{"id":2716,"date":"2024-06-09T06:30:09","date_gmt":"2024-06-09T12:30:09","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/markniwot.com\/?p=2716"},"modified":"2024-06-09T06:30:09","modified_gmt":"2024-06-09T12:30:09","slug":"parsha-bemidbar-teaching-from-shabbat-shalom-mesa-6","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/markniwot.com\/?p=2716","title":{"rendered":"Parsha \u201cBemidbar\u201d teaching from Shabbat Shalom Mesa"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Parsha “Bemidbar” (Numbers 1:1 – 4:20) begins the Book who’s Hebrew name literally means “In the Wilderness.” And that certainly fits.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, actually, does the English moniker ‘Numbers,’ because it has a lot of those. And this first parsha gives us a major clue as to why that will be so important.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Erev Shabbat reading begins with another important point: What is commanded is more than a mere ‘census,’ although “headcount” is perhaps a better rendering. But, literally, what Moses is told to do is “lift up the head,” of all of the fighting-age men of Israel. And everything about the process, the description, and what is recorded tells us about His attitude concerning His people.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

And that time “in the wilderness” is central to our understanding.<\/p>\n\n\n\n