eng_aiv Amundson Interpretive Version Numbers Numbers Numbers Num Numbers id=eng_aiv name=Amundson Interpretive Version (AIV) status=draft spec=USFM-USX 3.1.1 export=2026-11-02 char:add=translator-addition-italic char:wj=words-of-Jesus-as-received-unmapped note:f=footnotes para:r=parallel-passage-references para:d=psalm-superscriptions The First Census of Israel (Numbers 26:1–4) And YHWH spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first of the second month, in the second year of their going out from the land of Egypt, saying, “Take a census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names—every male by their polls. From a son of twenty years and above, all who can go to war in Israel, you⁺ shall number them by their armies—you and Aaron; and with you⁺ there shall be a man of every tribe; each one is the head of the house of his father. The Leaders of the Tribes And these are the names of the men who shall stand with you⁺: From Reuben, Elizur son of Shedeur. From Simeon, Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai. From Judah, Nahshon son of Amminadab. From Issachar, Nethanel son of Zuar. From Zebulun, Eliab son of Helon. From the sons of Joseph: From Ephraim, Elishama son of Ammihud, from Manasseh, Gamaliel son of Pedahzur. From Benjamin, Abidan son of Gideoni. From Dan, Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai. From Asher, Pagiel son of Ocran. From Gad, Eliasaph son of Deuel. From Naphtali, Ahira son of Enan.” These were chosen from the congregation, leaders of the tribes of their fathers; they were the heads of thousands in Israel. The Number of every Tribe And Moses took Aaron and these men who had been mentioned by name, and they assembled all the congregation on the first of the second month, and they recited their ancestry by clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, by their polls, as YHWH had commanded Moses. And he numbered them in the Wilderness of Sinai. And the sons of Reuben oldest son of Israel—their genealogies by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names individually, every male from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host— those numbered of the tribe of Reuben were six and forty thousand and five hundred. From the sons of Simeon, according to their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, numbered by the number of names individually, every male from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Simeon were nine and fifty thousand and three hundred. From the sons of Gad, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Gad were five and forty thousand and six hundred and fifty. From the sons of Judah, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Judah were four and seventy thousand and six hundred. From the sons of Issachar, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Issachar were four and fifty thousand and four hundred. From the sons of Zebulun, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Zebulun were seven and fifty thousand and four hundred. From the sons of Joseph, the sons of Ephraim, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Ephraim were forty thousand and five hundred. From the sons of Manasseh, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Manasseh were two and thirty thousand and two hundred. From the sons of Benjamin, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Benjamin were five and thirty thousand and four hundred. From the sons of Dan, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Dan were two and sixty thousand and seven hundred. From the sons of Asher, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Asher were one and forty thousand and five hundred. From the sons of Naphtali, their genealogies, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, by the number of names, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host, those numbered of the tribe of Naphtali were three and fifty thousand and four hundred. These are the ones who were numbered, whom Moses numbered—and Aaron and the princes of Israel, twelve men—each one was for the house of his father. And all who were numbered of the sons of Israel, by the house of their fathers, from a son of twenty years and above, everyone going out to the host in Israel, even all who were numbered were six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty. The Exemption of the Levites And the Levites by the tribe of their fathers were not numbered in their midst, for YHWH had spoken to Moses, saying, “Only the tribe of Levi you shall not number, and a census of them you shall not take in the midst of the sons of Israel. And you shall appoint the Levites over the tabernacle of the Testimony, and over all its furnishings, and over all things that belong to it. They shall carry the tabernacle and all its furnishings, and they shall attend to it, and around the tabernacle they shall camp. And in the going forward of the tabernacle, the Levites shall take it down. And in the encamping of the tabernacle, the Levites shall set it up. And the outsider who comes near shall be put to death. And the sons of Israel shall encamp, each man by his own camp, and each man by his own standard, by their hosts. And the Levites shall camp around the tabernacle of the Testimony, that there may not be wrath on the congregation of the sons of Israel. And the Levites shall keep the charge of the tabernacle of the Testimony.” And the sons of Israel did according to all that YHWH had commanded Moses; so they did. The Order of the Camps And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Each man under his own standard, beside the emblems of the house of his father, the sons of Israel shall camp; some distance from the Tent of Meeting they shall camp. And the ones camping on the east side, toward the rising of the sun, of the standard of the camp of Judah by their hosts: And the leader of the sons of Judah is Nahshon son of Amminadab, and his host was numbered at four and seventy thousand and six hundred. And the ones camping next to him are the tribe of Issachar, and the leader of the sons of Issachar is Nethanel son of Zuar. And his army was numbered at four and fifty thousand and four hundred. Then the tribe of Zebulun, and the leader of the sons of Zebulun is Eliab son of Helon. And his army was numbered at seven and fifty thousand and four hundred. All who were numbered of the forces with Judah were a hundred thousand and eighty thousand and six thousand and four hundred, according to their armies. They shall set out first. The standard of the forces with Reuben is on the south side, according to their armies: And the leader of the sons of Reuben is Elizur son of Shedeur; and his army was numbered at six and forty thousand and five hundred. And those who camp next to him is the tribe of Simeon, and the leader of the sons of Simeon is Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai. And his army was numbered at nine and fifty thousand and three hundred. And the tribe of Gad, and the leader of the sons of Gad is Eliasaph son of Deuel.2.14 Many MT manuscripts, SP, and Vulgate (see also Numbers 1:14); most MT manuscripts Reuel And his army was numbered at five and forty thousand and six hundred and fifty. All who were numbered of the forces with Reuben were a hundred thousand and one and fifty thousand and four hundred and fifty, according to their armies. And they shall set out second. And the Tent of Meeting with the camp of the Levites shall set out in the middle of the camps; as they camp, so they shall set out, every man in his place, by their standards. The standard of the forces with Ephraim, according to their armies, is on the west side: And the leader of the sons of Ephraim is Elishama son of Ammihud, and his army was numbered at forty thousand and five hundred. And Next to him is the tribe of Manasseh, and the leader of the sons of Manasseh is Gamaliel son of Pedahzur. And his army was numbered at two and thirty thousand and two hundred. And the tribe of Benjamin; and the leader of the sons of Benjamin is Abidan son of Gideoni. And his army was numbered at five and thirty thousand and four hundred. All who were numbered of the forces with Ephraim were a hundred thousand and eight thousand and a hundred, according to their armies. And they shall be the third to set out. The standard of the forces with Dan is on the north side, according to their armies: And the leader of the sons of Dan is Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai; and his army was numbered at two and sixty thousand and seven hundred. And those who camp next to him are the tribe of Asher, and the leader of the sons of Asher is Pagiel son of Ocran. And his army was numbered at one and forty thousand and five hundred. And the tribe of Naphtali; and the leader of the sons of Naphtali is Ahira son of Enan. And his army was numbered at three and fifty thousand and four hundred. All who were numbered of the forces with Dan were a hundred thousand and seven and fifty thousand and six hundred. They shall set out last with their standards.” These are the ones who were numbered of the sons of Israel by the houses of their fathers; all who were numbered of the forces according to their armies were six hundred thousand and three thousand and five hundred and fifty. And the Levites were not numbered in the midst of the sons of Israel, as YHWH commanded Moses. And the sons of Israel did according to all that YHWH commanded Moses. And they camped by their standards, and they broke camp, each one by his family, according to the houses of their fathers. The Sons of Aaron (Leviticus 10:1–7) And these are the records of Aaron and Moses when YHWH spoke with Moses on Mount Sinai: And these are the names of the sons of Aaron; the firstborn Nadab, and Abihu, Eleazar, and Ithamar. These are the names of the sons of Aaron, the anointed priests, whom he filled with strength to minister as priests. And Nadab and Abihu died before the face of YHWH, when they offered strange3.4 Or unauthorized fire before the face of YHWH in the Wilderness of Sinai, and they had no sons. And Eleazar and Ithamar ministered as priests before the face of Aaron their father. The Duties of the Levites And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Bring near the tribe of Levi and present them before the face of Aaron the priest, that they may serve him. And they shall attend to his needs, and the needs of the whole congregation before the face of the Tent of Meeting, to do the work of the tabernacle. And they shall attend to all the furnishings of the Tent of Meeting, and to the needs of the sons of Israel, to do the work of the tabernacle. And you shall give the Levites to Aaron and his sons; they are wholly given to him3.9 Most MT manuscripts; some MT manuscripts, SP, and LXX (see also Numbers 8:16) to Me from among the sons of Israel. And Aaron and his sons you shall appoint, and they shall attend to their priesthood, and the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.” And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “And I, behold, I have taken the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel, instead of every firstborn who opens the womb among the sons of Israel. And the Levite shall be unto Me, because all the firstborn are unto Me. On the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt I sanctified to Myself all the firstborn in Israel, from man to beast. Unto Me they shall be; I am YHWH.” The Numbering of the Levites And YHWH spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai, saying, “Number the sons of Levi by the houses of their fathers, by their clans; every male from a son of a month and above you shall number.” And Moses numbered them according to the word of YHWH, as he was commanded. And these were the sons of Levi by their names: Gershon, and Kohath, and Merari. And these are the names of the sons of Gershon by their clans: Libni and Shimei. And the sons of Kohath, by their clans: Amram and Izhar, Hebron and Uzziel. And the sons of Merari by their clans: Mahli and Mushi. These are the clans of Levi, by the houses of their fathers. The Gershonites (Numbers 4:21–28; 1 Chronicles 23:7–11) From Gershon is the family of the Libnite, and the family of the Shimite; these were the clans of the Gershonite. Those numbered by the number of all the males, from a son of a month and above, there were numbered seven thousand and five hundred. The clans of the Gershonite behind the tabernacle were to camp westward. And the leader of the house of the father of the Gershonite was Eliasaph son of Lael. And the duties of the sons of Gershon in the Tent of Meeting was the tabernacle, and the tent with its covering, and the screen of the door of the Tent of Meeting, and the hangings of the court, and the screen of the door of the court, which are around the tabernacle and around the altar, and their cords, according to all its service. The Kohathites (Numbers 4:1–20; 1 Chronicles 23:12–20) And from Kohath is the family of the Amramite, and the family of the Izharite, and the family of the Hebronite, and the family of the Uzzielite; these were the clans of the Kohathite. By the number of all the males, from a son of a month and above, there were eight thousand and six hundred,3.28 Hebrew; some LXX manuscripts 8,300; see the total in verse 39. keeping charge of the sanctuary. The clans of the sons of Kohath were to camp on the south side of the tabernacle. And the leader of the house of the father of the clans of the Kohathite was Elizaphan son of Uzziel. 3.30 Elizaphan is a variant of Elzaphan; see Exodus 6:22 and Leviticus 10:4. And their duty was the ark, and the table, and the lampstand, and the altars, and the vessels of the sanctuary in which they ministered, and the screen, and all its service. And chief of the leaders of the Levite was Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, with oversight of those who kept charge of the sanctuary. The Merarites (Numbers 4:29–33; 1 Chronicles 23:21–23) From Merari is the family of the Mahlite, and the family of the Mushite; these were the clans of Merari. And those numbered by the number of all the males, from a son of a month and above, were six thousand and two hundred. And the leader of the house of the father of the clans of Merari was Zuriel son of Abihail. They were to camp on the north side of the tabernacle. And the appointed duty of the sons of Merari was the boards of the tabernacle, and its bars, and its pillars, and its bases, and its vessels, and all its service; and the pillars of the court all around, and their bases, and their pegs, and their cords. Moses and Aaron And those who were to camp before the face of the tabernacle on the east, before the face of the Tent of Meeting toward the sunrise, were Moses and Aaron and his sons, keeping charge of the sanctuary to meet the needs of the sons of Israel; and the outsider who came near was to be put to death. All who were numbered of the Levites, whom Moses and Aaron numbered at the commandment of YHWH, by their clans, all the males from a son of a month and above, were two and twenty thousand. The Redemption of the Firstborn And YHWH said to Moses, “Number all the firstborn males of the sons of Israel, from a son of a month and above, and lift up the number of their names. And you shall take the Levites for Me—I am YHWH—instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the livestock of the sons of Israel.” And Moses numbered, as YHWH commanded him, all the firstborn among the sons of Israel. And all the firstborn males by the number of names, from a son of a month and above, of their numbered, were two and twenty thousand three and seventy and two hundred. And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the Levites instead of all the firstborn among the sons of Israel, and the livestock of the Levites instead of their livestock; and the Levites shall be Mine; I am YHWH. And for the redemption of the three and seventy and two hundred being in excess over the Levites of the firstborn of the sons of Israel, even you shall take five—five shekels3.47 5 shekels is approximately 2 ounces or 57 grams. per head; according to the shekel of the sanctuary you shall take them, the shekel being twenty gerahs.3.47 20 gerahs is equivalent to one shekel (approximately 0.4 ounces or 11.4 grams). And you shall give the silver to Aaron and his sons, with which is redeemed of them being in excess.” And Moses took the redemption silver from those exceeding over those who were redeemed by the Levites. From the firstborn of the sons of Israel he took the silver, five and sixty and three hundred and a thousand shekels,3.50 1,365 shekels is approximately 34.3 pounds or 15.6 kilograms. according to the shekel of the sanctuary, and Moses gave the silver of their redemption to Aaron and his sons, according to the word of YHWH, as YHWH had commanded Moses. The Duties of the Kohathites (Numbers 3:27–32; 1 Chronicles 23:12–20) And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Take a census of the sons of Kohath from the midst of the sons of Levi, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, from a son of thirty years and above, and to a son of fifty years, all who enter the service to do the work in the Tent of Meeting. This is the service of the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting: The holy of holies;4.4 Or the most holy; also in verse 19 and Aaron and his sons shall come in the setting forth of the camp, and they shall take down the veil of the screen, and cover with it the ark of the Testimony.4.5 That is, the ark of the covenant And they shall put on it a covering of badger skins,4.6 Possibly the hides of large aquatic mammals; also in verses 8, 10, 11, 12, 14, and 25; see Exodus 25:5. and spread a cloth entirely of blue over it, and they shall insert its poles. And on the table of the Presence they shall spread a cloth of blue, and put on it the dishes, and the pans, and the bowls, and the pitchers for the drink offering, and the bread shall continually be on it. And they shall spread over them a cloth of scarlet yarn, and cover the same with a covering of badger skins, and they shall insert its poles. And they shall take a cloth of blue, and cover the lampstand of the light, and its lamps, and its wick trimmers, and its firepans, and all its oil vessels with which they minister to it. And they shall put it and all its vessels in a covering of badger skins, and put it on the carrying pole. And over the golden altar they shall spread a cloth of blue, and cover it with a covering of badger skins, and they shall insert its poles. And they shall take all the vessels of service, with which they minister in the sanctuary, and put them in a cloth of blue, and cover them with a covering of badger skins, and put them on a carrying beam. And they shall take away the ashes from the altar, and spread over it a cloth of purple. And they shall put on it all its implements with that they minister there, the firepans, the forks, and the shovels, and the basins, and all the vessels of the altar; and they shall spread on it a covering of badger skins, and insert its poles. And when Aaron and his sons have finished covering the sanctuary and all the furnishings of the sanctuary, when is set to go the camp, after that the sons of Kohath shall come to carry them; and they shall not touch unto any holy thing, lest they die. These are the things that are to carry the sons of Kohath in the Tent of Meeting. And the appointed duty of Eleazar son of Aaron the priest is the oil for the light, and the incense of spices, and the daily grain offering, and the anointing oil, the oversight of all the tabernacle, and of all that is in it, with the sanctuary and its furnishings.” And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Do not cut off the tribe of the clans of the Kohathite from the midst of the Levites. And this do in regard to them, that they may live and not die, when they approach the holy of holies: Aaron and his sons shall go in and appoint every man to his service and his task; they shall not go in to watch the holy things being covered, lest they die.” The Duties of the Gershonites (Numbers 3:21–26; 1 Chronicles 23:7–11) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Take a census of the sons of Gershon, even them, by the house of their fathers, by their clans. From a son of thirty years and above, even to a son of fifty years you shall number them, all who enter to perform the service, to do the work in the Tent of Meeting. This is the service of the clans of the Gershonite in serving and carrying: And they shall carry the curtains of the tabernacle, and the Tent of Meeting with its covering, and the covering of badger skins that is on it, and the screen of the door of the Tent of Meeting, and the hangings of the court, and the screen of the door of the gate of the court that is around the tabernacle, and the altar all around, and their cords, and all the furnishings for their service, and all that is made for these things; and they shall serve. Upon the appointment of Aaron and his sons shall be all the service of the sons of the Gershonite, all their tasks and all their service; and you⁺ shall appoint to them as their duty all their tasks. This is the service of the clans of the sons of the Gershonite in the Tent of Meeting, and their duties are by the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest. The Duties of the Merarites (Numbers 3:33–37; 1 Chronicles 23:21–23) As for the sons of Merari, by their clans, and by the house of their fathers, you shall number them, from a son of thirty years and above, and to a son of fifty years, you shall number them, everyone who enters the service, to do the work of the Tent of Meeting. And this is what they must carry as all their service for the Tent of Meeting: The boards of the tabernacle, and its bars, and its pillars, and its bases. And the pillars around the court, and their bases, and pegs, and cords, with all their furnishings, and all their service; and by name you⁺ shall assign the items of the charge of their burden. This is the service of the clans of the sons of Merari, as all their service, for the Tent of Meeting, by the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest.” The Numbering of the Levite Clans And Moses and Aaron and the leaders of the congregation numbered the sons of the Kohathite by their clans, and by the house of their fathers, from a son of thirty years and above and to a son of fifty years, everyone who entered the service, for work in the Tent of Meeting. And those numbered by their clans were two thousand seven hundred and fifty. These were the ones who were numbered of the clans of the Kohathite, all who might serve in the Tent of Meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, according to the commandment of YHWH, by the hand of Moses. And those numbered of the sons of Gershon, by their clans, and by the house of their fathers, from a son of thirty years and above and to a son of fifty years, everyone who entered the service, for work in the Tent of Meeting, and those numbered by their clans, by the house of their fathers, were two thousand and six hundred and thirty. These are those numbered of the clans of the sons of Gershon, of all who might serve in the Tent of Meeting, whom Moses and Aaron numbered according to the commandment of YHWH. And those numbered of the clans of the sons of Merari, by their clans, by the house of their fathers, from a son of thirty years and above and to a son of fifty years, everyone who entered the service, for work in the Tent of Meeting, and those numbered by their clans, were three thousand and two hundred. These are those numbered of the clans of the sons of Merari, whom Moses and Aaron numbered, according to the word of YHWH, by the hand of Moses. All who were numbered, whom Moses and Aaron and the leaders of Israel numbered of the Levites by their clans, and by the houses of their fathers, from a son of thirty years and above and to a son of fifty years, everyone who came to do the work of the service and the work of bearing burdens in the Tent of Meeting, even those numbered were eight thousand and five hundred and eighty. According to the commandment of YHWH they were numbered by the hand of Moses, man by man according to his service, and according to his task; and they were numbered by him as YHWH commanded Moses. Cleansing the Camps (Leviticus 13:1–46) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the sons of Israel, and they shall put out of the camp every leper,5.2 Forms of the Hebrew tzaraath, traditionally translated as leprosy, were used for various skin diseases; see Leviticus 13. and everyone who has a discharge, and everyone defiled by a corpse. From male to female you⁺ shall put out, toward the outside of the camp you⁺ shall put them, that they may not defile their camps in the midst of which I dwell.” And the sons of Israel did so, and put them toward the outside of the camp; as YHWH spoke to Moses, so the sons of Israel did. Confession and Restitution (Luke 19:1–10) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, a man or woman, when they do from all the sins of the man, to act unfaithfully—an unfaithfulness—against YHWH, and that soul is guilty, and he shall confess the sin that he has committed, and He shall make restitution for his trespass in full, and plus a fifth of it to it, and give it to the one he has done wrong unto him. But if the man has no redeemer to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution for the wrong is unto YHWH, for the priest, in addition to the ram of the atonement, with which atonement is made for him. And every contribution of all the holy things of the sons of Israel, which they bring to the priest, unto him shall be. And every man’s holy things shall be unto him; whatever any man gives the priest shall be unto him.” The Adultery Test And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them: A man, a man—when his wife goes astray and she acts unfaithfully against him—an unfaithfulness— and a man lying with her lies, sowing, and it is hidden from the eyes of her husband, and it is concealed, and she has defiled herself, and there is no witness against her, and she was not caught, and if the spirit of jealousy comes upon him and he becomes jealous of his wife, and she has defiled herself; or if a spirit of jealousy comes upon him, and he becomes jealous of his wife although she has not defiled herself, then the man shall bring his wife to the priest. And He shall bring the offering required for her, a tenth of an ephah of barley meal.5.15 A tenth of an ephah is approximately 2 dry quarts or 2.2 liters (probably about 3.5 pounds or 1.6 kilograms of barley flour). He shall not pour on it oil and not put on it frankincense, because it is a grain offering of jealousy, an offering of memorial, for bringing to remembrance iniquity. And the priest shall bring her near and set her before the face of YHWH. And the priest shall take holy water in an earthen vessel, and some of the dust that is on the floor of the tabernacle the priest shall take and put it into the water. And the priest shall have the woman stand before the face of YHWH, and he shall uncover the head of the woman and put in her hands the offering of the memorial, that is the grain offering of jealousy. And in his hand the priest shall have the bitter water that brings a curse. And the priest shall put her under oath and say to the woman, ‘If no man has lain with you, and if you have not gone astray to uncleanness while under your husband, be free from these bitter waters that bring the curse. And if you have gone astray while under your husband, and if you have defiled yourself, and some man has lain with you in intercourse, other than your husband’— then the priest shall put the woman under the curse of the oath—and the priest shall say to the woman, ‘YHWH will make you an oath and a curse in the midst of your people, when YHWH makes your thigh to rot and your belly to swell. And may these waters that cause the curse go into your stomach, and make swell your belly, and your thigh rot.’ And the woman shall say, ‘Amen, Amen.’ And the priest shall write these oaths in the book, and he shall wipe them off into the bitter water. And he shall make the woman drink the bitter waters that bring a curse, and the waters that bring the curse shall enter into her for bitterness. And the priest shall take from the hand of the woman the grain offering of jealousy, and he shall wave the offering before the face of YHWH and bring it to the altar. And the priest shall take a handful of the offering as its memorial and burn it on the altar, and afterward he shall make the woman drink the water. And he shall make her drink the water, and it shall come to pass if she has defiled herself and acted unfaithfully—an unfaithfulness—against her husband, that the water bringing a curse will enter into her for bitterness, and her belly will swell, and her thigh will rot, and the woman will become a curse among her people. But if the woman has not defiled herself and she is clean, then she shall be free and she may be sown with seed. This is the law of jealousy, when a wife goes astray while under her husband and defiles herself, or when the spirit of jealousy comes upon a man, and he becomes jealous of his wife. And he shall have the woman stand before the face of YHWH, and the priest shall apply upon her all this law. And the man shall be free from iniquity, and that woman shall bear her iniquity.” The Nazirite Vow (Judges 13:1–25) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, when a man or woman consecrates an offering, to vow the vow of a Nazirite,6.2 Nazirite means one separated or one consecrated. to separate himself unto YHWH, he shall separate himself from wine and strong drink. He shall not drink vinegar of wine or vinegar of strong drink. And he shall not drink any grape juice, and he shall not eat fresh grapes or raisins. All the days of his separation, of all that is produced by the grapevine—from seed and up to skin—he shall not eat. All the days of the vow of his separation, no razor shall come upon his head. Until the fulfilling of the days for which he separated himself unto YHWH, he shall be holy; he shall let grow the locks of the hair of his head. All the days that he separates himself unto YHWH, a dead body he shall not go near. Even for his father or his mother, for his brother or his sister, he shall not make himself unclean when they die, because the separation of his God is on his head. All the days of his separation, he shall be holy unto YHWH. And if someone actually dies beside him very suddenly, and he defiles his consecrated head, then he shall shave his head on the day of his cleansing; on the seventh day he shall shave it. And on the eighth day he shall bring two turtledoves or two sons of a pigeon to the priest, to the door of the Tent of Meeting. And the priest shall offer one for a sin offering,6.11 Or purification offering; here and throughout Numbers and one for a burnt offering, and he shall make atonement upon him from which he sinned regarding the corpse, and he shall sanctify his head that day. And He shall consecrate to YHWH the days of his separation, and he shall bring a male lamb, a son of a year, as a guilt offering; and the former days shall be lost, because his separation was defiled. And this is the law of the Nazirite on a day fulfilling the days of his separation. He shall be brought to the door of the Tent of Meeting. And he shall present his offering to YHWH: One male lamb, a son of a year, unblemished, as a burnt offering, and one ewe lamb, a daughter of a year, unblemished, as a sin offering, and one ram, unblemished, as peace offerings, and a basket of unleavened of fine flour, cakes mixed with the oil, and unleavened wafers anointed with the oil, and their grain offerings, and their drink offerings. And the priest shall bring them before the face of YHWH and offer his sin offering and his burnt offering. And he shall offer the ram as a sacrifice of peace offering to YHWH, with the basket of the unleavened bread; and the priest shall offer its grain offering and its drink offering. And the Nazirite shall shave at the door of the Tent of Meeting the head of his separation, and he shall take the hair of the head of his separation and put it on the fire that is under the sacrifice of the peace offerings. And the priest shall take the boiled shoulder of the ram, and one unleavened cake from the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and he shall put them on the palms of the Nazirite, after his shaving his separation. And the priest shall wave them as a wave offering before the face of YHWH; they are holy to the priest, together with the breast of the wave offering and the thigh of the contribution, and afterward the Nazirite may drink wine. This is the law of the Nazirite who vows the offering to YHWH for his separation, apart from whatever else his hand reaches; according to the vow that he takes, so he must do according to the law of his separation.” Aaron’s Blessing And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and his sons, saying, this is the way You⁺ shall bless the sons of Israel. Say to them, ‘YHWH bless you, and keep you. YHWH cause His face to shine upon you, and be gracious to you. YHWH lift up His countenance upon you, and give unto you peace.’ And they shall put My name on the sons of Israel, and I will bless them.” Offerings of Dedication And it came to pass on the day Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle that he anointed it and consecrated it and all its furnishings, and the altar and all its vessels. And he anointed them and consecrated them. The leaders of Israel, the heads of the houses of their fathers, they were the leaders of the tribes; these stood over the numbered and made an offering. And they brought their offering before the face of YHWH, six covered carts and twelve oxen—a cart for every two of the leaders and an ox for each one—and they presented them before the face of the tabernacle. And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Accept these from them, that they may be used in doing the work of the Tent of Meeting. And you shall give them to the Levites, to every man according to his service.” And Moses took the carts and the oxen and gave to them to the Levites. Two carts and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service, and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service, by the hand of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest. And to the sons of Kohath he gave none, because the service of the holy things was theirs, which they carried on the shoulder. And the leaders offered the dedication for the altar when it was anointed, and the leaders offered their offerings before the face of the altar. And YHWH said to Moses, “One the leader for the day—one the leader for the day—they shall offer their offerings for the dedication of the altar.” And it came to pass that the one who brought his offering on the first day was Nahshon son of Amminadab, from the tribe of Judah: And his offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels,7.13 130 shekels is approximately 3.3 pounds or 1.48 kilograms; here and throughout this chapter. and one silver bowl, seventy shekels7.13 70 shekels is approximately 1.76 pounds or 797.8 grams; here and throughout this chapter. according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels,7.14 10 shekels is approximately 4 ounces or 114 grams; here and throughout this chapter. full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Nahshon son of Amminadab. On the second day Nethanel son of Zuar, the leader of Issachar, drew near. He brought near his offering, one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Nethanel son of Zuar. On the third day, the leader of the sons of Zebulun, Eliab son of Helon: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Eliab son of Helon. On the fourth day, Elizur son of Shedeur, the leader of the sons of Reuben: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Elizur son of Shedeur. On the fifth day, the leader of the sons of Simeon, Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai. On the sixth day, the leader of the sons of Gad, Eliasaph son of Deuel: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Eliasaph son of Deuel. On the seventh day, the leader of the sons of Ephraim, Elishama son of Ammihud: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Elishama son of Ammihud. On the eighth day, the leader of the sons of Manasseh, Gamaliel son of Pedah-zur: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Gamaliel son of Pedahzur. On the ninth day, the leader of the sons of Benjamin, Abidan son of Gideoni: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Abidan son of Gideoni. On the tenth day, the leader of the sons of Dan, Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai. On the eleventh day, the leader of the sons of Asher, Pagiel son of Ocran: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Pagiel son of Ocran. On the twelfth day, the leader of the sons of Naphtali, Ahira son of Enan: His offering was one silver platter, its weight a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl, seventy shekels according to the shekel of the sanctuary, the two of them full of fine flour mixed with the oil as a grain offering; one gold spoon, ten shekels, full of incense; one bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and one male lamb, a son of a year, as a burnt offering; one kid of the goats as a sin offering; and for a sacrifice of the peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs, sons of a year. This was the offering of Ahira son of Enan. This was the dedication for the altar, in the day it was anointed, from the leaders of Israel: Twelve silver platters, twelve silver bowls, and twelve gold spoons. A hundred and Thirty shekels was the one silver platter, and the one bowl seventy shekels. All the silver of the vessels were two thousand and four hundred shekels,7.85 2,400 shekels is approximately 60.3 pounds or 27.4 kilograms. according to the shekel of the sanctuary. The twelve gold pans, full of incense, were ten by ten shekels apiece of the dishes, according to the shekel of the sanctuary; all the gold of the spoons were a hundred and twenty shekels.7.86 120 shekels is approximately 3 pounds or 1.4 kilograms. All the oxen for the burnt offering were twelve young bulls, twelve rams, twelve male lambs, sons of a year, and with their grain offerings, and twelve kids of the goats as a sin offering. And all the oxen for the sacrifice of the peace offerings were twenty-four bulls, sixty rams, sixty male goats, and sixty lambs, sons of a year; this was the dedication for the altar after it was anointed. And went Moses into the Tent of Meeting to speak with Him, and he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat7.89 Or atonement cover that was on the ark of the Testimony,7.89 That is, the ark of the covenant from between the two cherubim. And He spoke to him. The Lampstand (Exodus 25:31–40; Exodus 37:17–24) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Aaron and say to him, ‘When you lift up the lamps, the seven lamps shall give light to the front of the face of the lampstand.’” And Aaron did so. He lifted up the lamps toward the front face of the lampstand, as YHWH had commanded Moses. And this was the workmanship of the lampstand: Hammered gold—from its shaft to its flowers it was hammered work; according to the pattern that YHWH had shown Moses, so he made the lampstand. Cleansing the Levites And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel and cleanse them. Thus you shall do to them to cleanse them: Sprinkle on them waters of purification, and let a razor pass over all their flesh, and let them wash their clothes and make themselves clean. And let them take a bull, a son of the herd, and its grain offering of fine flour mixed with the oil; and a second bull, a son of the herd, you shall take as a sin offering. And you shall bring the Levites before the face of the Tent of Meeting, and you shall gather together all the congregation of the sons of Israel. And you shall bring the Levites before the face of YHWH, and the sons of Israel shall lay their hands on the Levites. And Aaron shall offer the Levites a wave offering before the face of YHWH from the sons of Israel, that they may perform the service of YHWH. And the Levites shall lay their hands on the heads of the young bulls, and you shall offer the one for a sin offering and the one for a burnt offering to YHWH, to make atonement upon the Levites. And you shall stand the Levites before the face of Aaron and his sons, and wave them as a wave offering to YHWH. And you shall separate the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel, and the Levites shall be unto Me. And after that the Levites shall go in to serve at the Tent of Meeting. And you shall cleanse them and offer them as a wave offering. For they are wholly given to Me from the midst of the sons of Israel. Instead of him who opens every womb—the firstborn of all the sons of Israel—I have taken them for Myself. For Mine are all the firstborn among the sons of Israel, the man and the beast. On the day that I struck all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, I sanctified them to Myself. And I have taken the Levites instead of all the firstborn of the sons of Israel. And I have given the Levites as a gift to Aaron and his sons from the midst of the sons of Israel, to do the work of the sons of Israel in the Tent of Meeting, and to make atonement upon the sons of Israel, and there will be no plague among the sons of Israel at the coming of the sons of Israel to the sanctuary.” And Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the sons of Israel did to the Levites according to all that YHWH commanded Moses concerning the Levites; so the sons of Israel did to them. And the Levites cleansed themselves from sin, and they washed their clothes, and Aaron presented them as a wave offering before the face of YHWH, and Aaron made atonement upon them to cleanse them. And after that, the Levites went in to do their work in the Tent of Meeting before the face of Aaron and his sons. As YHWH commanded Moses concerning the Levites, so they did to them. Retirement for Levites And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “This is what is unto the Levites: From a son of five and twenty years and above, one may enter to perform the service in the work of the Tent of Meeting. And from a son of fifty years, they must cease from the host of the service, and shall not serve anymore. And they may minister with their brothers in the Tent of Meeting to keep the charge, and they shall not do work. Thus you shall do for the Levites in their duties.” The Second Passover (Exodus 12:1–13) And YHWH spoke to Moses in the Wilderness of Sinai the second year after they had come out of the land of Egypt, in the first month, saying, “And let the sons of Israel keep the Passover at its appointed time. On the fourteenth day of this month, between the evenings,9.3 That is, at twilight; also in verses 5 and 11 you⁺ shall keep it at its appointed time. According to all its statutes and ordinances you⁺ shall keep it.” And Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, that they should keep the Passover. And they kept the Passover in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, between the evenings, in the Wilderness of Sinai; according to all that YHWH commanded Moses, so the sons of Israel did. And there were men who were defiled by the body of a man, so that they could not keep the Passover on that day. And they came before the face of Moses and Aaron that day. And those men said to him, “We are defiled by the body of a man; why are we restrained from presenting the offering of YHWH at its appointed time in the midst of the sons of Israel?” And Moses said to them, “Stand still, that I may hear what YHWH commands concerning you⁺.” And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If any man is unclean by a body or on a journey far away from you⁺ or your⁺ posterity, he may still keep the Passover of YHWH. In the second month, on the fourteenth day, between the evenings they may keep it; with unleavened bread and bitter herbs they shall eat it. They shall leave none of it until morning, and a bone of it they shall not break. According to all the ordinances of the Passover, they shall keep it. And the man who is clean, and not on a journey, and ceases to keep the Passover, that person shall be cut off from among his people, because he did not bring the offering of YHWH at its appointed time. That man, he shall bear His sin. And if a sojourner sojourns with you⁺ and would keep the Passover to YHWH, according to the statute of the Passover and according to its ordinance, so he must do; one ordinance you shall have unto you⁺ and unto the sojourner and unto the native of the land.’” The Cloud above the Tabernacle (Exodus 40:34–38) And on the day that the tabernacle was raised up, the cloud covered the tabernacle, the Tent of the Testimony. And from the evening it was above the tabernacle, like the appearance of fire, until morning. So it was continually: The cloud covered it by day,9.16 LXX, Syriac, and Vulgate; Hebrew does not include by day then the appearance of fire by night. And Whenever the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle, after that the sons of Israel would journey. And in the place where the cloud settled, there the sons of Israel would encamp. At the mouth of YHWH the sons of Israel would journey, and at the mouth of YHWH they would camp. All the days that the cloud remained above the tabernacle, they camped. And when the cloud continued long above the tabernacle many days, the sons of Israel kept the charge of YHWH and did not journey. And it was, when the cloud was a few days above the tabernacle, according to the command of YHWH, that they would remain encamped. And according to the mouth of YHWH they would journey. And it was, when the cloud remained only from evening until morning, and the cloud was taken up in the morning, that they would journey. Whether by day or by night, whenever the cloud was taken up, they would journey. Whether it was two days or a month or a year that the cloud remained above the tabernacle, remaining over it, the sons of Israel camped and did not journey; and when it was lifted up, they would journey. At the mouth of YHWH they remained encamped, and at the mouth of YHWH they journeyed; they kept the charge of YHWH, at the mouth of YHWH by the hand of Moses. The Two Silver Trumpets And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Make for yourself two silver trumpets. Of hammered work you shall make them, and you shall make use of them for calling the congregation, and for pulling up the camps. And they shall blow both of them, and all the congregation shall gather before you at the door of the Tent of Meeting. But if they blow with one, the leaders, the heads of the divisions of Israel, shall gather to you. And you⁺ shall blow a short blast, and the camps that lie on the east side shall set out. And you⁺ shall blow a second short blast, and the camps that lie on the south side shall set out. A short blast they shall blow to set out. And in the assembling of the assembly, you⁺ shall blow, and not sound a short blast. And the sons of Aaron, the priests, shall blow the trumpets; and these shall be to you⁺ as an ordinance forever throughout your⁺ generations. And when you⁺ go into battle in your⁺ land against the adversary who oppresses you⁺, you⁺ shall sound a short blast with the trumpets, and you⁺ will be remembered before the face of YHWH your⁺ God, and you⁺ will be saved from your⁺ enemies. And in the day of your⁺ gladness, and in your⁺ appointed feasts, and at the beginning of your⁺ months, you⁺ shall blow the trumpets over your⁺ burnt offerings, and over the sacrifices of your⁺ peace offerings, and they shall be for you⁺ a memorial before the face of your⁺ God. I am YHWH your⁺ God.” From Sinai to Paran And it came to pass in the second year, in the second month, on the twentieth of the month, that the cloud was taken up from above the tabernacle of the Testimony. And the sons of Israel set out on their journeys from the Wilderness of Sinai. And the cloud settled down in the Wilderness of Paran. And they set out at the first according to the mouth of YHWH by the hand of Moses. And the standard of the camp of the sons of Judah set out at the first, according to their armies, and over their army was Nahshon son of Amminadab. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Issachar was Nethanel son of Zuar. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Zebulun was Eliab son of Helon. And the tabernacle was taken down, and the sons of Gershon and the sons of Merari set out, carrying the tabernacle. And the standard of the camp of Reuben set out, according to their armies, and over their army was Elizur son of Shedeur. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Simeon was Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Gad was Eliasaph son of Deuel. And the Kohathites set out, carrying the holy things; and the tabernacle was to be prepared for their arrival. And the standard of the camp of the sons of Ephraim set out, according to their armies, and over their army was Elishama son of Ammihud. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Manasseh was Gamaliel son of Pedah-zur. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Benjamin was Abidan son of Gideoni. And the standard of the camp of the sons of Dan set out, the rear guard of all the camps, according to their armies, and over their army was Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Asher was Pagiel son of Ocran. And over the army of the tribe of the sons of Naphtali was Ahira son of Enan. These were the order of march of the sons of Israel according to their armies, and they began their journey. And Moses said to Hobab son of Reuel the Midianite,10.29 Reuel was also called Jethro; see Exodus 3:1. father-in-law of Moses, “We are setting out for the place of which YHWH said, ‘I will give it to you⁺.’ Come with us and we will treat you well, for YHWH has promised good things to Israel.” And he said to him, “I will not go. But I will depart to my land and to my relatives.” And Moses said, “Please do not leave us, for upon thus you know how we are to camp in the wilderness, and you can be our eyes. And it shall be, if you go with us, indeed it shall be that whatever good YHWH will do to us, the same we will do to you.” And they departed from the mountain of YHWH on a journey of three days, and the ark of the covenant of YHWH went before them for the journey three days to search out for them a resting place. And the cloud of YHWH was above them by day, when they set out from the camp. And it came to pass in the journeying of the ark that Moses said, “Rise up, O YHWH! And let Your enemies be scattered, and let those who hate You flee from your face.” And in its resting he said, “Return, O YHWH, to the myriads, the thousands of Israel.” The Complaints of the People And the people complained of adversity, and it displeased YHWH. For YHWH heard it, and His anger was kindled. And the fire of YHWH burned among them and consumed some in the outskirts of the camp. And the people cried out to Moses, and Moses prayed to YHWH, and the fire was quenched. And he called the name of that place Taberah, because the fire of YHWH had burned among them. 11.3 Taberah means burning. And the rabble who were among them had yielded to craving, and the sons of Israel also again wept and said, “Who will let us eat flesh? We remember the fish that we ate in Egypt freely, the cucumbers, and the melons, and the leeks, and the onions, and the garlic. And our soul is dried up. There is nothing at all, except this manna unto our eyes.” And the manna was like coriander seed, and its eye was like the eye of bdellium. The people went about and gathered it, and ground it on millstones, or beat it in the mortar, and cooked it in the pan, and made cakes of it. And its taste was like the taste of the pastry of oil. And in the descending of the dew on the camp by night, the manna fell on it. The Complaint of Moses And Moses heard the people weeping throughout their families, everyone at the door of his tent, and the anger of YHWH was kindled greatly; and in the eyes of Moses it was evil. And Moses said to YHWH, “Why have You afflicted Your servant? And why have I not found favor in Your eyes, that You have laid the burden of all this people on me? Did I conceive all this people? Or did I beget them, that You should say to me, ‘Carry them in your bosom, as a guardian carries a nursing child,’ to the land that You swore to their fathers? From where to me is flesh to give to all this people? For they weep over me, saying, ‘Give us flesh, that we may eat.’ I am not able to bear all this people alone, because it is too heavy for me. And if You treat me like this, kill me, please, right now—if I have found favor in Your eyes—and do not let me see my wretchedness.” Seventy Elders Anointed And YHWH said to Moses, “Gather to Me seventy men of the elders of Israel, whom you know that they are elders of the people and officers over them, and bring them to the Tent of Meeting, that they may stand there with you. And I will come down and talk with you there, and I will take of the Spirit that is upon you, and will put the same upon them. And they shall bear with you the burden of the people, that you may not bear it yourself alone. And to the people you shall say, Consecrate yourselves for tomorrow, and you⁺ shall eat flesh, for you⁺ have wept in the ears of YHWH, saying, ‘Who will let us eat flesh, for it was well with us in Egypt.’ And YHWH will give to you⁺ flesh, and you⁺ shall eat. You⁺ shall not eat one day, and not two days, and not five days, and not ten days, and not twenty days, but for a month of days, until that it comes out of your⁺ nostrils and becomes loathsome to you⁺, because that you⁺ have despised YHWH who is among you⁺, and you wept before His face, saying, ‘Why is this that we have come out of Egypt?’” And Moses said, “Are six hundred thousand men on foot, the people whom I am among, and You have said, ‘Flesh I will give them, that they may eat for a month of days.’ Shall flock and herd be slaughtered for them to provide enough for them? Or shall all the fish of the sea be gathered together for them to provide enough for them?” And YHWH said to Moses, “Is the arm of YHWH too short? Now you shall see if My word will come to pass, or not.” And Moses went out and spoke to the people the words of YHWH, and he gathered seventy men of the elders of the people and placed them around the tabernacle. And YHWH came down in the cloud, and spoke to him, and took of the Spirit that was upon him, and placed it upon the seventy elders. And it came to pass, when the Spirit rested upon them, that they prophesied—and they never did again. And two men had remained in the camp—the name of one was Eldad and the name of the second Medad. And the Spirit rested upon them, and they were among those listed who had not gone out to the tabernacle, and they prophesied in the camp. And the young man ran and told Moses and said, “Eldad and Medad are prophesying in the camp.” And Joshua son of Nun, Moses’ assistant from his youth, answered and said, “My lord Moses, restrain them.” And Moses said to him, “Are you zealous for my sake? If only he would make all people of YHWH prophets, and that YHWH would put His Spirit upon them.” And Moses returned to the camp, he and the elders of Israel. The Quail and the Plague And a wind went out from YHWH, and it brought quail from the sea and left them near the camp, about a journey of a day on this side, and about a journey of a day on this side, all around the camp, and about two cubits above the surface of the ground.11.31 Or up to two cubits deep; that is, approximately 3 feet or 91.4 centimeters And the people stayed up all that day, and all the night, and all the next day, and they gathered the quail. He who had least gathered ten homers.11.32 10 homers is approximately 62.4 bushels or 2,200 liters. And they spread them out for themselves all around the camp. The flesh was still between their teeth, before it was chewed, and the anger of YHWH was kindled against the people, and YHWH struck the people with a very great plague. And he called the name of that place Kibroth-hattaavah, because there they buried the people who had craved. 11.34 Kibroth-hattaavah means graves of craving. From Kibroth-hattaavah the people moved to Hazeroth, and camped at Hazeroth. The Complaint of Miriam and Aaron And Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses, upon occasion of the Cushite the woman whom he had taken; for he had taken a Cushite woman. And they said, “Is it only indeed through Moses that YHWH has spoken? Is it not also through us that He has spoken?” And YHWH heard it. And the man Moses was very humble, more than all men who were on the face of the earth. And YHWH said suddenly to Moses and Aaron and Miriam, “Come out, you⁺ three, to the Tent of Meeting.” And the three came out. And YHWH came down in the pillar of cloud, and stood in the door of the tabernacle, and called Aaron and Miriam; and both of them went forward. And He said, “Hear now My words: If there is a prophet among you⁺, I, YHWH, make Myself known to him in a vision; I speak to him in a dream. Not so My servant Moses; in all My house He is faithful. 12.7 Cited in Hebrews 3:5 I speak with him mouth to mouth, and even plainly and not in riddles; and the form of YHWH he sees. And why were you⁺ not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?” And the anger of YHWH was kindled against them, and He departed. And the cloud departed from above the Tent, and behold, Miriam was leprous12.10 The Hebrew word traditionally translated as leprous was used for various skin diseases; see Leviticus 13. as snow. And Aaron turned toward Miriam, and behold, she was leprous. And Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, please do not lay on us this sin, which we have done foolishly and in which we have sinned. Please do not let her be as one dead, who in his coming out from the womb of his mother, half of his flesh is consumed.” And Moses cried out to YHWH, saying, “O God, please, please, heal her.” And YHWH said to Moses, “And if her father surely had spit in her face, would not she be shamed seven days? Let her be shut seven days outside of the camp, and afterward she may be received.” And Miriam was shut outside of the camp seven days, and the people did not journey until the bringing in of Miriam. And afterward the people set out from Hazeroth, and they camped in the Wilderness of Paran. The Spies Explore Canaan (Deuteronomy 1:19–25) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Send men, and they shall spy out the land of Canaan, which I am giving to the sons of Israel. One man—you⁺ shall send one man for the tribe of their fathers, each one a leader among them.” And Moses sent them from the Wilderness of Paran according to the mouth of YHWH; all the men were heads of the sons of Israel. And these were their names: From the tribe of Reuben, Shammua son of Zaccur. From the tribe of Simeon, Shaphat son of Hori. From the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh. From the tribe of Issachar, Igal son of Joseph. From the tribe of Ephraim, Hoshea son of Nun. From the tribe of Benjamin, Palti son of Raphu. From the tribe of Zebulun, Gaddiel son of Sodi. From a tribe of Joseph (from the tribe of Manasseh), Gaddi son of Susi. From the tribe of Dan, Ammiel son of Gemalli. From the tribe of Asher, Sethur son of Michael. From the tribe of Naphtali, Nahbi son of Vophsi. From the tribe of Gad, Geuel son of Machi. These are the names of the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land. And Moses called Hoshea son of Nun Joshua. And Moses sent them to spy out the land of Canaan, and said to them, “Go up this way into the Negev, and go up to the mountain. And see the land, how it is, and the people dwelling in it, is he strong or weak, is he few or many; and how is the land in which he is dwelling, is it good or bad; and how are the cities in which he is dwelling, in camps or in fortifications; and how is the land, is it fat or lean, is there wood in it or not. And be of good courage, and bring some of the fruit of the land.” (And the time was the season of the firstfruits of grapes.) And they went up and spied out the land, from the Wilderness of Zin as far as Rehob, at the going in to Hamath. And they went up through the Negev and came to Hebron, and there were Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai—those born of Anak. And Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt. And they came to the Valley of Eshcol,13.23 Eshcol means cluster; also in verse 24. and there they cut down a branch with one cluster of grapes, and they carried it on a pole between two of them; and they also brought some of the pomegranates and figs. That place was called the Valley of Eshcol, on account of the cluster that the men of Israel cut down there. The Reports of the Spies And they returned from spying out the land at the end of forty days. And they departed and came back to Moses and Aaron and all the congregation of the sons of Israel in the Wilderness of Paran, at Kadesh. And to all the congregation they brought back to them word and showed them the fruit of the land. And they recounted to him and said, “We went to the land where you sent us, and truly it is flowing with milk and honey; and this is its fruit! Nevertheless indeed the people who dwell in the land are strong, and the cities are fortified, and very large. And moreover, we saw those born of Anak there. The Amalekite dwell in the land of the Negev; and the Hittite, and the Jebusite, and the Amorite dwell in the hill country; and the Canaanite dwell by the sea and along the banks of the Jordan.” And Caleb quieted the people before Moses, and said, “Let us surely go up and take possession of it; for we can certainly prevail in it.” And the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people; for it is stronger than we.” And they gave a bad report of the land that they had spied out unto the sons of Israel, saying, “The land that we have gone into as spies is a land that devours its dwellers, and all the people whom we saw in its midst are men of great stature. And there we saw the Nephilim, the sons of Anak from the Nephilim! And we were in our own sight like grasshoppers; and so we were in their eyes.” Israel’s Rebellion (Deuteronomy 1:26–33) And all the congregation lifted up and gave forth their voices, and the people wept that night. And all the sons of Israel complained against Moses and Aaron, and the whole congregation said to them, “If only we had died in the land of Egypt, or if only we had died in this wilderness! And why has YHWH brought us to this land to fall by the sword, that our wives and children should become victims? Would it not be better for us to return to Egypt?” And they said a man to his brother, “Let us set a leader and return to Egypt.” And Moses and Aaron fell on their faces before the face of all the assembly of the congregation of the sons of Israel. And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who were among those who had spied out the land, tore their clothes, and they spoke to all the congregation of the sons of Israel, saying, “The land that we passed through to spy out is a very exceedingly good land. And if YHWH delights in us, He will bring us into this land and give it to us, a land that flows with milk and honey. Only against YHWH do not rebel—you⁺—nor fear the people of the land, for they are our bread. Their protection has departed from them, and YHWH is with us. Do not fear them!” And all the congregation said to stone them with stones. And the glory of YHWH appeared in the Tent of Meeting before all the sons of Israel. And YHWH said to Moses, “How long will this people reject Me, and how long will they not believe in Me, despite all the signs that I have performed among them? I will strike them with the pestilence and disinherit them, and I will make of you a nation greater and mightier than they.” Moses Intercedes for Israel And Moses said to YHWH, “Then the Egyptians will hear it, for by Your power You brought up this people from among them. And they will tell to those dwelling in this land that they have heard that You, O YHWH, are among this people, that eye to eye You are seen, O YHWH, and Your cloud stands above them, and in a pillar of cloud You go before their faces by day, and in a pillar of fire by night. And if You kill this people as one man, the nations that have heard of Your fame will speak, saying, ‘Because YHWH was not able to bring this people to the land that He swore to give them, therefore He killed them in the wilderness.’ And now, please, let the power of my Lord be great, as You have spoken, saying, ‘YHWH is slow to anger, and abundant in loving devotion,14.18 Forms of the Hebrew chesed are translated here and in most cases throughout the Scriptures as loving devotion; the range of meaning includes love, goodness, kindness, faithfulness, and mercy, as well as loyalty to a covenant. forgiving iniquity and transgression, and He aquits by no means, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the sons on the thirds and on the fourths.’ Pardon, please, the iniquity of this people according to the greatness of Your loving devotion, and as You have forgiven this people from Egypt even until now.” God’s Forgiveness and Judgment (Deuteronomy 1:34–40) And YHWH said, “I have pardoned according to your word, but truly as I live, all the earth shall be filled with the glory of YHWH; indeed all these men who have seen My glory and the signs that I did in Egypt and in the wilderness, and have put Me to the test these ten times and have not heeded My voice, they shall surely not see the land that I swore to their fathers. And any of those who rejected Me shall not see it. And My servant Caleb, because he has a different spirit in him and has fully followed Me, I will bring into the land that he went into, and his seed shall inherit it. And the Amalekite and the Canaanite are dwelling in the valley; tomorrow turn and move out for yourselves into the wilderness by the Way of the Red Sea.14.25 Or the Sea of Reeds” And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “How long do I bear this evil congregation, they who complain against Me? I have heard the complaints of the sons of Israel, which they make against Me. Say to them, as I live, says YHWH, very truly as you⁺ have spoken in My hearing, so will I do to you⁺. In this wilderness your⁺ corpses shall fall, and all your⁺ numbered, according to your⁺ entire number, from a son of twenty years and above, because you⁺ have grumbled against Me. By no means shall you⁺ enter into the land, which I lifted up My hand to make you⁺ dwell in it, except for Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. And your⁺ little ones, whom you⁺ said would be victims, I will bring in, and they shall know the land that you have despised. And as for you⁺, your⁺ carcasses shall fall in this wilderness. And your⁺ sons shall be shepherds wandering in the wilderness forty years, and shall bear the brunt of your⁺ infidelity, until your⁺ carcasses are consumed in the wilderness. By the number of the days in which you⁺ spied out the land, forty days—a day for the year, a day for the year—you⁺ shall bear your⁺ guilt forty years, and you⁺ shall know My rejection. I, YHWH, have spoken. Surely I will do this to all this evil congregation who are gathered together against Me. In this wilderness they shall be consumed, and there they shall die.” The Plague on the Ten Spies And the men whom Moses sent to spy out the land, and who returned and made complain all the congregation against him by bringing a bad report of the land— those very men who brought an evil report about the land died by the plague before the face of YHWH. And Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh remained alive of those men who went to spy out the land. And Moses told these words to all the sons of Israel, and the people mourned greatly. The Defeat at Hormah (Deuteronomy 1:41–46) And they rose early in the morning and went up to the top of the mountain, saying, “Here we are, and we will go up to the place that YHWH has promised. For we have sinned.” And Moses said, “Why is this—you⁺ are passing over the mouth of YHWH? For that will not succeed. Do not go up, for YHWH is not among you⁺, lest you⁺ be struck down before the face of your⁺ enemies. For the Amalekite and the Canaanite are there before you⁺, and you⁺ shall fall by the sword, for upon thus you⁺ have turned away from YHWH, and YHWH will not be with you⁺.” And they presumed to go up unto the top of the hill; and neither the ark of the covenant of YHWH, nor Moses, departed from the midst of the camp. And the Amalekite and the Canaanite who dwelt in that mountain came down and attacked them, and drove them back as far as Hormah. Laws about Offerings And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them: When you⁺ enter into the land you⁺ are to inhabit, which I am giving to you⁺, and you⁺ make a fire offering to YHWH, a burnt offering, or a sacrifice to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering, or in your⁺ appointed feasts, to make a pleasing aroma to YHWH, from the herd or from the flock, then he who is bringing near his offering to YHWH shall bring a grain offering of fine flour, a tenth of an ephah,15.4 A tenth of an ephah is approximately 2 dry quarts or 2.2 liters (probably about 2.6 pounds or 1.2 kilograms of flour). mixed with a fourth of a hin of oil.15.4 Or a fourth of a hin of olive oil; that is, approximately 0.97 quarts or 0.92 liters; similarly in verse 5 And wine as a drink offering, a fourth of a hin you shall prepare with the burnt offering or the sacrifice, for the one lamb. Or for a ram you shall prepare as a grain offering fine flour, two tenths of an ephah,15.6 Two-tenths of an ephah is approximately 4 dry quarts or 4.4 liters (probably about 5.1 pounds or 2.3 kilograms of flour). mixed with the oil, a third of a hin.15.6 Or a third of a hin of oil; that is, approximately 1.3 quarts or 1.2 liters; similarly in verse 7 And wine as a drink offering, a third of a hin, you shall offer, a pleasing aroma to YHWH. And when you prepare a son of the herd as a burnt offering, or as a sacrifice to fulfill a vow, or as peace offerings to YHWH, then shall be offered with a son of the herd a grain offering of fine flour three tenths of an ephah,15.9 Three-tenths of an ephah is approximately 6 dry quarts or 6.6 liters (probably about 7.6 pounds or 3.5 kilograms of flour). mixed with the oil, half a hin.15.9 half a hin of oil is, approximately 1.9 quarts or 1.8 liters; similarly in verse 10 And you shall bring wine as the drink offering, and half a hin as a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH. Thus it shall be done for one bull, or for one ram, or for a lamb of the sheep or young goat. By the number that you⁺ prepare, so you⁺ shall do for each one according to their number. All the native shall do in this manner these things in presenting a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH. And if a sojourner sojourns with you⁺, or whoever is in your⁺ midst throughout your⁺ generations, and he would present a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH—as you⁺ do, so shall he do. One ordinance is for you⁺ of the assembly and for the sojourner who is sojourning, an everlasting ordinance throughout your⁺ generations. As you⁺ are, shall be as the sojourner before the face of YHWH. One law and one ordinance shall be for you⁺ and for the sojourner who is sojourning with you⁺.” And YHWH again spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them: When you⁺ come into the land to which I bring you⁺, then it will be that when you⁺ eat of the bread of the land, you⁺ shall offer up a contribution to YHWH. From the first of your⁺ ground meal you⁺ shall offer up a cake as a contribution; as a contribution of the threshing floor, so shall you⁺ offer it up. Of the first of your⁺ ground meal you⁺ shall give to YHWH a contribution throughout your⁺ generations. Offerings for Unintentional Sins And if you⁺ err15.22 Or sin unintentionally and do not observe all these commandments that YHWH has spoken to Moses, all that YHWH has commanded to you⁺ by the hand of Moses, from the day that YHWH commanded and onward throughout your⁺ generations— then it will be, if away from the eyes of the congregation it is committed in error,15.24 Or unintentionally; here and throughout chapter that all the congregation shall offer one bull, a son of the herd, as a burnt offering, for a pleasing aroma to YHWH, and with its grain offering and its drink offering according to the ordinance, and one kid of the goats for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement upon the whole congregation of the sons of Israel, and it shall be forgiven for them, for it was an error. And they shall bring their offerings, a fire offering to YHWH, and their sin offering, before the face of YHWH for their error. And it shall be forgiven all the congregation of the sons of Israel, and the sojourner who is sojourning in their midst, because all the people did it in error. And if one person sins in error, he shall bring a female goat, a daughter of a year, as a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement upon the soul, the one who is erring when he sins in error before the face of YHWH, to make atonement upon him, and it shall be forgiven for him. The native among the sons of Israel and for the sojourner who is sojourning in their midst, there shall be one law for you⁺, for the one who sins in error. And the soul who does beguile by hand, from the native and from the sojourner, he reviles YHWH; that person shall be cut off from among his people. Because he has despised the word of YHWH and has broken His commandment, that person shall surely be cut off; his guilt is upon him.” A Sabbath-Breaker Stoned (Exodus 31:12–17) And while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation. And they put him under guard, because it had not been explained what should be done to him. And YHWH said to Moses, “The man must surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside of the camp.” And all the congregation brought him to the outside of the camp, and stoned him with stones, and he died, as YHWH had commanded Moses. The Law of Tassels And YHWH again spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and tell them to make for themselves tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put in the tassels of the corners a blue thread. And you⁺ shall have the tassel, that you⁺ may look upon it and remember all the commandments of YHWH and do them, and that you⁺ do not follow after your⁺ own heart and your⁺ own eyes, after them to which you⁺ are inclined to prostitute yourselves. Then you⁺ will remember and do all My commandments, and you⁺ shall be holy unto your⁺ God. I am YHWH your⁺ God, who brought you⁺ out of the land of Egypt to be your⁺ God; I am YHWH your⁺ God.” Korah’s Rebellion And Korah, son of Izhar, son of Kohath, son of Levi, took both Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On son of Peleth—the sons of Reuben, and they rose up before the face of Moses with men of the sons of Israel, two hundred and fifty leaders of the congregation, representatives of the congregation, men of renown. And they gathered together against Moses and Aaron and said to them, “It is too much upon yourselves!16.3 Figuratively You have gone too far or You have appropriated too much authority to yourselves; similarly in verse 7 For all the congregation, everyone of them, is holy, and YHWH is in their midst. And why do you⁺ exalt yourselves above the assembly of YHWH?” And Moses heard it, and he fell on his face. And he spoke to Korah and to all his company, saying, “In the morning YHWH will show who is unto Him and who is holy, and He will bring him near to Himself. And that one whom He chooses He will bring near to Himself. 16.5 LXX God has visited and knows those who are His; cited in 2 Timothy 2:19 Do this: Take to you⁺ firepans, Korah and all your company, and put fire in them and put incense in them before the face of YHWH tomorrow. And it shall be that the man whom YHWH chooses is the holy one. You take too much upon yourselves, you sons of Levi!” And Moses said to Korah, “Hear now, sons of Levi, is it a small thing to you⁺ that the God of Israel has separated you⁺ from the congregation of Israel, to bring you⁺ near to Himself to do the work of the tabernacle of YHWH and to stand before the face of the congregation to serve them? And He has brought near to Himself you and all your brothers, the sons of Levi with you—and you⁺ are seeking also the priesthood! Therefore you and all your company are gathered together against YHWH! And Aaron, what is he that you⁺ complain against him?” And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab. And they said, “We will not come up! Is it a small thing that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey, to kill us in the wilderness, that you should keep acting also a prince over us? Moreover, you have not brought us into a land flowing with milk and honey, nor given to us an inheritance of fields and vineyards. Will you put out the eyes of those men? We will not come up!” And Moses was very hot, and he said to YHWH, “Turn not to their offerings. Not one donkey from them have I taken, nor have I hurt one of them.” And Moses said to Korah, “You and all your company, be present before the face of YHWH, you and they and Aaron tomorrow, and let each take his firepan and put incense in it, and each of you bring his firepan before the face of YHWH, two hundred and fifty firepans—and you and Aaron, each with his firepan.” And every man took his firepan, and put in it fire, and laid incense on it, and stood at the door of the Tent of Meeting with Moses and Aaron. And Korah gathered against them all the assembly at the door of the Tent of Meeting. And the glory of YHWH appeared to all the congregation. And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “Separate yourselves from the midst of this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.” And they fell on their faces and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, the one man sins, and are You angry with all the congregation?” Moses Separates the People And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the congregation, saying, ‘Get away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.’” And Moses rose and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him. And he spoke to the congregation, saying, “Depart now from the tents of these wicked men, and do not touch anything that is unto them, lest you⁺ be consumed in all their sins.” And they got away from around the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, from all around. And Dathan and Abiram came out and stood at the door of their tents—and their wives, and their sons, and their infants. The Earth Swallows Korah And Moses said, “By this you⁺ shall know that YHWH has sent me to do all these works; for they are not from my own heart. If like the death of every man these ones die, or if the common fate of all men is visited upon them, then YHWH has not sent me. But if YHWH creates a new thing, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them and all that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the pit, then you⁺ will know that these men have spurned YHWH.” And it came to pass, as he finished speaking all these words, that the ground that was under them split apart, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and their houses, and all the men that were with Korah, and all the goods. And they went down—they and all those with them—alive into the pit, and the earth closed over them, and they perished from the midst of the assembly. And all Israel who were around them fled at their cry, for they said, “Lest the earth swallow us.” And a fire came out from YHWH and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who were offering the incense. The Censers Reserved for Holy Use And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, and he shall lift up the firepans out of the blaze and the fire to scatter some distance away, for they are holy. As for the censers of these sinners against their own souls, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar, because they presented them before the face of YHWH, and they are holy; and they shall be a sign to the sons of Israel.” And Eleazar the priest took the bronze firepans that the burned ones had presented, and they were hammered out as a covering on the altar, a memorial to the sons of Israel, so that a son of a foreigner who is not a descendant of Aaron should not come near to offer incense before the face of YHWH, that he might not become like Korah and his companions, as YHWH had said to him by the hand of Moses. Murmuring and Plague (1 Corinthians 10:1–13) And all the congregation of the sons of Israel murmured on the next day against Moses and Aaron, saying, “You⁺ have killed the people of YHWH.” And it came to pass, when the congregation had gathered against Moses and Aaron, that they turned toward the Tent of Meeting, and behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of YHWH appeared. And Moses and Aaron came to the face of the Tent of Meeting. And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Get away from the midst of this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.” And they fell on their faces. And Moses said to Aaron, “Take the firepan, and put on it fire from the altar, and set on it incense, and take it quickly to the congregation and make atonement upon them. For the wrath has gone out from before the face of YHWH—the plague has begun.” And Aaron took it as Moses commanded, and he ran into the midst of the assembly; and behold, the plague had begun among the people. And he put in the incense and made atonement upon the people. And he stood between the dead and between the living; and the plague was stopped. And those who died in the plague were fourteen thousand and seven hundred, besides those who died on account of Korah. And Aaron returned to Moses at the door of the Tent of Meeting, for the plague had stopped. Aaron’s Staff Buds And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, and get from them a staff, a rod from each house of a father, all their leaders according to the house of their father, twelve rods. You shall write the name of each man on his rod. And you shall write the name of Aaron on the rod of Levi, for there shall be one rod is for the head the house of their fathers. And you shall place them in the Tent of Meeting before the face of the Testimony,17.4 The Testimony refers to the stone tablets in the ark of the covenant inscribed with the Ten Commandments; also in verse 10. where I meet with you⁺. And it shall come to pass that the rod of the man whom I choose, it will blossom. And I will rid Myself of the complaints of the sons of Israel, which they make against you⁺.” And Moses spoke to the sons of Israel, and each of their leaders gave to him one rod for a leader, one apiece for a leader, according to the houses of their fathers—twelve rods—and the rod of Aaron was in the midst of their rods. And Moses placed the rods before the face of YHWH in the Tent of the Testimony. And it came to pass on the next day that Moses went into the tabernacle of witness, and behold, the rod of Aaron had sprouted for the house of Levi and put forth buds and produced blossoms and yielded almonds. And Moses brought out all the rods from before YHWH to all the sons of Israel, and they looked, and each man took his rod. And YHWH said to Moses, “Bring back the rod of Aaron before the face of the Testimony, to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put away their complaints against Me, lest they die.” And Moses did as YHWH had commanded him; so he did. And the sons of Israel spoke to Moses, saying, “Behold, we have expired, we have perished, all of us have perished. Whoever is at all drawing near unto the tabernacle of YHWH, he must die. Shall we all utterly die?” Duties of Priests and Levites And YHWH said to Aaron, “You and your sons and the house of your father with you shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary, and you and your sons with you shall bear the iniquity of your⁺ priesthood. And bring your brothers of the tribe of Levi, the tribe of your father, near with you, that they may be joined with you and serve you while you and your sons are with you before the Tent of the Testimony. And they shall attend to your needs and the needs of all the tabernacle. However, to the articles of the sanctuary and the altar they shall not come near, lest they die—both they and also you⁺. And they shall be joined with you and attend to the needs of the Tent of Meeting for all the work of the tabernacle; and an outsider may not come near to you⁺. And you⁺ shall attend to the duties of the sanctuary and the duties of the altar, that there be no more wrath on the sons of Israel. And I, behold, I have taken your⁺ brothers the Levites from the midst of the sons of Israel; to you⁺ they are a gift given by YHWH to do the work of the Tent of Meeting. Therefore you and your sons with you shall attend to your⁺ priesthood for everything concerning the altar and behind the veil, and you⁺ shall serve. I give to you your⁺ priesthood as a service for a gift, and the outsider who comes near shall be put to death.” Offerings for Priests and Levites And YHWH spoke to Aaron: “And I, behold, I have given you charge of My contributions. All the holy gifts of the sons of Israel to you I have given as a portion, and to your sons, as an ordinance forever. This shall be yours from the holy of holies,18.9 Or the most holy [things] from the fire: All their offerings, all grain offerings, and all sin offerings, and all guilt offerings, which they render to Me, it is holy of holies18.9 Or most holy to you and to your sons. In the holy of holies you shall eat it;18.10 Or You are to eat it in the most holy place every male shall eat it. It shall be holy to you. And this is yours: The contribution of their gift, with all the wave offerings of the sons of Israel; I have given them to you and to your sons and daughters with you as an everlasting ordinance. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it. All the best of the oil, and all the best of the new wine and the grain, their firstfruits that they offer to YHWH, I have given them to you. The firstfruits of all that is in their land, which they bring to YHWH, shall be unto you. Everyone who is clean in your house may eat it. Every devoted thing in Israel shall be unto you. Everything opening the womb of all flesh, which they bring to YHWH, whether the man or the beast, shall be yours. Nevertheless you must surely redeem the firstborn of the man, and the firstborn of the unclean animals you shall redeem. And their ransomed ones from a son of a month, you shall redeem according to your valuation for silver, five shekels,18.16 5 shekels is approximately 2 ounces or 57 grams of silver. according to the shekel of the sanctuary; it is twenty gerahs.18.16 20 gerahs is equivalent to one shekel (approximately 0.4 ounces or 11.4 grams). But the firstborn of a cow or the firstborn of a sheep or the firstborn of a goat you shall not redeem; they are holy. Their blood you shall sprinkle on the altar, and their fat you shall burn as a fire offering, for a pleasing aroma to YHWH. And their flesh shall be unto you, as the breast of the wave offering and the right thigh are unto you. All the contributions of the holy things, which the sons of Israel offer to YHWH, I have given to you and your sons and daughters with you as an everlasting statute. It is an everlasting covenant of salt before the face of YHWH with you and your seed with you.” And YHWH said to Aaron, “You shall not inherit in their land, and you shall not have any portion in their midst. I am your portion and your inheritance in the midst of the sons of Israel. And the sons of Levi, behold, I have given all the tithes in Israel as an inheritance, in return for the work that they perform, the service of the Tent of Meeting. And hereafter the sons of Israel shall not come near to the Tent of Meeting, lest they bear sin and die. And the Levite, he shall perform the work of the Tent of Meeting, and they shall bear their iniquity. It shall be a statute forever throughout your⁺ generations, and in the midst of the sons of Israel they shall have no inheritance. For the tithes of the sons of Israel, which they offer up to YHWH as a contribution, I have given to the Levites as an inheritance. Upon thus I have said to them: In the midst of the sons of Israel they shall not have an inheritance.” And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “And to the Levites speak and say to them, ‘When you⁺ take from the sons of Israel the tithes that I have given to you⁺ from them as your⁺ inheritance, you⁺ shall offer up from it a contribution to YHWH, a tenth of the tithe. And your⁺ contributions shall be reckoned to you⁺ as though it were the grain of the threshing floor, and as the fullness of the winepress. Thus you⁺ shall lift up—you⁺ also—a contribution to YHWH from all your⁺ tithes that you⁺ receive from the sons of Israel. And you⁺ shall give from it the contribution of YHWH to Aaron the priest. Of all your⁺ gifts you⁺ shall lift up every contribution of YHWH, from all its fat, its holy part from it.’ And you shall say to them, ‘In your⁺ lifting up its fat, from it then it shall be reckoned to the Levites as the produce of the threshing floor, and as the produce of the winepress. And You⁺ may eat it in any place, you⁺ and your⁺ house, for it is a reward to you⁺ for your⁺ work in the Tent of Meeting. And you⁺ shall not bear sin because of it, when you⁺ have lifted up its fat from it, and the holy gifts of the sons of Israel you⁺ shall not defile, lest you⁺ die.’” The Red Heifer And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, “This is the ordinance of the law that YHWH has commanded, saying, speak to the sons of Israel, and they shall bring to you an unblemished red heifer, in which there is no blemish, upon which a yoke never has gone up. And you⁺ shall give it to Eleazar the priest, and he shall bring it out toward the outside of the camp, and it shall be slaughtered before him. And Eleazar the priest shall take some of its blood with his finger and sprinkle toward opposite the face of the Tent of Meeting some of its blood seven times. And the heifer shall be burned before his eyes—its hide and its flesh and its blood and its dung shall be burned. And the priest shall take cedar wood and hyssop and scarlet and cast them into the midst of the burning heifer. And the priest shall wash his clothes, and he shall bathe his flesh in the water, and afterward he shall come into the camp; and the priest shall be unclean until the evening. And the one who burns it shall wash his clothes in the water and bathe his flesh in the water, and shall be unclean until the evening. And a man who is clean shall gather up the ashes of the heifer and store them outside of the camp in a clean place, and they shall be kept for the congregation of the sons of Israel for the water of purification; it is for purifying from sin. And the one who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes and be unclean until the evening. And it shall be a statute forever for the sons of Israel and for the sojourner who is sojourning in their midst. Purification of the Unclean And He who touches against the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days. He shall cleanse himself from sin with the water on the third day, and on the seventh day he will be clean. But if he does not cleanse himself from sin on the third day, and on the seventh day, he will not be clean. Anyone who touches the dead body of a man who has died, and does not cleanse himself from sin, he defiles the tabernacle of YHWH, and that person shall be cut off from Israel because the water of purification was not sprinkled on him. He shall be unclean; his uncleanness is on him still. This is the law of the man when he dies in a tent: All who come into the tent and all who are in the tent shall be unclean seven days. And every open vessel that has no cover fastened on it is unclean. And whoever touches in the open field one who is slain by a sword or who has died, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean seven days. And they shall take for the unclean some of the ashes of the burning for sin, and shall be put on them living water19.17 Or flowing water or fresh water in a vessel. And a man who is ceremonially clean shall take hyssop and dip it in the water and sprinkle it on the tent and on all the vessels and on the persons who were there, or on the one who touched against a bone, or against the slain, or against the dead, or against a grave. And the clean one shall sprinkle it on the unclean on the third day and on the seventh day, and he shall cleanse him from sin on the seventh day and wash his clothes and bathe in the water, and he shall be clean at the evening. And the man who is unclean and does not cleanse himself from sin, that person shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly, because he has defiled the sanctuary of YHWH. The water of purification has not been sprinkled on him; he is unclean. And it shall be for them an everlasting statute. He who sprinkles the water of purification shall wash his clothes, and he who touches the water of purification shall be unclean until the evening. And whatever the unclean one touches in it shall be unclean, and the person who touches it shall be unclean until the evening.” Water from the Rock (Exodus 17:1–7) And the sons of Israel came, all the congregation, into the Wilderness of Zin in the first month, and the people stayed in Kadesh. And Miriam died there and was buried there. And there was no water for the congregation, and they gathered together against Moses and Aaron. And the people contended with Moses and spoke, saying, “And if only we had utterly perished with our brothers before the face of YHWH! And why have you⁺ brought up the assembly of YHWH into this wilderness to die—here—we and our livestock? And why have you⁺ made us come up out of Egypt to bring us to this evil place? It is not a place of grain or figs or vines or pomegranates, and there is no water to drink.” And Moses and Aaron went from the presence of the assembly to the door of the Tent of Meeting, and they fell on their faces. And the glory of YHWH appeared to them. And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Take the rod and gather together the congregation, you and Aaron your brother, and speak to the rock before their eyes; and it will yield its water. And you shall bring for them water from the rock and give drink to the congregation and their livestock.” And Moses took the rod from before YHWH, as He had commanded him. And Moses and Aaron gathered together the assembly to the face of the rock, and he said to them, “Hear now, you rebels; shall we bring forth for you⁺ water from this rock?” And Moses lifted up his hand and struck the rock with his rod twice. And abundant water came out, and the congregation drank, and their livestock. And YHWH said to Moses and Aaron, “Because you⁺ did not believe Me, to show My holiness in the eyes of the sons of Israel, therefore you⁺ shall not bring this assembly into the land that I have given them.” Those were the waters of Meribah,20.13 Meribah means quarreling; also in verse 24; see Exodus 17:7. because the sons of Israel contended with YHWH, and He was consecrated among them. Edom Refuses Passage And Moses sent messengers from Kadesh to the king of Edom, “Thus says your brother Israel: You know all the hardship that has found us, and how our fathers went down to Egypt, and we dwelt in Egypt a long time. And Egypt afflicted us and our fathers, and we cried out to YHWH, and He heard our voice and sent an angel and brought us up out of Egypt. And here we are in Kadesh, a city on the edge of your border. Let us pass, please, through your country. We will not pass through fields or vineyards, nor will we drink the water of a well. We will go along the Highway of the King; we will not turn aside to the right hand or to the left until that we have passed through your territory.” And Edom said to him, “You shall not pass through my land, lest I come out against you with the sword.” And the sons of Israel said to him, “We will go on the highway, and if I or my livestock drink any of your water, I will give their price. Only nothing more—let me pass through on foot.” And he said, “You shall not pass through.” And Edom came out against them with many men and with a mighty hand. And Edom refused to give Israel passage through his territory, and Israel turned away from him. The Death of Aaron And the sons of Israel, all the congregation, journeyed from Kadesh and came to Mount Hor. And YHWH spoke to Moses and Aaron in Mount Hor, by the border of the land of Edom, saying, “Aaron shall be gathered to his people; for he shall not enter into the land that I have given to the sons of Israel, upon that you⁺ rebelled against My word at the water of Meribah. Take Aaron and Eleazar his son and bring them up to Mount Hor. And strip Aaron of his garments, and put them on Eleazar his son; for Aaron shall be gathered and die there.” And Moses did as YHWH had commanded, and they went up to Mount Hor before the eyes of all the congregation. And Moses stripped Aaron of his garments and put them on Eleazar his son. And Aaron died there on the top of the mountain. And Moses and Eleazar came down from the mountain. And all the congregation saw that Aaron was dead, and they mourned for Aaron thirty days—all the house of Israel. The Defeat of Arad And the Canaanite, the king of Arad who dwelt in the Negev, heard that Israel was coming on the road of the Atharim; and he fought against Israel and took some of them captive. And Israel made a vow to YHWH, and said, “If You will fully deliver this people into my hand, then I will devote to destruction21.2 Forms of the Hebrew cherem refer to the giving over of things or persons to YHWH, either by destroying them or by giving them as an offering; also in verse 3. their cities.” And YHWH listened to the voice of Israel, and delivered up the Canaanite. And they devoted to destruction them and their cities. And the name of the place was called Hormah.21.3 Hormah means destruction. The Bronze Serpent And they journeyed from Mount Hor by the way of the Red Sea,21.4 Or the Sea of Reeds to go around the land of Edom. And the soul of the people was short on the way. And the people spoke against God and against Moses, “Why have you⁺ brought us up out of Egypt to die in the wilderness? For there is no food and no water, and our soul loathes this worthless bread.” And YHWH sent among the people fiery serpents, and they bit the people; and many people of Israel died. And the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned, for we have spoken against YHWH and against you. Pray to YHWH, that He take away from us the serpents.” And Moses prayed for the people. And YHWH said to Moses, “Make for yourself a fiery serpent and set it on a pole; and it shall come to pass that anyone who is bitten, and he looks at it, he shall live.” And Moses made a bronze serpent and put it on a pole. And it came to pass that, if a serpent had bitten anyone, and he looked unto the bronze serpent, he lived. The Journey to Moab And the sons of Israel set out and camped in Oboth. And they set out from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim, in the wilderness that is east of Moab toward the sunrise. From there they set out and camped in the Valley of Zered. From there they set out and camped on the other side of the Arnon, which is in the wilderness that extends from the border of the Amorite. For the Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and between the Amorite. Upon thus it is said in the Book of the Wars of YHWH: “Waheb in Suphah, and the brooks of the Arnon, and the slope of the brooks that reaches to the dwelling of Ar and lies on the border of Moab.” And from there they went to Beer;21.16 Beer means well. it is the well where YHWH said to Moses, “Gather together the people and I will give them water.” Then Israel sang this song: “Spring up, O well, all of you sing to it. The princes dug the well, the nobles of the nation hollowed it out by the lawgiver, by their staffs.” And from the wilderness they went to Mattanah, and from Mattanah to Nahaliel, and from Nahaliel to Bamoth, and from Bamoth in the valley that is in the country of Moab to the top of Pisgah, which looks toward the face of Jeshimon.21.20 That is, the wasteland The Defeat of Sihon (Deuteronomy 2:24–37) And Israel sent messengers to Sihon king of the Amorite, saying, “Let me pass through your land. We will not turn aside into a field or into a vineyard; we will not drink the water of a well. By the Highway of the King we will go, until that we have passed through your territory.” And Sihon would not allow Israel to pass through his territory. And Sihon gathered together all his people and went out against Israel in the wilderness, and he came to Jahaz and fought against Israel. 21.23 Jahaz is a variant of Jahzah; see 1 Chronicles 6:78. And Israel defeated him by the mouth of the sword and took possession of his land from the Arnon to the Jabbok, as far as the sons of Ammon; for the border of the sons of Ammon was strong.21.24 Or rugged, or fortified And Israel took all these cities, and Israel dwelt in all the cities of the Amorite, in Heshbon, and in all its villages. For Heshbon was the city of Sihon king of the Amorite, and he had fought against the former king of Moab, and had taken all his land from his hand as far as the Arnon. Upon thus the speakers of proverbs say: “Come to Heshbon, let the city of Sihon be built and be repaired. For fire went out from Heshbon, a flame from the city of Sihon. It consumed Ar of Moab, the lords of the heights of the Arnon. Woe to you, O Moab! You have perished, O people of Chemosh! He has given his sons as fugitives, and his daughters into captivity, to a king of the Amorite, Sihon. And we have shot at them; has perished Heshbon as far as Dibon. And we laid waste as far as Nophah, which is as far as Medeba.21.30 Or We laid waste to them until fire spread to Medeba” The Defeat of Og (Deuteronomy 3:1–11) And Israel dwelt in the land of the Amorite. And Moses sent to spy out Jazer, and they took its villages and drove out the Amorite who was there. And they turned and went up by the way to Bashan; and Og king of Bashan went out against them—he and all his people—to battle at Edrei. And YHWH said to Moses, “Fear him not, for into your hand I have delivered him and all his people and his land. And you shall do to him as you did to Sihon king of the Amorite, who dwelt at Heshbon.” And they defeated him and his sons and all his people, until there was left to him no survivor. And they took possession of his land. Balak Summons Balaam And the sons of Israel set out and camped in the plains of Moab across the Jordan from Jericho. And Balak son of Zippor saw all that Israel had done to the Amorite, and Moab was exceedingly afraid of the people, because they were numerous. And Moab was sick with dread because of the sons of Israel. And Moab said to the elders of Midian, “Now this company will lick up everything around us, as an ox licks up the green of the field.” And Balak son of Zippor was king of the Moabites at that time. And he sent messengers to Balaam son of Beor at Pethor, which is near the River22.5 That is, the Euphrates in the land of the sons of his people, to call him, saying, “Behold, a people has come from Egypt. Behold, he has covered the eye of the land, and he is dwelling next to me.” And now, come please, curse for me this people, for they are too mighty for me. Perhaps I will be able to strike them and drive them out of the land. For I know that whom you bless is blessed, and whom you curse is cursed.” And the elders of Moab and the elders of Midian departed with the diviner’s fee in their hands. And they came to Balaam and spoke to him the words of Balak. And he said to them, “Lodge here the night, and I will bring back to you⁺ word as YHWH speaks to me.” And the princes of Moab stayed with Balaam. And God came to Balaam and said, “Who are these men with you?” And Balaam said to God, “Balak son of Zippor, king of Moab, has sent to me: ‘Behold, a people has come out of Egypt, and have covered the eye of the land. Now come, curse them for me. Perhaps I will be able to overpower them and drive them out.’” And God said to Balaam, “You shall not go with them. You shall not curse the people, for it is blessed.” And Balaam rose in the morning and said to the princes of Balak, “Go back to your⁺ land, for YHWH has refused to give me permission to go with you⁺.” And the princes of Moab rose and went to Balak and said, “Balaam refuses to come with us.” And Balak yet added to send princes, more numerous and more honorable than these. And they came to Balaam and said to him, “Thus says Balak son of Zippor: ‘Please let nothing hinder you from coming to me. For I will very greatly honor you, and whatever you say to me, I will do. Therefore come, please, curse for me this people.’” And Balaam answered and said to the servants of Balak, “Though Balak were to give to me the fullness of his house in silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of YHWH my God to do less or more. And now stay, please, in this place you⁺ also tonight, that I may know what more YHWH will speak to me.” And God came to Balaam at night and said to him, “If the men have come to call you, rise and go with them. And only the word that I speak to you, that shall you do.” And Balaam rose in the morning and saddled his donkey and went with the princes of Moab. The Angel and Balaam’s Donkey And the anger of God was kindled because he went, and the angel22.22 Or Angel; here through the rest of chapter 22; corresponding pronouns may also be capitalized. of YHWH took His stand in the way as an adversary against him. And he was riding on his donkey, and two of his servants with him. And the donkey saw the angel of YHWH standing in the way, and his drawn sword in his hand, and the donkey turned aside out of the way and went into the field. And Balaam struck the donkey to return her to the road. And the angel of YHWH stood in a narrow passage of the vineyards, with a wall on this side and a wall on that side. And the donkey saw the angel of YHWH, and she pushed herself against the wall and crushed the foot of Balaam against the wall, and again he struck her. And the angel of YHWH added to pass over and stood in a narrow place, where there was no way to turn aside to the right hand or to the left. And the donkey saw the angel of YHWH, and she lay down under Balaam. And the anger of Balaam was kindled, and he struck the donkey with his staff. And YHWH opened the mouth of the donkey, and she said to Balaam, “What have I done to you that you have struck me these three times?” And Balaam said to the donkey, “Because you have acted mockingly with me! Oh, I wish a sword were in my hand, for now I would kill you!” And the donkey said to Balaam, “Am I not your donkey, on which you have ridden always until this day? Have I at all been accustomed to do to you, acting this way?” And he said, “No.” And YHWH opened the eyes of Balaam, and he saw the angel of YHWH standing in the way, and his drawn sword in his hand; and he bowed his head and fell flat on his face. And the angel of YHWH said to him, “On account of what have you struck your donkey these three times? Behold, I have come out to stand against you, because your way is perverse22.32 Or reckless or contrary before me. And the donkey saw Me and turned aside before my face these three times. If she had not turned aside from me, surely by now I would also have killed you and let her live.” And Balaam said to the angel of YHWH, “I have sinned, for I did not know that you stood against me in the road. And now, if it is evil in your eyes, I will turn back by myself.” And the angel of YHWH said to Balaam, “Go with the men, and only the word that I speak to you shall you speak.” And Balaam went with the princes of Balak. And Balak heard that Balaam was coming, and he went out to meet him at the city of Moab, which is on the border of Arnon, which is the boundary of the territory. And Balak said to Balaam, “Was it not that I earnestly sent to you to call for you? Why did you not come to me? Am I not truly able to honor you?” And Balaam said to Balak, “Behold, I have come to you; now am I able at all to say anything? The word that God puts in my mouth, that I must speak.” And Balaam went with Balak, and they came to Kiriath-huzoth. And Balak offered oxen and sheep, and he sent some to Balaam and to the princes who were with him. And it was the next day that Balak took Balaam and brought him up into Bamoth-baal, that he might observe from there the extremity of the people. Balaam’s First Oracle And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me in this place seven altars, and prepare for me in this place seven bulls and seven rams.” And Balak did as Balaam had spoken; and Balak and Balaam offered a bull and a ram on each altar. And Balaam said to Balak, “Stand by your burnt offering, and I will go. Perhaps YHWH will come to meet me, and the word of what he shows me I will tell to you.” And he went to a barren height. And God met with Balaam, and he said to Him, “Seven altars I have prepared, and I have offered a bull and a ram on each altar.” And YHWH put a word in the mouth of Balaam and said, “Return to Balak, and thus you shall speak.” And he returned to him, and behold, he is standing by his burnt offering, he and all the princes of Moab. And he lifted up his oracle and said, “Balak has brought me from Aram, the king of Moab, from the mountains of the east: ‘Come, curse Jacob for me, and come, denounce Israel.’ How shall I curse those whom God has not cursed, and how shall I denounce those whom YHWH has not denounced? For from the top of the rocks I see him, and from the hills I behold him. Behold, a people dwelling apart, and among the nations not reckoning itself. Who can count the dust of Jacob, and number a fourth of Israel? Let me die the death of the righteous, and let my end be like his!” And Balak said to Balaam, “What have you done to me? To curse my enemies I took you, and behold, you have surely blessed them.” And he answered and said, “What YHWH has put in my mouth, is it not that I must guard myself to speak?” Balaam’s Second Oracle And Balak said to him, “Come, please, with me, to another place from that you may see them. Only the outer part of them you shall see, and you shall not see them all. And curse them for me from there.” And he brought him to the field of Zophim, to the top of Pisgah, and built seven altars and offered a bull and a ram on each altar. And he said to Balak, “Stand here by your burnt offering, and I meet Him over there.” And YHWH met with Balaam and put a word in his mouth and said, “Go back to Balak, and thus you shall speak.” And he came to him, and behold, he is standing by his burnt offering, and the princes of Moab were with him. And Balak said to him, “What has YHWH spoken?” And he lifted up his oracle and said, “Rise up, O Balak, and hear; give ear to me, O son of Zippor! God is not a man, that He should lie, nor a son of man, that He should repent. Has He said, and He will not do? Or has He spoken, and He will not fulfill? Behold, to bless I have received; and He has blessed, and I can reverse it not. He has observed no iniquity in Jacob, nor has He seen wickedness in Israel. YHWH his God is with him, and the shout of a King is among them. God brings them out of Egypt; strength like a wild ox He has. For there is no sorcery against Jacob, nor any divination against Israel. Now it must be said of Jacob and of Israel, ‘What God has done!’ Look, a people like a lioness rises, and like a lion lifts itself up. It shall not lie down until it devours the prey and drinks the blood of the slain.” And Balak said to Balaam, “Indeed neither curse them at all, nor indeed bless them at all.” And Balaam answered and said to Balak, “Did not I speak to you, saying, all that YHWH speaks, that is what I must do?” And Balak said to Balaam, “Come, please, I will take you to another place; perhaps it will please the eye of God that you may curse them for me from there.” And Balak took Balaam to the top of Peor, that overlooks toward the face of Jeshimon.23.28 That is, the wasteland And Balaam said to Balak, “Build for me in this place seven altars, and prepare for me in this place seven bulls and seven rams.” And Balak did as Balaam had said, and offered a bull and a ram on each altar. Balaam’s Third Oracle And Balaam saw that it was good in the eyes of YHWH to bless Israel, and he did not go as time by time to seek to use sorcery, and he set his face toward the wilderness. And Balaam lifted up his eyes and saw Israel encamped according to their tribes, and the Spirit of God came upon him. And he lifted up his oracle and said: “An utterance of Balaam son of Beor, and a declaration of the man whose eyes are opened. An utterance of him who hears the words of God, who sees a vision of Shaddai,24.4 Shaddai means the Almighty; also in verse 16 and who falls down with eyes wide open. How lovely are your tents, O Jacob, Your dwellings, O Israel! Like valleys24.6 Or Like palm groves that stretch out, like gardens by the river, like aloes planted by YHWH, like cedars beside the waters. He shall pour water from his buckets, and his seed is abundant in waters. And his king shall be higher than Agag, and his kingdom shall be exalted. God brings him out of Egypt; strength like a wild ox is unto him. He shall consume his enemies the nations, and their bones he shall break, and pierce them with his arrows. He crouches, he lies down like a lion, and as a lioness, who shall rouse him? He who blesses you is blessed and he who curses you is cursed.” Balak Dismisses Balaam And the anger of Balak was kindled against Balaam, and he struck together his hands. And Balak said to Balaam, “I called you to curse my enemies, and behold, you have surely blessed them these three times. And now flee for yourself to your place! I said I would richly reward you, and in fact YHWH has kept you back from honor.” And Balaam said to Balak, “Was it not even to your messengers whom you sent to me that I spoke, saying that if Balak were to give to me the fullness of his house in silver and gold, I could not go beyond the word of YHWH to do good or bad of my own will? That which YHWH says, that I must speak. And indeed I am going to my people; come, I will counsel you what this people will do to your people in the latter days.” Balaam’s Fourth Oracle And he lifted up his oracle and said, “An utterance of Balaam son of Beor and a declaration of the man with opened eyes, a declaration of him who hears the words of God and has the knowledge of the Most High; the vision of Shaddai he sees, falling down and eyes wide open. I see Him, but not now; I behold Him, but not near. A star shall come out of Jacob and a scepter shall rise out of Israel, and batter the brow24.17 SP foreheads; Hebrew corners (of the head); LXX princes of Moab and destroy all the sons of tumult. And Edom shall be a possession, and Seir shall be a possession for his enemies, and Israel will act valiantly. And one shall have dominion out of Jacob and destroy the remains of the city.” Balaam’s Final Three Oracles And he saw Amalek, and he lifted up his oracle and said, “Amalek was first among the nations, and his end is utter destruction.” And he looked on the Kenite, and he lifted up his oracle and said, “Enduring is your dwelling place, and your nest is set in the rock. For nevertheless the Kenite shall be for burning, until when Asshur24.22 Or Assyria; also in verse 24 will take you captive.” And he lifted up his oracle and said, “Alas, who shall live when God does this? And ships shall come from the hand of Kittim,24.24 That is, from the coast of Cyprus and they shall afflict Asshur and afflict Eber, and he is for utter destruction.” And Balaam rose and departed and returned to his place, and Balak also went his way. Moab Seduces Israel (1 Corinthians 10:1–13) And Israel remained in Shittim,25.1 Or Acacia Grove and the people began to prostitute themselves with the daughters of Moab. And they invited the people to the sacrifices of their gods, and the people ate and bowed down to their gods. And Israel was joined to Baal of Peor, and the anger of YHWH was kindled against Israel. And YHWH said to Moses, “Take all the leaders of the people, and hang the offenders before YHWH out in the sun, that the burning of the nose of YHWH may turn away from Israel.” And Moses said to the judges of Israel, “Each man must kill his men who were joined to Baal of Peor.” The Zeal of Phinehas And indeed, one of the sons of Israel came and presented to his brothers a Midianitess before the eyes of Moses and before the eyes of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, and they were weeping at the door of the Tent of Meeting. And Phinehas son of Eleazar, son of Aaron the priest, saw it, and he rose from the midst of the congregation, and he took a spear in his hand, and he went after the man of Israel into the tent, and thrust through the two of them, the man of Israel and the woman—through her body. And the plague was stopped among the sons of Israel. And those who died in the plague were four and twenty thousand. And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Phinehas son of Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, has turned back My wrath from the sons of Israel, because he was zealous with My zeal in their midst, so that I did not consume the sons of Israel in My zeal. Therefore say, behold, I give to him My covenant of peace. And it shall be to him and his seed after him a covenant of an everlasting priesthood, upon that he was zealous for his God and made atonement upon the sons of Israel.” And the name of the man of Israel who was killed, who was killed with the Midianitess, was Zimri son of Salu, a leader of a house of a father of the Simeonite. And the name of the woman who was killed, the Midianitess, was Cozbi the daughter of Zur; he was head of a tribe of a house of a father in Midian. And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Harass the Midianites and strike them. For they harassed you⁺ with their schemes by which they seduced you⁺ in the matter of Peor and in the matter of Cozbi, the daughter of a leader of Midian, their sister who was killed in the day of the plague over the matter of Peor.” The Second Census of Israel (Numbers 1:1–4) And it came to pass after the plague that YHWH spoke to Moses and Eleazar son of Aaron the priest, saying, “Take a census of all the congregation of the sons of Israel, from a son of twenty years and above, by the house of their fathers—all who are able to go to war in Israel.” And Moses and Eleazar the priest spoke with them in the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho, saying, “From a son of twenty years and above,26.4 Take a census of the men is implied but not included in the Hebrew; see verse 2. as YHWH has commanded Moses.” And the sons of Israel who came out of the land of Egypt: The Tribe of Reuben Reuben was the firstborn of Israel. The sons of Reuben: Of Hanoch, the clan of the Hanochite; of Pallu, the clan of the Palluite; of Hezron, the clan of the Hezronite; of Carmi, the clan of the Carmite. These are the clans of the Reubenite, and those numbered were three and forty thousand and seven hundred and thirty. And the sons of Pallu: Eliab, and the sons of Eliab were Nemuel and Dathan and Abiram. They are the Dathan and Abiram, called of the congregation, who contended against Moses and Aaron in the company of Korah when they contended against YHWH. And the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up, and with them Korah in the death of the company, when the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men, and they became a sign. And the sons of Korah did not die. The Tribe of Simeon The sons of Simeon by their clans: Of Nemuel, the clan of the Nemuelite; of Jamin, the clan of the Jaminite; of Jachin, the clan of the Jachinite; 26.12 Nemuel is another name for Jemuel; see Genesis 46:10. of Zerah, the clan of the Zerahite; of Shaul, the clan of the Shaulite. 26.13 Zerah is a variant of Zohar; see Genesis 46:10 and Exodus 6:15. These are the clans of the Simeonite, two and twenty thousand and two hundred. The Tribe of Gad The sons of Gad by their clans: Of Zephon, the clan of the Zephonite; of Haggi, the clan of the Haggite; of Shuni, the clan of the Shunite; of Ozni, the clan of the Oznite; of Eri the clan of the Erite; of Arod, the clan of the Arodite; of Areli the clan of the Arelite. 26.17 SP and Syriac Arodi; see Genesis 46:16. These are the clans of the sons of Gad by their numbered ones, forty thousand and five hundred. The Tribe of Judah The sons of Judah were Er and Onan, and Er and Onan died in the land of Canaan. And the sons of Judah by their clans were: Of Shelah, the clan of the Shelanite; of Perez, the clan of the Perezite; of Zerah, the clan of the Zerahite. And the sons of Perez were: Of Hezron, the clan of the Hezronite; of Hamul, the clan of the Hamulite. These were the clans of Judah by their numbered one, six and seventy thousand and five hundred. The Tribe of Issachar The sons of Issachar by their clans: Of Tola, the clan of the Tolaite; of Puvah, the clan of the Punite; 26.23 SP, LXX, Vulgate, and Syriac the Puite clan from Puah; see 1 Chronicles 7:1. of Jashub the clan, of the Jashubite; of Shimron, the clan of the Shimronite. 26.24 Jashub is a variant of Job; see Genesis 46:13. These were the clans of Issachar by their numbered ones, four and sixty thousand and three hundred. The Tribe of Zebulun The sons of Zebulun by their clans: Of Sered, the clan of the Seredite; of Elon, the clan of the Elonite; of Jahleel, the clan of the Jahleelite. These were the clans of the Zebulunite by their numbered, sixty thousand and five hundred. The Tribe of Manasseh The sons of Joseph by their clans: Manasseh and Ephraim. The sons of Manasseh: Of Machir, the clan of the Machirite; and Machir begat Gilead; of Gilead, the clan of the Gileadite. These were the sons of Gilead: Of Iezer, the clan of the Iezerite; of Helek, the clan of the Helekite; 26.30 Iezer is a variant of Abiezer; see Joshua 17:2. and of Asriel, the clan of the Asrielite; and of Shechem, the clan of the Shechemite; and of Shemida, the clan of the Shemidaite; and of Hepher, the clan of the Hepherite. And Zelophehad son of Hepher had no sons, but only daughters. And the names of the daughters of Zelophehad were Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. These were the clans of Manasseh, and their numbered ones were two and fifty thousand and seven hundred. The Tribe of Ephraim These were the sons of Ephraim by their clans: Of Shuthelah, the clan of the Shuthalhite; of Becher, the clan of the Bachrite; of Tahan, the clan of the Tahanite. And these were the sons of Shuthelah: Of Eran, the clan of the Eranite. These were the clans of the sons of Ephraim by their numbered ones, two and thirty thousand and five hundred. These were the sons of Joseph by their clans. The Tribe of Benjamin The sons of Benjamin by their clans: Of Bela, the clan of the Belaite; of Ashbel, the clan of the Ashbelite; of Ahiram, the clan of the Ahiramite; of Shupham, the clan of the Shuphamite;26.39 A few MT manuscripts, SP, Vulgate, and Syriac (see also LXX); most MT manuscripts Shephupham of Hupham, the clan of the Huphamite. And the sons of Bela were Ard and Naaman: Of Ard, the clan of the Ardite;26.40 SP and Vulgate (see also LXX); MT does not include of Ard. of Naaman, the clan of the Naamite. These are the sons of Benjamin by their clans, and their numbered ones were five and forty thousand and six hundred. The Tribe of Dan These were the sons of Dan by their clans: Of Shuham, the clan of the Shuhamite. These were the clans of Dan by their clans. All the clans of the Shuhamite by their numbered ones were four and sixty thousand and four hundred. The Tribe of Asher The sons of Asher by their clans: Of Imnah, the clan of the Imnite; of Ishvi, the clan of the Ishvite; of Beriah, the clan of the Beriite. Of the sons of Beriah: Of Heber, the clan of the Heberite; of Malchiel, the clan of the Malchielite. And the name of the daughter of Asher was Serah. These were the clans of the sons of Asher by their numbered ones, three and fifty thousand and four hundred. The Tribe of Naphtali The sons of Naphtali by their clans: Of Jahzeel, the clan of the Jahzeelite; of Guni, the clan of the Gunite, of Jezer, the clan of the Jezerite; of Shillem, the clan of the Shillemite. These were the clans of Naphtali by their clans; and their numbered ones were five and forty thousand and four hundred. These were numbered ones of the sons of Israel, six hundred thousand and a thousand seven hundred and thirty. Inheritance by Lot And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “To these land shall be divided as an inheritance by the number of names. To the many you shall increase their inheritance, and to the few you shall diminish their inheritance; each according to their numbered shall be given its inheritance. But by lot the land shall be divided; by the names of the tribes of their fathers they shall inherit. According to mouth, the lot of their inheritance shall be divided between many and few.” The Levites Numbered And these are the numbered ones of the Levite by their clans: Of Gershon, the clan of the Gershonite; of Kohath, the clan of the Kohathite; of Merari, the clan of the Merarite. These are the clans of Levi: The clan of the Libnite, the clan of the Hebronite, the clan of the Mahlite, the clan of the Mushite, and the clan of the Korahite. And Kohath begat Amram. And the name of the wife of Amram was Jochebed daughter of Levi, who was born to Levi in Egypt. And she bore to Amram Aaron and Moses and Miriam their sister. And were born to Aaron Nadab and Abihu, Eleazar and Ithamar. And Nadab and Abihu died when they offered strange fire before the face of YHWH. 26.61 Or unauthorized And their numbered ones were three and twenty thousand, every male from a son of a month and above; for they were not numbered in the midst of the sons of Israel, because no inheritance was given to them in the midst of the sons of Israel. Only Caleb and Joshua Remain These were numbered by Moses and Eleazar the priest, who numbered the sons of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan opposite Jericho. And among these there was not a man of those numbered by Moses and Aaron the priest when they numbered the sons of Israel in the Wilderness of Sinai. For YHWH had said of them: They will surely die in the wilderness. And there was not left a man of them except Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun. The Daughters of Zelophehad (Numbers 36:1–13) And the daughters of Zelophehad son of Hepher, son of Gilead, son of Machir, son of Manasseh, from the clans of Manasseh son of Joseph, came—and these were the names of his daughters: Mahlah, Noah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Tirzah. And they stood before the face of Moses and before the face of Eleazar the priest and before the face of the leaders and all the congregation at the opening of the Tent of Meeting, saying, “Our father died in the wilderness, and he was not in the midst of the congregation of those who gathered together against YHWH in company with Korah; but he died in his own sin. And he had no sons. Why should the name of our father be removed from the midst of his family, because he had no son? Give us a possession in the midst of the brothers of our father.” And Moses brought their case before the face of YHWH, and YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “The daughters of Zelophehad speak correctly. You surely must give them a possession of inheritance in the midst of the brothers of their father, and cause the inheritance of their father to pass over to them. And you shall speak to the sons of Israel, saying, ‘If a man dies and does not have a son unto him, then you⁺ shall cause his inheritance to pass over to his daughter. And if he has no daughter, then you⁺ shall give his inheritance to his brothers. And if he has no brothers, then you⁺ shall give his inheritance to the brothers of his father. And if his father has no brothers, then you⁺ shall give his inheritance to his close relative, the nearest to him, from his family, and he shall possess it. And it shall be to the sons of Israel a statute of judgment, as YHWH has commanded Moses.’” Moses Requests a Successor (Deuteronomy 3:23–29) And YHWH said to Moses, “Go up into this mountain of the Abarim,27.12 LXX Go up Mount Nebo beyond the Jordan and see the land that I have given to the sons of Israel. And you shall see it and shall be gathered to your people, even you, as Aaron your brother was gathered. For you⁺ rebelled against My command in the Wilderness of Zin in the strife of the congregation, to show My holiness at the waters before their eyes.” Those are the waters of Meribah27.14 Meribah means quarreling; see Exodus 17:7. at Kadesh in the Wilderness of Zin. And Moses spoke to YHWH, saying, “Let YHWH, the God of the spirits of all flesh, appoint a man over the congregation who may go out before them and go in before them, and who may lead them out and bring them in, that the congregation of YHWH may not be like sheep that do not have unto them a shepherd.” Joshua to Succeed Moses (Deuteronomy 31:1–8) And YHWH said to Moses, “Take with you Joshua son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay your hand on him. And you shall stand him before the face of Eleazar the priest and before the face of all the congregation, and you shall command him in their eyes. And you shall put some of your authority on him, that all the congregation of the sons of Israel may be obedient. And he shall stand before Eleazar the priest, and he shall inquire for him by the judgment of the Urim27.21 That is, the Lights before the face of YHWH. At his word they shall go out, and at his word they shall come in—he and all the sons of Israel with him—and all the congregation.” And Moses did as YHWH had commanded him, and He took Joshua and set him before the face of Eleazar the priest and before the face of all the congregation. And he laid his hands on him and commissioned him, as YHWH had spoken by the hand of Moses. The Daily Offerings (Exodus 29:38–44) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the sons of Israel and say to them: My offering, My food for My fire offerings, an aroma pleasing to Me, you⁺ shall be careful to offer to Me at their appointed time. And you shall say to them: This is the fire offering that you⁺ shall offer to YHWH: Two male lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, day by day as a regular burnt offering. The one lamb you shall offer in the morning, and the second lamb you shall offer in the evening,28.4 That is, at twilight; also in verse 8 and a tenth of an ephah28.5 A tenth of an ephah is approximately 2 dry quarts or 2.2 liters (probably about 2.6 pounds or 1.2 kilograms of flour); also in verses 13, 21, and 29. of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with pressed oil, a fourth of a hin.28.5 Or a fourth of a hin of pure olive oil; that is, approximately 0.97 quarts or 0.92 liters; similarly in verses 7 and 14 It is a regular burnt offering, which was made at Mount Sinai for a pleasing aroma, a fire offering to YHWH. And its drink offering is a fourth of a hin for one lamb. In the Holy Place as a drink offering of strong drink to be poured out to YHWH. And the second lamb you shall offer in the evening. As the grain offering in the morning, and its drink offering, you shall offer as a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH. The Sabbath Offerings And on the Sabbath day two lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and two tenths of an ephah28.9 Two-tenths of an ephah is approximately 4 dry quarts or 4.4 liters (probably about 5.1 pounds or 2.3 kilograms of flour); also in verses 12, 20, and 28. of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with the oil, and its drink offering— this is the burnt offering for every Sabbath, besides the regular burnt offering and its drink offering. The Monthly Offerings And at the beginnings of your⁺ months you⁺ shall present a burnt offering to YHWH: Two bulls, sons of the herd, and one ram and seven lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and three tenths of an ephah28.12 Three-tenths of an ephah is approximately 6 dry quarts or 6.6 liters (probably about 7.6 pounds or 3.5 kilograms of flour); also in verses 20 and 28. of fine flour as a grain offering mixed with the oil for one bull, and two tenths of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering mixed with the oil for the one ram, and a tenth part of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering mixed with the oil for one lamb as a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma, a fire offering to YHWH. And their drink offerings shall be half a hin of wine28.14 Half a hin is approximately 1.9 quarts or 1.8 liters of wine. for a bull, a third of a hin28.14 A third of a hin is approximately 1.3 quarts or 1.2 liters of wine. for a ram, and a fourth of a hin for a lamb. This is the burnt offering for every month throughout the months of the year. And one kid of the goats as a sin offering to YHWH besides the regular burnt offering shall be offered, and its drink offering. Passover and the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Exodus 12:14–28; Leviticus 23:4–8; Deuteronomy 16:1–8) And in the first month, on the fourteenth day of the month, is the Passover of YHWH. And on the fifteenth day of this month is the feast; for seven days unleavened bread shall be eaten. On the first day is a holy convocation; you⁺ shall not do any customary work. And you⁺ shall present a fire offering as a burnt offering to YHWH: Two bulls, sons of the herd, one ram, and seven lambs, sons of a year, unblemished; They shall be for you⁺. And their grain offerings are of fine flour mixed with the oil—you⁺ shall prepare three tenths of an ephah for a bull and two tenths for a ram. A tenth part of an ephah you shall prepare for the one lamb, for the seven lambs, and one goat as a sin offering, to make atonement upon you⁺. Besides the burnt offering of the morning, which is for a regular burnt offering, you⁺ shall prepare these. Like these, you⁺ shall prepare day by day, seven days, the food of the fire offering a pleasing aroma to YHWH; besides the regular burnt offering it shall be made, and its drink offering. And on the seventh day you⁺ shall have a holy convocation; you⁺ shall not do any customary work. The Feast of Weeks (Deuteronomy 16:9–12) And on the day of the firstfruits, when you⁺ bring a new grain offering to YHWH, in your⁺ Weeks,28.26 That is, during the Feast of Weeks, or Shavuot, the late spring feast of pilgrimage to Jerusalem; it is also known as the Feast of Harvest (see Exodus 23:16) or the Feast of Pentecost (see Acts 2:1). you⁺ shall have a holy convocation; you⁺ shall not do any customary work. And you⁺ shall present a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH, two bulls, sons of the herd, one ram, and seven lambs, sons of a year; and their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with the oil, three tenths of an ephah for the one bull, two tenths for the one ram, a tenth part of an ephah for the one lamb, for the seven lambs; one kid of the goats to make atonement upon you⁺. Besides the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, you⁺ shall present them and their drink offerings. They shall be unblemished. The Feast of Trumpets (Leviticus 23:23–25) “ And in the seventh month, on the first of the month, you⁺ shall have a holy convocation; you⁺ shall not do any customary work. It is a day of sounding for you⁺. And you⁺ shall offer a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH: One bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and seven lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with the oil, three tenths of an ephah29.3 Three-tenths of an ephah is approximately 6 dry quarts or 6.6 liters (probably about 7.6 pounds or 3.5 kilograms of flour); also in verses 9 and 14. for the bull, two tenths29.3 Two-tenths of an ephah is approximately 4 dry quarts or 4.4 liters (probably about 5.1 pounds or 2.3 kilograms of flour); also in verses 9 and 14. for the ram, and one tenth29.4 A tenth of an ephah is approximately 2 dry quarts or 2.2 liters (probably about 2.6 pounds or 1.2 kilograms of flour); also in verses 10 and 15. for the one lamb, for the seven lambs, and one kid of the goats as a sin offering, to make atonement upon you⁺, besides the burnt offering with the New Moon and its grain offering, and the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, and their drink offerings, according to their ordinance, a pleasing aroma, a fire offering to YHWH. The Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16:1–34; Leviticus 23:26–32) And on the tenth of this seventh month, you⁺ shall have a holy convocation, and you⁺ shall afflict your⁺ souls;29.7 Or humble yourselves or deny yourselves you⁺ shall not do any work. And you⁺ shall present a burnt offering to YHWH, a pleasing aroma: One bull, a son of the herd, one ram, and seven lambs, sons of a year; they are unblemished for you⁺, and their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with the oil, three tenths of an ephah for the bull, two tenths for the one ram, and a tenth part of an ephah for the one lamb, for the seven lambs, one kid of the goats as a sin offering, besides the sin offering for atonement, and the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, and their drink offerings. The Feast of Tabernacles (Deuteronomy 16:13–17) And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month you⁺ shall have a holy convocation; you⁺ shall not do any customary work. And you⁺ shall keep a feast to YHWH seven days. And you⁺ shall present a burnt offering, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH, thirteen bulls, sons of the herd, two rams, and fourteen lambs, sons of a year; they shall be unblemished; and their grain offerings of fine flour mixed with the oil, three tenths of an ephah for the one bull, for the thirteen bulls, two tenths for the one ram, for the two rams, and a tenth part of an ephah for the one lamb, for the fourteen lambs, and one kid of the goats as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, its grain offering, and its drink offering. And on the second day: Twelve bulls, sons of the herd, two rams, fourteen lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance, and one kid of the goats as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, and its grain offering, and their drink offerings. And on the third day: Eleven bulls, two rams, fourteen lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance, and one goat as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, and its grain offering, and its drink offering. And on the fourth day: Ten bulls, two rams, fourteen lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance, and one kid of the goats as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, its grain offering, and its drink offering. And on the fifth day: Nine bulls, two rams, and fourteen lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance, and one goat as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, and its grain offering, and its drink offering. And on the sixth day: Eight bulls, two rams, and fourteen lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance, and one goat as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, its grain offering, and its drink offerings. And on the seventh day: Seven bulls, two rams, fourteen lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance, and one goat as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, its grain offering, and its drink offering. On the eighth day you⁺ shall have a sacred assembly; you⁺ shall not do any customary work. And you⁺ shall present a burnt offering, a fire offering, a pleasing aroma to YHWH: One bull, one ram, seven lambs, sons of a year, unblemished, and their grain offerings, and their drink offerings, for the bull, for the ram, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance, and one goat as a sin offering, besides the regular burnt offering, and its grain offering, and its drink offering. These you⁺ shall present to YHWH at your⁺ appointed feasts, in addition to your⁺ vows and your⁺ freewill offerings, as your⁺ burnt offerings, and your⁺ grain offerings, and as your⁺ drink offerings, and your⁺ peace offerings.” And Moses spoke to the sons of Israel according to all that YHWH had commanded Moses. Laws about Vows (Matthew 5:33–37) And Moses spoke to the heads of the tribes concerning the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the thing that YHWH has commanded: If a man makes a vow to YHWH or swears an oath to bind by some binding obligation on his soul, he shall not break his word; according to all that proceeds out of his mouth, he shall do. 30.2 Cited in Matthew 5:33 Or if a woman makes a vow to YHWH and binds herself by some binding obligation while in the house of her father in her youth, and her father hears her vow and the binding obligation by which she has bound on her soul, and her father keeps silent to her, all her vows shall stand, and every binding obligation that she has bound upon her soul shall stand. But if her father forbids her on the day that he hears, then any of her vows or her binding obligations by which she has bound on her soul shall not stand; and YHWH will release her, because her father forbade her. And if she is at all unto a husband, and her vows are on her, or a rash utterance from her lips by which she bound on her soul, and her husband hears it on the day that he hears, and makes no response to her, her vows shall stand, and her binding obligations by which she bound on her soul shall stand. But if, on the day that he hears it, her husband forbids her, he makes void her vow that she took and the rash utterance of her lips by which she bound on her soul, and YHWH will release her. And a vow of a widow or a divorced woman, any by which she has bound upon her soul shall stand against her. And if she has vowed in the house of her husband or bound by a binding obligation upon her soul with an oath, and her husband heard it and made no response to her and did not overrule her, all her vows shall stand, and every binding obligation by which she bound on her soul shall stand. But if her husband surely has nullified them on the day he heard them, then whatever proceeded from her lips concerning her vows or concerning the bond of her soul, it shall not stand; her husband has made them void, and YHWH will release her. Every vow, and every sworn binding obligation to afflict her soul,30.13 Or to fast her husband may confirm it or her husband may make it void. And if her husband keeps silent to her from day to day, he confirms all her vows, or all the binding obligations that bind her; he confirms them because he surely remained silent to her on the day that he heard them. But if he surely nullifies them after he has heard them, then he shall bear her iniquity.” These are the statutes that YHWH commanded Moses between a man and his wife, and between a father and his daughter in her youth in the house of her father. Vengeance on Midian And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Avenge the vengeance of the sons of Israel against the Midianite; afterward you shall be gathered to your people.” And Moses spoke to the people, saying, “Arm some of your men for war, that they may go against the Midianite, to put the vengeance of YHWH on Midian. A thousand from a tribe, a thousand from a tribe, to all the tribes of Israel, you⁺ shall send to the war.” And there were given out of the thousands of Israel, a thousand from a tribe, twelve thousand armed for war. And Moses sent them to the war, a thousand from a tribe, and he sent them to the war along with Phinehas son of Eleazar the priest, and the holy vessels, and the signal and the trumpets in his hand. And they warred against the Midianite, as YHWH had commanded Moses; and they killed all the males. And the kings of Midian they killed with their pierced ones—Evi, and Rekem, and Zur, and Hur, and Reba—five kings of Midian; and Balaam son of Beor they also killed with the sword. And the sons of Israel took captive the women of Midian, with their little ones, and all their cattle, and all their flocks, and they plundered all their goods. And also all the cities where they dwelt, and all their forts, they burned with the fire. And they took all the spoil and all the plunder of the man and the beast. And they brought to Moses and to Eleazar the priest and to the congregation of the sons of Israel the captives, and the plunder, and the spoil—to the camp in the plains of Moab, which are by the Jordan near Jericho. And Moses and Eleazar the priest and all the leaders of the congregation went to meet them toward the outside of the camp. And Moses was angry with the officers of the army, chiefs of the thousands and chiefs of the hundreds, who were coming in from the battle. And Moses said to them, “Have you⁺ kept alive every female? Behold, these women caused the sons of Israel, through the counsel of Balaam, to trespass against YHWH in the incident of Peor, and there was a plague among the congregation of YHWH. And now kill every male among the little ones, and every woman who has known a man by lying with him you must kill. And every child among the women who have not known the bed of a man, you shall keep alive for yourselves. And as for you⁺, remain outside of the camp seven days; anyone who kills a soul and anyone who touches the slain—you⁺ shall cleanse yourselves from sin, you⁺ and your⁺ captives, on the third day and on the seventh day. And every garment, and everything made of leather, and everything woven of goats’ hair, and every wood vessel, you⁺ shall cleanse yourselves from sin.” And Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to the battle, “This is the ordinance of the law that YHWH has commanded Moses: Only the gold, and the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead— everything that can endure the fire—you⁺ shall put through the fire, and it shall be clean. Nevertheless, with the water of purification it shall be cleansed from sin. And all that cannot endure the fire, you⁺ shall put through the water. And you⁺ shall wash your⁺ clothes on the seventh day and be clean, and afterward you⁺ may come into the camp.” Division of the Spoils And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Count up the sum of the plunder that was taken of the man and the beast, you and Eleazar the priest and the heads of the fathers of the congregation. And divide the plunder between those handling the war who went out to the battle, and between all the congregation. And raise a tribute for YHWH from the men of war who went out to battle: One soul of every five hundred, of the persons, and the cattle, and the donkeys, and the sheep. From their half you⁺ shall take and give it to Eleazar the priest as a contribution to YHWH. And from half the sons of Israel, you shall take one portion of every fifty, of the persons, of the cattle, of the donkeys, and of the sheep, from all the livestock, and give them to the Levites who keep charge of the tabernacle of YHWH.” And Moses and Eleazar the priest did as YHWH had commanded Moses. And this was and the plunder remaining from the plunder that the men of war had taken: Six hundred thousand and seventy thousand and five thousand sheep, and of the herd two and seventy thousand, and one and sixty thousand donkeys, and persons of women who had not known the lying with a man, all the persons, two and thirty thousand. And the half, the portion for those who had gone out to war: The number of the sheep was three hundred thousand and thirty thousand and seven thousand and five hundred, and the tribute to YHWH of the sheep was six hundred five and seventy. And the cattle, six and thirty thousand, and their tribute to YHWH, two and seventy. And the donkeys were thirty thousand and five hundred, and their tribute to YHWH one and sixty. And the persons were sixteen thousand, and their tribute to YHWH two and thirty persons. And Moses gave the tribute—the contribution to YHWH—to Eleazar the priest, as YHWH had commanded Moses. And from half of the sons of Israel, which Moses separated from the men who fought; and the half belonging to the congregation was: Of the flock three hundred thousand and thirty thousand, seven thousand, and five hundred, and of the herd six and thirty thousand, and donkeys thirty thousand and five hundred, and persons sixteen thousand. And Moses took from the sons of Israel half of one possession of every fifty, man and beast, and he gave to them to the Levites who kept charge of the tabernacle of YHWH, as YHWH had commanded Moses. The Voluntary Offering And the officers who were over thousands of the army, captains of the thousands and captains of the hundreds, came near to Moses, and they said to Moses, “Your servants have taken a count of the men of war who are under our command, and not a man of us is missing. And we have brought YHWH an offering for every man from that which he has found, of ornaments of gold, armlets, and bracelets, and signet rings, and earrings, and necklaces, to make atonement upon our souls before the face of YHWH.” And Moses and Eleazar the priest received the gold from them—all the fashioned ornaments. And all the gold of the contribution that they lifted up to YHWH was sixteen thousand seven hundred and fifty shekels,31.52 16,750 shekels is approximately 420.8 pounds or 190.9 kilograms. from captains of the thousands and captains of the hundreds. The men of war had taken spoil, every man for himself. And Moses and Eleazar the priest received the gold from the captains of the thousands and of the hundreds, and brought it into the Tent of Meeting as a memorial for the sons of Israel before the face of YHWH. The Tribes East of the Jordan (Deuteronomy 3:12–22; Joshua 13:8–14) And much livestock was unto the sons of Reuben and the sons of Gad, very numerous. And they saw the land of Jazer and the land of Gilead, that indeed the region was a place for livestock; and the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben came and spoke to Moses, and to Eleazar the priest, and to the leaders of the congregation, saying, “Ataroth, and Dibon, and Jazer, and Nimrah, and Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Shebam,32.3 Hebrew; see verse 38, and similarly in SP and LXX Sibmah and Nebo, and Beon, the land that YHWH defeated before the face of the congregation of Israel, it is a land for livestock, and your servants have livestock.” And they said, “If we have found favor in your eyes, let this land be given to your servants as a possession, do not make us pass over the Jordan.” And Moses said to the sons of Gad and to the sons of Reuben, “Shall your⁺ brothers go to war and you⁺ sit here? And why do you⁺ discourage the heart of the sons of Israel from going over into the land that YHWH has given them? Thus did your⁺ fathers when I sent them away from Kadesh-barnea to see the land. And they went up to the Valley of Eshcol and saw the land, and they discouraged the heart of the sons of Israel so as not to go into the land that YHWH had given them. And the anger of YHWH was kindled on that day, and He swore an oath, saying, ‘Surely none shall see of the men who came up from Egypt, from a son of twenty years and above, the land of which I swore to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob—for they have not wholly followed Me— except Caleb son of Jephunneh the Kenizzite and Joshua son of Nun; for they have wholly followed YHWH.’ And the anger of YHWH was kindled against Israel, and He made them wander in the wilderness forty years, until the finishing of all the generation that had done evil in the eyes of YHWH. And behold, you⁺ have risen up in place of your⁺ fathers, a brood of sinful men to add still more to the fierce anger of YHWH against Israel. For if you⁺ turn away from following Him, He will once again leave them in the wilderness, and you⁺ will destroy all this people.” And they came near to him and said, “Walls for sheep we will build for our livestock here, and cities for our little ones, and we will be armed,32.17 LXX we will arm ourselves for battle hurrying before the face of the sons of Israel, until that when we have brought them to their place, and our little ones will dwell in the cities of defense because of those dwelling in the land. We will not return to our homes until the sons of Israel have received, each man, his inheritance. For we will not inherit with them on the other side of the Jordan and beyond, because our inheritance has come to us on this side of the Jordan at the rising.” And Moses said to them, “If you⁺ do this thing, if you⁺ arm yourselves before the face of YHWH for the war, and all your⁺ armed men pass over the Jordan before the face of YHWH until He has driven out His enemies from before Him, and the land is subdued before the face of YHWH, then afterward you⁺ may return and be blameless before YHWH and before Israel. And this land shall be your⁺ possession before the face of YHWH. But if you⁺ do not do so, behold, you⁺ have sinned against YHWH; and know your⁺ sin, that it will find you⁺ out. Build for yourselves cities for your⁺ little ones, and folds for your⁺ sheep; and what has proceeded out of your⁺ mouth, you⁺ shall do.” And the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben spoke to Moses, saying, “Your servants will do as my lord is commanding. Our little ones, our wives, our flocks, and all our livestock will be there in the cities of Gilead. And your servants will pass over, every man armed for war, before the face of YHWH, to battle, as my lord has spoken.” And Moses gave orders concerning them to Eleazar the priest, and to Joshua son of Nun, and to the chief fathers of the tribes of the sons of Israel. And Moses said to them, “If the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben pass over the Jordan with you⁺, every man armed for battle before the face of YHWH, and the land is subdued before you⁺, you⁺ shall give them the land of Gilead as a possession. But if they do not pass over armed with you⁺, they shall have possessions in your⁺ midst in the land of Canaan.” And the sons of Gad and the sons of Reuben answered, saying, “As YHWH has said to your servants, so we will do. We will pass over armed before the face of YHWH into the land of Canaan; and with us is the possession of our inheritance on this side of the Jordan.” And Moses gave to them, to the sons of Gad, and to the sons of Reuben, and to the half-tribe of Manasseh son of Joseph, the kingdom of Sihon king of the Amorite, and the kingdom of Og king of Bashan, the land with its cities, within the borders, the cities of the surrounding country. And the sons of Gad built Dibon, and Ataroth, and Aroer, and Atroth-shophan, and Jazer, and Jogbehah, and Beth-nimrah, and Beth-haran, fortified cities and folds for sheep. And the sons of Reuben built Heshbon, and Elealeh, and Kiriathaim, and Nebo, and Baal-meon (the names being changed), and Sibmah. And they gave by these names the names to the cities that they built. And the sons of Machir son of Manasseh went to Gilead and took it, and dispossessed the Amorite who were in it. And Moses gave Gilead to Machir son of Manasseh, and he dwelt in it. And Jair son of Manasseh went and captured their tent villages and called them Havvoth-jair.32.41 Havvoth-jair means the villages of Jair. And Nobah went and took Kenath and its daughter-villages, and he called it Nobah after his own name. Forty-Two Journeys of the Israelites These are the journeys of the sons of Israel, who went out of the land of Egypt by their armies under the hand of Moses and Aaron. And Moses wrote down the starting points of their journeys at the mouth of YHWH, and these are their journeys according to their starting points. And they departed from Rameses in the first month, on the fifteenth day of the first month. On the day after the Passover the sons of Israel went out with hand held high before the eyes of all the Egyptians. 33.3 Or marched out boldly or marched out defiantly For Egypt were burying those whom YHWH had struck down among them, all the firstborn, and on their gods YHWH had executed judgments. And the sons of Israel set out from Rameses and camped at Succoth. And they set out from Succoth and camped at Etham, which is on the edge of the wilderness. And they set out from Etham and turned back to Pi-hahiroth, which is upon the face of Baal-zephon, and they camped near Migdol. And they set out from Pi-hahiroth,33.8 Some Hebrew manuscripts, SP, and Vulgate; see verse 7; most MT manuscripts Hahiroth and passed through in the midst of the sea into the wilderness, and went a journey of three days in the Wilderness of Etham, and camped at Marah. And they set out from Marah and came to Elim, and at Elim were twelve springs of water and seventy palm trees; and they camped there. And they set out from Elim and camped by the Red Sea.33.10 Or the Sea of Reeds; also in verse 11 And they set out from the Red Sea and camped in the Wilderness of Sin.33.11 The geographical name Sin is related to Sinai and should not be mistaken for the English word sin; also in verse 12. And they set out from the Wilderness of Sin and camped at Dophkah. And they set out from Dophkah and camped at Alush. And they set out from Alush and camped at Rephidim, and there was no water for the people to drink. And they set out from Rephidim and camped in the Wilderness of Sinai. And they set out from the Wilderness of Sinai and camped at Kibroth-hattaavah. And they set out from Kibroth-hattaavah and camped at Hazeroth. And they set out from Hazeroth and camped at Rithmah. And they set out from Rithmah and camped at Rimmon-perez. And they set out from Rimmon-perez and camped at Libnah. And they set out from Libnah and camped at Rissah. And they set out from Rissah and camped at Kehelathah. And they set out from Kehelathah and camped at Mount Shepher. And they set out from Mount Shepher and camped at Haradah. And they set out from Haradah and camped at Makheloth. And they set out from Makheloth and camped at Tahath. And they set out from Tahath and camped at Terah. And they set out from Terah and camped at Mithkah. And they set out from Mithkah and camped at Hashmonah. And they set out from Hashmonah and camped at Moserah. And they set out from Moserah and camped at Bene-jaakan. And they set out from Bene-jaakan and camped at Hor-haggidgad. And they set out from Hor-haggidgad and camped at Jotbathah. And they set out from Jotbathah and camped at Abronah. And they set out from Abronah and camped at Ezion-geber. And they set out from Ezion-geber and camped in the Wilderness of Zin; it is Kadesh. And they set out from Kadesh and camped at Mount Hor on the boundary of the land of Edom. And Aaron the priest went up to Mount Hor at the mouth of YHWH, and died there, in the fortieth year of the going out of the sons of Israel of the land of Egypt, on the first of the Fifth month. And Aaron was a son of three and twenty and a hundred years when he died on Mount Hor. And the Canaanite—the king of Arad—he dwelt in the Negev in the land of Canaan and heard of the coming of the sons of Israel. And they set out from Mount Hor and camped at Zalmonah. And they set out from Zalmonah and camped at Punon. And they set out from Punon and camped at Oboth. And they set out from Oboth and camped at Iye-abarim on the border of Moab. And they set out from Ijim33.45 Iyim is another name for Iye-abarim; see verse 44. and camped at Dibon-gad. And they set out from Dibon-gad and camped at Almon-diblathaim. And they set out from Almon-diblathaim and camped in the mountains of the Abarim33.47 Or the mountains beyond the river; also in verse 48 before the face of Nebo. And they set out from the mountains of the Abarim and camped in the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho. And they camped by the Jordan, from Beth-jeshimoth to Abel-shittim33.49 Or the Meadow of the Acacias; that is, an area in the lowlands of Moab in the plains of Moab. Instructions for Occupying Canaan And YHWH spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan across from Jericho, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them: When you⁺ have crossed the Jordan into the land of Canaan, you⁺ shall drive out all those dwelling in the land from before you⁺ and destroy all their carved figures, and all their molten images you⁺ shall destroy, and all their high places you⁺ shall demolish. And you⁺ shall possess the land and dwell in it. For to you⁺ I have given the land to possess. And you⁺ shall inherit for yourselves the land by lot among your⁺ clans. To the larger you⁺ shall give a larger inheritance, and to the smaller you shall give a smaller inheritance. To where there the lot goes out to each one, it shall be unto him. According to the tribes of your⁺ fathers you⁺ shall inherit. But if you⁺ do not drive out those dwelling in the land from before you⁺, it shall be that you⁺ leave are irritants in your⁺ eyes and thorns in your⁺ sides, and they shall harass you⁺ in the land in which you⁺ dwell. And it will come to pass that as I thought to do to them, I will do to you⁺.” The Boundaries of Canaan (Genesis 15:8–21) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Command the sons of Israel, and say to them: When you⁺ come into the land of Canaan, this is the land that shall fall to you⁺ as an inheritance—the land of Canaan to its boundaries: And your⁺ border on the Negev shall be from the Wilderness of Zin along the border of Edom, and your⁺ border on the Negev shall extend to the end of the Salt Sea34.3 That is, the Dead Sea; also in verse 12 eastward. And your⁺ border shall turn from the Negev to the Ascent of Akrabbim34.4 Or the Ascent of Scorpions or Scorpion Pass and continue to Zin, and the going forth will be from the Negev to Kadesh-barnea, and it shall go on to Hazar-addar and continue to Azmon. And the border shall turn from Azmon to the Brook of Egypt, and will be its outer limits to the Sea.34.5 That is, the Mediterranean Sea, also called the Great Sea; similarly in verses 6 and 7 And as for the western border, the Great Sea shall be to you⁺ for a border; this shall be your⁺ western border. And this shall be your⁺ northern border: From the Great Sea you⁺ shall mark out to you⁺ to Mount Hor. From Mount Hor you⁺ shall mark out to Lebo-hamath; and the direction of the border shall be toward Zedad; and the border shall proceed to Ziphron, and it shall end at Hazar-enan. This shall be unto you⁺ the northern border. And you⁺ shall mark out your⁺ eastern border from Hazar-enan to Shepham, and the border shall go down from Shepham to Riblah on the east side of Ain, and the border shall go down and reach to the eastern side of the Sea of Chinnereth.34.11 That is, the Sea of Galilee And the border shall go down along the Jordan, and it shall end at the Salt Sea. This shall be to you⁺ the land with its boundaries all around.” And Moses commanded the sons of Israel, saying, “This is the land that you shall inherit by lot, which YHWH has commanded to give to the nine tribes and to the half-tribe; for the tribe of the sons of the Reubenite has received according to the house of their fathers, and the tribe of the sons of the Gadite according to the house of their fathers, and the half-tribe of Manasseh has received its inheritance. The two tribes and the half-tribe have received their inheritance on this side of the Jordan near Jericho eastward, toward the sunrise.” Leaders to Divide the Land And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “These are the names of the men who shall divide as an inheritance among you⁺ the land: Eleazar the priest and Joshua son of Nun. And one leader—one leader from a tribe—you⁺ shall take to distribute the land. And these are the names of the men: From the tribe of Judah, Caleb son of Jephunneh; and from the tribe of the sons of Simeon, Shemuel son of Ammihud; from the tribe of Benjamin, Elidad son of Chislon; and from the tribe of the sons of Dan, a leader Bukki son of Jogli; from the sons of Joseph, from the tribe of the sons of Manasseh, a leader, Hanniel son of Ephod; and from the tribe of the sons of Ephraim, a leader, Kemuel son of Shiphtan; and from the tribe of the sons of Zebulun, a leader, Elizaphan son of Parnach; and from the tribe of the sons of Issachar, a leader, Paltiel son of Azzan; and from the tribe of the sons of Asher, a leader, Ahihud son of Shelomi; and from the tribe of the sons of Naphtali, a leader, Pedahel son of Ammihud.” These are those whom YHWH commanded among the sons of Israel to divide the inheritance in the land of Canaan. Forty-Eight Cities for the Levites (Joshua 21:1–45; 1 Chronicles 6:54–81) And YHWH spoke to Moses in the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho, saying, “Command the sons of Israel that they give to the Levites from the inheritance of their possession cities to dwell in; and pastureland around the cities you⁺ shall give the Levites. And the cities shall be for them to dwell in, and their pasturelands shall be for their cattle, and for their herds, and for all their animals. And the pasturelands of the cities that you⁺ shall give the Levites is from the wall of the city and outward a thousand cubits all around.35.4 1,000 cubits is approximately 1,500 feet or 457.2 meters. And you⁺ shall measure outside of the city on the east side two thousand by the cubit,35.5 2,000 cubits is approximately 3,000 feet or 914.4 meters. and on the side of the Negev two thousand by the cubit, and on the west side two thousand by the cubit, and on the north side two thousand by the cubit; and the city is in the middle. This shall be unto them as pasturelands for the cities. And among the cities that you⁺ shall give to the Levites are six cities of refuge, which you⁺ shall give for the fleeing there of the manslayer. And to these you⁺ shall add forty-two cities. And all the cities that you⁺ will give to the Levites are forty-eight cities—these and their pasturelands. And the cities that you⁺ give from the possession of the sons of Israel—from the larger you⁺ shall give many and from the smaller you⁺ shall give few—each in proportion to the inheritance that each receives should be given of its cities to the Levites.” Six Cities of Refuge (Deuteronomy 4:41–43; Deuteronomy 19:1–14; Joshua 20:1–9) And YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, “Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them: When you⁺ cross the Jordan into the land of Canaan, you⁺ shall appoint for yourselves cities—cities of refuge to be for you⁺, that may flee there the manslayer who kills a person in error.35.11 Or unintentionally; also in verse 15 And they shall be for you⁺ cities of refuge from the avenger, that the manslayer may not die until he stands before the face of the congregation for judgment. And of the cities that you⁺ give, six will be to you⁺ cities of refuge. Three cities you⁺ shall appoint on this side of the Jordan, and three cities you⁺ shall appoint in the land of Canaan—they are cities of refuge. For the sons of Israel and for the sojourner and for the stranger in your midst shall be these six cities for refuge; anyone who kills a soul in error to flee there. But if he strikes him with an iron implement and he dies, he is a murderer; the murderer must surely be put to death. And if with a stone in the hand, with which one could die by it, he strikes him and he does die, he is a murderer; the murderer must surely be put to death. Or if with a wooden weapon in the hand, with which one could die by it, he strikes him and he does die, he is a murderer; the murderer must surely be put to death. The avenger of blood himself shall put to death the murderer; when he meets him, he shall put him to death. And if out of hatred he pushes him or hurls something at him while lying in wait, and he dies, or in enmity he strikes him with his hand and he dies, the one who struck him must surely be put to death; he is a murderer. The avenger of blood shall put to death the murderer when he meets him. And if suddenly without enmity he pushes him or throws at him any object without lying in wait, or with any stone with which a man could die by it, without seeing him, and throwing it at him so that he dies, and he is not an enemy to him or seeking his harm, then the congregation shall judge between the manslayer and between the avenger of blood according to these ordinances. And the congregation shall deliver the manslayer from the hand of the avenger of blood, and the congregation shall return him to the city of refuge where there he had fled; and he shall remain there until the death of the high priest who was anointed with the oil of holiness. But if the manslayer ever goes outside the limits of the city of refuge, where there he fled, and the avenger of blood finds him outside the limits of the city of his refuge, and the avenger of blood kills the manslayer, he shall not be guilty of blood, because in his city of refuge he should have remained until the death of the high priest. And after the death of the high priest the manslayer may return to the land of his possession. And these shall be to you⁺ a statute of judgment throughout your⁺ generations in all your⁺ dwellings. Whoever kills a person, on the testimony of witnesses the murderer shall be put to death. And one witness shall not testify against a person to die. And you⁺ shall take no ransom for the life of a murderer who is condemned to die; for he must surely be put to death. And you⁺ shall take no ransom for him who has fled to the city of his refuge, that he may return to dwell in the land before the death of the priest. And you⁺ shall not pollute the land that you⁺ are in because the blood itself defiles the land; and for the land atonement cannot be made for the blood that is shed on it, except if by the blood of him who shed it. You shall not defile the land that you⁺ are dwelling in, in the midst of which I dwell. For I, YHWH, dwell in the midst of the sons of Israel.” Zelophehad’s Daughters Marry (Numbers 27:1–11) And the chief fathers of the clans of the sons of Gilead son of Machir son of Manasseh, of the clans of the sons of Joseph, came near and spoke before the face of Moses and before the face of the leaders, the chief fathers of the sons of Israel. And they said, “YHWH commanded my lord to give the land as an inheritance by lot to the sons of Israel, and my lord was commanded by YHWH to give the inheritance of Zelophehad our brother to his daughters. And if they are to one of the sons of the tribes of the sons of Israel for wives, their inheritance will be taken from the inheritance of our fathers, and it will be added to the inheritance of the tribe that they marry into. And from the lot of our inheritance it is withdrawn. And if it is the Jubilee of the sons of Israel, their inheritance will be added to the inheritance of the tribe that they marry into, and from the inheritance of the tribe of our fathers their inheritance shall be withdrawn.” And Moses commanded the sons of Israel according to the word of YHWH, saying, “Rightly the tribe of the sons of Joseph speaks. This is the thing that YHWH commands concerning the daughters of Zelophehad, saying: Let them be for wives to those good in their eyes, but only within the family of the tribe of their father let them be for wives. And the inheritance of the sons of Israel shall not change hands from tribe to tribe, for a man of the inheritance of the tribe of his fathers, the sons of Israel shall cling to. And every daughter who possesses an inheritance in any tribe of the sons of Israel shall be a wife of one of the family of the tribe of her father, so that the sons of Israel will have a possession, a man the inheritance of his fathers. And inheritance shall not change hands from one tribe to another tribe, but each of the tribes of the sons of Israel shall keep its inheritance.” As YHWH commanded Moses, so the daughters of Zelophehad did. And Mahlah, Tirzah, and Hoglah, and Milcah, and Noah—the daughters of Zelophehad—were to the sons of their father’s brothers for wives. Into the clans of the sons of Manasseh son of Joseph they became married, and their inheritance remained in the tribe of the family of their father. These are the commandments and the ordinances that YHWH commanded by the hand of Moses unto the sons of Israel in the plains of Moab by the Jordan near Jericho.