Bilangan 14:10-11

14:10 However, the whole community threatened to stone them. ¹  But ²  the glory ³  of the Lord appeared to all the Israelites at the tent ⁴  of meeting.

The Punishment from God

14:11 The Lord said to Moses, “How long will this people despise ⁵  me, and how long will they not believe ⁶  in me, in spite of the signs that I have done among them?

Bilangan 23:23

23:23 For there is no spell against ⁷  Jacob,

nor is there any divination against Israel.

At this time ⁸  it must be said ⁹  of Jacob

and of Israel, ‘Look at ¹⁰  what God has done!’

[14:10]  ¹ tn Heb “said to stone them with stones.” The verb and the object are not from the same root, but the combination nonetheless forms an emphasis equal to the cognate accusative.

[14:10]  ² tn The vav (ו) on the noun “glory” indicates a strong contrast, one that interrupts their threatened attack.

[14:10]  ³ sn The glory of the Lord refers to the reality of the Lord’s presence in a manifestation of his power and splendor. It showed to all that God was a living God. The appearance of the glory indicated blessing for the obedient, but disaster for the disobedient.

[14:10]  ⁴ tc The Greek, Syriac, and Tg. Ps.-J. have “in the cloud over the tent.”

[14:11]  ⁵ tn The verb נָאַץ (na’ats) means “to condemn, spurn” (BDB 610 s.v.). Coats suggests that in some contexts the word means actual rejection or renunciation (Rebellion in the Wilderness, 146, 7). This would include the idea of distaste.

[14:11]  ⁶ tn The verb “to believe” (root אָמַן, ’aman) has the basic idea of support, dependability for the root. The Hiphil has a declarative sense, namely, to consider something reliable or dependable and to act on it. The people did not trust what the Lord said.

[23:23]  ⁷ tn Or “in Jacob.” But given the context the meaning “against” is preferable. The words describe two techniques of consulting God; the first has to do with observing omens in general (“enchantments”), and the second with casting lots or arrows of the like (“divinations” [Ezek 21:26]). See N. H. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers (NCB), 295-96.

[23:23]  ⁸ tn The form is the preposition “like, as” and the word for “time” – according to the time, about this time, now.

[23:23]  ⁹ tn The Niphal imperfect here carries the nuance of obligation – one has to say in amazement that God has done something marvelous or “it must be said.”

[23:23]  ¹⁰ tn The words “look at” are not in the Hebrew text but have been added in the translation for clarity.