The Name Bamidbar
In English it is the Book of Numbers because it describes a census of the people. In Hebrew, it is Bamidbar - literally, "In the Wilderness".

The word "midbar" suggests a distinction between wilderness and civilisation.



The question arises of why midbar is a wilderness. Does it come from daber, "to speak"? There is a possible link; Rashi calls it Sefer Vay'daber, "The Book of 'And He spoke'", since vay'daber is the first Hebrew word of the book.


An alternative derivation, which may be closer to the mark, links midbar with d-v-r, a pasture, since the wilderness is a place where animals graze. In this sense, the word should not be translated "desert", but "wild place". Where the early verses of Bereshit make a distinction between chaos and order, the word midbar suggests a distinction between wilderness and civilisation.
One might even say that there is a distinction between midbar as wilderness where there are wild noises, and midbar as speech, which connotes social living and orderly communication.


Do the Numbers Count?

Why do governments need the information they derive from a national census? In order to know which groups need which services and facilities. In order to plan for the nation of the future. In order to gauge the trends and tendencies that mark the unfolding of national history.


In his own way, Moses had a similar purpose when, in obedience to the command of the Almighty, he carried out the census of the people of Israel. Yet, on occasions when it was human and not Divine motivation that led to the counting of people, our tradition frowned on the exercise. Counting people was a transgression in such circumstances.


The question is: Why? What does a census ask? How many people we have. Surely, it is a fair question. Yet, what does it tell us?


In one sense, nothing at all. It reduces human beings to a lowest common denominator. They are numbers, indistinguishable, without personality, uniqueness, emotions, ideas, aspirations, failings and hopes. More important than counting people is to be able to count on people, allowing each one to bring their own contribution to the well-being of all.


The Biblical passage at issue is Leviticus 23:11-16, where the word "Shabbat" actually appears three times.



Pharisees and Language
In the time of the Second Temple the Pharisees and Sadducees were in conflict on many issues. One of the most dramatic involved the date of Shavuot.


According to the Pharisees, the seven weeks leading up to Shavuot began on the second day of Pesach, since they interpreted the verse, "On the morrow of the day of rest", as referring to the Pesach festival. The Sadducees said that "day of rest" had its normal meaning of Shabbat, and began counting on the first Sunday of Pesach.


The Biblical passage at issue is Leviticus 23:11-16, where the word "Shabbat" actually appears three times. If the Pharisaic interpretation is accepted, then Shabbat means a different thing each time - "festival", "week", and "Sabbath". Is it logical that a word can have three meanings? The Pharisees' view recognises linguistic history and says "yes".


In English, take the word "man", which is sometimes "a male" and sometimes "humanity". Take the word "day", sometimes "24 hours", sometimes "an era". It all depends on the context.