Parshat Naso, meaning “take a census,” ¹ includes, as the name suggests, a census—of different groups of Levites. It also gives guidance for the Priestly Blessing, Nazirite vows, and, on the seemingly more mundane side, handling theft. 

Numbers chapter 5 tells us: 

God spoke to Moses, saying:

Speak to the Israelites: When men or women individually commit any wrong toward a fellow human being, thus breaking faith with God, and they realize their guilt, they shall confess the wrong that they have done. They shall make restitution in the principal amount and add one-fifth to it, ² giving it to the one who was wronged. ³

The idea here, which first came up in Leviticus, ⁴ is that you must pay back 20% more than what you’ve stolen. ⁵

This system enables people to feel a sense of justice being done. The person robbed doesn’t just get back what was taken from them. Ideally, they feel a return to wholeness by receiving the added 20%. Thus, we can begin to build back our societal trust. This is less about being harshly punitive and more about increasing confidence that we can bring healing to victims by showing them that their lives matter.

In this sense, the concept of restitution to the wronged beyond the amount stolen is related to the concept of naso with which our parshah begins, as this too is a means of “lifting up” the aggrieved. 

And a key part of this kind of justice is admission of guilt. Maimonides uses this Torah portion’s phrase, “they shall confess the wrong that they have done,” ⁶ as the basis for the mitzvah of vidui, confessing one’s sins. In his Sefer HaMitzvot, Rambam delineates: “To make confession, before the Lord, of any sin that one has committed.” ⁷

The other thing we learn from this section of the parshah is that, if a convert with no inheritors is stolen from, special considerations must be made.

The parshah continues: 

If that party [is deceased and] has no kin to whom restitution can be made, the amount repaid shall go to God for the priest—in addition to the ram of expiation with which expiation is made on their behalf. ⁸

Rashi references sources ⁹ that reason that this person must be a convert, as someone born to Jewish parents would have some relative somewhere who’s able to accept the restitution. ¹⁰

We learn from this verse that, while stealing from anyone is wrong, stealing from a convert, a stranger who in this time might not have had the necessary safety net of social connections, is a violation all the more so. And so, the Torah wants to be clear here that we especially cannot steal from the most vulnerable among us. 

This parshah emphasizes our interconnectedness with God and each other. The act of theft is described as “committing any wrong toward a fellow human being, thus breaking faith with the Divine.” ¹¹ When we wrong our fellow human, we are robbing them of their trust in people and, when we wrong others, we are wronging God as well. The section after this deals with suspected adultery using similar wording, describing a partner who has “gone astray and broken faith with [her husband].” ¹² The Torah simultaneously binds us to God and to others. 

So why is stealing from a human being specifically also named as a sin against God? The Renaissance-era Italian commentator Rabbi Ovadia Seforno answers: 

The robber had committed an act of desecrating the name of God in the eyes of the convert who must be appalled that a person born into the Jewish community could be guilty of such a deed. ¹³

The Midrash Bamidbar Rabbah ¹⁴ identifies these converts as those mentioned in the Book of Hoshea who dwell in God’s shade. ¹⁵ “They shall bring to life new grain,” Hoshea says. “They shall blossom like the vine; His scent shall be like the wine of Lebanon.” ¹⁶

The midrash goes on: 

Said the Holy One be Blessed: “The appreciation of the geirim is as dear to me as the wine that was poured on the altar [as libation.]” … Behold we have learned that the essence of the geirim is like Israel’s. Therefore, they will be as grain and blossom.”

As we have seen, the prohibition against stealing can be applied to many different aspects of life. Seforno, again, comments on “You shall not steal” ¹⁷ from the Ten Commandments: 

The term “stealing” also includes the… kidnapping of human beings. Even deceiving your fellow man deliberately is called geneivat da’at haberiyot, “stealing people’s minds,” misleading them to believe that lies are truth. ¹⁸

Rabbi Yisrael Meir Kagan, known as the Chafetz Chaim, ¹⁹ writes: 

One who awakens his friend is a thief, for he stole the other’s rest, a theft for which there is no restitution. ²⁰ 

More practically, there is the issue of whether one should say the full birkat hamazon (the blessing after a meal) while on the job, as taking too long might be stealing from the employer.

²¹ Of course, an issue that arises more often is when we must pursue justice for employees taken advantage of by thieving employers. 

Theft plays out in our work lives, in the marketplace, within our homes, and online. Today, it’s easier to steal from people in poverty because they can’t afford the legal support to fight. As a society, we must be particularly protective of these individuals. 

We must work to create systems of justice that not only repair the damage that was done, but also restore our society to be one of trust, justice, and respect. 

Sources

1. The word naso literally means “lift up.” This term is used numerous times regarding the mitzvah of taking a census. The idea being expressed here is that when one is counted, their spirits are lifted. They feel that they “count” for something.
2.  This 1/5th restitution is referred to in halachic literature as chomesh, meaning one-fifth.
3.  Numbers 5:5–7
4.  Leviticus 5:24
5.  There are occasions when a different percentage above and beyond the value of the theft is mandated, including double the amount stolen, which in halachic literature is termed keifel, meaning double. The specific details of restitution are beyond the scope of this essay.
6.  Numbers 5:7
7.  Sefer HaMitzvot, Positive Mitzvah 73
8.  Numbers 5:8
9.  Midrash Sifrei, Bamidbar 4:1; Babylonian Talmud, Bava Kamma 109a
10.  Rashi on Numbers 5:8:2
11.  Numbers 5:6
12.  Numbers 5:12
13.  Seforno on Numbers 5:6:1
14.  Bamidbar Rabbah 8:1
15.  In other words, converts are viewed by Hoshea, and must be by us as well, as equal, contributing members of the Jewish community. There is to be no distinction between a convert and a born Jew.
16.  Hoshea 14:8
17.  Exodus 20:13
18.  Seforno on Exodus 20:13:2
19.  Rabbi Kagan also authored the Mishnah Berurah, a comprehensive addendum to the Shulchan Aruch Code of Jewish Law). Chafetz Chaim is the name of his work on the topic of lashon hara.
20.  Attributed to the Chafetz Chaim in various sources. For more on this issue, see OU Torah, Gezel Sheina: Stealing Sleep. 
21.  Shulchan Aruch, Orach Chayim 183:12