Midrash su Esodo 12:37

Another interpretation: David said (in Ps. 147:3): WHO HEALS THE BROKEN HEARTED…. These are the tribes since they had a broken heart, saying <that> Joseph might kill them. (Ps. 147:4:) HE RECKONS (rt.: MNH) THE NUMBER OF THE STARS.¹⁴Exod. R. 1:3. These are the tribes. Just as these stars only go forth by < their > names, as stated (ibid., cont.): HE GIVES THEM ALL NAMES; and likewise, when they come in, they come in with a reckoning (minyan, rt.: MNH), as stated (in Ps. 147:4): HE RECKONS (rt.: MNH) THE NUMBER OF THE STARS; so <also> in the case of the tribes, when they entered Egypt, it is written (in Deut. 10:22): WITH SEVENTY SOULS DID YOUR ANCESTORS GO DOWN TO EGYPT. Also, when they left, (according to Exod. 12:37): ABOUT SIX HUNDRED THOUSAND MEN ON FOOT. And before¹⁵The translation follows an emendation in Midrash Tanhuma (Jerusalem: Eshkol: n.d.), vol. 1, appendix, p. 89, n. 7. the tribes went down to Egypt, their names were specified (in Gen. 46). Also, when they entered Egypt, their names were specified, as stated (in Exod. 1:1): NOW THESE ARE THE NAMES OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL.

These are the accountings of the children of Israel according to their fathers' house etc (Numbers 2:32). On ten occasions were Israel counted: Once when they went down to Egypt "all the persons of Yaakov’s household who came to Egypt: seventy" (Genesis 46:27). A second time when they came out" The Children of Israel moved on from Ra’amses to Sukkot, about six hundred thousand on foot, menfolk apart from little-ones" (Exodus 12:37). A third time after the incident of the Golden Calf: "when you take up the head-count of the Children of Israel, in counting them, they are to give, each-man, a ransom for his life, for Ad-nai, when they count them, that there be no plague on them, when they count them. (Exodus 30:12). Twice in the Book of Numbers [chumash hapekudim]: once in connection with the formation of the camps (Numbers 1:2) and once in connection with the division of the land (Numbers 26:2). Twice in the days of Shaul "[Shaul] mustered them in Bezek, and the Israelites numbered 300,000, the men of Yehudah 30,000" and "Shaul mustered the troops and enrolled them at Telaim: 200,000 men on foot, and 10,000 men of Yehudah" (1 Samuel 11:8, 15:4). The eighth time in the days of David "Yoav reported to the king the number of the people that had been recorded: in Israel there were 800,000 soldiers ready to draw the sword, and the men of Yehudah numbered 500,000" (2 Samuel 24:9). The ninth time in the days of Ezra "The sum of the entire community was 42,360" (Ezra 2:64; see also Nehemiah 7:66). The tenth time will be in the future era, when, "the sheep shall pass again under the hands of One who counts them [said Ad-nai]" (Jeremiah 33:13).

Another matter, “your belly is a pile of wheat,” but would one of pine cones not be fairer than one of wheat? But it is possible for the world to exist without pine cones, but it is not possible for the world to exist without wheat. Rabbi Idi said: Just as this wheat kernel is cleft, so Israel’s circumcision is cleft.³¹This is a reference to peria, the process in which the membrane under the foreskin is split and pulled back (Maharzu). Rabbi Yosei bar Ḥananya said: Just as wheat absorbs, so too Israel absorbs the property of the nations of the world. That is what is written: “You shall devour all the peoples…” (Deuteronomy 7:16), and it is written: “You will consume the wealth of the nations and in their glory you will revel” (Isaiah 61:6). Rabbi Shimon ben Lakish said: Just as with wheat, its waste is measured with it, so too Israel, “from the hewer of your wood to the drawer of your water” (Deuteronomy 29:10).
Rabbi Yitzḥak said: Just as these wheat kernels, when they go out for sowing go out by measure, and when they enter from the grain pile they enter by measure, so too Israel, when they descended to Egypt they descended by number, as it is stated: “With seventy people, your ancestors descended to Egypt” (Deuteronomy 10:22), and when they ascended, they ascended by number, as it is stated: “some six hundred thousand men on foot” (Exodus 12:37). Rabbi Ḥonya said regarding the statement of Rabbi Yitzḥak: Just as the landowner does not monitor boxes of manure, and not boxes of hay, and not boxes of straw, and not chaff; why? Because they are considered worthless; so too, the Holy One blessed be He does not monitor the nations of the world, why, because they are considered worthless, as it is stated: “All the nations are like nothing before Him…” (Isaiah 40:17). Whom does He monitor? Israel, as it is stated: “When you take a census of the children of Israel…” (Exodus 30:12), “take a census of the entire congregation of Israel” (Numbers 1:2).
Rabbi Neḥemya [said] in the name of Rabbi Avun: The nations of the world have no planting, have no sowing, and have no root, and the three of them are in one verse: “It is as though they were not planted, as though they were not sown, as though their trunk had not taken root in the earth” (Isaiah 40:24). However, Israel has planting, as it is stated: “I will plant them in this land” (Jeremiah 32:41), and it is written “I will plant them upon their land” (Amos 9:15). They have sowing, as it is stated: “I will sow her for Me in the land” (Hosea 2:25). They have root, as it is stated: “It is coming that Jacob will take root” (Isaiah 27:6).
To what is this matter comparable? Hay, chaff, and straw were deliberating with each other. This one said: The land was sown for my sake, and that one said: The field was sown for my sake. The wheat said to them: Wait until the [time for] threshing arrives and we will know for whose sake the field was sown. The time of the threshing arrived, and when they entered the threshing floor, the field owner emerged to winnow it. The chaff went with the wind, he took the hay and cast it to the ground, he took the straw and burned it, and he took the wheat and made it into a pile. People would pass and everyone who saw it would kiss it, just as it says: “Kiss the grain” (Psalms 2:12). So too the nations of the world; these say: We are the true Israel, and the world was created for our sake, and those say: We are the true Israel and the world was created for our sake. Israel said to them: Wait until the day the Holy One blessed be He will arrive and we will know for whose sake the world was created. That is what is written: “For behold, the day is coming, burning like an oven [and all the wicked people and all the evildoers will be like straw; and that coming day will burn them]” (Malachi 3:19), and it is written: “You will winnow them and the wind will carry them” (Isaiah 41:16). However, it is stated in Israel’s regard: “But you will rejoice in the Lord, you will be glorified in the Holy One of Israel” (Isaiah 41:16).

(Numb. 22:4, cont.:) “Now Balak ben Zippor was king of Moab….” But was he not formerly a prince, as stated (in Josh. 13:21), “Evi, Rekem, Zur, Hur, and Reba, princes of Sihon?”¹⁰According to Enoch Zundel in his commentary, ‘Ets Yosef, Balak is to be identified with Zur. So also Issachar Ber Ashkenazi in his commentary, Mattenot Kehunnah, on the parallel in Numb. R. 20:4; Louis Ginzberg, The Legends of the Jews (Philadelphia: Jewish Publication Society of America, 1954), vol. III, p. 353; vol. VI, p. 136, n. 791. It is simply that when Sihon was killed they made him king in his place. (Numb. 22:4, cont.:) “At that time.” As it was the time that caused it for him. (Numb. 22:5:) “And he sent messengers to Balaam ben Beor at Pethor.” [Pethor (Petor) was] the name of his city.¹¹Numb. R. 20:7; Sanh. 105ab. But others say that [the name implies] he was a money-changer,¹²Since pator in Aramaic denotes a table, these interpreters would read the clause: AND HE SENT MESSENGERS TO BALAAM BEN BEOR AT A MONEY-CHANGER’S TABLE. Cf. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, Gen. 23:16. since the kings of the nations of the world took counsel with him, as the money-changer to whom they all would show [their coins]. Still others say that in the beginning he was an interpreter (poter) of dreams. He turned to being a diviner. Then he turned to the holy spirit.¹³See Numb. 24:2. (Numb. 22:5, cont.:) “To the land of his kinsfolk,” for Balak came from there, and [Balaam] had told him, “Your destiny is to become king.”(Numb. 22:5, cont.:) “To summon him.” Thus he wrote him, “Do not suppose that it is for myself alone that you are doing this and that I alone am honoring you. If you uproot them, you shall receive honor from all the nations, so that the Canaanites and the Egyptians shall all bow down to you.” (Numb. 22:5, cont.:) “Here is a people that has come out of Egypt.” He said to him, “As for you, how does it concern you?” He said to him (in Numb. 22:5, cont.), “’Look, they have covered the face (literally: eye) of the earth.’ [There are] two eyes upon which the land depends, Sihon and Og. They have destroyed them and covered their eyes. And [now] what do I do?” (Numb. 22:5, cont.:) “Now they are dwelling opposite me (mmwly).” [What is actually] written [in the Biblical text] is mmly (from the root, mwl, which means, "cut off"), just as it says (in Ps. 118:10), “in the name of the Lord I will cut them off (rt.: mwl).”¹⁴With the word rewritten in this sense, the end of Numb. 22:5 reads: NOW THEY ARE DWELLING [THERE] CUTTING ME OFF. This interpretation of Numb. 22:5 is also given by Rashi, ad loc. (Numb. 22:6:) “So come now please, curse (arah) [this people] for me.” What is the meaning of “curse ('rh) […] for me?” Perhaps I shall be able to control them little by little, like someone who picks (rt.: 'rh) figs. (Numb. 22:6, cont.:) “For they are mightier than I.” [It is] not that they are more valiant than I, nor [is it] that their forces are more numerous than mine. It is simply that they conquer through their mouth, [and this is] something that I cannot do. (Numb. 22:6, cont.:) “Perhaps I shall be able to smite them.” What reason was there for this one to engage them (i.e., Israel) in war? Did not the Holy One, blessed be He, tell them this, that [Israel] was not to take any of their land? [It was] simply that [Balak] was more of a master of sorceries and divinations than Balaam, for it is so written of him (in Numb. 22:2), “Now Balak [ben Zippor] saw (in a vision),” except that he did not really comprehend the things [he saw]. And so it says (in Is. 47:13-14), “You are wearied with your many deliberations; let those who study the heavens please stand up and save you; let those who gaze at the stars make known month by month whatever will come upon you. See they have become like straw; fire consumes them […].” When he saw that Israel would fall into his hand, he therefore gave his daughter over (to prostitution to lure Israel to sin);¹⁵See Numb. 25:1-15. Numb. 25:15 specifically identifies the sacred prostitute Cozbi as the daughter of Zur, whom the midrash (above, section 7:4) has already identified with Balak. and through her twenty-four thousand fell. To this end he would have engaged them in war, but he did not know how. (Numb. 22:6:) “Perhaps I shall be able to smite (nkh) them.” As one discounts (rt.: nkh) one twenty-fourth of a [se’ah];¹⁶On allowing a given species to have up to 1/24 of another species, see Kil. 2:1; yKil. 2:1 (27c); BB 6:2; BB 93b-94a, where as elsewhere a rova‘ is a quarter of a qav, which in turn is one sixth of a se’ah. Thus one rova’ equals one twenty-fourth of a se’ah. so also did twenty-four thousand fall from Israel there, [which is] one less.¹⁷24 x 20,000 = 480,000, and 24 x 5,000 = 120,000, it turns out that, if 25,000 is found to be 1/24 of 600,000 and only 24,000 fell, then 1,000 are missing In a long note Buber further explains that apart from the law of mixtures, in the removal of the hallah, what is taken is generally 1/24 of the dough (so Hal. 2:7). Buber also notes a variant reading which substitutes menabber (denoting one who removes the hallah) for menakkah (translated here as “discount”). So the Holy One cleansed Israel by removing 1/24 of the people. However, since there were 600,000 Israelites, 25,000 (=1/24 of 600,000), not 24,000, should have been removed. The thousand extra can be explained on analogy with the law of mixtures allowing 1/24 for impurities. The first part of the interpretation in the text comes from dividing 25,000 into two parts of 20,000 + 5,000 and then multiplying each separately and adding the results, instead of simply multiplying 25,000 by 24,000. Regarding the number of Israelites in the desert, Scripture gives the 600,000 figure only in Exod. 12:37. Cf. Exod. 38:26; Numb. 1:46; 2:32, which fix the figure at 603,550 adult males excluding Levites; also Numb. 26:57, which reports a census figure of 601,730 after the removal of the 24,000 in Numb. 25:9. (Numb. 22:6, cont.:) “And drive them away from the land,” for he only desired to drive them away, so that they would not enter the land. (Numb. 22:6, cont.:) “For I know that whomever you bless is blessed and that whomever you curse is cursed.” From where did he know? When Sihon desired to fight with Moab [and] was afraid because they were warriors, he hired Balaam and his father to curse Moab, for it says (in Numb. 21:27–29), “Therefore those who speak in parables say, ‘Come to Heshbon, let it be built; let the city of Sihon be established. For a fire has come forth from Heshbon, [a flame from the city of Sihon. It has devoured Ar of Moab…]. Woe be to you, O Moab!’” Ergo it says (in Numb. 22:6), “for I know [that whomever you bless is blessed and that whomever you curse is cursed].”

(Numb. 26:1-2:) “And it came to pass after the plague [that the Lord said unto Moses and unto Elazar ben Aaron the priest, saying,] ‘Take a census.’” Every time that they fell, they were required to be numbered.¹⁰Numb. R. 21:7. The matter is comparable to the wolf who went into the midst of the flock. The owner of the flock was obliged to count them to know how many were missing. Another interpretation (of Numb. 26:2): Why did he count them here? The matter is comparable to a shepherd to whom the householder has delivered a flock after numbering them. [After] he has fulfilled his guardianship, when he returns them, it is necessary for them to be numbered. Thus when Israel went out from Egypt the Holy One, blessed be He, delivered them to Moses after numbering [them], as stated (in Numb. 1:1-2), “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses in the Sinai desert …, ‘Take a census….’” So also, when they went out, it is written (in Exod. 12:37), “Then the Children of Israel traveled [from Ramases to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot].” Ergo, he received them with a numbering. [So when] he was about to pass away in the Plains of Moab (after completing his guardianship), he returned them with a numbering. It is therefore stated (Numb. 26:2), “Take a census.”

(Exod. 30:12): WHEN YOU TAKE <A CENSUS>. R. Joshua bar Nahmani the Priest said: The Holy One said to Moses: Go and number Israel.¹⁶PRK 2:8; Tanh., Exod. 9:1. Moses said to the Holy One: It is written (in Gen. 28:14): AND YOUR SEED SHALL BE LIKE THE DUST OF THE EARTH…; (and in Hos. 2:1 [1:10]): THE NUMBER OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL SHALL BE AS THE SAND OF THE SEA…. So are you saying: Go and number Israel! Moses said to the Holy One: I am unable to hold out in counting them. The Holy One said to him: Moses, it is not as you think. However, if you wish to hold out in counting Israel, take the initial letters of the tribes. Then you shall hold out in counting them. <Take> the resh from Reuben, the shin from Simeon, the lamed from Levi, etc., for each and every tribe. To what is the matter comparable? To a money-changer who had a boy. He said to him: Count these coins for me. He said to him: How can I count them? He said to him: count the tops of the stacks of coins, and you will hold out in the calculation. So when Moses met with difficulties in the calculation of Israel, the Holy One said to him: Take the initial letters of the tribes, and you shall hold out in their calculation. The resh of Reuben equals two hundred thousand;¹⁷This and the following numbers comprise numerical equivalents of the initial Hebrew letters times one thousand. the nun of Naphtali equals fifty thousand; the shin of Simeon equals three hundred thousand; the yod of Judah <plus> the yod of Joseph <plus> the yod of Issachar equal thirty thousand; the zayin of Zebulun equals seven thousand; the dalet of Dan equals four thousand; the gimel of Gad equals three thousand; the bet of Benjamin equals two thousand; the alef of Asher equals one thousand. The result is five hundred ninety-seven thousand. Where are the three thousand (from the original six hundred thousand of Exod. 12:37)? These were the ones who fell in the days of the <golden> calf, as stated (in Exod. 32:28): SO THE CHILDREN OF LEVI ACTED ACCORDING TO THE WORD OF MOSES, AND ABOUT THREE THOUSAND OF THE PEOPLE FELL ON THAT DAY. For that reason the Holy One said to Moses: Number Israel in order to know how many are missing.

Another interpretation (of Numb. 26:2): Why did he count them? <The matter> is comparable to a shepherd to whom the householder has delivered a flock after numbering <the sheep>. <After> he has fulfilled his guardianship, when he returns them, it is necessary for them to be numbered. Thus when Israel went out from Egypt <the Holy One> delivered them to Moses after numbering <them>, as stated (in Numb. 1:1–2): THEN THE LORD SPOKE UNTO MOSES IN THE SINAI DESERT …: TAKE A CENSUS…. So also, when they went out, it is written (in Exod. 12:37): THEN THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL TRAVELED FROM RAMASES TO SUCCOTH, ABOUT SIX HUNDRED THOUSAND MEN ON FOOT. Ergo, he received them with a numbering. <When> he was about to pass away in the plains of Moab (after completing his guardianship), he returned them with a numbering.

(Numb. 22:6, cont.:) PERHAPS I SHALL BE ABLE TO SMITE THEM. What reason was there for this one to engage them (i.e., Israel) in war? Did not the Holy One tell them this, that were not to take any of their land? <It was> simply that <Balak> was more of a master of sorceries and divinations than Balaam, for it is so written of him (in Numb. 22:2): NOW BALAK <BEN ZIPPOR> SAW (in a vision), except that he did not really comprehend the things <he saw>. And so it says (in Is. 47:13–14): YOU ARE WEARIED WITH YOUR MANY DELIBERATIONS; LET THOSE WHO STUDY THE HEAVENS PLEASE STAND UP AND SAVE YOU; LET THOSE WHO GAZE AT THE STARS MAKE KNOWN MONTH BY MONTH WHATEVER WILL COME UPON YOU. SEE THEY HAVE BECOME LIKE STRAW; <FIRE CONSUMES THEM>…. When he saw that Israel would fall into his hand, he therefore gave his daughter over (to prostitution);¹⁶See Numb. 25:1-15. Numb. 25:15 specifically identifies the sacred prostitute Cozbi as the daughter of Zur, whom the midrash (above, section 7:4) has already identified with Balak. and through her twenty-four thousand fell. To this end he would have engaged them in war, but he did not know how. (Numb. 22:6:) PERHAPS I SHALL BE ABLE TO SMITE (NKH) THEM. As one discounts (rt.: NKH) one twenty-fourth of a seah;¹⁷On allowing a given species to have up to 1/24 of another species, see Kil. 2:1; yKil. 2:1 (27c); BB 6:2; BB 93b-94a, where as elsewhere a rova‘ is a quarter of a qav, which in turn is one sixth of a se’ah. Thus one rova’ equals one twenty-fourth of a se’ah. so also did there fall from Israel twenty-four thousand, one <thousand> less <than should have fallen>. {Interpretation: 24 X 20,000 = 480,000, and 24 X 5,000 = 120,000, It turns out that, if 25,000 is found to be 1/24 of 600,000 and only 24,000 fell, then 1,000 are missing.}¹⁸In a long note Buber further explains that apart from the law of mixtures, in the removal of the hallah, what is taken is generally 1/24 of the dough (so Hal. 2:7). Buber also notes a variant reading which substitutes menabber (denoting one who removes the hallah) for menakkah (translated here as “discount”). So the Holy One cleansed Israel by removing 1/24 of the people. However, since there were 600,000 Israelites, 25,000 (=1/24 of 600,000), not 24,000, should have been removed. The thousand extra can be explained on analogy with the law of mixtures allowing 1/24 for impurities. The first part of the interpretation in the text comes from dividing 25,000 into two parts of 20,000 + 5,000 and then multiplying each separately and adding the results, instead of simply multiplying 25,000 by 24,000. Regarding the number of Israelites in the desert, Scripture gives the 600,000 figure only in Exod. 12:37. Cf. Exod. 38:26; Numb. 1:46; 2:32, which fix the figure at 603,550 adult males excluding Levites; also Numb. 26:57, which reports a census figure of 601,730 after the removal of the 24,000 in Numb. 25:9.

• Once on their descent to Egypt. It is written (in Deut. 10:22): WITH SEVENTY SOULS [DID YOUR ANCESTORS GO DOWN TO EGYPT].
• Once on their coming up, as stated (in Exod. 12:37): THEN THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL TRAVELED FROM RAMESES TO SUCCOTH, [ABOUT SIX THOUSAND].
• Once <here> in Parashah Ki Tissa.
• Twice in Waydabber (i.e., the book of Numbers):
• Once in <the chapter on> standards (Numb. 2) and
Once in <the chapter on> the division of the land (Numb. 26).
• Twice in the days of Saul: (I Sam. 15:4:) AND HE NUMBERED THEM IN TELAIM. (I Sam. 11:8:) AND HE NUMBERED THEM IN BEZEK.
• Once in the days of David, as stated (in II Sam. 24:9): AND JOAB GAVE THE SUM OF THE NUMBERING OF THE PEOPLE <UNTO THE KING>.
• Once in the coming up from the captivity, as stated (in Ezra 2:64): THE WHOLE CONGREGATION TOGETHER WAS 4 [2360].
• And once in the age to come, [of which it is stated] (in Jer. 33:13): THE SHEEP SHALL PASS AGAIN UNDER THE HANDS OF THE COUNTER.

And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth (Exod. 12:37). The distance from Rameses to Succoth is forty parasangs (approx. 43 miles), yet Moses’ voice could be heard at Succoth. Do not be surprised at this, for even the dust that Moses hurled into the air soared about for forty days, as it is said: And it shall become small dust over all the land of Egypt (Exod. 9:9). If the dust could spread over the whole of Egypt, which takes forty days to traverse, how much more likely it is that his voice could traverse forty parasangs. R. Akiba said: Succoth refers to the clouds, as it is said: For over all the glory shall be a canopy (sukkah) (Isa. 4:5). Likewise, in the future, And there shall be a canopy (sukkah) for a shadow in the daytime (ibid., v. 6). Besides children (Exod. 12:37). That is, besides little ones and women. And they baked cakes (ibid., v. 39). Actually, they did not manage to bake cakes. The word cakes refers to a cake baked on coal, as it is said: But make me thereof a little cake first, and bring it forth unto me (I Kings 17:13). An amazing miracle was performed for them by means of the cakes. They ate them twice a day for thirty days, until the manna descended for them. Neither had they prepared for themselves any victuals (Exod. 12:39). This was to demonstrate Israel’s worth, since they did not complain and say: “How can we cross the desert and the sea if we have no provisions?” This teaches us that they trusted Him. Concerning them, it is expressly stated in the post-Mosaic writing: Go, and cry in the ears of Jerusalem (Jer. 2:2). What was their reward for their faithfulness? Israel is the Lord’s hallowed portion (ibid., v. 3).

A census of Israel was taken on ten different occasions. The first occurred when they descended to Egypt, as is said: Thy fathers went down into Egypt with three score and ten persons (Deut. 10:29). Again, when they came out of Egypt, as it is said: And the children of Israel journeyed from Rameses to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men (Exod. 12:37). Once in the Book of Numbers (it was taken) with reference to the standards (Num. 2:21); once with regard to the spies (Num. 13);¹⁵There is no biblical evidence that a census was taken at the time of the spies.. in the days of Joshua when the land was divided (Josh. 18:10); twice in the time of Saul, as is said: And he numbered them with lambs in Telaim (I Sam. 14:4) and He numbered them with pebbles in Bezek (ibid. 11:8). What is indicated by the word Telaim? When they were prosperous, he counted them by means of their lambs (telayim), but when they were poor in deeds, he counted them with stones. What is bezek? It is a stone. He took a stone for each one of them and then totaled the stones. A census was taken in the days of David, as is said: Joab gave up the sum, the number of the people to the king (II Sam. 24:9); and again at the time of Ezra: The whole congregation together was forty and two thousand, three hundred and three score (Ezra. 2:14). In the time-to-come (a census will be taken), as is said: The flock shall again pass into the hands of Him that counteth them (Jer. 33:13), and in this instance: When thou takest the sum.

"And the children of Israel traveled from Raamses" (Exodus 12:37) - Rabbi Shmuel says, "Once they left, they [immediately] baked the dough that they had kneaded, as it is stated (Ibid. 39), 'and they baked dough.'" "And it was at the end of four hundred and thirty years, etc" (Ibid. 41) - from the time that the decree was decreed; as they only spent two hundred and ten years in Egypt. And on the day that they went down to Egypt, on that same day did they go out. And on that day Yosef went out from jail. Hence this night is a joyful occasion for all of Israel, as it is written (Ibid. 42), "It is a night of watchings for the Lord." In this world, he made a miracle for them at night, since it was a temporary miracle, but in the future to come, this night will become a day, as it is stated (Isaiah 30:26), "And the light of the moon will be like the light of the sun and the light of the sun will be seven times, etc." - like the light that the Holy One, blessed be He, created at first and hid in the Garden of Eden.

7 (Numb. 22:5) “And he sent messengers to Balaam ben Beor at Pethor”: [Pethor (Petor) was] the name of his city.⁷Sanh. 105ab. But others say that [the name implies] he was a money-changer,⁸Since pator in Aramaic denotes a table, these interpreters would read the clause: AND HE SENT MESSENGERS TO BALAAM BEN BEOR AT A MONEY-CHANGER’S TABLE. Cf. Targum Pseudo-Jonathan, Gen. 23:16. since the kings of the nations of the world took counsel with him, as the money-changer to whom they all would show [their coins]. Still others say that in the beginning he was an interpreter (poter) of dreams. He turned to being a diviner. Then he turned to the holy spirit.⁹See Numb. 24:2. (Numb. 22:5, cont.) “To the land of his kinsfolk,” for Balak came from there, and [Balaam] had told him, “Your destiny is to become king.”(Numb. 22:5, cont.) “To summon him”: Thus he wrote him, “Do not suppose that it is for myself alone that you are doing this and that I alone am honoring you. If you uproot them, you shall receive honor from all the nations, so that the Canaanites and the Amalakites shall all bow down to you.” (Numb. 22:5, cont.) “Here is a people that has come out of Egypt:” He said to him, “As for you, how does it concern you?” He said to him (in Numb. 22:5, cont.), “’Look, they have covered the face (literally: eye) of the earth.’ [There are] two eyes upon which the land depends, Sihon and Og. They have destroyed them and covered their eyes. And [now] what do I do?” (Numb. 22:5, cont.) “Now they are dwelling opposite me (mmwly)”: [What is actually] written [in the Biblical text] is mmly (from the root, mwl, which means, "cut off"), just as it says (in Ps. 118:10), “in the name of the Lord I will cut them off (rt.: mwl).”¹⁰With the word rewritten in this sense, the end of Numb. 22:5 reads: NOW THEY ARE DWELLING [THERE] CUTTING ME OFF. This interpretation of Numb. 22:5 is also given by Rashi, ad loc. (Numb. 22:6) “So come now please, curse (arah) [this people] for me”: What is the meaning of “curse ('rh) […] for me?” Perhaps I shall be able to control them little by little, like someone who picks (rt.: 'rh) figs. (Numb. 22:6, cont.) “For they are mightier than I”: [It is] not that they are more valiant than I, nor [is it] that their forces are numerous. It is simply that they conquer through their mouth, [and this is] something that I cannot do. (Numb. 22:6, cont.) “Perhaps I shall be able to smite them”: What reason was there for this one to engage them (i.e., Israel) in war? Did not the Holy One, blessed be He, tell them this, that [Israel] was not to take any of their land? [It was] simply that [Balak] was more of a master of sorceries and divinations than Balaam, for it is so written of him (in Numb. 22:2), “Now Balak [ben Zippor] saw (in a vision),” except that he did not really comprehend the things [he saw]. And so it says (in Is. 47:13-14), “You are wearied with your many deliberations; let those who study the heavens please stand up and save you, those who gaze at the stars.” When he saw that Israel would fall into his hand, he therefore gave his daughter over (to prostitution to lure Israel to sin);¹¹See Numb. 25:1-15. Numb. 25:15 specifically identifies the sacred prostitute Cozbi as the daughter of Zur, whom the midrash (above, section 7:4) has already identified with Balak. and through her, twenty-four thousand fell. To this end he would have engaged them in war, but he did not know how. Hence (as in Numb. 22:6), “Perhaps I shall be able to smite (nkh) them”: As one discounts (rt.: nkh) one twenty-fourth of a [se’ah];¹²On allowing a given species to have up to 1/24 of another species, see Kil. 2:1; yKil. 2:1 (27c); BB 6:2; BB 93b-94a, where as elsewhere a rova‘ is a quarter of a qav, which in turn is one sixth of a se’ah. Thus one rova’ equals one twenty-fourth of a se’ah. so also did twenty-four thousand fall from Israel there, [which is] one less.¹³24 x 20,000 = 480,000, and 24 x 5,000 = 120,000, it turns out that, if 25,000 is found to be 1/24 of 600,000 and only 24,000 fell, then 1,000 are missing In a long note Buber further explains that apart from the law of mixtures, in the removal of the hallah, what is taken is generally 1/24 of the dough (so Hal. 2:7). Buber also notes a variant reading which substitutes menabber (denoting one who removes the hallah) for menakkah (translated here as “discount”). So the Holy One cleansed Israel by removing 1/24 of the people. However, since there were 600,000 Israelites, 25,000 (=1/24 of 600,000), not 24,000, should have been removed. The thousand extra can be explained on analogy with the law of mixtures allowing 1/24 for impurities. The first part of the interpretation in the text comes from dividing 25,000 into two parts of 20,000 + 5,000 and then multiplying each separately and adding the results, instead of simply multiplying 25,000 by 24,000. Regarding the number of Israelites in the desert, Scripture gives the 600,000 figure only in Exod. 12:37. Cf. Exod. 38:26; Numb. 1:46; 2:32, which fix the figure at 603,550 adult males excluding Levites; also Numb. 26:57, which reports a census figure of 601,730 after the removal of the 24,000 in Numb. 25:9. (Numb. 22:6, cont.) “And drive them away from the land,” for he only desired to drive them away, so that they would not enter the land. (Numb. 22:6, cont.) “For I know that whomever you bless is blessed and that whomever you curse is cursed.” From where did he know? When Sihon desired to fight with Moab [and] was afraid because they were warriors, he hired Balaam and his father to curse Moab, for it says (in Numb. 21:27–29), “Therefore those who speak in parables say, [‘Come to Heshbon, let it be built; let the city of Sihon be established.] For a fire has come forth from Heshbon, [a flame from the city of Sihon. It has devoured Ar of Moab…]. Woe be to you, O Moab!’” Ergo it says (in Numb. 22:6), “for I know [that whomever you bless is blessed and that whomever you curse is cursed].”

7 (Numb. 26:1-2) “And it came to pass after the plague [that the Lord said unto Moses and unto Elazar ben Aaron the priest, saying,] ‘Take a census’”: Every time that they fell, they were required to be numbered. The matter is comparable to the wolf who went into the midst of the flock. The owner of the flock was obliged to count them to know how many were missing. Another interpretation (of Numb. 26:2): Why did he count them [here]? The matter is comparable to a shepherd to whom the householder has delivered a flock after numbering them. [After] he has fulfilled his guardianship, when he returns them, it is necessary for them to be numbered. Thus when Israel went out from Egypt the Holy One, blessed be He, delivered them to Moses after numbering [them], as stated (in Numb. 1:1-2), “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses in the Sinai desert …, ‘Take a census […].’” [Likewise] (in Exod. 12:37), “Then the Children of Israel traveled from Ramases to Succoth, about six hundred thousand men on foot.” Ergo, he received them with a numbering in Egypt. [So when] he was about to pass away from the world in the Plains of Moab (after completing his guardianship), he returned them with a numbering.

(Gen. 31:1:) NOW HE HEARD THE THINGS THAT LABAN'S CHILDREN WERE SAYING: JACOB HAS TAKEN EVERYTHING THAT BELONGS TO OUR FATHER. What is the meaning of JACOB HAS TAKEN? R. Hosha'ya said that the ministering angels were shoulders for Jacob.⁸⁴Codex Vaticanus Ebr. 34 reads, “porters, i.e., < ones > carrying on the shoulder.” (Ibid.:) JACOB HAS TAKEN EVERYTHING THAT BELONGS TO OUR FATHER, AND FROM WHAT BELONGS TO OUR FATHER HE HAS ACQUIRED ALL THIS WEALTH (kavod).⁸⁵Kavod generally means “glory” but can denote wealth (e.g., here and in Nahum 2:10). So Gen. R. 74:12. What was the WEALTH (kavod)? R. Simon said: < Wealth > from silver and gold. But did Laban have silver and gold? He had nothing but < animals of the > flock. Concerning what does it say: silver and gold? It is simply that the flocks of our father Jacob were different from the flocks of Laban. "And he had a lot of cattle" is not written here (in this context, i.e., in Gen. 30:43) but, AND HE HAD LARGE (RBWT) FLOCKS, in that they were fruitful and multiplying (RBWT). Moreover, the nations of the world had been coming to give Jacob silver and gold in order to acquire some of his flock. R. Simon said: There is no wealth (kavod) but silver and gold, as stated (in Nahum 2:10 [9]): PLUNDER SILVER! PLUNDER GOLD! < THERE IS NO END TO TREASURE, WEALTH (kavod) OUT OF EVERY PRECIOUS VESSEL >. So how many < animals of the > flock did he have? R. Tanhuma bar Abba said: a hundred and twenty times ten thousand (RBW').⁸⁶In biblical Hebrew this Aramaic form would be (RBWT), the exact word which appears in Gen. 30:43. See Gen. R. 73:11. It is therefore stated (in Gen. 30:43): SO THE MAN (Joseph) BECAME VERY VERY PROSPEROUS. Now < a single > VERY is said concerning Egypt (in Exod. 1:20): SO THE PEOPLE MULTIPLIED (rt.: RBH) AND BECAME VERY NUMEROUS; [And (according to Exod. 12:37) those < numbered six hundred thousand, i.e., > sixty times ten thousand (RBW'). But here (in Gen. 30:43) it is stated: VERY VERY for a total of a hundred and twenty times ten thousand (RBW').] How many sheep dogs did he have? R. Abba bar Kahana said: Three hundred and nine. R. Tanhuma said: Where is it shown? Q (= 100) B (= 2) Z (= 7) R (= 200).⁸⁷These letters make up the phrase, “kab (QB) of an alien (ZR).” A kab is a measure of capacity equivalent to about 2.2 liters. Jacob was entitled to the portion due an alien, which had a numerical value of 309. Hence the reckoning. (Gen. 30:43:) SO THE MAN (Jacob) BECAME VERY VERY PROSPEROUS. What is the meaning of BECAME PROSPEROUS (rt.: PRT)? That the Holy One broke through (rt.: PRT) the wall of < this > world and said to him: So do I break through (rt.: PRT) into the world to come for your children, as stated (in Micah 2:13): THE ONE WHO BREAKS THROUGH (rt.: PRT) GOES UP AHEAD OF THEM.