Chronology of Bemidbar 1 – 10/2

Chronology of Bemidbar 1 – 10

Exegetical Approaches

This topic has not yet undergone editorial review

In Chronological Order

The events of Chapters 1-10 are told chronologically.

Chapters 7-9 Happen Later

Though Chapters 7 and 9 refer to events of the first month, their main focus is events of the second month.  As such, Bemidbar 1-10 all takes place in one month, in the order written.

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

Chapters 1 – 4 – 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", only applies 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 first took place 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.

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

Gifts to Levites – The fact that the princes give the Levites wagons to aid them in their tasks  further suggests that the events of Chapter 7 took place 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 asserts that the word "day" can refer not only to a specific day but also to an extended period of time.¹  Thus, the verse is sharing that after the period of anointment, the princes sacrificed.

Relationship between מילואים and חנוכת המזבח – According to Abarbanel the two events did not overlap at all, as one took place in Nisan and the other in Iyar.  The prince's sacrifices are known as "the dedication of the altar" not because the altar had not been used earlier, but because they were the fist to bring sacrifices upon it as individual Israelites.

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

Pesach Sheni – 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.²  Thus, this chapter, too, focuses on events of the second month, continuing where the previous ones left off.

Focus of Sefer Bemidbar

Chapters 1-4 Happen Earlier

Though the censuses of Chapters 1-4 are dated to the second month, they were really part of an extended process which began when the Tabernacle was being constructed.  As such, the book of Bemidbar really opens with a summation of events begun in the first year, and then continues in order.

Sources:U. CassutoShemot 38:25About Prof. Umberto Cassuto

The Census – Cassuto proposes that the censuses of Shemot 30 and Bemidbar 1 were both part of a single extended process.³  At the time of the construction of the Tabernacle, the people gave their half-shekels, 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.⁴  As this part of the census provides important background for Sefer Bemidbar it is recorded here.

Descendants of Aharon – According to Cassuto it is logical why Bemidbar 3:1 first recounts the lineage of Aharon "on the day that Hashem spoke to Moshe BaHar Sinai", mentioning all four sons, and then qualifies that Nadav and Avihu died. 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.

Appointment of the Levites – According to this position, the appointment of the Levites and their census also took place during the first year.  They were rewarded to take the place of the firstborns after their meritorious deeds when the nation sinned with the Golden Calf.

Bemidbar 7: Dedication of the Altar – According to this approach, the dedication of the Altar took place in the first month of the second year after the Tabernacle was erected, as per the simple reading of Bemidbar 7:1.

"הֵם הָעֹמְדִים עַל הַפְּקֻדִים" – Since the census began prior to the dedication, it is not problematic to refer to the princes as "those who officiated in the counting".

Gifts to Levites – If the Levites had already been appointed in the first year, it is understandable how the princes gave them gifts related to their tasks.

Purification of the Levites – 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 Nisan of the second year.

Pesach – According to Cassuto, there is no reason to suggest that Chapter 9 is out of order.  It follows the events of Chapters 7-8, speaking of the events of the second half of the first month.

Not in Chronological Order

The events of Bemidbar 1-10 are not written in the order in which they occurred.

Later Events Told Earlier

The main story-line of Sefer Bemidbar begins in Chapter 9, in the first month of the second year.  The previous chapters contain material dated later since they are thematically related to the Mishkan and simply form an appendix to the Books of Shemot and Vayikra.

Sources: 

Chapters 1-8: An appendix – According to Ramban the first eight chapters of Sefer Bemidbar are not part of the core of the book and come to finish topics (להשלים את הענין) discussed in  the Books of Shemot and Vayikra that relate to the Mishkan. As such, there is no attempt to arrange them chronologically and some of the events discussed happened after events spoken of only later in Bemidbar.

Internal order – According to Ramban, within the appendix, thematic order takes precedence over chronology.  The book opens with the census and set up of the camp around the Mishkan and then discusses laws which relate to this.⁵ Only after all the legal material is covered does the Torah speak of the prince's offerings.

Gifts to the Levites – Since this position posits that the dedication of the altar took place in the first month, but that the Levitical census and replacement of the firstborns took place in the second, it must explain how the princes knew to give the Levites wagons if they had not yet been assigned.  It could suggest one of two possibilities:

• The Levites were chosen beforehand, but were only officially counted in the second month, right before the nation traveled and they were to begin their jobs as porters.
• Alternatively, Bemidbar 7:5-7 is out of place.  Though the princes' gifts and sacrifices were brought in the first month, they wagons and cattle were only given to the Levites after their appointment in the second month.  The verses are only recorded here to finish the story.

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

Bemidbar 9 – According to Ramban, this chapter opens the main part of Sefer Bemidbar and represents the first chronological event of the Book.

Alternativ – One might take Ramban's general approach but assume that the core of teh book begins in Chapter 7 with events that took place

Earlier Events Told Later

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

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

¹ 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.

² For the reader to understand what prompted the new law, it was first necessary to speak of those who were impure during the initial holiday.

³ 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.

⁴ 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 such counts were a long drawn out process that could take many months.

⁵ 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.