Bilangan 2:1

The Arrangement of the Tribes

2:1 ¹ The Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron:

Bilangan 3:3

3:3 These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed ²  priests, whom he consecrated ³  to minister as priests. ⁴ 

Bilangan 3:6

3:6 “Bring the tribe of Levi near, ⁵  and present ⁶  them before Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. ⁷ 

Bilangan 3:42

3:42 So Moses numbered all the firstborn males among the Israelites, as the Lord had commanded him.

Bilangan 5:23

5:23 “‘Then the priest will write these curses on a scroll and then scrape them off into the bitter water. ⁸ 

Bilangan 8:3

8:3 And Aaron did so; he set up the lamps to face toward the front of the lampstand, as the Lord commanded Moses.

Bilangan 8:18

8:18 So I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn sons among the Israelites.

Bilangan 10:18

Journey Arrangements for the Tribes

10:18 The standard of the camp of Reuben set out according to their companies; over his company was Elizur son of Shedeur.

Bilangan 11:6

11:6 But now we ⁹  are dried up, ¹⁰  and there is nothing at all before us ¹¹  except this manna!”

Bilangan 11:27

11:27 And a ¹²  young man ran and told Moses, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp!”

Bilangan 16:8

16:8 Moses said to Korah, “Listen now, you sons of Levi!

Bilangan 31:18

31:18 But all the young women ¹³  who have not had sexual intercourse with a man ¹⁴  will be yours. ¹⁵ 

Bilangan 32:37

32:37 The Reubenites rebuilt Heshbon, Elealeh, Kiriathaim,

Bilangan 35:13

35:13 These towns that you must give shall be your six towns for refuge.

[2:1]  ¹ sn For this chapter, see C. E. Douglas, “The Twelve Houses of Israel,” JTS 37 (1936): 49-56; C. C. Roach, “The Camp in the Wilderness: A Sermon on Numbers 2:2,” Int 13 (1959): 49-54; and G. St. Clair, “Israel in Camp: A Study,” JTS 8 (1907): 185-217.

[3:3]  ² tn The verb מָשַׁח (mashakh) means “to anoint”; here the form modifies the “priests.” The service of consecration was carried out with anointing oil (Exod 30:30). The verb is used for the anointing of kings as well as priests in the OT, and so out of that derived the technical title “Messiah” for the coming ideal king – the “Anointed One.”

[3:3]  ³ tn In this verse the expression is in a relative clause: “who he filled their hand” means “whose hands he filled,” or “whom he consecrated.” The idiomatic expression used here is from Lev 8; it literally is “he filled their hand” (מִלֵּא יָדָם, mille’ yadam). In the ordination service Moses placed some of the meat from the sacrifice in the hand of the ordinand, and this signified what he was going to be about – having his hand full, or being consecrated to the priesthood. There is some evidence that this practice or expression was also known in Mesopotamia. In modern ordination services a NT or a Bible may be placed in the ordinand’s hand – it is what the ministry will be about.

[3:3]  ⁴ tn The form is an infinitival construction for the word for the priest, showing the purpose for the filling of the hands.

[3:6]  ⁵ sn The use of the verb קָרַב (qarav) forms an interesting wordplay in the passage. The act of making an offering is described by this verb, as was the reference to the priests’ offering of strange fire. Now the ceremonial presentation of the priests is expressed by the same word – they are being offered to God.

[3:6]  ⁶ tn The verb literally means “make it [the tribe] stand” (וְהַעֲמַדְתָּ אֹתוֹ, vÿha’amadta ’oto). The verb is the Hiphil perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive; it will take the same imperative nuance as the form before it, but follow in sequence (“and then”). This refers to the ceremonial presentation in which the tribe would take its place before Aaron, that is, stand before him and await their assignments. The Levites will function more like a sacred guard than anything else, for they had to protect and care for the sanctuary when it was erected and when it was transported (see J. Milgrom, Studies in Levitical Terminology, 8-10).

[3:6]  ⁷ tn The verb וְשֵׁרְתוּ (vÿsherÿtu) is the Piel perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive; it carries the same volitional force as the preceding verb forms, but may here be subordinated in the sequence to express the purpose or result of the preceding action.

[5:23]  ⁸ sn The words written on the scroll were written with a combination of ingredients mixed into an ink. The idea is probably that they would have been washed or flaked off into the water, so that she drank the words of the curse – it became a part of her being.

[11:6]  ⁹ tn Heb “our souls.”

[11:6]  ¹⁰ sn The Hebrews were complaining both about the bland taste of the manna and dehydration – they were parched in the wilderness.

[11:6]  ¹¹ tn Heb “before our eyes,” meaning that “we see nothing except this manna.”

[11:27]  ¹² tn The article indicates that the “young man” was definite in the mind of the writer, but indefinite in English.

[31:18]  ¹³ tn Or “girls.” The Hebrew indicates they would be female children, making the selection easy.

[31:18]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “who have not known [a] man by lying with a man.”

[31:18]  ¹⁵ sn Many contemporary scholars see this story as fictitious, composed by the Jews during the captivity. According to this interpretation, the spoils of war here indicate the wealth of the Jews in captivity, which was to be given to the Levites and priests for the restoration of the sanctuary in Jerusalem. The conclusion drawn from this interpretation is that returning Jews had the same problem as the earlier ones: to gain a foothold in the land. Against this interpretation of the account is a lack of hard evidence, a lack which makes this interpretation appear contrived and subjective. If this was the intent of a later writer, he surely could have stated this more clearly than by making up such a story.