The Old Testament
A Historical, Theological, and Critical Introduction
Chapter
4. Numbers
Bible Reading Guide
- Which tribe was not numbered among the 603,550?
- Judah sets out first, but who sets out second?
- How many firstborn males were there in Israel?
- In the numbering of the clans of the Levites which age group was counted?
- What happens to the curse written by the priest on behalf of the jealous husband?
- What is or is not involved in a Nazirite’s vow of dedication?
- What offerings did the leaders of Israel bring at the dedication of the tabernacle?
- How were the Levites purified?
- How would someone celebrate the Passover if they became unclean on that day?
- Whom did Moses ask for guidance from Mount Sinai?
- What happened when the Spirit of the Lord came upon the seventy elders?
- How is Moses different from a prophet?
- How did the spies describe Canaan?
- How did the Lord respond to Moses’s intercession after the spies’ report?
- With burnt offerings, vows, and freewill offerings, what is to accompany them?
- What happened to the censers of the followers of Korah?
- What did Aaron’s staff sprout?
- What may both the sons and the daughters of the Levites eat?
- What is in the water of cleansing?
- What did Moses say when he struck the rock to procure water?
- Who were the kings whom Israel defeated before crossing the Jordan?
- Where did Balaam see part of the Israelites?
- How did Balak prepare for the first three of Balaam’s curses?
- What will the Kittim (Cyprus) do?
- How did Phinehas gain the priesthood?
- How was the land to be allotted to the tribes of Israel?
- If a man dies without living children, who is first to receive his inheritance?
- What animals are to be offered as part of the daily burnt offering?
- What is the correct order of the special events of the seventh month?
- Who can nullify a vow made by a woman?
- After the battle with Midian, which Midianite women were allowed to live?
- Why did the tribes of Gad and Reuben wish to settle east of the Jordan?
- Where did Aaron die?
- What is part of Israel’s eastern border of the Promised Land of Canaan?
- How can the land be cleansed after a murder?
- Why were the daughters of Zelophehad restricted in their choice of marriage?
Study Questions
- What does the Hebrew title of Numbers mean?
- How does Numbers portray Israel as formed for its journey?
- What follows Israel’s sin at Baal Peor?
- Balaam’s prophecy of the “star” and the “scepter” became applied to whom?
- What do both seventh-century-BC Ketef Hinnom silver scrolls contain?
- The book of Numbers divides naturally into how many parts?
- In the central part of Numbers, what organizes the text into a chiastic form?
- What is unusual about all the males being killed in Numbers 31?
- To what may the Hittite Instructions of the Royal Bodyguard be compared?
- Which of the routes through the Sinai did Israel most likely take?
- What was found at the Hathor Temple in the Timna Valley relevant to Numbers?
- What does 1 Corinthians 10 remind Christians in terms of Numbers 10–21?
- What does the theology of Numbers focus on?
- What do Zelphehad’s daughters have to do with the holiness of God?