Why God Counted Israel After the Plague at Peor

Midrash Aggadah, Numbers 25:19

"And it came to pass after the plague" (Numbers 25:19). A parable: this is like a shepherd into whose flock wolves entered, and he was counting his flock to know how many remained. So too, He did this out of His love for Israel, to know and to make known how beloved they are before Him. And this counting was in order that the Land would be apportioned according to the names of these fathers' houses; for as there were fathers' houses within a tribe, so the land that came to that tribe was divided according to the number of the fathers' houses.

Themes

Biblical References