In Song: Bamidbar

By Martin Stone May 27, 2011

Each week ‘In Song’ links the weekly Torah reading — however tenuously — to classic works of rock ‘n’ roll.

This week’s parsha, Bamidbar (in the desert), kicks off the Book of Numbers, starting with a census of the nation of Israel (603,550 males of military age) and a description of their camping arrangements. Then the tribe of Levi is counted separately, for their dedication to serve in the Tabernacle. The final part of the parsha describes the duties of the Levite family of Kehat. Whereas the other Levite families transported the structural elements of the Tabernacle in wagons, the Kehat family had the privilege of carrying the functional elements. However, they had to “Carry That Weight” by hand!

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