[Par-reg] [Par-new] Parshat Naso - shiur #2 / The Nsiim
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Thu Jun 9 18:59:29 EDT 2005
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THE TANACH STUDY CENTER [http://www.tanach.org]
In Memory of Rabbi Abraham Leibtag
Shiurim in Chumash & Navi by Menachem Leibtag
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PARSHAT NASO - the Nsiim
We were all taught from a young age that the Torah
doesn't 'waste' any words. Nevertheless, the repetition of
the 'korbanot' of the Nsiim [the Princes (of each tribe)] in
Parshat Naso certainly leaves the reader with the impression
that [at times] the Torah can be very 'wordy'.
In the following shiur, as we study chapter 7, we will
attempt to explain the thematic significance of that
repetition - to show how the Torah's 'wordiness' is not
'wasteful' at all.
INTRODUCTION
Rarely does anyone pay careful attention to the second half
of Parshat Naso; and for a very simple reason. In those last
eighty some psukim (see 7:12-83), the Torah repeats twelve
times the exact same details of the exact same korban brought
by each "nasi"! Then, 'to top it off', in the final five
psukim (see 7:84-88) the Torah tallies them for us as well.
For that reason, you probably never paid attention to the
last pasuk of the Parsha - but if you did, it most certainly
should have bothered you!
Let's explain why:
AN ALMOST PERFECT FINALE
At the conclusion of the Torah's tally of all of the
offerings brought during those twelve days we find what
appears to be a 'perfect' summary pasuk:
"zot chanukat ha'mizbeiach... " - 'this was the dedication
offering for the Altar on the day that it was consecrated.'
(see 7:88)
Clearly, 7:88 could (and should) have been the final
pasuk of this entire unit. To verify this, simply note how
7:88 provides perfect 'closure' for 7:84, as well as for 7:1
(which began the entire unit)!
[It is highly recommended that you take a look in your
Chumash to see this for yourself!]
But to our surprise, after this summary is complete, the
Torah 'adds on' an additional pasuk that appears to be totally
unrelated. Let's take a look:
"...And when Moshe would come into the OHEL MOED to speak to
Him, he would hear God's voice speak to him from above the
KAPORET above the ARON between the two keruvim, and then He
would speak to him."
(See 7:89, i.e. the end of Parshat Naso)
The information in this pasuk may be important, but it
has absolutely nothing to do with the 'korbanot' that were
just offered. After all, what connection could there be
between 'how God spoke to Moshe from the Ohel Moed' and 'the
twelve days of korbanot' that were just offered by the Nsiim?
NOTHING NEW
To complicate matters, not only does this pasuk appear to
be 'out of place', it also appears to be totally superfluous -
for it doesn't contain any information that we didn't already
know beforehand. Let's explain why.
Concerning how God spoke to Moshe from above the KAPORET
etc. (see 7:89) - note how this very same detail was already
recorded in Parshat Terumah - in God's commandment to Moshe
concerning how to build the Mishkan:
"and in the ARON put the EYDUT... And I will meet you there
and speak to you from above the KAPORET between the two
KERUVIM that are on the ARON HA'EYDUT..." (see Shmot 25:21-
22)
Later on, in the very first pasuk of Sefer Vayikra, we
were already informed that God had indeed spoken to Moshe
Rabeinu from the Ohel Moed (see Vayikra 1:1).
Therefore, all the information provided by 7:89 is
already known, and hence this pasuk seems to be both 'out of
place' and superfluous.
To uncover the importance of this 'add on' pasuk, we must
return to our study of what transpired on this special day in
the Bible - the day when the Mishkan was first dedicated - as
the events on that day are described not only here in Sefer
Bamidbar, but also in Shmot and Vayikra!
YOM HA'SHMINI
Recall that in addition to Parshat Naso, there are two
other units in Chumash that describe the story of the
Mishkan's dedication:
* Toward the conclusion of Parshat Pekudei, the Torah
described how the Mishkan was assembled, followed by how the
shechina dwelled upon it (see Shmot chapter 40);
* In Parshat Shmini, the Torah detailed the special
korbanot offered by Aharon and the people on that day, that
enabled God's glory to appear (see Vayikra 9, especially 9:1-
6).
Even though each of story describes a different aspect of
what happened on that day, they both focus on how God's
"shechina" returned to Am Yisrael on that day (see Shmot 40:34-
38 and Vayikra 9:5-6,24).
We will now show how the final pasuk of Parshat Naso may
also relate to that same event, and for an important thematic
reason!
BACK TO CHET HA'EGEL
Recall that in the aftermath of chet ha'egel [the sin of
the Golden Calf /see Shmot 32], God concluded that Bnei
Yisrael would not be able survive if His divine Presence - the
shechina" - remained in their midst. Therefore, God informed
Moshe that He would be taking away His "shechina" from the
camp of Bnei Yisrael (see Shmot 33:1-4). As a consequence of
this punishment, God instructed Moshe to re-locate his own
tent from inside the camp to OUTSIDE the camp:
"And Moshe took the tent, and set it up OUTSIDE the camp,
FAR AWAY from the camp, and called it the OHEL MOED, then
anyone who would seek God would need to go to the tent
OUTSIDE the camp (see Shmot 33:7).
From this perspective, the very placement of Moshe's tent
OUTSIDE the camp, and the fact that God would now only speak
to him at this location served as a constant reminder of Bnei
Yisrael's 'down-graded' status.
[Note as well that Moshe's tent outside the camp is now
named the OHEL MOED - the tent of meeting (between God and
Moshe) - a name that will later be used to describe the
Mishkan itself!]
With this background, we can better appreciate the
thematic importance of the wording of God's opening
commandment for Bnei Yisrael to build the Mishkan (in Sefer
Shmot):
"And you shall build for Me a MIKDASH, so that I can dwell
in THEIR MIDST..." (see Shmot 25:8)
Building the Mishkan would enable the shechina to return
to the camp of Bnei Yisrael.
[In regard to whether this commandment was given before
[Ramban] or after [Rashi] chet ha'egel - see TSC shiur on
Parshat Terumah. This thematic connection between the
Mishkan and the story of chet ha'egel certainly supports
Rashi's (and Chazal's) approach.]
Recall as well that even though God had answered Moshe
Rabeinu's plea to forgive their sin (see Shmot 33:12-19) by
invoking His thirteen attributes of Mercy (see 34:1-7) - the
"shechina" did not immediately return. Rather, in order to re-
establish their special covenantal relationship with God, Bnei
Yisrael are instructed to first build the Mishkan (see 35:1-6).
Therefore, during that entire interim time period, i.e. the
six months between Moshe's descent from Har Sinai on Yom
Kippur and the Mishkan's dedication on Rosh Chodesh Nisan, any
conversation between God and Moshe took place in the OHEL MOED
located OUTSIDE the camp.
[See Ibn Ezra, Ramban, and Chizkuni on 33:7!]
Until the Mishkan would be assembled, the existence of
Moshe's special OHEL MOED outside the camp served as constant
reminder to Bnei Yisrael that were still not worthy for God to
dwell in their midst.
Thus, the location of the Mishkan at the center of the
camp, and God speaking to Moshe from its innermost sanctuary
(see Shmot 25:21-22) would certainly serve as a sign to Bnei
Yisrael that God had forgiven their sin, and that they have
returned to their pre-"chet ha'egel" status.
THE BIG DAY!
With this background, it becomes clear why the highlight
of the day of the Mishkan's dedication would be the return of
God's "shechina" to the camp, a sign not only of their divine
pardon, but also an indication that they could now continue
their journey to Eretz Canaan.
Therefore, the FIRST time that God will speak to Moshe
from the Mishkan (in contrast to his OHEL MOED outside the
camp) will certainly be a major event in the eyes of the
nation - for it will indicate that their construction of the
Mishkan has achieved its primary goal!
From this perspective, the final pasuk of Parshat Naso
becomes the most important pasuk of the entire Parsha! It is
no longer a misplaced 'add on'; rather it should be understand
as the highlight of the entire chapter - for it describes how
God spoke to Moshe from the KAPORET in the OHEL MOED (see
7:89) - the key event that everyone was waiting for!
Note how this interpretation completes our parallel to
the other two descriptions of the dedication ceremony of the
Mishkan in Shmot and Vayikra:
* In Sefer Shmot, the Torah described the return of the
shechina (i.e the KAVOD and ANAN /see 40:34) at the conclusion
of MOSHE RABEINU's assembly of the Mishkan.
There, the Torah focuses on the leadership of Moshe
Rabeinu, and how God answered his prayer (see 34:8--9!)
["b'zchut" Moshe]
* In Sefer Vayikra, the Torah describes how the "shechina"
word return by the offering of special korbanot
(see 9:5-6 & 9:24).
There, the Torah focuses on the function of Aharon, and
the kohanim, who serve as the liaison between God and
His people.
["b'zchut" Aharon]
* Now, In Sefer Bamidbar, the Torah describes how the
shechina returned due to the leadership of the Nsiim.
["b'zchut" ha'Nsiim]
But why were these korbanot offered by the Nsiim so
instrumental towards the return of God's shechina?
To answer this question, we must return to our analysis
of Sefer Bamidbar.
A SHOW OF UNITY
Recall how the first ten chapters of Sefer Bamidbar
describe Bnei Yisrael's preparation for their journey from Har
Sinai to Eretz Canaan. During this journey it was the job of
the Leviim to transport the Mishkan, while the twelve tribes
both encamped and traveled with the Mishkan at their 'center'
(see Bamidbar 10:11-24).
On the day of the Mishkan's dedication, the leaders of
the twelve tribes - i.e. the Nsiim - took a joint initiative
to donate six transport wagons - that would help the Leviim
carry the Mishkan during their journey (see 7:1-9). Together
with the presentation of these six wagons, each and every
"nasi" also offered a special korban - in honor of the
dedication of the Mishkan (see 7:10).
Instead of each leader trying to outdo the other [ever
hear of such a thing?], to our surprise - each NASI offered
the exact same korban, and they all presented their korbanot
to Moshe Rabeinu together on that very first day.
For some reason, God instructed Moshe not to accept them all
on the same day; rather Moshe was commanded to set aside a
special day for each NASI (see 7:11!). Furthermore, the Torah
dedicates the next eighty psukim to detail the precise korban
offered by each leader on each consecutive day!
One could suggest that this show of 'unity' was so
important, that the Torah found it worthwhile to detail each
and every korban, even though they were all identical!
BACK TO DAY ONE!
It would have been significant enough had the Torah only
repeated each korban; but to 'top it off', the Torah continues
in 7:84-88 by providing us with a tally of all the offerings
brought over those twelve days (like we don't know how to
multiply!).
But note carefully how that summary unit begins:
"This was the dedication of the MIZBAYACH, on THE DAY that
it was anointed, by the NSIIM of Israel... (7:84)
The Torah has returned to 'Day One' of the dedication
ceremony, reminding us that all of these korbanot were first
presented jointly by all the Nsiim - on the very first day
(i.e. when the Mishkan was first dedicated):
This could provide us with a reason for this summary.
The Torah does not need to teach us multiplication; rather it
is emphasizing once again how all of these korbanot were
presented to Moshe Rabeinu by ALL of the NSIIM on the very
first day - in a show of national unity!
As these psukim describe what transpired on the first day of
the Mishkan's dedication - the Torah concludes (in 7:89) by
telling us how this joint offering enabled the most
significant event on that day to take place. From now on, God
would speak to Moshe from the Ohel Moed within the camp of
Bnei Yisrael! It may have been this show of unity that
inspired God to allow His "shechina" to return to dwell in
their midst.
The nation, via its leaders, had shown their worthiness to
return to their status as God's special nation - chosen to
represent Him before the eyes of all mankind.
United in purpose, Bnei Yisrael were now ready to leave
Har Sinai with God in their midst, to take the challenge of
establishing God's model nation in the Promised Land.
[See also Rashi on Shmot 19:2 "va'yichan" everyone as one
person with one heart...", describing how Bnei Yisrael first
encamped at Har Sinai.]
It may be that it was because of this collective effort,
where everyone acted together towards a common goal, while
keeping their own identity; that God found it important to
give each Nasi his own special day. By acting with unity,
each Nasi was now able to shine as an individual. It may have
been that understanding of the important balance between the
nation and the individual - that made room for God to 'join
along' with His nation, as they prepared for their next stage
of Redemption!
That show of unity was only short lived in Sefer
Bamidbar, as the nation returned to divisiveness as soon as
they left Har Sinai (see chapters 11 thru 25 in Sefer
Bamidbar). Nonetheless, that short moment of unity can remain
as inspiration for future generations, especially to their
leaders, and especially at times of historic potential.
shabbat shalom,
menachem
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