18:1 The Levitical priests 1 – indeed, the entire tribe of Levi – will have no allotment or inheritance with Israel; they may eat the burnt offerings of the Lord and of his inheritance. 2 18:2 They 3 will have no inheritance in the midst of their fellow Israelites; 4 the Lord alone is their inheritance, just as he had told them.
1 tn The MT places the terms “priests” and “Levites” in apposition, thus creating an epexegetical construction in which the second term qualifies the first, i.e., “Levitical priests.” This is a way of asserting their legitimacy as true priests. The Syriac renders “to the priest and to the Levite,” making a distinction between the two, but one that is out of place here.
2 sn Of his inheritance. This is a figurative way of speaking of the produce of the land the
3 tn Heb “he” (and throughout the verse).
4 tn Heb “brothers,” but not referring to actual siblings. Cf. NASB “their countrymen”; NRSV “the other members of the community.”