{2}NUMBERS{/}

Exodus presents the Israelites leaving Egypt for the desert. The next book, Leviticus, presented itself as a body of laws given by Moses in the desert. The book of Numbers, in turn, shows the Israelites wandering through the deserts of Sinai. In this journey the people gather experiences that will guide them in the future.
This book is called "Numbers" because it begins by listing the numbers of a census of the Hebrew people.
What was said in the introduction of Leviticus applies here, too: the census, the events and Yahweh's statements to Moses are simply a way of presenting laws which were put together or edited later by the priests of Israel.
However, all is not artificial in this history: it leans on ancient traditions relating to the time spent in the desert. They are to be found especially in Chapters [Num_11,1] a [Num_14,1] and [Num_20,1] a [Num_25,1] which at times repeat in a different form the events of Exodus. Following the departure from Egypt, the book of Numbers is presented as a march of the people of God across the desert. In the course of this march the people accumulated experiences which are to mark all its future.
