Numbers 16:41

16:41 But on the next day the whole community of Israelites murmured against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You have killed the Lord’s people!” ¹ 

Numbers 11:32

11:32 And the people stayed up ²  all that day, all that night, and all the next day, and gathered the quail. The one who gathered the least gathered ten homers, ³  and they spread them out ⁴  for themselves all around the camp.

Numbers 17:8

17:8 On the next day Moses went into the tent of the testimony – and ⁵  the staff of Aaron for the house of Levi had sprouted, and brought forth buds, and produced blossoms, and yielded almonds! ⁶ 

Numbers 33:3

33:3 They departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month; on the day ⁷  after the Passover the Israelites went out defiantly ⁸  in plain sight ⁹  of all the Egyptians.

[16:41]  ¹ sn The whole congregation here is trying to project its guilt on Moses and Aaron. It was they and their rebellion that brought about the deaths, not Moses and Aaron. The Lord had punished the sinners. The fact that the leaders had organized a rebellion against the Lord was forgotten by these people. The point here is that the Israelites had learned nothing of spiritual value from the event.

[11:32]  ² tn Heb “rose up, stood up.”

[11:32]  ³ sn This is about two thousand liters.

[11:32]  ⁴ tn The verb (a preterite) is followed by the infinitive absolute of the same root, to emphasize the action of spreading out the quail. Although it is hard to translate the expression, it indicates that they spread these quail out all over the area. The vision of them spread all over was evidence of God’s abundant provision for their needs.

[17:8]  ³ tn Here too the deictic particle (“and behold”) is added to draw attention to the sight in a vivid way.

[17:8]  ⁴ sn There is no clear answer why the tribe of Levi had used an almond staff. The almond tree is one of the first to bud in the spring, and its white blossoms are a beautiful sign that winter is over. Its name became a name for “watcher”; Jeremiah plays on this name for God’s watching over his people (1:11-12).

[33:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “morrow.”

[33:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “with a high hand”; the expression means “defiantly; boldly” or “with confidence.” The phrase is usually used for arrogant sin and pride, the defiant fist, as it were. The image of the high hand can also mean the hand raised to deliver the blow (Job 38:15).

[33:3]  ⁶ tn Heb “in the eyes.”