AND IT CAME TO PASS AFTER THE PLAGUE.¹ God spoke to Moses. He also spoke to Eleazar via Moses.² And Moses and the elders of Israel commanded the people³ (Deut. 27:1) and Then sang Moses and the children of Israel⁴ (Ex. 15:1) are similar.

footnotes: ¹ This line concludes chapter 25, verse 19, and continues into chapter 26, verse 1. ² I.E.’s interpretation of: That the Lord spoke unto Moses and unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest… ³ Its meaning is: Moses commanded the elders, who then commanded Israel. ⁴ Its meaning is: Moses taught the song to the Israelites. See I.E. on Ex. 15:1 (Vol. 2, p. 291).

Scripture states after the plague because God said, Unto these⁵ the land shall be divided (v. 53).

footnotes: ⁵ Those who survived the plague.

AND MOSES AND ELEAZAR THE PRIEST SPOKE. In place of his father.⁶ It is possible that Eleazar served as Moses’ spokesman as Aaron did.⁷

footnotes: ⁶ Now that Aaron was dead, Eleazar spoke God’s word to the people. ⁷ He not only served as spokesman in this case but did so in all other cases.

WITH THEM. Otam (with them)⁸ means them. Scripture should have read ittam (with them). Hence I.E.’s comment. is similar to dabbero (speak…unto him) in speak peaceably unto him (Gen. 37:4).⁹ is irregular, for it is a compound of dabber (speak) and oto (him). Dabbero literally means speak him. We thus sees that Scripture employs the term “him” with the meaning of “with him.” The same applies to the term otam (them). Scripture occasionally employs it with the meaning of “with them.”

footnotes: ⁸ Otam ⁹ Dabbero

FROM TWENTY YEARS OLD AND UPWARD. This means that they took the sum of the people¹⁰ is short for: they took up the sum of the people from twenty years old and up. as God commanded Moses.

footnotes: ¹⁰ In other words, From twenty years old and upward

[AND THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL, THAT CAME FORTH OUT OF THE LAND OF EGYPT.] Scripture states the aforementioned because there were many among those who were numbered who came out of Egypt.¹¹ They most likely came to about half the number of the Israelites. Scripture starts with Reuben in imitation of the manner in which the Israelites¹² were first numbered in the wilderness of Sinai.

footnotes: ¹¹ Those who were under the age of twenty when they left Egypt did not die in the wilderness. ¹² See Num. 1:20.

WHO STROVE. The word hitzu (strove) is similar in meaning to the word yinnatzu (strive) in And if men strive together (Ex. 21:22).¹³ means strove.

footnotes: ¹³ In other words, hitzu

WITH KORAH. I have already explained this.¹⁴

footnotes: ¹⁴ See I.E. on Num. 16:35.

AND THEY BECAME A SIGN.¹⁵. Compare, that they may be a sign¹⁶. unto the children of Israel (Num. 17:3).¹⁷ here means a sign. The word nes can mean banner or miracle. Hence I.E.’s comment.

footnotes: ¹⁵ Hebrew, nes ¹⁶ Hebrew, ot ¹⁷ In other words, nes

NOTWITHSTANDING THE SONS OF KORAH DIED NOT. Samuel,¹⁸ his sons, and his grandsons who were singers¹⁹ and were called the Korahites²⁰ is proof of this.²¹ The Book of Psalms states, For the leader; a Psalm of the sons of Korah (Ps. 49:1). The Torah also records the family of the Korahites (v. 58). Scripture mentions the sons of Korah with the sons of Reuben because the adult and the minor sons of Dathan and Abiram died. The wickedness of Dathan and Abiram was thus greater than the wickedness of Korah.²²

footnotes: ¹⁸ The prophet Samuel. ¹⁹ In the temple. ²⁰ See I Chron. 6:18-23. ²¹ That Korah’s children did not die. ²² Hence their children died. When Moses asked Dathan and Abiram to come to him, they refused and insulted Moses. We do not find the same with Korah (Num. 16:12-14).

THE JAMINITES. Do not seek grammatical consistency in names. Compare, puvvah²³ and puni (Punites) (v. 23).²⁴ rather than puni to be used for a member of Puvvah’s family. From shefufam²⁵ Scripture derives shufami (v. 39).²⁶ to be used. Scripture also reads: of yimnah (Imnah), the family of yimnah (v. 44), not ha-yemini²⁷. as it does in the case of bri’ah²⁸ and beri’iy (Beriites)²⁹ (v. 44); Chaggi³⁰ and shuni were sons of Gad. Scripture refers to members of their family by the terms chaggi and shuni rather than chaggi’iy or shuni’iy. and shuni (v. 15) lacking the yod gentile.³¹ On the other hand, the yod of chaggi and shuni might be the yod gentile and the yod of the proper name³² of the names of chaggi and shuni. is missing. The latter is correct. After Reuben, Scripture lists Simeon and Gad, who pitched next to Reuben.³³ However, Manasseh is mentioned before Ephraim.³⁴ The order is reversed in the wilderness of Sinai.³⁵ It appears that this is due to their number, for the sons of Ephraim were more numerous than the sons of Manasseh in the wilderness of Sinai by eight thousand and three hundred,³⁶., 35). and in the plains of Moab the sons of Manasseh numbered more than the sons of Ephraim by twenty thousand and two hundred.³⁷ No mention is made of the family of the following five sons of Benjamin: Becher, Gera, Naaman, Rosh, and Ard.³⁸

footnotes: ²³ Puvvah the son of Issachar. ²⁴ We would expect puvvi ²⁵ The son of Benjamin. ²⁶ As the term for a member of his family. However, we would expect the term shefufami ²⁷ Which is the correct grammatical form for a member of the family of yimnah ²⁸ The son of Asher. ²⁹ The family of Beriah. ³⁰ Chaggi ³¹ These terms are thus irregular. ³² The yod ³³ And similarly the other tribes. In other words, Scripture does not list the tribes in the order of their births but by their banners. See Num. 10:11-28. ³⁴ In verses 28-34. ³⁵ In Num. 1:32-35. ³⁶ Hence they were there mentioned first. At the census taken in the wilderness of Sinai, Ephraim numbered 40,500 (Num. 1:33) and Manasseh numbered 32,200 (Ibid ³⁷ Hence they were mentioned first. See verses 34 and 37. ³⁸ See Gen. 46:21.

OF AHIRAM.³⁹ Ahiram⁴⁰ is the same as Ehi.⁴¹ Shephupham⁴² is the same as Muppim,⁴³ and Hupham⁴⁴ is the same as Huppim.⁴⁵ The Ard and Naaman mentioned in our verse are the sons of Bela.⁴⁶ Others say that Naaman and Ard⁴⁷ were among those who descended to Egypt and that they are the sons of Bela the son of Benjamin.⁴⁸

footnotes: ³⁹ There is a discrepancy between the sons of Benjamin as given in verses 38-40 and those given in Gen. 46:21. Hence I.E.’s comments. ⁴⁰ In our verse. ⁴¹ In Gen. 46:21. ⁴² In verse 39. ⁴³ In Gen. 46:21. ⁴⁴ In verse 39. ⁴⁵ In Gen. 46:21. ⁴⁶ Whereas the persons bearing the same names mentioned in Gen. 46:21 are the sons of Benjamin. ⁴⁷ Mentioned in our verse. ⁴⁸ In other words, they and the Naaman and Ard mentioned in Genesis are one and the same. However, Scripture omitted their father’s name in Genesis.

OF SHUHAM. He is the same as Hushim.⁴⁹

footnotes: ⁴⁹ Mentioned in Gen. 46:23. There is thus no discrepancy in the names of the son of Dan.

THESE ARE THE FAMILIES OF DAN AFTER THEIR FAMILIES. For hushim was divided into many families.⁵⁰ follows of Shuham (also called Hushim).

footnotes: ⁵⁰ Hence the family of the Shuhamites

THE LAND SHALL BE DIVIDED. It means that the land shall be divided among the tribes by lot.

ACCORDING TO THE LOT SHALL THEIR INHERITANCE BE DIVIDED BETWEEN THE MORE AND THE FEWER. To those who were numbered.⁵¹

footnotes: ⁵¹ Those who were counted by Moses and Eleazar. See Num. 26:1,2.

OF GERSHON. Scripture opens with the first-born.⁵² It mentions Gershon’s son Libni. It does not mention Shimei.⁵³ It is possible that he had no children. On the other hand, Shimei might have had children and they died childless. Scripture then mentions the children of Hebron the son of Kohath.⁵⁴ It does not name Uzziel.⁵⁵ It then mentions the sons of Merari⁵⁶. Mahli and Mushi were sons of Merari. See Ex. 6:19. and goes back and refers to the sons of Itzhar.⁵⁷ Then it mentions the sons of Amram.⁵⁸ Scripture places them last⁵⁹ because it goes on to explain what happened to the grandsons of Amram.⁶⁰

footnotes: ⁵² Of Levi. See Gen. 46:11. ⁵³ Gershon’s other son. See Ex. 6:17. ⁵⁴ Ex. 6:18. ⁵⁵ Son of Kohath. See Ex. 6:18. ⁵⁶ The family of the Mahlites, the family of the Mushites ⁵⁷ The Korahites. See Num. 16:1. ⁵⁸ Amram was Kohath’s first-born. See Ex. 6:18. ⁵⁹ Even though Amram was born before Hebron and Izhar. ⁶⁰ In verses 60 and 61.

THE KORAHITES. They are the sons of Korah.⁶¹ Scripture mentions Jochebed out of respect to her sons. It does not speak of her mother, because Scripture is being brief.⁶² Asriel, whom she bore⁶³ (I Chron. 7:14) is similar.⁶⁴

footnotes: ⁶¹ For Korah was then dead. ⁶² Our verse literally reads: And the name of Amram’s wife was Jochebed, the daughter of Levi, whom she bore. Scripture does not identify the one who did the bearing, i.e., Jochebed’s mother. ⁶³ Translated literally. ⁶⁴ Here too Scripture omits the subject.

AND THEY THAT WERE NUMBERED. The Levites. The Levites increased by seven hundred in this numbering.⁶⁵ It is amazing that the Levites increased by only seven hundred. Look! The Israelites from among whom all those above the age of twenty died⁶⁶ numbered about the same as they did during their first numbering.⁶⁷ [The small increase in the number of Levites is strange] for the Levites were not included in the numbering of Israel.⁶⁸ Eleazar the Kohen proves the latter.⁶⁹

footnotes: ⁶⁵ The first time the Levites were counted they numbered 22,300. See Num. 3:39 along with I.E.’s comment on it. Their number here is given as 23,000. The Levites thus increased by 700 in close to 40 years. ⁶⁶ By the time the census recorded in our chapter was taken. See verse 64. ⁶⁷ The number of Israelites at the first census came to 603,550 (Num. 1:46). They now numbered 601,730. ⁶⁸ By God’s decree only those above the age of 20 who were numbered in the wilderness of Sinai had died by the time of the second census. See verse 64 and Num. 14:29. This decree did not fall upon the Levites. ⁶⁹ Had the Levites been included in the numbering, Eleazar too would be dead, for he was most likely above the age of twenty when the first census was taken.

BUT AMONG THESE THERE WAS NOT A MAN. This verse refers to the number of the children of Israel.⁷⁰ refers to the number of the children of Israel.

footnotes: ⁷⁰ The term these

SAVE CALEB THE SON OF JEPHUNNEH. Caleb is mentioned before Joshua,⁷¹ following God’s word.⁷²

footnotes: ⁷¹ Even though Joshua was more important. ⁷² God mentioned Caleb before Joshua in Num. 14:30.