נשא – Nasoh – «Count (Take a Census)». Numbers 4:21-7:89 ‘Tis in ourselves that we are thus or thus. Our bodies are our gardens, to the which our wills are gardeners…’ William Shakespeare The following weekly reading is read by Jews on the first Sabbath after the Holiday of Shavuot (Pentecost). Then the LORD spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, “Take a census of the descendants of Kohath from among the sons of Levi, by their families, by their fathers’ households, from thirty years and upward, even to fifty years old, all who enter the service to do the work in the tent of meeting. This is the work of the descendants of Kohath in the tent of meeting, concerning the most holy things.” (Numbers 4:1-4) The word “count” or “take a census,” as it is quoted from the English translation of the Bible, in Hebrew sounds like “nasoh.” The word “president” (נשיא – “nasih”) has the same root. The word indicates election or separation from the general mass of people. Therefore, God has chosen human beings and equipped them for His work: “And these whom He predestined, He also called; and these whom He called, He also justified; and these whom He justified, He also glorified.” (Romans 8:30) Being chosen by God, a person becomes God’s representative on the earth. The patriarchs behaved this way; even gentile princes called Abraham “a prince of God.” Understanding this caused David to declare God’s power in the midst of the people: “In the midst of the assembly I will praise You.” (Psalm 22:22) The fact that David was a politician must be taken into account: His decision to praise God might have caused people to laugh at him and not respect him. However, David realized the power of witnessing to God’s authority. In the New Testament Yeshua says, “For whoever is ashamed of Me and My words in this adulterous and sinful generation, the Son of Man will also be ashamed of him when He comes in the glory of His Father with the holy angels.” (Mark 8:38) This is a real challenge that requires a creative attitude and anointing of the Holy Spirit. Human life includes different areas of activities. Certain traits of character cause a person to be different from those who are “dead in trespasses and sins.” (Ephesians 2:1) Lives of the patriarchs, Apostles and Yeshua Himself were characterized by honesty, love, relationships with God, power of the anointing, and respect for the Commandments. “When Aaron and his sons have finished covering the holy objects and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when the camp is to set out, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them, so that they will not touch the holy objects and die. These are the things in the tent of meeting which the sons of Kohath are to carry.” (Numbers 4:15) There is a danger in a believer’s life to neglect God’s service—what He calls a person to do. If one takes God’s work seriously, he or she becomes able to realize God’s calling and destiny, which He has determined for everyone, even before the creation.
