“And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month in the second year after they had left the land of Egypt, saying: Take a census of the entire congregation of the children of Israel by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names, every male by their head count."
The Midrash says that when the nations of the world saw that the Israelites had received the Torah, they became jealous and asked: What did Israel do to deserve greater closeness to God than the other nations?
The Holy One, Blessed be He, silenced them, saying: “Bring your genealogical records, just as My children bring theirs - ‘and they declared their pedigrees after their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names’" .
There is great significance in a name. Not only that, but sometimes God Himself calls His creations by name, as when the Children of Israel descended into Egypt. The Midrash Rabbah says: “And these are the names of the Children of Israel who came into Egypt with Jacob; every man and his household came."
The Israelites are compared to the heavenly hosts. Here it says “names," and regarding the stars it also says “names," as it is written: “He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them" [Psalms 147]. Even the Holy One, Blessed be He, when the Children of Israel descended to Egypt, counted them and called each by name, as it is written: “And these are the names of the children of Israel" .
Sometimes the calling of a name by the Almighty is stated explicitly in the Torah: “See, I have called by name Bezalel son of Uri son of Hur, of the tribe of Judah" . From this we learn the tremendous importance of a name, for it reflects the role and mission of the person who bears it in this world. Great Divine assistance is granted to parents when they name their child shortly after birth.
Sometimes a person’s mission is private within the larger collective, and sometimes the mission of the individual is inseparable from that of the nation, requiring him to set aside his personal concerns entirely.
Thus, in the census at the beginning of the portion of Ki-Tisa, where the Israelites were commanded to give a half-shekel, the census served a national purpose: funding the foundations of the Mishkan. “And the silver of those who were counted of the congregation was a hundred talents and one thousand seven hundred and seventy-five shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary" . The Mishkan and the Divine Presence within it were not solely the concern of the Kohanim and Levites, but of all Israel.
So too in our portion, the census appears to have an important national purpose, beyond simply expressing God’s love for Israel. What was that purpose? “From twenty years old and upward, all who go out to the army in Israel, you and Aaron shall count them by their armies."
Rashi explains: “All who go out to the army" teaches that no one younger than twenty goes out to war. Rabbeinu Bachya adds that a person does not possess the necessary strength for battle before the age of twenty, as the Sages said: “At twenty, one pursues."
A wonderful commentary was produced by many Torah scholars clarifying Rashi’s words in a pure and refined manner, with simple and accessible explanations, as they themselves state in the introduction. However, I wondered why they explained the phrase “all who go out to the army" merely as an age qualification, and not as an additional condition for inclusion in the census - namely, that one must also be physically fit and capable of military service.
My difficulty arises because the Rashbam, Rabbi Shmuel ben Meir, grandson and student of Rashi, writes explicitly regarding the verse “Raise the head of the entire congregation of the children of Israel" that the people were now preparing to enter the Land of Israel, and therefore twenty-year-olds fit for military service had to be counted. For on the twentieth day of the second month, the cloud rose from above the Tent of Meeting, as described later in the portion of Beha’alotcha: “We are journeying to the place..." Therefore, at the beginning of that month, the Holy One, Blessed be He, commanded that they be counted.
It follows that to be included in the census, one had to be “going out to the army" - a recruit fit for battle. The Malbim similarly explains that because the nation was preparing to enter the Land of Israel, it was necessary to determine the number of fighting men and organize them under banners as an army prepared for war.
It is no coincidence that the phrase “every man of the army" appears twelve times in the portion. In the army, the mission of the individual becomes inseparable from the mission of the collective. A soldier must put aside his individuality, his family life, and even concern for his household, to the extent that he may write a conditional bill of divorce for his wife before battle, so that all his thoughts may be devoted to victory over the enemy.
As mentioned, this occurred on the first of Iyar in the second year after the Exodus from Egypt. Had Israel not sinned, they would soon have entered Eretz Yisrael to wage war against the seven nations dwelling there. As it is written: “And it came to pass in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth day of the month, that the cloud was taken up from over the Tabernacle of Testimony; and the children of Israel set forward on their journeys out of the wilderness of Sinai..." .
Thus, only twenty days after the census, the cloud rose from above the Mishkan and Israel began traveling toward the Land of Israel in preparation for the great holy war - the conquest of the land.
For this purpose, Moshe and Aharon appointed a prince, a commander, for each tribe. Each tribal leader was responsible for counting the soldiers of his tribe, subject to the requirements of age and fitness. The same pattern later appears in the mobilization for the war against Midian: “A thousand from each tribe, a thousand from each tribe throughout all the tribes of Israel, shall you send to the army" , including the tribe of Levi.
The common denominator among all the soldiers was their shared purpose and willingness to risk self-sacrifice in battle. Therefore it says: “Raise the head of the entire congregation of the children of Israel by their families, by their fathers’ houses, according to the number of names..." Age and physical ability matter, but above all, the head must be “raised" - elevated - because these men are emissaries of the entire congregation of Israel.
Every soldier, every member of Israel’s armed forces, must recognize the greatness of his mission and be prepared to sacrifice his life for the collective good. Only then are they worthy to be counted “by name." Although the verse primarily concerns infantry soldiers, the spirit of battle within each individual is the essential foundation. If, God forbid, a person is fearful or fainthearted because of sins in his hands, he is exempt from fighting.
Only after establishing fighting spirit and dedication to the cause do we examine age, health, and physical capability. Whoever meets those criteria is counted among the names of the children of Israel.
The moral quality of the warrior is also essential. The Midrash teaches that in the generation of King David many casualties occurred because there were informers among them, whereas in the generation of King Ahab - despite widespread idolatry - they were victorious because they did not betray one another [Midrash Shochar Tov, Tehillim 7].
The Gemara in Tractate Chagigah [14a] states: “Nothing is more beautiful in the study hall than an old man, and nothing is more beautiful in war than a young man."
It is not for nothing that the Book of Numbers is called the “Book of Censuses": “From twenty years old and upward, all who go out to the army in Israel, you shall count them by their armies." In preparation for entering the Land, Israel had to prepare for the mitzvah war of conquering the Land of Israel.
This differed from the earlier war against Amalek, where Moshe told Yehoshua: “Choose men for us and go fight Amalek." There, the primary requirement was that they be mighty and God-fearing, worthy of Divine assistance. But the conquest of the Land of Israel was a national mission requiring participation from all the tribes, subject to age and health requirements, with each tribal leader responsible for recruiting his men.
Incidentally, Rashi comments regarding Moshe’s heavy hands during the war against Amalek that Moshe was criticized for not participating directly in the battle himself. Even Moshe Rabbeinu - the greatest prophet, already eighty years old - was expected to join the war effort.
I remember when we left Yeshivat Shaalvim for the Yom Kippur War and bid farewell to our teachers. My teacher, Rabbi Shimon Zalzenik said to me and my study partner, Moshe Cohen: “If only I possessed military skills like yours, I would come with you."
Indeed, this was an extraordinary innovation. A nation of slaves that had only a year and a half earlier emerged from centuries of bondage established an army drawn from every segment of society, prepared to wage a multi-front holy war.
The Yerushalmi in Shevi’it [6] states that Yehoshua fought not only the seven nations but thirty-one kings. Yehoshua sent letters throughout the Land of Israel declaring: “Whoever wishes to surrender may surrender; whoever wishes to make war may make war." Thirty-one kings chose war and fell.
The Ramban explains: “Moshe and the princes needed to know the number of the warriors and the population of each tribe in order to arrange them in military formations in the plains of Moav. For the Torah does not rely on miracles that one man will pursue a thousand. Therefore the census was conducted specifically for all who go out to the army."
Yet the army of Israel is unlike the armies of the world. The tremendous importance of fighting spirit was already revealed in the war against Amalek: “The Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation." Israel’s enemies are considered the enemies of God, and Israel’s wars are wars fought for God.
For this reason, Numbers contains many laws regarding the sanctity of the military camp, including proper sanitation and the prohibition against destroying fruit trees during war. The Rambam writes at the end of Hilchot Melachim that a soldier must know he is fighting for the sake of God’s unity, as it says: “For he fights the wars of the Lord."
It is no coincidence that congregations recite before Torah readings the verse: “Arise, O Lord, and let Your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate You flee before You." We regard the enemies of Israel as the enemies of God. The Gemara in Tractate Megillah [17b] even teaches that war can be a precursor to redemption.
At the same time, we must consider the latter half of the verse: “Raise the head of the entire congregation of the children of Israel... every male by their head count." The Gemara states: “It is the way of a man to conquer, and not the way of a woman to conquer" [Yevamot 65b]. In Tractate Nazir [59a], the Gemara asks: “From where do we know that a woman may not go out carrying weapons of war?" The verse says: “A man’s garment shall not be upon a woman" .
Nevertheless, in a holy war everyone participates, “even a groom from his chamber and a bride from her canopy" [Sotah 44a].
According to Chazal, the bride leaves her canopy while her groom is drafted to war, left alone in sorrow and anxiety instead of beginning married life peacefully at home. Some explain that women participated in support roles, supplying water and food to the fighters.
In our own generation as well, many women leave behind the normal rhythm of home life and enter “combat mode," carrying the responsibilities of both father and mother while living beneath the constant cloud of worry. King David says: “All the glory of the king’s daughter is within." Perhaps one may interpret that the courage, modesty, humility, and perseverance of the daughters of Israel during wartime - while bearing the double and triple burden of the home front - constitute their highest glory.
And in honor of Jerusalem Day this week, it is fitting to conclude with the words of our Sages in Tractate Makkot [10b] on the verse “Our feet stood within your gates, O Jerusalem": “What caused our feet to stand firm in battle? The gates of Jerusalem that were occupied with Torah study."
May every military division merit an organic unit of Torah scholars, with yeshivot established along our borders as part of the defense effort, alongside military preparedness. Through this, security - both physical safety and inner confidence - and the redemption of Zion will come.
The author is the CEO of Tzifha International Real Estate