This week we covered the Beha’aloscha Torah portion. We did a brief over view of last week’s portion, Nasso (Elevated) and the importance of the Levite tribes responsibilities. We briefly discussed the importance of keeping the camp clean, and how anything or anyone found to be contaminated or unclean was removed from the camp.
We discussed the importance of the wayward wife and the law of jealousies. How the matter was to be handled between the husband, wife and the priest only. The result if she was unfaithful and had committed adultery was curse, but the result if she was innocent was that she would bear fruit.
We discussed the Nazarite vow in greater detail. How Samson was given a Nazarite vow from birth. See Judges, 13:3 – 5. How the Nazarite vow is taken and their a form of abstinence. A person who takes this vow can not eat or drink grapes (fresh or dried), and a razor shall not pass over his dead until the completion of days for the vow. They also can not come near a dead body. The end of chapter 6 gives us the Aaronic blessing or the priestly blessing. And it ends with the dedication of the Altar and the blessing given by the 12 tribes of Israel.
In Beha’aloscha – YHVH gives Moses the instruction for the 2nd Pesach/Passover offering. How it is to be offered in the 2nd month, on the 14th day of the month and it has the same rules as the normal Pesach/Passover offering in the 1st month on the 14th day of the month.
The signs of travel for the Children of Israel. When they woke up in the morning they were to look to the Tent of Meeting. If the cloud was lifted from atop the Tent, then Israel would journey and the place where the cloud would rest the Children of Israel would encamp.
If the cloud would rest for a day and a night, 2 days, a month, a year, then that’s how long they would encamp but when it was lifted they would travel.
Numbers, Ch 9:23 — “According to the word of YHVH would they encamp, and according to the word of YHVH would they journey; the charge of the YHVH would they safeguard, according to the word of YHVH through Moses.”
Basically what I realized for the first time is that we’re to look to the Tent each morning when we get up and ask YHVH if the cloud is resting or if the cloud is lifted up. To see if we are to journey or to see if we are to rest. According to His word that is what we’re to do. Each and everyday. That leaves no room for distraction or diversion because we’ll always be following His word daily.
Chapter 10 speak on the the two silver trumpets and the order of the camp and how it’s to journey and break camp (see Breaking Camp/Journeying Order) and how Moses invited Jethro is father in law to journey with them. Jethro declined and returned to his camp and his people.
Chapter 11 speaks on 6, 7, 8 and 9th complaints made by the people as the journey. This portion ends with Miriam having been inflicted with a tzaraas like snow and spending 7 days outside the camp as the normal duration of the quarantine. She then returns to camp and the people journeyed from Hazeroth and encamped in the Wilderness of Paran.