¹sn The chapter has just the two sections, the observance of the Passover (vv. 1-14) and the cloud that led the Israelites in the wilderness (vv. 15-23). It must be remembered that the material in vv. 7-9 is chronologically earlier than vv. 1-6, as the notices in the text will make clear. The two main discussions here are the last major issues to be reiterated before dealing with the commencement of the journey.
²tn The temporal clause is formed with the infinitive construct of yasa’ (axy), “to go out; to leave.” This verse indicates that a full year had passed since the exodus and the original Passover; now a second ruling on the Passover is included at the beginning of the second year. This would have occurred immediately after the consecration of the tabernacle, in the month before the census at Sinai.
³tn The verb is simply “to do; to make” (‘asah [hcu] in the jussive). It must have the idea here of “to perform; to keep; to observe” the ritual of the Passover.
⁴sn For a detailed study note on the Passover, see the discussion with the original institution in Exod 12. The word pesah (js^P#)—here in pause and with the article—has become the technical name for the spring festival of Israel. In Exod 12 the name is explained by the use of the verb “to pass over,” ‘abar (rbu), indicating that the angel of death would pass over the house with the blood applied. Many scholarly attempts have been made to supply the etymology of the word, but none has been compelling enough to be accepted by a large number of biblical scholars. For general literature on the Passover, see J. B. Segal, The Hebrew Passover (London: S.P.C.K., 1963) as well as the Bible dictionaries and encyclopedias.
⁵tc The Greek text uses a plural here but the singular in vv. 7 and 13; the SP uses the plural in all three places.
⁶tn The literal Hebrew expression is “between the evenings” (so also in vv. 5, 11). Sunset is certainly one evening; the other may refer to the change in the middle of the afternoon to the late afternoon, or the beginning of dusk. The idea is probably just at twilight, or dusk (see R. B. Allen, TWOT 2:694).
⁷tn The two verbs in this verse are identical; they are imperfects of instruction. The English translation has been modified for stylistic variation.
⁸tn The two words in this last section are standard “Torah” words. The word hoq (qj)) is a binding statute, something engraved and monumental. The word mispat (fP*v=m!) means “judgment, decision,” but with a more general idea of “custom” at its core. The verse is making it very clear that the Passover had to follow the custom and form that was legislated in Egypt.
⁹tn Heb “spoke to.”
¹⁰tn The infinitive construct functions as the direct object of the preceding verb (a Hebrew complementary usage), answering the question of what he said.
¹¹tc The Greek translation omits this first clause; it also omits “at twilight.”
¹²tn In the Hebrew text the noun has no definite article, and so it signifies “some” or “certain” men.
¹³tn The meaning, of course, is to be ritually unclean, and therefore disqualified from entering the sanctuary.
¹⁴tn Or “a human corpse” (so NAB, NKJV). So also in v.7; cf. v. 10.
¹⁵tn This clause begins with the vav conjunction and negative before the perfect tense. Here is the main verb of the sentence: and they were not able to observe the Passover. The first part of the verse provides the explanation for their problem.
¹⁶tn The verb is simply “stand,” but in the more general sense of waiting to hear the answer.
¹⁷tn The cohortative may be subordinated to the imperative: “stand…[that I] may hear.”
¹⁸tn This sense is conveyed by the repetition of “man”—“if a man, a man becomes unclean.”
¹⁹tn The perfect tense with vav consecutive functions as the equivalent of an imperfect tense. In the apodosis of this conditional sentence, the permission nuance fits well.
²⁰sn The delay of four weeks for such people would have permitted enough time for them to return from their journey, or to recover from any short termed defilement such as is mentioned here. Apart from this provision, the Passover was to be kept precisely at the proper time.
²¹tn The disjunctive vav signals a contrastive clause here: “but the man” on the other hand….
²²tn The verb hadal (ldj) means “to cease; to leave off; to fail.” The implication here is that it is a person who simply neglects to do it. It does not indicate that he forgot, but more likely that he made the decision to leave it undone.
²³sn The pronouncement of such a person’s penalty is that his life will be cut off from his people. There are at least three possible interpretations for this: physical death at the hand of the community (G. B. Gray, Numbers, 84-85), physical and/or spiritual death at the hand of God (J. Milgrom, “A Prolegomenon to Lev 17:11,” JBL 90 [1971]: 154-55), or excommunication or separation from the community (Cole, Exodus, 109). The direct intervention of God seem to be the most likely in view of the lack of directions for the community to follow. Excommunication from the camp in the wilderness would have been tantamount to a death sentence by the community, and so there really are just two views.
²⁴tn The word for “sin” here should be interpreted to mean the consequences of his sin (so a metonymy of effect). Whoever willingly violates the Law will have to pay the consequences.
²⁵tn The words translated “resident foreigner” and “live” are from the same Hebrew root, gur (rWG), traditionally translated “to sojourn.” The “sojourner” who “sojourns” is a foreigner, a resident alien, who lives in the land as a temporary resident with rights of land ownership.
²⁶tn The verb is the simple perfect tense with vav consecutive. It is therefore the equivalent to the imperfect that comes before it. The desiderative imperfect fits this usage well, since the alien is not required to keep the feast, but may indeed desire to do so.
²⁷tn The Hebrew text has “there will be to you,” which is the way of expressing possession in Hebrew. Since this is legal instruction, the imperfect tense must be instruction or legislation.
²⁸tn Or “you must have one statute.”
²⁹tn The conjunction is used here to specify the application of the law: “and for the resident foreigner, and for the one…” indicates “both for the resident foreigner and the one who….”
³⁰sn This section (Num 9:15-23) recapitulates the account in Exod 40:34 but also contains some additional detail about the cloud that signaled Israel’s journeys. Here again material from the book of Exodus is used to explain more of the laws for the camp in motion.
³¹tn Heb “and/now on the day.”
³²tn The construction uses the temporal expression with the Hiphil infinitive construct followed by the object, the tabernacle. “On the day of the setting up of the tabernacle” leaves the subject unstated, and so the entire clause may be expressed in the passive voice.
³³sn The explanation and identification of this cloud has been a subject of much debate. Some commentators have concluded that it was identical with the cloud that led the Israelites away from Egypt and through the sea; but others have made a more compelling case that this is a different phenomenon (see J. A. Thompson, ZPEB 4:796). A number of modern scholars see the description as a retrojection from later, perhaps Solomonic times (see G. H. Davies, IDB 3:817). Others have tried to connect it with Ugaritic terminology, but unconvincingly (see T. W. Mann, “The Pillar of Cloud in the Reed Sea Narrative,” JBL 90 [1971]: 15-30; G. E. Mendenhall, The Tenth Generation [Baltimore: Johns Hopkins, 1973], 32-66, 209-13; and R. Good, “Cloud Messengers?” UF 10 [1978]: 436-37).
³⁴sn The cloud apparently was centered over the tent, over the spot of the ark of the covenant in the most holy place. It thereafter spread over the whole tabernacle.
³⁵tn The imperfect tense in this and the next line should be classified as a customary imperfect, stressing incomplete action but in the past time—something that used to happen, or would happen.
³⁶tn Heb “like the appearance of fire.”
³⁷tc The MT lacks the words “by day,” but a number of ancient versions have this reading (e.g., Greek, Syriac, Targum Ps. Jonathan, Latin Vulgate).
³⁸tn The verb in this initial temporal clause is the Niphal infinitive construct.
³⁹tn Heb “in the place where it settled there”; the relative clause modifies the noun “place,” and the resumptive adverb completes the related idea—“which it settled there” means “where it settled.”
⁴⁰tn Heb “at the mouth of.” So also in vv. 20,23.
⁴¹tn Heb “all the days of—that the cloud settled over the tabernacle.” “All” is the adverbial accusative of time telling how long they camped in one spot—all. The word is then qualified by the genitive of the thing measured—“all of the days”; and this in turn is qualified by a noun clause functioning as a genitive after “days of.”
⁴²tn This is the same Hebrew expression that was used earlier for the Levites “keeping their charge” or more clearly, “fulfilling their obligations” to take care of the needs of the people and the sanctuary. It is a general expression using samar (rmv) followed by its cognate noun mismeret (tr\m#v=m!).
⁴³tn The sentence uses w^eyes (vy}w+) followed by a noun clause introduced with ’aser (rv#a&) to express an existing situation; it is best translated as an adverbial clause of time: “and it was when the cloud was….”
⁴⁴tn The word “number” is in apposition to the word “days” to indicate that stay was prolonged for quite a few days, such that would be counted.
⁴⁵tn Heb “mouth of.”
⁴⁶tn The construction is the same in the preceding verse.
⁴⁷tn “Only” is supplied to reflect the contrast between the two verses.
⁴⁸tn The construction in this half of the verse uses two vav consecutive clauses. The first is subordinated to the second as a temporal clause: “when…then….”
⁴⁹tn The MT has ’o-yamim (<ym!y`-oa). Most translators use “or a year” to interpret this expression in view of the sequence of words leading up to it, as well as in comparison with passages like Judg 17:10 and 1 Sam 1:3 and 27:7. The use in Gen 40:4 and 1 Kgs 17:15. For the view that it means four months, see F. S. North, “Four Month Season of the Hebrew Bible,” VT 11 (1961): 446-48.
⁵⁰tn In the Hebrew text this sentence has a temporal clause using the preposition with the Hiphil infinitive construct of ’arak (Era) followed by the subjective genitive, “the cloud.” But this infinitive is followed by the infinitive construct liskon (/K)v=l!), the two of them forming a verbal hendiadys: “the cloud made long to stay” becomes “the cloud stayed longer.”
⁵¹tn Heb “and they would not journey”; the clause can be taken adverbially, explaining the preceding verbal clause.
⁵²tn Heb “hand.”