[The covenant YHWH had with Israel is often figuratively referred to as a “marriage”, so every so often, depending on the context, the metaphor for Israel shifts from “firstborn son” to “wife”. In fact, because of Israel’s unfaithfulness to the covenant, “adulterous wife” or, depending on the translator, “harlot” is used with “whoring” and other terms that often do not sit well with readers. So here’s one of the many such references that will reverberate all the way into Israel’s ‘future history’ if there’s such a contradictory phrase, but you know what it means.
The commentary is from Pentateuch and Haftoras, ed. Dr. J.H. Hertz; the translation is EF/Everett Fox The Five Books of Moses.—Admin1]
Numbers/Bamidbar 25
XXV.1-15. PHINEHAS’ REWARD
Filled with unsparing hatred of evil and burning indignation against a deed that was a monstrous profanation of God’s holy Name, Phinehas executed summary vengeance on Zimri and Cozbi. That action gained Phinehas the reward of hereditary High Priesthood.
very jealous for My sake. Zimiri’s conduct within the sacred precincts of the camp was a combination of idolatry and immorality. By his promptness and righteous zeal, Phinehas stayed the moral plague that threatened to destroy the character of Israel. The Rabbis have a saying: ‘Phinehas is Elijah’; and in this fearless deed, inspired by motives absolutely pure and holy, he is certainly a counterpart of the Prophet of storm and fire.
12 Therefore say: Here, I give him my covenant of shalom;My covenant of peace. lit. ‘My covenant, the covenant of peace’; i.e. I assure him of My friendly attitude towards him (Rashi, Gray). Phinehas should be free from any fear of retalization by the brethren of Zimri, who being princes, possessed great power (Ibn Ezra). The word ‘covenant’ is here used, not in the sense of a compact between two persons but as an unconditional proise on God’s part. In addition to the Divine blessing with which Phinehas’ action was rewarded, it received the grateful admiration of succeeding ages. In Psalm CVI, we read that his zeal ‘was counted unto him for righteousness, unto all generations for ever’.
an everlasting priesthood. A second promise to Phinehas on God’s part—the dignity of the High Priesthood is to be the posession of his descendants. With the exception of a brief interruption in Eli’s days, it continued in his family until the fall of the Jewish state.
atonement for the children of Israel. The act of Phinehas was accepted by God as a national atonement, i.e., a ‘covering’ of the nation’s sin.
the name of the man. Just as in the case of good men, so also are the names and families of evil-doers recorded—an imortality of infamy is theirs.
a prince. Of one of the five ‘fathers’ houses’ comprised in the tribe of Simeon (XXVI,12). ‘The fact that Zimri was the prince of a great house was nothing to Phinehas when punishment had to be meted out and the honour of God vindicated’ (Rashi).
15 And the name of the woman who was struck-dead, the Midyanitess: Kozbi daughter of Tzur; ribal head of the Fathers’ House of Midyan is he.Zur. One of the Midianite kings; XXXI,8.
head of the people of a fathers’ house. That the daughter of such a man should have consented to play so immoral a role is an indication of the dangerous lengths to which the Midianites would resort in their efforts to destroy the Israelites through sin (Rashi).
16-18. WAR DECLARED AGAINST THE MIDIANITES
harass the Midianies. i.e. count them as dangerous enemies and smite them. The Israelites, who had been seduced into sin, had been severely visited by God. And now, as was just, the Midianites too are to be punished; see XXXI,1. No punishment is meted out to the Moabites—the Rabbis explain—because these had at least the excuse of fear for their infamous conduct towards the Israelites; whereas the Midianites were actuated by pure hatred.
18 for they attacked you with their craftiness, with which they were crafty with you in the matter of Pe’or, in the matter of Kozbi daughter of the leader of Midyan, their sister, the one struck-dead at the time of the plague in the matter of Pe’or.XXV,19-XXVI. THE SECOND CENSUS
Nearly forty years had passed since the first numbering of the Israelites, and a new census had become a necessity. The Land was shortly to be divided amongst the tribes for an inheritance; and the exact number of fighting men and families had to be known.
after the plague. It had seriously diminished the numbers of at least one of the tribes. ‘The Divine command to number the Israelites at this juncture may be likened to the case of a shepherd whose flocks have been depleted by an inrush of wolves. When the catastrophe is over, the shepherd lovingly counts his sheep in order to know how many are left alive’ (Rashi).
Numbers/Bamidbar 26
1 Now it was after the plague 2 that YHVH said to Moshe and to El’azar son of Aharon the priest, saying: Take up the head-count of the entire community of the Children of Israel, from the age of twenty years and upward, according to their Fathers’ House, everyone going out to the armed-forces in Israel. 3 Moshe spoke, and El’azar the priest, to them in the Plains of Moav, by Jordan-jericho, saying:spoke with them. i.e. with the responsible chiefs of each tribe.
4 From the age of twenty years and upward . . . ! as YHVH commanded Moshe and the Children of Israel, those going out of the land of Egypt:5-51. The census is taken of all the tribes, with the exception of Levi. The families are named for hte most part after the descendants of Jacob enumerated in Gen. XLVI, 8-27.
5 Re’uven, the firstborn of Israel: The Sons of Re’uven: (of) Hanokh, the Hanokhite clan, of Pallu, the Pallite clan, 6 of Hetzron, the Hetzronite clan, of Karmi, the Karmite clan. 7 These are the Re’uvenite clans; and their count was: three and forty thousand, and seven hundred and thirty. 8 The sons of Pallu: Eliav; the sons of Eliav: Nemuel, Datan and Aviram -that is the Datan and Aviram, those Called by the Community, who struggled against Moshe and against Aharon, among the community of Korah when they struggled against YHVH 10 and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them and Korah, at the death of the community, at the consuming by fire of the fifty and two hundred men: they became a signal-of-warning;became a sign. A warning for all time to others.
11 but the sons of Korah did not die.the sons of Korah died not. See on XVI,11. ‘From the earthquake and the consuming flame and the raging plague that put an end to the schemes of those who took counsel together against the chosen of the LORD, the sons of Korah survived—survived to become the founders of a whole family or guild of Psalmists, whose meditations are still with us’ (Singer).
12 The Sons of Shim’on according to their clans: of Nemuel, the Nemuelite clan, of Yamin, the Yaminite clan, of Yakhin, the Yakhinite clan, 13 of Zerah, the Zarhite clan, of Sha’ul, the Sha’ulite clan. 14 These are the Shim’onite clans, two and twenty thousand, and two hundred. 15 The Sons of Gad according to their clans: of Tzefon, the Tzefonite clan, of Haggi, the Haggite clan, of Shuni, the Shunite clan, 16 of Ozni, the Oznite clan, of Eri, the Erite clan, 17 of Arod, the Arodite clan. of Areli, the Arelite clan. 18 These are the clans of the Sons of Gad by their accountings: forty thousand and five hundred. 19 The sons of Yehuda: Er and Onan; but Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. 20 Now the Sons of Yehuda, according to their clans, were: of Shela, the Shelanite clans, of Peretz, the Partzite clan, of Zerah, the Zarhite clan. 21 The Sons of Peretz: of Hetzron, the Hetzronite clan, of Hamul, the Hamulite clan. 22 These are the clans of Yehuda, by their accountings: six and seventy thousand, and five hundred. 23 The Sons of Yissakhar, according to their clans: Tola, the Tolaite clan, of Puvva, the Punite clan, 24 of Yashuv, the Yashuvite clan, of Shimron, the Shimronite clan. 25 These are the clans of Yissakhar, by their accountings: four and sixty thousand, and three hundred. 26 The Sons of Zevulun, according to their clans: of Sered, the Sardite clan, of Elon, the Elonite clan, of Yahle’el, the Yahle’elite clan. 27 These are the clans of the Zevulunites, by their accountings: sixty thousand and five hundred. 28 The Sons of Yosef, according to their clans: Menashe and Efrayim. 29 The Sons of Menashe: of Makhir, the Makhirite clan, -now Makhir begot Gil’ad- of Gil’ad, the Gil’adite clan. 30 These are the Sons of Gil’ad: of I’ezer, the I’ezrite clan, of Helek, the Helkite clan, 31 of Asriel, the Asrielite clan, of Shekhem, the Shikhmite clan, 32 of Shemida, the Shemida’ite clan, of Hefer, the Hefrite clan; 33 now Tzelofhad son of Hefer had no sons, only daughters; the name of the daughters of Tzelofhad: Mahla and No’a, Hogla, Milka and Tirtza.had no sons, but daughters. This fact is mentioned here because the question of their inheritance will come up in the next chapter.
34 These are the clans of Menashe, and their accountings: two and fifty thousand, and seven hundred. 35 These are the Sons of Efrayim, according to their clans: of Shutelah, the Shutalhite clan, of Bekher, the Bakhrite clan, of Tahan, the Tahanite clan. 36 These are the Sons of Shutelah: of Eiran the Eiranite clan. 37 These are the clans of the Sons of Efrayim, according to their accountings: two and thirty thousand, and five hundred; these are the Sons of Yosef according to their clans. 38 The Sons of Binyamin, according to their clans: of Bela, the Bal’ite clan, of Ashbel, the Ashbelite clan, of Ahiram, the Ahiramite clan, 39 of Shefufam, the Shufamite clan, of Hufam, the Hufamite clan. 40 The Sons of Bela were: Ard and Naaman. . . . , the Ardite clan, of Naaman, the Naamite clan. 41 These are the Sons of Binyamin according to their clans, heir accountings: five and forty thousand, and six hundred. 42 These are the Sons of Dan according to their clans: 0f Shuham, the Shuhamite clan. These are the clans of Dan, according to their clans; 43 all the Shuhamite clans, according to their accountings: four and sixty thousand, and four hundred. 44 The Sons of Asher, according to their clans: of Yimna, the Yimna clan, of Yishvi, the Yishvite clan, o f Beri’a, the Beri’ite clan. 45 For the Sons of Beri’a: of Hever, the Hevrite clan, of Malkiel, the Malkielite clan. 46 Now the name of Asher’s daughter (was) Serah. 47 These are the clans of the Sons of Asher, according to their accountings: three and fifty thousand, and four hundred. 48 The Sons of Naftali, according to their clans: of Yahtze’el, the Yahtze’elite clan, of Guni, the Gunite clan, 49 of Yetzer, the Yitzrite clan, of Shillem, the Shillemite clan. 50 These are the clans of Naftali, according to their clans, their accountings: five and forty thousand, and four hundred. 51 These are the accountings of the Children of Israel: six hundred thousand and a thousand, seven hundred and thirty.numbered of the children of Israel. The Levites are excluded from this total of 601,730, which is 1,820 less than the total 38 years before. While the nation as a whole remained nearly stationary, the various tribes show many striking variations. Reuben, Simeon, Gad, Ephraim, and Naphtali decreased in numbers.
57-62. CENSUS OF THE LEVITES
A separate census was necessary, as the Levites were numbered from the age of one month, whilst the other tribes were counted from 20 years of age, as only to such was a parcel of land to be apportioned.
52 And YHVH spoke to Moshe, saying: 53 To these shall the land be portioned-out as an inheritance, by the enumerated names; 54 to the many you are to give-much as their inheritance, to the few you are to give-little as their inheritance, each-one according to its count is to be given its inheritance. 55 However, by lot the land is to be apportioned, by the listed-names of their ancestral tribes they are to inherit (it). 56 By means of the lot is its inheritance to be apportioned, between the many and the few. 57 And these are the accountings of the Levites, according to their clans: of Gershon, the Gershonite clan, of Kehat, the Kehatite clan, of Merari, the Merarite clan. 58 These are the clans of Levi: the Livnite clan, the Hevronite clan, the Mahlite clan, the Mushite clan, the Korhite clan. Now Kehat begot Amram;the families of Levi. The families enumerated in this verse are the issue of the three Levitical families, viz. the Gershonites, the Kohathites, and the Merarites, mentioned in the preceding verse. The Libnites were the descendants of the Gershonites (III,21); the Hebronites were Kohathites (III,19); and the Mahlites and Mushites, Merarites (III,20,33). Two other families, viz. the Shimelites (III,21), and Uzzielites (III,27), as well as a few others, are omitted in the present enumeration, possibly because they had died out.
59 the name of Amram’s wife was Yokheved daughter of Levi, who bore her to Levi in Egypt; she bore to Amram: Aharon and Moshe, and Miryam their sister. 60 There were born to Aharon: Nadav and Avihu, El’azar and Itamar. 61 Now Nadav and Avihu had died when they brought-near outside fire before the presence of YHVH. 62 And their accounting was: three and twenty thousand, all males from the age of a month and upward, for they had not been counted in the midst of the Children of Israel, for they were not given an inheritance in the midst of the Children of Israel.offered strange fire. See Lev.X,1-7.
62 And their accounting was: three and twenty thousand, all males from the age of a month and upward, for they had not been counted in the midst of the Children of Israel, for they were not given an inheritance in the midst of the Children of Israel.were twenty and three thousand. This increase of only 1,000 over the former census (see III,39) is surprisingly small. It is probable that the Levites suffered a large diminution in number on account of their participation in the rebellion of korah.