Numbers 6:23

6:23 “Tell Aaron and his sons, ‘This is the way ¹  you are to bless ²  the Israelites. Say ³  to them:

Numbers 20:14

Rejection by the Edomites

20:14 ⁴ Moses ⁵  sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom: ⁶  “Thus says your brother Israel: ‘You know all the hardships we have experienced, ⁷ 

Numbers 22:16

22:16 And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak son of Zippor: ‘Please do not let anything hinder you from coming ⁸  to me.

[6:23]  ¹ tn Or “thus.”

[6:23]  ² tn The Piel imperfect has the nuance of instruction. The particle “thus” explains that the following oracle is the form to use.

[6:23]  ³ tn Here is the only use of the verb אָמַר (’amar) as an infinitive absolute; it functions as a verb form, an imperative or an imperfect of instruction. Several commentators have attempted to emend the text to get around the difficulty, but such emendations are unnecessary.

[20:14]  ⁴ sn For this particular section, see W. F. Albright, “From the Patriarchs to Moses: 2. Moses out of Egypt,” BA 36 (1973): 57-58; J. R. Bartlett, “The Land of Seir and the Brotherhood of Edom,” JTS 20 (1969): 1-20, and “The Rise and Fall of the Kingdom of Edom,” PEQ 104 (1972): 22-37, and “The Brotherhood of Edom,” JSOT 4 (1977): 2-7.

[20:14]  ⁵ tn Heb “And Moses sent.”

[20:14]  ⁶ sn Some modern biblical scholars are convinced, largely through arguments from silence, that there were no unified kingdoms in Edom until the 9th century, and no settlements there before the 12th century, and so the story must be late and largely fabricated. The evidence is beginning to point to the contrary. But the cities and residents of the region would largely be Bedouin, and so leave no real remains.

[20:14]  ⁷ tn Heb “found.”

[22:16]  ⁷ tn The infinitive construct is the object of the preposition.