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Created: 10 July 2026

The second of our double parshiot, Masei, contains a detailed travelogue of the journeys of Bnei Yisrael in the desert. Beginning with the first leg, their actual exodus from Ramses, it lists the names of each subsequent portion of the trip. Some stops contain details concerning what occurred there and some simply remind us of what occurred through how the place was named.

What is the purpose of these reminiscences? There had always been only one destination that had been important to the people: Eretz Yisrael. A full two-thirds of these stops occurred after the tragic decree caused by the cynical report of the spies. Many of these stops were never even meant to have happened! What benefit is there in reviewing them all?

Yet, the Torah lends great importance to this list. As it says:

(א) אֵלֶּה מַסְעֵי בְנֵי יִשְׂרָאֵל אֲשֶׁר יָצְאוּ מֵאֶרֶץ מִצְרַיִם לְצִבְאֹתָם בְּיַד מֹשֶׁה וְאַהֲרֹן: (ב) וַיִּכְתֹּב מֹשֶׁה אֶת מוֹצָאֵיהֶם לְמַסְעֵיהֶם עַל פִּי יְקֹוָק וְאֵלֶּה מַסְעֵיהֶם לְמוֹצָאֵיהֶם

These were the marches of the Israelites who started out from the land of Egypt, troop by troop, in the charge of Moses and Aaron. Moses recorded the starting points of their various marches as directed by G-d, (Numbers 33/1-2). 

The verse is a little vague concerning which part is “Al Pi Hashem,” at G-d’s directive. Was Moshe writing down this list because G-d had wanted him to write the list or was he writing down a list of stops that G-d had desired as stops? The answer is likely that both implications are meant. G-d wanted Moshe to write down these stops as these were the stops that G-d had wanted them to make.

There is a significant lesson being shared here about the purpose of various chapters of our lives. We always tend to be looking toward what is next. When we are young, we are looking towards high school and then college, and then the establishment of a career and family. Later, we are looking towards stages of career advancement, the milestones of our children, and then maybe those of our grandchildren. We look forward to a vacation, for a construction project to be completed, for a special trip, but what of today? We do find excitement in new things, but it does not take long to get bored, and again, we look toward what’s next.

When it comes to our personal growth, an attitude of “What’s next?” is great. Complacency is always our enemy. But as we live through our lives, we might occasionally over-emphasize the future and sacrifice of our present.

In the well-known story of David and Jonathan (I Samuel, Ch. 20), Jonathan warns David that Shaul’s jealousy might create trouble for David. He instructs David not to attend the next day’s Rosh Chodesh feast and instead tells him that he will shoot arrows in his direction with a coded message, and if there is a threat, then “לֵךְ כִּי שִׁלַּחֲךָ יְקֹוָק, escape, because G-d is sending you away.” It is fascinating that he phrases it this way. Shouldn’t he have said: “Run, because Shaul wants to kill you!” Instead, Yonatan explains that the events – whatever they are – are caused by G-d. R’ Eliyahu Meir Bloch (1895-1955) explains that we see from here that at every stop on our respective journeys, we are meant to realize that it is G-d Who has placed us there.

Our emphasis on the destination can sometimes make us undervalue the journey. The three jobs we had before we finally found our dream position weren’t the obstacle in the way of success but were the stepping stones towards it. The time spent researching and planning the big trip, event or Simcha was not a necessary evil to get where we needed to be but was part of the full experience of the event itself. Our lives aren’t just a collection of shiny moments but are made up of experiences in between that don’t have the same luster but are equally purposeful in G-d’s eyes. Even though we have not “reached our destination”, we have also arrived at those locations כִּי שִׁלַּחֲךָ יְקֹוָק because G-d is sending you away.

Our parsha, which lists encampments, is still called Masei, journeys. The story of Bnei Yisrael arriving at the threshold of Eretz Yisrael is told through the places they stopped and the journeys that got them there. When we think of where we arrived in our own lives, we are more likely to think of these stops in retrospect for what they contributed to our own growth, but it is harder to do so when we are not quite there yet. As we contemplate these steps along the way, are we frustrated with the time and energy we are expending? Are we focused on what we do not yet have? Or do we appreciate that everything that is worthwhile will require a process to achieve it?

Before we can begin the book of Devarim (where Moshe’s repeat of the Torah), we have – עַל פִּי יְקֹוָק – at G-d’s directive the information we need to truly appreciate our journey until this point. G-d wants us to remember the stops that we made along the way because – importantly – all of those stops were עַל פִּי יְקֹוָק- at G-d’s directive.  Then and now, each of our stops is purposeful and has what to teach. If we are really paying attention, we can realize how much more worthwhile the fullness of the trip can be.