Numbers 3:32

3:32 Now the head of all the Levitical leaders ¹  was Eleazar son of Aaron the priest. He was appointed over those who were responsible ²  for the sanctuary.

Numbers 3:47

3:47 collect ³  five shekels for each ⁴  one individually; you are to collect ⁵  this amount ⁶  in the currency of the sanctuary shekel (this shekel is twenty gerahs). ⁷ 

Numbers 5:9-10

5:9 Every offering ⁸  of all the Israelites’ holy things that they bring to the priest will be his. 5:10 Every man’s holy things ⁹  will be his; whatever any man gives the priest will be his.’”

Numbers 7:9

7:9 But to the Kohathites he gave none, because the service of the holy things, which they carried ¹⁰  on their shoulders, was their responsibility. ¹¹ 

Numbers 28:7

28:7 “‘And its drink offering must be one quarter of a hin for each lamb. ¹²  You must pour out the strong drink ¹³  as a drink offering to the Lord in the holy place.

Numbers 28:18

28:18 And on the first day there is to be a holy assembly; you must do no ordinary work ¹⁴  on it.

Numbers 28:25

28:25 On the seventh day you are to have a holy assembly, you must do no regular work.

¹ tn The Hebrew construction has “the leader of the leaders of” (וּנְשִׂיא נְשִׂיאֵי, unÿsi’ nÿsi’ey).

² tn Heb “the keepers of the responsibility” (שֹׁמְרֵי מִשְׁמֶרֶת, shomÿrey mishmeret). The participle is a genitive specifying the duty to which he was appointed (thing possessed); its cognate genitive emphasizes that their responsibility was over the holy place.

³ tn The verb again is the perfect tense in sequence; the meaning of “take” may be interpreted here with the sense of “collect.”

⁴ tn The idea is expressed simply by repetition: “take five, five, shekels according to the skull.” They were to collect five shekels for each individual.

⁵ tn The verb form now is the imperfect of instruction or legislation.

⁶ tn Heb “them,” referring to the five shekels.

⁷ sn The sanctuary shekel was first mentioned in Exod 30:13. The half-shekel of Exod 38:26 would then be 10 gerahs. Consequently, the calculations would indicate that five shekels was about two ounces of silver for each person. See R. B. Y. Scott, “Weights and Measures of the Bible,” BA 22 (1951): 22-40, and “The Scale-Weights from Ophel, 1963-1964,” PEQ 97 (1965): 128-39.

⁵ tn The Hebrew word תְּרוּמָה (tÿrumah) seems to be a general word for any offering that goes to the priests (see J. Milgrom, Studies in Cultic Theology and Terminology [SJLA 36], 159-72).

⁷ sn The “holy gifts” are described with the root of קֹדֶשׁ (qodesh) to convey that they were separate. Such things had been taken out of the ordinary and normal activities of life.

⁹ tn The verb is the imperfect tense, but it describes their customary activity – they had to carry, they used to carry.

¹⁰ tn Heb “upon them,” meaning “their duty.”

¹¹ tn Heb “the one lamb,” but it is meant to indicate for “each lamb.”

¹² tn The word שֵׁכָר (shekhar) is often translated “strong drink.” It can mean “barley beer” in the Akkadian cognate, and also in the Hebrew Bible when joined with the word for wine. English versions here read “wine” (NAB, TEV, CEV); “strong wine” (KJV); “fermented drink” (NIV, NLT); “strong drink” (ASV, NASB, NRSV).

¹³ tn Heb “any work [of] service”; this means any occupational work, that is, the ordinary service.