Discovery BoxNumbers 12:6--15:4
Context12:6 The Lord 1 said, “Hear now my words: If there is a prophet among you, 2 I the Lord 3 will make myself known to him in a vision; I will speak with him in a dream. 12:7 My servant 4 Moses is not like this; he is faithful 5 in all my house. 12:8 With him I will speak face to face, 6 openly, 7 and not in riddles; and he will see the form 8 of the Lord. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant Moses?” 12:9 The anger of the Lord burned against them, and he departed. 12:10 When 9 the cloud departed from above the tent, Miriam became 10 leprous 11 as snow. Then Aaron looked at 12 Miriam, and she was leprous!
12:11 So Aaron said to Moses, “O my lord, 13 please do not hold this sin against us, in which we have acted foolishly and have sinned! 12:12 Do not let her be like a baby born dead, whose flesh is half-consumed when it comes out of its 14 mother’s womb!”
12:13 Then Moses cried to the Lord, “Heal her now, O God.” 15 12:14 The Lord said to Moses, “If her father had only spit 16 in her face, would she not have been disgraced for seven days? Shut her out from the camp seven days, and afterward she can be brought back in again.”
12:15 So Miriam was shut outside of the camp for seven days, and the people did not journey on until Miriam was brought back in. 17 12:16 After that the people moved from Hazeroth and camped in the wilderness of Paran.
13:1 18 The Lord spoke 19 to Moses: 13:2 “Send out men to investigate 20 the land of Canaan, which I am giving 21 to the Israelites. You are to send one man from each ancestral tribe, 22 each one a leader among them.” 13:3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran at the command 23 of the Lord. All of them were leaders 24 of the Israelites.
13:4 Now these were their names: from the tribe of Reuben, Shammua son of Zaccur; 13:5 from the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat son of Hori; 13:6 from the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh; 13:7 from the tribe of Issachar, Igal son of Joseph; 13:8 from the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun; 13:9 from the tribe of Benjamin, Palti son of Raphu; 13:10 from the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel son of Sodi; 13:11 from the tribe 25 of Joseph, namely, the tribe of Manasseh, Gaddi son of Susi; 13:12 from the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gemalli; 13:13 from the tribe of Asher, Sethur son of Michael; 13:14 from the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi son of Vopshi; 13:15 from the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Maki. 13:16 These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to investigate the land. And Moses gave Hoshea son of Nun the name Joshua. 26
13:17 When Moses sent 27 them to investigate the land of Canaan, he told them, “Go up through the Negev, 28 and then go up into the hill country 13:18 and see 29 what the land is like, 30 and whether the people who live in it are strong or weak, few or many, 13:19 and whether the land they live in is good or bad, and whether the cities they inhabit are like camps or fortified cities, 13:20 and whether the land is rich or poor, and whether or not there are forests in it. And be brave, 31 and bring back some of the fruit of the land.” Now it was the time of year 32 for the first ripe grapes. 33
13:21 So they went up and investigated the land from the wilderness of Zin to Rehob, 34 at the entrance of Hamath. 35 13:22 When they went up through the Negev, they 36 came 37 to Hebron where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, 38 descendants of Anak, were living. (Now Hebron had been built seven years before Zoan 39 in Egypt.) 13:23 When they came to the valley of Eshcol, they cut down from there a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a staff 40 between two men, as well as some of the pomegranates and the figs. 13:24 That place was called 41 the Eshcol Valley, 42 because of the cluster 43 of grapes that the Israelites cut from there. 13:25 They returned from investigating the land after forty days.
13:26 They came back 44 to Moses and Aaron and to the whole community of the Israelites in the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. 45 They reported 46 to the whole community and showed the fruit of the land. 13:27 They told Moses, 47 “We went to the land where you sent us. 48 It is indeed flowing with milk and honey, 49 and this is its fruit. 13:28 But 50 the inhabitants 51 are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. Moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there. 13:29 The Amalekites live in the land of the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites, and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live by the sea and along the banks 52 of the Jordan.” 53
13:30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses, saying, “Let us go up 54 and occupy it, 55 for we are well able to conquer it.” 56 13:31 But the men 57 who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against these people, because they are stronger than we are!” 13:32 Then they presented the Israelites with a discouraging 58 report of the land they had investigated, saying, “The land that we passed through 59 to investigate is a land that devours 60 its inhabitants. 61 All the people we saw there 62 are of great stature. 13:33 We even saw the Nephilim 63 there (the descendants of Anak came from the Nephilim), and we seemed liked grasshoppers both to ourselves 64 and to them.” 65
14:1 66 Then all the community raised a loud cry, 67 and the people wept 68 that night. 14:2 And all the Israelites murmured 69 against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died 70 in the land of Egypt, or if only we had perished 71 in this wilderness! 14:3 Why has the Lord brought us into this land only to be killed by the sword, that our wives and our children should become plunder? Wouldn’t it be better for us to return to Egypt?” 14:4 So they said to one another, 72 “Let’s appoint 73 a leader 74 and return 75 to Egypt.”
14:5 Then Moses and Aaron fell down with their faces to the ground 76 before the whole assembled community 77 of the Israelites. 14:6 And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, two of those who had investigated the land, tore their garments. 14:7 They said to the whole community of the Israelites, “The land we passed through to investigate is an exceedingly 78 good land. 14:8 If the Lord delights in us, then he will bring us into this land and give it to us – a land that is flowing with milk and honey. 79 14:9 Only do not rebel against the Lord, and do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. 80 Their protection 81 has turned aside from them, but the Lord is with us. Do not fear them!”
14:10 However, the whole community threatened to stone them. 82 But 83 the glory 84 of the Lord appeared to all the Israelites at the tent 85 of meeting.
14:11 The Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people despise 86 me, and how long will they not believe 87 in me, in spite of the signs that I have done among them? 14:12 I will strike them with the pestilence, 88 and I will disinherit them; I will make you into a nation that is greater and mightier than they!”
14:13 Moses said to the Lord, “When the Egyptians hear 89 it – for you brought up this people by your power from among them – 14:14 then they will tell it to the inhabitants 90 of this land. They have heard that you, Lord, are among this people, that you, Lord, are seen face to face, 91 that your cloud stands over them, and that you go before them by day in a pillar of cloud and in a pillar of fire by night. 14:15 If you kill 92 this entire people at once, 93 then the nations that have heard of your fame will say, 14:16 ‘Because the Lord was not able to bring this people into the land that he swore to them, he killed them in the wilderness.’ 14:17 So now, let the power of my Lord 94 be great, just as you have said, 14:18 ‘The Lord is slow to anger and abounding in loyal love, 95 forgiving iniquity and transgression, 96 but by no means clearing 97 the guilty, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children until the third and fourth generations.’ 98 14:19 Please forgive 99 the iniquity of this people according to your great loyal love, 100 just as you have forgiven this people from Egypt even until now.”
14:20 Then the Lord said, “I have forgiven them as you asked. 101 14:21 But truly, as I live, 102 all the earth will be filled with the glory of the Lord. 14:22 For all the people have seen my glory and my signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and yet have tempted 103 me now these ten times, 104 and have not obeyed me, 105 14:23 they will by no means 106 see the land that I swore to their fathers, nor will any of them who despised me see it. 14:24 Only my servant Caleb, because he had a different spirit and has followed me fully – I will bring him into the land where he had gone, and his descendants 107 will possess it. 14:25 (Now the Amalekites and the Canaanites were living in the valleys.) 108 Tomorrow, turn and journey into the wilderness by the way of the Red Sea.”
14:26 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: 14:27 “How long must I bear 109 with this evil congregation 110 that murmurs against me? I have heard the complaints of the Israelites that they murmured against me. 14:28 Say to them, ‘As I live, 111 says 112 the Lord, I will surely do to you just what you have spoken in my hearing. 113 14:29 Your dead bodies 114 will fall in this wilderness – all those of you who were numbered, according to your full number, from twenty years old and upward, who have murmured against me. 14:30 You will by no means enter into the land where 115 I swore 116 to settle 117 you. The only exceptions are Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. 14:31 But I will bring in your little ones, whom you said would become victims of war, 118 and they will enjoy 119 the land that you have despised. 14:32 But as for you, your dead bodies will fall in this wilderness, 14:33 and your children will wander 120 in the wilderness forty years and suffer for your unfaithfulness, 121 until your dead bodies lie finished 122 in the wilderness. 14:34 According to the number of the days you have investigated this land, forty days – one day for a year – you will suffer for 123 your iniquities, forty years, and you will know what it means to thwart me. 124 14:35 I, the Lord, have said, “I will surely do so to all this evil congregation that has gathered together against me. In this wilderness they will be finished, and there they will die!”’”
14:36 The men whom Moses sent to investigate the land, who returned and made the whole community murmur against him by producing 125 an evil report about the land, 14:37 those men who produced the evil report about the land, died by the plague before the Lord. 14:38 But Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among 126 the men who went to investigate the land, lived. 14:39 When Moses told 127 these things to all the Israelites, the people mourned 128 greatly.
14:40 And early 129 in the morning they went up to the crest of the hill country, 130 saying, “Here we are, and we will go up to the place that the Lord commanded, 131 for we have sinned.” 132 14:41 But Moses said, “Why 133 are you now transgressing the commandment 134 of the Lord? It will not succeed! 14:42 Do not go up, for the Lord is not among you, and you will be 135 defeated before your enemies. 14:43 For the Amalekites and the Canaanites are there before you, and you will fall by the sword. Because you have turned away from the Lord, the Lord will not be with you.”
14:44 But they dared 136 to go up to the crest of the hill, although 137 neither the ark of the covenant of the Lord nor Moses departed from the camp. 14:45 So the Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in that hill country swooped 138 down and attacked them 139 as far as Hormah. 140
15:1 141 The Lord spoke to Moses: 15:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land where you are to live, 142 which I am giving you, 143 15:3 and you make an offering by fire to the Lord from the herd or from the flock (whether a burnt offering or a sacrifice for discharging a vow or as a freewill offering or in your solemn feasts) to create a pleasing aroma to the Lord, 15:4 then the one who presents his offering to the Lord must bring 144 a grain offering of one-tenth of an ephah of finely ground flour mixed with one fourth of a hin of olive oil. 145
[12:6] 2 tn The form of this construction is rare: נְבִיאֲכֶם (nÿvi’akhem) would normally be rendered “your prophet.” The singular noun is suffixed with a plural pronominal suffix. Some commentators think the MT has condensed “a prophet” with “to you.”
[12:6] 3 tn The Hebrew syntax is difficult here. “The Lord” is separated from the verb by two intervening prepositional phrases. Some scholars conclude that this word belongs with the verb at the beginning of v. 6 (“And the Lord spoke”).
[12:7] 4 sn The title “my servant” or “servant of the
[12:7] 5 tn The word “faithful” is נֶאֱמָן (ne’eman), the Niphal participle of the verb אָמַן (’aman). This basic word has the sense of “support, be firm.” In the Niphal it describes something that is firm, reliable, dependable – what can be counted on. It could actually be translated “trustworthy.”
[12:8] 7 tn The emphasis of the line is clear enough – it begins literally “mouth to mouth” I will speak with him. In human communication this would mean equality of rank, but Moses is certainly not equal in rank with the
[12:8] 8 tn The word מַרְאֶה (mar’eh) refers to what is seen, a vision, an appearance. Here it would have the idea of that which is clearly visible, open, obvious.
[12:8] 9 tn The word “form” (תְּמוּנָה, tÿmunah) means “shape, image, form.” The Greek text took it metaphorically and rendered it “the glory of the
[12:10] 10 tn The disjunctive vav (ו) is here introducing a circumstantial clause of time.
[12:10] 11 tn There is no verb “became” in this line. The second half of the line is introduced with the particle הִנֵה (hinneh, “look, behold”) in its archaic sense. This deictic use is intended to make the reader focus on Miriam as well.
[12:10] 12 sn The word “leprosy” and “leprous” covers a wide variety of skin diseases, and need not be limited to the actual disease of leprosy known today as Hansen’s disease. The description of it here has to do with snow, either the whiteness or the wetness. If that is the case then there would be open wounds and sores – like Job’s illness (see M. Noth, Numbers [OTL], 95-96).
[12:10] 13 tn Heb “turned to.”
[12:11] 13 tn The expression בִּי אֲדֹנִי (bi ’adoni, “O my lord”) shows a good deal of respect for Moses by Aaron. The expression is often used in addressing God.
[12:12] 16 tc The words “its mother” and “its flesh” are among the so-called tiqqune sopherim, or “emendations of the scribes.” According to this tradition the text originally had here “our mother” and “our flesh,” but the ancient scribes changed these pronouns from the first person to the third person. Apparently they were concerned that the image of Moses’ mother giving birth to a baby with physical defects of the sort described here was somehow inappropriate, given the stature and importance of Moses.
[12:13] 19 tc Some scholars emend אֵל (’el, “God”) to עַל(’al, “no”). The effect of this change may be seen in the NAB: “‘Please, not this! Pray, heal her!’”
[12:14] 22 tn The form is intensified by the infinitive absolute, but here the infinitive strengthens not simply the verbal idea but the conditional cause construction as well.
[12:15] 25 tn The clause has the Niphal infinitive construct after a temporal preposition.
[13:1] 28 sn Chapter 13 provides the names of the spies sent into the land (vv. 1-16), their instructions (vv. 17-20), their activities (vv. 21-25), and their reports (vv. 26-33). It is a chapter that serves as a good lesson on faith, for some of the spies walked by faith, and some by sight.
[13:1] 29 tn The verse starts with the vav (ו) consecutive on the verb: “and….”
[13:2] 31 tn The imperfect tense with the conjunction is here subordinated to the preceding imperative to form the purpose clause. It can thus be translated “send…to investigate.”
[13:2] 32 tn The participle here should be given a future interpretation, meaning “which I am about to give” or “which I am going to give.”
[13:2] 33 tn Heb “one man one man of the tribe of his fathers.”
[13:11] 37 tc Some scholars emend “tribe” to “sons.” Cf. Num 1:10.
[13:16] 40 sn The difference in the names is slight, a change from “he saves” to “the
[13:17] 43 tn The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive is here subordinated to the next verb of the same formation to express a temporal clause.
[13:17] 44 tn The instructions had them first go up into the southern desert of the land, and after passing through that, into the hill country of the Canaanites. The text could be rendered “into the Negev” as well as “through the Negev.”
[13:18] 46 tn The form is the perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive; the word therefore carries the volitional mood of the preceding imperatives. It may be either another imperative, or it may be subordinated as a purpose clause.
[13:18] 47 tn Heb “see the land, what it is.”
[13:20] 49 tn The verb is the Hitpael perfect with vav (ו) consecutive, from the root חָזַק (khazaq, “to be strong”). Here it could mean “strengthen yourselves” or “be courageous” or “determined.” See further uses in 2 Sam 10:12; 1 Kgs 20:22; 1 Chr 19:13.
[13:20] 50 tn Heb “Now the days were the days of.”
[13:20] 51 sn The reference to the first ripe grapes would put the time somewhere at the end of July.
[13:21] 52 sn Zin is on the southern edge of the land, but Rehob is far north, near Mount Hermon. The spies covered all the land.
[13:21] 53 tn The idiom uses the infinitive construct: “to enter Hamath,” meaning, “on the way that people go to Hamath.”
[13:22] 55 tc The MT has the singular, but the ancient versions and Smr have the plural.
[13:22] 56 tn The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive is here subordinated to the following clause. The first verse gave the account of their journey over the whole land; this section focuses on what happened in the area of Hebron, which would be the basis for the false report.
[13:22] 57 sn These names are thought to be three clans that were in the Hebron area (see Josh 15:14; Judg 1:20). To call them descendants of Anak is usually taken to mean that they were large or tall people (2 Sam 21:18-22). They were ultimately driven out by Caleb.
[13:22] 58 sn The text now provides a brief historical aside for the readers. Zoan was probably the city of Tanis, although that is disputed today by some scholars. It was known in Egypt in the New Kingdom as “the fields of Tanis,” which corresponded to the “fields of Zoar” in the Hebrew Bible (Ps 78:12, 43).
[13:23] 58 tn The word is related etymologically to the verb for “slip, slide, bend, totter.” This would fit the use very well. A pole that would not bend would be hard to use to carry things, but a pole or stave that was flexible would serve well.
[13:24] 61 tn The verb is rendered as a passive because there is no expressed subject.
[13:24] 62 tn Or “Wadi Eshcol.” The translation “brook” is too generous; the Hebrew term refers to a river bed, a ravine or valley through which torrents of rain would rush in the rainy season; at other times it might be completely dry.
[13:24] 63 tn The word “Eshcol” is drawn from the Hebrew expression concerning the “cluster of grapes.” The word is probably retained in the name Burj Haskeh, two miles north of Damascus.
[13:26] 64 tn The construction literally has “and they went and they entered,” which may be smoothed out as a verbal hendiadys, the one verb modifying the other.
[13:26] 65 sn Kadesh is Ain Qadeis, about 50 miles (83 km) south of Beer Sheba. It is called Kadesh-barnea in Num 32:8.
[13:26] 66 tn Heb “They brought back word”; the verb is the Hiphil preterite of שׁוּב (shuv).
[13:27] 67 tn Heb “told him and said.” The referent (Moses) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
[13:27] 68 tn The relative clause modifies “the land.” It is constructed with the relative and the verb: “where you sent us.”
[13:27] 69 sn This is the common expression for the material abundance of the land (see further, F. C. Fensham, “An Ancient Tradition of the Fertility of Palestine,” PEQ 98 [1966]: 166-67).
[13:28] 70 tn The word (אֶפֶס, ’efes) forms a very strong adversative. The land was indeed rich and fruitful, but….”
[13:28] 71 tn Heb “the people who are living in the land.”
[13:29] 73 tn Heb “by the side [hand] of.”
[13:29] 74 sn For more discussion on these people groups, see D. J. Wiseman, ed., Peoples of Old Testament Times.
[13:30] 76 tn The construction is emphatic, using the cohortative with the infinitive absolute to strengthen it: עָלֹה נַעֲלֶה (’aloh na’aleh, “let us go up”) with the sense of certainty and immediacy.
[13:30] 77 tn The perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive brings the cohortative idea forward: “and let us possess it”; it may also be subordinated to form a purpose or result idea.
[13:30] 78 tn Here again the confidence of Caleb is expressed with the infinitive absolute and the imperfect tense: יָכוֹל נוּכַל (yakhol nukhal), “we are fully able” to do this. The verb יָכַל (yakhal) followed by the preposition lamed means “to prevail over, to conquer.”
[13:31] 79 tn The vav (ו) disjunctive on the noun at the beginning of the clause forms a strong adversative clause here.
[13:32] 82 tn Or “an evil report,” i.e., one that was a defamation of the grace of God.
[13:32] 83 tn Heb “which we passed over in it”; the pronoun on the preposition serves as a resumptive pronoun for the relative, and need not be translated literally.
[13:32] 84 tn The verb is the feminine singular participle from אָכַל (’akhal); it modifies the land as a “devouring land,” a bold figure for the difficulty of living in the place.
[13:32] 85 sn The expression has been interpreted in a number of ways by commentators, such as that the land was infertile, that the Canaanites were cannibals, that it was a land filled with warlike dissensions, or that it denotes a land geared for battle. It may be that they intended the land to seem infertile and insecure.
[13:32] 86 tn Heb “in its midst.”
[13:33] 85 tc The Greek version uses gigantes (“giants”) to translate “the Nephilim,” but it does not retain the clause “the sons of Anak are from the Nephilim.”
[13:33] 86 tn Heb “in our eyes.”
[13:33] 87 tn Heb “in their eyes.”
[14:1] 88 sn This chapter forms part of the story already begun. There are three major sections here: dissatisfaction with the reports (vv. 1-10), the threat of divine punishment (vv. 11-38), and the defeat of the Israelites (vv. 39-45). See K. D. Sakenfeld, “The Problem of Divine Forgiveness in Num 14,” CBQ 37 (1975): 317-30; also J. R. Bartlett, “The Use of the Word רֹאשׁ as a Title in the Old Testament,” VT 19 (1969): 1-10.
[14:1] 89 tn The two verbs “lifted up their voice and cried” form a hendiadys; the idiom of raising the voice means that they cried aloud.
[14:1] 90 tn There are a number of things that the verb “to weep” or “wail” can connote. It could reflect joy, grief, lamentation, or repentance, but here it reflects fear, hopelessness, or vexation at the thought of coming all this way and being defeated by the Canaanite armies. See Judg 20:23, 26.
[14:2] 91 tn The Hebrew verb “to murmur” is לוּן (lun). It is a strong word, signifying far more than complaining or grumbling, as some of the modern translations have it. The word is most often connected to the wilderness experience. It is paralleled in the literature with the word “to rebel.” The murmuring is like a parliamentary vote of no confidence, for they no longer trusted their leaders and wished to choose a new leader and return. This “return to Egypt” becomes a symbol of their lack of faith in the
[14:2] 92 tn The optative is expressed by לוּ (lu) and then the verb, here the perfect tense מַתְנוּ (matnu) – “O that we had died….” Had they wanted to die in Egypt they should not have cried out to the
[14:4] 94 tn Heb “a man to his brother.”
[14:4] 95 tn The verb is נָתַן (natan, “to give”), but this verb has quite a wide range of meanings in the Bible. Here it must mean “to make,” “to choose,” “to designate” or the like.
[14:4] 96 tn The word “head” (רֹאשׁ, ro’sh) probably refers to a tribal chief who was capable to judge and to lead to war (see J. R. Bartlett, “The Use of the Word רֹאשׁ as a Title in the Old Testament,” VT 19 [1969]: 1-10).
[14:4] 97 tn The form is a cohortative with a vav (ו) prefixed. After the preceding cohortative this could also be interpreted as a purpose or result clause – in order that we may return.
[14:5] 97 sn This action of Moses and Aaron is typical of them in the wilderness with the Israelites. The act shows self-abasement and deference before the sovereign
[14:5] 98 tn Heb “before all the assembly of the congregation.”
[14:7] 100 tn The repetition of the adverb מְאֹד (mÿ’od) is used to express this: “very, very [good].”
[14:8] 103 tn The subjective genitives “milk and honey” are symbols of the wealth of the land, second only to bread. Milk was a sign of such abundance (Gen 49:12; Isa 7:21,22). Because of the climate the milk would thicken quickly and become curds, eaten with bread or turned into butter. The honey mentioned here is the wild honey (see Deut 32:13; Judg 14:8-9). It signified sweetness, or the finer things of life (Ezek 3:3).
[14:9] 106 sn The expression must indicate that they could destroy the enemies as easily as they could eat bread.
[14:9] 107 tn Heb “their shade.” The figure compares the shade from the sun with the protection from the enemy. It is also possible that the text is alluding to their deities here.
[14:10] 109 tn Heb “said to stone them with stones.” The verb and the object are not from the same root, but the combination nonetheless forms an emphasis equal to the cognate accusative.
[14:10] 110 tn The vav (ו) on the noun “glory” indicates a strong contrast, one that interrupts their threatened attack.
[14:10] 111 sn The glory of the
[14:10] 112 tc The Greek, Syriac, and Tg. Ps.-J. have “in the cloud over the tent.”
[14:11] 112 tn The verb נָאַץ (na’ats) means “to condemn, spurn” (BDB 610 s.v.). Coats suggests that in some contexts the word means actual rejection or renunciation (Rebellion in the Wilderness, 146, 7). This would include the idea of distaste.
[14:11] 113 tn The verb “to believe” (root אָמַן, ’aman) has the basic idea of support, dependability for the root. The Hiphil has a declarative sense, namely, to consider something reliable or dependable and to act on it. The people did not trust what the
[14:12] 115 tc The Greek version has “death.”
[14:13] 118 tn The construction is unusual in that we have here a perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive with no verb before it to establish the time sequence. The context requires that this be taken as a vav (ו) consecutive. It actually forms the protasis for the next verse, and would best be rendered “when…then they will say.”
[14:14] 121 tn The singular participle is to be taken here as a collective, representing all the inhabitants of the land.
[14:14] 122 tn “Face to face” is literally “eye to eye.” It only occurs elsewhere in Isa 52:8. This expresses the closest communication possible.
[14:15] 124 tn The verb is the Hiphil perfect of מוּת (mut), וְהֵמַתָּה (vÿhemattah). The vav (ו) consecutive makes this also a future time sequence verb, but again in a conditional clause.
[14:15] 125 tn Heb “as one man.”
[14:17] 127 tc The form in the text is אֲדֹנָי (’adonay), the word that is usually used in place of the tetragrammaton. It is the plural form with the pronominal suffix, and so must refer to God.
[14:18] 130 tn The expression is רַב־חֶסֶד (rav khesed) means “much of loyal love,” or “faithful love.” Some have it “totally faithful,” but that omits the aspect of his love.
[14:18] 131 tn Or “rebellion.”
[14:18] 132 tn The infinitive absolute emphasizes the verbal activity of the imperfect tense, which here serves as a habitual imperfect. Negated it states what God does not do; and the infinitive makes that certain.
[14:18] 133 sn The Decalogue adds “to those who hate me.” The point of the line is that the effects of sin, if not the sinful traits themselves, are passed on to the next generation.
[14:19] 133 tn The verb סְלַח־נָא (selakh-na’), the imperative form, means “forgive” (see Ps 130:4), “pardon,” “excuse.” The imperative is of course a prayer, a desire, and not a command.
[14:19] 134 tn The construct unit is “the greatness of your loyal love.” This is the genitive of specification, the first word being the modifier.
[14:20] 136 tn Heb “forgiven according to your word.” The direct object, “them,” is implied.
[14:21] 139 sn This is the oath formula, but in the Pentateuch it occurs here and in v. 28.
[14:22] 142 tn The verb נָסָה (nasah) means “to test, to tempt, to prove.” It can be used to indicate things are tried or proven, or for testing in a good sense, or tempting in the bad sense, i.e., putting God to the test. In all uses there is uncertainty or doubt about the outcome. Some uses of the verb are positive: If God tests Abraham in Genesis 22:1, it is because there is uncertainty whether he fears the
[14:22] 143 tn “Ten” is here a round figure, emphasizing the complete testing. But see F. V. Winnett, The Mosaic Tradition, 121-54.
[14:22] 144 tn Heb “listened to my voice.”
[14:23] 145 tn The word אִם (’im) indicates a negative oath formula: “if” means “they will not.” It is elliptical. In a human oath one would be saying: “The
[14:25] 151 sn The judgment on Israel is that they turn back to the desert and not attack the tribes in the land. So a parenthetical clause is inserted to state who was living there. They would surely block the entrance to the land from the south – unless God removed them. And he is not going to do that for Israel.
[14:27] 154 tn The figure is aposiopesis, or sudden silence. The main verb is deleted from the line, “how long…this evil community.” The intensity of the emotion is the reason for the ellipsis.
[14:27] 155 sn It is worth mentioning in passing that this is one of the Rabbinic proof texts for having at least ten men to form a congregation and have prayer. If God called ten men (the bad spies) a “congregation,” then a congregation must have ten men. But here the word “community/congregation” refers in this context to the people of Israel as a whole, not just to the ten spies.
[14:28] 157 sn Here again is the oath that God swore in his wrath, an oath he swore by himself, that they would not enter the land. “As the
[14:28] 158 tn The word נְאֻם (nÿ’um) is an “oracle.” It is followed by the subjective genitive: “the oracle of the
[14:28] 159 tn Heb “in my ears.”
[14:29] 160 tn Or “your corpses” (also in vv. 32, 33).
[14:30] 163 tn The relative pronoun “which” is joined with the resumptive pronoun “in it” to form a smoother reading “where.”
[14:30] 164 tn The Hebrew text uses the anthropomorphic expression “I raised my hand” in taking an oath.
[14:30] 165 tn Heb “to cause you to dwell; to cause you to settle.”
[14:33] 169 tn The word is “shepherds.” It means that the people would be wilderness nomads, grazing their flock on available land.
[14:33] 170 tn Heb “you shall bear your whoredoms.” The imagery of prostitution is used throughout the Bible to reflect spiritual unfaithfulness, leaving the covenant relationship and following after false gods. Here it is used generally for their rebellion in the wilderness, but not for following other gods.
[14:33] 171 tn The infinitive is from תָּמַם (tamam), which means “to be complete.” The word is often used to express completeness in a good sense – whole, blameless, or the like. Here and in v. 35 it seems to mean “until your deaths have been completed.” See also Gen 47:15; Deut 2:15.
[14:34] 172 tn Heb “you shall bear.”
[14:34] 173 tn The phrase refers to the consequences of open hostility to God, or perhaps abandonment of God. The noun תְּנוּאָה (tÿnu’ah) occurs in Job 33:10 (perhaps). The related verb occurs in Num 30:6 HT (30:5 ET) and 32:7 with the sense of “disallow, discourage.” The sense of the expression adopted in this translation comes from the meticulous study of R. Loewe, “Divine Frustration Exegetically Frustrated,” Words and Meanings, 137-58.
[14:36] 175 tn The verb is the Hiphil infinitive construct with a lamed (ל) preposition from the root יָצָא (yatsa’, “to bring out”). The use of the infinitive here is epexegetical, that is, explaining how they caused the people to murmur.
[14:38] 178 tn The Hebrew text uses the preposition “from,” “some of” – “from those men.” The relative pronoun is added to make a smoother reading.
[14:39] 181 tn The preterite here is subordinated to the next preterite to form a temporal clause.
[14:39] 182 tn The word אָבַל (’aval) is rare, used mostly for mourning over deaths, but it is used here of mourning over bad news (see also Exod 33:4; 1 Sam 15:35; 16:1; etc.).
[14:40] 184 tn The verb וַיַּשְׁכִּמוּ (vayyashkimu) is often found in a verbal hendiadys construction: “They rose early…and they went up” means “they went up early.”
[14:40] 185 tn The Hebrew text says literally “the top of the hill,” but judging from the location and the terrain it probably means the heights of the hill country.
[14:40] 186 tn The verb is simply “said,” but it means the place that the
[14:40] 187 sn Their sin was unbelief. They could have gone and conquered the area if they had trusted the
[14:41] 187 tn The line literally has, “Why is this [that] you are transgressing….” The demonstrative pronoun is enclitic; it brings the force of “why in the world are you doing this now?”
[14:42] 190 tn This verb could also be subordinated to the preceding: “that you be not smitten.”
[14:44] 193 tn N. H. Snaith compares Arabic ’afala (“to swell”) and gafala (“reckless, headstrong”; Leviticus and Numbers [NCB], 248). The wordעֹפֶל (’ofel) means a “rounded hill” or a “tumor.” The idea behind the verb may be that of “swelling,” and so “act presumptuously.”
[14:44] 194 tn The disjunctive vav (ו) here introduces a circumstantial clause; the most appropriate one here would be the concessive “although.”
[14:45] 196 tn Heb “came down.”
[14:45] 197 tn The verb used here means “crush by beating,” or “pounded” them. The Greek text used “cut them in pieces.”
[14:45] 198 tn The name “Hormah” means “destruction”; it is from the word that means “ban, devote” for either destruction or temple use.
[15:1] 199 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
[15:2] 202 tn Heb “the land of your habitations.”
[15:2] 203 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.
[15:4] 205 tn The three words at the beginning of this verse are all etymologically related: “the one who offers his offering shall offer.”
[15:4] 206 sn Obviously, as the wording of the text affirms, this kind of offering would be made after they were in the land and able to produce the grain and oil for the sacrifices. The instructions anticipated their ability to do this, and this would give hope to them. The amounts are difficult to determine, but it may be that they were to bring 4.5 liters of flour and 1.8 liters each of oil and wine.
