This week’s parsha, Masei, lists the 42 stops we made during our forty year journey from Egypt to Eretz Yisrael. The commentators are bothered: why do we need to list all of these stops? Let’s shorten the parsha by just saying we made a bunch of stops and move on to the next section. So, I’d like to share two answers to this question that I saw.

The first answer is to show G-d’s kindness. Rashi points out that 14 stops were made during the first year and 8 stops were made during the last few months before going into Eretz Yisrael. Therefore, during the other 38 years, they only traveled to 20 different places. G-d could have made those 40 years of traveling in the desert very difficult, but he was extremely kind, and let us stay in places for long periods of time.

The second answer is also to show G-d’s kindness. The names are emphasized in the parsha to stop critics from saying there were no miracles in the desert. People used to say that the Jews survived in the desert for the forty years by getting food and water from the local crops or from what they planted. The names of the places were stated though so that people could go to these locations and see they were truly uninhabitable. The only way the Jews could have survived in these areas would have been by having food and water from Heaven and a miraculous air conditioning system.

A point to remember about these kindnesses is that G-d punished the Jews by making them walk in the desert for forty years. This was decreed because they sinned. Even though they deserved punishment, G-d did not make them suffer excessively.

Also, these kindnesses were not only performed while we were in the desert; they are performed for us every single day and usually we do not even notice. How often do people have to move from their homes? Occasionally a person’s job will force him to move, but this happens very rarely. Our generation is not full of completely righteous people. We sometimes might deserve to be punished, but G-d is kind and does not give us the harsh punishment of making us continuously travel. Also, we all live in places where it is difficult and sometimes impossible to be able to get all of the food and drink that we need. For example, it is impossible to grow many of the Northern crops in hot, sunny South Florida because the crop will burn up. Northerners cannot grow citris fruit trees. Many of us do not know how to properly slaughter an animal (and even if we did, we would probably be grossed out by it!) But if I walk into my local grocery store, I can find all types of foods. G-d is so kind to us that he gave us grocery stores so we would can easily go to one place and have all of needs supplied to us for a minimal price. And yes, it certainly is a minimal price. Think of how much time and effort it would take you to be able to plant all of the vegetables or make the cereals or slaughter animals or to be able to prepare all of the other foods that we get. G-d was very kind to the Jews in the desert and He continues to be very kind to us today.

Good Shabbos!
-yes
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