Numbers 9
1 And the Lord spoke to Moses in the wilderness of Sina in the second year after they had gone forth from the land of Egypt, in the first month, saying,
One year after the Israelis left Egypt, during the month of March, while they were in the Sinai Desert, Yahweh said to Moses/me,
2 Speak, and let the children of Israel keep the passover in its season.
“Tell the Israeli people that they must celebrate the Passover [Festival again].
3 On the fourteenth day of the first month at even, thou shalt keep it in its season; thou shalt keep it according to its law, and according to its ordinance.
They must do it on the fourteenth day of this month, early in the evening, and they must obey all the instructions about it [that I gave you previously].”
4 And Moses ordered the children of Israel to sacrifice the passover,
So Moses/I told the people what Yahweh had said about celebrating the Passover.
5 on the fourteenth day of the first month in the wilderness of Sina, as the Lord appointed Moses, so the children of Israel did.
The people celebrated it, there in the Sinai Desert, in the evening of the fourteenth day of the month, just as Yahweh had commanded Moses/me.
6 And there came men who were unclean by reason of a dead body, and they were not able to keep the passover on that day; and they came before Moses and Aaron on that day.
But some of the Israeli people had touched a corpse, and as a result they had become unfit to celebrate the Passover. So they asked Aaron and Moses/me,
7 And those men said to Moses, We are unclean by reason of the dead body of a man: shall we therefore fail to offer the gift to the Lord in its season in the midst of the children of Israel?
“It is true that we have touched a corpse. But why should that prevent us from celebrating the Passover Festival and offering sacrifices to Yahweh like everyone else [RHQ]?”
8 And Moses said to them, stand there, and I will hear what charge the Lord will give concerning you.
Moses/I replied, “Wait here until I go into the Sacred Tent and find out what Yahweh says about it.”
9 And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying,
[So Moses/I went into the tent and asked Yahweh what he/I should tell the people], and this is what Yahweh said:
10 Speak to the children of Israel, saying, Whatever man shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or on a journey far off, among you, or among your posterity; he shall then keep the passover to the Lord,
“Tell this to the Israeli people: If any of you or your descendants touch a corpse and as a result become unacceptable to me, or if you are away from home on a long trip [at the time to celebrate the Passover], you will still be permitted to celebrate it.
11 in the second month, on the fourteenth day; in the evening they shall offer it, with unleavened bread and bitter herbs shall they eat it.
But you must celebrate it exactly one month later, early in the evening of the fourteenth day of that month. Eat the meat of the lamb for the Passover Festival with bread that is baked without yeast and eat bitter herbs.
12 They shall not leave of it until the morrow, and they shall not break a bone of it; they shall sacrifice it according to the ordinance of the passover.
Do not leave any of it until the next morning. And do not break any of the lamb’s bones. Obey all the regulations about celebrating the Passover.
13 And whatsoever man shall be clean, and is not far off on a journey, and shall fail to keep the passover, that soul shall be cut off from his people, because he has not offered the gift to the Lord in its season: that man shall bear his iniquity.
But if any of you has not done anything that would make you unfit to celebrate the Passover Festival, and you are not away from home on a long trip, and you do not sacrifice to me at the proper time, you will no longer be allowed to associate with my people. (You will be punished/I will punish you).
14 And if there should come to you a stranger in your land, and should keep the passover to the Lord, he shall keep it according to the law of the passover and according to its ordinance: there shall be one law for you, both for the stranger, and for the native of the land.
Foreigners who live among you may also celebrate the Passover Festival, if they obey all my commands concerning it.”
15 And in the day in which the tabernacle was pitched the cloud covered the tabernacle, the place of the testimony; and in the evening there was upon the tabernacle as the appearance of fire till the morning.
On the day that the Sacred Tent was set up, a cloud covered it. From the time that the sun set until the time that the sun rose [the next day], the cloud resembled a [huge] fire. And that is what happened every day [that we/the Israelis were in the desert].
16 So it was continually: the cloud covered it by day, and the appearance of fire by night.
17 And when the cloud went up from the tabernacle, then after that the children of Israel departed; and in whatever place the cloud rested, there the children of Israel encamped.
When the cloud rose up and started to move [to a new location], we/they followed it. When the cloud stopped, we/the Israelis stopped there and set up their tents.
18 The children of Israel shall encamp by the command of the Lord, and by the command of the Lord they shall remove: all the days in which the cloud overshadows the tabernacle, the children of Israel shall encamp. And whenever the cloud shall be drawn over the tabernacle for many days, then the children of Israel shall keep the charge of God, and they shall not remove.
We/They traveled when Yahweh, [by causing the cloud to move or stop], signaled to us/them when to move and when to stop. When the cloud stayed over the Sacred Tent, we/the Israelis stayed at that place.
19 And it shall be, whenever the cloud overshadows the tabernacle a number of days, they shall encamp by the word of the Lord, and shall remove by the command of the Lord.
Sometimes the cloud stayed over the tent for a long time, so when that happened, we/they did not travel.
20 And it shall come to pass, whenever the cloud shall remain from the evening till the morning, and in the morning the cloud shall go up, then shall they remove by day or by night.
Sometimes the cloud remained over the tent for only a few days. We/The people stopped and set up our/their tents as Yahweh commanded us/them, and we/they traveled [to a new location] when Yahweh commanded us/them to do that.
21 When the cloud continues a full month overshadowing the tabernacle, the children of Israel shall encamp, and shall not depart.
Sometimes the cloud stayed in one place for only one day. When that happened, when the cloud rose up [into the sky] the next morning, then we/they traveled. Whenever the cloud moved, during the day or during the night, we/they traveled.
22 For they shall depart by the command of the Lord: - they kept the charge of the Lord by the command of the Lord by the hand of Moses.
If the cloud stayed over the Sacred Tent for two days, or for a month, or for a year, during that time we/they stayed where we/they were. But when the cloud rose up [into the sky], we/they started to travel.
When Yahweh commanded us/them to [stop and] set up our/their tents, we/they did that. When he told us/them to move, we/they moved. We/They did whatever Yahweh told Moses/me that we/they should do.
