25:14 Now the name of the Israelite who was stabbed – the one who was stabbed with the Midianite woman – was Zimri son of Salu, a leader of a clan 13 of the Simeonites.
1 tn Heb “and a man lies with her with the emission of semen.” This makes it clear that there was adultery involved, so that the going astray is going astray morally. The indication in the text is that if she had never behaved suspiciously the sin might not have been detected.
2 tc The sign of the accusative אֹתָהּ (’otah) is probably to be repointed to the preposition with the suffix, אִתָּהּ (’ittah).
3 tn Heb “and it is concealed from the eyes of her husband.”
4 tn The noun clause beginning with the simple conjunction is here a circumstantial clause, explaining that there was no witness to the sin.
5 tn The verb is the Piel perfect of שָׁרַת (sharat, “to serve, minister”). Here the form has the vav (ו) consecutive, and so is equal to the imperfect tense stressing permission. After the Levites reached the age of retirement, they were permitted to assist the others, but were not permitted to do the work themselves.
6 tn Heb “brothers,” but the meaning in this context is “fellow Levites.”
7 tn Heb “you shall do, make.”
9 tn The word גּוּר (gur) was traditionally translated “to sojourn,” i.e., to live temporarily in a land. Here the two words are from the root: “if a sojourner sojourns.”
10 tn Heb “in your midst.”
11 tn The Hebrew text just has “to your generations,” but it means in the future.
12 tn The imperfect tenses must reflect the responsibility to comply with the law, and so the classifications of instruction or obligation may be applied.
13 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Balaam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
17 tn Heb “a father’s house.” So also in v. 15.
21 tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.