CAS - Protective Names by Rabbi Walk, July 21, 2008

Walk Through the Parsha by Rabbi David Walk

Protective Names
Matot - 5768
July 21, 2008
When I was a kid I remember looking at old maps and seeing Leningrad written with St. Petersburg in parentheses under it or next to it. Then, of course, the name was surely going to be Leningrad forever, until 1989 when the name just slipped back to St. Petersburg. For me this was a momentous change, but for Jews who lived in Poland this was old hat. They were used Gdansk being called Danzig when the Germans controlled it. The same was true for Lvov aka Lemberg, and most famous of all, the village that the Poles called Oscwiem is more famously known by the German version, Auschwitz. The same was true for towns in Alsace Lorraine. So the phenomenon of the new rulers deciding the name of a locale is well known. The B'nai Yisrael did the same thing in this week's Torah reading as they conquered towns in the trans-Jordan area soon to be home to the tribe of Reuvain and Gad.

Here are the pertinent verses: The descendants of Gad built Dibon, Ataroth, and Aroer. And Atroth Shophan, Jazer, and Jogbehah. And Beth Nimrah and Beth Haran, fortified cities and sheepfolds. The descendants of Reuben built Heshbon, Elealeh, and Kirjathaim. And Nebo and Baal Meon, their names having been changed, and Sibmah (Numbers 32:34-38). The normal interpretation is given by Rashi (Rabbi Shlomo Yitzchaki, 1040-1105): Nebo and Baal Meon were names of pagan deities, and the Amorites named their towns after their deities, and the descendants of Reuben changed their names to other names. This is the meaning of “their names having been changed”-Nebo and Baal-Meon, changed to another name (verse 38). This makes sense. The Jews didn't want to live in cities named after false gods. The Ramban (Nachmonides, 1194-1270) adds that this was a common occurrence in the Bible. Ya'akov changes the name of Luz to Beit El (Genesis 28:19), and King David changes the name of Yevus to the City of David (which, of course, we call Jerusalem, Samuel II 5:9).

However, there are a number of problems (what a surprise!). Look at the verses. The Gadites built protection for family and flock, while the Reubenites changed names. To answer that problem we must mention another one. The expression that we translated as changing the name is an odd one. In the other cases of changed names the verse just states that someone called the location by a new name, and then mentions the original name. Here the Hebrew term musabot is used. This word means to spin like a dreidel in Hebrew is a svivon. Therefore the Ramban says that the Reubenites brought back the original names. It's like the sign saying Welcome to Nebo kept the old name on the other side. In case the other guys came back. The Da'at Z'keinim (a collection of medieval comments) says that the term implies that the original builders called it one thing, then the Moabites came giving a second name, and, finally, the Reubenites gave a third name. So the best translation may be revolving names.

So far this works, but the authoritative translation by Onkelos (35-120 CE) throws a monkey wrench (for the Brits: spanner) into the works. He translates musabot with the word makfan (don't make fun of this). We recognize this word from the hakafot on Simchat Torah, and it means to go around or surround. So the name surrounded the city. Huh? This brought me to an interesting explanation by Professor Zvi Betzer of Bar Ilan University. Dr. Betzer opines that the phrase really means that they enclosed these cities with a high wall. He actually found a 16th century manuscript with that translation and that is the way the Septuagint (authoritative Greek translation from the 3rd century BCE) renders it. The word shem he believes was sometimes used to mean a wall or tower. He then gives a number of Biblical examples where this might be true: David made a shem (name or tower) for himself (Samuel II 8:13), the famous phrase Yad V'shem (Isaiah 56:5) could mean a monument and tower, and the builders of the Tower of Babel say 'Let's make a shem for ourselves,' which could easily mean a tower. He goes on to note that this may come from the fact that the name of a place might be placed prominently on a tower or wall for all to see or that place names came from the highest structure visible from afar.

Okay, now we've answered a number of our problems. The funny terminology teaches us that they built impressive fortifications. Therefore the Reubenites didn't neglect their families. They protected them very carefully, while they went to fight in Israel with their brethren.

How about we combine some of these ideas and develop an even more radical approach? Even though Dr. Betzer brings some evidence to support the claim that shem can mean wall, it is a little odd to those of us so used to the fact that this is a common word for name. The resolution to this issue may come from referring back to the position of Rashi and the Ramban. The Ramban tried to establish that conquerors, Jew and gentile alike, change the names of towns, basically to establish control. It's ours because we name it. This rings true to the expected swagger of an arrogant conqueror. But Rashi has none of that. Rashi maintains that the biblical name changes are tied to the removal of idol worship from the land. The new names aren't about ego; they are about dedication to God. Please God, this piety brings protection. It's inspiring to understand the names of communities in Israel, because they are imbued with so much tradition.

Hopefully we choose names for our children with similar devotion. The names should really be a prayer to God and an aspiration for the name holder. We hope that the recipient lives up to the name, and we pray that the name becomes an encircling fortress of protection.