In
Batyah's Blog | on
July, 07, 2013 | by
Ministry Team
ENCAMPMENTS IN THE WILDERNESS
These are the names of the encampments and their meanings . . .
1. Sukkot ~ tabernacles
2. Etam ~ boundary of the sea
3. Pi-Hachirot ~ mouth of caverns
4. Migdol ~ tower
5. Marah ~ bitterness
6. Eilim ~ palm grove
7. Sea of Suf ~ sea of reeds
8. Seen Desert ~ wilderness of sin
9. Dofkah ~ a knock
10. Alush ~ knead, as bread
11. Rifidim ~ to spread (make a bed)
12. Sinai Desert ~ mountain of Arabia
13. Kivrot-HaTa’avah ~ graves of craving
14. Hatzerot ~ courtyards
15. Ritmah ~ allusion to slander
16. Rimmon-Peretz ~ pomegranate of the branch
17. Livnah ~ white-ish tree
18. Rissah ~ ruin; ripping to pieces
19. K’helah ~ convocation
20. Mount Shefer ~ beauty or beautiful
21. Haradah ~ fear; anxiety
22. Mak’helot ~ assemblies
23. Tachat ~ to depress; humble
24. Terach ~ named after Avraham’s father
25. Mitkah ~ sweetness
26. HaShamonah ~ fertile
27. Moserot ~ correction
28. B’nei Ya’akan ~ sons of Ya’akan
29. Hor-HaGidgad ~ hole of the cleft
30. Yotvatah ~ pleasantness
31. Avronah ~ passage or alliance**
32. Etzyon-Geyer ~ backbone, like that of a man
33. Kadesh, in Tzin Desert ~ sanctuary
34. Mount Hor ~ mountain of mountain
35. Tzalmonah ~ shadow of death
36. Punon ~ perplexity
37. Ovot ~ water skins
38. ‘Iyei-Ha’Avarim ~ regions beyond
39. Divon-Gad ~ pining; sorrow
40. Almon-Divlatayim ~ press together towards
41. Avarim Range ~ range of regions beyond
42. Across from Yericho ~ fragrant
** Number 31 ‘Avronah, meaning passage or alliance is from the Hebrew word eber/ever which means to pass over or cross over.
But WHY was it necessary to name each and every place, not just once upon arrival but again upon leaving? Of course, we know Torah does not convey idle words. Every letter, every word, every verse in Torah has a message for all generations. So what then is the message of the forty two “way stations” of the wilderness?
I’m inclined to think/believe, just as the nation of Israel passed through these forty-two way stations in the wilderness, on their journey from Mitzrayim/Egypt to HaAretz Isra’el/The Land of Israel, so does each and every one of us, throughout the course of our lives pass through stations of spiritual growth, on our journey from the womb to the tomb. These spiritual stations/places are meant to nourish us and guide us along our way to (tick-koon) tikkun (תיקון) / spiritual repair, fulfilling the potential our Abba Father has given us. Just like some of the encampments, some of our spiritual challenges are no more than “overnight stays” while others may take years to accomplish before we can move on.
