Most of us have experienced this, perhaps several times a day. You’re in a grocery store or mall. You have two of your three children by your side, or one is securely in the seat of the shopping cart and one has his finger obediently stuck into your purse. Then, all of the sudden, “Where’s David!?” Is he in the toy section drooling over that truck he wanted you to buy? Is he rolling oranges on the floor in the fruit section? Perhaps you can take the risk of asking your eldest to go in search of David, with strict orders that he or she should return immediately for roll call before getting in the car.
Why do we make these mini-censuses several times a day? Because we love our children, and want to make sure that they are safe. In the beginning of the book of Numbers, G-d or Hashem does the same thing; he counts the Jewish People, because, according to the Torah commentator, Rashi, the Jewish People are precious to Him. What seems, at first glance, to be nothing more than an endless list of names and head counts is patent evidence of Hashem’s love for us.
Rashi also comments that Hashem counted the Jewish People “all the time” and mentioned the counting that occurred after the sin of the Golden Calf. This shows that, even in the nadir of such a great sin, the Jewish People were still precious to Hashem. A simple counting can demonstrate the power of forgiveness.
It is a tradition among Jews not to count people directly, but through coins or other tokens. G-d promised to Abraham that his descendents would be more numerous than the stars in Heaven. When human beings count, there is a notion of limitation, but when Hashem counts, he bestows countless blessings.