Texts in Conversation
Numbers 7:1 begins the dedication of the Tabernacle using the same language found in Genesis 2:4, connecting the creation of sacred space with the creation of the world. This literary echo suggests that the Genesis creation narrative is itself framed as the establishment of a cosmic temple.
Share:
Genesis 2:4
Hebrew Bible
4 This is the account of the heavens and the earth when they were created—when the Lord God made the earth and heavens. 5 Now no shrub of the field had yet grown on the earth, and no plant of the field had yet sprouted, for the Lord God had not caused it to rain on the earth, and there was no man to cultivate the ground. 6 Springs would well up from the earth and water the whole surface of the ground.
Date: 5th Century B.C.E. (Final composition) (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Numbers 7:1
Hebrew Bible
1 When Moses had completed setting up the tabernacle, he anointed it and consecrated it and all its furnishings, and he anointed and consecrated the altar and all its utensils. 2 Then the leaders of Israel, the heads of their clans, made an offering. They were the leaders of the tribes; they were the ones who had been supervising the numbering. 3 They brought their offerings before the Lord, six covered carts and twelve oxen—one cart for every two of the leaders, and an ox for each one; and they presented them in front of the tabernacle.
Date: 5th Century B.C.E. (Final composition) (based on scholarly estimates)
Source
Search:
Notes and References
"... on the day Moses finished setting up the Tabernacle ... “On the day” (beyom) has the semantic force of “when” but conveys a sense of epic solemnity lacking in the more ordinary Hebrew term, ka‘asher. (Compare Genesis 2:4, “On the day the LORD God made earth and heavens.”) The meaning here is obviously not restricted to a single day because it will take the tribal chieftains twelve days to present their offerings. Abraham ibn Ezra, characteristically looking for literary linkages, connects this entire passage with the immediately preceding priestly blessing: once the threefold blessing was pronounced, the elaborate proceedings of the dedication offerings could begin ..."
Alter, Robert
The Five Books of Moses A Translation with Commentary
(p. 1187) W. W. Norton & Company, 2008
* The use of references are not endorsements of their contents. Please read the entirety of the provided reference(s) to understand the author's full intentions regarding the use of these texts.
Your Feedback:
Leave a Comment
Anonymous comments are welcome. All comments are subject to moderation.