Numbers 11:21
וַיֹּאמֶר֮ מֹשֶׁה֒ שֵׁשׁ־מֵאֹ֥ות אֶ֨לֶף֙ רַגְלִ֔י הָעָ֕ם אֲשֶׁ֥ר אָנֹכִ֖י בְּקִרְבֹּ֑ו וְאַתָּ֣ה אָמַ֗רְתָּ בָּשָׂר֙ אֶתֵּ֣ן לָהֶ֔ם וְאָכְל֖וּ חֹ֥דֶשׁ יָמִֽים׃
1. Transliteration
Vayyōʾmer Mōsheh: shēsh-mēʾōt ʾelef raglî hāʿām ʾasher ʾānōkhî beqirbō; veʾattāh ʾāmartā: bāsār ʾettēn lāhem veʾākhelû ḥōdesh yāmîm.
2. Literal Translation
And Moshe said, “Six hundred thousand on foot are the people among whom I am, and You have said, ‘Meat I shall give to them, and they shall eat a month of days.’”
3. Grammar Focus: Hebrew Places the Huge Number First
The verse opens with an enormous number:
שֵׁשׁ־מֵאוֹת אֶלֶף
Literally:
- שֵׁשׁ = six
- מֵאוֹת = hundreds
- אֶלֶף = thousand
Hebrew places the huge quantity right near the beginning so the reader immediately feels the scale of the problem.
Then comes:
רַגְלִי הָעָם
Literally, “foot-people” or “people on foot.” The expression paints the crowd physically. The reader imagines a massive multitude traveling by foot through the wilderness.
For beginners, Hebrew often makes numbers feel visual and concrete instead of abstract.
4. The Verse Moves from Human Limitation to Divine Promise
| Part of the Verse | What Happens | Emotional Effect |
|---|---|---|
| שֵׁשׁ־מֵאוֹת אֶלֶף | The crowd is counted. | The situation feels impossible. |
| אָנֹכִי בְּקִרְבּוֹ | Mosheh stands among the people. | The burden feels personal and immediate. |
| בָּשָׂר אֶתֵּן לָהֶם | YHWH promises meat. | Divine provision enters the scene. |
| וְאָכְלוּ חֹדֶשׁ יָמִים | They will eat for a month. | The promise becomes astonishingly large. |
5. Vocabulary Builder: Thousand, Flesh, Midst
| Hebrew Word | Pronunciation | Core Root & Meaning | Ancient Concrete Insight |
|---|---|---|---|
| אֶלֶף | ʾelef | “thousand” | A huge counted group, creating the sense of an overwhelming multitude. |
| רַגְלִי | raglî | From רֶגֶל, “foot” | The people are pictured as travelers moving on foot. |
| בְּקִרְבּוֹ | beqirbō | From קֶרֶב, “midst, inner part” | Mosheh is standing right in the middle of the people. |
| בָּשָׂר | bāsār | “flesh, meat” | Concrete physical food, not symbolic provision. |
| חֹדֶשׁ יָמִים | ḥōdesh yāmîm | “a month of days” | Hebrew stretches the time expression to make the duration feel long and complete. |
6. Syntax Insight: Hebrew Places the Promise in Direct Speech
The verse shifts into quoted speech:
בָּשָׂר אֶתֵּן לָהֶם
Literally:
“Meat I shall give to them.”
Notice the word order. Hebrew places בָּשָׂר, “meat,” at the front before the verb:
Meat → I shall give → to them
This emphasizes the surprising object itself. The impossible provision is placed first so the reader feels the shock of the promise immediately.
7. An Observation About “A Month of Days”
Instead of saying simply “for a month,” Hebrew says:
חֹדֶשׁ יָמִים
Literally:
“a month of days.”
Hebrew sometimes expands time expressions this way to make them feel fuller and heavier. The reader senses the long duration stretching out day after day.
For beginners, Biblical Hebrew often intensifies meaning through repetition or expansion rather than through abstract adjectives.
8. Beginner Practice Activity: Identify the Concrete Image
Match the Hebrew phrase with the picture it creates.
| Hebrew Phrase | Concrete Image |
|---|---|
| רַגְלִי הָעָם | People on foot or hidden kings? |
| בָּשָׂר אֶתֵּן לָהֶם | Giving meat or building cities? |
| חֹדֶשׁ יָמִים | A long stretch of days or one moment? |
Click to Reveal the Scribal Answer
Answer:
רַגְלִי הָעָם creates the image of people traveling on foot.
בָּשָׂר אֶתֵּן לָהֶם describes giving meat as provision.
חֹדֶשׁ יָמִים creates the feeling of a long continuous stretch of days.
The verse constantly turns ideas into visible, concrete scenes.
Feeling the Weight of the Wilderness Numbers
This verse feels heavy because Hebrew places the enormous number first. Before the promise even arrives, the reader already sees six hundred thousand people standing in the wilderness.
Then the impossible promise enters: בָּשָׂר אֶתֵּן לָהֶם, “Meat I shall give to them.” The contrast between the gigantic crowd and the confident promise creates tension inside the sentence itself.
For beginners, this verse reveals how Biblical Hebrew often communicates emotion through order and imagery. The language counts, pictures, and places words carefully so the reader feels both the human impossibility and the divine declaration at the same time.
