The Hebrew title for this book translates to "In the wilderness of," taken from the first verse: "And Jehovah spake unto Moses in the wilderness of Sinai... [ASV]. The LXX labels it as "Numbers," because of the prominence of census figures in this book. And yet the Hebrew title is quite appropriate to its general theme: Israel under god's training in the wilderness. Historical narrative occupies a larger proportion of this book than is the case in Leviticus or Deuteronomy, and the period of years involved is far greater (fourty years of discipline) than the other books of the Pentateuch (excluding Genesis). *

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References:

* Gleason L. Archer, Jr., A Survey of Old Testament Introduction, Moody Press, 1970

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Jeremiah 18:15
Don't stumble from the Ancient Path

2021-12-03 1350