Then the Levites shall lay their hands upon the heads of the bulls: See verse 10. Just as the people had to identify with the Levites as their ritual representative, so the Levites must identify with the offerings of the two bulls. The bulls were sacrificed on their behalf. Laying their hands on these bulls does not mean that their sins were transferred to the bulls. Rather, this action symbolized the dedication of their lives to the LORD’s service in the Tabernacle. Animals on which sins were transferred were not sacrificed but sent into the desert (see Lev 16.21-22).

And you shall offer the one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering to the LORD: The Hebrew verb rendered you shall offer (literally “you shall do/make”) is an imperative in the singular, addressing Moses. This reading in the Hebrew text is followed by the Vulgate and many other versions, including New International Version, which says simply “use.” However, the Septuagint changes the Hebrew text to read “he will do/make.” (Only the vowels of the Hebrew verb are changed for this reading, not the consonants.) The pronoun “he” in this reading refers to Aaron. Several translations follow the Septuagint here; for example, New Revised Standard Version has “he shall offer,” Bible en français courant says “Aaron will offer,” and Die Bibel im heutigen Deutsch translates “Aaron offers.” It is tempting to follow this reading, since we would expect that only a priest was qualified to offer a sin offering and a burnt offering. However, after the various instructions to Moses earlier in this same section, the text does not give us any hint that the imperative verb at this point should not refer to Moses. The LORD is still addressing him. (Compare Lev 8.21, which mentions Moses explicitly as the one who carried out a burnt offering. So his sacrificial action here is possible.) Good News Translation uses the passive verb “is to be offered,” which does not specify the agent here. Perhaps Good News Translation uses this passive verb on the grounds that Moses could not reasonably be expected to do everything himself in person. Other translations that use a passive verb here are New Jewish Publication Society’s Tanakh (“shall be offered”), Revised English Bible (“to be offered”), and Contemporary English Version (“will be sacrificed”). But in many languages the agent of this verb will have to be specified. If so, we prefer Moses as the agent of the verb in an imperative form. Buber provides an excellent model for this verb, saying “you will cause to prepare,” which implies that Moses will direct others to actually offer the sacrifices. For sin offering, which purified the Levites of their unintentional sins, and for burnt offering, which expressed the consecration of the Levites to the LORD, see the comments on 6.11. Since the LORD is speaking, to the LORD may be rendered “to me.”

To make atonement for the Levites: As in 5.8 (see the comments there), the Hebrew verb rendered make atonement literally means “cover,” that is, appease, make amends, or perhaps even reconcile. Good News Translation stresses that the ceremony here has a ritual meaning, not just a moral one, by rendering this clause as “in order to perform the ritual of purification for the Levites.” New Living Translation makes this even more explicit with “to purify the Levites and make them right with the LORD.” Translators should make it clear that both the sin offering and the burnt offering were necessary to make atonement for the Levites.

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 .