Numbers 3:1-3

The Sons of Aaron

3:1 ¹ Now these are the records ²  of Aaron and Moses when ³  the Lord spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai. 3:2 These are the names of the sons of Aaron: Nadab, the firstborn, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. 3:3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed ⁴  priests, whom he consecrated ⁵  to minister as priests. ⁶ 

Numbers 3:6

3:6 “Bring the tribe of Levi near, ⁷  and present ⁸  them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. ⁹ 

Numbers 3:10

3:10 So you are to appoint Aaron and his sons, and they will be responsible for their priesthood; ¹⁰  but the unauthorized person ¹¹  who comes near must be put to death.”

Numbers 3:32

3:32 Now the head of all the Levitical leaders ¹²  was Eleazar son of Aaron the priest. He was appointed over those who were responsible ¹³  for the sanctuary.

Numbers 8:13

8:13 You are to have the Levites stand before Aaron ¹⁴  and his sons, and then offer them as a wave offering to the Lord.

Numbers 10:8

10:8 The sons of Aaron, the priests, must blow the trumpets; and they will be to you for an eternal ordinance throughout your generations.

Numbers 12:5

12:5 And the Lord came down in a pillar of cloud and stood at the entrance of the tent; he then called Aaron and Miriam, and they both came forward.

Numbers 16:50

16:50 Then Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the tent of meeting, and the plague was stopped.

Numbers 20:2

20:2 And there was no water for the community, and so they gathered themselves together against Moses and Aaron.

Numbers 20:25

20:25 Take Aaron and Eleazar his son, and bring them up on Mount Hor.

Numbers 27:13

27:13 When you have seen it, you will be gathered ¹⁵  to your ancestors, ¹⁶  as Aaron your brother was gathered to his ancestors. ¹⁷ 

[3:1]  ¹ sn For significant literature for this chapter, see M. Aberbach and L. Smolar, “Aaron, Jeroboam, and their Golden Calves,” JBL 86 (1967): 129-40; G. Brin, “The First-born in Israel in the Biblical Period” (Ph.D. diss., University of Tel Aviv, 1971); S. H. Hooke, “Theory and Practice of Substitution,” VT 2 (1952): 2-17; and J. Morgenstern, “A Chapter in the History of the High Priesthood,” AJSL 55 (1938): 1-24.

[3:1]  ² tn The construction is וְאֵלֶּה תּוֹלְדֹת (vÿ’elleh tolÿdot), which was traditionally translated “now these are the generations,” much as it was translated throughout the book of Genesis. The noun can refer to records, stories, genealogies, names, and accounts of people. Here it is the recorded genealogical list with assigned posts included. Like Genesis, it is a heading of a section, and not a colophon as some have suggested. It is here similar to Exodus: “these are the names of.” R. K. Harrison, Numbers (WEC), 62, insists that it is a colophon and should end chapter 2, but if that is followed in the Pentateuch, it creates difficulty throughout the narratives. See the discussion by A. P. Ross, Creation and Blessing, 69-74.

[3:1]  ³ tn The expression in the Hebrew text (“in the day of”) is idiomatic for “when.”

[3:3]  ⁴ tn The verb מָשַׁח (mashakh) means “to anoint”; here the form modifies the “priests.” The service of consecration was carried out with anointing oil (Exod 30:30). The verb is used for the anointing of kings as well as priests in the OT, and so out of that derived the technical title “Messiah” for the coming ideal king – the “Anointed One.”

[3:3]  ⁵ tn In this verse the expression is in a relative clause: “who he filled their hand” means “whose hands he filled,” or “whom he consecrated.” The idiomatic expression used here is from Lev 8; it literally is “he filled their hand” (מִלֵּא יָדָם, mille’ yadam). In the ordination service Moses placed some of the meat from the sacrifice in the hand of the ordinand, and this signified what he was going to be about – having his hand full, or being consecrated to the priesthood. There is some evidence that this practice or expression was also known in Mesopotamia. In modern ordination services a NT or a Bible may be placed in the ordinand’s hand – it is what the ministry will be about.

[3:3]  ⁶ tn The form is an infinitival construction for the word for the priest, showing the purpose for the filling of the hands.

[3:6]  ⁷ sn The use of the verb קָרַב (qarav) forms an interesting wordplay in the passage. The act of making an offering is described by this verb, as was the reference to the priests’ offering of strange fire. Now the ceremonial presentation of the priests is expressed by the same word – they are being offered to God.

[3:6]  ⁸ tn The verb literally means “make it [the tribe] stand” (וְהַעֲמַדְתָּ אֹתוֹ, vÿha’amadta ’oto). The verb is the Hiphil perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive; it will take the same imperative nuance as the form before it, but follow in sequence (“and then”). This refers to the ceremonial presentation in which the tribe would take its place before Aaron, that is, stand before him and await their assignments. The Levites will function more like a sacred guard than anything else, for they had to protect and care for the sanctuary when it was erected and when it was transported (see J. Milgrom, Studies in Levitical Terminology, 8-10).

[3:6]  ⁹ tn The verb וְשֵׁרְתוּ (vÿsherÿtu) is the Piel perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive; it carries the same volitional force as the preceding verb forms, but may here be subordinated in the sequence to express the purpose or result of the preceding action.

[3:10]  ¹⁰ tc The LXX includes the following words here: “and all things pertaining to the altar and within the veil.” Cf. Num 18:7.

[3:10]  ¹¹ tn The word is זָר (zar), usually rendered “stranger, foreigner, pagan.” But in this context it simply refers to anyone who is not a Levite or a priest, an unauthorized person or intruder in the tabernacle. That person would be put to death.

[3:32]  ¹³ tn The Hebrew construction has “the leader of the leaders of” (וּנְשִׂיא נְשִׂיאֵי, unÿsi’ nÿsi’ey).

[3:32]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “the keepers of the responsibility” (שֹׁמְרֵי מִשְׁמֶרֶת, shomÿrey mishmeret). The participle is a genitive specifying the duty to which he was appointed (thing possessed); its cognate genitive emphasizes that their responsibility was over the holy place.

[8:13]  ¹⁶ tc The Greek text adds the Lord here: “before the Lord, before Aaron.”

[27:13]  ¹⁹ tn The first verb is a perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive, and the second verb is also. In such parallel clauses, the first may be subordinated, here as a temporal clause.

[27:13]  ²⁰ tn Heb “people.”

[27:13]  ²¹ tn Heb “was gathered.” The phrase “to his ancestors” is elided in the Hebrew text, but is an implied repetition from the beginning of the verse, and has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons.