Difference between revisions of "The Story of the Spies in Bemidbar and Devarim/2"
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<point><b>Initiator</b> – Hashem is presented as the initiator in Bemidbar since it was He who commanded the "holy" scouting mission so that the princes could evaluate the land and allocate it among the tribes. Devarim, in contrast, focuses on the nation's request as it was the people themselves who initiated the spying mission in their desire to prepare for the conquest.</point> | <point><b>Initiator</b> – Hashem is presented as the initiator in Bemidbar since it was He who commanded the "holy" scouting mission so that the princes could evaluate the land and allocate it among the tribes. Devarim, in contrast, focuses on the nation's request as it was the people themselves who initiated the spying mission in their desire to prepare for the conquest.</point> | ||
<point><b>Who is sent?</b> The scouting mission necessitated that the twelve princes of each tribe be chosen as representatives, while the military mission could have sufficed with anonymous men.</point> | <point><b>Who is sent?</b> The scouting mission necessitated that the twelve princes of each tribe be chosen as representatives, while the military mission could have sufficed with anonymous men.</point> | ||
− | <point><b>Moshe's instructions</b> – In Bemidbar, Moshe tells the spies to appraise the quality of the land, its trees and agriculture, as the division of the land required such knowledge. In Devarim, he instead tells them to determine the route of conquest, crucial for their military strategy. It should be noted, however, that several of Moshe's instructions in Bemidbar also appear to relate to military rather than scouting needs: </point> | + | <point><b>Moshe's instructions</b> – In Bemidbar, Moshe tells the spies to appraise the quality of the land, its trees and agriculture, as the division of the land required such knowledge. In Devarim, he instead tells them to determine the route of conquest, crucial for their military strategy. It should be noted, however, that several of Moshe's instructions in Bemidbar, such as those related to the fortifications of the cities or strength of the inhabitants, also appear to relate to military rather than scouting needs.<fn>See R"Y Bekhor Shor and Rashbam who suggest that almost all of Moshe's instructions relate to the upcoming conquest:  For example, they maintain that Moshe told them to check if the was forested so they would know whether they could use the wood for military supplies and whether there was plenty of grain so they would know whether there would be readily available food for the army.  According to them, then, Moshe's questions present a difficulty for this position as they suggest that Bemidbar, too, speaks of a military rather than scouting mission.</fn></point> |
+ | <point><b>Keywords</b> – The keywords<fn>To easily find the keywords in each set of chapters, access the Tanakh Lab on both <a href="https://mg.alhatorah.org/TanakhLab/Bemidbar/13/1/14/39">Bemidbar 13-14</a> and <a href="https://mg.alhatorah.org/TanakhLab/Devarim/1/1/1/40">Devarim 1</a>, and click the on the "דירוג" column which will order keywords taking into account both the number of appearances of the entry in the unit and their relative frequency in Tanakh as a whole.</fn> of each chapter highlights their differing emphases.  The root "תור" appears 12 times in Sefer Bemidbar (and only once in Devarim), making it one of the most significant guiding words in the story and emphasizing the scouting aspect.  In Devarim, in contrast, the roots "דרך" and "עלה"  serve as guiding words.  These highlight how the nation focused on finding the best military route ("דרך") through which to enter the land (while simultaneously hinting that they forgot that Hashem had been guiding their path ("דרך") throughout the wilderness period, perhaps their sin).</point> | ||
<point><b>The scouted area</b> – The survey required that the spies scout out the entire land as described in Bemidbar, while the military mission required them to spy only on the hilly region of Chevron, the original intended site of entry for the conquest.</point> | <point><b>The scouted area</b> – The survey required that the spies scout out the entire land as described in Bemidbar, while the military mission required them to spy only on the hilly region of Chevron, the original intended site of entry for the conquest.</point> | ||
<point><b>Who is to blame?</b> R. Medan suggests that Moshe blames himself in Devarim because he realized that the mishap of the spies was largely due to his combining two missions which should have remained separate.  Had there been two separate delegations, with appropriate men chosen for each task and each traveling to the locations relevant to them, the spies would likely have returned with a very different report.</point> | <point><b>Who is to blame?</b> R. Medan suggests that Moshe blames himself in Devarim because he realized that the mishap of the spies was largely due to his combining two missions which should have remained separate.  Had there been two separate delegations, with appropriate men chosen for each task and each traveling to the locations relevant to them, the spies would likely have returned with a very different report.</point> | ||
− | |||
</category> | </category> | ||
<category>Literary Variation | <category>Literary Variation | ||
<p>The differences between the two accounts are not fundamental, but simply the result of literary variation. When recounting events, Torah is often brief in one place and lengthy in another, relying on the reader to fill in the gaps from knowledge of the combined accounts.</p> | <p>The differences between the two accounts are not fundamental, but simply the result of literary variation. When recounting events, Torah is often brief in one place and lengthy in another, relying on the reader to fill in the gaps from knowledge of the combined accounts.</p> | ||
− | <mekorot>perhaps <multilink><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Kara</a><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">Shofetim 13:12</a><a href="R. Yosef Kara" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Kara</a></multilink></mekorot> | + | <mekorot>perhaps <multilink><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Kara</a><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">Shofetim 13:12</a><a href="R. Yosef Kara" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Kara</a></multilink>,<fn>As R. Yosef Kara is not directly addressing our question, it is unclear if he thinks this approach accounts for all the differences between the accounts or only a select few.</fn> perhaps <multilink><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBemidbar16-2" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBereshit31-3" data-aht="source">Bereshit 31:3</a><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBemidbar13-30" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:30</a><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBemidbar13-33" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:33</a><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBemidbar16-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 16:2</a><a href="R. Yosef Bekhor Shor" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a></multilink><fn>As R"Y Bekhor Shor is addressing one specific point, tt is unclear to what extent he would apply this approach to other differences between the accounts.</fn></mekorot> |
<point><b>The initiator</b> – R"Y Kara claims that both Hashem and the nation requested that the spies be sent.<fn>He is not explicit, but might be assuming that there were two stages.  First the nation asked to send spies and then Hashem agreed to their request.</fn> The Torah omitted the nation's request in Bemidbar knowing that this detail would be supplied in Devarim. As such, the two accounts do not contradict but rather complement each other.</point> | <point><b>The initiator</b> – R"Y Kara claims that both Hashem and the nation requested that the spies be sent.<fn>He is not explicit, but might be assuming that there were two stages.  First the nation asked to send spies and then Hashem agreed to their request.</fn> The Torah omitted the nation's request in Bemidbar knowing that this detail would be supplied in Devarim. As such, the two accounts do not contradict but rather complement each other.</point> | ||
+ | <point><b>Moshe's encouragement</b> – R"Y Bekhor Shor suggests that Bemidbar13:30, "וַיַּהַס כָּלֵב אֶת הָעָם אֶל מֹשֶׁה". means that Calev hushed the people so that they could hear Moshe's words of encouragement. The content of Moshe's speech is only alluded to in Bemidbar, as it is relayed in full in Devarim..</point> | ||
<point><b>Other omissions</b> – The other differences (omissions/additions) are explained in the same manner.  Details are mentioned only in one version for brevity's sake. [The reader is either already familiar with them from Bemidbar, or will be filled in upon reading Devarim.]</point> | <point><b>Other omissions</b> – The other differences (omissions/additions) are explained in the same manner.  Details are mentioned only in one version for brevity's sake. [The reader is either already familiar with them from Bemidbar, or will be filled in upon reading Devarim.]</point> | ||
− | <point><b>Choice of details mentioned</b> – | + | <point><b>Choice of details mentioned</b> – One of the disadvantages of this approach is that it does not account for why certain details are mentioned in both accounts and others only in one.  Moreover, it does not explain why each account contains the specific details that it does.</point> |
<point><b>Biblical parallels</b><ul> | <point><b>Biblical parallels</b><ul> | ||
− | <li>Our story is one of many in which a character repeats an incident to another and some of the details are found only in the original story or only in the retelling. See, for example, <multilink><a href="RambanBereshit42-21-22" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit42-21-22" data-aht="source">Bereshit 42:21-22</a><a href="RambanBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="RambanDevarim1-37" data-aht="source">Devarim 1:37</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe b. Nachman</a></multilink> on Bereshit 42:21, <multilink><a href="RadakBereshit41-17" data-aht="source">Radak</a><a href="RadakBereshit41-17" data-aht="source">Bereshit 41:17</a><a href="R. David Kimchi (Radak)" data-aht="parshan">About R. David Kimchi</a></multilink> on Bereshit 41:17, <multilink><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBereshit31-3" data-aht="source">R"Y Bekhor Shor </a><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBereshit31-3" data-aht="source">Bereshit 31:3</a><a href="R. Yosef Bekhor Shor" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a></multilink>on Bereshit 31:3, and <multilink><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">R"Y Kara</a><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">Shofetim 13:12</a><a href="R. Yosef Kara" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Kara</a></multilink> on Shofetim13:12 | + | <li>Our story is one of many in which a character repeats an incident to another and some of the details are found only in the original story or only in the retelling. See, for example, <multilink><a href="RambanBereshit42-21-22" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit42-21-22" data-aht="source">Bereshit 42:21-22</a><a href="RambanBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="RambanDevarim1-37" data-aht="source">Devarim 1:37</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe b. Nachman</a></multilink> on Bereshit 42:21, <multilink><a href="RadakBereshit41-17" data-aht="source">Radak</a><a href="RadakBereshit41-17" data-aht="source">Bereshit 41:17</a><a href="R. David Kimchi (Radak)" data-aht="parshan">About R. David Kimchi</a></multilink> on Bereshit 41:17, <multilink><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBereshit31-3" data-aht="source">R"Y Bekhor Shor </a><a href="RYosefBekhorShorBereshit31-3" data-aht="source">Bereshit 31:3</a><a href="R. Yosef Bekhor Shor" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Bekhor Shor</a></multilink>on Bereshit 31:3, and <multilink><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">R"Y Kara</a><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">Shofetim 13:12</a><a href="R. Yosef Kara" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Kara</a></multilink> on Shofetim13:12 who suggest that these are all cases of the same literary trend.</li> |
<li><multilink><a href="RambanShemot10-2" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit42-21-22" data-aht="source">Bereshit 42:21-22</a><a href="RambanShemot10-2" data-aht="source">Shemot 10:2</a><a href="RambanBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="RambanDevarim1-37" data-aht="source">Devarim 1:37</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe b. Nachman</a></multilink> notes also the similar phenomenon in which Torah might mentions a command but not its fulfillment or the opposite.<fn>See Ramban on Bereshit 31:7, 44:7, Shemot 4:17, 10:2, 11:1, Bemidbar 20:14, 21:13, Devarim 1:45, and 3:23 and the discussion in <a href="Invoking Hashem's Name Without Explicit Divine Sanction" data-aht="page">Invoking Hashem's Name Without Explicit Divine Sanction</a>.</fn></li> | <li><multilink><a href="RambanShemot10-2" data-aht="source">Ramban</a><a href="RambanBereshit42-21-22" data-aht="source">Bereshit 42:21-22</a><a href="RambanShemot10-2" data-aht="source">Shemot 10:2</a><a href="RambanBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="RambanDevarim1-37" data-aht="source">Devarim 1:37</a><a href="R. Moshe b. Nachman (Ramban, Nachmanides)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Moshe b. Nachman</a></multilink> notes also the similar phenomenon in which Torah might mentions a command but not its fulfillment or the opposite.<fn>See Ramban on Bereshit 31:7, 44:7, Shemot 4:17, 10:2, 11:1, Bemidbar 20:14, 21:13, Devarim 1:45, and 3:23 and the discussion in <a href="Invoking Hashem's Name Without Explicit Divine Sanction" data-aht="page">Invoking Hashem's Name Without Explicit Divine Sanction</a>.</fn></li> | ||
</ul></point> | </ul></point> | ||
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<point><b>Who is sent?</b> <multilink><a href="RYosefKaraBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Kara</a><a href="RYosefKaraBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">Shofetim 13:12</a><a href="R. Yosef Kara" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Kara</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="RashbamBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Rashbam</a><a href="RashbamBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="R. Shemuel b. Meir (Rashbam)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Shemuel b. Meir</a></multilink> suggest that the words "כֹּל נָשִׂיא בָהֶם" refer not to princes, but volunteers ("שנשא אותם לבם ללכת"). <multilink><a href="ChizkuniBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Chizkuni</a><a href="ChizkuniBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach (Chizkuni)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach</a></multilink>, instead, rereads Bemidbar 13:2, "אִישׁ אֶחָד אִישׁ אֶחָד לְמַטֵּה אֲבֹתָיו תִּשְׁלָחוּ כֹּל נָשִׂיא בָהֶם" to mean that each prince chose someone from his tribe to go on the mission.<fn>According to him, the subject of the verb "תִּשְׁלָחוּ" is the princes, not the nation.  He reads the verse as if there is a comma after the phrase "לְמַטֵּה אֲבֹתָיו", so that the second clause reads: "תִּשְׁלָחוּ כֹּל נָשִׂיא בָהֶם".</fn> According to both readings, none of those who went were princes, but simply "שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר אֲנָשִׁים אִישׁ אֶחָד לַשָּׁבֶט", as described in Devarim.<fn>It is likely that all these commentators are not really addressing the differences between the books (as they ignore the fact that Sefer Bemidbar still emphasizes that the chosen men were "heads", a description missing in Devarim) but rather a different exegetical difficulty: the fact that the princes listed here are different then those mentioned as playing a role in Bemidbar 1-10. Considering that our story occurs only a month after the events of those chapters, it is strange that new tribal representatives are mentioned here.</fn></point> | <point><b>Who is sent?</b> <multilink><a href="RYosefKaraBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">R. Yosef Kara</a><a href="RYosefKaraBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="RYosefKaraShofetim13-12" data-aht="source">Shofetim 13:12</a><a href="R. Yosef Kara" data-aht="parshan">About R. Yosef Kara</a></multilink> and <multilink><a href="RashbamBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Rashbam</a><a href="RashbamBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="R. Shemuel b. Meir (Rashbam)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Shemuel b. Meir</a></multilink> suggest that the words "כֹּל נָשִׂיא בָהֶם" refer not to princes, but volunteers ("שנשא אותם לבם ללכת"). <multilink><a href="ChizkuniBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Chizkuni</a><a href="ChizkuniBemidbar13-2" data-aht="source">Bemidbar 13:2</a><a href="R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach (Chizkuni)" data-aht="parshan">About R. Chizkiyah b. Manoach</a></multilink>, instead, rereads Bemidbar 13:2, "אִישׁ אֶחָד אִישׁ אֶחָד לְמַטֵּה אֲבֹתָיו תִּשְׁלָחוּ כֹּל נָשִׂיא בָהֶם" to mean that each prince chose someone from his tribe to go on the mission.<fn>According to him, the subject of the verb "תִּשְׁלָחוּ" is the princes, not the nation.  He reads the verse as if there is a comma after the phrase "לְמַטֵּה אֲבֹתָיו", so that the second clause reads: "תִּשְׁלָחוּ כֹּל נָשִׂיא בָהֶם".</fn> According to both readings, none of those who went were princes, but simply "שְׁנֵים עָשָׂר אֲנָשִׁים אִישׁ אֶחָד לַשָּׁבֶט", as described in Devarim.<fn>It is likely that all these commentators are not really addressing the differences between the books (as they ignore the fact that Sefer Bemidbar still emphasizes that the chosen men were "heads", a description missing in Devarim) but rather a different exegetical difficulty: the fact that the princes listed here are different then those mentioned as playing a role in Bemidbar 1-10. Considering that our story occurs only a month after the events of those chapters, it is strange that new tribal representatives are mentioned here.</fn></point> | ||
<point><b>The scouted area</b> – See <a href="The Spies – Where Did They Tour" data-aht="page">The Spies – Where Did They Tour</a> for the opinion that the phrase "וַיָּתֻרוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ מִמִּדְבַּר צִן עַד רְחֹב לְבֹא חֲמָת" does not refer to the area scouted, but only to the borders of the land in which they scouted.<fn>The verse should thus be read as incorporating an implied word: "וַיָּתֻרוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ [שגבולותיה] מִמִּדְבַּר צִן עַד רְחֹב לְבֹא חֲמָת."</fn> As such, according to both accounts the spies only visited the southern region of the land.</point> | <point><b>The scouted area</b> – See <a href="The Spies – Where Did They Tour" data-aht="page">The Spies – Where Did They Tour</a> for the opinion that the phrase "וַיָּתֻרוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ מִמִּדְבַּר צִן עַד רְחֹב לְבֹא חֲמָת" does not refer to the area scouted, but only to the borders of the land in which they scouted.<fn>The verse should thus be read as incorporating an implied word: "וַיָּתֻרוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ [שגבולותיה] מִמִּדְבַּר צִן עַד רְחֹב לְבֹא חֲמָת."</fn> As such, according to both accounts the spies only visited the southern region of the land.</point> | ||
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</category> | </category> | ||
</approaches> | </approaches> | ||
</page> | </page> | ||
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Latest revision as of 12:25, 22 October 2022
The Story of the Spies in Bemidbar and Devarim
Exegetical Approaches
Purposeful Recasting
The differences introduced in Devarim are intentional changes made by Moshe so as to best get across his message to the new generation. Moshe purposefully presents the story in a way that emphasizes the guilt of the nation rather than the sin of the individual spies.
Two Perspectives
The variations between the two books can be explained by positing that each is telling the story from a different perspective, with Sefer Bemidbar focusing on one aspect of the mission and Sefer Devarim on another.
Literary Variation
The differences between the two accounts are not fundamental, but simply the result of literary variation. When recounting events, Torah is often brief in one place and lengthy in another, relying on the reader to fill in the gaps from knowledge of the combined accounts.
- Our story is one of many in which a character repeats an incident to another and some of the details are found only in the original story or only in the retelling. See, for example, Ramban on Bereshit 42:21, Radak on Bereshit 41:17, R"Y Bekhor Shor on Bereshit 31:3, and R"Y Kara on Shofetim13:12 who suggest that these are all cases of the same literary trend.
- Ramban notes also the similar phenomenon in which Torah might mentions a command but not its fulfillment or the opposite.11
Local Harmonization
Many other commentators relate to each difference individually, without trying to account for all of the changes together. Some examples follow: