Bilangan 17:12

17:12 The Israelites said to Moses, “We are bound to die! ¹  We perish, we all perish!

Bilangan 27:18

27:18 The Lord replied ²  to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is such a spirit, ³  and lay your hand on him; ⁴ 

[17:12]  ¹ tn The use of הֵן (hen) and the perfect tense in the nuance of a prophetic perfect expresses their conviction that they were bound to die – it was certain (see GKC 312-13 §106.n).

[27:18]  ² tn Or “said.”

[27:18]  ³ sn The word “spirit” probably refers to the Holy Spirit, in which case it would be rendered “in whom is the Spirit.” This would likely be a permanent endowment for Joshua. But it is also possible to take it to refer to a proper spirit to do all the things required of such a leader (which ultimately is a gift from the Spirit of God). The Hebrew text simply says “in whom is a spirit.”

[27:18]  ⁴ sn This symbolic act would indicate the transfer of leadership to Joshua.