Then Korah assembled all the congregation against them at the entrance of the tent of meeting …: All the congregation could refer only to Korah’s followers (see verse 5, where the Hebrew word for congregation is rendered “company”) or to the entire community of Israel. This expression occurs twice in verse 19. Perhaps there is a play on one reference over against the other (that is, Korah’s rebellious community versus the whole community of Israel). This is how Revised English Bible has understood the text by saying “his whole company” and then “the whole community” (similarly New International Version, Traduction œcuménique de la Bible, Bijbel: Vertaling in opdracht van het Nederlandsch Bijbelgenootschap, De Nieuwe Bijbelvertaling). Alternatively, both references may point to the entire community of Israel (so Contemporary English Version, Parole de Vie, Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch, and most other English and French translations). The Hebrew expression for against them means physically “facing Moses and Aaron” (Good News Translation), yet also figuratively opposing their leadership.

And the glory of the LORD appeared to all the congregation: For the glory of the LORD, see 14.10. This divine manifestation occurs in the structural center of the narrative of verses 1-35, which is a prominent position. Here all the congregation refers to the whole community of Israel, which seems clear from verses 22 and 24. This phrase is better rendered “the whole community” (Good News Translation; see 1.2). Good News Translation renders the conjunction And as “Suddenly,” but there is no justification for this in the Hebrew. Good News Translation also connects this clause closely to the conversation in the verses that follow, but the ancient scribal punctuation in the Hebrew text does not support this. The glory of LORD does not just appear as the background to the LORD’s words to Moses and Aaron; rather, as already noted, this divine manifestation is focal in the text.

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 .