Deuteronomy 33:5

33:5 The Lord ¹  was king over Jeshurun, ² 

when the leaders of the people assembled,

the tribes of Israel together. ³ 

Deuteronomy 5:23

5:23 Then, when you heard the voice from the midst of the darkness while the mountain was ablaze, all your tribal leaders and elders approached me.

Deuteronomy 33:21

33:21 He has selected the best part for himself,

for the portion of the ruler ⁴  is set aside ⁵  there;

he came with the leaders ⁶  of the people,

he obeyed the righteous laws of the Lord

and his ordinances with Israel.

Deuteronomy 1:15

1:15 So I chose ⁷  as your tribal leaders wise and well-known men, placing them over you as administrators of groups of thousands, hundreds, fifties, and tens, and also as other tribal officials.

[33:5]  ¹ tn Heb “he was king.” The present translation avoids the sudden shift in person and the mistaken impression that Moses is the referent by specifying the referent as “the Lord.”

[33:5]  ² sn Jeshurun is a term of affection referring to Israel, derived from the Hebrew verb יָשַׁר (yashar, “be upright”). See note on the term in Deut 32:15.

[33:5]  ³ sn The following blessing is given to the tribes in order, although the tribe of Simeon is curiously missing from the list.

[33:21]  ⁴ tn The Hebrew term מְחֹקֵק (mÿkhoqeq; Poel participle of חָקַק, khaqaq, “to inscribe”) reflects the idea that the recorder of allotments (the “ruler”) is able to set aside for himself the largest and best. See E. H. Merrill, Deuteronomy (NAC), 444-45.

[33:21]  ⁵ tn Heb “covered in” (if from the root סָפַן, safan; cf. HALOT 764-65 s.v. ספן qal).

[33:21]  ⁶ tn Heb “heads” (in the sense of chieftains).

[1:15]  ⁷ tn Or “selected”; Heb “took.”