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NUMBERS 7

PARAGRAPH DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

 NASB  NKJV  NRSV  TEV   NJB
(MT versing)
Offerings of the Leaders Offerings of the Leaders Offerings from the Tribal Leaders The Offerings of the Leaders Offering of Wagons
7:1-9 7:1-9 7:1-9 7:1-9 7:1-9
Dedication Offering
7:10-11 7:10-11 7:10-11 7:10-11 7:10-11
7:12-17 7:12-17 7:12-17 7:12-83 7:12-17
7:18-23 7:18-23 7:18-23 7:18-23
7:24-29 7:24-29 7:24-29 7:24-29
7:30-35 7:30-35 7:30-35 7:30-35
7:36-41 7:36-41 7:36-41 7:36-41
7:42-47 7:42-47 7:42-47 7:42-47
7:48-53 7:48-53 7:48-53 7:48-53
7:54-59 7:54-59 7:54-59 7:54-59
7:60-65 7:60-65 7:60-65 7:60-65
7:66-71 7:66-71 7:66-71 7:66-71
7:72-77 7:72-77 7:72-77 7:72-77
7:78-83 7:78-83 7:78-83 7:78-83
7:84-88 7:84-88 7:84-88 7:84-88 7:84-88a
7:88b
7:89 7:89 7:89 7:89 7:89

READING CYCLE THREE (see "Bible Interpretation Seminar")

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT THE PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects. Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

  1. First paragraph
  2. Second paragraph
  3. Etc.

CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS

  1. Each of the twelve tribal leaders brought the same gifts for the Tabernacle's dedication. This list is similar to many ANE temple/sanctuary lists of sacrifices.
    1. silver dish (130 shekels)
    2. silver bowl (70 shekels)
    3. gold pan (10 shekels)
    4. burnt offering
      1. one bull
      2. one ram
      3. one male lamb (one year old)
    5. sin offering ‒ one male goat
    6. peace offerings
      1. two oxen
      2. five rams
      3. five male goats
      4. five male lambs (one female)

  2. All of these items of silver and gold came from the gifts of the Egyptians as Israel left Egypt (Exod. 3:22; 11:1; 12:35-36). They once may have been used in Egyptian idolatry but now they were given to YHWH for His Tabernacle.

WORD AND PHRASE STUDY

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:1-9
  1Now on the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle, he anointed it and consecrated it with all its furnishings and the altar and all its utensils; he anointed them and consecrated them also. 2Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their fathers' households, made an offering (they were the leaders of the tribes; they were the ones who were over the numbered men). 3When they brought their offering before the Lord, six covered carts and twelve oxen, a cart for every two of the leaders and an ox for each one, then they presented them before the tabernacle. 4Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 5"Accept these things from them, that they may be used in the service of the tent of meeting, and you shall give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service." 6So Moses took the carts and the oxen and gave them to the Levites. 7Two carts and four oxen he gave to the sons of Gershon, according to their service, 8and four carts and eight oxen he gave to the sons of Merari, according to their service, under the direction of Ithamar the son of Aaron the priest. 9But he did not give any to the sons of Kohath because theirs was the service of the holy objects, which they carried on the shoulder.

7:1 "On the day that Moses had finished setting up the tabernacle" This relates back to Exodus 40. The exact time relationship between the events recorded in Leviticus and Numbers 1-6 are ambiguous as to their relationship to Exodus 40 through Numbers 7.

▣ "the tabernacle" See SPECIAL TOPIC: TABERNACLE (chart).

▣ "anointed" This VERB (BDB 602, KB 643, Qal IMPERFECT with waw)

  1. is repeated twice in v. 1; also notice Niphal INFINITIVE CONSTRUCT in Num. 7:10,84,88
  2. is parallel to the VERB "consecrated" (BDB 872, KB 1073, Piel IMPERFECT with waw)

See SPECIAL TOPIC: "ANOINTING" IN THE BIBLE.

From Exod. 29:10-14 and Lev. 8:15, which record the consecration of Aaron and his sons, part of the procedure was putting blood on the horns of the altar of sacrifice. But blood is not mentioned in this chapter and olive oil is assumed.

▣ "all its furnishings" See the following Special Topics:

  1. SPECIAL TOPIC: THE ARK OF THE COVENANT
  2. SPECIAL TOPIC: ALTAR OF INCENSE
  3. SPECIAL TOPIC: LAMPSTAND (Menorah)
  4. SPECIAL TOPIC: THE SHOW BREAD OF THE PRESENCE
  5. SPECIAL TOPIC: LAVER OF BRONZE

▣ "the altar" See SPECIAL TOPIC: ALTAR OF SACRIFICE.

7:2 "the leaders of Israel" These twelve leaders are described as

  1. the heads of their fathers' households
  2. the ones who were over the muster of Num. 1:2-18

7:3 "six covered carts" One cart for every two tribes. These carts were for transporting the pieces of the Tabernacle, except for the holy furniture and altar (cf. Num. 7:9), which had to be carried by poles on the shoulders of the priests.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:10-11
  10The leaders offered the dedication offering for the altar when it was anointed, so the leaders offered their offering before the altar. 11Then the Lord said to Moses, "Let them present their offering, one leader each day, for the dedication of the altar."

7:7-9 Here are three groups of Levites who camped around the Tabernacle and were responsible for moving it. These special gifts of carts and oxen, given by the twelve leaders of Israel, provided transportation which was needed to perform the tasks of the Levites.

7:11 Each tribe brought their identical animal sacrifices each day. Therefore, the dedication of the altar of sacrifice took twelve days.

  1. burnt offering totally consumed on the altar (Num. 7:15)
  2. sin offerings, partly eaten by priests (Num. 7:16)
  3. peace offerings
    1. partial portion given to YHWH by fire
    2. partial portion to priests
    3. partial portion to offerer and friends

These twelve days were days of solemn assembly and festival.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:12-17
  12Now the one who presented his offering on the first day was Nahshon the son of Amminadab, of the tribe of Judah; 13and his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 14one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 15one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 16one male goat for a sin offering; 17and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Nahshon the son of Amminadab.

7:12-88 There is a series of sacrifices here which are given by an elected representative from every tribe. The tribes are taken in order of their marching order around the Tabernacle, beginning with Judah on the east, then moving to the south, the west, and the north (cf. Num. 2:3-9). This series of sacrifices is repeated exactly for every tribe on a separate day.

7:12 "of the tribe of Judah" Judah's preeminence is shown by

  1. its being listed first
  2. it having the most soldiers
  3. its position before the gate of the Tabernacle to the east

This all goes back to Jacob's blessing in Gen. 49:8-12, esp. v. 10. Reuben was rejected because he slept with his father's concubine (cf. Gen. 35:27). Simeon and Levi are rejected because they broke Jacob's vow and killed the men of Shechem (cf. Gen. 34:25-31).

7:13 "shekel" See SPECIAL TOPIC: ANE WEIGHTS AND VOLUMES.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:18-23
  18On the second day Nethanel the son of Zuar, leader of Issachar, presented an offering; 19he presented as his offering one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 20one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 21one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 22one male goat for a sin offering; 23and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Nethanel the son of Zuar.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:24-29
  24On the third day it was Eliab the son of Helon, leader of the sons of Zebulun; 25his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 26one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 27one young bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 28one male goat for a sin offering; 29and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Eliab the son of Helon.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:30-35
  30On the fourth day it was Elizur the son of Shedeur, leader of the sons of Reuben; 31his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 32one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 33one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 34one male goat for a sin offering; 35and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Elizur the son of Shedeur.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:36-41
  36On the fifth day it was Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai, leader of the children of Simeon; 37his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 38one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 39one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 40one male goat for a sin offering; 41and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Shelumiel the son of Zurishaddai.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:42-47
  42On the sixth day it was Eliasaph the son of Deuel, leader of the sons of Gad; 43his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 44one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 45one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 46one male goat for a sin offering; 47and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Eliasaph the son of Deuel.

7:42 "Deuel" See note at Num. 1:14. Some MSS have "Reuel," which is the "d" ‒ "r" confusion.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:48-53
  48On the seventh day it was Elishama the son of Ammihud, leader of the sons of Ephraim; 49his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 50one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 51one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 52one male goat for a sin offering; 53and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Elishama the son of Ammihud.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:54-59
  54On the eighth day it was Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur, leader of the sons of Manasseh; 55his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 56one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 57one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 58one male goat for a sin offering; 59and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Gamaliel the son of Pedahzur.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:60-65
  60On the ninth day it was Abidan the son of Gideoni, leader of the sons of Benjamin; 61his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 62one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 63one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 64one male goat for a sin offering; 65and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Abidan the son of Gideoni.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:66-71
  66On the tenth day it was Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai, leader of the sons of Dan; 67his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 68one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 69one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 70one male goat for a sin offering; 71and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Ahiezer the son of Ammishaddai.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:72-77
  72On the eleventh day it was Pagiel the son of Ochran, leader of the sons of Asher; 73his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 74one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 75one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 76one male goat for a sin offering; 77and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Pagiel the son of Ochran.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:78-83
  78On the twelfth day it was Ahira the son of Enan, leader of the sons of Naphtali; 79his offering was one silver dish whose weight was one hundred and thirty shekels, one silver bowl of seventy shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, both of them full of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 80one gold pan of ten shekels, full of incense; 81one bull, one ram, one male lamb one year old, for a burnt offering; 82one male goat for a sin offering; 83and for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs one year old. This was the offering of Ahira the son of Enan.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:84-88
  84This was the dedication offering for the altar from the leaders of Israel when it was anointed: twelve silver dishes, twelve silver bowls, twelve gold pans, 85each silver dish weighing one hundred and thirty shekels and each bowl seventy; all the silver of the utensils was 2,400 shekels, according to the shekel of the sanctuary; 86the twelve gold pans, full of incense, weighing ten shekels apiece, according to the shekel of the sanctuary, all the gold of the pans 120 shekels; 87all the oxen for the burnt offering twelve bulls, all the rams twelve, the male lambs one year old with their grain offering twelve, and the male goats for a sin offering twelve; 88and all the oxen for the sacrifice of peace offerings 24 bulls, all the rams 60, the male goats 60, the male lambs one year old 60. This was the dedication offering for the altar after it was anointed.

7:84-88 This is a summary of all twelve sacrifices and the amount of things given.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 7:89
  89Now when Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim, so He spoke to him.

7:89 "Moses went into the tent of meeting to speak with Him, he heard the voice speaking to him from above the mercy seat that was on the ark of the testimony, from between the two cherubim, so He spoke to him" God symbolically dwelt between the wings of the cherubim over the ark of the covenant (cf. Exod. 25:21-22; Ps. 80:1; 99:1). This was God's footstool, though He, Himself, dwelt in heaven. See SPECIAL TOPIC: CHERUBIM, SPECIAL TOPIC: ARK OF THE COVENANT, and SPECIAL TOPIC: MERCY SEAT.

▣ "the voice" This NOUN (BDB 876) means "voice" or "sound." It is often used

  1. as a way of showing YHWH's will or law ‒ Gen. 22:18; 26:5; Exod. 5:2; 15:26; 19:5; 23:21, 22; Deut. 8:20; 9:23; 13:4, 18; Jdgs. 1:2, 20; 6:10; 1 Sam. 12:14, 15; 15:1, 19, 20, 22; Jer. 3:13, 24; 7:23
  2. as the sound of YHWH speaking (i.e., revealing Himself) ‒ Exod. 19:19; 1 Kgs. 19:13; Isa. 6:8; Ezek. 10:5; Mic. 6:8
  3. a theological way of asserting the non-physicalness but personality of Israel's Deity ‒ Deut. 4:12

The rabbis later developed this into the bath kol (see full note online at Matt. 3:17), the way of finding God's will by a spoken voice from heaven (i.e., Jesus' baptism, Matt. 3:17; the transfiguration, Matt. 17:5; 2 Pet. 1:17-18).

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.

  1. This chapter is out of chronological order; where does it fit best?
  2. Is there a theological difference between "anointing" and "consecrating"?
  3. Why do all the tribes bring the same amount of gifts and sacrifices when they are different sizes?
  4. Why does the family of Kohath not need a cart?
  5. Where did the silver and gold items come from?
  6. Does the peace offering imply a fellowship meal?
  7. Where did YHWH dwell?

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