We are standing at the doorway of two powerful moments together: Parashat Book of Numbers Bamidbar and the holy festival of Shavuot — the time of the giving of the Torah. And the question is overwhelming:
Why does the Torah open Parashat Bamidbar with counting the Jewish people?
“LIFT THE HEADS OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL… COUNT THEM.”
Hashem already counted the Jewish people once when they left Egypt. Then again after the sin of the Golden Calf. And now a third time — at the beginning of the building of the Mishkan.
Does Hashem need to count in order to know how many Jews there are? He knows every star in the heavens, every drop in the ocean, every thought inside a person’s heart. So why count them again and again?
The answer is one of the most life-changing messages in Judaism. When a person counts something — it means it is precious. A person does not count pebbles on the street. But diamonds? He counts them again and again. Money? A person checks it twice even after counting it a minute ago.
Why? Because valuable things are counted.
THAT IS WHY THE MIDRASH SAYS: “BECAUSE OF HIS GREAT LOVE FOR THEM, HE COUNTS THEM CONSTANTLY.”
Hashem is telling the Jewish people: You are not a number. You are not a statistic. Every Jew is an entire world.
And there is something even deeper.
The word “counting” — “Sefirah” — is connected to the word “Sapir,” a sapphire, a precious stone.
Hashem is not only counting you. He sees you as a diamond.
Sometimes a person looks at himself and says: “What am I worth?”, “I failed,” “I made mistakes,” “I fell spiritually,” or “I’m too far.”
Then the Torah comes and says: Look carefully at when Hashem counted the Jewish people. The first time was after the Exodus from Egypt.
Hashem says: Even when you came out from slavery and spiritual impurity, I still counted you. You are precious to Me.
The second time was after the sin of the Golden Calf. And this is unbelievable. Right after one of the greatest national failures in history, Hashem counts them again.
Why? Because human beings often walk away after disappointment.
But Hashem says: Even after you fall — you are still My child.
There was once a young boy who broke an expensive vase in his house.
Terrified, he stood outside the door crying, afraid to go inside. His father opened the door, hugged him, and said: “The vase may be broken… but you are not broken in my heart.” That is the message of the counting after the Golden Calf. Sin does not erase your value.
And then comes the third counting — at the building of the Mishkan. Now the Torah separates the people into groups: Kohanim, Leviim, and Israelites. Different roles, different missions: One teaches Torah, one works for a living, one inspires others, and one struggles quietly just to keep going. But Hashem counts every one of them because in Judaism, your value is not based on how similar you are to someone else—your value comes from your unique mission.
The great Rabbi Rabbi Zusha of Anipoli once said: “When I come to Heaven, they will not ask me why I wasn’t Moses. They will ask me why I wasn’t Zusha.”
Every Jew is a letter in the Torah. And if one letter is missing — the Torah scroll is incomplete.
This is also why on Shavuot we read the Book of Ruth Book of Ruth.
Who was Ruth? A Moabite princess, an outsider—someone nobody imagined would become great. Yet from her came King David, and from him will come Mashiach.
Why? Because Hashem wanted to teach the world: Never dismiss a soul.
Never underestimate a person. You never know what greatness is hidden inside one Jew.
And this is also the secret of Sefirat HaOmer. We count every single day: Today is one day. Today is two days. Three days.
Why count? Because every single day matters. Every moment matters. Every small step upward is precious in Heaven.
A PERSON SAYS: “WHAT DID I REALLY ACCOMPLISH?”
One more prayer. One more chapter of Tehillim. One more Torah class. One more act of kindness.
But Hashem counts it all: He counts tears, He counts struggles, He counts every time a person falls and gets back up again.
There is a beautiful story about Rabbi Aryeh Levin Rabbi Aryeh Levin, known as “the Rabbi of the Prisoners.”
One night he was walking with a student and saw an old shoemaker fixing shoes by the light of a tiny candle.
THE SHOEMAKER SAID: “AS LONG AS THE CANDLE IS STILL BURNING — IT CAN STILL BE REPAIRED.”
Rabbi Aryeh Levin stopped and said emotionally: “Did you hear that? As long as the candle burns, a person can still repair his soul.”
THAT IS THE MESSAGE OF BAMIDBAR BEFORE SHAVUOT. BEFORE RECEIVING THE TORAH, HASHEM TELLS EVERY JEW:
I count you. I believe in you. I see a diamond inside you.
Even if you fell. Even if you are different. Even if you are still in the middle of your journey.
And maybe that is why the Torah was given specifically in the desert.
A desert is empty to teach us that no matter where a Jew is spiritually, he can become a place where the Divine Presence rests.
MY DEAR FRIENDS,
There are people who spend their entire lives waiting for someone to believe in them, waiting for someone to say: “You matter.” “You are valuable.” “You are loved.”
AND HERE, IN PARASHAT BAMIDBAR, HASHEM HIMSELF SAYS IT TO EVERY JEW: “I COUNT YOU.”
Not because of what you own. Not because of what people think about you. Not because of your title or status. But because you are My child.
And perhaps this is the greatest preparation for Shavuot. Because only a person who believes he has value can truly receive the Torah. So if Hashem counts every Jew — then we must count each other too.
Never erase people. Never humiliate people. Never break hearts. Sometimes one smile, one kind word, one moment of encouragement can bring an entire soul back to life.
May we merit to feel Hashem’s infinite love for us, to recognize that every Jew is a precious sapphire in the crown of the King of Kings, and may we receive the Torah this Shavuot with joy, unity, love, and inner strength, and may we soon merit the complete redemption with the coming of Mashiach במהרה בימינו, Amen.
By Rabbi Asher Vaknin