A Drash for Beha’alotkha  (5766)

by Marc Mangel

 

End of the academic year, start of sabatical

Could drash on leadership (a lot in here) but instead: TE (Torah Esoterica)

 

Baptist Convention this week – more conservative, less conservative

All believe that the (English) bible is the word of God – just not sure what it says

 

Boy can we identify with that – especially today

Focus Ch 10, 35-36

Enclosed by inverted nun; only one other place in the Torah (Tehillim 107, come back to that)

Why?

 

Judah HaNasi

This is a book of its own — Bamidbar is really three books and the Torah 7

Mishlei “Torah has quarried her seven pillars” (9:1) These are the 7 books of the Torah

 

Rashi

The enclosed really does not belong here; it belongs  in Ch 2, where the flags are described

 

Rabbi Gamliele

In the future, this passage will be removed and written in its proper place. It

 

Abarbanel

Nun is an abbreviation for Nesoa

First Nun – when they enter the desert

Second Nun – when they are about to cross the desert

 

R Bachya

Numerical value of nun =50,  there are 50 paragraphs from BaMidbar 2:17, which describes the Miskan on the march to this passage

Why inverted?

 

Yitzchak Ha Levi

Turning back of Israel into the desert

 

Maharsha

Nun represents N’filah – falling [that is why it is not included in Ashrei]

Here Nun represents the downfall of Israel, but HaShem shows – through the

Inversion that a downfall will be inverted to a rise

 

Kli  Yakar

This passage is important because it emphasizes the obligation of Israel to have many children – the commandment of procreation is made into a book of its own!

 

Nachsoni describes reasoning beyond my ability to explain that myriads = 22,000

Torah is emphaszing the role of the individual in bringing the Schechinah, because who knows if by not participating you are reducing the number below 22,000

 

Nachsoni “But the halachic opinions do not explain the essence of the markings”

So we are left to wonder!