Numbers 7:2

7:2 Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their clans, ¹  made an offering. They were the leaders of the tribes; they were the ones who had been supervising ²  the numbering.

Numbers 13:3

13:3 So Moses sent them from the wilderness of Paran at the command ³  of the Lord. All of them were leaders ⁴  of the Israelites.

Numbers 30:1

Vows Made by Men

30:1 ⁵ Moses told the leaders ⁶  of the tribes concerning the Israelites, “This is what ⁷  the Lord has commanded:

Numbers 32:28

32:28 So Moses gave orders about them to Eleazar the priest, to Joshua son of Nun, and to the heads of the families of the Israelite tribes.

[7:2]  ¹ tn Heb “the house of their fathers.”

[7:2]  ² tn The form is the Qal active participle from the verb “to stand” (עָמַד, ’amad). The form describes these leaders as “the ones standing over [the ones numbered].” The expression, along with the clear indication of the first census in chapter 1, shows that this was a supervisory capacity.

[13:3]  ³ tn Heb “mouth.”

[13:3]  ⁴ tn Heb “heads.”

[30:1]  ⁵ sn Num 30 deals with vows that are different than the vows discussed in Lev 27 and Num 6. The material is placed here after all the rulings of the offerings, but it could have been revealed to Moses at any time, such as the Nazirite vows, or the question of the daughters’ inheritance. The logic of placing it here may be that a festival was the ideal place for discharging a vow. For additional material on vows, see R. de Vaux, Ancient Israel, 465-66.

[30:1]  ⁶ tn Heb “heads.”

[30:1]  ⁷ tn Heb “This is the word which.”