Matot Masei: Zemer of The Week

The author of this zemer may have been Shlomo ben Yehuda ibn Gabirol, a prolific 11^th-century poet and philosopher. 
The acrostic formed by the first four stanzas is “Shlomo.”)  The zemer describes how the final Redemption will be hastened by observance of the Shabbos, and focuses on our obligation to honor Shabbos with culinary delights.

 

Central elements of this parsha include the war with Midian and various issues with the distribution of the portions in Eretz Yisrael (including the creation of the Arei Miklat – the cities of refuge, and final resolution of the question of Tzelofchad’s daughters).

 

Some of the zemer’s connections to the parsha:

·   2^nd line of last stanza:
“והשב את נוותי, בשמחה ובהגיון” (“And restore My Abode with joy and words of song”) – Even though rapid completion of the war with Midian would hasten the timing of Moshe’s death, Moshe still “בשמחה עשה” (“acted with joy”) to fulfill Hashem’s commandment as soon as possible (Rashi to Bamidbar 31:3).

·   2^nd line of 2^nd stanza:
“אשה אל אחותה לצרור” (“A woman to her sister will be attached”) – The family of Gilead (whose members, the daughters of Tzelofchad, would be inheriting land in Eretz Yisrael) complained to Moshe that that land would be lost to their tribe if Tzelofchad’s daughters married men from other tribes (Bamidbar 36:1-4).  In response, Hashem ruled that the daughters of Tzelofchad should only marry from within their tribe (Bamidbar 36:5-9), helping enhance the attachment between the sisters.

·   3^rd line of 1^st stanza, and Chorus: The zemer is addressed to “בני” (“My children”) – In addition to the final resolution of the question posed by the daughters of Tzelofchad, children play a role at other points in the parsha.

o The laws about annulling vows are addressed directly to “a father and his young daughter” (Bamidbar 30:17).

o After the 2½ tribes prioritized their livestock ahead of their children, Moshe chastised them for having their priorities backwards (Rashi to Bamidbar 32:16).

o According to Rashi (Bamidbar 32:41), Yair ben Menashe chose to name his city after himself because he was childless.  Artscroll highlights that a better model is that followed by Kayin in Bereishit (4:17), in which he was able to name his city after his son.

·    3^rd line, last stanza:
“לוי־וכהני” (“My Leviim and My Kohanim”) – The Kohanim and Leviim play important roles in the war with Midian and in the Arei Miklat.

o War with Midian

§ When Bnei Yisrael were fulfilling Hashem’s command to attack Midian, they were led into battle by Pinchas, the recently-appointed Kohen (Bamidbar 31:6), and two of the most important vessels of the Kohanim, the Aron and the Tzitz (Rashi to that pasuk).

§ Even though they were not given their own portion in Eretz Yisrael, the Leviim were full participants in the 12,000-soldier army that would fight against Midian (Rashi to Bamidbar 31:4).

o Arei Miklat

§ Murderers would be released from the Arei Miklat when the Kohen Gadol passed away (Bamidbar 35:25).  Artscroll cites the Sifrei (#160) as highlighting the ways in which the Kohen Gadol is the antithesis of the murderers and therefore could not co-exist with them.

§ The Leviim lived in the Arei Miklat (Bamidbar 35:2).