Numbers 3:9

3:9 You are to assign ¹  the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they will be assigned exclusively ²  to him out of all ³  the Israelites.

Numbers 3:15

3:15 “Number the Levites by their clans ⁴  and their families; every male from a month old and upward you are to number.” ⁵ 

Numbers 4:29

The Service of the Merarites

4:29 “As for the sons of Merari, you are to number them by their families and by their clans.

Numbers 15:7

15:7 and for a drink offering you must offer one-third of a hin of wine as a pleasing aroma to the Lord.

Numbers 19:3

19:3 You must give it to Eleazar the priest so that he can take it outside the camp, and it must be slaughtered before him. ⁶ 

Numbers 22:19

22:19 Now therefore, please stay ⁷  the night here also, that I may know what more the Lord might say to me.” ⁸ 

Numbers 23:16

23:16 Then the Lord met Balaam and put a message ⁹  in his mouth and said, “Return to Balak, and speak what I tell you.”

Numbers 31:4

31:4 You must send to the battle a thousand men from every tribe throughout all the tribes of Israel.” ¹⁰ 

Numbers 31:20

31:20 You must purify each garment and everything that is made of skin, everything made of goat’s hair, and everything made of wood.” ¹¹ 

Numbers 34:7-8

The Northern Border of the Land

34:7 “‘And this will be your northern border: From the Great Sea you will draw a line to Mount Hor; 34:8 from Mount Hor you will draw a line to Lebo Hamath, ¹²  and the direction of the border will be to Zedad.

[3:9]  ¹ tn The verb וְנָתַתָּה (vÿnatattah) is normally “give.” Here, though, the context refers to the assignment of the Levites to the priests for their duties. The form is the perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive, continuing the sequence for the imperfect of instruction.

[3:9]  ² tn This emphasis is derived from the simple repetition of the passive participle, נְתוּנִם נְתוּנִם (nÿtunim nÿtunim). See GKC 396 §123.e. The forms serve as the predicate with the subject pronoun.

[3:9]  ³ tn The Hebrew text simply has the preposition, “from the Israelites.”

[3:15]  ⁴ tn Heb “the house of their fathers.” So also in v. 20.

[3:15]  ⁵ tn Heb “you are to/shall number them.”

[19:3]  ⁷ tc The clause is a little ambiguous. It reads “and he shall slaughter it before him.” It sounds as if someone else will kill the heifer in the priest’s presence. Since no one is named as the subject, it may be translated as a passive. Some commentators simply interpret that Eleazar was to kill the animal personally, but that is a little forced for “before him.” The Greek text gives a third person plural sense to the verb; the Vulgate follows that reading.

[22:19]  ¹⁰ tn In this case “lodge” is not used, but “remain, reside” (שְׁבוּ, shÿvu).

[22:19]  ¹¹ tn This clause is also a verbal hendiadys: “what the Lord might add to speak,” meaning, “what more the Lord might say.”

[23:16]  ¹³ tn Heb “word.”

[31:4]  ¹⁶ sn Some commentators argue that given the size of the nation (which they reject) the small number for the army is a sign of the unrealistic character of the story. The number is a round number, but it is also a holy war, and God would give them the victory. They are beginning to learn here, and at Jericho, and later against these Midianites under Gideon, that God does not want or need a large army in order to obtain victory.

[31:20]  ¹⁹ sn These verses are a reminder that taking a life, even if justified through holy war, still separates one from the holiness of God. It is part of the violation of the fallen world, and only through the ritual of purification can one be once again made fit for the presence of the Lord.

[34:8]  ²² tn Or “to the entrance to Hamath.”