Numbers 4:12

4:12 Then they must take all the utensils of the service, with which they serve in the sanctuary, put them in a blue cloth, cover them with a covering of fine leather, and put them on a carrying beam.

Numbers 4:19

4:19 but in order that they will live ¹  and not die when they approach the most holy things, do this for them: Aaron and his sons will go in and appoint ²  each man ³  to his service and his responsibility.

Numbers 4:49

4:49 According to the word of the Lord they were numbered, ⁴  by the authority of Moses, each according to his service and according to what he was to carry. ⁵  Thus were they numbered by him, ⁶  as the Lord had commanded Moses.

Numbers 6:20

6:20 then the priest must wave them as a wave offering ⁷  before the Lord; it is a holy portion for the priest, together with the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the raised offering. ⁸  After this the Nazirite may drink ⁹  wine.’

Numbers 7:3

7:3 They brought ¹⁰  their offering before the Lord, six covered carts ¹¹  and twelve oxen – one cart for every two of the leaders, and an ox for each one; and they presented them in front of the tabernacle.

Numbers 13:26

The Spies’ Reports

13:26 They came back ¹²  to Moses and Aaron and to the whole community of the Israelites in the wilderness of Paran at Kadesh. ¹³  They reported ¹⁴  to the whole community and showed the fruit of the land.

Numbers 25:4

God’s Punishment

25:4 The Lord said to Moses, “Arrest all the leaders ¹⁵  of the people, and hang them up ¹⁶  before the Lord in broad daylight, ¹⁷  so that the fierce anger of the Lord may be turned away from Israel.”

[4:19]  ¹ tn The word order is different in the Hebrew text: Do this…and they will live. Consequently, the verb “and they will live” is a perfect tense with a vav (ו) consecutive to express the future consequence of “doing this” for them.

[4:19]  ² tn The perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive continues the instruction for Aaron.

[4:19]  ³ tn The distributive sense is obtained by the repetition, “a man” and “a man.”

[4:49]  ¹ tn The verb is the simple perfect tense – “he numbered them.” There is no expressed subject; therefore, the verb can be rendered as a passive.

[4:49]  ² tn Or “his burden.”

[4:49]  ³ tn The passive form simply reads “those numbered by him.” Because of the cryptic nature of the word, some suggest reading a preterite, “and they were numbered.” This is supported by the Greek, Syriac, Targum, and Vulgate. It would follow in the emendation that the relative pronoun be changed to “just as” (כַּאֲשֶׁר, ka’asher). The MT is impossible the way it stands; it can only be rendered into smooth English by adding something that is missing.

[6:20]  ¹ sn The ritual of lifting the hands filled with the offering and waving them in the presence of the Lord was designed to symbolize the transfer of the offering to God in the sight of all. This concludes the worshiper’s part; the offering now becomes the property of the priest – his priest’s due (or “raised/heave offering”).

[6:20]  ² sn The “wave offering” may be interpreted as a “special gift” to be transferred to the Lord, and the “heave offering” as a “special contribution” to God – the priest’s due. These two offerings have also inspired a good deal of study.

[6:20]  ³ tn The imperfect tense here would then have the nuance of permission. It is not an instruction at this point; rather, the prohibition has been lifted and the person is free to drink wine.

[7:3]  ¹ tn Heb “and they brought.”

[7:3]  ² sn For a discussion and drawings, see W. S. McCullough, IDB 1:540. But see also D. J. Wiseman, IBD 1:254.

[13:26]  ¹ 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]  ² 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]  ³ tn Heb “They brought back word”; the verb is the Hiphil preterite of שׁוּב (shuv).

[25:4]  ¹ sn The meaning must be the leaders behind the apostasy, for they would now be arrested. They were responsible for the tribes’ conformity to the Law, but here they had not only failed in their duty, but had participated. The leaders were executed; the rest of the guilty died by the plague.

[25:4]  ² sn The leaders who were guilty were commanded by God to be publicly exposed by hanging, probably a reference to impaling, but possibly some other form of harsh punishment. The point was that the swaying of their executed bodies would be a startling warning for any who so blatantly set the Law aside and indulged in apostasy through pagan sexual orgies.

[25:4]  ³ tn Heb “in the sun.” This means in broad daylight.