Numbers 13:18

13:18 and see ¹  what the land is like, ²  and whether the people who live in it are strong or weak, few or many,

Numbers 13:28

13:28 But ³  the inhabitants ⁴  are strong, and the cities are fortified and very large. Moreover we saw the descendants of Anak there.

Numbers 20:1

The Israelites Complain Again

20:1 ⁵ Then the entire community of Israel ⁶  entered the wilderness of Zin in the first month, ⁷  and the people stayed in Kadesh. ⁸  Miriam died and was buried there. ⁹ 

Numbers 21:1

Victory at Hormah

21:1 ¹⁰ When the Canaanite king of Arad ¹¹  who lived in the Negev ¹²  heard that Israel was approaching along the road to Atharim, he fought against Israel and took some of them prisoner.

Numbers 21:25

21:25 So Israel took all these cities; and Israel settled in all the cities of the Amorites, in Heshbon, and in all its villages. ¹³ 

Numbers 22:8

22:8 He replied to them, “Stay ¹⁴  here tonight, and I will bring back to you whatever word the Lord may speak to me.” So the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam.

Numbers 22:19

22:19 Now therefore, please stay ¹⁵  the night here also, that I may know what more the Lord might say to me.” ¹⁶ 

Numbers 35:2

35:2 “Instruct the Israelites to give ¹⁷  the Levites towns to live in from the inheritance the Israelites ¹⁸  will possess. You must also give the Levites grazing land around the towns.

Numbers 35:28

35:28 because the slayer ¹⁹  should have stayed in his town of refuge until the death of the high priest. But after the death of the high priest, the slayer may return to the land of his possessions.

Numbers 35:32

35:32 And you must not accept a ransom for anyone who has fled to a town of refuge, to allow him to return home and live on his own land before the death of the high priest. ²⁰ 

[13:18]  ¹ 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]  ² tn Heb “see the land, what it is.”

[13:28]  ³ tn The word (אֶפֶס, ’efes) forms a very strong adversative. The land was indeed rich and fruitful, but….”

[13:28]  ⁴ tn Heb “the people who are living in the land.”

[20:1]  ⁵ sn This chapter is the account of how Moses struck the rock in disobedience to the Lord, and thereby was prohibited from entering the land. For additional literature on this part, see E. Arden, “How Moses Failed God,” JBL 76 (1957): 50-52; J. Gray, “The Desert Sojourn of the Hebrews and the Sinai Horeb Tradition,” VT 4 (1954): 148-54; T. W. Mann, “Theological Reflections on the Denial of Moses,” JBL 98 (1979): 481-94; and J. R. Porter, “The Role of Kadesh-Barnea in the Narrative of the Exodus,” JTS 44 (1943): 130-43.

[20:1]  ⁶ tn The Hebrew text stresses this idea by use of apposition: “the Israelites entered, the entire community, the wilderness.”

[20:1]  ⁷ sn The text does not indicate here what year this was, but from comparing the other passages about the itinerary, this is probably the end of the wanderings, the fortieth year, for Aaron died some forty years after the exodus. So in that year the people come through the wilderness of Zin and prepare for a journey through the Moabite plains.

[20:1]  ⁸ sn The Israelites stayed in Kadesh for some time during the wandering; here the stop at Kadesh Barnea may have lasted several months. See the commentaries for the general itinerary.

[20:1]  ⁹ sn The death of Miriam is recorded without any qualifications or epitaph. In her older age she had been self-willed and rebellious, and so no doubt humbled by the vivid rebuke from God. But she had made her contribution from the beginning.

[21:1]  ⁷ sn This chapter has several events in it: the victory over Arad (vv. 1-3), the plague of serpents (vv. 4-9), the approach to Moab (vv. 10-20), and the victory over Sihon and Og (vv. 21-35). For information, see D. M. Gunn, “The ‘Battle Report’: Oral or Scribal Convention.” JBL 93 (1974): 513-18; and of the extensive literature on the archaeological site, see EAEHL 1:74-89.

[21:1]  ⁸ sn The name Arad probably refers to a place a number of miles away from Tel Arad in southern Israel. The name could also refer to the whole region (like Edom).

[21:1]  ⁹ tn Or “the south”; “Negev” has become a technical name for the southern desert region and is still in use in modern times.

[21:25]  ⁹ tn Heb “its daughters.”

[22:8]  ¹¹ tn The verb לִין (lin) means “to lodge, spend the night.” The related noun is “a lodge” – a hotel of sorts. Balaam needed to consider the offer. And after darkness was considered the best time for diviners to consult with their deities. Balaam apparently knows of the Lord; he testifies to this effect in 22:18.

[22:19]  ¹³ tn In this case “lodge” is not used, but “remain, reside” (שְׁבוּ, shÿvu).

[22:19]  ¹⁴ tn This clause is also a verbal hendiadys: “what the Lord might add to speak,” meaning, “what more the Lord might say.”

[35:2]  ¹⁵ tn The verb is the perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive: “command…and they will give,” or “that they give.”

[35:2]  ¹⁶ tn Heb “they”; the referent (the Israelites) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[35:28]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “he.”

[35:32]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “the priest.” The Greek and the Syriac have “high priest.” The present translation, along with many English versions, uses “high priest” as a clarification.