Clarke's Commentary

Verse Numbers 7:1. On the day that Moses had fully set up the tabernacle — The transactions mentioned in this chapter took place on the second day of the second month of the second year after their departure from Egypt; and the proper place of this account is immediately after the tenth chapter of Leviticus.

Verse Numbers 7:3. Six covered wagons — שש עגלת צב shesh egloth tsab, six tilted wagons, the Septuagint translate ἑξ ἁμαξας λαμπηνικας, with which the Coptic agrees; but what lampenic chariots were, no person pretends to know. Covered or tilted is probably the meaning of the original. The wagons were given for the more convenient exporting of the heavier parts of the tabernacle, which could not be conveniently carried on men's shoulders.

Verse Numbers 7:5. According to his service. — That is, distribute them among the Levites as they may need them, giving most to those who have the heaviest burdens to bear.

Verse Numbers 7:7. Two wagons - unto the sons of Gershon — The Gershonites carried only the curtains, coverings, and hangings, Numbers 4:25. And although this was a cumbersome carriage, and they needed the wagons, yet it was not a heavy one.

Verse Numbers 7:8. Four wagons - unto the sons of Merari — Because they had the boards, bars, pillars, and sockets of the tabernacle to carry, Numbers 4:31-32, therefore they had as many more wagons as the Gershonites.

Verse Numbers 7:9. Unto the sons of Kohath he gave none — Because they had the charge of the ark, table, candlestick, altars, c., Numbers 4:5-15, which were to be carried upon their shoulders for those sacred things must not be drawn by beasts.

Verse Numbers 7:10. And the princes offered — Every prince or chief offered in the behalf, and doubtless at the expense, of his whole tribe.

Verse Numbers 7:13. One silver charger — קערת kaarath, a dish, or deep bowl, in which they kneaded the paste. See Exodus 25:29.

One silver bowl — מזרק mizrak, a bason, to receive the blood of the sacrifice in. Exodus 27:3.

Verse Numbers 7:14. One spoon — כף caph, a censer, on which they put the incense. See Exodus 25:29.

It is worthy of remark that the different tribes are represented here as bringing their offerings precisely in the same order in which they encamped about the tabernacle. See Numbers 2:1-31 and Numbers 10:13-27.

"Thus," says Mr. Ainsworth, "by sacrifices of all sorts, figuring the death of Christ, and the benefits that were to be received thereby, they reconciled and made themselves and theirs acceptable to God, and were made partakers of his grace, to remission of sins, and sanctification through faith, and in the work of the Holy Ghost, in the communion and feeling whereof they rejoiced before God."

Verse 48. On the seventh day — Both Jewish and Christian writers have been surprised that this work of offering went forward on the seventh day, which they suppose to have been a Sabbath, as well as on the other days. But

1. There is no absolute proof that this seventh day of offering was a Sabbath.

2. Were it even so, could the people be better employed than in thus consecrating themselves and their services to the Lord?

We have already seen that every act was a religious act; and we may rest assured that no day was too holy for the performance of such acts as are recorded here.

Verse Numbers 7:72. On the eleventh day — The Hebrew form of expression, here and in the Numbers 7:78; Numbers 7:78 verse, has something curious in it. ביום עשתי עשר יום beyom ashtey asar yom, In the day, the first and tenth day; ביום שנים עשר יום beyom sheneym asar yom, In the day, two and tenth day. But this is the idiom of the language, and to an original Hebrew our almost anomalous words eleventh and twelfth, by which we translate the original, would appear as strange as his, literally translated, would appear to us. In reckoning after twelve, it is easy to find out the composition of the words thirteen, as three and ten, fourteen, four and ten, and so on; but eleven and twelve bear scarcely any analogy to ten and one, and ten and two, which nevertheless they intend. But this is a subject of philology rather than of Biblical criticism.

Verse Numbers 7:84. This was the dedication of the altar, in the day, c.] Meaning here the time in which it was dedicated for as each tribe had a whole day for its representative or prince to present the offerings it had provided, consequently the dedication, in which each had his day, must have lasted twelve days: the words therefore, in this text, refer to the last day or twelfth, in which this dedication was completed.

Verse Numbers 7:88. After that it was anointed. — By the anointing the altar was consecrated to God; by this dedication it was solemnly appointed to that service for which it had been erected.

Verse Numbers 7:89. To speak with him — To confer with God, and to receive farther discoveries of his will.

He heard the voice of one speaking unto him — Though Moses saw no similitude, but only heard a voice, yet he had the fullest proof of the presence as well as of the being of the Almighty. In this way God chose to manifest himself during that dispensation, till the fulness of the time came, in which the WORD was made flesh, and DWELT AMONG US. No man hath seen God at any time; the only-begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him.

The mercy-seat — Exodus 25:17; Exodus 25:17. As God gave oracular answers from this place, and spoke to Moses as it were face to face, hence the place was called the ORACLE, דביר debir, or speaking place, from דבר dabar, he spoke, 1 Kings 6:23. And as this mercy-seat represented our blessed Redeemer, so the apostle says that God, who had at sundry times, and in divers manners, SPOKEN in time past to the fathers by the prophets, hath, in these last days, SPOKEN unto us by his Son. Hebrews 1:1-2. Hence the incarnated Christ is the true דביר debir or oracle, in and by whom God speaks unto man.

By which we may at once see that though the place in which they now sojourned was a wilderness, as to cities, villages, and regular inhabitants, yet there was plenty of pasturage, else the Israelites could not have furnished these cattle, with all the sacrifices necessary for different occasions, and especially for the passover, which was celebrated during their sojourning in the desert, and which itself must have required an immense number of lambs, (see Numbers 9:4-5), when each family of the 600,000 males was obliged to provide one for itself.