27:18 The Lord replied 1 to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is such a spirit, 2 and lay your hand on him; 3 27:19 set him 4 before Eleazar the priest and before the whole community, and commission 5 him publicly. 6
1 tn Or “said.”
2 sn The word “spirit” probably refers to the Holy Spirit, in which case it would be rendered “in whom is the Spirit.” This would likely be a permanent endowment for Joshua. But it is also possible to take it to refer to a proper spirit to do all the things required of such a leader (which ultimately is a gift from the Spirit of God). The Hebrew text simply says “in whom is a spirit.”
3 sn This symbolic act would indicate the transfer of leadership to Joshua.
4 tn This could be translated “position him,” or “have him stand,” since it is the causative stem of the verb “to stand.”
5 tn The verb is the Piel perfect of צִוָּה (tsivvah, literally “to command”). The verb has a wide range of meanings, and so here in this context the idea of instructing gives way to a more general sense of commissioning for duty. The verb in sequence is equal to the imperfect of instruction.
6 tn Heb “in their eyes.”
7 tn Heb “spoke.”
8 tn Heb “hand.”