Numbers 12:12

12:12 Do not let her be like a baby born dead, whose flesh is half-consumed when it comes out of its ¹  mother’s womb!”

Numbers 18:18

18:18 And their meat will be yours, just as the breast and the right hip of the raised offering is yours.

Numbers 19:8

19:8 The one who burns it ²  must wash his clothes in water and bathe himself in water. He will be ceremonially unclean until evening.

Numbers 27:16

27:16 “Let the Lord, the God of the spirits of all humankind, ³  appoint ⁴  a man over the community,

¹ tc The words “its mother” and “its flesh” are among the so-called tiqqune sopherim, or “emendations of the scribes.” According to this tradition the text originally had here “our mother” and “our flesh,” but the ancient scribes changed these pronouns from the first person to the third person. Apparently they were concerned that the image of Moses’ mother giving birth to a baby with physical defects of the sort described here was somehow inappropriate, given the stature and importance of Moses.

² sn Here the text makes clear that he had at least one assistant.

³ tn Heb “flesh”; cf. NAB, NIV “all mankind”; NCV “all people”; NLT “all living things.”

⁴ tn This is the same verb פָּקַד (paqad) that is used throughout the book for the aspect of “numbering” the people.