Bilangan 10:33

10:33 So they traveled from the mountain of the Lord three days’ journey; ¹  and the ark of the covenant of the Lord was traveling before them during the three days’ journey, to find a resting place for them.

Bilangan 11:31

Provision of Quail

11:31 Now a wind ²  went out ³  from the Lord and brought quail ⁴  from the sea, and let them fall ⁵  near the camp, about a day’s journey on this side, and about a day’s journey on the other side, all around the camp, and about three feet ⁶  high on the surface of the ground.

Bilangan 21:7

21:7 Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against the Lord and against you. Pray to the Lord that he would take away ⁷  the snakes from us.” So Moses prayed for the people.

Bilangan 9:10

9:10 “Tell the Israelites, ‘If any ⁸  of you or of your posterity become ceremonially defiled by touching a dead body, or are on a journey far away, then he may ⁹  observe the Passover to the Lord.

Bilangan 16:37

16:37 “Tell ¹⁰  Eleazar son of Aaron the priest to pick up ¹¹  the censers out of the flame, for they are holy, and then scatter the coals of fire ¹²  at a distance.

Bilangan 16:26

16:26 And he said to the community, “Move away from the tents of these wicked ¹³  men, and do not touch anything they have, lest you be destroyed because ¹⁴  of all their sins.” ¹⁵ 

Bilangan 12:10

12:10 When ¹⁶  the cloud departed from above the tent, Miriam became ¹⁷  leprous ¹⁸  as snow. Then Aaron looked at ¹⁹  Miriam, and she was leprous!

Bilangan 14:9

14:9 Only do not rebel against the Lord, and do not fear the people of the land, for they are bread for us. ²⁰  Their protection ²¹  has turned aside from them, but the Lord is with us. Do not fear them!”

Bilangan 16:21

16:21 “Separate yourselves ²²  from among this community, ²³  that I may consume them in an instant.”

Bilangan 33:8

33:8 They traveled from Pi-hahiroth, ²⁴  and passed through the middle of the sea into the wilderness, and went three days’ journey in the wilderness of Etham, and camped in Marah.

Bilangan 2:2

2:2 “Every one ²⁵  of the Israelites must camp ²⁶  under his standard with the emblems of his family; ²⁷  they must camp at some distance ²⁸  around the tent of meeting. ²⁹ 

Bilangan 22:26

22:26 Then the angel of the Lord went farther, and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn either to the right or to the left.

Bilangan 16:36

The Atonement for the Rebellion

16:36 (17:1) ³⁰  The Lord spoke to Moses:

Bilangan 30:4

30:4 and her father hears of her vow or the obligation to which she has pledged herself, and her father remains silent about her, ³¹  then all her vows will stand, ³²  and every obligation to which she has pledged herself will stand.

Bilangan 2:1

The Arrangement of the Tribes

2:1 ³³ The Lord spoke to Moses and to Aaron:

Bilangan 30:10

30:10 If she made the vow in her husband’s house or put herself under obligation with an oath,

Bilangan 16:45

16:45 “Get away from this community, so that I can consume them in an instant!” But they threw themselves down with their faces to the ground. ³⁴ 

Bilangan 20:6

Moses Responds

20:6 So Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the entrance to the tent of meeting. They then threw themselves down with their faces to the ground, and the glory of the Lord appeared to them.

Bilangan 21:11

21:11 Then they traveled on from Oboth and camped at Iye Abarim, ³⁵  in the wilderness that is before Moab, on the eastern side. ³⁶ 

Bilangan 21:26

21:26 For Heshbon was the city of King Sihon of the Amorites. Now he had fought against the former king of Moab and had taken all of his land from his control, ³⁷  as far as the Arnon.

Bilangan 30:7

30:7 and her husband hears about it, but remains silent about her when he hears about it, then her vows will stand and her obligations which she has pledged for herself will stand.

Bilangan 30:9

Vows Made by Widows

30:9 “But every vow of a widow or of a divorced woman which she has pledged for herself will remain intact. ³⁸ 

Bilangan 30:13

30:13 “Any vow or sworn obligation that would bring affliction to her, ³⁹  her husband can confirm or nullify. ⁴⁰ 

Bilangan 34:10

The Eastern Border of the Land

34:10 “‘For your eastern border you will draw a line from Hazar Enan to Shepham.

Bilangan 35:4

35:4 The grazing lands around the towns that you will give to the Levites must extend to a distance of 500 yards ⁴¹  from the town wall.

Bilangan 6:3

6:3 he must separate ⁴²  himself from wine and strong drink, he must drink neither vinegar ⁴³  made from wine nor vinegar made from strong drink, nor may he drink any juice ⁴⁴  of grapes, nor eat fresh grapes or raisins. ⁴⁵ 

Bilangan 24:17

24:17 ‘I see him, but not now;

I behold him, but not close at hand. ⁴⁶ 

A star ⁴⁷  will march forth ⁴⁸  out of Jacob,

and a scepter ⁴⁹  will rise out of Israel.

He will crush the skulls ⁵⁰  of Moab,

and the heads ⁵¹  of all the sons of Sheth. ⁵² 

Bilangan 14:12

14:12 I will strike them with the pestilence, ⁵³  and I will disinherit them; I will make you into a nation that is greater and mightier than they!”

Bilangan 30:2-3

30:2 If a man ⁵⁴  makes a vow ⁵⁵  to the Lord or takes an oath ⁵⁶  of binding obligation on himself, ⁵⁷  he must not break his word, but must do whatever he has promised. ⁵⁸ 

Vows Made by Single Women

30:3 “If a young ⁵⁹  woman who is still living ⁶⁰  in her father’s house makes a vow to the Lord or places herself under an obligation,

Bilangan 30:6

Vows Made by Married Women

30:6 “And if she marries a husband while under a vow, ⁶¹  or she uttered ⁶²  anything impulsively by which she has pledged herself,

Bilangan 30:8

30:8 But if when her husband hears it he overrules her, then he will nullify ⁶³  the vow she has taken, ⁶⁴  and whatever she uttered impulsively which she has pledged for herself. And the Lord will release her from it.

Bilangan 30:11-12

30:11 and her husband heard about it, but remained silent about her, and did not overrule her, then all her vows will stand, and every obligation which she pledged for herself will stand. 30:12 But if her husband clearly nullifies ⁶⁵  them when he hears them, then whatever she says ⁶⁶  by way of vows or obligations will not stand. Her husband has made them void, and the Lord will release her from them.

Bilangan 30:14

30:14 But if her husband remains completely silent ⁶⁷  about her from day to day, he thus confirms all her vows or all her obligations which she is under; he confirms them because he remained silent about when he heard them.

Bilangan 32:19

32:19 For we will not accept any inheritance on the other side of the Jordan River ⁶⁸  and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on this eastern side of the Jordan.”

Bilangan 11:1

The Israelites Complain

11:1 ⁶⁹ When the people complained, ⁷⁰  it displeased ⁷¹  the Lord. When the Lord heard ⁷²  it, his anger burned, ⁷³  and so ⁷⁴  the fire of the Lord ⁷⁵  burned among them and consumed some of the outer parts of the camp.

Bilangan 30:5

30:5 But if her father overrules her when he hears ⁷⁶  about it, then none ⁷⁷  of her vows or her obligations which she has pledged for herself will stand. And the Lord will release ⁷⁸  her from it, because her father overruled her.

[10:33]  ¹ tn The phrase “a journey of three days” is made up of the adverbial accusative qualified with the genitives.

[11:31]  ² sn The irony in this chapter is expressed in part by the use of the word רוּחַ (ruakh). In the last episode it clearly meant the Spirit of the Lord that empowered the men for their spiritual service. But here the word is “wind.” Both the spiritual service and the judgment come from God.

[11:31]  ³ tn The verb means “burst forth” or “sprang up.” See the ways it is used in Gen 33:12, Judg 16:3, 14; Isa 33:20.

[11:31]  ⁴ sn The “quail” ordinarily cross the Sinai at various times of the year, but what is described here is not the natural phenomenon. Biblical scholars looking for natural explanations usually note that these birds fly at a low height and can be swatted down easily. But the description here is more of a supernatural supply and provision. See J. Gray, “The Desert Sojourn of the Hebrews and the Sinai Horeb Tradition,” VT 4 (1954): 148-54.

[11:31]  ⁵ tn Or “left them fluttering.”

[11:31]  ⁶ tn Heb “two cubits.” The standard cubit in the OT is assumed by most authorities to be about eighteen inches (45 cm) in length.

[21:7]  ⁷ tn The verb is the Hiphil jussive with a vav (ו) consecutive from the verb סוּר (sur); after the imperative this form may be subordinated to become a purpose clause.

[9:10]  ⁸ tn This sense is conveyed by the repetition of “man” – “if a man, a man becomes unclean.”

[9:10]  ⁹ tn The perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive functions as the equivalent of an imperfect tense. In the apodosis of this conditional sentence, the permission nuance fits well.

[16:37]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “say to.”

[16:37]  ¹¹ tn The verb is the jussive with a vav (ו) coming after the imperative; it may be subordinated to form a purpose clause (“that he may pick up”) or the object of the imperative.

[16:37]  ¹² tn The Hebrew text just has “fire,” but it would be hard to conceive of this action apart from the idea of coals of fire.

[16:26]  ¹³ tn The word רָשָׁע (rasha’) has the sense of a guilty criminal. The word “wicked” sometimes gives the wrong connotation. These men were opposing the Lord, and so were condemned as criminals – they were guilty. The idea of “wickedness” therefore applies in that sense.

[16:26]  ¹⁴ tn The preposition bet (בְּ) in this line is causal – “on account of their sins.”

[16:26]  ¹⁵ sn The impression is that the people did not hear what the Lord said to Moses, but only what Moses said to the people as a result. They saw the brilliant cloud, and perhaps heard the sound of his voice, but the relaying of the instructions indicates they did not hear the actual instruction from the Lord himself.

[12:10]  ¹⁶ tn The disjunctive vav (ו) is here introducing a circumstantial clause of time.

[12:10]  ¹⁷ tn There is no verb “became” in this line. The second half of the line is introduced with the particle הִנֵה (hinneh, “look, behold”) in its archaic sense. This deictic use is intended to make the reader focus on Miriam as well.

[12:10]  ¹⁸ sn The word “leprosy” and “leprous” covers a wide variety of skin diseases, and need not be limited to the actual disease of leprosy known today as Hansen’s disease. The description of it here has to do with snow, either the whiteness or the wetness. If that is the case then there would be open wounds and sores – like Job’s illness (see M. Noth, Numbers [OTL], 95-96).

[12:10]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “turned to.”

[14:9]  ²⁰ sn The expression must indicate that they could destroy the enemies as easily as they could eat bread.

[14:9]  ²¹ tn Heb “their shade.” The figure compares the shade from the sun with the protection from the enemy. It is also possible that the text is alluding to their deities here.

[16:21]  ²² tn The verb is הִבָּדְלוּ (hibbadÿlu), the Niphal imperative of בָּדַל (badal). This is the same word that was just used when Moses reminded the Levites that they had been separated from the community to serve the Lord.

[16:21]  ²³ sn The group of people siding with Korah is meant, and not the entire community of the people of Israel. They are an assembly of rebels, their “community” consisting in their common plot.

[33:8]  ²⁴ tc So many medieval Hebrew manuscripts, Smr, Syriac, and Latin Vulgate. Other witnesses have “from before Hahiroth.”

[2:2]  ²⁵ tn Heb “a man by his own standard.”

[2:2]  ²⁶ tn The imperfect tense is to be taken in the nuance of instruction.

[2:2]  ²⁷ tn Heb “of/for the house of their fathers.”

[2:2]  ²⁸ tn The Hebrew expression מִנֶּגֶד (minneged) means “from before” or “opposite; facing” and “at some distance” or “away from the front of” (see BDB 617 s.v. נֶגֶד 2.c.a; DCH 5:603-4 s.v. 3.b).

[2:2]  ²⁹ sn The Israelites were camping as a military camp, each tribe with the standards and emblems of the family. The standard was the symbol fastened to the end of a pole and carried to battle. It served to rally the tribe to the battle. The Bible nowhere describes these, although the serpent emblem of Numbers 21:8-9 may give a clue. But they probably did not have shapes of animals in view of the prohibition in the Decalogue. The standards may have been smaller for the families than the ones for the tribes. See further K. A. Kitchen, “Some Egyptian Background to the Old Testament,” TynBul 5 (1960): 11; and T. W. Mann, Divine Presence and Guidance in Israelite Tradition, 169-73.

[16:36]  ³⁰ sn Beginning with 16:36, the verse numbers through 17:13 in the English Bible differ from the verse numbers in the Hebrew text (BHS), with 16:36 ET = 17:1 HT, 16:37 ET = 17:2 HT, 17:1 ET = 17:16 HT, etc., through 17:13 ET = 17:28 HT. With 18:1 the verse numbers in the ET and HT are again the same. But in the English chap. 17 there are two parts: Aaron’s rod budding (1-9), and the rod preserved as a memorial (10-13). Both sections begin with the same formula.

[30:4]  ³¹ tn The intent of this expression is that he does not object to the vow.

[30:4]  ³² tn The verb קוּם (qum) is best translated “stand” here, but the idea with it is that what she vows is established as a genuine oath with the father’s approval (or acquiescence).

[2:1]  ³³ 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.

[16:45]  ³⁴ tn Heb “they fell on their faces.”

[21:11]  ³⁵ sn These places are uncertain. Oboth may be some 15 miles (25 km) from the south end of the Dead Sea at a place called ‘Ain el-Weiba. Iye Abarim may be the modern Mahay at the southeastern corner of Moab. See J. Simons, The Geographical and Topographical Texts of the Old Testament.

[21:11]  ³⁶ tn Heb “the rising of the sun.”

[21:26]  ³⁷ sn There is a justice, always, in the divine plan for the conquest of the land. Modern students of the Bible often think that the conquest passages are crude and unjust. But an understanding of the ancient Near East is critical here. This Sihon was not a part of the original population of the land. He himself invaded the territory and destroyed the population of Moab that was indigenous there and established his own kingdom. The ancient history is filled with such events; it is the way of life they chose – conquer or be conquered. For Israel to defeat them was in part a turning of their own devices back on their heads – “those that live by the sword will die by the sword.” Sihon knew this, and he did not wait, but took the war to Israel. Israel wanted to pass through, not fight. But now they would either fight or be pushed into the gorge. So God used Israel to defeat Sihon, who had no claim to the land, as part of divine judgment.

[30:9]  ³⁸ tn The Hebrew text says her vow “shall stand against her.” In other words, she must fulfill, or bear the consequences of, whatever she vowed.

[30:13]  ³⁹ tn The sentence uses the infinitive construct לְעַנֹּת (lÿ’annot, “to afflict”), which is the same word used in the instructions for the day of atonement in which people are to afflict themselves (their souls). The case here may be that the woman would take a religious vow on such an occasion to humble herself, to mortify her flesh, to abstain from certain things, perhaps even sexual relations within marriage.

[30:13]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “or her husband can nullify.”

[35:4]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “one thousand cubits.” The standard cubit in the OT is assumed by most authorities to be about eighteen inches (45 cm) in length, so this would be a distance of 1,500 feet or 500 yards (675 meters).

[6:3]  ⁴² tn The operative verb now will be the Hiphil of נָזַר (nazar); the consecration to the Lord meant separation from certain things in the world. The first will be wine and strong drink – barley beer (from Akkadian sikaru, a fermented beer). But the second word may be somewhat wider in its application than beer. The Nazirite, then, was to avoid all intoxicants as a sign of his commitment to the Lord. The restriction may have proved a hardship in the daily diet of the one taking the vow, but it spoke a protest to the corrupt religious and social world that used alcohol to excess.

[6:3]  ⁴³ tn The “vinegar” (חֹמֶץ, homets) is some kind of drink preparation that has been allowed to go sour.

[6:3]  ⁴⁴ tn This word occurs only here. It may come from the word “to water, to be moist,” and so refer to juice.

[6:3]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “dried” (so KJV, ASV, NRSV).

[24:17]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “near.”

[24:17]  ⁴⁷ sn This is a figure for a king (see also Isa 14:12) not only in the Bible but in the ancient Near Eastern literature as a whole. The immediate reference of the prophecy seems to be to David, but the eschatological theme goes beyond him. There is to be a connection made between this passage and the sighting of a star in its ascendancy by the magi, who then traveled to Bethlehem to see the one born King of the Jews (Matt 2:2). The expression “son of a star” (Aram Bar Kochba) became a title for a later claimant to kingship, but he was doomed by the Romans in a.d. 135.

[24:17]  ⁴⁸ tn The verb is the perfect tense with vav (ו) consecutive; it is equal to the imperfect expressing the future. The verb דָּרַךְ (darakh), related to the noun “way, road,” seems to mean something like tread on, walk, march.”

[24:17]  ⁴⁹ sn The “scepter” is metonymical for a king who will rise to power. NEB strangely rendered this as “comet” to make a parallel with “star.”

[24:17]  ⁵⁰ tn The word is literally “corners,” but may refer to the corners of the head, and so “skull.”

[24:17]  ⁵¹ tc The MT reads “shatter, devastate.” Smr reads קֹדְקֹד (qodqod, “head; crown; pate”). Smr follows Jer 48:45 which appears to reflect Num 24:17.

[24:17]  ⁵² sn The prophecy begins to be fulfilled when David defeated Moab and Edom and established an empire including them. But the Messianic promise extends far beyond that to the end of the age and the inclusion of these defeated people in the program of the coming King.

[14:12]  ⁵³ tc The Greek version has “death.”

[30:2]  ⁵⁴ tn The legal construction states the class to which the law applies, and then lays down the condition: “men [man] – if….”

[30:2]  ⁵⁵ tn The Hebrew text uses a cognate accusative construction to express this: “a man if he vows a vow.”

[30:2]  ⁵⁶ tn The expression is “swear an oath” (הִשָּׁבַע שְׁבֻעָה, hishava’ shÿvu’ah). The vow (נֵדֶר, neder) was a promise to donate something of oneself or one’s substance to the Lord. The solemn oath seals the vow before the Lord, perhaps with sacrifice. The vocabulary recalls Abraham’s treaty with Abimelech and the naming of Beer Sheba with the word (see Gen 21).

[30:2]  ⁵⁷ tn The Hebrew text hasלֶאְסֹר אִסָּר (le’sor ’issar), meaning “to take a binding obligation.” This is usually interpreted to mean a negative vow, i.e., the person attempts to abstain from something that is otherwise permissible. It might involve fasting, or abstaining from marital sex, but it might also involve some goal to be achieved, and the abstaining from distractions until the vow is fulfilled (see Ps 132). The נֶדֶר (neder) may have been more for religious matters, and the אִסָּר more for social concerns, but this cannot be documented with certainty.

[30:2]  ⁵⁸ tn Heb “according to all that goes out of his mouth.”

[30:3]  ⁵⁹ tn The qualification comes at the end of the verse, and simply says “in her youth.”

[30:3]  ⁶⁰ tn The Hebrew text just has “in her father’s house” and not “who is still living,” but that is the meaning of the line.

[30:6]  ⁶¹ tn Heb “and her vows are upon her.” It may be that the woman gets married while her vows are still unfulfilled.

[30:6]  ⁶² tn The Hebrew text indicates that this would be some impetuous vow that she uttered with her lips, a vow that her husband, whether new or existing, would not approve of. Several translate it “a binding obligation rashly uttered.”

[30:8]  ⁶³ tn The verb is the Hiphil perfect with a vav (ו) consecutive from the verb פָּרַר (parar, “to annul”). The verb functions here as the equivalent of an imperfect tense; here it is the apodosis following the conditional clause – if this is the case, then this is what will happen.

[30:8]  ⁶⁴ tn Heb “which [she is] under it.”

[30:12]  ⁶⁵ tn The verb is the imperfect tense in the conditional clause. It is intensified with the infinitive absolute, which would have the force of saying that he nullified them unequivocally, or he made them null and void.

[30:12]  ⁶⁶ tn Heb whatever proceeds from her lips.”

[30:14]  ⁶⁷ tn The sentence uses the infinitive absolute to strengthen the idea.

[32:19]  ⁶⁸ tn The word “River” is not in the Hebrew text, but has been supplied in the translation for clarity.

[11:1]  ⁶⁹ sn The chapter includes the initial general complaints (vv. 1-3), the complaints about food (vv. 4-9), Moses’ own complaint to the Lord (vv. 10-15), God’s response to Moses (vv. 16-25), Eldad and Medad (vv. 26-29), and the quail (vv. 30-35). The first part records the burning of the camp, named Taberah. Here is one of the several naming narratives in the wilderness experience. The occasion for divine judgment is the complaining of the people. The passages serve to warn believers of all ages not to murmur as the Israelites did, for such complaining reveals a lack of faith in the power and goodness of God. For additional literature, see W. Brueggemann, “From Hurt to Joy, from Death to Life,” Int 28 (1974): 3-19; B. S. Childs, “The Etiological Tale Re-examined,” VT 24 (1974): 387-97; G. W. Coats, Rebellion in the Wilderness; and A. C. Tunyogi, “The Rebellions of Israel,” JBL 81 (1962): 385-90.

[11:1]  ⁷⁰ tn The temporal clause uses the Hitpoel infinitive construct from אָנַן (’anan). It is a rare word, occurring in Lam 3:39. With this blunt introduction the constant emphasis of obedience to the word of the Lord found throughout the first ten chapters suddenly comes to an end. It is probable that the people were tired of moving for several days, the excitement of the new beginning died out quickly in the “great and terrible wilderness.” Resentment, frustration, discomfort – whatever it all involved – led to complaining and not gratitude.

[11:1]  ⁷¹ tn Heb “it was evil in the ears of the Lord.” The word רַע (ra’) is a much stronger word than “displeased” would suggest. The bold anthropomorphism shows that what the Lord heard was painful to him.

[11:1]  ⁷² tn The preterite with vav (ו) consecutive is here subordinated to the next verb as a temporal clause.

[11:1]  ⁷³ tn The common Hebrew expression uses the verb חָרָה (harah, “to be hot, to burn, to be kindled”). The subject is אַפּוֹ (’appo), “his anger” or more literally, his nose, which in this anthropomorphic expression flares in rage. The emphasis is superlative – “his anger raged.”

[11:1]  ⁷⁴ tn The vav (ו) consecutive does not simply show sequence in the verbs, but here expresses the result of the anger of the Lord for their complaining. With such a response to the complaining, one must conclude that it was unreasonable. There had been no long deprivation or endured suffering; the complaining was early and showed a rebellious spirit.

[11:1]  ⁷⁵ sn The “fire of the Lord” is supernatural, for it is said to come from the Lord and not from a natural source. God gave them something to complain about – something to fear. The other significant place where this “fire of the Lord” destroyed was in the case of Nadab and Abihu who brought strange fire to the altar (Lev 10:2).

[30:5]  ⁷⁶ tn The idiom is “in the day of,” but it is used in place of a preposition before the infinitive construct with its suffixed subjective genitive. The clause is temporal.

[30:5]  ⁷⁷ tn The Hebrew “all will not stand” is best rendered “none will stand.”

[30:5]  ⁷⁸ tn The verb has often been translated “forgive” (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NRSV, NLT), but that would suggest a sin that needed forgiving. The idea of “release from obligation” is better; the idea is like that of having a debt “forgiven” or “retired.” In other words, she is free from the vow she had made. The Lord will not hold the woman responsible to do what she vowed.