Numbers 10:5

Old Testament Law (Torah) ASV (1901)

What does Numbers 10:5 say?

The American Standard Version records this verse as: “And when ye blow an alarm, the camps that lie on the east side shall take their journey.” Read the surrounding verses and the named sources below before drawing broader conclusions.

The verse

And when ye blow an alarm, the camps that lie on the east side shall take their journey.
Numbers 10:5 — American Standard Version

Context — Numbers 10

American Standard Version (1901) — public domain. Click any verse for its study page.
5And when ye blow an alarm, the camps that lie on the east side shall take their journey.

What do historical commentaries say?

John Gill's Exposition
John Gill (1697–1771) · Exposition of the Old and New Testament · 18th-century historical commentary
“When ye blow an alarm, etc.] Making a broken, uneven, and quavering sound, which is called a “tara-tan-tara”: then the camps that lie on the east parts shall go forward; the camps of Judah, Issachar, and Zebulun, which lay to the east of the tabernacle, at the front of it; (see <040103>Numbers 1:3,5,7); this was to be the token for their march, which was first of all; (<041014>Numbers 10:14).”
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Barnes' Notes
Albert Barnes (1798–1870) · Notes on the Whole Bible · 19th-century historical commentary
“Blow an alarm - i. e. along continuous peal. Compare Numbers 10:7, ye shall blow, but not sound an alarm: i. e. blow in short, sharp notes, not in a continuous peal. A third and a fourth alarm were probably blown as signals. return to 'Top of Page'”
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Tyndale Open Study Notes
Tyndale House Publishers · Tyndale Open Study Notes · Modern study notes
“10:5-8 When it was time to break camp, the sound of the trumpets supplemented the movement of the pillar of cloud (cp. 9:15-22) by signaling when to camp and when to move on (see ch 2).”
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Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge
R. A. Torrey and contributors · The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge · Cross-reference reference work
“blow: Num 10:6, Num 10:7; Isa 58:1; Joe 2:1 camps: Num 2:3-9 Numbers 10:6”
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Keil & Delitzsch
C. F. Keil & F. Delitzsch · Commentary on the Old Testament · 19th-century historical commentary
“To give the signal for breaking up the camp, they were to blow תּרוּעה, i.e., a noise or alarm. At the first blast the tribes on the east, i.e., those who were encamped in the front of the tabernacle, were to break up; at the second, those who were encamped on the south; and so on in the order prescribed in ch. 2, though this is not expressly mentioned here. The alarm was to be blown למסּעיהם, with regard to their breaking up or marching. Numbers 10:7”
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Related study paths

Sources and verification