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The sins of the census.

From: Judaism: A Quarterly Journal of Jewish Life andThought  |  Date: 3/22/1994  |  Author: Neufeld, Ernest

Divinely ordained census counts taken among the Israelites were not the cause of plagues which visited the people. The biblical text stating that expiation should be performed following a census should not be taken to mean that census taking was a sin to be atoned for so plagues could be avoided. It should be remembered that the census was conducted for military purposes and that the atonement was meant for the shedding of blood arising from military duties. Census taking was associated with ...

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