[Siman 9]

(Numb. 2:1-2:) “Then the Lord spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, ‘[The Children of Israel shall camp,] each with his standard, under the banners….’” Let our master instruct us: Within how many cubits is it permitted for one to walk on the Sabbath? Thus have our masters taught: One who observes the Sabbath on the road makes a circle with a radius of four cubits for himself.⁠¹ [These are] the words of R. Haninya ben Antigonus. Then he moves [objects] on the Sabbath within four cubits and says, “My Sabbath rest is in this place where I am.” So his place gives him the right [to go] two thousand cubits in any direction. But how much are four cubits? R. Judah says, “Enough for him to take a cask from his feet and put it by his headrest.” And one who keeps the Sabbath in a city, even though it is as large as Antioch, may walk all of it, its outskirts, and two thousand cubits beyond its outskirts.⁠² What is the meaning of "outskirts"? The shops and the inns³ which are on the road outside the city. And the one who keeps the Sabbath in a cave, even though it is as large as the cave where king Zedekiah of Judah fled,⁠⁴ which was twelve mil⁵ long,⁠⁶ may walk all of it and outside of it for two thousand cubits in any direction he wishes. And from where did the sages find support? From the words of the Torah, [where it is stated] (in Numb. 35:5), “And you shall measure off two thousand cubits outside the town on the east side….” And likewise you find in the case of Joshua, when he went to destroy Jericho, Joshua said to them (i.e., to Israel), “You are going to keep the Sabbath there. Do not go further than two thousand cubits from the ark in any direction. Why? So that you may be entitled to come to pray before the ark on the Sabbath.” And so it says (in Joshua 3:4), “Yet there shall be a distance between you and it (the ark of the covenant) of about two thousand cubits by measure, never coming any closer to it; so that you may know by what route to march, since it is a road you have not traveled before.” And likewise you find, when God told Moses that he should have Israel encamp under standards, He said to him, “Have them encamp under their standards in every direction. Where is it shown? From what they read on the matter (in Numb. 2:2), “each with his standard” (meaning that they shall camp around the tent of meeting at a distance).⁠⁷

[Siman 10]

(Numb. 2:2:) [“The Children of Israel shall camp,] each with his standard, under the banners for their fathers' houses….” This text is related (to Ps. 20:6), “Let us shout for joy in your salvation, and in the name of our God let us set up our standards….” “Let us shout for joy in your salvation,” as is stated (in Exod. 14:30), “So the Lord saved.” (Ps. 20:6, cont.:) “And in the name of our God let us set up our standards,” for God has inserted His name]⁠⁸ among our names⁹ and has appointed us standards, as stated (in Numb. 2:2), “each with his standard, under the banners.” The Holy One, blessed be He, cherished Israel with great love,⁠¹⁰ in that He appointed them standards like [those of] the ministering angels, so that they would be recognizable, the Children of Reuben by themselves, the Children of Simeon by themselves, [etc.]; but where is it shown that He loved them? Where it is stated (in Cant. 2:4), “He brought me unto the banquet house, and His standard over me is love.” To what is the matter comparable? To a rich person who had a storehouse full of wine. He went in to inspect it and found it to be vinegar. [When] he went to leave the storehouse, he found there one cask of [good] wine. He said this cask is worth as much to me as the full storehouse. Similarly the Holy One, blessed be He, has created seventy nations, but of them all He has found pleasure only in Israel, as stated (in Cant. 2:4), “He brought me unto the banquet house (literally: house of wine [yyn]). [Now] y (yod) plus y (yod), [which] equals twenty, plus n (nun), [which stands for] fifty, results in seventy; and of all those [seventy nations] He loved only Israel. It is so stated (ibid., cont.), “and His standard over me is love.” It also says (in Cant. 6:8-9), “There are sixty queens…. One is My dove, My perfect one.” (Cant. 2:4), “He brought me unto the house of wine.” R. Judah says, “He brought me to the great wine cellar, namely Sinai; and from there He taught me Torah, which is expounded in forty-nine ways to render pure and in forty-nine ways to render impure.⁠¹¹ And the numerical count (gematria) of (ibid., cont.) “and His standard (wdglw)” is forty-nine. [Another interpretation (of Cant. 2:4),] “He brought me unto the house of wine. R Hunya said, “In the past whoever pointed his finger at a likeness¹² of the king was put to death; but when the children go to school and point a finger at the [likenesses of] the Divine Name [in the book], the Holy One, blessed be He, says (ibid., cont.), ‘and His standard (wediglo)⁠¹³ over me is love.’” Even though, when sitting and studying the Torah, [one skips (rt.: dlg)] from precept (halakhah) to precept and from verse to verse, the Holy One, blessed be He, says, “He is dear to Me (literally: over Me), ‘and His standard (rt.: dgl) over me is love,’ [and his skipping (rt.: dlg) over Me is love].” Another interpretation (of Cant. 2:4), “and His standard over me is love.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said, “The nations of the world have standards, but only the standard of Jacob is dear to Me, as stated (ibid.), ‘and His standard over Me is love--.’”

[Siman 11]

(Numb. 2:2:) “Each with his standard, under the banners [for their fathers' houses….]” This text is related (to Cant. 6:10), “Who is this woman that shines through like the dawn, as beautiful as the moon.” Holy and grand was Israel by her standards!⁠¹⁴ So all the nations were looking at them, as they said in astonishment (ibid), “Who is this woman that shines through?” The nations said to them (in Cant. 7:1), “Return, return, O Shulammite (i.e., O Israel). Cling to us and come to us; then we will make you sultans, generals,⁠¹⁵ and commanders,”¹⁶ [as stated] (in ibid., cont.), “Return, return that we may look upon you.” Now “we may look (rt.: hzh)” can only [refer to giving] authority, for so Jethro said to Moses (in Exod. 18:21), “You shall also seek out (rt.: hzh) [able men].” Then Israel said to them (in Cant. 7:1, cont.), “What will you see (rt.: hzh) in the Shulammite?” And what grandeur are you giving to us? [It is] perhaps (ibid., cont.) “like a dance of the camps?”¹⁷ Can you possibly give us anything like the grandeur which the Lord our God gave us in the desert? [There he gave us] the standard of the camp of Judah, the standard of the camp of Reuben, the standard of the camp of Ephraim, the standard of the camp of Dan. Are you able to do so for us? (Cant. 7:1), “What will you see (rt.: hzh) in the Shulammite? It is perhaps (ibid., cont.) “like a dance (meholat) of the camps”; [in] that when we sin, He pardons (mohel) us and says to us (in Deut. 23:15 [14]), “and your camp shall be holy?” So also Balaam the wicked beheld them and his eyes popped out as he faced them, because he could not touch them; as stated (in Numb. 24:2), “Then Balaam raised his eyes and saw Israel dwelling tribe by tribe.” He began to say, “Who can touch these people, when each and every one dwells by his standard.”

[Siman 12]

(Numb. 2:2:) “Each with his standard, under the banners for their fathers' house.” [This text is related] (to Job 36:3), “I will fetch my knowledge from afar, and justify my maker.” It was only necessary to say, "under the banners shall the Children of Israel camp.⁠¹⁸ Then what is the significance of saying (in Numb. 2:2), “under the banners [for their fathers' house].” Simply that when our father Jacob departed from this world, he said to them (in Gen. 47:30), “When I sleep with my ancestors, you are to take me up from Egypt and bury me in their grave.” He went around to all his sons, blessed them, and gave them a charge. He said to them, “When you take me, you are to take me with reverence and honor. Let no other person, neither one of the Egyptians nor one of your children, touch my bier, because there are some among them who have taken [wives] from the daughters of Canaan.⁠¹⁹ And so it says (in Gen. 50:12-13), “So his children did for him just as he had commanded them. And his children brought him up to the land of Canaan.” His children, but not his grandchildren (who were forbidden to touch the bier)! How did he charge them? He said to them, “Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun shall carry my bier on the East; Reuben, Simeon, and Gad, on the South; Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin, on the West; Dan, Asher, and Naphtali, on the North. Joseph is not to carry [at all], because he is a king; and you must impart honor to him. Nor is Levi to carry. Why? Because he will carry the ark (aron), and whoever carries the ark of the One who lives forever is not to carry a coffin (aron) of the dead. If you do this and carry my bier, just as I have charged you, the Holy One, blessed be He, is going to have you encamp by the various standards.” When he passed away, they carried him just as he had charged them. It is so stated (in Gen. 50:12), “So his children did for him just as he had commanded them.” What is written next (in vs. 13)? “And his children brought him up to the land of Canaan.” When Israel went forth from Egypt, the Holy One, blessed be He, said, “Now is the time for them to make standards, just as their father had proclaimed to them that they were going to make standards.” Immediately the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “Make those standards for my name.” Immediately Moses began to be concerned. He said, “There is going to be dissension among the tribes. If I tell the tribe of Judah to encamp in the East, they will say, ‘It is impossible for us to encamp anywhere but in the South.’ And so each and every tribe [would act] like that one.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to him, “What concern is that to you? They do not need you in this matter. They will recognize their dwellings by themselves. Why? Because their father's will was in their hand on how to encamp by the standards. I am not establishing something new. They already have their father's arrangements²⁰ in their hands. Just as they have taken positions around his bier, so let them take positions around the tabernacle.” Where is it shown? Where it is stated (in Numb. 2:2), “Each with his standard, under the banners [for their fathers' house].” How were they encamped? The Levites camped around the tabernacle of witness, with Moses, Aaron, and his children on the East.⁠²¹ It is so stated (in Numb. 3:38), “Those who camped before the tabernacle, in front before the tent of meeting to the East, were Moses, Aaron, and his children.” And adjacent to them were Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun. Hence they said, “Fortunate is the righteous person and fortunate are his neighbors.”²² This refers to the three tribes (rt.: shbt) which were adjacent to Moses and Aaron.⁠²³ They became great in the Torah, as stated (in Gen. 49:10), “The scepter (shbt) shall not depart from Judah, nor the inscriber from between his feet.” In the case of Issachar it is written, (in I Chron. 12:33), “And from the Children of Issachar, those who had an understanding of the times,⁠²⁴ to know what Israel should do; their heads numbered two hundred and all their kindred under their command ('al pihem),” because they harmonize law (halakhah) at their command ('al pihem). [Of Zebulun it is written] (in Jud. 5:14), “and from Zebulun those who wield the scribal pen.” Because they were neighbors [of Torah, embodied by Moses] they all became children of Torah (i.e., Torah scholars). Now on the South were the Children of Kohath (ben Levi), and adjacent to them were Reuben, Simeon, and Gad. Hence they say, “Woe to the wicked person; and woe to his neighbor.”²⁵ These are the three tribes which were neighbors of Korah (the grandson of Kohath) and his community in the South. These were destroyed with him in his dissension (as stated in Numb. 16:32), “And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, their households, every person that belonged to Korah, and their property.” On the West were the Children of Gershom (i.e., Gershon ben Levi), with Ephraim, Manasseh, and Benjamin being adjacent to them. And on the North were the Children of Merari (ben Levi), with Dan, Naphtali, and Asher being adjacent to them. Seven clouds of glory were surrounding them, and this was their [method] of travel: There was a sign²⁶ for Moses in the cloud when it departed. When it departed, he would say (in Numb. 10:35), “Rise up, O Lord, and may Your enemies be scattered.” Then the cloud would depart. When the cloud departed, they all prepared to travel and put away their implements. Whoever had a domestic beast put them on it; and if [a person] had none, the cloud took the remainder. When they were settled, they blew the trumpets. Then Judah and its standard moved out, first its prince and his tribe after him.⁠²⁷ And as signs for each and every prince there was a flag.⁠²⁸ And from them the empire learned to make a flag. There was also a color for each and every flag, like the color of the precious stones which were on the heart of Aaron. Each and every tribe had its flag dyed like the color of its stone. Then over them were the clouds. Until they were settled, they blew the trumpets. They traveled, and likewise the clouds [traveled over them]. Moreover, something like a kind of beam came out of the cloud, so that they would know in which direction they would be traveling. So was the journey of each and every standard. [When] they finished going to where it wanted them to camp, [since] that cloud which appeared like a kind of beam had, as it were, been traveling independently, they knew that they would camp in that place. [When] clouds of glory stood still for them, they began putting [things] away in their tents where they were to rest. Then the cloud which was over the tabernacle, moved over the camp of the Levites in the middle of the camps. First it stood still. When it stood still, the Children of Kohath and the Children of Levi set up the tabernacle in the presence of all the camps before they came, as stated (in Numb. 10:21), “And they would set up the tabernacle before they came.” When they had set up the tabernacle, each and every one set up [camp] in his [proper] place. Then the clouds of glory stood over them. This was grandeur in the hands of Moses, for the cloud of the glorious Divine Presence did not come down to the tabernacle, until Moses had said (in Numb. 10:36), “Return, O Lord, to the myriad thousands of Israel.” Then the clouds of glory encompassed them. Moreover, the holy spirit says through Solomon (in Cant. 6:4), “You are as beautiful my darling, as (ke) tirzah.” What is the meaning of “ketirzah (ktrtsh, rt.: rtsh)?” That I am pleasing (mtrtsh, rt.: rtsh) to you.⁠²⁹ Another interpretation (of Cant. 6:4), “Ketirzah" (rt.: rtsh) [means] just as you are pleasing (rt.: rtsh) to Me in the sacrifices. Thus it is stated (in Lev. 1:4), “And it shall be pleasing (rt.: rtsh) for Him to atone for him.” (Cant. 6:4, cont.,) “As comely as Jerusalem (yrushlym),” [means] like these ministering angels, in that they feared (rt.: yr') [Me] and were reconciled (rt.: shlm) to Me. (Ibid., cont.,) “Awesome as [hosts] with standards,” like the standards which I gave you. So when David sees [them], he says (in Ps. 147:20), “He has not done so for any nation,” only for it.

[Siman 13]

(Numb. 2:2:) “Each with his standard.” This text is related (to Deut. 32:10), “He found him (i.e., Jacob) in a desert land.” [It was] a great find, [when] the Holy One, blessed be He, found Israel.⁠³⁰ [He was] like a person who, when traveling in the desert, finds grapes there. So did the Holy One, blessed be He, find Israel, as stated (in Hos. 9:10), “I found Israel like grapes in the desert.” It is therefore stated (in Deut. 32:10), “He found him in a desert land.” The world was a desert, before Israel came forth from Egypt. (Ibid., cont.,) “And in the void was a wailing desolation.” The world was void and wailing, before Israel received the Torah. But when Israel came forth from Egypt and received the Torah, [the Holy One, blessed be He,] enlightened the world, as stated (in Prov. 6:23), “For the commandment is a lamp, and Torah is a light.” [(Deut. 32:10, cont.,) “He encircled him, He watched over him, and He protected him as the pupil of His eye.”] What is the meaning of “He encircled him?” That he encompassed them with clouds of glory. “He watched over (rt.: byn) him,” in that He taught (rt.: byn) them the words of Torah. “He protected him.” Blessed are the ears that have heard to what extent did He cherish them, to what extent did He keep them, to what extent did He protect them. As much, as it were, “as the pupil of His eye.” See how He cherished them, kept them, and protected them. It is as the Holy One, blessed be He, said to Moses, “Tell them to make a tabernacle, and I will dwell among them. I am, as it were, leaving the heavenly beings and coming down to dwell among them. And not only that, but I will make them standards for My name. Why? Because they are My children, as stated (in Deut. 14:1), ‘You are children of the Lord your God.’ Also they are my hosts, as stated (in Exod. 7:4), ‘and I will bring forth my hosts, [my people the Children of Israel,] from the Land of Egypt.’” Therefore, he made those standards for My name, as stated (in Numb. 2:2), “each with his standard.”

[Siman 14]

Another interpretation (of Numb. 2:2), “Each with his standard, under the banners.” This text is related (to Cant. 2:4), “He brought me unto the banquet house, [and His standard (dgl) over me is love].” What is the meaning of “He brought me unto the banquet house?”³¹ When the Holy One, blessed be He, was revealed upon mount Sinai, there descended with Him twenty-two thousand chariots of angels, as stated (in Ps. 68:18), “The chariots of God are two myriads, thousands for a doubling.”³² Now they all were arranged by standards (rt.: dgl). It is therefore stated (in Cant. 5:10), “the most prominent (rt.: dgl) of ten thousand.” When Israel saw them, as they were arrayed by standards (rt.: dgl), they yearned for standards. They said, “O that we might be arrayed with standards like them!” It is therefore stated (in Cant. 2:4), “He brought me unto the banquet house, [and His standard (dgl) over me is love].” The banquet house (literally: house of wine) is Mount Sinai, on which Torah was given, since [Torah] is compared to wine, as stated (in Prov. 9:5, where wisdom is saying), “and drink of the wine I have mixed.” Ergo (in Cant. 2:4), “He brought me unto the house of wine,” namely to Sinai. (Ibid., cont.,) “And His standard over me is love.” They said, “O that He may raise the standard of love over me!” And so it says (in Ps. 20:6), “Let us shout for joy in Your salvation, and in the name of our God let us set up our standards.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to them, “Do you yearn for standards? By your life, I will fulfill your petition.” It is so stated (ibid., cont.), “may the Lord fulfill all your petitions.” Immediately the Holy One, blessed be He, made known His love to Israel and said to Moses, “Go and make those standards like the ones for which they have yearned. (Numb. 2:2:) “Each with his standard, under the banners […the Children of Israel shall camp,] at a distance.” What is the meaning of “at a distance?”³³ At a distance of a mil.⁠³⁴ The Holy One, blessed be He, said, “Israel shall be at a distance of two thousand cubits from the ark,” as stated (in Josh. 3:4), “Yet there shall be a distance between you and it of about two thousand cubits.” But Moses and Aaron shall be near to it, as stated (in Numb. 3:38), “Those who camped before the tabernacle, in front before the tent of meeting to the East, were Moses, Aaron, and his children….” The Holy One, blessed be He, said, “If I become angry with My children, they will mediate between Me and My children.” For that reason they are near it, but the tribes (according to Numb. 2:2) shall camp around the tent of meeting at a distance.

Another interpretation (of Numb. 2:2-3), “Each with his standard, under the banners […] Now those who camp in front to the East.” You find that in every place Judah is first.⁠¹ [It is] first in the case of standards, as stated (in Numb. 2:3), “Now those who camp in front to the East shall be [those under] the standard of the camp of Judah.” So much for camping. Where is it shown for traveling? Where it is stated (in Numb. 10:14), “And [in first place traveled] the camp standard of [the Children of] Judah.” Where is it shown for sacrifices? Where it is stated (in Numb. 7:12), “And the one who offered […] on the first day was Nahshon ben Amminadab of the tribe of Judah.” Where is it shown for warfare? Where it is written (in Jud. 1:1-2), “Who shall be the first to go up for us against the Canaanites to fight against them? Then the Lord said, ‘Let Judah go up.’” And also, when the herald [of messianic age] comes, Judah shall receive the good news first, as stated (in Nahum 2:1), “Behold over the mountains the feet of the herald announcing peace; celebrate your festivals, O Judah, fulfill your vows.” The Holy One, blessed be He, said to them, “In this world you yearned for standards and I fulfilled your petition; but in the future to come, by virtue of the banners, I shall redeem you; and in the merit of the forefathers, that are called mountains, I shall leap over (rt.: dlg) the end, as stated (in Cant. 2:8), ‘The voice of my beloved! Here he comes, leaping over the mountains….’”