Abstract
This article argues that the diverse units present within Num. 1.1–10.10 are more elaborately arranged than has been widely assumed. By utilizing a synchronic approach that pays special attention to repetition and other structural markers, Num. 1.1–10.10 is shown to consist of two parallel panels of three units each: 1.1–6.27 (1.1–2.24; 3.1–1.49; 5.1–6.27) and 7.1–10.10 (7.1–89; 8.1–26; 9.1–10.10). A resultant laity-clergy-laity pattern in each panel reinforces the centrality of Yahweh's tabernacle presence in Israel's midst, as mediated through the priests, for the campaign ahead.
1. Introduction
Numbers 1.1–10.10 narrates the organization of Israel's camp in preparation for the wilderness march that begins in 10.11–13. 1 Ironically, this narrative about organization has long been held to be profoundly lacking in organization. Numbers as a whole has been called ‘the junkroom of the priestly code’ 2 and no part of the book is more suited to this description than Numbers 1–10. Indeed, H. Seebass laments that Numbers 1–10 needs rescuing from its reputation as an ‘unbalanced’ and ‘boring part of Numbers’. 3 The difficulty scholars face in discerning organizational coherence can be quickly seen in the variety of analyses of the text's surface structure. Of commentators identifying 1.1–10.10 or 1.1–10.36 as a unit, the number of subunits proposed on the next highest level might be two (Dozeman; Ashley), three (de Vaulx; Davies), four (Seebass), six (Wenham, Milgrom), seven (Olson), eight (Sakenfeld), nine (Gray; Fretheim), ten (Bullinger), fourteen (Snaith), or fifteen (Kellermann). 4
This substantial divergence of opinion may be traced in part to the apparent disconnected relationships among the subunits. In regard to genre alone, we find narrative, census return, genealogy, priestly legislation, liturgical poetry, duty roster, ritual celebration and tribal list—to name only a few. M. Noth represents much current opinion in his estimate that chs. 5–9 are composed of many late additions ‘having no connection with one another and in whose sequence no factual arrangement can be discerned’. 5 This kind of negative appraisal is almost certainly behind one feature of Numbers 1–10 for which there is virtually no disagreement: the arrangement of its highest-level subunits (whether two or fifteen or somewhere in between) into a simple linear structure. Bellinger's outline, for example, lists a succession of ten linearly arranged units: 6
Preparation for the March (Num. 1–10)
The First Census (1.1–54)
The Organization of the Camp (2.1–34)
Priests and Levites (3.1–51)
The Service of the Levites (4.1–49)
Priests, Purity, and the Camp (5.1–31)
Vows and Blessings (6.1–27)
Offerings from the Leaders (7.1–89)
Lamps and Levites (8.1–26)
Passover and Divine Guidance (9.1–23)
The Departure (10.1–36)
At the same time, more positive assessments of the literary nature of Numbers have begun to emerge, arguing, for example, that the book's ‘editors were masters of sophisticated literary skills’. 7 J. Milgrom has demonstrated the frequent use of repetition in forming elaborate, symmetrical patterns in the book. According to Milgrom, ‘The main structural device, to judge by its attestation in nearly every chapter of Numbers, is chiasm and introversion’. 8 He cites the arrangement of units into parallel panels as a second major structural pattern. 9 N. Lunn has recently argued that chiastic and parallel panel structures are pervasive throughout Numbers 1–4. 10 With these and other similar studies in mind, 11 it would be unsurprising to find the arrangement of Numbers 1–10 more elaborate than a simple linear sequence.
Seebass's desire to improve the reputation of Numbers 1–10 is admirable. However, his literary-historical approach (in which he seeks to reconstruct an earlier priestly stratum, Pg) renders achieving this desire unlikely for readers outside a small group of trained specialists. 12 While such diachronic work has an important contribution to make, evidence of sophisticated literary artistry detected by synchronic approaches to the text suggests the latter hold greater promise for an impact beyond the academy. 13 In particular, the present article will utilize the structural analysis of symmetrical patterns advocated by S. Bar-Efrat, J.T. Walsh, J.P. Fokkelman and others. 14 This approach pays special attention to patterns of repetition and other verbal markers used to organize literary units. I will argue that the macro-structure of Num. 1.1–10.10 is indeed more intricate than often assumed. Specifically, the text is arranged in two parallel panels, 1.1–6.27 and 7.1–10.10, each consisting of three major units (i.e. ABC…A′B′C′).
A somewhat similar proposal is found in the basic two-panel structure (AB…A′B′) of R. Knierim and G. Coats. 15 In their view, although Num. 1.1–10.10 can be subsumed under the idea of ‘the organization of the sanctuary camp’, a major division occurs between 1.1–4.49 and 5.1–10.10 based on the fact that the clear focus on the camp's organization in 1.1–4.49 is absent in 5.1–10.10. They point as well to the diversity and lack of organizational logic among the subunits of 5.1–10.10. In most cases these are supplemental to various texts in Exodus-Numbers 16 and thus appear to be later accretions added over an extended period of time. 17 Yet despite this rather pessimistic view of the literary character of these chapters, Knierim and Coats suggest a general movement from the outer camp to the inner camp first evident in 1.1–4.49 was later followed during the growth process of 5.1–10.10. 18 The result is that 1.1–4.49 and 5.1–10.10 are parallel panels, each consisting of a first unit focused on the concerns of the outer camp and a second unit focused on the concerns of the inner camp. 19
The shift in focus between the outer and inner camp highlighted in this scheme is clearly important. Numbers 1.1–2.34 presents Israel's lay tribes in the outer camp as they are arranged as a cordon around the tabernacle and its Levite personnel. Numbers 3.1–4.49 then focuses on the Levites located near the camp's center. Numbers 5.1–6.27 consists of community legislation, and thus returns to a concern with the outer camp. However, the units in 7.1–10.10 are not uniformly concerned with the inner camp. Indeed, Knierim and Coats themselves recognize the subunit on the Second Passover (9.1–14) deals with purity of the outer camp. 20
Another problem with this outline is the identification of 5.1 as the beginning of a second, highest-level unit within 1.1–10.10. The divine speech formula in 5.1 (‘Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying…’) is an especially weak marker of a new major unit. As observed by Knierim and Coats, the formula often functions to begin a subunit, but more frequently it introduces speech within a subunit. 21 It should not be considered a clear marker of a major unit within 1.1–10.10. In fact, Num. 5.1–4 shares sufficient commonality with 1.1–4.49 to warn against seeing such a significant disjuncture at 5.1. For example, an important pattern in 1.1–4.49 is (1) the divine speech formula addressed to Moses, (2) Yahweh's command to Moses, (3) narration of obedience to this command, and (4) a concluding compliance formula stating everything has been done as commanded. This pattern is absent in chs. 5–7, with the exception of its continuation into 5.1–4. 22 Likewise, the dominant concern for the ‘camp’ in chs. 1–4, where ‘camp’ (הנחמ) occurs fourteen times, is extended into 5.1–4, where the noun occurs four additional times. This explicit concern for the camp is largely absent in the remainder of 5.1–10.10. 23 Both these extensions of features of chs. 1–4 into 5.1–4, then, suggest caution regarding seeing 5.1 as the beginning of a second major unit within Numbers 1–10.
It is true that 1.1–4.49 forms a coherent unit. Numbers 1.1–2.34 and 3.1–4.49 address the censuses and mobilization of personnel (lay and cultic, respectively) for the sanctuary camp. 24 Knierim and Coats likewise correctly group together the community legislation in Num. 5.1–6.27. However, the lack of a significant introductory marker at 5.1 and the strong ties between 5.1–4 and 1.1–4.49 suggest 1.1–4.49 and 5.1–6.27 are best read together as a single unit (1.1–6.27) on the highest level of 1.1–10.10. 25
This analysis finds support in evidence pointing to 7.1 as the beginning of a new highest-level unit. The book of Numbers opens in 1.1 with a description of the temporal setting: the first day of the second month of the second year after the exodus. This setting in the second month is not changed until 7.1, where the reader encounters a second chronological notation. Here, the temporal setting shifts to the first day of the first month, or exactly one month earlier than announced in 1.1. The reader of 7.1 is thus taken back in time to the momentous events that occurred one month earlier when the tabernacle was set up and inaugurated (cf. Exod. 40; Lev. 8–9). The appearance of a second chronological notice, in addition to this jarring chronological disjunction directing attention back to the tabernacle inauguration, are strong indications that 7.1 marks the beginning of a new major unit. Indeed, as Olson argues, the setting in the first month continues on from 7.1 until the chronological note of 10.11, where the reader is returned to a second month setting (the twentieth day). 26 The result is the following two-fold division:
Another signal that 7.1 begins a new major unit is the placement of the priestly benediction in 6.22–27. This supplies a fitting poetic conclusion to the whole of 1.1–6.27. 27 Lastly, the strength of the division at 7.1 can be seen in the suggestion by H. Koorevaar that 7.1 functions as the beginning of a new highest-level unit within the book which continues through 26.65. 28
The conclusion that 1.1–6.27 and 7.1–10.10 form two highest-level units within 1.1–10.10 is preliminary. 29 It is a sufficient starting point, however, for the remaining task of describing how they are arranged in parallel. 30 The proposed structure is as follows:
1.1–2.34 Lay tribes organized around the tabernacle
3.1–1.49 Levites organized for tabernacle service
5.1–6.27 Community legislation
7.1–89 Lay tribes bring offerings to the tabernacle
8.1–26 Levites inducted to tabernacle service
9.1–10.10 Community legislation
I will survey the content and shape of the units in each pair before presenting the evidence for a parallel relationship.
2. Numbers 1.1–2.34 (A) and 7.1–89 (A′)
a. Numbers 1.1–2.34 (A)
Numbers 1.1–2.34 is a coherent unit focused on the arrangement of Israel's lay tribes in war camp formation around the tabernacle. 31 The first subunit (1.1–54) narrates the census of military personnel from the twelve tribes. Here, chieftains from each tribe are named in order to assist Moses and Aaron with the census (1.1–19). A detailed list of census results then follows for each of the twelve tribes (1.20–54). 32 The second subunit (2.1–34) echoes ch. 1 in its use of another listing of the twelve tribes, together with the chieftains and census results of each tribe. Here, however, the tribes are organized into four military divisions. They are arranged in regard to both their encampment and marching order, with the tabernacle and its Levite personnel at the center (v. 17). Overall, as Knierim and Coats observe, the census in 1.1–54 does not stand alone but exists only as ‘the direct pre-stage’ of the organization of the tribes around the tabernacle in 2.1–34. 33
b. Numbers 7.1–89 (A′)
Numbers 7.1–88 describes the tribal chieftains bringing gifts to the tabernacle for its inauguration. The unit divides into three parts: vv. 1–9, 10–88, and 89. After the tabernacle is set up and consecrated (v. 1; cf. Exod. 40), the chieftains collectively present an offering of oxen-drawn carts to the tabernacle for use by the Levites (vv. 2–9). This is followed by a tribal listing in which the twelve chieftains, individually and on successive days, present additional offerings for the altar (vv. 10–88). Finally, Moses is described entering the tabernacle to hear Yahweh speak (v. 89). This brief note is often viewed as a later, disconnected fragment. 34 Regardless of origin, however, Noth is surely correct to interpret it as a positive divine response to the people's generous offerings in vv. 1–88. 35 This response can be seen as a climactic conclusion to the inaugural festivities of the tabernacle in that it represents the fulfillment of Yahweh's promise that the tabernacle would be a place where Yahweh would meet with Moses and speak his commands (Exod. 25.22; 29.42). 36 The beginning of a new unit in 8.1 is indicated by the redundancy of the final clause of 7.89, ‘He [Yahweh] spoke with him [Moses]’, being followed directly by the divine speech formula, ‘Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying…’ The focus also shifts from the lay tribes in ch. 7 to the priests and Levites in ch. 8.
c. Numbers 1.1–2.34 (A) and 7.1–89 (A′) in Relationship
The listings of the twelve tribes in chs. 1–2 (vv. 5–15, 20–43; 2.3–31) and ch. 7 (vv. 12–83) are the only such listings in 1.1–10.10. 37 Those in 1.20–43 and 7.12–83 are especially prominent in that they are by far the two longest lists in Num. 1.1–10.10. In both cases, mention of each of the twelve tribes is accompanied by the repetition of identical (and in many ways unnecessary) information that easily becomes monotonous to the modern reader. The order of the tribal names is different in each of the three lists in 1.5–15, 20–43 and 2.3–31. 38 However, the order in 2.3–31 is precisely the same as in 7.12–83. This order is called the ‘official list’ by Douglas 39 as it begins with Judah and places the tribes in four blocks of three for encamping around the tabernacle and setting out on the march (cf. 10.13–28). By repeating this official list, Numbers 7 literarily picks up where ch. 2 leaves off. The tribes presenting the offerings in ch. 7 are portrayed as those who have obediently arranged themselves according to the instructions for the tabernacle-centered camp in ch. 2. 40
While the tribal listings in 1.20–43 and 2.3–31 both include counts of the available warriors from each tribe, the tribal listing in 7.12–83 includes a count of the items offered by each tribe. All three conclude with a combined total of the counts given, with 1.44–46 and 2.32 recording the total number of warriors available from all the tribes and 7.84–88 recording the total number of items offered from all the tribes. Finally, in 1.5–15, 2.3–31 and 7.12–83 the tribes are mentioned together with the names of their respective chieftains. The names of these chieftains are identical in each list and appear nowhere else in 1.1–10.10. If these similarities were not enough to invite comparison between the two units, the narrator makes the comparison explicit at the beginning of ch. 7: ‘These were the chieftains of the tribes; these were the ones who supervised the census’ (v. 2).
It is also noteworthy that ch. 7 begins by describing the lay tribes moving toward the tabernacle with valuable gifts. As Dozeman notes, ch. 7 as a whole ‘highlights the tabernacle's central role among the tribes’. 41 The tabernacle's centrality is similarly stressed in 1.1–2.34 as it is placed at the geographic center of the tribal divisions. 42
I conclude Num. 1.1–2.34 and 7.1–89 are parallel units as evidenced especially in their common listings of the twelve tribes and accompanying tribal chieftains. Indeed, the narrator draws explicit attention to this parallel by stating the otherwise transparent fact that the chieftains in ch. 7 are the same chieftains from chs. 1–2. Simply put, while chs. 1–2 show the chieftains mobilizing the twelve tribes for war, ch. 7 shows these same chieftains mobilizing the tribes for worship.
3. Numbers 3.1–4.46 (B) and 8.1–26 (B′)
a. Numbers 3.1–4.46 (B)
Numbers 3.1–4.46 consists of two major subunits: the genealogy of Aaron the priest (3.1–4) and the mobilization of the Levites for service at the tabernacle (3.5–4.49). 43 I will address the latter subunit first. Here, Yahweh instructs the Levites to be given as servants for the priests in doing the work of the tabernacle (3.5–13). He then explains that the Levites' service is in substitution for the firstborn sons of the lay tribes whom Yahweh claimed for himself by saving them from the plague on the firstborn in Egypt (3.11–13). This is followed by censuses of all male Levites (3.14–39) and the lay firstborn sons (3.40–51) to make the calculations needed for the substitution. With the Levites as a whole thus chosen as tabernacle servants, a second Levite census is then taken (4.1–49). It mobilizes Levites of appropriate age to do the work of transporting the tabernacle and is the goal of the entire larger unit of 3.1–4.49. 44 Numbers 3.5–4.49 thus unfolds chiastically: 45
Aaron's genealogy in 3.1–4 introduces the reader to the very priests to whom the Levites will be given to serve in 3.5–4.49. The introduction is not strictly necessary, however, as Aaron and his sons are already well known from the narratives of Exodus and Leviticus. The insertion of Moses' name alongside Aaron's name in 3.1 (‘This is the lineage of Aaron and Moses…’) suggests an effort to connect the priests in a special way to the authority of Moses. According to Milgrom, ‘this genealogical notice is a clear attempt to separate the Aaronide line from the rest of the Levites’. 46 This effort, in addition to placement of the focus on the priests in vv. 1–4 prior to the focus on the Levites in 3.5–4.49, function to reinforce the priests' authority over the Levites. This authority structure is an important part of the camp's organization in 3.5–4.49 and is made explicit as early as 3.6, where Moses is told to bring the Levites ‘before Aaron the priest so they may serve him’. 47 Thus, although the Levites will be the dominant focus of 3.1–4.49, the initial spotlight on the priests in 3.1–4 reminds readers that the Levites serve only in (subordinate) relationship to the priests. 48
b. Numbers 8.1–26 (B′)
Numbers 8.1–26 consists of three subunits marked by the introductory speech formula, ‘Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying…’: (1) Aaron's lighting of the tabernacle lampstand (vv. 1–4), (2) the cleansing and induction of the Levites (vv. 5–22), and (3) instruction on the age of Levitical workers (vv. 23–26). Numbers 9.1 also begins with the introductory speech formula, but the addition of chronological and geographical indicators suggests it marks the beginning of a new unit within 1.1–10.10. In addition, the focus shifts away from the priests and Levites in 8.1–26 to the larger community in 9.1–10.10.
Numbers 8.1–4 is a report that largely reiterates previously given instruction for the tabernacle lampstand (cf. Exod. 27.20–21; 30.7–8; Lev. 24.1–4). The lampstand was constructed in Exod. 37.17–24, but its lamps had yet to be set up and lit. Numbers 8.1–4 describes the completion of this task by placing special emphasis on Aaron's faithful execution of Yahweh's instruction to do so. 49 The rationale behind the subunit's present location is not clear. More will be said on this below.
c. Numbers 3.1–4.49 (B) and 8.1–26 (B′) in Relationship
The connection between 3.5–4.49 and 8.5–56 is quite strong. There are numerous instances of verbatim, or near verbatim, repetition in 8.5–26 from 3.5–4.49, many of which are listed below:
The shared language between these texts is the basis for a shared conceptual focus on the Levites and their tabernacle service. Specifically, Num. 8.5–22 describes the ritual cleansing necessary before the Levites can assume the service outlined in detail in 3.5–4.49. The link between the two subunits is unmistakable. 50
Turning to 3.1–4 and 8.1–4, it is obvious that both focus solely on the priests. This becomes more significant when it is recognized that an exclusive focus on the priests is found only in these two sub-units within Num. 1.1–10.10. 51 Additionally, both texts narrate priests performing ritual service in conjunction with the inauguration of the tabernacle. 52 As Milgrom suggests, the lighting of the lampstand is best understood as contingent upon the inauguration of the tabernacle in ch. 7: ‘Only when God began to speak to Moses from the Holy of Holies, after the consecration of the Tabernacle, did Moses receive the final instructions concerning the operation of the menorah’. 53 The illicit ritual activity of Nadab and Abihu noted in 3.1–4 was likewise part of the inaugural festivities of the tabernacle initially narrated in Leviticus 8–10.
The Numbers account of Nadab and Abihu describes them being killed ‘when they offered strange fire before Yahweh’ (ינפל הרז שא םברקהב הוהי, v. 4). This description is abbreviated from the full version in Lev. 10.1: ‘They offered before Yahweh strange fire which he had not commanded them’ (םתא הוצ אל רשא ארז שא הוהי ינפל וברקיו). The additional clause, ‘which he had not commanded them’, although not included in Numbers 3, is especially prominent in Leviticus and the attentive reader of Numbers would likely call it to mind. 54 But even without the connection to Leviticus, the contrast is clear between the illicit priestly action ‘not commanded’ in 3.1–4 and Aaron's lighting the lampstand in 8.1–4 in full compliance to the divine command: ‘Aaron did so… just as Yahweh commanded Moses' (הוהי הוצ רשאכ…השמ־תא ןרהא ןכ שעיו). 55
Finally, as noted, the reason for the placement of 8.1–4 is difficult to discern. In light of the observed parallels, however, it is probable that 8.1–4 is placed before the induction of the Levites in 8.5–26 for similar reasons as 3.1–4 is placed before 3.5–4.49. We have seen the location of 3.1–4 gives prominence to the priests, at least in part, to reinforce the hierarchy of the priests over the Levites before an extended focus is given to the Levites (3.5–4.49). The setting up of the lampstand in 8.1–4 likewise functions to reinforce this authority structure. It reminds the reader that the Levites, who will be the focus of 8.5–26, carry out their work only in subordination to the priests. This hierarchy is further evident in ch. 8 in that the Levites are not sanctified for service as the priests are (Exod. 29.7, 21; Lev. 8.12), but merely cleansed in a manner akin to ordinary laypersons (Num. 8.6–7, 15). 56 An important result of this lack of sanctification of the Levites is that they are unfit to enter the holy place. The implication for the placement of 8.1–4 is that this text's view of priestly service inside the holy place functions in sharp contrast to the less privileged service to which the Levites are being inducted in 8.5–22.
I suggest, then, that 3.1–4 and 8.1–4 are linked together by (1) their exclusive focus on Israel's priests placed prior to a lengthier focus on the Levites, (2) their narration of priests performing ritual connected to the inauguration of the tabernacle, (3) their contrasting portrayals of obedient and disobedient priestly ritual behavior, and (4) their function to reinforce the authority of the priests over the Levites.
Numbers 3.5–4.49 and 8.5–26, we have seen, are linked by (1) their focus on the Levites' service at the tabernacle and their cleansing for that service, respectively, (2) their description of the Levites as substitutes for Israel's firstborn, and (3) many additional parallels in language and content.
In comparing the two larger units of 3.1–4.49 and 8.1–26, it is worth observing that in both cases one short subunit focused on the priests (3.1–4 and 8.1–4) is followed by a much lengthier treatment of the Levites in two subunits (3.5–51; 4.1–49 and 8.5–22, 23–26). On the whole, the fact that both 3.1–4.49 and 8.1–26 focus on the service of the Levites, along with the many additional commonalities we have observed, provide substantial reason for seeing the units as a corresponding pair.
4. Numbers 5.1–6.27 (C) and 9.1–10.1 (C)
a. Numbers 5.1–6.27 (C)
Numbers 5.1–6.27 consists of the following five clearly demarcated subunits: (1) the expulsion of impure persons from the camp (5.1–4), (2) the repaying of debts in the absence of a kinsman (5.5–10), (3) the test for women suspected of adultery (5.11–31), (4) the Nazirite (6.1–21), and (5) the priestly blessing (6.22–27). 57 The first four begin with the divine speech formula addressed to Moses, followed by the message commission formula used by Yahweh in instructing Moses to ‘command (וצ)/speak to (לא ראד) the sons of Israel‘. The fifth subunit begins in precisely the same way, only Yahweh instructs Moses to ‘speak to (לא ראד) Aaron and his sons’. Aaron and his sons are in turn told to pronounce a blessing upon ‘the sons of Israel’.
The relationship of each of these units to one another and the larger context has long perplexed interpreters. In Noth's estimation, ‘several ordinances of very varied scope and very varied contents have been juxtaposed, with no recognizably close relationships, as far as subject-matter is concerned, either with each other or with what precedes and follows’. 58 On the other hand, many see a unifying rubric in the maintenance of camp purity. After the expulsion of impure persons (5.1–4), according to Dozeman, the next three units deal with ‘three types of relationship within the camp with the power to defile’: general person to person (5.5–10), adulterous (5.11–31) and the Nazirite (6.1–21). 59 As Budd observes, ‘It seems entirely appropriate that the issue [of purity] should be raised here after the detailed discussion of the camp's organization in Num. 1–4. Clearly the point must be established before the march begins.’ 60
Others suggest the role played by priests is a more prominent unifying thread. 61 However, while priests are clearly significant to the unit, the opening subunit of 5.1–4 only implies the presence of a priest. It is the ‘sons of Israel’ who expel the impure persons (5.4). Whatever the case, the dominant focus of 5.1–6.27, as observed by Knierim and Coats, is the outer camp. 62 The concern of the first four units is for the larger community of Israelite laypersons, 63 and how its affairs relate to Yahweh's presence in the tabernacle. The concluding priestly blessing appropriately draws together the two threads of the priests and laypersons by highlighting the priests' role in mediating Yahweh's blessing to the whole community.
Most significant for the present argument is that the five units in chs. 5–6 form a larger unit of legislation aimed at managing the community's relationship with Yahweh.
b. Numbers 9.1–10.10 (C′)
Numbers 9.1 brings together the divine speech formula with the historical setting in near identical wording to the book's introduction in Num. 1.1.
Yahweh spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the Tent of Meeting, on the first day of the second month, in the second year after they had gone out from the land of Egypt, saying… (1.1)
Yahweh spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sinai, in the second year after they had gone out from the land of Egypt, in the first month, saying… (9.1)
The dating of events to the exact month occurs only in 1.1 and 9.1 prior to the beginning of the next major section of the book in 10.11, where it appears a third time.
In the second year in the second month, on the twentieth of the month, the cloud was lifted up above the tabernacle of the testimony. (10.11)
Both the announcement of the temporal and geographical setting in 9.1, and the formal similarity to introductions of major sections in the book (1.1 and 10.11), are strong indications that 9.1 introduces a new unit within 1.1–10.10. 64 If so, this section likely extends from 9.1 to 10.10 65 and thus consists of the following three units: the second Passover ruling (9.1–14), the guidance of the cloud (9.15–23) and the sounding of the trumpets (10.1–10). 66 Although addressing three substantially different topics, these units are joined together, according to Milgrom, to ‘tell of final preparation before the departure from Sinai…’ 67 The second Passover ruling (9.1–14) prepares for departure inasmuch as Israel's departure from Sinai is seen as analogous to its departure from Egypt. The departure texts in both Exodus and Numbers, therefore, are preceded by Passover legislation. 68 The placement of the following unit on the guidance of Yahweh's cloud (9.15–23) reinforces this ‘replay’ of the exodus. Whereas the guidance of the cloud followed the account of the first Passover (Exod. 13.21–22), so the guidance of the cloud follows the present unit on the second Passover (9.1–14). 69 Olson observes the significance of this sequence in Numbers as preparatory for the march:
Just as the cloud marks a new chapter in Israel's life in the exodus, so too the appearance of the cloud motif after the second Passover in Numbers 9 marks a new and pivotal transition in the life of Israel. The march toward the promised land of Canaan after the reorganization of the holy camp is about to begin. 70
Finally, the instruction on the trumpets (10.1–10) offers an additional form of guidance. The trumpets will be used both to assemble the community and to prepare the camp to ‘set out’ on the campaign (עסנ, vv. 2, 5, 6). The threefold use of עסנ looks forward to the departure in 10.11–12 where the Israelites ‘set out…on their journeys’ (םהיעםמ…ועםיו). 71 In this way, the three units of 9.1–10.10 are bound together by a common focus on the departure.
Further coherence may be seen in looking more closely at 9.15–23. As a narrative set between two primarily legal subunits (9.1–14 and 10.1–10), 72 9.15–23 appears especially disjunctive. Unlike 5.1–6.27, we do not have a uniform succession of legal units in 9.1–10.10. Nonetheless, I suggest the primary concern of 9.15–23 nicely dovetails with the two texts surrounding it. The narrative places special emphasis on the variation in the schedule of the cloud's movement and Israel's meticulous following of that varied movement. Because the formal narration of departure from Sinai is not given until 10.11–13, 73 this description of Israel's meticulous obedience in 9.15–23 should be read as an idealistic summary of the coming march. 74 To understand the function of this summary in its present location, it is important to observe that the description of the movement of Yahweh's cloud (v. 17) is frequently replaced using the language of ‘Yahweh's order’ (הוהי יפ, lit., ‘mouth of Yahweh’). 75 For example, ‘according to the order of Yahweh they remained camped and according to the order of Yahweh they set out’ (v. 20). As Lee observes, ‘The writer reinforces the concept of Yahweh's guidance by adjoining to it the required obedience on the part of Israel’. 76 In 9.23, Israel's following is ‘according to the order of Yahweh through Moses’ (השמ־דיכ הוהי יפ־לע). This exact phrase is used in 4.45 and 49 in reference to Yahweh's verbal instructions spoken to Moses for the Levitical census. The effect of using this language in ch. 9 is that the portrait of Israel following Yahweh's cloud becomes a metaphor for Israel following the entirety of Yahweh's spoken instructions. This suggests a rhetorical function for 9.15–23 that is overtly didactic. The ideal portrait of Israel meticulously following Yahweh's cloud serves to instruct readers not on following a cloud, but rather Yahweh's verbal commands spoken through Moses (cf. 7.89). Such a vision of obedience on the campaign stands in striking contrast to the multiple crises of disobedience that occur almost as soon as the campaign begins (11.1–17.13). How does this relate to the coherence of 9.1–10.10? Because the units on the Passover (9.1–14) and trumpets (10.1–10) present legislation spoken by Yahweh to Moses for the community, 77 all three units share a concern to instruct the community in ongoing adherence to the divine word. More specifically, it is possible to suggest that 9.1–14 and 10.1–10, both of which begin with the divine speech formula to Moses, be read as prime examples of the kind of verbal commands to which 9.15–23 urges obedience.
Another shared concern of the units in 9.1–10.10 can be seen in a focus on Israel following Yahweh's timing:
The Passover law deals with cases in which participation at the required time (14th of the first month) is deemed impossible. The law on the trumpets addresses their use for signaling the time the community must assemble. And the narrative of Israel following the cloud emphasizes the multiple periods of time the cloud might remain settled over the tabernacle before moving:
‘many days’ (םיבר םשמי)
‘a few days’ (רפםמ םשמי) 78
‘from evening until morning’ (רקב־דע ברעמ)
‘a day and a night’ (הלילו םמוי)
‘two days’ (םימי)
‘a month’ (שדח)
‘a year’ (םימי)
The use of seven specific durations is perhaps an indication the nation needs to respond to all variety of Yahweh's instruction. 79 Others suggest a more specific reference to the keeping of the ‘appointed times’/‘feasts’ (םידעומ) is implied. 80 This focus on following divinely prescribed timing is further underscored by the framing of 9.1–10.10 with references to Yahweh's ‘appointed times’: the initial references to Passover as an ‘appointed time’/‘feast’ (דעומ 9.2, 3, 7, 13) are matched by the concluding command to use the trumpets during the ‘appointed times’/‘feasts’ (םידעומ, 10.10). 81
For our purposes, it is most important that 9.1–14, 15–23, and 10.1–10 function as part of the larger unit, 9.1–10.10. Although the three subunits are diverse, at minimum they are bound together by their particular focus on the campaign departure and their aim to provide instruction (mostly legislative in nature) for the entire community. When this is recognized, the similarity to the collection of community laws in 5.1–6.27 becomes clear.
c. Numbers 5.1–6.27 (C) and 9.1–10.10 (C′) in Relationship
The message commission formula (‘Command/speak to the sons of Israel…’) used to introduce the subunits in chs. 5–6 (5.2; 5.6; 5.12; 6.2; cf. 6.23) appears midway through 9.1–14 to introduce the second Passover ruling (9.10). Because this formula appears within Numbers 1–10 only in chs. 5–6 and here near the beginning of 9.1–10.10, the reader is given the impression 9.1–10.10 is reintroducing the topic of community legislation last seen in chs. 5–6. Indeed, the concept of impurity, so significant to chs. 5–6, is also reintroduced in this first subunit of 9.1–10.10. The ruling on the second Passover in 9.1–14, just like the expulsion of impure persons in 5.1–4, begins its larger unit with a law addressing the obstacle of ritual impurity (9.6, 7, 10). In 5.1–4, the rationale behind the need to remove impure persons (אמט vv. 2, 3) is explicitly stated to lie in Yahweh's presence at the tabernacle. 82 Similarly, the obstacle to Passover observance in 9.1–14 is the inability of impure persons (אמט) to make offerings before Yahweh's presence at the tabernacle. In both places, contact with a corpse is cited as a reason for the impurity prompting the legislation (5.2; 9.7, 10; cf. 6.6). Finally, the terminology of impurity (אמט) is found only in 5.1–6.27 and 9.1–10.10 within Numbers 1–10.
In a parallel structure, the last unit is usually in the position of prominence. 83 It is here that authors place material they most want to highlight. This literary feature may be important when considering the shift to narrative in 9.15–23. The narrative certainly appears out of place when comparing 9.1–10.10 and 5.1–6.27 as parallel units of legislation. 84 However, it may be that this genre shift at the center of 9.1–10.10, the last unit within 1.1–10.10, functions to place a special emphasis on the subunit's picture of Israel's meticulous obedience.
Certainly, an important theme within 1.1–10.10 is Israel's full compliance with Yahweh's commands. In stark contrast to the rebellions of chs. 11–25, this opening section offers not a single narrative of disobedience. Rather, it is punctuated by reports of Israel doing everything ‘just as Yahweh commanded’ (הוהי הוצ רשאב, 1.19, 54; 2.33, 34; 3.16, 42, 51; 4.37, 41, 45, 49 [x2], 5.4; 8.3, 20, 22; 9.5). The ideal vision in 9.15–23 of Israel's obedience in the wilderness continues this theme of compliance. 85 What is more, however, this vision brings the theme to its climactic summary within the campaign preparation of 1.1–10.10 in that it draws attention to the need for closely following Yahweh's commands, not just at Sinai, but during the campaign ahead.
The endings of both 5.1–6.27 and 9.1–10.10 likewise invite comparison. Both the priestly blessing (6.22–27) and the rules for trumpets (10.1–10) conclude their respective larger units with commands for the sons of Aaron. Priests are to give the blessing (6.23) and sound the trumpets (10.8).
The rules for the trumpets are concluded in 10.9–10, where the reader's horizon is lifted from the imminent departure and placed on the destination of the land. 86 Once in the land, the trumpets are to be used during both war (v. 9) and worship (v. 10). When going to war, the trumpets function as a kind of petition for Yahweh to act in Israel's favor. The stated purpose for their use is that Israel might ‘be remembered (רכז) before Yahweh [its] God, and delivered from [its] enemies’. In v. 10, the trumpets are to be used during worship feasts as a ‘reminder’ (ןורכז) for Yahweh to act with favor toward his people (cf. Exod. 2.24; Lev. 23.24). Milgrom notes the trumpets function as ‘instruments of prayer’. 87 Similarly, the priestly blessing is essentially a prayer for Yahweh to act on Israel's behalf. That the blessing is not viewed as somehow magically efficacious is made clear both through the threefold repetition of Yahweh as subject, and by Yahweh's emphatic use of the first person pronoun to conclude the unit: ‘I myself will bless them' (םכרבא ינאו, 6.27). 88 The blessing, then, is merely a means for the priests to petition for Yahweh's favor. Yahweh's own decision to bless has the final say. The fact that such petitions appear only in these two cases argues for hearing the priestly petition through the trumpets (10.9–10) as a clear echo of the priestly petition through the blessing (6.22–27).
Knierim and Coats find the priestly blessing's original setting in ‘the conclusion and culmination of communal worship…’ 89 It is often identified as the blessing Aaron speaks at the conclusion of the tabernacle inauguration service in Lev. 9.22. 90 Indeed, receiving Yahweh's blessing was in many ways the goal of all Israel's public worship. 91 It is appropriate, then, that just as the priestly blessing in 6.22–27 brings 5.1–6.27 to a conclusion with an accent on public worship, the use of trumpets at the feasts in 10.10 does the same for 9.1–10.10. In both cases, the goal of that worship is Yahweh's benevolent action on behalf of the community. 92
Of course, the priestly blessing and the rules for the trumpets not only conclude their respective larger units, 5.1–6.27 and 9.1–10.10, but also their respective major units (panels), 1.1–6.27 and 7.1–10.10. As a result, both panels end on a note of hope for Yahweh's favor. In each case, this hope is tangibly enacted through priestly ritual. And, inasmuch as 1.1–10.10 is preparation for the campaign to follow, this hope succinctly captures the forward-looking tenor of the entire section. Finally, it is worth noting that while the first panel closes appropriately with a blessing in which the name of Yahweh is central, the second panel closes with the concluding formula ‘I am Yahweh your God’ (10.10).
Returning to Num. 5.1–6.27 and 9.1–10.10, I conclude that these units form a matched pair as evidenced primarily in their focus on community legislation. In fact, law appears only in these two sections within Num. 1.1–10.10. 93 More specific ties between the two units are found in their use of the message commission formula, ‘Speak to the sons of Israel’, their concern for impurity in the camp and their closing instruction to petition for Yahweh's favor using priestly ritual.
5. Conclusion
The two-panel structure resulting from the above analysis, including subunits, may be presented as follows:
From the perspective of the primary addressees of the six major units (aside from Moses), each panel exhibits a movement from laity, to tabernacle personnel, and back to laity. 94 The priestly blessing (6.22–27) is somewhat anomalous in this regard as it is addressed to Aaron and his sons, yet I have analyzed it to be part of the community legislation in 5.1–6.27. However, the fact that the priests are instructed exclusively to speak the blessing ‘to the sons of Israel’ permits the conclusion that the addressees are also very much the laity. 95 It is possible to account for this two-fold focus by viewing the blessing not only as a conclusion to the first panel but also as a pivot unit for all of 1.1–10.10. The dual address of the lay tribes and priests nicely sits at the center of the two panels alternating between lay and priestly addressees. The central position of the blessing seems to make the point that Yahweh's blessing is the goal not only of Israel's public worship (see above), but also of the entire organization of the camp in Numbers 1–10. In light of the centrality of the tabernacle and its personnel in Numbers 1–10, and the insistence on priestly authority (made prominent in the middle unit of each panel), it is quite appropriate that this pivotal unit presents Yahweh's blessing being mediated to the community by the priests.
This laity-clergy-laity structure at the panel level resembles the aim of the opening unit (1.1–2.46) to arrange the lay tribes around the center of the tabernacle and its personnel (Levites). Indeed, as noted by G. Ogden, the symmetrical structure of ch. 2 mimics the symmetrical arrangement of the camp it describes. 96 When we set aside the introductory summary of Yahweh's instructions (vv. 1–2) and the concluding summary of Israel's compliance (vv. 32–34), the following pattern is evident:
Bellinger correctly observes that ‘Numbers 1–2 illustrate well the theme of [Num. 1–10]’. 97 This geographical organization of the war camp, reinforced by the text's literary organization, anticipates the focus of Numbers 1–10 as a whole on organizing the camp for the campaign. ‘The fundamental concern’ of that organizing, according to B. Childs, ‘lies in characterizing the nature of a holy estate, which is set apart absolutely from all profane and unholy elements, and thus provides the proper dwelling within Israel for the presence of God’. 98 Just as ch. 2 envisions Israel's lay tribes centered around the holiness of Yahweh's presence at the tabernacle and its accompanying personnel, so Numbers 1–10 orders the entire camp in relation to Yahweh's holiness at the tabernacle and its primary custodians, the priests. 99 As Israel moves forward from Sinai, maintaining this cultic presence of Yahweh at the camp's center is considered fundamental to the hope voiced at the conclusion to both panels that Yahweh continues to act on the community's behalf. I suggest it is not an accident that, like the literary and geographical vision of the camp in ch. 2, each panel of 1.1–10.10 is arranged with two units focused on Israel's laity surrounding a central unit focused on the tabernacle and its personnel.
Footnotes
1.
Num. 1.1–10.10 is considered a major opening unit of the book by the majority of modern commentators. Out of 46 commentaries surveyed by D. Olson from 1865 to 1984, 37 identify 1.1–10.10 as the first unit on the highest level of the book; see D. Olson, The Death of the Old and the Birth of the New: The Framework of the Book of Numbers and the Pentateuch (BJS, 71; Chico, CA: Scholars Press, 1985), p. 32. In a follow-up study of publications from 1984 to 2002, W. Lee finds a similar, though smaller, majority of 20 of 28 studies proposing 1.1–10.10 as the first unit (Punishment and Forgiveness in Israel's Migratory Campaign [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2003], p. 3). For a recent defense of this position, see R. Knierim and G. Coats, Numbers (FOTL; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005), pp. 9–17; Lee, Punishment and Forgiveness, pp. 73–118. Some extend the opening section to include the departure from Sinai, thus ending at v. 36 rather than v. 10 (e.g. Olson, Death of the Old; W. Bellinger, Leviticus and Numbers (NIBC; Peabody, MA: Hendrickson, 2001). Also, some do not view 1.1–10.10/36 on the highest level of the book, but rather as a subunit of 1.1–25.19 (e.g. J. Milgrom, Numbers [JPS Torah Commentary; Jerusalem: Jewish Publication Society, 1990]; Olson, Death of the Old, pp. 118–19).
2.
K. Seybold, Der aaronitische Segen: Studien zu Numeri 6:22–27 (Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 1977), p. 54, cited in G. Wenham, Numbers (OTG; Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press, 1997), p. 40.
3.
H. Seebass, ‘Moses’ Preparation of the March to the Holy Land: A Dialogue with Rolf P. Knierim on Numbers 1:1–10:10’, in Jacques van Ruiten and J. Cornelis de Vos (eds.), Land of Israel in Bible, History, and Theology: Studies in Honor of Ed Noort (VTSup, 124; Leiden: E.J. Brill, 2009), pp. 99–110 (100, 109).
4.
T. Dozeman, ‘The Book of Numbers’, in L.E. Keck et al. (eds.), The New Interpreter's Bible (Nashville: Abingdon Press, 1998); T. Ashley, The Book of Numbers (NICOT; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1993); J. de Vaulx, Les Nombres (SB; Paris: J. Gabalda, 1972); E.W. Davies, Numbers (NCBC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995); H. Seebass, Numeri (BKAT; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 2010); G. Wenham, Numbers: An Introduction and Commentary (TOTC; Leicester: Inter-Varsity Press, 1981); J. Milgrom, Numbers (JPSTC; Jerusalem: Jewish Publication Society, 1990); D. Olson, Numbers (Interpretation; Louisville, KY: John Knox Press, 1996); K. Sakenfeld, Journeying with God: A Commentary on the Book of Numbers (ITC; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1995); G.B. Gray, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Numbers (ICC; New York: Scribner, 1903); T. Fretheim, ‘Numbers’, in John Barton and John Muddiman (eds.), The Oxford Bible Commentary (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2001), pp. 110–34; Bellinger, Leviticus and Numbers; N. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers (CB; London: Nelson, 1967); D. Kellermann, Die Priesterschrift von Numeri 1, 1 bis 10, 10: Literarkritisch und traditionsgeschichtlich untersucht (BZAW, 120; Berlin: W. de Gruyter, 1970).
5.
M. Noth, Numbers: A Commentary (trans. J. Martin; OTL; Philadelphia: Westminster Press, 1968), p. 6. According to Knierim and Coats, ‘The relationship of these units to one another is anything but self-evident. All attempts at discerning an organizing principle have either been tentative or insufficiently substantiated’ (Numbers, p. 32).
6.
Bellinger, Leviticus, Numbers, p. 171.
7.
M. Douglas, In the Wilderness: The Doctrine of Defilement in the Book of Numbers (JSOTSup, 158; Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1994), p. 39. Douglas states: ‘This is definitely not the kind of book in which the editors have stuffed a bit in here and a bit there, as the thought occurs to them. It is constructed with fine artifice’ (p. 160).
8.
Milgrom, Numbers, p. xxii. He uses the term ‘chiasm’ to refer to an ABB'A' pattern and ‘introversion’ to refer to a pattern containing three or more members, for example, ABXB'A’ or ABCC'B'A’.
9.
That is, an ABC … A'B'C pattern (Milgrom, Numbers, pp. xxvi-xxviii).
10.
N. Lunn, ‘Numbering Israel: A Rhetorico-Structural Analysis of Numbers 1–4’, JSOT 35 (2010), pp. 167–85.
11.
For positive appraisals of the literary sophistication of the priestly writer, see J. Blenkinsopp, ‘The Structure of P’, CBQ 38 (1976), pp. 275–92; S. McEvenue, The Narrative Style of the Priestly Writer (AnBib, 50; Rome: Pontifical Biblical Institute, 1971). McEvenue speaks of the priestly writer's ‘deliberateness and careful ordering of material, conjoined with his use of echo, palistrophe, and panel, resulting inevitably in a symmetrical structure of composition’. A. Leveen argues in regard to Numbers that, ‘More often than not, the sequencing of texts is driven by the strategies, rhetoric and persuasive power of the priestly editors’ (Memory and Tradition in the Book of Numbers [New York: Cambridge University Press, 2008], p. 180).
12.
‘My thesis will be: Numbers 1–1 have to be reduced to the parts of Pg totaling all in all about 40% of the outstanding text' (Seebass, ‘Moses’ Preparation’, p. 100).
13.
Classic articulations of a synchronic approach are those of R. Alter, The Art of Biblical Narrative (New York: Basic Books, 1981); M. Sternberg. The Poetics of Biblical Narrative: Ideological Literature and the Drama of Reading (Bloomington, IN: Indiana University Press, 1985); S. Bar-Efrat and D. Shefer-Vanson, Narrative Art in the Bible (Sheffield: Almond Press, 1989); A. Berlin, Poetics and Interpretation of Biblical Narrative (Sheffield: Almond Press, 1983).
14.
Bar-Efrat, ‘Some Observations on the Analysis of Structure in the Biblical Narrative’, VT 30 (1980), pp. 154–73; Walsh, Style and Structure in Biblical Hebrew Narrative (Collegeville, MN: Michael Glazier, 2001); J. Fokkelman, Reading Biblical Narrative: An Introductory Guide (Louisville, KY: Westminster/John Knox Press, 1999), and Narrative Art in Genesis: Specimens of Stylistic and Structural Analysis (SSN; Assen: Van Gorcum, 1975). See also D. Dorsey, The Literary Structure of the Old Testament: A Commentary on Genesis-Malachi (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1999); M. Fishbane, Text and Texture: Close Readings of Selected Biblical Texts (New York: Schocken Books, 1979); V. Wilson, Divine Symmetries: The Art of Biblical Rhetoric (London: University Press of America, 1997).
15.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, pp. 27–34. The only other non-linear analysis of which I am aware can be found in Leveen, Memory and Tradition, p. 77. Leveen argues for the following chiastic structure (italics hers):
Chs. 1–2: the numbering of the tribes, their placement and the order of the march during the journey Ch. 3: the introduction of the Levitical class and their roles Ch. 4: focus on the tabernacle—revising the roles of the Kohatites in subordination to the sons of Aaron when transporting the tabernacle X Chs. 5–6: regulations requiring priestly monitoring, which include the Sotah ritual and the initiation of the Nazirite. These chapters culminate in the priestly blessing. Ch. 7: focus on the tabernacle—the tribal gifts given to the tabernacle when Moses finished anointing and consecrating it Ch. 8: the consecration of the Levites Chs. 9–10: the cloud and trumpets trigger the tribal march through the wilderness, precisely in the order laid out in the beginning.
Unfortunately, Leveen does not offer justification for her unit boundaries. There are strong reasons, for example, for seeing chs. 3 and 4 as a single unit. Also, the emphasis on the tabernacle observed in C and C' is quite broad and could be claimed for chs. 1–2 or ch. 8.
16.
Num. 5.1–4 seems to belong to Lev. 12–15, Num. 5.5–10 to Lev. 6.1–7, Num. 7.1–89 to Exod. 40, Num. 8.1–4 to Exod. 25, Num. 9.1–14 to Exod. 12, Num. 9.15–23 to Exod. 40, Num. 8.23–26 to Num. 8.5–22, and Num. 8.5–22 to Num. 3.5–4.49 (Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 33). For a somewhat different analysis that makes the same point, see T. Römer, ‘De la Périphérie au Centre: Les Livres du Lévitique et des Nombres dans le Débat Actuel sur le Pentateuque’, in T. Römer (ed.), The Books of Leviticus and Numbers (Leuven: Peeters, 2008), pp. 23–24.
17.
‘The best explanation for the diverse aspects and the uncoordinated relationship of the units in 5.1–10.10 is that this part in its present structure reflects to a large extent the history of the growth of the text in successive accretions in which, from situation to situation, new units involving important aspects were added’ (Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 33).
18.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 33.
19.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, pp. 28–34.
20.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 33. The guidance of the cloud (9.15–23) and the sounding of the trumpets (10.1–10) are also arguably focused on the outer camp.
21.
There are 66 appearances of the formula in Numbers, with only 26 of these being found at the beginning of a unit (Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 12).
22.
See also Lee, ‘Conceptual Coherence’, p. 474.
23.
See also H. Seebass, who argues 5.1–4 belonged to the original version (Pg) of Num. 1–4 (Numeri Biblischer Kommentar Altes Testament [BKATF, 4/1.1; Neukirchen-Vluyn: Neukirchener Verlag, 2010], p. 3). The use of הנחמ reappears only in ch. 10. Similarly, the verbal form of הנח occurs 16 times in Num. 1–3 and reappears only in chs. 9–10.
24.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, pp. 27–32.
25.
Against Seebass, who cites 5.5–10 and 6.1–21 as lacking any relationship to the preparations for departure so pronounced in chs. 1–4 (Numeri, p. 6).
26.
Olson, Numbers, p. 44. So also, Sakenfeld, Numbers, p. 46; Bellinger, Leviticus, Numbers, p. 204; Fretheim, ‘Numbers’, p. 117.
27.
Ashley, Numbers, p. 43.
28.
H. Koorevaar, ‘Eine strukturelle Theologie von Exodus-Levitikus-Numeri: Durchdringen ins heilige Herz der Tora’, in H. Klement and J. Steinberg (eds.), Themenbuch zur Theologie des Alten Testaments (Bibelwissenschaftliche Monographien, 15; Wuppertal: R. Brockhaus, 2007), pp. 111–13.
29.
Others identifying this two-fold division include Dozemann, ‘Numbers’, pp. 25, 69; Ashley, Numbers, pp. 43, 153–54; R. Dennis Cole, Numbers: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Holy Scripture (NAC; Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2000), pp. 45–46.
30.
The result, of course, should reinforce that initial conclusion.
31.
Lee notes that 1.1–54 and 2.1–31 ‘should be considered as a single unit by the common denominator of the “twelve tribes” despite being distinguished by their focus on the census and the camp, respectively’ (‘Conceptual Coherence’, p. 475). Lunn analyzes 1.20–54 and 2.1–34 as being bound together as two parallel panels (‘Numbering Israel’, pp. 170–74). See also T. Brodie (‘The Literary Unity of Numbers: Nineteen Atonement-Centered Diptychs as One Key Element’, in T. Römer [ed.], The Books of Leviticus and Numbers [Leuven: Peeters, 2008], pp. 460–61); Knierim and Coats, Numbers, pp. 27–28; Dozeman, ‘Numbers’, p. 31.
32.
Num. 1.48–53 expands the observation in v. 47 that the Levites are exempt from the census. It appears to be a parenthetical section anticipating the description of the Levites' work in chs. 3–4 (Milgrom, Numbers, p. 9). According to Knierim and Coats, these verses ‘cannot offset the twofold structural division of Numbers 1 and 2’ (Numbers, p. 32).
33.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 28. Listing commonalities between the chapters as the tribal sequence, their numbers, chieftain names and ‘overall style and terminology’, they conclude ‘Numbers 2 is the conceptually based continuation of the conscription report in Numbers 1’ (p. 57).
34.
So Gray, Numbers, p. 77; Noth, Numbers, p. 65.
35.
Noth, Numbers, p. 65; so also Ashley, Numbers, p. 164. Contra Budd, who groups the verse with ch. 8 (Numbers, pp. 85–87).
36.
Gray, Numbers, p. 77.
37.
Tribal listings can be found elsewhere in the book in 10.14–28, 13.4–15, 26.5–51 and 34.16–29.
38.
On the rationale behind these differences, see Douglas, In the Wilderness, pp. 174–75; Olson, Death of the Old, pp. 55–68.
39.
Douglas, In the Wilderness, pp. 174–75.
40.
Of course, chronologically, ch. 7 is presented as preceding ch. 1.
41.
Dozeman, ‘Numbers’, p. 77.
42.
In part, this design allows the lay tribes to serve the tabernacle and Levites in the inner camp by defending them against external enemies (Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 77). Thus, both in defending the inner camp in ch. 2 and in making contributions towards its work in ch. 7, the lay tribes are portrayed serving the needs of the inner camp.
43.
So also Knierim and Coats, Numbers, pp. 61–62; Lee, ‘Conceptual Coherence’, p. 475.
44.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 63.
45.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, pp. 63–64; Lee, ‘Conceptual Coherence’, p. 475 n. 6.
46.
Milgrom, Numbers, p. 15.
47.
In 3.9 the Levites are to be ‘given’ to the priests as servants. Mention of the priests continues to surface throughout 3.5–1.49. Of these instances, the priests’ authority over the Levites is explicit in 3.32 and 4.19 and implicit in 3.38 and 4.5–16.
48.
So also Knierim and Coats, who observe that the arrangement of 3.1–4 and 3.5–4.49 ‘points to the hierarchical order within the cultic personnel in which the Aaronides alone are the priests. They are placed in front of the sanctuary, and privileged with the administration of the cult’ (Numbers, p. 28). They also observe that the short text of 3.1–4 about the priests who stand in authority over the conscripted Levites in the following longer text of 3.5–1.49 is analogous to the short text of 1.1–16 about the tribal chieftains who stand in authority over the conscripted tribal warriors in the following longer text of 1.17–2.34 (pp. 28–29).
49.
If there is a significantly new element here it is not the positioning of the lamps (cf. Exod. 25.37) but Aaron's faithful execution. See especially v. 3 at the center of the unit: ‘Aaron did so. He set up its lamps to face the front of the lampstand, just as Yahweh commanded Moses’ (Ashley, Numbers, p. 166).
50.
The most extensive repetition in 8.5–22 addresses the topic that is the major focus of 3.11–51, the substitutionary role of the Levites for Israel's firstborn. At the same time, the topic of the qualifying age for Levitical service that is the focus of 8.23–26 is a concern only in 4.1–49 (vv. 3, 23, 30). From this vantage point, the subunits are related as follows:
Substitutionary role of Levites is the major focus (3.11–51) Qualifying age for Levitical service is a relevant concern (4.1–49) Substitutionary role of Levites is an important emphasis (8.5–22) Qualifying age for Levitical service is the major focus (8.23–26)
51.
The priestly blessing in Num. 6.22–27 comes closest to having such a focus, but prominence is given to Yahweh and the sons of Israel as well. The priests' work in 4.5–15 of preparing the tabernacle furnishings for transport is in coordination with the Kohathites, who are instructed to carry these furnishings using poles (vv. 6, 8, 11, 12, 14).
52.
If Nadab and Abihu were servicing the incense altar, as many propose (e.g. B. Levine, Numbers 1–20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary [AB, 4A; New York: Doubleday, 1993], pp. 155–56; Wenham, Numbers, p. 155), then the parallel can be extended in that both texts describe priests engaging in one of their two daily responsibilities within the Holy place.
53.
Milgrom, Numbers, p. 60.
54.
The phrase in Leviticus stands in notable contrast to the narrator's previous evaluations of rituals being performed ‘just as Yahweh commanded Moses’ (Lev. 8.4, 9, 13, 17, 21, 29, 36; 9.7, 10, 21).
55.
The significance of this connection is heightened when it is noted that there has been no priestly ritual activity narrated since the ignominious events surrounding the illicit offering in Lev 10 (note also the breach of Eleazar and Ithamar in 10.16–20). Aaron's joint effort with Moses in taking the census (1.17, 44) is his only intervening active characterization. That the high priest executes the ritual as commanded in 8.1–4 comes as something of a relief to the reader, as this is the first narration of ritual duty since the disaster was narrated in Lev 10. Read in this way, the link between Aaron's obedience in Num. 8.1–4 and Nadab and Abihu's disobedience in 3.1–4 is strengthened. Aaron's obedience in 8.1–4 functions both in contrast to the earlier Leviticus account of Nadab and Abihu as well as to the summary of that account in Num. 3.1–4.
56.
Thus it was only the priests who were prepared to enter the Holy place and officiate at the altar. According to Levine, ‘The rites described in this chapter confirm the position of the Levites as an order subordinate to the Aaronide priesthood…’ (Numbers, p. 280). The subordination of the Levites also appears in the concluding statement of 8.5–22, where the Levites perform their service ‘before Aaron and before his sons’ (8.22; cf. 7.8).
57.
Milgrom suggests chs. 5–6 were once an independent scroll (Numbers, p. xiv). He notes that the inner subunits are bound together by the following terms: אמט (‘impure’), לעמ (‘be unfaithful’), השא (‘woman’) and ןהכ (‘priest’).
58.
Noth, Numbers, p. 44. Gray groups chs. 5–6 under the heading ‘Miscellaneous Laws and Regulations’ (Numbers, p. 39). He suggests the original priestly document (Pg) concluded with 5.1–4 and was only followed by the priestly blessing.
59.
Dozeman, ‘Numbers’, p. 66. See also Milgrom, Numbers, p. 33; Wenham, Numbers (1997), pp. 34–38; Levine, Numbers 1–20, p. 65; Davies, Numbers, p. 43; Bellinger, Leviticus, Numbers, pp. 196, 200.
60.
Budd, Numbers, p. 54.
61.
Milgrom writes that the priest ‘determines and terminates ritual impurity (5.1–4), officiates at the reparation sacrifice (5.5–8), is the recipient of all sanctuary donations (5.8–10), executes the ordeal for the suspected adulteress (5.11–31), officiates at the ritual for the Nazirite (6.1–21), and offers the Priestly Blessing (6.22–27)’ (Numbers, pp. xiv, 34). See also Lee's article-length argument that ‘the rights and responsibilities of the Aaronide priest accounts for the conceptual coherence of Num 5, 1–10, 10 in its entirety…’ (‘Conceptual Coherence’, p. 488). So too Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 33. Seebass suggests a priestly focus here is intended to balance the focus on the Levites in chs. 3–4 (Numeri, p. 4).
62.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 33.
63.
Unusually, each of the first four units explicitly involves women.
64.
Indeed, Num. 9.1 has been thought by some to mark the beginning of a major section of the book (Olson, Death of the Old, p. 32).
65.
Num. 9.1 departs from 1.1 in two significant ways: (1) the exact day is not given in 9.1, and (2) the month in 9.1 is the first rather than second month. This setting in the first month aligns broadly (if not precisely to the day) with the setting announced in 7.1, the first day of the first month, and thus with the flashback begun there. Note Num. 9.15 begins with another chronological reference to the specific day of the setting up of the tabernacle mentioned in 7.1: ‘On the day the tabernacle was set up, the cloud covered the tabernacle.’ This verse, however, lacks reference to the geographical setting in addition to any formal similarity to 1.1 and 10.10.
66.
Commentators grouping 9.1–10.10 as a separate section include Milgrom, Numbers, p. 66; Dozeman, ‘Numbers’, pp. 84–91; R. Gane, Leviticus, Numbers (NIVAC; Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2004), p. 482; D. Stubbs, Numbers (BTC; Grand Rapids: Brazos, 2009), pp. 99–104. Overall, however, there is very little agreement concerning the structure of chs. 9–10. Many treat each unit separately: e.g. Gray, Numbers, pp. 82–89; Budd, Numbers, pp. 95–108; Knierim and Coats, Numbers, pp. 117–34. Ashley groups 9.15–10.10 together (Numbers, pp. 182–89); Noth groups 9.15–10.36 (Numbers, pp. 72–80); Olson groups 9.1–10.36 (Numbers, pp. 50–59); and Wenham (Numbers, pp. 98–101) and R. Harrison (Numbers: An Exegetical Commentary [Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1992], pp. 158–66) group 9.1–23.
67.
Milgrom, Numbers, p. 66.
68.
According to Dozeman, it is because of this feast's foundational role that the author has included the unit as the narration of Israel's stay at Sinai comes to an end and where ‘the community has been defined and organized for the first time’ (‘Numbers’, p. 87).
69.
Milgrom, Numbers, p. 67.
70.
Olson, Numbers, p. 53.
71.
In fact, the root עםנ occurs fifteen times in 10.11–36.
72.
Douglas identifies 9.1–14 as narrative in her description of the macro-structure of the book through alternating sections of law and narrative. Indeed, Num. 9.1–5 describes the celebration of Passover in the second year and thus meets her criteria of narrative as marking out ‘temporal and spatial structure’ (In the Wilderness, p. 103). Yet 9.6–14 draws attention to exceptional situations that require an additional ruling. This part of the unit appears to meet her criterion for law as needing to be kept indefinitely. For Douglas, commands that are given within a larger context of narrative can be identified in that they ‘are instructions for tasks to be carried out at once, not to be confused with ordinances to be observed for ever’. Num. 9.10, however, is clear in its application being both for the people and their ‘posterity’ (9.10). This suggests, according to her own definition, that the unit is best categorized as law. According to M. McEntire, whether 9.1–14 is dominantly law or narrative is not a settled question (Struggling with God: An Introduction to the Pentateuch [Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 2008], p. 165). Nonetheless, the bulk of the unit is clearly taken up by the exceptional case ruling (so Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 119). As Milgrom notes, ‘the wilderness incident and the divine decision provide the pretext for the law of the second Passover.’ (Numbers, p. 68).
73.
Note especially, ‘they set out for the first time’ (הנשארב ועםיו, v. 13).
74.
See especially Lee, Punishment and Forgiveness, pp. 81–85.
75.
The phrase, הוהי יפ־לע (usually translated ‘at the command of the L
76.
Lee, Punishment and Forgiveness, p. 84. R. Allen notes, while commenting on 9.18, ‘the identification of the lifting and settling of the cloud and the command of the Lord is made sure in this and the following verses’ (‘Numbers’, in Frank E. Gaebelein [ed.], The Expositor's Bible Commentary [Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1990], p. 777).
77.
According to Knierim and Coats, 10.1–10 is designed as instruction for the priests (Numbers, p. 132). However, the lay tribes are the beneficiary of the majority of imperatives and thus are also very much a focus. Thus, while Moses is to make the trumpets (v. 2) and the priests are to sound them (v. 8), it is the people (‘the whole community’ [v. 3], ‘the heads of Israel's troops’ [v. 4], ‘the camp’ [vv. 5, 6]) who are commanded to mobilize when the trumpets are sounded.
78.
It is possible that this strange sequence should be read as רפםמ ימי’, the extra mem having been the result of dittography (e.g. BHS; Davies, Numbers, p. 85). See, however, GKC 131e, where it is grouped with other examples of apposition.
79.
According to J. Partain, the text emphasizes ‘God's daily guidance and Israel's unfailing response—no matter how unpredictable that guidance might seem to be' (‘Numbers’, in Watson E. Mills and Richard F. Wilson [eds.], Mercer Commentary on the Bible [Macon, GA: Mercer University Press, 1995], p. 182; T.W. Mann, Divine Presence and Guidance in Israelite Traditions: The Typology of Exaltation [Baltimore: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1977], p. 165).
80.
According to Dozeman, ‘the imagery of travel with periods of unequal rest’ may point to the priestly cultic calendar (see Num. 28–29), where distinct feasts require different periods of rest' (‘Numbers’, p. 89). Wenham also sees a reference to Israel's feasts based on the subunit's placement after the Passover instruction (Numbers, p. 101). If so, the three units in 9.1–10.10 share a more specific concern with the feasts (cf. 10.10 and the discussion below).
81.
It is also noteworthy that both the keeping of Passover and the blowing of trumpets are referred to as statutes (npn, 9.3, 12, 14; 10.8 [cf. Exod. 12.14, 17 where it is םלוע תקת; and םלוע תקת in Num. 10.8]). While the Passover statute points backward to Yahweh's initial defeat of Israel's Egyptian enemy, the statute for the trumpets points forward to the defeat of Israel's enemies in the Promised Land (v. 9).
82.
‘Send them outside the camp, so they will not defile (אמט) the camp where I dwell among them’ (5:3).
83.
See Dorsey, Literary Structure, pp. 39–40, and the literature cited there.
84.
McEvenue observes the priestly writer's frequent use of variation on repetition in structuring texts. In his study, he does not find ‘the classical symmetry of balance and proportion. Rather the priestly writer seems to be at pains, not only to vary when he repeats, but also to confuse and interlock symmetries, and to disturb balance. The resulting effect is of order underlying chaos, of structure underlying disappearing and broken pattern’ (Narrative Style, p. 185).
85.
Olson, Numbers, p. 53. Several instances of the phrase ‘at the order of Yahweh’ (הוהי יפ־לע) are attached to the compliance formula. For example, in 3.51 Moses and Aaron act ‘at the order of Yahweh (הוהי יפ־לע) just as Yahweh commanded Moses’ (cf. 3.39; 4.37, 41, 45, 49).
86.
Although frequently seen as later additions, Budd argues that vv. 9–10 serve as an integral climax of the larger subunit (Numbers, p. 106).
87.
Milgrom, Numbers, p. 75.
88.
P. Miller, ‘The Blessing of God: An Interpretation of Numbers 6:22–27’, Int 29 (1975), pp. 244, 249; Milgrom, Numbers, pp. 50–51.
89.
Knierim and Coats, Numbers, p. 96.
90.
E.g. Miller, ‘Blessing of God’, p. 242; Levine, Numbers 1–20, pp. 66, 243–44. Some even suggest the blessing was originally placed after Lev. 9.22 (e.g. Gray, Numbers, p. 71).
91.
According to S. Mowinckel, ‘All worship reached its culmination in the priestly words of blessing. It was in order to receive blessing and make it secure in all its forms, that Israel, as a community and also as individuals, went to the sanctuary and took part in the worship offered there’ (Religion und Kultus [Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1953], pp. 64–65, cited by C. Westermann, Blessing in the Bible and the Life of the Church [OBT; Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1978], p. 20).
92.
An additional link can be noted in that the blessing's climax in a petition for ‘peace’ (םולש, 6:26) is echoed by the mention of the use of ‘peace offerings’ (םימלש, 10.10) at the feasts.
93.
I use Douglas's criteria of a law as instruction ‘to be kept now, forever, and particularly in some time when the people arrive in the promised land’ (In the Wilderness, p. 102). Douglas is in agreement that laws are isolated to 5.1–6.27 and 9.1–10.10 except that she does not identify 9.1–14 as law (pp. 118, 123). See n. 72, above. It is not irrelevant that doing so would destroy her proposal that the entire book forms a chiasm.
94.
Similarly, V. Hamilton, Handbook on the Pentateuch: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2nd edn, 2005), p. 316. Compare Knierim and Coats, who, as mentioned earlier, identify the following movements based on the dominant focus: outer camp (1.1–2.34), inner camp (3.1–4.49), outer camp (5.1–6.27), inner camp (7.1–10.10) (Numbers, p. 33).
95.
Knierim and Coats argue that 6.22–27 ‘address affairs of the Israelites of the outer realm’ (Numbers, p. 33).
96.
G. Ogden, ‘The Design of Numbers’, BT 47 (1996), pp. 424–26. See also, Dozeman, ‘Numbers’, pp. 36–37. Dozeman writes, ‘The literary structure of this section is determined by the geography of the campsite’.
97.
Bellinger, Leviticus, Numbers, p. 186.
98.
B. Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture (Philadelphia: Fortress Press, 1979), p. 196.
99.
That the priests are integral to the inner camp personnel is made clear by ch. 3, as it places the Gershonites on the western side of the tabernacle (v. 23), the Kohathites on the southern side (v. 29), the Merarites on the northern side (v. 35), and the priests on the eastern side (v. 38).