The Well That Sent Rivers Around the Wilderness Camp

Yalkut Shimoni on Torah 426:1

Curated by Arthur·Told by Maggid·

It is written, "And the Levites shall encamp around" (Numbers 1:53). How was their encampment arranged? Like a single band of four thousand cubits they would encamp, surrounding the Tabernacle on every side. Moses and Aaron and his sons were on the east, they and their sons and all that was theirs across the whole eastern front of the Tent of Meeting. The well was at the entrance of the court, near the tent of Moses, and it would make known to all the camps how they should encamp. How so? When the hangings of the court were set up, the twelve princes would stand over the well and recite song, as it is said, "A well the princes dug" (Numbers 21:17-18). The waters of the well would flow out and become rivers upon rivers. One river went out and encircled the camp of the Divine Presence, and from that river four rivers went out at the four corners of the court, each one in the end serving two directions, going out to the camp of Israel; and when they passed the camp of the Levites the rivers mingled with one another and encircled the whole camp of the Levites, running between family and family, appearing like tablets upon tablets surrounding the camp of the Divine Presence. And a great river encircled the whole camp of Israel from without, and became rivers upon rivers between every tribe and tribe; and the rivers made known the boundary between each one and the next, so that none needed his fellow. And do not say that the waters were merely a torrent; rather they grew for them all kinds of delicacies like those of the World to Come, as it is said, "Your shoots are an orchard of pomegranates, with nard and saffron" (Song of Songs 4:13-14). And now: camps upon camps, east and west, north and south, each camp four thousand cubits. Moses, Aaron, and his sons on the east; the sons of Kohath on the south; the sons of Gershon on the west; the sons of Merari on the north. The cloud was spread over them, dividing between them and their cattle, as it is said, "And the cloud of the LORD was over them by day." From the radiance of the blue the rivers appeared like blue, patterned like the dawn, the moon, and the sun, and the nations of the world saw them for many miles and praised the Holy One, blessed be He: "Who is this that looks forth" (Song of Songs 6:10); their dread and terror fell upon all, as it is said, "Terror and dread fall upon them."

Themes

MiraclesHoly LandRedemption

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