Numbers 6:9

Contingencies for Defilement

6:9 “‘If anyone dies very suddenly ¹  beside him and he defiles ²  his consecrated head, ³  then he must shave his head on the day of his purification – on the seventh day he must shave it.

Numbers 19:14

19:14 “‘This is the law: When a man dies ⁴  in a tent, anyone who comes into the tent and all who are in the tent will be ceremonially unclean seven days.

Numbers 27:8

27:8 And you must tell the Israelites, ‘If a man dies ⁵  and has no son, then you must transfer his inheritance to his daughter;

Numbers 35:12

35:12 And they must stand as your towns of refuge from the avenger in order that the killer may not die until he has stood trial before the community.

Numbers 35:17-18

35:17 If he strikes him by throwing a stone large enough that he could die, and he dies, he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death. 35:18 Or if he strikes him with a wooden hand weapon so that he could die, and he dies, he is a murderer. The murderer must surely be put to death.

Numbers 35:23

35:23 or with any stone large enough that a man could die, without seeing him, and throws it at him, and he dies, even though he was not his enemy nor sought his harm,

[6:9]  ¹ tn The construction uses the imperfect tense followed by the infinitive absolute, יָמוּת מֵת (yamut met). Because the verb is in a conditional clause, the emphasis that is to be given through the infinitive must stress the contingency. The point is “if someone dies – unexpectedly.” The next words underscore the suddenness of this.

[6:9]  ² tn The verb is the Piel perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive; it continues the idea within the conditional clause.

[6:9]  ³ sn The expression is figurative for the vow that he took; the figure is the metonymy because the reference to the head is a reference to the long hair that symbolizes the oath.

[19:14]  ⁴ tn The word order gives the classification and then the condition: “a man, when he dies….”

[27:8]  ⁷ tn Heb “a man, if he dies.”