needed on each particular occasion.
19. "And you shall bring near an ascending offering of fire for YHWH--two young bulls, one ram, and seven year-old lambs--they shall be perfect ones for you--
Again, perfection is important to YHWH, especially as pictures of the perfect human being who would be called “Elohim’s lamb”. These are the same offerings as on the new moon, showing equivalence on some level. There should be an element of Passover—the release from our bonds—felt in every new moon celebration as well.
20. "‘along with their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil. You shall prepare three tenths [of an eyfah] per bull, and two tenths per ram.
21. "‘Prepare one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,
22. "‘as well as one goat, a sin [offering] to effect a covering over you;
23. "‘you shall prepare these in addition to the ascending offering of the morning--the daily ascending [offering].
24. "‘This is how you must prepare bread for a fire offering every day for seven days--a satisfying aroma to YHWH. It must be prepared in addition to the [regular] everyday ascending offering and its libation.
Bread is a picture of community (1 Cor. 10:17), so this is the way community is forged. There is a different spirit at work during these set-apart days, and even during the “ordinary” days in the middle of the festivals, we should be concentrating on practicing how to be unified.
25. "‘And on the seventh day, you shall have a holy calling-together; you must do no servile labor.
But in the Temple, the offering is brought all seven days. On these days, we should still be offering more of ourselves to Kingdom purposes than on ordinary work days.
26. "‘Now on the day of the firstfruits, when you bring near a renewed grain offering to YHWH in your Feast of Shavuoth [weeks], you shall have a holy calling-together; you shall do no servile labor.
Firstfruits: in this case, of the wheat harvest, because the firstfruits of the barley are brought while it is still the feast of unleavened bread. It renews the cycle of grain offerings, because this is fresh grain--a great cause for rejoicing! YHWH has brought a harvest! We will not starve! He wants us to stop our regular work so we can give adequate attention to the great significance of the fact that He is the one who has ensured this, not ultimately any other cause. He wants there to be nothing to distract us from sharing the joy with one another. It therefore deserves a whole day’s focus, which He aims to guarantee by prohibiting other work--and a portion is given back to Him out of gratitude so there is no shame involved in our partaking of His bounty.
27. "‘And you shall offer an ascending of a satisfying aroma to YHWH: two bulls, sons of the herd, one ram, seven year-old lambs,
28. "‘and their [corresponding] grain offering: three tenths [of an eyfah] per bull, two tenths per ram,
29. "‘one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,
30. "‘one he-goat of the kids to make a covering over yourselves.
A covering: another way of describing the sin offering. It is a miniature Yom Kippur.
31. "‘You shall bring them near in addition to the [regular] daily ascending offering, its grain offering, and its libations; they shall be unimpaired for you.
In addition: Even in the midst of the special activities for the feasts, we cannot forget to bring the everyday offering. While we should offer a perfectly attentive ear on the Day of the Awakening Blast, we still need to bring the “ordinary” perfection as well. Something is appointed for every day, not just the big festival days. Ask yourself what you can present to Him today. Unimpaired for you: without blemish insofar as we can tell.
CHAPTER 29
1. "‘In the seventh month also you shall have a holy calling-together on the first of the month; you must do no servile labor. It is to be a day of trumpet-blasts for you.
On the surface, this passage does not tell us the purpose of the trumpet-blasts, but the term (t’ruah) encompasses everything from a shout of joy to an alarm—the signal to wake up. Yoel 3:9 links it to mighty men preparing for war. Psalm 57:7-12 says the reason to wake up is to praise and honor YHWH. Yeshayahu/Isaiah 52 links the call to awaken with Tzion finally being rid of uncleanness and freed from captivity. Seventh: symbolic of completion, but the cardinal term in Hebrew also signifies “an oath”. Since this day begins a time of intense repentance, it is a time to let Scripture show us where we have been asleep and how to shake off the slumber and storm the strongholds with the promise to do better, then how to actually carry it out. “Seventh month” can thus also be read as “a renewal of an oath”. Thus this another purpose of the day of trumpet-blasts. This sounds sweet and spiritual, but Hebraic perspective requires that we look for specifics: Which oath is to be renewed on this day? The promise, upon hearing the commandments of YHWH, to listen to them and carry them out (Deut. 5:24-27) and the oath to obey and then to listen (Ex. 24:7)—so the complete cycle of response to which our ancestors obligated us is to listen, to do, and to listen again to what we learn from the doing—for His commands are not just hoops to jump through but handles He gives us on how to know Him better and have a more complete relationship with Him and one another. (Gibor) And “[day] one of the month” can also literally read “united for renewal”. Seven also symbolizes completeness, so we could read “a complete renewal”. So it is as if we were going back to Mt. Sinai, yet this time it is not only the mediator who goes up to listen to YHWH, but the whole congregation in unity, so we cannot use the excuse that it was mediated through one man’s understanding. It is a reminder of the trumpet-blast at Sinai which signaled the proper time to draw near. (Ex. 19:11-13) Once we saw that Moshe had not been consumed, we were more willing to do so. But that time YHWH provided the sound of the trumpet; this time we are to furnish the sound in order to renew our oath. Looking forward, the trumpet-blast is a foreshadowing of the resurrection of the dead (Yeshayahu 26:19) The renewal will not be truly complete until Israelites from every age are reunited. But Messiah already became the “firstfruits of the dead” on the Feast of Firstfruits. (1 Cor. 15:23) Y’shua fulfilled each of the first series of festivals in the earlier part of the year on their very day. So maybe his return will be on a Yom T’ruah. Since it is on the new moon, it is on the only festival for which “no one knows the hour or the day” until the new moon is actually sighted. But the term for “calling-together” here also means “a rehearsal”. With each year it draws nearer, and the more we focus on freeing ourselves from the aspects of death (selfishness, works of darkness, etc.) by laying self down for one another, the sooner we will be ready, and thus the sooner Yeshua can return (2 Kefa/Peter 3:12).
2. "And you shall prepare an ascending of a satisfying aroma to YHWH: one young bull, one ram, seven year-old lambs--perfect ones--
At Sinai, YHWH took responsibility for us, but this time we are not to come empty-handed. Like the man who found strength to carry a heavy load to the top of a mountain when he found out it was diamonds and that he would be paid with some of them after he finished his task, we need to recognize that these commands only seem burdensome to us if we do not really believe that we will be rewarded with the Kingdom at the end. When He gave us a choice of what to bring, we ruined the picture and chose self, so here YHWH tells us what to bring if we want to draw near. He has drawn near to us; now it is our turn. Like a healthy heart, our souls are nourished by both receiving and giving. He has pumped so much into us; we must give as freely as we receive, and then we will receive it back full of fresh oxygen. But a heart that refuses to receive will also dry up and die. We must know how to receive—with the recognition that we will also give. We cannot receive only what suits us, for then we deny an outlet to those who have something meaningful to give. In ancient Israel, even those who were blind or lame and could not work were given a designated place to stand and beg so that those who need to give will be able to find someone in need, for Israel is a people that needs to give, and therefore it is a blessing to have someone to give to. What does He want from us? A bull is representative of our security. If one has a bull he can ride it, use it to plow his field or increase his herd, then he can eat of it for a long time. We need to draw near with nothing less than our best, whether it be possessions, abilities, attitudes, time, or attention. He gave us 365 days per year; can we not give some of them back to Him? Whatever we treasure, we need to be willing to offer to YHWH. Year-old: having been through a full cycle of maturity and passed through each of His festival appointments once. Rams and sheep symbolize the other things we can give that we may not be the best at. The bull is the most expensive, but we are not to stop with bringing our best; we must offer the rest of our substance to YHWH as well. (Mat. 23:23-27) And soon we will see that no one can outgive YHWH.
3. "And their [corresponding] grain offering: fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths [of an eyfah] for the bull, two tenths per ram,
Grain offering: Heb., minkhah, which means gift, but with the specific connotation of bread, a picture of community, and our giving must be in this context. The Kingdom will be better served if you do your giving to the worthy within Israel rather than to something general, in which you do not know who will benefit.
4. "‘one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,
The total is twelve-tenths of an eyfah of flour, symbolizing the twelve tribes in community.
5. "‘one he-goat of the kids, a sin-offering to effect a covering over you,
When all of Israel is joined together, the sin of one affects everyone, so in repenting we bring healing to the whole nation.
6. "‘in addition to the ascending offering of the [new] moon, its grain offering, the daily ascending offering with its grain offering [in turn], and the libations of them [both], as is proper for each to [be] a satisfying aroma to YHWH, a fire offering for YHWH.
Yom T’ruah will always be on a new moon, so the offerings for three different occasions are all brought on this day. Again, we never diminish the regular offerings or even the regular new moon offerings when another occasion is added on the same day. We always bring additional offerings. We can’t use the everyday required offerings to substitute for special ones when special ones are required. The greater ones do not cancel or include the lesser, just as a man who takes a second wife cannot diminish the rights of the first (Ex. 21:10). These things are for the sake of providing YHWH with a wife—but we can’t do less for His first “wife” if we want to offer Him a second, so to speak! We cannot cheat somewhere else in order to appear more generous than we are really capable of being. (Mark 7:9-13) This is a big part of the “leaven” that we consider around the time of Pesakh. This forces us to ask: Can we count it as an offering when it is something we would have done anyway? Ideally, everything beyond the bare necessities—and those too, really—should be done for the Kingdom, so sometimes it is hard to distinguish. But using our relationship with YHWH for the sake of improving men’s opinions of us is really a form of prostitution—taking something holy and using it for another purpose that just benefits us. What if we find that we do have questionable motives? Should we therefore stop? No; we are Israel. We have to be true to who we are, and that means doing righteous deeds, and often they can’t help but be noticed. Zaloshinsky therefore writes, “Look into yourself to see from whom you expect reward. If from the Almighty, the deed is perfect; if from others, it is not. When you do something in public, determine whether you would do it closeted in private in the same manner that you are doing it in public. If the answer is yes, then your deed is perfect.” (The Ways of the Tzaddikim, p. 47) Y’shua says, precisely to those who did do their deeds to be noticed, “You pay tithe of mint and dill and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these you ought to have done, and not to leave the other undone.” (Mat. 23:23) In other words, we need to do both, not one or the other. We have to both do the right things and do them for the right reason. Only that is righteousness. If we can’t seem to keep up with all the requirements, we have to ask ourselves whether some of the things we think are obligatory have come from other sources than the Torah. Have we somewhere added to the words which YHWH commanded, so that we are unable to keep the others? (Deut. 4:2) He makes it possible to do all that we really need to do—most notably by helping one another. Together we can get the whole job done. If everyone did his part, the priests were able to afford all of the added offerings without it being a heavy burden. There is a yoke, but it’s meant to be easy—that is, fit us well so it work to our advantage rather than choking us and be light enough when shared.
7. "‘And on the tenth of the seventh month, you shall have a holy calling-together; you shall humble yourselves and you shall do no work,
No work: that is, representative work for another in a way that profits us—the same rule as for the Sabbath. Humble yourselves: traditionally "afflict your souls", a valid translation, taken for millennia to mean a complete fast. (Yeshayahu 58:3ff) It can just as properly be translated "suppress your appetites", which fasting does indeed do, or “be busy [assessing] what you desire” It is one day to focus inwardly, because the soul-searching for the purpose of repentance can bring about a clear conscience and changes in lifestyle that benefit all of Israel. Thus we are actually still serving one another, even while turning inward. It is called a Day of Coverings in Lev. 23:27-28. The Hebrew word for fasting comes from a word that means “to cover one’s mouth”—not just to keep food from entering, but to guard against letting corrupt words against our brothers (or even just too many words) come out. Yeshayahu 58 shows rather pointedly that the fast is not an end in itself; the intended result is that we set things straight so that the rest of the time, the hungry are fed. This time it does not say “no work of service” as in verse 1, but only “no work”, because it is a time only to serve one another.
8. "‘and bring near an ascending for YHWH--a satisfying aroma: one bull (a son of the herd), one ram, seven year-old lambs--they shall be healings for you--
Healings: the same term as “perfect ones” in v. 2 and 28:31—i.e., things to make you whole, complete, and innocent again, a people of integrity. When YHWH is satisfied, we cannot but be healed too. These are brought on behalf of the whole nation, but someone had to contribute each one. What an honor if your bull was the one offered on Yom Kippur!
9. "‘along with their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil: three tenths [of an eyfah] for the bull, two tenths per ram,
10. "‘one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the seven lambs,
11. "‘one he-goat of the kids to make atonement [a covering] for you, in addition to the sin offering of the Atonement and the customary ascending offering with its grain offering, and the libations for [both of] them.
These are the same offerings as Yom T’ruah.
12. "‘Then on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you shall have a holy calling-together; you shall do no servile labor, but you shall celebrate a festival gathering for YHWH for seven days.
No servile labor: This allows for cooking and necessary non-commercial activity. Lev. 23:29 clarifies that this only applies to the first and eighth days (see v. 35 below); buying, selling, etc. can be done on the intermediate days, but the ideal picture even in our exile is to spend all eight days together with others from Israel. Sukkoth, when we dwell outdoors for eight days, is a rehearsal for the time we will again spend in the wilderness with the Messiah before He retakes the Land and the kingship of the entire earth (Yeshayau 16; 26:20; Rev. 12:14, etc.), as well as the Day in which open structures will be safe to live in. (Yeshayahu 11:9; 65:25)
13. "‘And you shall bring near an ascending, a fire [offering], a satisfying aroma to YHWH: thirteen bulls, sons of the herd, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (they shall be flawless ones),
14. "‘along with their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths [of an eyfah] per bull for the thirteen bulls, two tenths for each of the two rams,
15. "‘and one tenth per lamb, for [each of] the fourteen lambs;
16. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.
Sukkoth is the firstfruits festival for grapes and any other crops not included in the earlier two firstfruits (for barley and wheat), though they were not necessarily brought as they were beginning to be harvested as the other two were, since they would no longer be fresh; payment for them was usually brought instead.
17. "‘Then on the second day, twelve bulls, sons of the herd, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),
18. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,
19. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and their libations.
20. "‘And on the third day, eleven bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),
21. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,
22. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.
23. "‘And on the fourth day, ten bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),
24. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,
25. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.
26. "On the fifth day, nine bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),
27. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,
28. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.
29. "‘On the sixth day, eight bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),
30. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,
31. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.
32. "‘On the seventh day, seven bulls, two rams, fourteen year-old lambs (flawless ones),
33. "‘along with their grain offerings and libations for the bulls, the rams, and lambs as is proper according to their numbers,
34. "‘one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.
While the number of other animals remains the same each day, the number of bulls decreases by one each day. Besides the fact that as the feast progresses, we will be more and more full and therefore need to eat less, the symbolism is that, the longer we gather, the fewer things we should have that possess us, which we have to offer up to YHWH. The total number of bulls is 70, symbolizing both the 70 people in the clan of Yaaqov upon his arrival in Egypt, as well as the 70 nations listed in the "table of nations" of Noach's sons in Genesis 10. For this reason Sukkoth, alternately called "the season of our joy" is also nicknamed "the ingathering of the nations", symbolizing the time all nations will bring their treasures into the holy city. (Rev. 21:24) But the very best thing they bring will be the scattered exiles of Israel (Yeshayahu 49:22)—the fruit of the seeds He sowed into all nations. (Hos. 2:23; Z’kharyah 10:9) Y’shua was born in a sukkah, living temporarily among us (Yochanan 1:14). His birth was announced to shepherds who were raising lambs for use in the Temple (as, according to the Mishnah, the Tower of the Flock near Beth Lechem [Micha 4:8] was the terminus of the perimeter around Yerushalayim within which “sacrificial” lambs could be raised), "Behold, I bring you glad news of ‘mega- joy' which shall be for all the people." (Luke 2:10) YHWH gave His best—His “bull”—so we could come back home. For now, Sukkoth is a rehearsal of that full regathering. And when we completely give our best for seven days, the whole world will be redeemed. Do we want to see the world improve? Do we want senseless murders to cease? Do we want to see true peace? Learning to love our particular neighbors within Israelite community brings real change that can radiate outward and fill the earth.
35. "‘And on the eighth day there shall be a holdover for you, and you shall not do any servile labor at all.
Holdover: an encore, a layover, detention, restraining, or shutdown. One intent may have been to give everyone an extra day to take everything down with no other responsibilities so this task would not cut into the actual high day, but there is much more to it. The term has the added connotation of an affectionate farewell sendoff. An extra day is tacked onto the feast as a required holiday, because the symbolism is pregnant with significance. The root word means not just a closing but an enclosing, which suggests an establishing and sealing of the unity that has been accomplished in the foregoing seven days. (Compare Lev. 23:36 and Deut. 16:8.) It is like the closing of a gate for the last time, for all the sheep that are going to come are in the fold. While still in exile, for us it is a sad reminder that we are not yet all the way home. We have taken some steps and moved closer, but what is left is to reap what we have sown in the past year, and to prepare to be in a better position when the gate next opens, hoping this time may be the last. The eighth day is not just another "first day” when things start over, as in the normal Sabbath pattern. The Hebrew word for “eight” (shmoni) comes from shemen, which means oil, fat, or to glisten. It is the “fattening” of the seventh day. It represents the time after the Millennial Kingdom when there will be a new creation--a new heaven and a new earth, but made possible by what was accomplished during the 7,000 years of YHWH’s interaction with men. It is the best of the seven days continuing to last when all that was imperfect about them has passed away. Because of this buildup of joyful celebration, Sukkoth is considered the greatest of all feasts, and when we read that something took place at "the Feast", it is referring to Sukkoth, because it was so glorious that all others paled in significance beside it. Y’shua was born on the first day of Sukkoth, so he was circumcised on the eighth day. An additional theme tacked onto the end of Sukkoth, sometimes on the eighth day, and sometimes the ninth, is "Simchat Torah"--rejoicing in the Torah. The scroll is rolled back to the beginning, and a new Torah-reading cycle begins at this time.
36. "‘And you shall bring near an ascending, a fire [offering], a satisfying aroma to YHWH: one bull, one ram, seven year-old lambs (flawless ones),
37. "‘their grain offerings and libations for the bull, the ram, and lambs, as is proper according to their numbers,
38. "‘and one he-goat of the kids as a sin offering, in addition to the customary ascending, its grain offering, and its libation.
The Midrash Aggadah points out that the total of 98 lambs here counters the 98 curses in Deut. 28:15-68.
39. "‘You shall prepare these in your appointed seasons, in addition to [any] vows and free-will [voluntary] offerings you [may bring] for your ascending [offerings], your grain offerings, your libations, or your peace offerings.'"
Again, we cannot take YHWH’s tithes and call them gifts. Vows are in addition to things He has already said we owe. After what concerns the whole nation is brought, we can draw near individually, and even then we need to come with something in our hands, not because He needs anything from us, but because we need to give in order to restore our souls and purge the rot out of them. The more we give, the lighter our burden becomes. He told us in Deut. 23:32 not to delay in paying our vows, but in His mercy He allows us to be guiltless if we bring them during the feasts when we need to come up to Yerushalayim anyway if it would otherwise be too difficult.
40. [30:1 in Hebrew] So Moshe explained to the descendants of Israel everything that YHWH had commanded Moshe.
INTRODUCTION: We start with an interpretation (from YHWH’s own viewpoint) of the great climax of the last portion and how significant it really was. What follows are more details about the event and the names of those involved, which give us even more clues as to what it really meant then and still does today. Then, a very unusual command—to pay back the people that caused us to stumble by making their lives hard. This is something that can only come directly from YHWH, as it is not the norm, which is to do good to those who revile us so they will not be so needy as to feel pushed to grab for what is ours. But He has His reasons for an exception, because this was not something these enemies did under duress, and as we study we can begin to see what He had in mind when He said this.
There follows another counting of the tribes, and we can thus compare them with their condition when they first came out of Egypt and what a generation had done to each. How does our spiritual condition compare to that of our parents? We also include here some clues from other historians as to what was in play in the great changes some tribes saw.
Moshe gives more detail about the question that arose about the inheritance rights of women who had no brothers so that the name of an ancestor would not be obliterated.
In this portion we also see the mantle (maybe even literally) being passed from Moshe to Y’hoshua. There is an underlying analogy with the different roles assigned to the Torah and the latter Y’hoshua (Yeshua), which we can see in retrospect. Moshe could only take us so far; it required the one whose name means “YHWH delivers” to get us all the way across and to receive our inheritance.
But in light of the foregoing accounts of those who thought they wanted to be leaders, consider Y’hoshua’s pattern. Whe chosen for a task and assigned to it, he did it with all his heart and was a great success, but he never asked for the position; he took a back seat to Moshe as long as he was alive, and spent his time either waiting on his superior or waiting on the Superior of both of them, since we are told that he “never left the sanctuary” for a certain period. (Ex. 33:11) When there was a need for war, he rose to the challenge and, with the backup he needed, did not fail to deliver what was needed. But he was the model of meekness in its true sense: like a butler whose dignity both demands and is defined by his silence most of the time, yet is always ready-on-the -spot to meet a need he has anticipated beforehand. Several times Y’hoshua is so quiet that we forget that he had accompanied Moshe up the mountain, but suddenly there he is when Moshe needs more information or another viewpoint on just what is going on below.
Like Avraham who, unlike the citizens of Bavel did not seek a name for himself yet was rewarded with one, Y’hoshua does not clamor for attention like Qorakh, Dathan, and Aviram did. Like the one of whom he is the prototype, he humbled himself and did not grasp for something that was not his, yet was highly exalted at the right time and through the right channels. What people think they have to fight for is granted to those who wait and who are faithful while they wait.
YHWH, through Moshe, reiterates the festival calendar here, but with more emphasis this time on the offerings that are to be brought at each one. While on the surface, it may seem dry and repetitive, when we look into the Hebrew words used therein, we find deeper meanings that cannot come through in translations, and when we look at the symbolism behind each type of animal offered, we can be inspired afresh to bring to YHWH gifts of gratitude that parallel these in some way.
TORAH PORTION
Pin'has
(Numbers 25:10 - 30:1)
What Stands Out to YHWH
This reading opens with something rare: YHWH raving about someone! Pin’has and his actions genuinely impressed YHWH, as only a few others’ (David, Y’hoshua and Kalev, Iyov, and that unnamed Servant in Yeshayahu) did. These are people He considered heroes, and this theme of things that are especially notable to Him is a recurring theme in this Torah portion.
The people who did the dastardly deed for which he was making amends were heads of their ancestral houses. One would have expected more maturity from such people (25:16-18). But most remarkable is the terse statement which we could easily miss if we blinked--that Qorakh’s children did not die when their father did. (26:11) They had the sense of when it was right to honor their father by following his example, and when to honor him by not imitating his less-honorable actions. That is worthy of honor itself, and if we follow this thread through the rest of Scripture, we find that they ended up being honored with the great privilege of being remembered as authors of some of the most beautiful psalms included in the song book that has stood the test of thousands of years’ time (42, 44-49, 84-85, 87-88).
Later in this passage, when the daughters of Tz’lafkhad thought their father’s name should not be forgotten just because he had no sons, YHWH said they were right! (27: 6) He only wants certain lines (e.g., Amaleq) to die out; other names are to be kept alive by the inheritance left to their children. But it is no small matter to have the Creator of the universe Himself consider your case so strong that not only does He render a verdict in your favor, but makes your precedent into a law binding on our whole people for all time.
Moshe was bothered that he could not enter the Land (Deut. 3:23-25), but that is not even mentioned in this recounting. This time, we are allowed to see the angle that he was more concerned that the people would not have a shepherd than that he did not get to shepherd them. (27:15-17) This satisfied YHWH so well that He allowed Moshe to die satisfied that they were being left in good hands. Even though even He could not give this favorite servant of his everything that he desired, not everyone gets to die in peace, so again this is no small privilege.
The portion ends with a lengthy reiteration of the feasts of YHWH in chapters 28 and 29. It could have been even more tedious, but YHWH spared us the details of the festivals this time, being more concerned here with the offerings brought at each of the festivals. Rather than reiterate the proportions of grain offerings on each day, He just says to bring them according to the precedent set in the patterns (29:14, 15) above (29:18, 21, 24, 27, 30, 33, 37)—some for the lambs, more for the rams, and the most for the bulls.
But this He does emphasize: “Be sure to bring them at the right time!”, for the distinctions in what to bring when, though often fine, hold lessons for us, which we bring out in the detailed commentary. But in an otherwise-redundant text (as we might look at it), a change in the pattern flags us that there is something here worth noting. Sometimes we would not notice it if there was not a rhythm to break, so it is worth risking our getting bored by the humdrum so that the significance of what is different can shine through. And that is exactly what the Sabbath is. Notice that on that day there is a double portion in the regular daily offering (28:9) just as there was a double portion of manna provided, because the firstborn gets twice the inheritance of his siblings, and YHWH considers this to be the first of His appointed times. (Lev. 23:2-3)
Similarly, you can’t count your own freewill offerings toward any of the regular offerings (29:39); they have to be something extra--in addition to the minimum required. The everyday offerings are also not diminished on special days (28:10, 15), and the Yom T’ruah offering does not count as the New Moon offering (though it is always on a new moon), but is a supplement to it. (29:6)
So it stands out that the number of bulls decreases from day to day during Sukkoth. (29:12-38; read the commentary on those verses for some possible reasons.) Yet still the number on the last day is substantial. I think this was partially in consideration of those who might have been corpse-unclean at the beginning the festival in which a primary theme is joy. Though they cannot celebrate it at a different time as they could the Passover (as King Yarav’am found out the hard way), it is long enough that they can still have a sizeable enough feast and partake in the joy even if they cannot join it until late in the week.
YHWH didn’t have to include such concessions, but He did, and this is one of those many times when He drops us little hints about how much He loves us, not stated overtly but very evident to those who care to search them out.
Study Questions:
1. How did one type of jealousy prevent the need for another? (Numbers 25:11) What does this mean in practical terms for us today?
2. Who else in Scripture is promised a covenant of peace (Num. 25:12)? (Compare Y’hezq’El/Ezekiel 34:25 and 37:26.) Is any of them an individual like Pin’has? What does this say about how YHWH felt about what he did? How can we share in it?
3. What do the names of the ones he killed, and their pedigree (25:14-15), tell us about the philosophy they lived out and why YHWH did not support it?
4. Though in most cases we are warned not to set it in motion rather than told to be the means of carrying it out, what principle seen elsewhere in Scripture is Numbers 25:16-17 an example of? How can we avoid getting on the wrong side of this spirituo-scientific fact?
5. After 38 years of various factors affecting the population, including the dying off of all the first generation that was numbered, which men in Israel does YHWH again say to count? (Compare Numbers 1:2-3 with 26:2.) How do the numbers compare? (1:46 and 26:51) What purpose would you expect this census to be used for? What anomaly in verses 33 and 53 first alerts us that this may not be the purpose? What is the surprising actual reason YHWH says they are to be counted? (26:54-56) How, then, might these two ideas relate to each other?
6. In Hebrew, Numbers 26:11 consists of only 4 short words. But what is the profound significance of what it says?
7. What two factors determined whom got which portions of land? (26:53-54) Why do you think YHWH would leave one of them random? What could this prevent?
8. Why do you think Tz’lof’khad’s “own sin” is even mentioned (27:3) if it would not, like Qorakh’s, disqualify him from an inheritance? Or is it suggesting that YHWH was punishing him for something by the fact that he had no sons? Would this accusation (much like those leveled at Iyov/Job) “hold water” based on the outcome of the story? (27:4-11)
9. Why would Moshe’s death actually not be like Aharon’s (as YHWH suggested in 27:13)? What did Moshe realize he did not have that Aharon did have? (27:16-17) Why did he, therefore not feel ready to die?
10. How did Moshe ensure that Y’hoshua would be respected and honored by the people with the same authority he had? (27:18-23) Does this relate to D’varim/Deut. 18:18? How?
11. These offerings are called “My bread (or food).” (28:2-3) How does this differ from pagan sacrifices which supposedly sustain their idols? Did anyone eat these? What do these verses say is the reason they are pleasing to YHWH? Why are they completely burnt up? Does this mean the lives of some animals are simply wasted?
12. Are the offerings specific to special days substituted for the ones offered every day? (28:10, 15, 23, 24, 31) If the Sabbath is a day for rest, why are the priests busier on this day? Which day has the most “extra” offerings? (29:6)
13. Why are the accompanying grain offering and libation of a different quantity for each kind of animal offered? (29:9-10, etc.)
14. Notice the descending number of bulls offered on each successive day of Sukkoth. (29:13, 17, 20, 23, 26, 29, 32) What is the total number offered? Why is this number special in relation to that feast? (Clue: Exodus 1:5; Deut. 32:8; Zkh. 14:16) Why do you think fewer are offered each day, rather than more, and why is there only one offered on the eighth day? Do you see any prophetic significance in this? What about a practical reason?
15. Will such offerings continue in the new Temple, even with Messiah present? (Y’hezq’el/Ezekiel 42:13; 43:19, 22,25,27; 44:11; 45:17) Does this change your view of what they are about and/or what he is about?
28:16-25 is a special reading for Passover
Companion Passage:
The Sidewalk
for Kids
Back in Numbers chapter 16, we read about “Qorakh and those who were gathered with him” and the way they rebelled against YHWH’s choice of Moshe as His servant and leader of Israel. But it looks as if, when they were told to come up to receive YHWH’s decision (verses 6 and 7), Qorakh did come, while Dathan and Aviram refused to come. They had less respect for Moshe even than their ringleader did (verses 12 to 14).
After they did not get the hint that what they were doing was something like what Aharon’s sons Nadav and Avihu had done (chapter 10) which resulted in their death, Moshe realized how bad the situation was, and asked YHWH to limit the destruction to just the people who had actually done wrong. He told everyone to move their tents away from these people’s tents, and they did.
But there must have been somebody else who moved away—maybe even leaving their own tents behind, because look at exactly what it says:
“So they distanced themselves from the dwelling of Qorakh, Dathan, and Aviram on every side. Then Dathan and Aviram came out and took their stand at the entrance to their tents, along with their wives, children, and toddlers… and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them, their houses, and all the people who were for Qorakh, along with all their possessions.” (16:27, 32)
Look carefully. Something is missing that you would expect to be there. Did you get it? Here’s a clue: What does it say about Dathan and Aviram that it doesn’t say about Qorakh?
Well, this Torah portion says it even more plainly: “The children of Qorakh did not die.” (26:11)
What does that mean? While the children of the other two men died along with their fathers, Qorakh’s own children must not have been “for Qorakh” in what he did wrong.
Does “honor your father” always mean you should do the same thing he does? These people show that the answer is “no”! He made the wrong choice, but they made a better one, and that honors him even more.
Qorakh’s descendants (including Shmu’el the prophet himself) are listed later in Scripture. (1 Chron. 6:22ff) David chose one of them to lead the worship music in the Tabernacle, and his sons were chosen to lead the 24 courses of Levites who would serve there.
Psalms 42, 44 to 49, 84, 85, 87, and 88 were all written by Qorakh’s descendants.
“I would rather stand just outside the House of Elohim than to continue in the tents of wickedness, because YHWH Elohim is a sun and shield;…He will not withhold anything good from those who do the right thing.”
The sons of Qorakh made the right choice even when their ancestor did not, and because of this they were totally free from the sins of their ancestor (as Yirmeyahu 31:29-30 says should be the way it is)—and we can be too, if we make the right choices.
The Renewal of PIN'HAS
Pin’has! The one who YHWH commended by name for his zeal. He proved to YHWH that there was still hope for this ever-wandering nation. Whom can we compare with him, except another who was on his way to being the high priest—“My beloved Son, in whom I am well-pleased”? (Mat. 3:17; 12:18, echoing Yeshayahu/Isaiah 42:1 and even His initial assessment of His creation as “very good” once his crowning piece, humanity, was in place.) Like Pin’has, he “turned away My [YHWH’s] fury from the descendants of Israel in being zealous for My jealousy among them, so that I did not finish off the descendants of Israel in My jealousy.” (Num. 25:11)
When Yeshua cleared the money-changers from around the Temple in answer to Jeremiah 7:11 (Mat. 21:12-13), his disciples remembered Psalm 69:9-- “Zeal for Your house has consumed me.” Pin’has’ reward was an “everlasting priesthood” (25:12), and Yeshua was given the same—an “unchangeable priesthood” (Hebrews 7:24).
But the Renewed Covenant is not a personality cult that’s only about the Messiah; the risen, promoted Yeshua himself gave a message to his disciple Yochanan for his other followers: “Those whom I love, I rebuke and correct; be zealous, therefore, and repent.” (Rev. 3:19) What Pin’has did is our job also. And there is evidence of repentance in a seeming “side note” right in the thick of the numbering for war that followed this act of holy war:
“Eliav's sons were Nemuel, Dathan, and Aviram. These were the [same] Dathan and Aviram who were acclaimed in the assembly, who struggled against Moshe and Aharon in the company of Qorakh, when they fought against YHWH… but the children of Qorakh did not die.” (Num. 26:9, 11)
Unlike Dathan and Aviram’s children, Qorakh’s had the wisdom to separate from their own father, who started the rebellion, when YHWH told the whole congregation to get away from their tents. (16:24ff) They sided with Israel rather than their own family when this was necessary. Yeshua said something about this: “He who loves father or mother more than me is not worthy of me.” (Mat. 10:37) But he also promises, “There is no man who has left house, or brothers, or sisters, or father, or mother, or wife, or children, or lands, for my sake and the sake of the Glad News, but he shall receive an hundredfold now in this time: houses, and brothers, and sisters, and mothers, and children, and lands—along with persecutions--and in the world to come, eternal life.” (Mark 10:29-30)
Qorakh’s sons were rewarded with a special privilege as well. As Levites, they were in charge of guarding one side of the Tabernacle, but later they appear to have been given another job that opened up for the Levites: worship-leaders in the Sanctuary, for Psalms 42, 44-49, 84, 85, 87, and 88 were all written by “the descendants of Qorakh”!
One of them shows a great awareness of the sin of their ancestor—thinking YHWH’s spokesman was withholding from them something that would have been good for them. For this they repented and endorsed the attitude he should have had:
“A day in Your courts is better than a thousand [anywhere else]. I would rather be a doorkeeper in the house of my Elohim, than to dwell in the tents of wickedness. YHWH will give favor and honor: no good thing will he withhold from them who walk uprightly.” (Psalm 84:10-11)
Paul echoes this in the Renewed Covenant: “If Elohim is on our side, who can succeed as our adversary? Truly, He who did not withhold His own Son, but delivered him over to condemnation in order to defend us all from the same —how is it possible that He will not also freely give us everything that comes along with him? Who will [dare] bring any charge against the ones Elohim has selected? Elohim is the one [doing the] justifying! Who then is the one condemning? The Messiah, who died, but more importantly, who also rose again, and is at Elohim's right hand; he is the defense lawyer for us!... Neither death nor life, angels, [the highest] authorities, [the] powers [of the spirit world], the threats already upon us, nor the ones that are yet to come, nor height, nor depth, nor anything else ever created can separate us from the love of Elohim which is in Yeshua the Messiah, our Master.” (Romans 8:31-39)
And the sons of Qorakh wrote another psalm that both recalls the way in which their ancestor perished, but also gives us great encouragement for the hard times that appear to be swiftly on their way toward us today:
“Elohim is our refuge and strength, a very accessible help in trouble. So will not we fear, though the earth be moved, and the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea, though its waters roar and boil over, though the mountains shake as it wells up so high! Ponder [this]. There is a river, whose streams will make glad the city of Elohim—most unique of the Most High’s dwelling-places. Elohim is in her midst; she will not be dislodged. Elohim will help her, like the coming of the [much-watched-for] morning. Nations were in tumult, kingdoms were removed; He uttered His voice, the earth melted. YHWH [Master] of armies is with us; the Elohim of Yaaqov is our tower of safety…He makes wars to cease to the [very] ends of the earth!” (Psalm 46:1-10)
In the Renewed Covenant, Yeshua has more to say about this: “Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer…Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life…The one who overcomes will not be harmed by the second death… I will give [him] the manna that is hidden away…” (Rev. 2:10, 11, 17)
All who are recognizing again that we are Israel can resonate with the petition of the daughters of Tz’of’khad: “Please grant us a possession among our father’s brothers!” (Num. 27:4) Paul, too, saw it from our perspective:
“Remember that you former Gentiles… were at that time apart from [the] Messiah, alienated from the rights of a citizen of Israel, strangers to the promised covenants, having no hope, and without Elohim among [the inhabitants of] the world. But now through Yeshua [the] Messiah you, who were once “far off” have been brought near through Messiah’s blood…Through him we both have access, in one spirit, to the Father. So you are no longer foreigners or aliens [with no rights], but fellow citizens with the holy ones, belonging also to Elohim’s household.” (Eph. 2:11-19)
If nothing else, we now have the same heavenly Father. But his use of the term “far off” tips us off that their ancestors were not always Gentiles, because Daniel 9:7 uses this term specifically in reference to part of Israel which was driven away by YHWH because of our transgressions. So they were “turning back to YHWH from among the Gentiles”, as Yaaqov (James) put it in Acts 15:19, which is just as acceptable a reading of the language as simply “turning to YHWH”, and in light of the rest of Scripture, seems the preferred reading, though the fact that it can be taken both ways means that it is applicable in the other sense in some situations too, and as in Torah, anyone who voluntarily joins Israel is an equal citizen, whether he has the physical ancestry or not. (Ex. 12:49, etc.)
From the order of inheritance, we can gather why this Yaaqov himself, who had not been trained among Yeshua’s disciples when he was teaching them, still became leader among his followers after Yeshua left our world, rather than (at least more prominently than) Kefa, the other Yaaqov, and Yochanan, whom he had trained most intensely:
“If a man dies, having no son, have his inheritance pass to his daughter. And if he has no daughter, then give his inheritance to his brothers.” (Num. 27:8-9) Yaaqov was the eldest of Yeshua’s brothers, so, especially since Yeshua was the rightful king in David’s line, Yaaqov, being next in succession, had to have a leadership role among all those in Israel who recognized that the Kingdom was already in its nascent stage of restoration. He was the “next king”.
Yeshua sent the rest out to gather citizens for the Kingdom, for his wedding feast has to be full (Luke 14:23), but as soon as that job is done, it can come in its fullness. It seems that that time is pressing in on us as the other nations of the world—even the best of them—are imploding so quickly it makes our heads spin. But what will emerge from the rubble is the society that YHWH has wanted all along. Israel will be what it was always meant to be. From there it will spread to all other peoples, and Yeshua can “see [the results of] the birthpangs of his soul and be satisfied.” (Yeshayahu/Isa. 53:11)
Instruments for
YHWH’s Own Actions
"Do not take your own revenge, but leave room for YHWH’s wrath.” (Rom. 12:19) “Vengeance is Mine; I will repay.” (Deut. 32:35)
But this time, YHWH permitted—no, commanded—Israel to avenge those who “put us in a tight spot” (Num. 25:16-17) by luring us into a condition where YHWH would have to punish us. He did not like being put in that position, and was glad someone put a stop to the “leakage” that was fueling the fire that had spread out of control. (25:11) But He said the one who influenced His people into such a path had to be eradicated; this was a cancer growing on the body He needed to remain healthy.
He avenged, but we were His tools.
Having stopped the dying in the new generation of Israelites, YHWH told Moshe to again count the number of those who were about to enter the Promised Land. (26:1-4) This allows us to compare the population of each tribe from the totals reached in the first generation before the dying off due to unbelief began. (Num. 1:1-3)
The biggest difference is in Shim’on’s tribe--a severe loss of numbers. While the overall population of Israel remained nearly the same, Shim’on went down from 59,300 warriors to only 22,200, becoming the smallest of all. One reason put forward by Steven Collins is that a large contingent of the tribe may have been angered by Pin’has’ execution of a Shim’onite prince.
Collins notes, as demonstrated in the Sh’khem incident in Genesis 34, that “Genesis 49:5-7 prophesies that impulsive wrathfulness leading to violence would characterize … Simeonites … through all the millennia … A logical explanation for the sudden drop in several tribes’ population is that most of the tribe of Simeon and …contingents of the other tribes literally ‘walked out’ of the camp.”
Collins thinks they may have become the bellicose Spartans, who claimed to descend from Israel. (1 Maccabees 14:16-23) Also, the Simonii, a large ethnic group who turned up in and around Ireland, spoke of a history of departing from Egypt, but the last event they remembered before they struck out on their own was the incident of the bronze serpent (chapter 21), which had occurred only shortly before Zimri’s execution.
When he got to the sum of the Reuvenites, the incident about Qorakh’s accomplices was recounted. “But the children of Qorakh did not die.” (26:11) In fact, not only did they not share in their father’s sin; they themselves became exemplary among the Levites and Psalms 42, 44-49, 84, 85, 87, and 88 are all credited to them! 46, 47, 84, and 88 are especially significant in light of their ancestor’s demise. Their attitude toward what YHWH chose for them (47:4; 84:11) was so different from that of Qorakh himself.
This set the stage for children of another who sinned—not in Qorakh’s rebellion but “in his own sin” (27:3) to still receive an inheritance. But their problem was that the rules assumed a man had male heirs, and this man did not, so his inheritance could “slip through the cracks” and end up moving to another tribe if his daughters married outside their tribe. YHWH said they had a valid point (27:7) and as Moshe’s last enactment, added an amendment so their tribe was not diminished. He does not want one tribe’s property to transfer to another.
Why does that matter now? It answers whether, when we recognize we are exiled descendants of the northern Kingdom, we should convert to Judaism. That’s moving one tribe’s inheritance to another. It also usually means forsaking the one who made us eligible to return.
He, through others. Y’hoshua was appointed to ensure that Israel would not be “sheep without a shepherd” when Moshe died. (27:16-18) This later did occur and the sheep became scattered, and YHWH said He would search for them Himself. (Ezek. 34:5-14)
Another Y’hoshua, who also took us farther than Moshe could (Yochanan 1:17), saw that the sheep were in that condition (Mat. 9:36) and, as YHWH’s instrument, had compassion and asked his disciples to pray for many hands to gather them in. He then gave them—and us--the assignment to be YHWH’s hands and feet on the ground to carry out the Father’s promise. (9:37-10:1)
Guarding What is Holy
What the eponymous Pin’has did that earned YHWH’s praise is actually described in the previous Torah portion. (Numbers 25:6-8) At first it appears to be an act foreign to the concept of holiness, for the truth that “there is a time to kill” (Eccles./Qoh. 3:3) has fallen out of fashion, and in modern times we have come to associate holiness with only quiet contemplation. Keeping silent before YHWH when He is in His holy Temple is not only justified but even commanded at times (Havaqquq 2:20), but that is not all that holiness means.
Adam’s initial role is in some versions simply described as “keeping the Garden”, which sounds as if it only meant cultivating it. (Gen. 2:15) But the word is much stronger, literally saying to guard it. Guard the Garden of Eden? From what? Well, intruders like the one who sneaked in and changed the whole course of human history. Apparently haSatan’s being cast out of heaven with 1/3 of the angels who followed him in his mutiny (Rev. 12:9) took place before this (or at least he had access to the earth, as seen in Iyov/Job 1:7; 2:2), and YHWH wanted those created in His image to maintain a sacred space there to anchor YHWH’s ownership of the earth.
But the idea of killing the intruding serpent had probably not yet occurred to Adam, for death was not known on earth until Adam sinned (Romans 5:12). By Pin’has’ day, however, it was well-known and was a tool in the arsenal of the guardians of YHWH’s holy place. Pin’has knew who he was as the primary guardian of YHWH’s sanctuary. (Num. 1:53, which uses the same word for guarding as Adam’s job vis-à-vis the Garden.) He was the high priest in training. He had internalized this calling so well that this response was second nature to him.
YHWH had established that adultery was among the offenses that were capital (Lev. 19:20; 20:10), and idolatry is another form of adultery (They differ only in whom they are a sin against.) Both were taking place, as was trespass by unauthorized persons (Num. 3:10), and YHWH does not want to be worshipped the way pagans worshipped their elohim (Deut. 12:4), so there was no way Pin’has was going to stand for this going on in YHWH’s holy place. It had consequences; others were following the example of these illicit “worshippers” and the consuming fire of YHWH’s purity was already resulting in their deaths. So he “nipped it in the bud” and saved many more from being destroyed because they were on the wrong side of His power, which is meant to inspire awe, but when abused it is much more dangerous to get near than a live wire.
The psalmist’s cry “Zeal for Your House has consumed me!” (Psalm 69:9) was quoted to describe Yeshua (John 2:16-17; see Jer. 7:11) after he exercised his prerogative as both king and prophet and expelled merchants who were taking financial advantage of the pilgrims, who were, in Michael Card’s words, “hungry to worship, to join in the praise. Shock met with anger that burned on his face…and the Lamb is a Lion who’s roaring with rage…”
The word “zeal” in Hebrew also means “jealousy”—not the way it is commonly used today, which is conflated with envy, because that is never a characteristic of the righteous (Ex. 20:17), but true jealousy is a way YHWH describes Himself (Deut. 5:9)—even right in the 10 commandments (Ex. 20:5)—and Moshe and Y’hoshua echo it in numerous other places. Jealousy is a legitimate emotion, for it is not about wanting what someone else owns, but about keeping what one legitimately owns in the face of would-be usurpers. The thief has no right to it; the owner does, and guarding is the way to ensure its continuity.
Since Pin’has recognized that and acted on it without hesitation, continuity was his just reward. YHWH gave him the highest commendation and gave his family of priests a permanent promotion--a promise that whether his brothers’ lines always continued in their office or not, his descendants would always have first right to officiate in YHWH’s sacred space (Num. 25:11-13), for he understood his job well. Because he took up arms for YHWH’s reputation, he was given a “covenant of shalom”. That sounds ironic, but shalom means more than just serenity; it means completeness—that everything that was displaced has been set right.
Our bodies are now YHWH’s temples (1 Cor. 6:19) and our homes house those temples. What will we draw the line about and say, “By no means will THAT enter this house!”? And on a larger scale, the body of Messiah is a temple built of us as living stones (1 Peter 2:5). What intruders do you see trying to sneak into it? Be on guard!
