Genesis 35:22

35:22 While Israel was living in that land, Reuben had sexual relations with ¹  Bilhah, his father’s concubine, and Israel heard about it.

Jacob had twelve sons:

Exodus 28:21

28:21 The stones are to be for the names of the sons of Israel, twelve, according to the number of ²  their names. Each name according to the twelve tribes is to be like ³  the engravings of a seal.

Exodus 28:1

The Clothing of the Priests

28:1 ⁴ “And you, bring near ⁵  to you your brother Aaron and his sons with him from among the Israelites, so that they may minister as my priests ⁶  – Aaron, Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar, Aaron’s sons.

Exodus 18:1

The Advice of Jethro

18:1 ⁷ Jethro, the priest of Midian, Moses’ father-in-law, heard about all that God had done for Moses and for his people Israel, that ⁸  the Lord had brought Israel out of Egypt. ⁹ 

Acts 26:7

26:7 a promise ¹⁰  that our twelve tribes hope to attain as they earnestly serve God ¹¹  night and day. Concerning this hope the Jews are accusing me, ¹²  Your Majesty! ¹³ 

James 1:1

Salutation

1:1 From James, ¹⁴  a slave ¹⁵  of God and the Lord Jesus Christ, to the twelve tribes dispersed abroad. ¹⁶  Greetings!

Revelation 7:4

7:4 Now ¹⁷  I heard the number of those who were marked with the seal, ¹⁸  one hundred and forty-four thousand, sealed from all ¹⁹  the tribes of the people of Israel: ²⁰ 

[35:22]  ¹ tn Heb “and Reuben went and lay with.” The expression “lay with” is a euphemism for having sexual intercourse.

[28:21]  ² tn For clarity the words “the number of” have been supplied.

[28:21]  ³ tn The phrase translated “the engravings of a seal” is an adverbial accusative of manner here.

[28:1]  ⁴ sn Some modern scholars find this and the next chapter too elaborate for the wilderness experience. To most of them this reflects the later Zadokite priesthood of the writer’s (P’s) day that was referred to Mosaic legislation for authentication. But there is no compelling reason why this should be late; it is put late because it is assumed to be P, and that is assumed to be late. But both assumptions are unwarranted. This lengthy chapter could be divided this way: instructions for preparing the garments (1-5), details of the apparel (6-39), and a warning against deviating from these (40-43). The subject matter of the first part is that God requires that his chosen ministers reflect his holy nature; the point of the second part is that God requires his ministers to be prepared to fulfill the tasks of the ministry, and the subject matter of the third part is that God warns all his ministers to safeguard the holiness of their service.

[28:1]  ⁵ tn The verb is the Hiphil imperative of the root קָרַב (qarav, “to draw near”). In the present stem the word has religious significance, namely, to present something to God, like an offering.

[28:1]  ⁶ tn This entire clause is a translation of the Hebrew לְכַהֲנוֹ־לִי (lÿkhahano-li, “that he might be a priest to me”), but the form is unusual. The word means “to be a priest” or “to act as a priest.” The etymology of the word for priest, כֹּהֵן (kohen), is uncertain.

[18:1]  ⁷ sn This chapter forms the transition to the Law. There has been the deliverance, the testing passages, the provision in the wilderness, and the warfare. Any God who can do all this for his people deserves their allegiance. In chap. 18 the Lawgiver is giving advice, using laws and rulings, but then he is given advice to organize the elders to assist. Thus, when the Law is fully revealed, a system will be in place to administer it. The point of the passage is that a great leader humbly accepts advice from other godly believers to delegate responsibility. He does not try to do it all himself; God does not want one individual to do it all. The chapter has three parts: vv. 1-12 tell how Jethro heard and came and worshiped and blessed; vv. 13-23 have the advice of Jethro, and then vv. 24-27 tell how Moses implemented the plan and Jethro went home. See further E. J. Runions, “Exodus Motifs in 1 Samuel 7 and 8,” EvQ 52 (1980): 130-31; and also see for another idea T. C. Butler, “An Anti-Moses Tradition,” JSOT 12 (1979): 9-15.

[18:1]  ⁸ tn This clause beginning with כִּי (ki) answers the question of what Jethro had heard; it provides a second, explanatory noun clause that is the object of the verb – “he heard (1) all that God had done… (2) that he had brought….” See R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 81, §490.

[18:1]  ⁹ sn This is an important report that Jethro has heard, for the claim of God that he brought Israel out of bondage in Egypt will be the foundation of the covenant stipulations (Exod 20).

[26:7]  ¹⁰ tn Grk “to which [promise] our twelve tribes…” The antecedent of the relative pronoun (the promise in v. 6) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[26:7]  ¹¹ tn Or “earnestly worship.” The object of this service, God, is omitted but implied: BDAG 587 s.v. λατρεύω states, “Without the dat. of the one to whom service is given: ἐν ἐκτενείᾳ νύκτα κ. ἡμέραν λ. serve (God) earnestly night and day Ac 26:7.” Although clear from the context in Greek, “God” must be supplied as the recipient of the service for the modern English reader.

[26:7]  ¹² tn Grk “I am being accused by the Jews.” The passive construction was simplified by converting it to an active one in the translation.

[26:7]  ¹³ tn Grk “O King!”

[1:1]  ¹⁴ tn Grk “James.” The word “From” is not in the Greek text, but has been supplied to indicate the sender of the letter.

[1:1]  ¹⁵ tn Traditionally, “servant” or “bondservant.” Though δοῦλος (doulos) is normally translated “servant,” the word does not bear the connotation of a free individual serving another. BDAG notes that “‘servant’ for ‘slave’ is largely confined to Biblical transl. and early American times…in normal usage at the present time the two words are carefully distinguished” (BDAG 260 s.v.). The most accurate translation is “bondservant” (sometimes found in the ASV for δοῦλος), in that it often indicates one who sells himself into slavery to another. But as this is archaic, few today understand its force.

[1:1]  ¹⁶ tn Grk “to the twelve tribes in the Diaspora.” The Greek term διασπορά (diaspora, “dispersion”) refers to Jews not living in Palestine but “dispersed” or scattered among the Gentiles.

[7:4]  ¹⁷ tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “now” to indicate the introduction of new but related material.

[7:4]  ¹⁸ tn Grk “who were sealed.”

[7:4]  ¹⁹ tn Normally, “every,” but since 144,000 is the total number, “all” is clearer here.

[7:4]  ²⁰ tn Grk “the sons of Israel,” normally an idiom for the Israelites as an ethnic entity (L&N 11.58). However, many scholars understand the expression in this context to refer to Christians rather than ethnic Israelites.