Numbers 7:10-11

The Time of Presentation

7:10 The leaders offered gifts for the dedication of the altar when it was anointed. And the leaders presented their offering before the altar. 7:11 For the Lord said to Moses, “They must present their offering, one leader for each day, for the dedication of the altar.”


tn The verse begins with the preterite and vav (ו) consecutive: “and they offered.”

tn The direct object, “gifts,” is implied but not actually stated in the Hebrew text. It has been supplied in the translation for stylistic reasons and for clarity.

tn The sign of the accusative here must indicate an adverbial accusative and not the direct object; they offered their gifts for the dedication of the altar.

sn Some commentators take the word “dedication” in the sense of a dedication gift, and so make it the direct object. Many modern scholars assume that this is a late word, belonging only in P, the Chronicler, and the heading of Ps 30 (a Davidic psalm).

tn The adverbial clause uses the Niphal infinitive construct as the main verb. The word is the well-known מָשַׁח (mashakh, “to anoint, smear”).

tn Heb “offered,” but this is redundant and has been translated as “presented” for stylistic reasons. The same phrase occurs in vv. 11 and 12.

tn The distributive sense is achieved by repetition: “one leader for the day, one leader for the day.”