“The Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai” – this is what the verse said: “He did not do so for every nation” (Psalms 147:20), and likewise: “He raised a horn for His people” (Psalms 148:14). This is analogous to a king who took a first wife and did not write her a marriage contract, divorced her, and did not write her a bill of divorce, and so to the second and to the third; he did not write them a marriage contract and not a bill of divorce.
What, then, did he do? He saw a young orphan girl, well born, and he sought to take her as a wife. He said to his groomsman: ‘Do not act with her like with the first ones; she is well born, modest, and upright. Write her a marriage contract, [specifying] in which seven-year period, in which year, in which month, in which district,’ just as it is written regarding Esther: “Esther was taken to King Aḥashverosh, to his royal palace, in the tenth month, which is the month of Tevet, in the seventh year of his reign” (Esther 2:16).
So, the Holy One blessed be He created the generation of the Flood, but He did not write when He created them. He eliminated them from the world, and did not write when He eliminated them, but only, “On that day all the wellsprings of the great depth were breached” (Genesis 7:11). Likewise, regarding the generation of the Dispersion and likewise regarding Egypt, He did not write when they were created and when they died.
But when Israel stood, the Holy One blessed be He said: I will not act with these like those first ones. These are the descendants of the patriarchs, the descendants of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. Go, write for them which month, how many days in the month, which year, which district, and in which city I raised their horn. “In the Tent of Meeting" – that is the district; “in the second year” – that is the year; “of the second month” – that is the month; “on the first of the month” – that is how many days into the month.
The era was also written.8The era was, “of their exodus from the land of Egypt.” Why “take a census of the entire congregation of the children of Israel” (Numbers 1:2)? To realize what is stated: “He did not do so for every nation.” What did He do? “He raised a horn for His people” (Psalms 148:14).