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The summary of the entire Torah is as simple as this:
Love what HaShem loves; hate what HaShem hates.
All else is commentary.
בּמִדְבּר • B'midbar
(“In the Wilderness”)
The Fourth Book of Moses,
Commonly Called
Numbers
פָּרָשָׁה מַּטּוֹת
Parsha 42: Mattot • Continued
1. Vengeance on Midian (31:1-54)
(LY: ii) 1 ADONAI told Moshe, 2 “Avenge the people of Isra'el on the Midyanim. Afterward you shall be gathered to your people.”
3 Moshe spoke to the people, saying, “Arm men from among you for war, that they may go against Midyan, to execute ADONAI’s vengeance on Midyan. 4 You shall send one thousand out of every clan, throughout all the clans of Isra'el, to the war.” 5 So there were delivered, out of the thousands of Isra'el, a thousand from every clan, twelve thousand armed for war. 6 Moshe sent them, one thousand of every clan, to the war with Pinchas ben El‘azar the cohen, to the war, with the vessels of the sanctuary and the shofars[6] for sounding the alarm in his possession. 7 They fought against Midyan, as ADONAI commanded Moshe. They killed every male. 8 They killed the kings of Midyan with the rest of their slain: Evi, Rekem, Tzur, Hur, and Reva, the five kings of Midyan. They also killed Bil‘am ben B‘or with the sword. 9 The people of Isra'el took the women of Midyan captive with their little ones; and all their livestock, all their flocks, and all their goods, they took as plunder. 10 All their cities in the places in which they lived, and all their encampments, they burned with fire. 11 They took all the captives, and all the plunder, both of man and of animal. 12 They brought the captives with the prey and the plunder, to Moshe, and to El‘azar the cohen, and to the community of the people of Isra'el, to the camp at the plains of Mo’av, which are by the Yarden at Yericho.
(RY: ii, LY: iii) 13 Moshe and El‘azar the cohen, with all the chiefs of the community, went out to meet them outside of the camp. 14 Moshe was angry with the officers of the army, the captains of thousands and the captains of hundreds, who came from the service of the war. 15 Moshe said to them, “Have you saved all the women alive? 16 Look, these caused the people of Isra'el, through the counsel of Bil‘am, to commit trespass against ADONAI in the P‘or incident, and so the plague was among the community of ADONAI. 17 Now therefore kill every male among the little ones, and kill every woman who has ever slept with a man. 18 But all the young girls, who have never slept with a man, keep alive for yourselves.
19 “Encamp outside of the camp for seven days. Whoever has killed any person, and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves on the third day and on the seventh day, you and your captives. 20 You shall purify every garment, and all that is made of skin, and all work of goats’ hair, and all things made of wood.”
21 El‘azar the cohen said to the men of war who went to the battle, “This is the statute of the law which ADONAI has commanded Moshe. 22 However the gold, and the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead, 23 everything that may withstand the fire, you shall make to go through the fire, and it shall be clean; nevertheless it shall be purified with the water for impurity. All that doesn’t withstand the fire you shall make to go through the water. 24 You shall wash your clothes on the seventh day, and you shall be clean. Afterward you shall come into the camp.”
(LY: iv) 25 ADONAI told Moshe, 26 “Count the plunder that was taken, both of man and of animal, you, and El‘azar the cohen, and the heads of the fathers’ households of the community; 27 and divide the plunder into two parts: between the men skilled in war, who went out to battle, and all the community. 28 Levy a tribute to ADONAI of the men of war who went out to battle: one soul of five hundred; of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks. 29 Take it from their half, and give it to El‘azar the cohen, for ADONAI’s wave offering. 30 Of the people of Isra'el’s half, you shall take one drawn out of every fifty, of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the flocks, of all the livestock, and give them to the L’vi’imLevites, who perform the duty of ADONAI’s tabernacle.”
31 Moshe and El‘azar the cohen did as ADONAI commanded Moshe.
32 Now the plunder, over and above the booty which the men of war took, was six hundred seventy-five thousand sheep, 33 seventy-two thousand head of cattle, 34 sixty-one thousand donkeys, 35 and thirty-two thousand persons in all, of the women who had not known man by lying with him. 36 The half, which was the portion of those who went out to war, was in number three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep; 37 and ADONAI’s tribute of the sheep was six hundred seventy-five. 38 The cattle were thirty-six thousand, of which ADONAI’s tribute was seventy-two. 39 The donkeys were thirty thousand five hundred, of which ADONAI’s tribute was sixty-one. 40 The persons were sixteen thousand, of whom ADONAI’s tribute was thirty-two persons. 41 Moshe gave the tribute, which was ADONAI’s wave offering, to El‘azar the cohen, as ADONAI commanded Moshe.
(LY: v) 42 Of the people of Isra'el’s half, which Moshe divided off from the men who fought 43 (now the community’s half was three hundred thirty-seven thousand five hundred sheep, 44 thirty-six thousand head of cattle, 45 thirty thousand five hundred donkeys, 46 and sixteen thousand persons), 47 even of the people of Isra'el’s half, Moshe took one drawn out of every fifty, both of man and of animal, and gave them to the L’vi’im, who performed the duty of ADONAI’s tabernacle, as ADONAI commanded Moshe.
48 The officers who were over the thousands of the army, the captains of thousands, and the captains of hundreds, came near to Moshe. 49 They said to Moshe, “Your servants have taken the sum of the men of war who are under our command, and there lacks not one man of us. 50 We have brought ADONAI’s offering, what every man found: gold ornaments, armlets, bracelets, signet rings, earrings, and necklaces, to make atonement for our souls in the presence of ADONAI.”
51 Moshe and El‘azar the cohen took their gold, even all worked jewels. 52 All the gold of the wave offering that they offered up to ADONAI, of the captains of thousands, and of the captains of hundreds, was sixteen thousand seven hundred fifty shekels.[GN] 53 The men of war had taken booty, every man for himself. 54 Moshe and El‘azar the cohen took the gold of the captains of thousands and of hundreds, and brought it into the Tent of Meeting for a memorial for the people of Isra'el in the presence of ADONAI.
6. Hebrew חֲצֹצְרָה (chatsotsrah), trumpet. [BACK]
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ANXIOUSLY WATCHING FOR MASHIACH’S RETURN,
SPEEDILY AND IN OUR DAY. MARANA, TA!
