Commentaire sur Les Nombres 26:64

ובאלה לא היה איש וגו׳ BUT AMONG THESE THERE WAS NO MAN [OF THEM WHOM MOSES AND AARON NUMBERED] — no man; but the decree consequent upon the incident of the spies had not been enacted upon the women, because they held the Promised Land dear. The men had said, (Numbers 14:4) “Let us appoint a chief and return to Egypt”, while the women said, (Numbers 27:4) “Give us a possession in the Land”. On this account, too, the chapter regarding the daughters of Zelophehad follows immediately here (Sifrei Bamidbar 133:1).

BUT AMONG THESE THERE WAS NOT A MAN OF THEM THAT WERE NUMBERED BY MOSES AND AARON THE PRIEST. For Joshua and Caleb [who were amongst those who were numbered at the first census] were not [included] now in this census, because they were over sixty years old, and the census was only of [people] aged between twenty and sixty, which [years] are the principal ones of a man’s life, similar to that which is stated in [the law of] Valuations,¹⁵⁶Leviticus 27:3. and it is then [in those years] that he goes forth to war in Israel,¹⁵⁷Above, Verse 2. and not after the age of sixty, as our Rabbis have said.¹⁵³Baba Bathra 121b. But when Scripture says [in the following verse], And there was not left a man ‘of them,’ save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun [the words “of them” do not refer to those who were numbered now in the wilderness of Sinai, but to] them that were numbered at the first [census] and did not die [in the wilderness, since Caleb and Joshua, being over sixty years old, were not numbered now in this second census].

ובאלה לא היה איש מפקודי משה ואהרן, “and among those counted now there had not been a single one who had been counted by Moses and Aaron.” Even though Joshua and Calev were still survivors of the original census, they were not included in the present census as only men between the ages of 20 and 60 were counted, and both Calev and Joshua were far older by then. However, when the Torah states that no man except Joshua and Calev had survived from the original census they had been mentioned because they had been included in the original census.

However, against the women. Rashi wishes to answer the question: Why did the Torah write “[no] man”? It should have said “no one was left.”

V. 64. ובאלה לא היה איש wie beim Egel, so waren nach ב׳׳ר auch bei den die Frauen nicht an der Verirrung und daher auch nicht an deren Folgen beteiligt. אותו הדור, heißt es daselbst, היו הנשים נודרות מה שאנשים פורצים: in dem Geschlechte der Wüste hielten die Frauen aufrecht, was die Männer niederrissen. Es bezieht sich übrigens dieses ובאלה nicht auf den unmittelbar zuvor genannten Levitenstamm; denn auch die Leviten waren in das מרגלים-Verhängnis nicht begriffen; es bezieht sich vielmehr auf die vorangehenden פקודי בני ישראל, den Hauptgegenstand dieser zweiten Zählung, die für die Verteilung des Landes, an welcher aber die Leviten keinen Teil hatten, von Wichtigkeit war.

While the women said “give us possession.” Meaning: They were also among those who cherished the land. They said [the daughters of Tzelofchad], “Give us a possession among our father’s brothers” (27:4).