Deuteronomy 33:21

vow Heb. nadar, as the parallel nazarshows, means originally -to dedicate." The term and the idea are found in practically all the Semitic languages.

be slack Lit. be behind, delay. To pay,lit. to fulfil.

sin in thee Cp. Deuteronomy 15:9.

provided Lit. sawbut = saw to.

first part Or the best, Heb. reshîth. See above, Deuteronomy 33:15; and on Deuteronomy 18:4.

For there, etc.] Both the text of this line and the beginning of the next kî sham ḥelḳath meḥoḳeḳ saphun(so far confirmed by Sam.) wayyethand the meaning, for there the lot of a ruler was laid up, and he came, etc., are very uncertain. The line is an odd one and may well be a gloss upon the preceding line.

If the Heb. text be accepted, the meaning is that although Gad had received his large and princely territory E. of Jordan yet he came with (Sam. associated himself with) the heads of the people to the conquest of W. Palestine, loyal to the righteous purpose of God, and executed His judgements on its peoples (Exodus 23:31 ff.). Possible emendations are ḥelḳoh meḥuḳḳaḳ, and his lot was ordained(Giesebrecht); hullekah ḥelḳath meḥoḳḳeh(cp. LXX ἐμερίσθη γῆ ἀρχόντων), a ruler's lot was allotted. The last word saphun, reservedor laid up, overloads the line and is by some ingeniously taken with wayyeth"of the next line as an inversion of wayyith- assephunand there gathered themselves the heads of the peoples, LXX συνηγμένων ἄμα ἀρχηγοῖς λαῶν; and the line is taken as a gloss, or as the repetition by a scribe's error of the line in Deuteronomy 33:5. On the whole v. see Numbers 32.