14:1 VA TISA KOL HA EDAH VA YITNU ET KOLAM VA YIVKU HA AM BA LAILAH HA HU
וַתִּשָּׂא כָּל הָעֵדָה וַיִּתְּנוּ אֶת קוֹלָם וַיִּבְכּוּ הָעָם בַּלַּיְלָה הַהוּא
KJ (King James translation): And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.
BN (BibleNet translation): And all the congregation lifted up their voice, and cried; and the people wept that night.
Such hyperbole! Are we in liturgy again, as with the plagues? Is this entire epic story in fact a parable? Or are these street-protests?
The Yehudit could, and most often would have read: VA TISA KOL HA AM, VA YITNU ET KOLAM... but the writer chose to use EDAH in order to avoid the play-on-sounds; the problem with doing this is precisely the inference of my comment above. Edah is always the religious congregation, Am the political.
14:2 VA YILONU AL MOSHEH VE AL AHARON KOL BENEY YISRA-EL VA YOMRU ALEYHEM KOL HA EDAH LU MATNU BE ERETS MITSRAYIM O BA MIDBAR HA ZEH LU MATNU
וַיִּלֹּנוּ עַל מֹשֶׁה וְעַל אַהֲרֹן כֹּל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֲלֵהֶם כָּל הָעֵדָה לוּמַתְנוּ בְּאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם אוֹ בַּמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה לוּ מָתְנוּ
KJ: And all the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron: and the whole congregation said unto them, Would God that we had died in the land of Egypt! or would God we had died in this wilderness!
BN: And all the Beney Yisra-El murmured against Mosheh and against Aharon; and the entire congregation said to them: 'Would that we had died in the land of Mitsrayim! or would we had died in this wilderness!..
Pathetic really. If I were Mosheh I would invite those who are unhappy to make their own ways back to Mitsrayim, and tell the rest to shut up and get on with it. But - I am presuming - the Ezraic Redactor constructed the story this way deliberately, as a parable and parallel for those returnees from Bav-El who were likwise whingeing and moaning, we should have stayed with the sensible ones under King Koresh; and this is Ezra replying: no one ever said it was going to be easy. What it needs is the pioneering spirit of the chalutsim of Aliyah Aleph and Aliyah Bet - and presumably those chalutsim knew their Bible stories, even though most of them were atheists, and so, two and a half thousand years later, it worked!
14:3 VE LAMAH YHVH MEVI OTANU EL HA ARETS HA ZOT LINPOL BA CHEREV NASHEYNU VE TAPEYNU YEHI'U LAVAZ HA LO TOV LANU SHUV MITSRAYIMAH
KJ: And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
BN: "And why does YHVH bring us to this land, to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will be a prey; would it not be better for us to return to Mitsrayim?"
14:4 VA YOMRU ISH EL ACHIV NITNAH ROSH VE NASHUVAH MITSRAYEMAH
KJ: And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.
BN: And they said to one another: "Let us pick a leader, and return to Mitsrayim."
Remember that in one of the many versions incorporated into this tale, Mosheh told Pharaoh very clearly that the intention was a three-day pilgrimage into the desert to celebrate the Passover, and then return to Mitsrayim (cf Exodus 5:3).
וְלָמָה יְהוָה מֵבִיא אֹתָנוּ אֶל הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת לִנְפֹּל בַּחֶרֶב נָשֵׁינוּ וְטַפֵּנוּ יִהְיוּ לָבַז הֲלוֹא טוֹב לָנוּ שׁוּב מִצְרָיְמָה
KJ: And wherefore hath the LORD brought us unto this land, to fall by the sword, that our wives and our children should be a prey? were it not better for us to return into Egypt?
BN: "And why does YHVH bring us to this land, to let us fall by the sword? Our wives and our little ones will be a prey; would it not be better for us to return to Mitsrayim?"
14:4 VA YOMRU ISH EL ACHIV NITNAH ROSH VE NASHUVAH MITSRAYEMAH
וַיֹּאמְרוּ אִישׁ אֶל אָחִיו נִתְּנָה רֹאשׁ וְנָשׁוּבָה מִצְרָיְמָה
KJ: And they said one to another, Let us make a captain, and let us return into Egypt.
BN: And they said to one another: "Let us pick a leader, and return to Mitsrayim."
Remember that in one of the many versions incorporated into this tale, Mosheh told Pharaoh very clearly that the intention was a three-day pilgrimage into the desert to celebrate the Passover, and then return to Mitsrayim (cf Exodus 5:3).
14:5 VA YIPOL MOSHEH VA AHARON AL PENEYHEM LIPHNEY KOL KEHAL ADAT BENEY YISRA-EL
וַיִּפֹּל מֹשֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן עַל פְּנֵיהֶם לִפְנֵי כָּל קְהַל עֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
KJ: Then Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the children of Israel.
BN: Then Mosheh and Aharon fell on their faces before all the assembly of the congregation of the Beney Yisra-El.
Prostration is not the normal behaviour of leaders; but it is the normal practice of liturgy. Further evidence that this entire episode is liturgical - and logical that it would be: one of the principal aims of the Torah is to demonstrate that nothing in human life is achievable without the help and support of the deity, and so we need to read every episode with that in mind. "YHVH, we are about to start a war of conquest. Give us your blessing, and please feel free to intervene when helpful on our behalf. Amen."
And besides, with an army of over 600,000, he can afford to let the cowards and weaklings abandon the enterprise, and still have more than plenty to over-run Kena'an.
14:6 VIY'HOSHU'A BIN NUN VE CHALEV BEN YEPHUNEH MIN HA TARIM ET HA ARETS KAR'U BIGDEYHEM
וִיהוֹשֻׁעַ בִּן נוּן וְכָלֵב בֶּן יְפֻנֶּה מִן הַתָּרִים אֶת הָאָרֶץ קָרְעוּ בִּגְדֵיהֶם
KJ: And Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of them that searched the land, rent their clothes:
BN: And Yehoshu'a bin Nun and Kalev ben Yephuneh, who were among those who reconnoitred the land, tore their clothes [in the manner of mourners].
Note that Yehoshu'a comes before Kalev in this verse, where previously they were the other way around. An inexplicable alteration, if the text belongs to Mosheh; a very easily explicable alteration, if the text belongs to a later period, and to the Shomronim.
14:7 VA YOMRU EL KOL ADAT BENEY YISRA-EL LEMOR HA ARETS ASHER AVARNU VAH LATUR OTAH TOVAH HA ARETS ME'OD ME'OD
וַיֹּאמְרוּ אֶל כָּל עֲדַת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל לֵאמֹר הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר עָבַרְנוּ בָהּ לָתוּר אֹתָהּ טוֹבָה הָאָרֶץ מְאֹד מְאֹד
KJ: And they spake unto all the company of the children of Israel, saying, The land, which we passed through to search it, is an exceeding good land.
BN: And they spoke to all the congregation of the Beney Yisra-El, saying: "The land that we passed through, to reconnoitre it, is an exceedingly good land...
AVARNU: These are Habiru, after all, so we should expect the verb LA'AVOR from time to time!
14:8 IM CHAPHETS BANU YHVH VE HEVI OTANU EL HA ARETS HA ZOT U NETANAH LANU ERETS ASHER HI ZAVAT CHALAV U DVASH
אִם חָפֵץ בָּנוּ יְהוָה וְהֵבִיא אֹתָנוּ אֶל הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת וּנְתָנָהּ לָנוּ אֶרֶץ אֲשֶׁר הִוא זָבַת חָלָב וּדְבָשׁ
KJ: If the LORD delight in us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it us; a land which floweth with milk and honey.
BN: "If YHVH is pleased with us, then he will bring us into this land, and give it to us - it is a land that flows with milk and honey...
The very form and language of this is liturgical. And not simply because it is about faith in YHVH; but precisely because it is not what one would expect them to say, if they were reporting back as military spies or as political leaders.
14:9 ACH BA YHVH AL TIMRODU VE ATEM AL TIR'U ET AM HA ARETS KI LACHMENU HEM SAR TSILAM MEY ALEYHEM VA YHVH ITANU AL TIRA'UM
KJ: Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.
BN: "Only do not rebel against YHVH, nor fear the people of the land. They are what we shall be eating very soon. Their defenses will fall down on their own heads, because YHVH is with us. Do not fear them."
14:9 ACH BA YHVH AL TIMRODU VE ATEM AL TIR'U ET AM HA ARETS KI LACHMENU HEM SAR TSILAM MEY ALEYHEM VA YHVH ITANU AL TIRA'UM
אַךְ בַּיהוָה אַל תִּמְרֹדוּ וְאַתֶּם אַל תִּירְאוּ אֶת עַם הָאָרֶץ כִּי לַחְמֵנוּ הֵם סָר צִלָּם מֵעֲלֵיהֶם וַיהוָה אִתָּנוּ אַל תִּירָאֻם
KJ: Only rebel not ye against the LORD, neither fear ye the people of the land; for they are bread for us: their defence is departed from them, and the LORD is with us: fear them not.
BN: "Only do not rebel against YHVH, nor fear the people of the land. They are what we shall be eating very soon. Their defenses will fall down on their own heads, because YHVH is with us. Do not fear them."
LACHMENU HEM: Interesting word, LECHEM, meaning "bread", but also providing a radical for "MILCHAMAH" = "war". Which meaning is really being used here? "They are what we shall be eating very soon", treated metaphorically of course, seems to me to convey both meanings.
SAR TSILAM: A hint of the Shimshon (Samson) story, from Judges 16:29/30: when YHVH is with Shimshon, the very temple of the Pelishtim (Philistines) crumbles - and the Pelishtim will be the first major enemy they face, if they go in now, from where they are.
14:10 VA YOMRU KOL HA EDAH LIRGOM OTAM BA AVANIM U CHEVOD YHVH NIR'AH BE OHEL MO'ED EL KOL BENEY YISRA-EL
KJ: But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.
BN: But just as the congregation were calling out for them to be stoned to death... lo the glory of YHVH appeared before all the Beney Yisra-El in the Tent of Meeting.
SAR TSILAM: A hint of the Shimshon (Samson) story, from Judges 16:29/30: when YHVH is with Shimshon, the very temple of the Pelishtim (Philistines) crumbles - and the Pelishtim will be the first major enemy they face, if they go in now, from where they are.
14:10 VA YOMRU KOL HA EDAH LIRGOM OTAM BA AVANIM U CHEVOD YHVH NIR'AH BE OHEL MO'ED EL KOL BENEY YISRA-EL
וַיֹּאמְרוּ כָּל הָעֵדָה לִרְגּוֹם אֹתָם בָּאֲבָנִים וּכְבוֹד יְהוָה נִרְאָה בְּאֹהֶל מוֹעֵד אֶל כָּל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל
KJ: But all the congregation bade stone them with stones. And the glory of the LORD appeared in the tabernacle of the congregation before all the children of Israel.
BN: But just as the congregation were calling out for them to be stoned to death... lo the glory of YHVH appeared before all the Beney Yisra-El in the Tent of Meeting.
A very problematic verse. Grammatically the first half is incomplete and incongruous and needs much explaining (I hope that my rearrangement of the syntax and an adjustment of the verb to a participle has achieved that). And then the second half! YHVH, who does not interfere in human history (officially! see my ironic prayer a few verses back), interfering in human history! We definitely need to read that transition from AVANIM to U CHEVOD as a dramatic "when suddenly..."?
And then... clearly "all the Beney Yisra-El" cannot fit into the Tent of Meeting, so this is only a select group who are having (presumably) their leadership meeting, to discuss the reports of the spies, and the appearance of CHAVOD YHVH is what we would expect if they are praying...
14:11 VA YOMER YHVH EL MOSHEH AD ANAH YENA'ATSUNI HA AM HA ZEH VE AD ANAH LO YA'AMINU BI BE CHOL HA OTOT ASHER ASIYTI BE KIRBO
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה עַד אָנָה יְנַאֲצֻנִי הָעָם הַזֶּה וְעַד אָנָה לֹא יַאֲמִינוּ בִי בְּכֹל הָאֹתוֹת אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתִי בְּקִרְבּוֹ
KJ: And the LORD said unto Moses, How long will this people provoke me? and how long will it be ere they believe me, for all the signs which I have shewed among them?
BN: And YHVH said to Mosheh: "How long will this people despise me? And how long will they go on not believing in me, despite all the proofs that I have wrought among them?.."
"How long" is the question? And the answer can be found in Isaiah 6:11-13:
"Until the cities lie ruined and without inhabitant, until the houses are left deserted and the fields ruined and ravaged, until YHVH has sent everyone far away and the land is utterly forsaken. And though a tenth remains in the land, it will again be laid waste. But as the terebinth and oak leave stumps when they are cut down, so the holy seed will be the stump in the land."
Not for the first time, through this very phrase, we recognise whose hand it may very well be, scribing the originals (or at least: very much earlier versions) of these stories that the Ezraic Redactor will ascribe to Mosheh.
As with NICHRETAH and HINENI, a very good exercise for a teacher with Bar Mitzvah age students, or older: simply to go through the texts of the Five Books of Torah (searching in an electronic version takes just a few minutes), and identify every instance of this phrase, list them, and then undertake an hour's textual study, comparing and contrasting them.
see also verse 27.
14:12 AKENU VA DEVER VE ORISHENU VE E'ESEH OT'CHA LE GOY GADOL VE ATSUM MIMENU
KJ: I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.
BN: "I will smite them with the plague, and destroy them, and will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they."
Yes, YHVH is sulking and threatening Nichretah again - the divine equivalent of the Emperor Trump tweeting! It is, sadly, all he has, when his empty promises turn out to be just that.
As with NICHRETAH and HINENI, a very good exercise for a teacher with Bar Mitzvah age students, or older: simply to go through the texts of the Five Books of Torah (searching in an electronic version takes just a few minutes), and identify every instance of this phrase, list them, and then undertake an hour's textual study, comparing and contrasting them.
see also verse 27.
14:12 AKENU VA DEVER VE ORISHENU VE E'ESEH OT'CHA LE GOY GADOL VE ATSUM MIMENU
אַכֶּנּוּ בַדֶּבֶר וְאוֹרִשֶׁנּוּ וְאֶעֱשֶׂה אֹתְךָ לְגוֹי גָּדוֹל וְעָצוּם מִמֶּנּוּ
KJ: I will smite them with the pestilence, and disinherit them, and will make of thee a greater nation and mightier than they.
BN: "I will smite them with the plague, and destroy them, and will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they."
Yes, YHVH is sulking and threatening Nichretah again - the divine equivalent of the Emperor Trump tweeting! It is, sadly, all he has, when his empty promises turn out to be just that.
Or is the reference to plague a hint of something more significant to the occasion? I imagine, in fact, that this is simply yet one more volcanic eruption.
14:13 VA YOMER MOSHEH EL YHVH VE SHAMU MITSRAYIM KI HE'ELITA VE CHOCHACHA ET HA AM HA ZEH MI KIRBO
KJ: And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;)
BN: And Mosheh said to YHVH: "When Mitsrayim hears this... for you with your great power brought this people out from among them...
VA YOMER: Is Mosheh speaking to YHVH inside the Tent of Meeting, while in the company of "all the Beney Yisra-El"? Apparently he is. Despite what we have been told previously about the nature of their communications (those were contradictory too!). And can "all the Beney Yisra-El" then see his "glory"... questions for the theologians to answer, fortunately, not the literary critics.
14:13 VA YOMER MOSHEH EL YHVH VE SHAMU MITSRAYIM KI HE'ELITA VE CHOCHACHA ET HA AM HA ZEH MI KIRBO
וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה אֶל יְהוָה וְשָׁמְעוּ מִצְרַיִם כִּי הֶעֱלִיתָ בְכֹחֲךָ אֶת הָעָם הַזֶּה מִקִּרְבּוֹ
KJ: And Moses said unto the LORD, Then the Egyptians shall hear it, (for thou broughtest up this people in thy might from among them;)
BN: And Mosheh said to YHVH: "When Mitsrayim hears this... for you with your great power brought this people out from among them...
VA YOMER: Is Mosheh speaking to YHVH inside the Tent of Meeting, while in the company of "all the Beney Yisra-El"? Apparently he is. Despite what we have been told previously about the nature of their communications (those were contradictory too!). And can "all the Beney Yisra-El" then see his "glory"... questions for the theologians to answer, fortunately, not the literary critics.
CHOCHACHA: Remember that CH in Yehudit is always guttural, as in "loch", and never soft, as in "church". Mosheh is not suggesting that YHVH brought them out of Mitsrayim by means of the tango.
The grammar of this verse also leaves open a number of questions, some of which I have hopefully resolved through the manner of my translation.
14:14 VA AMRU EL YOSHEV HA ARETS HA ZOT SHAM'U KI ATAH YHVH BE KEREV HA AM HA ZEH ASHER AYIN BE AYIN NIR'AH ATAH YHVH VA ANANECHA OMED ALEYHEM U VE AMUD ANAN ATAH HOLECH LIPHNEYHEM YOMAM U VE AMUD ESH LAILAH
וְאָמְרוּ אֶל יוֹשֵׁב הָאָרֶץ הַזֹּאת שָׁמְעוּ כִּי אַתָּה יְהוָה בְּקֶרֶב הָעָם הַזֶּה אֲשֶׁר עַיִן בְּעַיִן נִרְאָה אַתָּה יְהוָה וַעֲנָנְךָ עֹמֵד עֲלֵהֶם וּבְעַמֻּד עָנָן אַתָּה הֹלֵךְ לִפְנֵיהֶם יוֹמָם וּבְעַמּוּד אֵשׁ לָיְלָה
KJ: And they will tell it to the inhabitants of this land: for they have heard that thou LORD art among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and that thy cloud standeth over them, and thatthou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.
BN: "They will say to the inhabitants of this land, who have heard that you, YHVH, are in the midst of this people; inasmuch as you, YHVH, are seen face to face, and your cloud stands over them, and you go before them, in a pillar of cloud by day, and in a pillar of fire by night...
AYIN BE AYIN: Not true anyway, as we have seen; but note that the method of expressing it is different too; this is a much later poetic form.
AYIN BE AYIN: which is not the same as AYIN TACHAT AYIN, "an eye for an eye", in Exodus 21:24.
Mosheh always returns to this strategy, which is repeated endlessly throughout Jewish liturgy, most especially in the piyyut of Yom Kippur; in brief it says: "YHVH, you cannot destroy us, or even harm us, let alone reject us, because think what the rest of the world will say about you." Blackmail based on the divine self-esteem! And, again, liturgy, not historical narrative. The spies have reported, ten saying how hard it is going to be, two over-optimistic in their confidence, and now they do what Jews always do: ask YHVH for guidance. The language simply reflects the extremes of hope and concern.
14:15 VE HEMATAH ET HA AM HA ZEH KE ISH ECHAD VA AMRU HA GOYIM ASHER SHAM'U ET SHIM'ACHA LEMOR
וְהֵמַתָּה אֶת הָעָם הַזֶּה כְּאִישׁ אֶחָד וְאָמְרוּ הַגּוֹיִם אֲשֶׁר שָׁמְעוּ אֶת שִׁמְעֲךָ לֵאמֹר
KJ: Now if thou shalt kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard the fame of thee will speak, saying,
BN: "So if you intend to kill all this people as one man, then the nations which have heard of your fame will speak, saying...
14:16 MI BILTI YECHOLET YHVH LEHAVI ET HA AM HA ZEH EL HA ARETS ASHER NISHB'A LAHEM VA YISHCHATEM BA MIDBAR
מִבִּלְתִּי יְכֹלֶת יְהוָה לְהָבִיא אֶת הָעָם הַזֶּה אֶל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּע לָהֶם וַיִּשְׁחָטֵם בַּמִּדְבָּר
KJ: Because the LORD was not able to bring this people into the land which he sware unto them, therefore he hath slain them in the wilderness.
BN: "Because YHVH was not able to bring this people into the land which he promised them, that is why he has slain them in the wilderness...
YISHCHATEM: I am tempted to translate it as "left them to die in...", because that is what would happen, if they stopped here at Kadesh, and plague struck them, as threatened. A refugee camp devastated by a cholera epidemic - now where did I recently read that in a newspaper?
And if this is, as I suspect, Yesha-Yahu (Isaiah), then it probably should have occurred to me much earlier, when I was commenting on Sedra Yitro (Exodus 18:1-20:23), and Mosheh was getting his first lesson in leadership through delegation, that in the calendar of Tanach readings in synagogue, unchanged through the last 2,000 years, the Haphtarah that accompanies Yitro is Isaiah 6:1-7:6 and 9:5/6 (the latter couplet of which provided Handel with a famous oratorio - listen to it here).
14:17 VE ATAH YIGDAL NA KO'ACH ADONAI KA ASHER DIBARTA LEMOR
וְעַתָּה יִגְדַּל נָא כֹּחַ אֲדֹנָי כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתָּ לֵאמֹר
KJ: And now, I beseech thee, let the power of my Lord be great, according as thou hast spoken, saying,
BN: "And now, let YHVH's power be great, just as you have spoken, saying...
"I beseech thee": the phrase is not present in the Yehudit, but has been added by the English translator. The text simply says NA, which means "please".
"I beseech thee": the phrase is not present in the Yehudit, but has been added by the English translator. The text simply says NA, which means "please".
KO'ACH: Translated here as "power", but it really means "strength" (see CHOCHACHA at verse 13). To determine which meaning is intended, we need to make more sense of the verse. The tone is of Mosheh giving god another pep-talk, telling him to stir up his loins... though it could just as well be a form of prayer.
YIGDAL: Having stated that all this is liturgical, I need to point out that the Yigdal mentioned here is not the Maimonidean "Thirteen Principles of Faith" set as a song by Daniel ben Judah (or possibly by Immanuel ben Solomon, the matter is disputed), but simply, pure coincidence, the correct grammatical way of saying "let it be great" in reference to YHVH's "Ko'ach".
YIGDAL: Having stated that all this is liturgical, I need to point out that the Yigdal mentioned here is not the Maimonidean "Thirteen Principles of Faith" set as a song by Daniel ben Judah (or possibly by Immanuel ben Solomon, the matter is disputed), but simply, pure coincidence, the correct grammatical way of saying "let it be great" in reference to YHVH's "Ko'ach".
But it is also highly, almost ironically bizarrely coincidental, that this verse is not "The Thirteen Principles of Faith, despite its use of the word Yigdal, but the next verse is indeed a restatement of "The Thirteen Attributes of Mercy" (see also Exodus 34:6) - I can't help wondering if ben Solomon (or it may have been ben Judah) took both his title and his word-form, precisely from here.
14:18 YHVH ERECH APAYIM VE RAV CHESED NOS'E AVON VE PHESHA VE NAKEH LO YENAKEH POKED AVON AVOT AL BANIM AL SHILESHIM VE AL RIVEYIM
יְהוָה אֶרֶךְ אַפַּיִם וְרַב חֶסֶד נֹשֵׂא עָוֹן וָפָשַׁע וְנַקֵּה לֹא יְנַקֶּה פֹּקֵד עֲוֹן אָבוֹת עַל בָּנִים עַל שִׁלֵּשִׁים וְעַל רִבֵּעִים
KJ: The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
BN: "YHVH is slow to anger, and plenteous in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means certain to acquit the guilty; he visits the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, even to the third and fourth generation...
I keep saying that this sounds liturgical, and certainly we have never heard Mosheh speak in such a formally poetic manner to YHVH before, alone even, let alone in the Tent with the full congregation listening; but it is from this verse that we can now assert that it is both liturgical and later prophetic; because this is one of the key, central verses of the entire Yom Kippur liturgy, "Adonai, Adonai, El Rachum ve Chanun" its introduction, "ve emet" later added after "chesed", the whole ending on the relative minor of the sub-dominant at "nakeh". There is no rebellion against Mosheh, there is no call to return to Mitsrayim, there are no stones being thrown; simply there is fear and concern about what will happen next, and a methodology of propitiation to help the decision process forward. So Mosheh goes back to liturgy (as noted above, this was first sung at Exodus 34:6).
And what's more there is also a Psalm (86:15-16) which uses precisely the same form of words.
14:19 SELACH NA LA AVON HA AM HA ZEH KE GODEL CHASDECHA VE CHA ASHER NASA'TAH LA AM HA ZEH MI MITSRAYIM VE AD HENAH
סְלַח נָא לַעֲוֹן הָעָם הַזֶּה כְּגֹדֶל חַסְדֶּךָ וְכַאֲשֶׁר נָשָׂאתָה לָעָם הַזֶּה מִמִּצְרַיִם וְעַד הֵנָּה
KJ: Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.
BN: "Pardon, I beseech you, the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your lovingkindness, and in the same manner that you have forgiven this people, from Mitsrayim even until now."
Finally the words become pure liturgy, and unequivocally Selichot, even if not the full Kaparah. Mosheh "speaking to YHVH" has in fact Mosheh been praying to YHVH all along; so now we have to ask, what were the circumstances/what was the festival, either in the time of Mosheh if this was original, or in the time of Yesha-Yahu (Isaiah), if it was indeed he who wrote this. Selichot prayers are daily, of course, not just in the month of Elul and at Yom Kippur - read the full account here.
VE AD HENAH: And when is "now"?
14:20 VA YOMER YHVH SELACHTI KIDVARECHA
KJ: And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word:
BN: And YHVH said: "I have pardoned you according to your word...
This phrase is precisely the one still used at Yom Kippur, and elsewhere, as the completion of Selichot.
14:21 VE ULAM CHAI ANI VE YIMAL'E CHEVOD YHVH ET KOL HA ARETS
KJ: But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.
BN: "And in very deed, as I live, all the Earth shall be filled with the glory of YHVH...
ARETS: here used to mean the whole world, not just the land of Yisra-El, hence my use of the Upper case E for Earth.
This verse too is part of today's liturgy, though it is somewhat odd to hear YHVH speakin of himself in the 3rd person.
14:22 KI CHOL HA ANASHIM HA RO'IM ET KEVODI VE ET OTOTAI ASHER ASIYTI VE MITSRAYIM U VA MIDBAR VA YENASU OTI ZEH ESER PE'AMIM VE LO SHAMU BE KOLI
KJ: Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice;
BN: "Because all those people who have seen my glory, and witnessed my signs, which I wrought both in Mitsrayim and in the wilderness, nevertheless they have tested me these ten times, and still they will not hearken to my voice...
14:18 YHVH ERECH APAYIM VE RAV CHESED NOS'E AVON VE PHESHA VE NAKEH LO YENAKEH POKED AVON AVOT AL BANIM AL SHILESHIM VE AL RIVEYIM
KJ: The LORD is longsuffering, and of great mercy, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means clearing the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation.
BN: "YHVH is slow to anger, and plenteous in lovingkindness, forgiving iniquity and transgression, and by no means certain to acquit the guilty; he visits the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, even to the third and fourth generation...
I keep saying that this sounds liturgical, and certainly we have never heard Mosheh speak in such a formally poetic manner to YHVH before, alone even, let alone in the Tent with the full congregation listening; but it is from this verse that we can now assert that it is both liturgical and later prophetic; because this is one of the key, central verses of the entire Yom Kippur liturgy, "Adonai, Adonai, El Rachum ve Chanun" its introduction, "ve emet" later added after "chesed", the whole ending on the relative minor of the sub-dominant at "nakeh". There is no rebellion against Mosheh, there is no call to return to Mitsrayim, there are no stones being thrown; simply there is fear and concern about what will happen next, and a methodology of propitiation to help the decision process forward. So Mosheh goes back to liturgy (as noted above, this was first sung at Exodus 34:6).
And what's more there is also a Psalm (86:15-16) which uses precisely the same form of words.
14:19 SELACH NA LA AVON HA AM HA ZEH KE GODEL CHASDECHA VE CHA ASHER NASA'TAH LA AM HA ZEH MI MITSRAYIM VE AD HENAH
סְלַח נָא לַעֲוֹן הָעָם הַזֶּה כְּגֹדֶל חַסְדֶּךָ וְכַאֲשֶׁר נָשָׂאתָה לָעָם הַזֶּה מִמִּצְרַיִם וְעַד הֵנָּה
KJ: Pardon, I beseech thee, the iniquity of this people according unto the greatness of thy mercy, and as thou hast forgiven this people, from Egypt even until now.
BN: "Pardon, I beseech you, the iniquity of this people, according to the greatness of your lovingkindness, and in the same manner that you have forgiven this people, from Mitsrayim even until now."
Finally the words become pure liturgy, and unequivocally Selichot, even if not the full Kaparah. Mosheh "speaking to YHVH" has in fact Mosheh been praying to YHVH all along; so now we have to ask, what were the circumstances/what was the festival, either in the time of Mosheh if this was original, or in the time of Yesha-Yahu (Isaiah), if it was indeed he who wrote this. Selichot prayers are daily, of course, not just in the month of Elul and at Yom Kippur - read the full account here.
VE AD HENAH: And when is "now"?
14:20 VA YOMER YHVH SELACHTI KIDVARECHA
וַיֹּאמֶר יְהוָה סָלַחְתִּי כִּדְבָרֶךָ
KJ: And the LORD said, I have pardoned according to thy word:
BN: And YHVH said: "I have pardoned you according to your word...
This phrase is precisely the one still used at Yom Kippur, and elsewhere, as the completion of Selichot.
14:21 VE ULAM CHAI ANI VE YIMAL'E CHEVOD YHVH ET KOL HA ARETS
וְאוּלָם חַי אָנִי וְיִמָּלֵא כְבוֹד יְהוָה אֶת כָּל הָאָרֶץ
KJ: But as truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of the LORD.
BN: "And in very deed, as I live, all the Earth shall be filled with the glory of YHVH...
ARETS: here used to mean the whole world, not just the land of Yisra-El, hence my use of the Upper case E for Earth.
This verse too is part of today's liturgy, though it is somewhat odd to hear YHVH speakin of himself in the 3rd person.
14:22 KI CHOL HA ANASHIM HA RO'IM ET KEVODI VE ET OTOTAI ASHER ASIYTI VE MITSRAYIM U VA MIDBAR VA YENASU OTI ZEH ESER PE'AMIM VE LO SHAMU BE KOLI
כִּי כָל הָאֲנָשִׁים הָרֹאִים אֶת כְּבֹדִי וְאֶת אֹתֹתַי אֲשֶׁר עָשִׂיתִי בְמִצְרַיִם וּבַמִּדְבָּר וַיְנַסּוּ אֹתִי זֶה עֶשֶׂר פְּעָמִים וְלֹא שָׁמְעוּ בְּקוֹלִי
KJ: Because all those men which have seen my glory, and my miracles, which I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have tempted me now these ten times, and have not hearkened to my voice;
BN: "Because all those people who have seen my glory, and witnessed my signs, which I wrought both in Mitsrayim and in the wilderness, nevertheless they have tested me these ten times, and still they will not hearken to my voice...
Meaning: I will forgive them, because you have asked me to forgive them, but understand that we will back doing all this again tomorrow, and tomorrow, and tomorrow...
14:23 IM YIR'U ET HA ARETS ASHER NISHBA'TI LA AVOTAM VE CHOL MENA'ATSAY LO YIR'UHU
KJ: Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it:
BN: "And this is why they shall not see the land which I swore to their ancestors; and especially not those who have despised me - they will not see it...
14:24 VE AVDI CHALEV EKEV HAYETAH RU'ACH ACHERET IMO VA YEMAL'E ACHARAY VA HAVIY'OTAV EL HA ARETS ASHER BA SHAMAH VE ZARO YORISHENAH
KJ: But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
BN: "But my servant Kalev, because he had a completely different attitude, and followed me completely, him I will bring into the land into which he went; and his descendants shall possess it...
YORISHEYNAH: This becomes important politically later on, when David establishes Chevron as his capital. We can assume the text was added by the Beney Kalev (Calebites), to give retroactive legitimacy to their claim to Chevron. See also notes to CHEVRON.
But isn't it also odd that Kalev gets mentioned, and praised, but not Hoshe'a (Yehoshu'a)?
14:25 VE HA AMALEKI VE HA KENA'ANI YOSHEV BA EMEK MACHAR PENU U SE'U LACHEM HA MIDBAR DERECH YAM SUPH
KJ: (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites dwelt in the valley.) To morrow turn you, and get you into the wilderness by the way of the Red sea.
BN: Now the Amaleki and the Kena'ani dwell in the valley; tomorrow turn, and go into the wilderness by the route to the Red Sea.
The Red Sea prongs, and the wilderness of Sinai is between the two prongs, so if they only crossed the western prong at the time of the exodus they are not in Midyan, despite the evidence of many previous descriptions; though even that assumes that they ever did cross the Red Sea. They are, nevertheless, supposedly a long way south, but the inference of this verse, and the description of the journey of the spies, appears to place them very much further north. Indeed, it reaffirms the crossing of the Sea of Reeds, from Goshen due east through the marshes of the Nile Delta, to the north of the Bitter Lakes (the top of the left-hand prong is today the outlet of the Suez Canal; just to its north are the Great and Small Bitter Lakes, which are now incorporated into the Canal. Rephiydim (see Exodus 17:1), the first stopping-point after the exodus from Egypt, is just to the east of the northernmost of those lakes; the starting-point of the exodus was Goshen - check all of this against my notes throughout the Book of Exodus).
And indeed, translating Yam Suph as the Sea of Reeds, which is to say the Nile Delta, is rather more logical than the Red Sea; Suph means "end", which is what the Nile does when it reaches the delta.
Historical evidence, as well as later Biblical evidence, places the Amelekites in the desert south and west of Aza (Gaza), well to the east of the Nile Delta, with no evidence of them whatsoever around the Red Sea.
pey break
14:26 VA YEDABER YHVH EL MOSHEH VE EL AHARON LEMOR
KJ: And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
BN: Then YHVH spoke to Mosheh and Aharon, saying:
14:27 AD MATAI LA EDAH HA RA'AH HA ZOT ASHER HEMAH MALIYNIM ALAI ET TELUNOT BENEY YISRA-EL ASHER HEMAH MALIYNIM ALAI SHAMA'TI
KJ: How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me.
BN: "How long shall I have to suffer this wicked congregation, that keeps on murmuring against me? I have heard the murmurings of the Beney Yisra-El, which they keep on murmuring against me.
Continuing the complaint, and with the same words, of verse 11, though there it was Mosheh, and here it is YHVH. Theologically this is complex. YHVH created Humankind in his own image and likeness, which is to say flawed and prone to error (YHVH too has tantrums, YHVH too destroys things and then wishes he hasn't; YHVH too promises to do better next time, but falls short). YHVH requires Humankind to atone for its sins. Why then does YHVH complain when Humankind sins and atones, sins and complains? This verse is actually more negative about YHVH than it is about the Beney Yisra-El.
14:23 IM YIR'U ET HA ARETS ASHER NISHBA'TI LA AVOTAM VE CHOL MENA'ATSAY LO YIR'UHU
אִם יִרְאוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נִשְׁבַּעְתִּי לַאֲבֹתָם וְכָל מְנַאֲצַי לֹא יִרְאוּהָ
KJ: Surely they shall not see the land which I sware unto their fathers, neither shall any of them that provoked me see it:
BN: "And this is why they shall not see the land which I swore to their ancestors; and especially not those who have despised me - they will not see it...
14:24 VE AVDI CHALEV EKEV HAYETAH RU'ACH ACHERET IMO VA YEMAL'E ACHARAY VA HAVIY'OTAV EL HA ARETS ASHER BA SHAMAH VE ZARO YORISHENAH
וְעַבְדִּי כָלֵב עֵקֶב הָיְתָה רוּחַ אַחֶרֶת עִמּוֹ וַיְמַלֵּא אַחֲרָי וַהֲבִיאֹתִיו אֶל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר בָּא שָׁמָּה וְזַרְעוֹ יוֹרִשֶׁנָּה
KJ: But my servant Caleb, because he had another spirit with him, and hath followed me fully, him will I bring into the land whereinto he went; and his seed shall possess it.
BN: "But my servant Kalev, because he had a completely different attitude, and followed me completely, him I will bring into the land into which he went; and his descendants shall possess it...
YORISHEYNAH: This becomes important politically later on, when David establishes Chevron as his capital. We can assume the text was added by the Beney Kalev (Calebites), to give retroactive legitimacy to their claim to Chevron. See also notes to CHEVRON.
But isn't it also odd that Kalev gets mentioned, and praised, but not Hoshe'a (Yehoshu'a)?
14:25 VE HA AMALEKI VE HA KENA'ANI YOSHEV BA EMEK MACHAR PENU U SE'U LACHEM HA MIDBAR DERECH YAM SUPH
וְהָעֲמָלֵקִי וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי יוֹשֵׁב בָּעֵמֶק מָחָר פְּנוּ וּסְעוּ לָכֶם הַמִּדְבָּר דֶּרֶךְ יַם סוּף
BN: Now the Amaleki and the Kena'ani dwell in the valley; tomorrow turn, and go into the wilderness by the route to the Red Sea.
The Red Sea prongs, and the wilderness of Sinai is between the two prongs, so if they only crossed the western prong at the time of the exodus they are not in Midyan, despite the evidence of many previous descriptions; though even that assumes that they ever did cross the Red Sea. They are, nevertheless, supposedly a long way south, but the inference of this verse, and the description of the journey of the spies, appears to place them very much further north. Indeed, it reaffirms the crossing of the Sea of Reeds, from Goshen due east through the marshes of the Nile Delta, to the north of the Bitter Lakes (the top of the left-hand prong is today the outlet of the Suez Canal; just to its north are the Great and Small Bitter Lakes, which are now incorporated into the Canal. Rephiydim (see Exodus 17:1), the first stopping-point after the exodus from Egypt, is just to the east of the northernmost of those lakes; the starting-point of the exodus was Goshen - check all of this against my notes throughout the Book of Exodus).
And indeed, translating Yam Suph as the Sea of Reeds, which is to say the Nile Delta, is rather more logical than the Red Sea; Suph means "end", which is what the Nile does when it reaches the delta.
Historical evidence, as well as later Biblical evidence, places the Amelekites in the desert south and west of Aza (Gaza), well to the east of the Nile Delta, with no evidence of them whatsoever around the Red Sea.
pey break
14:26 VA YEDABER YHVH EL MOSHEH VE EL AHARON LEMOR
וַיְדַבֵּר יְהוָה אֶל מֹשֶׁה וְאֶל אַהֲרֹן לֵאמֹר
KJ: And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,
BN: Then YHVH spoke to Mosheh and Aharon, saying:
14:27 AD MATAI LA EDAH HA RA'AH HA ZOT ASHER HEMAH MALIYNIM ALAI ET TELUNOT BENEY YISRA-EL ASHER HEMAH MALIYNIM ALAI SHAMA'TI
עַד מָתַי לָעֵדָה הָרָעָה הַזֹּאת אֲשֶׁר הֵמָּה מַלִּינִים עָלָי אֶת תְּלֻנּוֹת בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר הֵמָּה מַלִּינִים עָלַי שָׁמָעְתִּי
KJ: How long shall I bear with this evil congregation, which murmur against me? I have heard the murmurings of the children of Israel, which they murmur against me.
BN: "How long shall I have to suffer this wicked congregation, that keeps on murmuring against me? I have heard the murmurings of the Beney Yisra-El, which they keep on murmuring against me.
Continuing the complaint, and with the same words, of verse 11, though there it was Mosheh, and here it is YHVH. Theologically this is complex. YHVH created Humankind in his own image and likeness, which is to say flawed and prone to error (YHVH too has tantrums, YHVH too destroys things and then wishes he hasn't; YHVH too promises to do better next time, but falls short). YHVH requires Humankind to atone for its sins. Why then does YHVH complain when Humankind sins and atones, sins and complains? This verse is actually more negative about YHVH than it is about the Beney Yisra-El.
MALIYNIM: Picking up YILONU from verse 2; it will recur in vv 29 and 36.
The text continues to allude to Isaiah 6.
The text continues to allude to Isaiah 6.
Commenting as a poet, if I were commissioned to write a poem that explored mythologically the question "what actually is a volcano?", I too would echo the constant muttering of the volcano in the constant muttering of the pilgrims, I too would make the volcano-god cough and splutter and spit and spume. It is simply the way these things get written.
14: 28 EMOR ALEYHEM CHAY ANI NE'UM IM LO KA ASHER DIBARTEM BE AZNAY KEN E'ESEH LACHEM
אֱמֹר אֲלֵהֶם חַי אָנִי נְאֻם יְהוָה אִם לֹא כַּאֲשֶׁר דִּבַּרְתֶּם בְּאָזְנָי כֵּן אֶעֱשֶׂה לָכֶם
KJ: Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:
BN: Say to them: "As surely as I live, says YHVH, and as surely as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do to you...
But again, if this is liturgy, then the words are not so problematic. The reproach is simply part of the process of punishing and redeeming sin.
14:29 BA MIDBAR HA ZEH YIPLU PIGREYCHEM VE CHOL PEKUDEYCHEM LE CHOL MISPARCHEM MI BEN ESRIM SHANAH VA MA'LAH ASHER HALIYNOTEM ALAI
KJ: Your carcases shall fall in this wilderness; and all that were numbered of you, according to your whole number, from twenty years old and upward, which have murmured against me,
BN: "Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness, and every one that was numbered of you, according to precisely that number, from twenty years old and upward, you who have murmured against me...
Unless it is also historical, in which case here goes YHVH again, overdoing his reactions. This is the first suggestion that the Beney Yisra-El would spend forty years in the wilderness, and it seems highly coincidental that it comes wrapped in allusions to Yesha-Yahu (Isaiah) and in his style of language, suggesting that in fact Yesha-Yahu is inventing a forty-year period in the wilderness as an allegory for the exile of the Yehudim in Babylon, which by his time was indeed forty years. But it is only parable, not historical. (Naming him here as Yesha-Yahu is also inaccurate; really he is Deutero-Isaiah, the last of that school of prophets).
But why these age groups? Go back to the census in Numbers 1. Did the non-conscripts - the women, the young, the elderly - not moan and mutter too? The phrasing here makes this sound like a refusal by the army, not by the priests or the general congregation.
14:30 IM ATEM TAVO'U EL HA ARETS ASHER NASATI ET YADI LESHAKEN ET'CHEM BAH KI IM KALEV BEN YEPHUNEH VIY'HOSHU'A BIN NUN
KJ: Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
BN: "Not one of you shall come into the land for which I lifted up my hand to make it so that you might dwell in it, save only Kalev ben Yephuneh, and Yehoshu'a bin Nun...
If we read forward to the Book of Joshua, is it the case that many others from this time did accompany him and Kalev into Kena'an? To which the answer actually lies in verses 29 and 31 (and 36, bracketed) - all those under the age of 20, unless they happen to die in the meanwhile, will be among the arrivers; and obviously the offspring produced between now and then, with them.
14: 28 EMOR ALEYHEM CHAY ANI NE'UM IM LO KA ASHER DIBARTEM BE AZNAY KEN E'ESEH LACHEM
KJ: Say unto them, As truly as I live, saith the LORD, as ye have spoken in mine ears, so will I do to you:
BN: Say to them: "As surely as I live, says YHVH, and as surely as you have spoken in my ears, so will I do to you...
But again, if this is liturgy, then the words are not so problematic. The reproach is simply part of the process of punishing and redeeming sin.
14:29 BA MIDBAR HA ZEH YIPLU PIGREYCHEM VE CHOL PEKUDEYCHEM LE CHOL MISPARCHEM MI BEN ESRIM SHANAH VA MA'LAH ASHER HALIYNOTEM ALAI
בַּמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה יִפְּלוּ פִגְרֵיכֶם וְכָל פְּקֻדֵיכֶם לְכָל מִסְפַּרְכֶם מִבֶּן עֶשְׂרִים שָׁנָה וָמָעְלָה אֲשֶׁר הֲלִינֹתֶם עָלָי
BN: "Your carcasses shall fall in this wilderness, and every one that was numbered of you, according to precisely that number, from twenty years old and upward, you who have murmured against me...
Unless it is also historical, in which case here goes YHVH again, overdoing his reactions. This is the first suggestion that the Beney Yisra-El would spend forty years in the wilderness, and it seems highly coincidental that it comes wrapped in allusions to Yesha-Yahu (Isaiah) and in his style of language, suggesting that in fact Yesha-Yahu is inventing a forty-year period in the wilderness as an allegory for the exile of the Yehudim in Babylon, which by his time was indeed forty years. But it is only parable, not historical. (Naming him here as Yesha-Yahu is also inaccurate; really he is Deutero-Isaiah, the last of that school of prophets).
But why these age groups? Go back to the census in Numbers 1. Did the non-conscripts - the women, the young, the elderly - not moan and mutter too? The phrasing here makes this sound like a refusal by the army, not by the priests or the general congregation.
14:30 IM ATEM TAVO'U EL HA ARETS ASHER NASATI ET YADI LESHAKEN ET'CHEM BAH KI IM KALEV BEN YEPHUNEH VIY'HOSHU'A BIN NUN
אִם אַתֶּם תָּבֹאוּ אֶל הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר נָשָׂאתִי אֶת יָדִי לְשַׁכֵּן אֶתְכֶם בָּהּ כִּי אִם כָּלֵב בֶּן יְפֻנֶּה וִיהוֹשֻׁעַ בִּן נוּן
KJ: Doubtless ye shall not come into the land, concerning which I sware to make you dwell therein, save Caleb the son of Jephunneh, and Joshua the son of Nun.
BN: "Not one of you shall come into the land for which I lifted up my hand to make it so that you might dwell in it, save only Kalev ben Yephuneh, and Yehoshu'a bin Nun...
If we read forward to the Book of Joshua, is it the case that many others from this time did accompany him and Kalev into Kena'an? To which the answer actually lies in verses 29 and 31 (and 36, bracketed) - all those under the age of 20, unless they happen to die in the meanwhile, will be among the arrivers; and obviously the offspring produced between now and then, with them.
Note that this time Kalev gets mentioned first, then Yehoshu'a. Verse 38, their next mention, reverses them again. Clearly there was an issue about precedence, and this was the way that it was resolved!`
14:31 VE TAPCHEM ASHER AMARTEM LAVAZ YIHEYEH VE HEVEYTI OTAM VE YAD'U ET HA ARETS ASHER ME'ASTEM BAH
וְטַפְּכֶם אֲשֶׁר אֲמַרְתֶּם לָבַז יִהְיֶה וְהֵבֵיאתִי אֹתָם וְיָדְעוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר מְאַסְתֶּם בָּהּ
KJ: But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.
BN: "But your little ones, the ones who you said would be a prey, them I will bring in, and they shall know the land which you have rejected...
This feels like a bad teacher, fed up with the energy of the kids, issuing a blanket: "No one gets to go out for recess. You can all stay in and do extra work." Usually a sign of bad teaching, rather than bad students.
14:32 U PHIGREYCHEM ATEM YIPLU BA MIDBAR HA ZEH
KJ: But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness.
BN: But as for you, your carcasses shall rot in this wilderness.
14:33 U VENEYCHEM YIHEYU RO'IM BA MIDBAR ARBA'IM SHANAH VE NAS'U ET ZENUTEYCHEM AD TOM PIGREYCHEM BA MIDBAR
KJ: And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness.
BN: "And your children shall live as wanderering shepherds in the wilderness for forty years, and shall suffer the consequences of your straying from my ordinances, until your carcasses have been consumed in the wilderness...
RO'IM: Does it actually mean "wanderers, as most translations give?" This needs some etymological analysis, but it is probably a denotion of the people as Bedou, and may thus refer us back to the Midyanite text; in which case the period of forty years is metaphorical: the Midyanites have been Bedou for 4,000 years already. (Try here as a starting-point for the etymology: Study Bible translates Ro'im, entirely correctly, as "shepherds").
NASU ET ZENUTEYCHEM: transforms the entire people of Israel into Azaz-El! Once again a Yom Kippur reference.
And once again, if you read Yesha-Yahu's rantings and ragings, his language, even the construct that "YHVH doesn't want your sacrifices, he wants your obedience", which is the essence of "strayings" - ZENUTEYCHEM - here.
14:34 BE MISPAR HA YAMIM ASHER TARTEM ET HA ARETS ARBA'IM YOM YOM LA SHANAH YOM LA SHANAH TIS'U ET AVONOTEYCHEM ARBA'IM SHANAH VIY'DATEM ET TENU'ATI
KJ: After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, evenforty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.
BN: "According to the number of days in which you reconnoitered the land, precisely forty days, for each day a year, so shall you bear your iniquities, precisely forty years, and you shall know my displeasure...
14:31 VE TAPCHEM ASHER AMARTEM LAVAZ YIHEYEH VE HEVEYTI OTAM VE YAD'U ET HA ARETS ASHER ME'ASTEM BAH
וְטַפְּכֶם אֲשֶׁר אֲמַרְתֶּם לָבַז יִהְיֶה וְהֵבֵיאתִי אֹתָם וְיָדְעוּ אֶת הָאָרֶץ אֲשֶׁר מְאַסְתֶּם בָּהּ
KJ: But your little ones, which ye said should be a prey, them will I bring in, and they shall know the land which ye have despised.
BN: "But your little ones, the ones who you said would be a prey, them I will bring in, and they shall know the land which you have rejected...
This feels like a bad teacher, fed up with the energy of the kids, issuing a blanket: "No one gets to go out for recess. You can all stay in and do extra work." Usually a sign of bad teaching, rather than bad students.
14:32 U PHIGREYCHEM ATEM YIPLU BA MIDBAR HA ZEH
וּפִגְרֵיכֶם אַתֶּם יִפְּלוּ בַּמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה
KJ: But as for you, your carcases, they shall fall in this wilderness.
BN: But as for you, your carcasses shall rot in this wilderness.
14:33 U VENEYCHEM YIHEYU RO'IM BA MIDBAR ARBA'IM SHANAH VE NAS'U ET ZENUTEYCHEM AD TOM PIGREYCHEM BA MIDBAR
וּבְנֵיכֶם יִהְיוּ רֹעִים בַּמִּדְבָּר אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וְנָשְׂאוּ אֶת זְנוּתֵיכֶם עַד תֹּם פִּגְרֵיכֶם בַּמִּדְבָּר
KJ: And your children shall wander in the wilderness forty years, and bear your whoredoms, until your carcases be wasted in the wilderness.
BN: "And your children shall live as wanderering shepherds in the wilderness for forty years, and shall suffer the consequences of your straying from my ordinances, until your carcasses have been consumed in the wilderness...
RO'IM: Does it actually mean "wanderers, as most translations give?" This needs some etymological analysis, but it is probably a denotion of the people as Bedou, and may thus refer us back to the Midyanite text; in which case the period of forty years is metaphorical: the Midyanites have been Bedou for 4,000 years already. (Try here as a starting-point for the etymology: Study Bible translates Ro'im, entirely correctly, as "shepherds").
NASU ET ZENUTEYCHEM: transforms the entire people of Israel into Azaz-El! Once again a Yom Kippur reference.
And once again, if you read Yesha-Yahu's rantings and ragings, his language, even the construct that "YHVH doesn't want your sacrifices, he wants your obedience", which is the essence of "strayings" - ZENUTEYCHEM - here.
14:34 BE MISPAR HA YAMIM ASHER TARTEM ET HA ARETS ARBA'IM YOM YOM LA SHANAH YOM LA SHANAH TIS'U ET AVONOTEYCHEM ARBA'IM SHANAH VIY'DATEM ET TENU'ATI
בְּמִסְפַּר הַיָּמִים אֲשֶׁר תַּרְתֶּם אֶת הָאָרֶץ אַרְבָּעִים יוֹם יוֹם לַשָּׁנָה יוֹם לַשָּׁנָה תִּשְׂאוּ אֶת עֲוֹנֹתֵיכֶם אַרְבָּעִים שָׁנָה וִידַעְתֶּם אֶת תְּנוּאָתִי
KJ: After the number of the days in which ye searched the land, even forty days, each day for a year, shall ye bear your iniquities, evenforty years, and ye shall know my breach of promise.
BN: "According to the number of days in which you reconnoitered the land, precisely forty days, for each day a year, so shall you bear your iniquities, precisely forty years, and you shall know my displeasure...
In the traditional commentaries, this is the key verse (in partnership with Numbers 13:25), the one that defines and explains the period of wandering in the wilderness. However, even if we accept it, the period is not 40 years, but 41 years and about a month and a half, because the journey began 13.5 months ago; yet the later texts, which date the end of the wandering and the beginning of the conquest, insist that it was 40 years from Mitsrayim, and not 40 years from this point.
And never forget, when you come across the numbers 40 and 150 in any Yehudit text that has Egyptian or Babylonian roots or connections, that those two numbers were used in both cultures as symbolic round numbers, for eternities, infinities, myriads, et cetera (see the No'ach tale for example). And then look at the many occasions when things have taken place BEYN HA ARBA'IM - which may very well be "between the forties" literally, meaning "somewhere between eternity and infinity" - or it may be an error for BEYN HA ARAVIM - which actually means the same thing, by way of a different metaphor: "between dusk and dawn" (yes, that way around!)*. All this needs to be understand rather more metaphorically than literally.
* Just as a footnote, the same occurs in English, though most people don't know it: "between morning and evening", to put it back in a solar order: the morn in mediaeval English was the "morwen", which in the Celtic was Morwenna, aka Guinevere, the white goddess, King Arthur's Lady: the moon goddess. While the even-ing was the balancing out of light between that provided by the sun and that provided by the moon...
14:35 ANI YHVH DIBARTI IM LO ZOT E'ESEH LE CHOL HA EDAH HA RA'AH HA ZOT HA NO'ADIM ALAI BA MIDBAR HA ZEH YITAMU VE SHAM YAMUTU
אֲנִי יְהוָה דִּבַּרְתִּי אִם לֹא זֹאת אֶעֱשֶׂה לְכָל הָעֵדָה הָרָעָה הַזֹּאת הַנּוֹעָדִים עָלָי בַּמִּדְבָּר הַזֶּה יִתַּמּוּ וְשָׁם יָמֻתוּ
KJ: I the LORD have said, I will surely do it unto all this evil congregation, that are gathered together against me: in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.
BN: "I, YHVH, have spoken. Surely I will do this to all this evil congregation that is gathered together against me; in this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die."
So we spent forty years in the wilderness because YHVH had another sulk and another tantrum and took it out on two million tired and starving refugees with nowhere to go, only slavery to go back to, and reports of giants and fortified cities in the so-called promised land. Your failure, YHVH. Your failure, not theirs.
Now if I were one of the spies - and remember the spies were chosen precisely because they were the heads of their clans - I would respond to this by saying: "Fine, if YHVH has abandoned us, what do we need YHVH for anyway; and especially, what do we need Mosheh for. Let's take charge, kill Mosheh, and turn back to Mitsrayim." Which is to say: politically this is YHVH at his least almighty. And this is precisely what Korach and his colleagues will eventually do.
14:36 VE HA ANASHIM ASHER SHALACH MOSHEH LATUR ET HA ARETS VA YASHUVU VA YALIYNU ALAV ET KOL HA EDAH LE HOTSI DIBAH AL HA ARETS
וְהָאֲנָשִׁים אֲשֶׁר שָׁלַח מֹשֶׁה לָתוּר אֶת הָאָרֶץ וַיָּשֻׁבוּ וילונו (וַיַּלִּינוּ) עָלָיו אֶת כָּל הָעֵדָה לְהוֹצִיא דִבָּה עַל הָאָרֶץ
KJ: And the men, which Moses sent to search the land, who returned, and made all the congregation to murmur against him, by bringing up a slander upon the land,
BN: And the men, whom Mosheh sent to reconnoitre the land, and who, when they returned, made all the congregation murmur against him, by bringing back a slanderous report about the land...
14:37 VA YAMUTU HA ANASHIM MOTSI'EY DIBAT HA ARETS RA'AH BA MAGEPHAH LIPHNEY YHVH
וַיָּמֻתוּ הָאֲנָשִׁים מוֹצִאֵי דִבַּת הָאָרֶץ רָעָה בַּמַּגֵּפָה לִפְנֵי יְהוָה
KJ: Even those men that did bring up the evil report upon the land, died by the plague before the LORD.
BN: Even those men who brought back a slanderous report about the land, they will die by the plague sent by YHVH.
YAMUTU: "Died", or "will die"? If the former, then this is a story being told as history from a future point looking back, and the grammar is problematic (because it is definitely in the future tense here); if "will die", it is still YHVH announcing his judgement. Verse 39 confirms that it is the latter.
And what is that judgement? This is point at which demoagoguery takes over, doxology wins out, and men are told what it suits the Grand Inquisitor to have them regard as truth. We have to be cautious at every point of reading this book, to remember that what we are reading as literary criticism, was written as didactic theology.
All of which, when we finally attempt to separate post-event explanation as sin from "what is a volcano?", and pull out whatever may have been the history of Ach-Mousa and the defeat of the Hyksos, all of which sounds to me like Mosheh took his people to witness a volcanic eruption, and the volcano Pompeiied them - read Pliny's account of that event here).
14:38 VIY'HOSHU'A BIN NUN VE CHALEV BEN YEPHUNEH CHAYU MIN HA ANASHIM HA HEM HA HOLCHIM LATUR ET HA ARETS
וִיהוֹשֻׁעַ בִּן נוּן וְכָלֵב בֶּן יְפֻנֶּה חָיוּ מִן הָאֲנָשִׁים הָהֵם הַהֹלְכִים לָתוּר אֶת הָאָרֶץ
KJ: But Joshua the son of Nun, and Caleb the son of Jephunneh, which were of the men that went to search the land, lived still.
BN: But Yehoshu'a bin Nun, and Kalev ben Yephuneh, remained alive of those men who went to spy out the land.
14:39 VA YEDABER MOSHEH ET HA DEVARIM HA ELEH EL KOL BENEY YISRA-EL VA YIT'ABLU HA AM ME'OD
KJ: And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.
BN: And Mosheh reported all these things to all the Beney Yisra-El; and the people mourned greatly.
Which "things" did he report? Only the ones in quotation marks when YHVH spoke to him; or the ensuing narrative verses as well (36-38)? Logic says the former, but the positioning of this verse infers the latter. And remember, before this passage, we were given a useful little preface about prophesying which we had never heard about before; and then, lo and behold, a passage of Yesha-Yahu (Isaiah) prophesying, and this verse emphasising that this is what it was.
YIT'ABLU: Why would they mourn future deaths? Indeed, would it not contravene Mosaic law to do so? Again, the impression is that the volcano just erupted, those reported words were the poetical human phrasing of the event, and the mourning is for the many dead who will not indeed be entering the earthly Promised Land, because they have already entered the mythological heavenly one.
14:40 VA YASHKIMU VA BOKER VA YA'ALU EL ROSH HA HAR LEMOR HINENI VE ALIYNU EL HA MAKOM ASHER AMAR YHVH KI CHATANU
KJ: And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the LORD hath promised: for we have sinned.
BN: And they rose up early in the morning, and went up to the top of the mountain, saying: "Lo, we are here, and will go up to the place which YHVH has promised; for we have sinned."
Who is the "they" in this verse? The following verse seems to infer that these are the ten spies; or possibly the ten and their supporters: either way, it is a protest demonstration again Mosheh and YHVH. Which leads me to wonder: should this verse be placed earlier in the chapter: Mosheh issued his "report", which condemned the negative report of the ten; the ten then marched to the mountaintop, as a protest, and found themselves engulfed by the volcano, as a result of which the Beney Yisra-El went into mourning. Entirely feasible., and the next few verses endorse it as a possibility.
But there is also another aspect to this text which we need to consdier (and perhaps this part pre-existed Yesha-Yahu/Isaiah, who made a Midrash out of it): that all of this is part of the liturgy. We now know that the place where they have stopped was another mountain, and another holy mountain at that - another stage of the long pilgrimage, which apparently did not end at Sinai; and which fact allows us to learn that the covenant renewal ceremony was itself not the end-goal but only a stage. Or does it? The next few verses, however, tend to argue against this option.
וַיְדַבֵּר מֹשֶׁה אֶת הַדְּבָרִים הָאֵלֶּה אֶל כָּל בְּנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל וַיִּתְאַבְּלוּ הָעָם מְאֹד
KJ: And Moses told these sayings unto all the children of Israel: and the people mourned greatly.
BN: And Mosheh reported all these things to all the Beney Yisra-El; and the people mourned greatly.
Which "things" did he report? Only the ones in quotation marks when YHVH spoke to him; or the ensuing narrative verses as well (36-38)? Logic says the former, but the positioning of this verse infers the latter. And remember, before this passage, we were given a useful little preface about prophesying which we had never heard about before; and then, lo and behold, a passage of Yesha-Yahu (Isaiah) prophesying, and this verse emphasising that this is what it was.
YIT'ABLU: Why would they mourn future deaths? Indeed, would it not contravene Mosaic law to do so? Again, the impression is that the volcano just erupted, those reported words were the poetical human phrasing of the event, and the mourning is for the many dead who will not indeed be entering the earthly Promised Land, because they have already entered the mythological heavenly one.
14:40 VA YASHKIMU VA BOKER VA YA'ALU EL ROSH HA HAR LEMOR HINENI VE ALIYNU EL HA MAKOM ASHER AMAR YHVH KI CHATANU
וַיַּשְׁכִּמוּ בַבֹּקֶר וַיַּעֲלוּ אֶל רֹאשׁ הָהָר לֵאמֹר הִנֶּנּוּ וְעָלִינוּ אֶל הַמָּקוֹם אֲשֶׁר אָמַר יְהוָה כִּי חָטָאנוּ
KJ: And they rose up early in the morning, and gat them up into the top of the mountain, saying, Lo, we be here, and will go up unto the place which the LORD hath promised: for we have sinned.
BN: And they rose up early in the morning, and went up to the top of the mountain, saying: "Lo, we are here, and will go up to the place which YHVH has promised; for we have sinned."
Who is the "they" in this verse? The following verse seems to infer that these are the ten spies; or possibly the ten and their supporters: either way, it is a protest demonstration again Mosheh and YHVH. Which leads me to wonder: should this verse be placed earlier in the chapter: Mosheh issued his "report", which condemned the negative report of the ten; the ten then marched to the mountaintop, as a protest, and found themselves engulfed by the volcano, as a result of which the Beney Yisra-El went into mourning. Entirely feasible., and the next few verses endorse it as a possibility.
But there is also another aspect to this text which we need to consdier (and perhaps this part pre-existed Yesha-Yahu/Isaiah, who made a Midrash out of it): that all of this is part of the liturgy. We now know that the place where they have stopped was another mountain, and another holy mountain at that - another stage of the long pilgrimage, which apparently did not end at Sinai; and which fact allows us to learn that the covenant renewal ceremony was itself not the end-goal but only a stage. Or does it? The next few verses, however, tend to argue against this option.
It occurs to me that, throughout Numbers, YHVH is presented as a stand-alone name, and never as YHVH Elohim, or YHVH Eloheycha, as elsewhere in the Torah. Not surprising, as this is where he started his career as a deity: the volcano-god of Chorev, or was it Sinai?
HINENI: An essay about this oft-used word is due for publication on TheBibleNet very soon.
14: 41 VA YOMER MOSHEH LAMAH ZEH ATEM OVRIM ET PI YHVH VE HI LO TITSLACH
וַיֹּאמֶר מֹשֶׁה לָמָּה זֶּה אַתֶּם עֹבְרִים אֶת פִּי יְהוָה וְהִוא לֹא תִצְלָח
KJ: And Moses said, Wherefore now do ye transgress the commandment of the LORD? but it shall not prosper.
BN: And Mosheh said: "Why are you disobeying YHVH's instructions now, when you know that rebellion won't achieve anything?..
Written without pointing, OVRIM could be IVRIM = Hebrews.
14:42 AL TA'ALU KI EYN YHVH BE KIRBECHEM VE LO TINAGPHU LIPHNEY OYEVEYCHEM
אַל תַּעֲלוּ כִּי אֵין יְהוָה בְּקִרְבְּכֶם וְלֹא תִּנָּגְפוּ לִפְנֵי אֹיְבֵיכֶם
KJ: Go not up, for the LORD is not among you; that ye be not smitten before your enemies.
BN: "Do not go up, for YHVH is not among you; you risk being wiped out by your enemies...
Which would then be understood as YHVH smiting them, precisely because they were disobedient. Nichretah made manifest.
14:43 KI HA AMALEKI VE HA KENA'ANI SHAM LIPHNEYCHEM U NEPHALTEM BE CHEREV KI AL KEN SHAVTEM ME ACHAREY YHVH VE LO YIHEYEH YHVH IMACHEM
כִּי הָעֲמָלֵקִי וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי שָׁם לִפְנֵיכֶם וּנְפַלְתֶּם בֶּחָרֶב כִּי עַל כֵּן שַׁבְתֶּם מֵאַחֲרֵי יְהוָה וְלֹא יִהְיֶה יְהוָה עִמָּכֶם
KJ: For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and ye shall fall by the sword: because ye are turned away from the LORD, therefore the LORD will not be with you.
BN: "For the Amaleki and the Kena'ani are right there in front of you, and you will fall by the sword; forasmuch as you have turned back from following YHVH, and YHVH will not be with you."
This does not make sense. It is precisely the fear of the Amaleki and the Kena'ani that makes them want to turn back, whereas the danger at the top of the mountain is YHVH himself. Or is Mosheh simply using that fear to talk down their protest?
14:44 VA YA'PILU LA'ALOT EL ROSH HA HAR VA ARON BRIT YHVH U MOSHEH LO MASU MI KEREV HA MACHANEH
וַיַּעְפִּלוּ לַעֲלוֹת אֶל רֹאשׁ הָהָר וַאֲרוֹן בְּרִית יְהוָה וּמֹשֶׁה לֹא מָשׁוּ מִקֶּרֶב הַמַּחֲנֶה
KJ: But they presumed to go up unto the hill top: nevertheless the ark of the covenant of the LORD, and Moses, departed not out of the camp.
BN: But they were arrogant and heedless, and so they went up to the top of the mountain; but the Ark of the Covenant of YHVH, and Mosheh himself, did not depart the camp.
YA'PILU: See the link for the complex etymology and grammar of this.
Is it possible that they didn't go to the mountain-top to meet YHVH, but to muster their troops for the start of a battle? Unlikely, given that... but see again my note to the last verse (unless the protest is a "we'll show you" protest; and they are going to face down the negatives against their negatives, by challenging the Amelekit and Kena'ani. And prove themselves correct in the process - by losing!)
14:45 VA YERED HA AMALEKI VE HE KENA'ANI HA YOSHEV BA HAR HA HU VA YAKUM VA YAKTUM AD HA CHARMAH
וַיֵּרֶד הָעֲמָלֵקִי וְהַכְּנַעֲנִי הַיֹּשֵׁב בָּהָר הַהוּא וַיַּכּוּם וַיַּכְּתוּם עַד הַחָרְמָה
KJ: Then the Amalekites came down, and the Canaanites which dwelt in that hill, and smote them, and discomfited them, even unto Hormah.
BN: Then the Amaleki and the Kena'ani, who dwelt in that hill-country, came down, and smote them, and drove them back, all the way to Charmah.
The evidence of divine history doesn't work much in his favour for our continuing to have faith and trust in him. He promises much, but regularly fails to deliver. If I had a boss who allowed wrack and ruin to descend so frequently, and who had no other answer to give than "it's everyone else's fault for not trusting me and/or behaving badly", I would look for another job. Yet we go on trusting in this incompetent, infantile divinity, even after three thousand years of persecution, massacre, expulsion, pogrom, and ultimately holocaust. Makes no sense.
pey break
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