Bamidbar Rabbah 14, a fascinating exploration of the offerings brought by the princes of Israel, and how those offerings connect to Jacob, Joseph, and the tribe of Manasseh.
The passage in Numbers (7:55) describes the offering of Nachshon, prince of Judah: "His offering was one silver dish, its weight one hundred and thirty; one silver basin of seventy shekels, in the sacred shekel; both of them full of high-quality flour mixed with oil as a meal offering." But the Rabbis don't just read it; they interpret it.
The Midrash begins with a clever play on words. It reads the Hebrew word for "dish," kaarat, not as kaarat but as akart, meaning "he uprooted." Who uprooted what? Jacob, who, as the Torah tells us in Genesis (48:22), "uprooted" or extracted the birthright from Reuben (his eldest) and gave it to Joseph. And the "silver"? Ah, that connects to the righteousness of Jacob, as Proverbs (10:20) says, "The tongue of the righteous is choice silver." His words, his blessings, were precious, like silver. And specifically, Jacob's declaration "Ephraim and Manasseh will be for me like Reuben and Simeon" (Genesis 48:5).
The weight of the silver dish, "one hundred and thirty"? That mirrors Jacob's age when he went down to Egypt to be reunited with Joseph. (Genesis 47:9) reminds us, "Jacob said to Pharaoh: The days of the years of my residence are one hundred and thirty years." See how these verses echo and amplify each other?
The "silver basin," or mizrak in Hebrew, is then connected to Joseph. The Midrash finds a link to the word shenizrak, meaning "who was cast out." Joseph, of course, was cast out by his brothers and sold into Egypt. The silver here again alludes to Joseph's righteousness. Remember when Joseph corrected his father when he was blessing his sons? "Joseph said to his father: Not so, my father, as this is the firstborn; place your right hand upon his head" (Genesis 48:18). Again, righteousness, silver, and the story woven together. And the "seventy shekels"? That corresponds to the seventy souls of Jacob's family who descended to Egypt because of Joseph.
The Midrash emphasizes that both Jacob and Joseph were "full-fledged righteous men" who produced tribes, underlining their significance in the Israelite lineage.
Moving on, the "one gold ladle of ten shekels" is linked to the ten districts of Manasseh, referencing (Joshua 17:5): "Ten districts fell to Manasseh." The offerings of "one young bull, one ram, one lamb in its first year" are connected to the three generations Joseph saw from Manasseh who received a portion in the land: Makhir, Gilad, and Iezer, as we find in (Numbers 26:29-30). The Midrash highlights the familial lines, emphasizing the connection to Joseph: "The children of Makhir son of Manasseh, too, were born at Joseph’s knees" (Genesis 50:23).
There's also Ya'ir, son of Manasseh, who captured villages. The Midrash tells us that the "goat sin offering" corresponds to Ya'ir, who, because he had no sons, didn't bequeath his portion; it was inherited by the sons of his brother Makhir. Thus, the villages he captured were named after him: "Ya’ir son of Manasseh went and captured their villages [ḥavot], and he called them Ḥavot Ya’ir” (Numbers 32:41).
The peace offering of "two bulls" represents the split tribe of Manasseh, half on each side of the Jordan. The "five rams, five goats, five lambs" represent Joseph's attempts to elevate Manasseh above Ephraim during the blessing.
But why five of each? This, says the Midrash, is linked to the five daughters of Tzelofchad, who successfully argued for their right to inherit land (Numbers 27:7, Numbers 27:1). They represent the women who received a portion in the land. Alternatively, the five each can be linked to the blessing given to them by Jacob: “May they proliferate like fish in the midst of the earth” (Genesis 48:16), and fish were created on the fifth day.
The Midrash concludes by noting that because Gamliel presented his offering in this precise order, God praised it: "This was the offering of Gamliel.."
So, what do we take away from this intricate web of connections? It's a reminder that the Torah isn't just a history book; it's a living document, rich with layers of meaning waiting to be uncovered. It encourages us to look beyond the surface, to seek the connections, and to appreciate the depth and wisdom of our tradition. The offerings of the princes become a weaving with the stories of our ancestors, their struggles, their blessings, and their enduring legacy.
“His offering was one silver dish, its weight one hundred and thirty; one silver basin of seventy shekels, in the sacred shekel; both of them full of high-quality flour mixed with oil as a meal offering” (Numbers 7:55). “His offering was one silver dish [kaarat]…” – do not read it as kaarat, but rather as akart, corresponding to Jacob, who extracted [akar] the birthright49The birthright refers to the extra portion of the inheritance that the eldest son received. from Reuben and gave it to Joseph: “I have given you one portion more than your brothers…” (Genesis 48:22). “Silver” – just as it says: “The tongue of the righteous is choice silver” (Proverbs 10:20), just as he50Silver alludes to the statement made by Jacob, who was righteous. said: “Ephraim and Manasseh will be for me like Reuben and Simeon” (Genesis 48:5). “Its weight one hundred and thirty” – when Jacob descended to Egypt on account of Joseph, he was one hundred and thirty years old, as it is stated: “Jacob said to Pharaoh: The days of the years of my residence are one hundred and thirty years” (Genesis 47:9). “One silver basin [mizrak]” – corresponding to Joseph, who was cast [shenizrak] from his father and sold to Egypt. “Silver” – after: “The tongue of the righteous is choice silver” (Proverbs 10:20) – what he said to his father51Silver alludes to the statement made by Joseph, who was righteous.: “Joseph said to his father: Not so, my father, as this is the firstborn; place your right hand upon his head” (Genesis 48:18). “Seventy shekels, in the sacred shekel” – as it was through him that seventy people descended to Egypt. “Both of them full…” – Jacob and Joseph, both of them were full-fledged righteous men and both produced tribes. “One gold ladle of ten shekels, filled with incense” (Numbers 7:56). “One gold ladle of ten shekels…” – corresponding to the ten districts of Manasseh, as it is stated: “Ten districts fell to Manasseh” (Joshua 17:5). “One young bull, one ram, one lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering” (Numbers 7:57). “One goat as a sin offering” (Numbers 7:58). “One young bull, one ram [one lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering]; one goat…” – these52This is a reference to the three burnt offerings. are three corresponding to the three generations that Joseph saw from Manasseh that received a portion in the land,53This is a reference to the fact that there were three major families named after the three generations following Manasseh, in addition to the family which was named after Manasseh himself. Therefore, the phrase “the sons of Makhir” refers to Makhir himself, Gilad, and Iezer. as it is stated: “The children of Makhir son of Manasseh, too, were born at Joseph’s knees” (Genesis 50:23). Likewise, it says: “The sons of Manasseh: For Makhir, the family of the Makhirites, and Makhir begot Gilad.… These are the sons of Gilad: Of Iezer…” (Numbers 26:29–30). Makhir, Gilad, and Iezer – these are three generations that were patrilineal houses that were attributed to Joseph, as Manasseh is attributed to Jacob, just as it says: “And now your two sons, who were born to you in the land of Egypt before my coming to you to Egypt, they are mine” (Genesis 48:5). The fourth, this was Ya’ir son of Manasseh, who received a portion in the land, just as it says: “Ya’ir son of Manasseh went and captured their villages [ḥavot], and he called them Ḥavot Ya’ir” (Numbers 32:41). The three species of burnt offerings corresponded to the sons of Makhir son of Manasseh.54This is referring to what was mentioned above, and is mentioned again since the midrash now also explains what the sin offering signifies. The goat sin offering corresponded to Ya’ir, who did not bequeath his portion to his sons, because he did not have sons. That is why he called them55The villages. by his name, because he did not have any remnant, and the sons of his brother Makhir inherited his portion. “And for the peace offering, two bulls, five rams, five goats, five lambs in their first year. This was the offering of Gamliel son of Pedatzur” (Numbers 7:59). “And for the peace offering, two bulls” – corresponding to the tribe of Manasseh, which split into two and received two portions in the land, half of it on the east bank of the Jordan and half in the land of Canaan. “Five rams, five goats, five lambs in their first year” – these are three species, corresponding to three things that Joseph did on behalf of Manasseh, whom he sought to elevate over his brother Ephraim. The first: “Joseph took the two of them, Ephraim in his right hand to the left of Israel, and Manasseh in his left hand to the right of Israel” (Genesis 48:13). The second: “He supported his father’s hand, to remove it from the head of Ephraim to the head of Manasseh” (Genesis 48:17). The third: “Joseph said to his father: Not so, my father, as this is the firstborn…” (Genesis 48:18). Why were they five each? It corresponds to the five women from the tribe of Manasseh who took a portion in the land. These were Tzelofḥad’s five daughters, just as it says: “Tzelofḥad’s daughters speak justly; give them a holding for inheritance…” (Numbers 27:7). They were five, as it is stated: “These are the names of his daughters: Maḥla, Noa, Ḥogla, Milka, and Tirtza” (Numbers 27:1). Likewise, Jacob mentioned them in the blessing of Joseph, as it is stated: “Branches [banot] ran atop the wall [alei shur]” (Genesis 49:22); these are Tzelofḥad’s daughters [banot], who received a portion in the land. Alternatively, why were they five each? It corresponds to the blessing that Jacob blessed them: “May they proliferate like fish in the midst of the earth” (Genesis 48:16), and fish were created on the fifth day. “This was the offering of Gamliel…” – since the Holy One blessed be He saw that he presented the offering in this order, He began lauding his offering: “This was the offering of Gamliel…”
