After the animal sacrifices and the gifts that accompany them (verses 1-16), the text now turns to the special offering of bread as a token offering of the first fruits of the harvest, acknowledging that all products of nature are gifts from God (verses 17-21).

Verses 17-18a are very similar to verses 1-2a, thus marking a new subsection in Hebrew (even though this may not be so evident in terms of the text’s content). NET Bible has the following heading for verses 17-21: “Rules for First Fruits.”

The LORD said to Moses: See 1.1. This clause begins with the Hebrew waw conjunction as in verse 1 (see the comments there).

Say to the people of Israel: See the comments on verse 2. Here this quote frame introduces what the LORD wants Moses to tell the people on his behalf in verses 18b-31.

When you come into the land to which I bring you: Compare verse 2. The Hebrew pronouns for you are plural, referring to the Israelites.

Quoted with permission from de Regt, Lénart J. and Wendland, Ernst R. A Handbook on Numbers. (UBS Helps for Translators). Miami: UBS, 2016. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .