Discovery BoxNumbers 15:31
Context15:31 Because he has despised 1 the word of the Lord and has broken 2 his commandment, that person 3 must be completely cut off. 4 His iniquity will be on him.’” 5
Numbers 15:1
Context15:1 6 The Lord spoke to Moses:
Numbers 15:24
Context15:24 then if anything is done unintentionally 7 without the knowledge of 8 the community, the whole community must prepare one young bull for a burnt offering – for a pleasing aroma to the Lord – along with its grain offering and its customary drink offering, and one male goat for a purification offering.
Numbers 15:2
Context15:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land where you are to live, 9 which I am giving you, 10
Numbers 24:20
Context24:20 Then Balaam 11 looked on Amalek and delivered this oracle: 12
“Amalek was the first 13 of the nations,
but his end will be that he will perish.”
Isaiah 53:8
Context53:8 He was led away after an unjust trial 14 –
but who even cared? 15
Indeed, he was cut off from the land of the living; 16
because of the rebellion of his own 17 people he was wounded.
Daniel 9:11
Context9:11 “All Israel has broken 18 your law and turned away by not obeying you. 19 Therefore you have poured out on us the judgment solemnly threatened 20 in the law of Moses the servant of God, for we have sinned against you. 21
Romans 3:20
Context3:20 For no one is declared righteous before him 22 by the works of the law, 23 for through the law comes 24 the knowledge of sin.
Romans 4:15
Context4:15 For the law brings wrath, because where there is no law there is no transgression 25 either.
James 2:9-11
Context2:9 But if you show prejudice, you are committing sin and are convicted by the law as violators. 26 2:10 For the one who obeys the whole law but fails 27 in one point has become guilty of all of it. 28 2:11 For he who said, “Do not commit adultery,” 29 also said, “Do not murder.” 30 Now if you do not commit adultery but do commit murder, you have become a violator of the law.
[15:31] 1 tn The verb בָּזָה (bazah, “to despise”) means to treat something as worthless, to treat it with contempt, to look down the nose at something as it were.
[15:31] 2 tn The verb פָּרַר (parar, “to break”) can mean to nullify, break, or violate a covenant.
[15:31] 4 tn The construction uses the Niphal imperfect with the modifying Niphal infinitive absolute. The infinitive makes the sentence more emphatic. If the imperfect tense is taken as an instruction imperfect, then the infinitive makes the instruction more binding. If it is a simple future, then the future is certain. In either case, there is no exclusion from being cut off.
[15:31] 5 sn The point is that the person’s iniquity remains with him – he must pay for his sin. The judgment of God in such a case is both appropriate and unavoidable.
[15:1] 6 sn The wilderness wandering officially having begun, these rules were then given for the people to be used when they finally entered the land. That they would be provided here would be of some encouragement to the nation after their great failure. God still spoke of a land that was to be their land, even though they had sinned greatly. This chapter collects a number of religious rules. The first 16 verses deal with rulings for sacrifices. Then, vv. 17-36 concerns sins of omission. Finally, rules concerning tassels are covered (vv. 37-41). For additional reading, see G. B. Gray, Sacrifice in the Old Testament (Oxford: Clarendon, 1925); B. A. Levine, In the Presence of the
[15:24] 7 tn The idea of לִשְׁגָגָה (lishgagah) seems to be that of “inadvertence” or “without intent.” The text gives no indication of how this offense might be committed, or what it might include. It probably describes any transgressions done in ignorance of the Law that involved a violation of tabernacle procedure or priestly protocol or social misdemeanor. Even though it was done unintentionally, it was still a violation and called for ritual purification.
[15:24] 8 tn Heb “[away] from the eyes of the community.”
[15:2] 9 tn Heb “the land of your habitations.”
[15:2] 10 tn The Hebrew participle here has the futur instans use of the participle, expressing that something is going to take place. It is not imminent, but it is certain that God would give the land to Israel.
[24:20] 11 tn Heb “he”; the referent (Balaam) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[24:20] 12 tn Heb “and he lifted up his oracle and said.” So also in vv. 21, 23.
[24:20] 13 sn This probably means that it held first place, or it thought that it was “the first of the nations.” It was not the first, either in order or greatness.
[53:8] 14 tn The precise meaning of this line is uncertain. The present translation assumes that מִן (min) here has an instrumental sense (“by, through”) and understands עֹצֶר וּמִמִּשְׁפָּט (’otser umimmishpat, “coercion and legal decision”) as a hendiadys meaning “coercive legal decision,” thus “an unjust trial.” Other interpretive options include: (1) “without [for this sense of מִן, see BDB 578 s.v. 1.b] hindrance and proper judicial process,” i.e., “unfairly and with no one to defend him,” (2) “from [in the sense of “after,” see BDB 581 s.v. 4.b] arrest and judgment.”
[53:8] 15 tn Heb “and his generation, who considers?” (NASB similar). Some understand “his generation” as a reference to descendants. In this case the question would suggest that he will have none. However, אֶת (’et) may be taken here as specifying a new subject (see BDB 85 s.v. I אֵת 3). If “his generation” refers to the servant’s contemporary generation, one may then translate, “As for his contemporary generation, who took note?” The point would be that few were concerned about the harsh treatment he received.
[53:8] 16 sn The “land of the living” is an idiom for the sphere where people live, in contrast to the underworld realm of the dead. See, for example, Ezek 32:23-27.
[53:8] 17 tn The Hebrew text reads “my people,” a reading followed by most English versions, but this is problematic in a context where the first person plural predominates, and where God does not appear to speak again until v. 11b. Therefore, it is preferable to read with the Qumran scroll 1QIsaa עמו (“his people”). In this case, the group speaking in these verses is identified as the servant’s people (compare פְּשָׁעֵנוּ [pÿsha’enu, “our rebellious deeds”] in v. 5 with פֶּשַׁע עַמִּי [pesha’ ’ammi, “the rebellion of his people”] in v. 8).
[9:11] 18 tn Or “transgressed.” The Hebrew verb has the primary sense of crossing a boundary, in this case, God’s law.
[9:11] 19 tn Heb “by not paying attention to your voice.”
[9:11] 20 tn Heb “the curse and the oath which is written.” The term “curse” refers here to the judgments threatened in the Mosaic law (see Deut 28) for rebellion. The expression “the curse and the oath” is probably a hendiadys (cf. Num 5:21; Neh 10:29) referring to the fact that the covenant with its threatened judgments was ratified by solemn oath and made legally binding upon the covenant community.
[3:20] 22 sn An allusion to Ps 143:2.
[3:20] 23 tn Grk “because by the works of the law no flesh is justified before him.” Some recent scholars have understood the phrase ἒργα νόμου (erga nomou, “works of the law”) to refer not to obedience to the Mosaic law generally, but specifically to portions of the law that pertain to things like circumcision and dietary laws which set the Jewish people apart from the other nations (e.g., J. D. G. Dunn, Romans [WBC], 1:155). Other interpreters, like C. E. B. Cranfield (“‘The Works of the Law’ in the Epistle to the Romans,” JSNT 43 [1991]: 89-101) reject this narrow interpretation for a number of reasons, among which the most important are: (1) The second half of v. 20, “for through the law comes the knowledge of sin,” is hard to explain if the phrase “works of the law” is understood in a restricted sense; (2) the plural phrase “works of the law” would have to be understood in a different sense from the singular phrase “the work of the law” in 2:15; (3) similar phrases involving the law in Romans (2:13, 14; 2:25, 26, 27; 7:25; 8:4; and 13:8) which are naturally related to the phrase “works of the law” cannot be taken to refer to circumcision (in fact, in 2:25 circumcision is explicitly contrasted with keeping the law). Those interpreters who reject the “narrow” interpretation of “works of the law” understand the phrase to refer to obedience to the Mosaic law in general.
[2:9] 26 tn Or “transgressors.”
[2:10] 28 tn Grk “guilty of all.”
[2:11] 29 sn A quotation from Exod 20:14 and Deut 5:18.
[2:11] 30 sn A quotation from Exod 20:13 and Deut 5:17.
