Chronology of Bemidbar 1 – 10/2

Chronology of Bemidbar 1 – 10

Exegetical Approaches

This topic has not yet undergone editorial review

In Chronological Order

Despite first impressions, Bemidbar 1–10 maintains a basic chronological order.  This approach subdivides regarding which chapters are not as they seem:

Chapters 7–9 Occurred Later

Though Bemidbar 7 and 9 make passing references to the first month, their main focus is on events which took place in the second month.  Thus, the entire unit of Bemidbar 1–10 recounts events of the second month, and there is no achronology.

Sources:AbarbanelBemidbar 7:1Bemidbar 9:1About R. Yitzchak Abarbanel

When did Chapters 1–4 happen? According to Abarbanel, the censuses and appointment of the Levites described in Bemidbar 1–4 all occurred in the second month, as the simple reading of the verses would imply.

Bemidbar 7:1 – "וַיְהִי בְּיוֹם כַּלּוֹת מֹשֶׁה לְהָקִים אֶת הַמִּשְׁכָּן וַיִּמְשַׁח אֹתוֹ" – According to Abarbanel, the time marker, "וַיְהִי בְּיוֹם כַּלּוֹת מֹשֶׁה לְהָקִים אֶת הַמִּשְׁכָּן", applies only to the anointment of the vessels, not to the gifts of the princes described thereafter. He asserts that Moshe began anointing the vessels after erecting the Mishkan in the first month, but this was an extended process that lasted several weeks.

Dedication of the altar – As the princes brought their sacrifices only after the vessels were anointed, the dedication of the altar could first take place only in the second month. As such, with the exception of the first verse, all the events of Chapter 7 really occurred in the second month, after the censuses of Chapters 1–4.

Relationship between מילואים in Vayikra 8 and חנוכת המזבח in Bemidbar 7 – According to Abarbanel, the two events did not overlap at all, as one took place in the first month and the other in the second month.¹  The princes' sacrifices are known as "the dedication of the altar", not because the altar had not been used earlier, but rather because the princes were the first to bring sacrifices upon it as individual Israelites.

"הֵם הָעֹמְדִים עַל הַפְּקֻדִים" – Abarbanel points to the description of the princes as "those who officiated in the counting" to support his position.  In his opinion, the verse can describe the princes in this manner only because the dedication of the altar took place after the census.

Wagons for the Levites – The fact that the princes give the Levites wagons to aid them in their duties further suggests that the events of Chapter 7 occurred only after the Levites were appointed and assigned specific roles.

"וַיַּקְרִיבוּ הַנְּשִׂאִים... בְּיוֹם הִמָּשַׁח אֹתוֹ" – This verse is difficult for Abarbanel as it suggests that the anointment took only one day and that the princes brought their sacrifices on that very day.  Abarbanel thus asserts that the word "day" can refer also to an extended period of time.²

Purification of the Levites in Bemidbar 8 – According to this position, this chapter is in its proper place and took place in the second month, after the dedication of the altar.  Abarbanel distinguishes between the Levites' appointment to replace the firstborns in Chapter 3 and their actual preparation for service in Chapter 8.  The two events were distinct, but both happened in the second month within a few days of each other.

Pesach in Bemidbar 9 – Abarbanel asserts that Chapter 9 opens with Pesach in the first month only as a prelude to the main topic of the chapter which is Pesach Sheni, celebrated in the second month.³  Thus, this chapter, too, focuses on events of the second month, continuing where the previous ones left off.

Relationship Between Vayikra and Bemidbar – According to Abarbanel, there is chronological order between the different books, and no overlap.  Sefer Vayikra picks up where Shemot left off, describing the events of the first month of the second year.  This month focused primarily on the consecration of the priests and their responsibilities.  Then Sefer Bemidbar continues with the second month of the second year, as the focus shifts to the rest of the nation.

Chapters 1–4 Conclude an Earlier Process

Though the census in Bemidbar 1 mentions the second month, the initial chapters of Bemidbar are actually the summary of a more extended process which began already in the first year and stretched until the second month of the second year.

Sources:An approach based on U. CassutoShemot 38:25About Prof. Umberto Cassuto⁴

Census of Bemidbar 1 – Cassuto proposes that the censuses of Shemot 30 and Bemidbar 1 were both part of a single extended process.⁵  At the time of the construction of the Tabernacle, the people gave their half-shekels, personal names, and other information, but it was only in the second month of the following year that the data was analyzed and all of the necessary calculations were made.⁶  Since this part of the census provides important background for Sefer Bemidbar, it is recorded here.

Appointment of the Levites in Bemidbar 3 – According to this approach, the appointment of the Levites and their census also began during the first year.

Descendants of Aharon – This position is able to explain why Bemidbar 3:1 recounts the lineage of Aharon "on the day that Hashem spoke to Moshe at Mt. Sinai", first mentioning all four sons, and only then qualifying this statement with the fact that Nadav and Avihu died in the Sinai Wilderness.  When the census began they had been alive, but after their deaths, the text needed to update the list to match the reality of the second year.

Dedication of the Altar in Bemidbar 7 – According to this approach, the dedication of the Altar took place in the first month of the second year, immediately after the Tabernacle was erected, as per the simple reading of Bemidbar 7:1.  It is not clear how it related to the seven days of the consecration of the Mishkan and whether the two ceremonies overlapped or one followed the other.

"הֵם הָעֹמְדִים עַל הַפְּקֻדִים" – This view could maintain that the princes might have already played a role in the first part of the census which occurred prior to the dedication, and as such, can be described here as "הֵם הָעֹמְדִים עַל הַפְּקֻדִים".  While Bemidbar 1:4-5 implies that the leaders were first chosen only during the second stage of the census, it is possible that this was just a reaffirmation of a status conferred already in the first year.  Cf. the NetzivBemidbar 1:4Bemidbar 7:1About R. Naftali Tzvi Yehuda Berlin who suggests that the Bemidbar 1 is merely a Divine reaffirmation of the earlier selection of the princes by the nation which took place already in the first year.⁷

Wagons for the Levites – If the Levites were appointed already in the first year, it is understandable that the princes' wagons were immediately designated for the tasks of the Levites.

Purification of the Levites in Bemidbar 8 – According to this approach, though the Levites are appointed in the first year, their purification ceremony needed to wait until after the Tabernacle was completed, and first took place in the first month of the second year.

Pesach in Bemidbar 9 – This position would explain that Chapter 9, which speaks of observing Pesach in the second half of the first month, chronologically follows the events of Chapters 7–8, which occurred in the first half of the first month.

Not in Chronological Order

The events of Bemidbar 1–10 are not recorded in the order in which they occurred.  This approach subdivides regarding which events were shifted out of their chronological position and why.

Later Events Recorded Earlier

The early chapters of Sefer Bemidbar recount events that occurred only later, because they are not part of the book's core.  They serve, instead, as either an introduction to Sefer Bemidbar or as appendix to the Books of Shemot and Vayikra.

Sources:R. Yosef Bekhor ShorBemidbar 9:1About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor, RambanBemidbar 3:1Bemidbar 3:14Bemidbar 5:2:6Bemidbar 7:1Bemidbar 9:1About R. Moshe b. Nachman

Bemidbar 1–6 – This position assumes that the opening date of Chapter 1 refers to the events of all six chapters and that both the censuses and accompanying laws in Bemidbar 5–6, occurred in the second month.

Bemidbar 7 and 9 – These chapters are achronological and the events that they describe occurred as dated, in the first month.

Why isn't the book written chronologically?

• Appendix – According to R"Y Bekhor Shor and Ramban, Bemidbar 9 really opens the book, while the first eight chapters only come to finish topics (להשלים את הענין) discussed in  the Books of Shemot and Vayikra.⁸ As such, there is no attempt to arrange these chapters chronologically and some of the events discussed there happened after events spoken of only later in Bemidbar.
• Introduction – Alternatively, the core of Bemidbar really begins with Chapter 7, "the day that Moshe finished erecting the Tabernacle" and proceeds chronologically from there. The census and set up of the camp in the second month are recorded earlier (in Chapters 1–4) only because they comprise a necessary introduction to the book.⁹ According to this, Chapters 5–6 might be viewed as a legal appendix to this unit,¹⁰ as in other places where a narrative section ends with a legal passage.

Internal order of achronological chapters

• According to Ramban, within the appendix, thematic order takes precedence over chronology.  The book opens with the censuses and set up of the camp around the Mishkan (perhaps because the book focuses on the nation's travels), and then discusses laws which relate to this.¹¹ Only after all the legal material is covered does the Torah return to narrative to speak of the prince's offerings and the Levites' purification.
• According to the alternative opinion, it is only one set of chapters that is out of order, those dealing with the censuses and camp, and within these there is no achronology. 

Wagons for the Levites – Since this position posits that the dedication of the altar (Chapter 7) took place in the first month, but that the Levites' census and replacement of the firstborns (Chapter 3) took place in the second, it must explain how the princes knew to give the Levites wagons if they had not yet been assigned their tasks.  It could suggest one of two possibilities:

• Levites chosen earlier – The Levites were actually chosen beforehand, but they were only officially counted in the second month, as this was right before the nation's travels, when they were to begin their jobs as porters. See Selection of the Priests and Levites for a full discussion of when they might have first been chosen.
• Gifts given later – Alternatively, Bemidbar 7:5-7 is out of place.  Though the princes' gifts and sacrifices were brought to the Mishkan in the first month, the wagons and cattle were only given to the Levites after their appointment in the second month.¹²  The verses are only recorded here to finish the story of the princes' offerings.

"הֵם הָעֹמְדִים עַל הַפְּקֻדִים" – According to this position this description is a parenthetical statement of the narrator, meant for the reader who already knows that the princes officiated in the counting even though they had not yet done so at the time of the story.

Purification of the Levites in Bemidbar 8

• First month – According to the position that the core of Sefer Bemidbar begins in Chapter 7 and proceeds chronologically, the purification of the Levites took place in the first month.  This assumes that not only were the Levites chosen before the census¹³ but that they were purified as well. Presumably this was done so that they would be prepared for their tasks as soon as they needed to travel.
• Second month – Ramban is ambiguous, but seems to imply in contrast, that the purification took place in the second month, soon after the Levites' official census and appointments.¹⁴

Chronology in Torah – Ramban normally posits that the Torah is written according to chronological order. Here, he only claims otherwise due to the explicit dates mentioned in the verses and suggests a thematic explanation for the exception.

What is Sefer Bemidbar about?

Earlier Events Recorded Later

Certain events are told out of order, after they really occurred, in order to present the nation in the best possible light.

Sources:RashiBemidbar 7:1Bemidbar 7:2Bemidbar 9:1About R. Shelomo Yitzchaki, SefornoBemidbar 9:1About R. Ovadyah Seforno

When did Chapters 1–4 happen? This position assumes that the events of these chapters occurred in the second month, as the simple reading of the verses would imply.

Bemidbar 5–6 – Seforno suggests that the laws of these chapters deal with keeping the camp holy and thus were given in the second month together with the laws regarding the set up of the camp.¹⁵

Chapters 7 and 9 – These chapters are achronological and occurred as dated, in the first month.

Purpose of achronology

• Avoid denigration – Rashi only addresses the achronological placement of Chapter 9. He suggests that Hashem did not want to open the book with the story of the nation's observance of the Pesach in the first month since it was shameful that this was the only Pesach they observed throughout their 40 years in the wilderness.  This, however, is difficult since the book could have begun with Chapter 7 (the description of the princes' sacrifices in the first month) which would have both maintained chronological order and also opened the book with a positive action.  Moreover, it is hard to say that speaking of the Pesach is denigrating, as in the first year the nation had not done anything wrong.
• Give praise – Seforno suggests that though the description of the nation's travels in Chapter 10 really flows straight from Chapters 1–6,¹⁶ Chapters 7–9 are inserted in the middle as an introduction to Chapter 10 to explain why the nation merited to enter the land immediately without war.¹⁷ The events described in these chapters (the dedication of the altar, purification of the Levites, Pesach sacrifice, and willingness to follow Hashem in the Wilderness) were all praiseworthy deeds which merited them entry into the land..

Purification of the Levites in Bemidbar 8

• First month – Seforno claims that this occurred in the first month.¹⁸  This preserves the internal chronology within the larger unit of Chapters 7–9, but must posit that the Levites were both chosen and purified before they were officially counted to replace the firstborns. ¹⁹
• Second month –Seforno could have alternatively suggested that the purification occurred in the second month after the census and the Levites' official appointment. This would assume that the internal order of the interloping unit of Chapters 7–9 is not based on chronology but the relative importance of each of the events discussed.²⁰  It has the advantage of being able to date the purification to after (or alongside) the Levites' appointment in the second month.

"הֵם הָעֹמְדִים עַל הַפְּקֻדִים" – This position would say, as above, that this is a clarifying comment meant only for the reader who already knows the roles played by the princes in the census.

Wagons for the Levites – As above, this position could either suggest that the Levites were really chosen earlier and thus the princes knew to give them gifts, or that the gifts were really only given to the Levites in the second month but are mentioned earlier in connection to the rest of the princes' offerings discussed in the chapter.

Chronology in Torah – Seforno explains that sometimes the Torah will veer from the true order of events, as long as some other purpose is gained by doing so ("לְזֶה כַּאֲשֶׁר תְּכַוֵּן תַּכְלִית מַה זוּלָתִי הַזְּמַן בַּסֵּדֶר הַמְסֻפָּר"). As opposed to Ramban above, this position does not just pit thematic order against chronological order, but also takes into account moral or other messages that juxtaposition of certain events might convey.

What is Sefer Bemidbar about?

¹ Other commentators who maintain that the dedication of the altar by the princes also took place in the first month need to grapple with the question of whether they overlapped with the seven days of the מילואים.  The dominant opinion in Chazal (Sifra, Sifre, Seder Olam) is that the milluim days began on the 23rd of Adar and thus concluded before the days of the altar dedication.  In contrast, others contend that the seven days of the milluim started on the 1st of Nisan and that the altar dedication days began only on the 8th (Ibn Ezra Shemot 40:2, Vayikra 9:1) or 9th (Josephus, Antiquities 3:8:4-10) of Nisan.  According to a small minority of exegetes, the two processes overlapped and both began either on the 1st of Nisan (Yefet b. Eli the Karaite) or the 23rd of Adar (Midrash from the Genizah).  For more, see Chronology of the Consecration of the Mishkan.

² As support he points to the usage of the word in Yechezkel 20:5 and  Yechezkel 38:18 where it seems to mean a time period rather than a literal day.

³ For the reader to understand what prompted the new law, it was necessary to first explain that there were people who were impure during the original festival.

⁴ The approach presented here is a possible extension of Cassuto's understanding (in his commentary on Sefer Shemot) of the duration of the census.  Cassuto did not write a commentary to Bemidbar and thus did not explicitly relate to the chronology issue of Sefer Bemidbar.

⁵ He uses this to explain how the final tallies (See Shemot 38:26 and Bemidbar 1:46) were identical.  See Censuses in the Wilderness for elaboration.

⁶ Cassuto points to documentation of other censuses in the Ancient Near East and to David's census described in Shemuel II 24:8 as evidence that these were long drawn out processes which lasted many months.

⁷ He points to Shemot 35:27 which already speaks of the princes and the gifts they brought to the Mishkan.

⁸ These all relate in some way to the Mishkan.

⁹ A discussion of the set up of the camp is a natural prelude for a book dealing with the nation's wanderings.

¹⁰ As such it would not be necessary to find a connection between them and the preceding narrative.

¹¹ Chapter five opens with laws related to the impure who must leave the camp.  Then, since the census involved family lineage, laws of the Sotah and potential illegitimate children follow. The Nazirite stands in contrast both to the impure and Sotah and is thus discussed next.

¹² This might be Ramban's own opinion; see his comments to Bemidbar 8:5.

¹³ See above point.

¹⁴ Since all of Chapters 1–8 are an appendix according to Ramban, they are not trying to preserve any chronological order so it is not problematic that they begin in the second month, return to the first, only to revert back to the second.  Nonetheless, it would seem to be more logical to discuss the purification right after the Levites' appointments and only then to move into the laws of Chapters 5–6.

¹⁵ They discuss the sending away of the impure and purifying the camp from the potentially illegitimate child of a sotah. Cf. Ramban's similar explanation of the placement of these laws above.

¹⁶ The book opens in the first of the second month, while Chapter 10 continues with the twentieth of the month.

¹⁷ Seforno points out that were it not for the spies the nation was supposed to enter the land immediately and inherit it without need of military conquest.  This is consistent with his general approach that actions of the people, such as the Sin of the Spies or Golden Calf, cause changes from Hashem's original plan.

¹⁸ Rashi does not address the issue.

¹⁹ See Seforno who suggests this, even though he maintains chronology within the chapters.

²⁰ This is in fact what Seforno himself suggests.