July 3, 2025 – Dr. Susanna Kokkonen
Hukat 5785 (2025)
Numbers 19:1 – 22:1 (Haftarah: Judges 11:1 – 33)
Hukat*, the name of the Torah portion in Hebrew means “statute.” The portion starts with the story of the red heifer, often a mystery to Christians. According to Jewish learning, when red heifers appear again, those will be the times when the Messiah will come. In this Torah portion we see how the ashes of a red heifer purify a person after they have been in contact with a dead body. Several verses of this Torah portion deal exactly with that matter.
“A man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and put them in a ceremonially clean place outside the camp. They are to be kept by the Israelite community for use in the water of cleansing; it is for purification from sin. “(Numbers 19:9 NIV)
There is also a story of how the Israelites became thirsty during the desert journey. God told Moses to speak to a rock and water would come out. What happened was that Moses struck the rock. This showed lack of faith. It was at this point that God told Moses and Aaron that neither of them would enter the promised land.
“The Lord said to Moses, “Take the staff, and you and your brother Aaron gather the assembly together. Speak to that rock before their eyes and it will pour out its water. You will bring water out of the rock for the community so they and their livestock can drink.”
So Moses took the staff from the Lord’s presence, just as he commanded him. He and Aaron gathered the assembly together in front of the rock and Moses said to them, “Listen, you rebels, must we bring you water out of this rock?” Then Moses raised his arm and struck the rock twice with his staff. Water gushed out, and the community and their livestock drank.
But the Lord said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you did not trust in me enough to honor me as holy in the sight of the Israelites, you will not bring this community into the land I give them.” (Numbers 20:7-12)
One of the incidents of this portion, known in the Christian community, is the incident of the bronze snake. Here the Israelites were complaining because there was no bread and no water in the desert. This is what happened afterwards:
“Then the Lord sent venomous snakes among them; they bit the people and many Israelites died. The people came to Moses and said, “We sinned when we spoke against the Lord and against you. Pray that the Lord will take the snakes away from us.” So Moses prayed for the people…The Lord said to Moses, “Make a snake and put it up on a pole; anyone who is bitten can look at it and live.” So Moses made a bronze snake and put it up on a pole. Then when anyone was bitten by a snake and looked at the bronze snake, they lived.” (Numbers 21:7 -9 NIV)
What makes this remarkably interesting is that in the Hebrew alphabet each letter has an equivalent number. This is known as Gematria. Accordingly, it is possible to understand connections between different words and their meanings by analyzing the numerical value of each word.
What makes the above story of great interest? In Hebrew, the word for a snake is nahash and this word has the same numerical value as the Hebrew word mashiah meaning Messiah.
The connection
In John there is the story of Nicodemus, a teacher of Israel coming to Jesus secretly at night to ask him questions. In this context Jesus spoke to him and referred to the story of this Torah portion.
“Just as Moses lifted up the snake in the wilderness, so the Son of Man must be lifted up, that everyone who believes may have eternal life in him.” (John 3:14-15 NIV)
A Warrior
The Haftarah portion tells us about a mighty warrior called Jephthah. Although Jephthah became a mighty warrior, initially, for reasons of his heritage he was not appreciated by the leaders of his people. At the time of their need, however, they came to look for him and asked him to lead them in a war against the Ammonites. He agreed. He first tried to persuade the enemy to make peace but that did not work out. He had to fight.
“Then the Spirit of the Lord came on Jephthah. He crossed Gilead and Manasseh, passed through Mizpah of Gilead, and from there he advanced against the Ammonites…Then Jephthah went over to fight the Ammonites, and the Lord gave them into his hands.” (Judges 11: 29-32 NIV)
The Date in History
The date of this Torah portion in the Jewish calendar is the 9th of the month of Tammuz. This date is extremely significant because in history it was the very date when the Babylonian forces of King Nebuchadnezzar broke through the walls of Jerusalem. This was the beginning of the destruction of the First Temple. Captivity and exile in Babylonia followed. In Hebrew this is referred to as hurban, a catastrophe or a destruction. The destructions of the First and the Second Temple are both called a hurban.
Another, more modern event took place on July 5, 1942, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. The sister of Anne Frank, Margot, received an official letter. The authorities ordered Margot to report to them. She would go to “work” in Germany. The notice gave her ten days before she had to go. This was an extremely worrying development because it meant that the Frank family (and their friends) had to go hiding immediately.
The rest of the story is well known. In August 1944, the Gestapo captured came and sent them to the transit camp of Westerbork in the Netherlands. From there the last train left for Auschwitz in September 1944. That train was their fate. Apart from Anne and Margot’s father Otto, they tragically died in concentration camps.
The Bible and History
The Bible, biblical history and modern history all come together in our reading. We read using the lens of history and connecting the Bible with the reality of things. History happened and more happens nowadays at an increasingly quick pace.
May we discern!
*For an explanation of the terms see the first Pearls of The Torah Portion Blog.
| Coral and crystal cannot be mentioned, and the striving for wisdom [is more precious] than pearls. | רָאמ֣וֹת וְ֖גָבִישׁ לֹ֣א יִזָּכֵ֑ר וּמֶ֥שֶׁךְ חָ֜כְמָ֗ה מִפְּנִינִֽים: |
Job 28:18 (NKJV)
Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant seeking beautiful pearls, who, when he had found one pearl of great price, went and sold all that he had and bought it.
Matthew 13:45-46 (NKJV)
Torah Scrolls were attacked and desecrated during the Holocaust. The enduring images of the Kristallnacht (November 9-10,1938) are those of synagogues on fire and Torah Scrolls burning. Some of these desecrated Torah Scrolls disappeared, others were buried. Some were lovingly rescued and are on display in museums in various locations.
