🔢WEB · Numbers 6:22
What does Numbers 6:22 mean?
"Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,"
— Numbers 6:22 (World English Bible)
Surrounding context
The priest shall take the boiled shoulder of the ram, and one unleavened cake out of the basket, and one unleavened wafer, and shall put them on the hands of the Nazirite, after he has shaved the head of his separation;
and the priest shall wave them for a wave offering before Yahweh. This is holy for the priest, together with the breast that is waved and the thigh that is offered. After that the Nazirite may drink wine.
“‘This is the law of the Nazirite who vows, and of his offering to Yahweh for his separation, besides that which he is able to get. According to his vow which he vows, so he must do after the law of his separation.’”
Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
“Speak to Aaron and to his sons, saying, ‘This is how you shall bless the children of Israel.’ You shall tell them,
‘Yahweh bless you, and keep you.
Yahweh make his face to shine on you, and be gracious to you.
Explanation
Numbers 6:22 is a brief introductory statement, one of the most common formulas found throughout the book of Numbers and the broader Torah. In plain language, it simply tells us that God spoke directly to Moses, setting the stage for whatever instruction follows. On its own, the verse contains no content—it is a narrative hinge, a way of marking that what comes next is not Moses's own idea or a human tradition, but a direct communication from Yahweh, the covenant God of Israel.
To understand its significance, we have to look at what immediately follows this verse. Numbers 6:22 introduces the famous Aaronic Blessing (verses 23-26): "Yahweh bless you and keep you. Yahweh make his face shine on you and be gracious to you. Yahweh lift up his face toward you and give you peace." Moses received this blessing while Israel was encamped at Sinai, in the early years after the exodus from Egypt, during a period when God was establishing the priesthood, the tabernacle worship, and the structures of national and religious life for Israel. The verse tells us that this blessing was not a human invention by Aaron or the priests, but a divine command—God himself dictated the exact words the priests were to use in blessing the people.
Theologically, this simple formula ("Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying") carries real weight throughout the Pentate
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