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ויהיו חיי שרה מאה שנה ועשרים שנה ושבע שנים .The Torah repeats the word “year” or “years” three times, even though this verse could have been written using the word שנה only once. We encounter a similar “waste” of the word “year” and “years” in Genesis 6,9 in connection with Noach, as well as in connection with בני ישראל, “the Children of Israel” in Numbers 8,19 where that word occurs no fewer than five times We also find such a repetitive use of the word “year” when we are told about Avraham’s death in Genesis 25,7. Even when reporting the death of Ishmael in Genesis 25,17 the word שנה is repeated three times. Some commentators claim that this is a feature of the Holy Tongue, which endeavours to be clear and unambiguous. When a large number of years (unit) is mentioned the word שנה, “year” appears in the singular mode, whereas when less than ten years are mentioned the years appear in the plural mode, i.e. שנים. There is an aggadic approach to these seemingly superfluous words, especially in our verse here (mentioned by Rashi) which sees in the wording an allusion to the fact that Sarah at her death was as pure and beautiful as at 7 or at 20 years respectively. Seeing that the word שנה did not occur at the beginning of the verse, the verse concludes with the summary שני חיי שרה. When reporting the death of Avraham and Ishmael, seeing that the verses commenced with the words ימי שני, these words are not again repeated at the end of the respective verses. It is possible that in all of these instances the word שני at the end is a hint that the persons concerned lived until the completion of that particular year.

ויקהל משה את כל עדת בני ישראל ויאמר אליהם אלה הדברים אשר צוה ה' לעשות אותם “Moses assembled the entire community of the Children of Israel and said to them: “these are the things that Hashem commanded.” If you take a good look at the order of these things you will find that the construction of the Tabernacle and all its appurtenances have been mentioned many times over. G’d mentioned it to Moses on two separate occasions. The first time it has been mentioned in detail occurred in Exodus 25,2 where the Torah commanded that Moses should accept a contribution from the people, listing the various materials needed for its construction. The second time this commandment is phrased more generally in Ki Tissa (31,2). The third time it is mentioned by Moses at this point in a general way when he commanded them that every wise-hearted person amongst them should get involved and not only donate materials but participate in the conversion of these materials for the construction. The fourth time the Torah reports that the instructions had been carried out (36,8). The Torah mentions the word ויעש, “he constructed” in connection with every stage of the building of the Tabernacle and its components. The fifth time the Torah mentions the Tabernacle and all its components is in Exodus 39,33-42 where separate mention is made of all the components handed over to Moses after they had been completed. The reason the Torah troubles itself to mention all this on five separate occasions is to demonstrate how beloved the Tabernacle and its construction was to G‘d. In Numbers 8,19 where the name בני ישראל occurs five times in the same verse in which the Torah warns that the Israelites must avoid becoming victims of G’d’s retribution, the reason for using the name בני ישראל five times in a row when pronouns would have sufficed is also in order to demonstrate how beloved the people were in the eyes of G’d at that time.
Our sages (Vayikra Rabbah 2,5) comment by illustrating the matter with a parable. A father who had an only son of whom he was extremely fond sent him off to school. When the son would come back, the father would ask him: “did you eat my son, did you drink my son, do you want to go to sleep my son?” We find a similar demonstration of how G’d reports matters which He liked when looking at the conversations conducted by Eliezer, servant of Avraham when he went to secure a wife for Yitzchak. Eliezer’s words are repeated by the Torah in great detail (Genesis, chapter 24). This prompted the sages in Bereshit Rabbah 60,8 to say that the mundane conversations of an Eliezer were more pleasing to G‘d than even the Torah-inspired discourses of later Torah scholars.” The truth of this is best illustrated when we reflect on the fact that the Torah devoted only a single word, or even letter, in order to inform us of some of its commandments. This is so in spite of the fact that the principal function of the Torah is to teach us the commandments.

And in His law: – He repeats in His law as “Noah, Noah” three times in one verse (Gen. 6:9) and “Israel” five times in one verse (Num. 8:19) and other instances besides, for such is the usage of the Hebrew language. And they say (i.e. the Grammarians and Commentators, in innumerable places) that it is by way of elegance (in diction). And our teachers of blessed memory comment (Babli, Abodah Zarah 19a): first it is called “the law of the Lord,” and lastly, when one is firmly established in it by study, it is made “His law” and is called by His name. The interpretation of

מאת בני ישראל has the same meaning as FROM AMONG THE MIDST OF (מתוך) THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, that is to say, they have been set aside from among the rest of the congregation for this purpose by a decree of the Omnipresent, and it is He who gave them (the Levites) to him, as it is said (Numbers 8:19) “And “I” have given the Levites as a gift [to Aaron]”.