Numbers 16:47

16:47 So Aaron did ¹  as Moses commanded ²  and ran into the middle of the assembly, where the plague was just beginning among the people. So he placed incense on the coals and made atonement for the people.

Numbers 22:38

22:38 Balaam said to Balak, “Look, I have come to you. Now, am I able ³  to speak ⁴  just anything? I must speak ⁵  only the word that God puts in my mouth.”

Numbers 31:47

31:47 From the Israelites’ share Moses took one of every fifty people and animals and gave them to the Levites who were responsible for the care of the Lord’s tabernacle, just as the Lord commanded Moses.

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¹ tn Heb “took.”

² tn Or “had spoken” (NASB); NRSV “had ordered.”

³ tn The verb is אוּכַל (’ukhal) in a question – “am I able?” But emphasizing this is the infinitive absolute before it. So Balaam is saying something like, “Can I really say anything?”

⁴ tn The Piel infinitive construct (without the preposition) serves as the object of the verb “to be able.” The whole question is rhetorical – he is saying that he will not be able to say anything God does not allow him to say.

⁵ tn The imperfect tense is here taken as an obligatory imperfect.