summary

Parashat Naso (Numbers 4:21 – 7:89) opens by concluding the censuses of the priestly clans which was begun in the previous parasha. The function of the priests seemed rather mundane but in the Israelite cult were vital for maintaining the holiness (or separateness) of the portable Sanctuary.

The importance of people remaining ritually pure and therefore holy in the camp, are the concern of chapter 5. The constant presence of God in the camp was the motivation behind this. It is illustrated by mentioning three situations that can cause defilement of the camp: those who need to be removed from the camp, restitution from a robber and the case of sotah – a woman accused by her husband of infidelity. In each case, the aim is to restore the person to the community, preserving the family structure and the purity of camp.

The next subject concerns nedarim (vows) which are mentioned in many places in the Torah. Here, they concern vows used to pledge abstinence for religious purposes, those of the nazir or nazirite. Apart from abstaining from alcohol and contact with the dead, not cutting one’s hair became the main characteristics of the nazirite’s practice. This action was seen as a symbol of holiness as the nazirite set themselves apart for God. (Unsurprisingly, the haftarah – reading after the Torah from the Prophets – is Judges 13:2-25 which recounts the story of Samson, probably the best-known nazir).

Numbers 6:22-27 contain the Birkhat Kohanim (Priestly Benediction) with which Aaron and his sons (the priests) were to bless the People.

God bless you and keep you.

May the Eternal One make God’s face shine upon you and be gracious to you.

May the Eternal One lift up God’s face to you and give you peace.

And they shall put My name upon the children of Israel, and I will bless them.

Naso concludes with the princely offerings brought, animals first and then gold and silver vessels from each tribe for the dedication of the Tabernacle.

commentary

“What purpose is served by the fact that this precept enjoins that these benedictions should proceed from priests to the people? Surely it is God on high Who blesses and what is gained or added whether the priests bless or refrain from doing so? Is it up to them to assist God?” (Isaac Arama, author or Akedat Yisrael)

R. Ishmael commenting on the conclusion of the Birkhat Kohanim ‘And they shall put My name upon the children of Israel and I will bless them’ attributes the first clause as the priests blessing the people and the second as God blessing the priests. (bHullin 49a).

However, the Rashbam and the Sages quoted in Midrash Tanhuma understand the priests as only invoking God’s blessing. “Said the House of Israel to the Holy One, Sovereign of the Universe, you order the priests to bless us? We only need Your blessing. Look down from your holy habitation and bless us. The Holy One replied: Though I ordered the priests to bless you, I stand together with them and bless you.”

Abravenel: “ “Blessing” is a homonym referring both to the good emanating from God to God’s creations, “And the Eternal One blessed Abraham with all…(Genesis 24)” and the blessing proceeding from humanity to God above in the sense of praise, “And David blessed the Eternal One… (I Chronicles 29).” Then there is the blessing given by one person to another which is neither to be compared to the abundance of grace emanating from God nor to the praise proceeding from God’s creatures, but rather constitutes a supplication by the author calling on God to bless the person concerned. Into this category falls the Birkhat Kohanim…They merely invoke the divine blessing upon Israel.” i.e. only the phrases “God bless you” and “I will bless them” come under the category of divine blessing in the sense of outpouring of God’s goodness to humankind. The “blessing” of human beings is nothing more than a prayer.

Do you ever think about or feel the power or worth of blessing? If not, why do we recite the blessings to bring in Shabbat and at significant lifecycle events? What makes your blessing, the blessing asked for on your behalf or a direct blessing from God feel like?

Culture

If you are not coming to ‘one night stand’ and even if you are, a blessing for you at the eve of Revelation, Shavuot when we are all said to stand at the foot of Mt Sinai:

Tonight, as summer approaches, we celebrate the ripening beauty of the world, and tonight, on the Festival of Revelation, we celebrate the moral and spiritual beauty that we can experience in our lives.

At this season in ages past, our ancestors stood at Mount Sinai and felt themselves in the presence of the Eternal God and they pledged themselves to the service of God. For humanity’s developing awareness of moral and spiritual truth since that time, we give thanks. May our remembrance of the day of revelation and of all that from it, inspire in us renewed loyalty to our heritage, and give us strength to continue to labour for a better world. (Rabbis John Rayner, Chaim Stern and David Goldberg, in our Siddur Lev Chadash, 417).

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