WHAT’S THE CONNECTION?

Many parts of this week’s parashah are directly or indirectly connected to the Holy Land. Immediately after concluding the story of Pinchas (including the order to take revenge against the Midianites for their share in the deaths of 24,000 Jews), HaShem commands Moshe and Elazar to count the Children of Israel. What is the purpose of this new census? The Torah answers that question promptly: – The Lord spoke to Moshe saying, “To these shall the Land be divided as an inheritance…” (26:52-53).

I came across a very interesting sefer called Semuchim La’ad. Written by a great Kabbalist, R. Eliyahu HaKohen (author of Sheivet Mussar and Me’il Tzedakah), its main goal is to explain the connections between the various subsections of the Torah, demonstrating that the Torah was written in a logical order and sequence. With regard to the connection between the census and the division of the Land, the author points out that the last tribe to be counted was Naftali. This, he says, alludes to some of the special qualities of Eretz Yisrael.

1) The Midrash says that Naftali’s portion was especially suited for Torah learning (see BeReishit Rabbah 71:11). Thus, the Torah juxtaposed the division of the Land to the counting of Naftali, to hint to the strong connection that exists between Eretz Yisrael and Torah study, as Chazal say, “The very air of the Land makes one wise” (Bava Batra 158b).

2) R. Eliyahu HaKohen also claims that the word naftali means prayer (based on BeReishit 30:8). This alludes to the fact that one’s prayers are more readily answered in Eretz Yisrael than anywhere else in the world: “Because there is nothing preventing [one’s prayer] from ascending heavenward, for the atmosphere of the Land is free of the ‘husks’ which prevent our prayers from passing through. In addition, the gate of heaven is located there.”

3) Chazal derive from a verse in Parashat VaYigash (46:24) that the descendants of Naftali eventually committed grievous acts of idolatry (BeReishit Rabbah 94:8). Nonetheless, they received a portion in the Land, because God judges people based on the present; and at the time of the conquest and division of the Land, the children of Naftali were righteous. In addition, says the author, this alludes to Chazal’s statement that the Land of Israel atones for one’s sins (Ketuvot 111a).

4) Moshe blessed Naftali at the end of Sefer Devarim (33:23) as follows: – Naftali is satiated with favor and filled with the blessing of the Lord. Thus, our parashah juxtaposes Naftali and the division of the Land to hint to the fact that God, not an angelic messenger, provides the inhabitants of Eretz Yisrael with all of their needs, making it a very plentiful Land.

Getting back to the overall structure of the parashah: Following the section dealing with the division of the Land, the Torah records the census of the Levites. The reason that this count is not included in the overall census of B’nei Yisrael is because the Levites did not receive a portion in the Land (see 26:62). The Torah sums up the section as follows: – These are the ones counted by Moshe and Elazar… But among these there was not a man of those whom Moshe and Aharon the Kohen counted… For the Lord had said of them, “They shall surely die in the wilderness,” and not a man was left of them, except for Calev son of Yefuneh and Yehoshua son of Nun (26:63-65). Rashi explains that only the men died in the wilderness as a result of the Sin of the Spies, but the women were spared this punishment because they cherished the Land. This explains why the next section discusses the story of B’not Tzlofchad, who also cherished the Land.

Next, HaShem tells Moshe, – Go up to this mountain of Avarim and see the Land that I have given to the Children of Israel. You shall see it, and then you shall be gathered unto your people… (27:12-13). Rashi explains why this section is placed here:

Since the Holy One Blessed be He said, “You shall surely give [the daughters of Tzlofchad] a portion of inheritance” (v. 7), Moshe thought, “The Omnipresent commanded me to give them a portion; perhaps the decree has been annulled and I will enter the Land.” Said the Holy One Blessed be He, “My decree still stands.”

Moshe never stopped hoping to enter the Promised Land. However, when he realized that there was no chance, he begged HaShem to provide the Jewish people with a competent leader who would bring them into Eretz Yisrael. Hence, the next section – the appointment of Yehoshua as Moshe’s successor (27:15-23).

Finally, the parashah ends with a long section dealing with the daily offering and the special musaf offerings brought on Shabbat and Yom Tov. What is this section doing here? Does it have any connection to Eretz Yisrael, which seems to be the common thread throughout the parashah? According to the Ramban, the answer is yes:

After saying, – To these shall the Land be divided, [HaShem] commanded [Moshe] to complete the laws of the sacrifices that are to be performed in the Land. For, they did not offer musaf sacrifices in the desert, nor were they obligated to offer libations in the desert. Now, however, those who were entering the Land were obligated to do everything, daily offerings and musaf offerings.

May we soon be privileged to offer sacrifices to HaShem in the Third Temple, speedily in our days. Amen.

Reprinted from Eretz Yisrael in the Parashah by R’ Moshe Lichtman

Daily Archives: July 12, 2017

Pinchas