กันดารวิถี 7:12 วิจารณ์

God having set up house (as it were) in the midst of the camp of Israel, the princes of Israel here come a visiting with their presents, as tenants to their landlord, in the name of their respective tribes. I. They brought presents, 1. Upon the dedication of the tabernacle, for the service of that (Num 7:1-9). 2. Upon the dedication of the altar, for the use of that (v. 10-88). And, II. God graciously signified his acceptance of them (Num 7:89). The two foregoing chapters were the records of additional laws which God gave to Israel, this is the history of the additional services which Israel performed to God.

INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS 7 This chapter gives an account of the presents brought, by the princes of the twelve tribes at the setting up of the tabernacle, for the use of it, Num 7:1; and at the dedication of the altar, and the service of that, Num 7:10; first of the prince of the tribe of Judah, Num 7:12; then of the prince of Issachar, Num 7:18; of the prince of Zebulun, Num 7:24; of the prince of Reuben, Num 7:30; of the prince of Simeon, Num 7:36; of the prince of Gad, Num 7:42; of the prince of Ephraim, Num 7:48; of the prince of Manasseh, Num 7:54; of the prince of Benjamin, Num 7:60; of the prince of Dan, Num 7:66; of the prince of Asher, Num 7:72; of the prince of Naphtali, Num 7:78; the sum of all which follows, Num 7:84; and the chapter is concluded with a token of God's approbation and acceptance of the whole, Num 7:89.

And he that offered his offering on the first day,.... Was he whose standard was pitched first, at the east, to the rising sun: and this was Nahshon the son of Amminadab, of the tribe of Judah; who was the prince and captain of that tribe, though the title is not here given him, as to the rest of the princes, this being left to be concluded from his offering first; for if they that offered after him were princes, he must needs be one; or it may be this title is omitted, because the chief prince, of the prince of the tribe of Judah, most peculiarly belongs to a greater Personage, even the Messiah, who was to spring, and did spring from that tribe, Ch1 5:2; and, as Baal Hatturim says, from Nahshon; and who also observes, that Ben Nahshon is the Messiah.

With the seven nations that God shall cast out, Deu 7:1, they shall make no covenant, Deu 7:2, nor form any matrimonial alliances, Deu 7:3; lest they should be enticed into idolatry, Deu 7:4. All monuments of idolatry to be destroyed, Deu 7:5. The Israelites are to consider themselves a holy people, Deu 7:6; and that the Lord had made them such, not for their merits, but for his own mercies, Deu 7:7, Deu 7:8. They shall therefore love him, and keep his commandments, Deu 7:9-11. The great privileges of the obedient, Deu 7:12-24. All idolatry to be avoided, Deu 7:25, Deu 7:26.

THE PRINCES' OFFERINGS. (Num. 7:1-89) the day that Moses had fully set up the tabernacle--Those who take the word "day" as literally pointing to the exact date of the completion of the tabernacle, are under a necessity of considering the sacred narrative as disjointed, and this portion of the history from the seventh to the eleventh chapters as out of its place--the chronology requiring that it should have immediately followed the fortieth chapter of Exodus, which relates that the tabernacle was reared on the first day of the first month of the second year [Exo 40:17]. But that the term "day" is used in a loose and indeterminate sense, as synonymous with time, is evident from the fact that not one day but several days were occupied with the transactions about to be described. So that this chapter stands in its proper place in the order of the history; after the tabernacle and its instruments (the altar and its vessels) had been anointed (Lev 8:10), the Levites separated to the sacred service--the numbering of the people, and the disposal of the tribes about the tabernacle, in a certain order, which was observed by the princes in the presentation of their offerings. This would fix the period of the imposing ceremonial described in this chapter about a month after the completion of the tabernacle.

He that offered his offering the first day was Nahshon . . . of the tribe of Judah, &c.--Judah having had the precedence assigned to it, the prince or head of that tribe was the first admitted to offer as its representative; and his offering, as well as that of the others, is thought, from its costliness, to have been furnished not from his own private means, but from the general contributions of each tribe. Some parts of the offering, as the animals for sacrifice, were for the ritual service of the day, the peace offerings being by much the most numerous, as the princes and some of the people joined with the priests afterwards in celebrating the occasion with festive rejoicing. Hence the feast of dedication became afterwards an anniversary festival. Other parts of the offering were intended for permanent use, as utensils necessary in the service of the sanctuary; such as an immense platter and bowl (Exo 25:29). Being of silver, they were to be employed at the altar of burnt offering, or in the court, not in the holy place, all the furniture of which was of solid or plated gold; and there was a golden spoon, the contents of which show its destination to have been the altar of incense. The word rendered "spoon" means a hollow cup, in the shape of a hand, with which the priests on ordinary occasions might lift a quantity from the incense-box to throw on the altar-fire, or into the censers; but on the ceremonial on the day of the annual atonement no instrument was allowed but the high priest's own hands (Lev 16:12).

Presentation of Dedicatory Gifts by the Princes of the Tribes. - Num 7:1. This presentation took place at the time (יום) when Moses, after having completed the erection of the tabernacle, anointed and sanctified the dwelling and the altar, together with their furniture (Lev 8:10-11). Chronologically considered, this ought to have been noticed after Lev 8:10. But in order to avoid interrupting the connection of the Sinaitic laws, it is introduced for the first time at this point, and placed at the head of the events which immediately preceded the departure of the people from Sinai, because these gifts consisted in part of materials that were indispensably necessary for the transport of the tabernacle during the march through the desert. Moreover, there was only an interval of at the most forty days between the anointing of the tabernacle, which commenced after the first day of the first month (cf. Exo 40:16 and Lev 8:10), and lasted eight days, and the departure from Sinai, on the twentieth day of the second month (Num 10:11), and from this we have to deduct six days for the Passover, which took place before their departure (Num 9:1.); and it was within this period that the laws and ordinances from Lev 11 to Num 6 had to be published, and the dedicatory offerings to be presented. Now, as the presentation itself was distributed, according to Num 7:11., over twelve or thirteen days, we may very well assume that it did not entirely precede the publication of the laws referred to, but was carried on in part contemporaneously with it. The presentation of the dedicatory gifts of one tribe-prince might possibly occupy only a few hours of the day appointed for the purpose; and the rest of the day, therefore, might very conveniently be made use of by Moses for publishing the laws. In this case the short space of a month and a few days would be amply sufficient for everything that took place.

All the princes brought the same gifts. The order in which the twelve princes, whose names have already been given at Num 1:5-15, made their presentation, corresponded to the order of the tribes in the camp (ch. 2), the tribe-prince of Judah taking the lead, and the prince of Naphtali coming last. In the statements as to the weight of the silver kearoth and the golden cappoth, the word shekel is invariably omitted, as in Gen 20:16, etc. - In Num 7:84-86, the dedication gifts are summed up, and the total weight given, viz., twelve silver dishes and twelve silver bowls, weighing together 2400 shekels, and twelve golden spoons, weighing 120 shekels in all. On the sacred shekel, see at Exo 30:13; and on the probable value of the shekel of gold, at Exo 38:24-25. The sacrificial animals are added together in the same way in Num 7:87, Num 7:88.