## Analysis of Participants in the Second Major Division of Numbers

Gyusang Jin 1

Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam, De Boelelaan 1105, 1081 HV Amsterdam, the Netherlands jin.gyusang.numbers.80@gmail.com

Abstract : While many scholars demarcated the text of Numbers using rhetorical criteria such as theme or plot, this study discovered the syntactic-hierarchical structure of Numbers and found the demarcations by Elaborate Divine Speech Formulae. I used the text-linguistics of Eep Talstra and the linguistic inventory of ETCBC (Eep Talstra Center for Bible and Computer). The text-hierarchical structure resulted in two major divisions, Num 1-8 and9-36, and also six embedded sections, 1:1-3:13, 3:14-8:26, 9:1-20:22, 20:23-33:49, 33:50-34:29, and 35:1-36:13, within them. First, the analysis of participants verifies the validity of the demarcations displaying weak connectivity in terms of shared participants, and strong separability in terms of unique participants. Second, the analysis of participants elaborates well on the discourse function of each of the two major divisions and the six sections. In this paper, I focus on the second major division.

Keywords : Syntactic Analysis, Computational Analysis, Discourse Analysis, Participant Analysis.

## 1. Purpose of this article

The text-linguistics of Eep Talstra 2 seeks to discover the text-hierarchical structure, in which the function of a demarcation marker is defined as whether it opens a major division or a section. In the process, a researcher observes thorough linguistic features at all linguistic levels (grapheme, word, phrase, clause, sentence, verse, and text). A researcher observes mainly clause type, and adjunct phrases in the same clause, judges the relationships between clauses, and discovers the text-hierarchical structure of a text. My study demarcated the book of Numbers by syntactic patterns in which a divine speech formula is combined with a locative phrase or a time phrase or double locative phrases or a combination of a locative or time phrase. 3 I tested additionally the validity of the demarcation by ' analysis of participants. This article works on Num 9-36. 4

Whereas the Elaborate divine speech formula [divine speech formula + Locative + Locative + Time phrase] in Num 1:1 starts the first major division, the EDSF [divine speech formula + Locative +

1 Ph.D. in Old Testament Theology, Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam (2021) under the supervision of Willem van Peursen, who is the professor of Old Testament Theology at Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam and the director of the Eep Talstra Centre for Bible and Computer (ETCBC).

2  Eep Talstra made the theoretical methodology based on the linguistics of Harald Weinrich and Wolfgang Schneider. See Jin Gyusang, "Analysis of Participants in the First Major Division of Numbers," Evangelical Old Testament Studies vol. 22 (2022): 2. Available from: doi:10.22782/eots.2022.22..001.

3 I call this syntactic pattern as Elaborate divine speech formula, whose abbreviation is EDSF. EDSF can occur with five types. 1) DSF + locative phrase, 2) DSF + double locative phrases, 3) DSF + time phrase, 4) DSF + locative + time phrases, 5) DSF + double locative phrases + time phrases. From here on I will call Elaborate Divine Speech Formula as EDSF. For more elaboration, you can see 'Investigating the Text-hierarchical Structures and Composition of Numbers,' 53-55.

4 This article stems from a presentation delivered to the session, "Theology of the Hebrew Scriptures," held at the SBL Annual Meeting in San Antonio, Texas, on 21. Nov. 2021.

Time phrase] in Num 9:1 starts the second major division of Numbers. 5 The EDSFs [divine speech formula + Locative + Locative phrase] have the function of demarcating the sections in the second major division. 6 I consider Num 9-36 as the second major division, which is comprised of Num 9:1-20:22, 20:23-33:49, 33:50-34:29, and 35:1-36:13.

In terms of participants, two sections that were demarcated by EDSF can be compared with each other. I will display whether each section indicates weak connectivity and strong separability to its adjacent section. Shared participants that occur commonly in two sections would indicate connectivity, while unique participants that occur only in one of the two sections would indicate separability to its adjacent section. If that is so, the outcomes would validate the demarcation.

Scholars who demarcated the text of Numbers by historical-critical or tradition-critical methodologies pointed out Num 9:14 or 10:11 as the beginning of the second major division of Numbers. 7 I will analyze Num 9-36 and observe its relationship to the preceding division (Num 1-8), which is necessary to describe the function of the second major division, in order to decide whether Num 9:1 is indeed the second major break in Numbers.

## 2. The comparison of participants (types and tokens)

Here we compare the four sections in Num 9:1-36:13 to see their connectivity and separability to each other and whether the outcome validates the demarcations between the sections. To observe the connectivity and separability between the four sections that are demarcated by EDSF [divine speech formula + Locative + Locative phrase] in Num 9:1-36:13, I compare a preceding section and the following section in terms of participants (types and tokens). First, I will see whether shared participants that occur commonly in both sections would indicate weak connectivity, and whether unique participants in each of them would indicate a strong separability to its adjacent section. If the outcome confirms it, it will support the validity of the demarcations by EDSF. To compare fairly sections with different sizes, I convert the frequency of shared participants and unique participants into their relative frequency. 8 Second, I will observe the change in the relative frequency of the shared participants, which could increase or decrease in the latter section. While shared participants indicate connectivity between the sections, the change in their relative frequency would indicate a change in the relationship or an event or the plot of an event between the participants, so the change would indicate the separability between the sections. I will interpret the change by rhetorical criteria of plot or theme.

5 Both Num 1:1 and 9:1 have a similar  order of constituents with clause type WayX, divine speech formula, locative phrase, and time phrase. Each of them is followed by an extensive subordinate clause that elaborates on the preceding time phrase in the preceding main clause. Based on the high similarity, I embedded Num 9:1 under 1:1. For more details, you can see 'Investigating the Text-hierarchical Structures and Composition of Numbers,' p. 22-38.

6 In this division the EDSF (Divine Speech Formula + double locative phrases) occurs in Num 20:22, 33:50 and 35:1, thus splitting Num 9:1-36:13 into four sections: Num 9:1-20:22, 20:23-33:49, 33:50-34:29 and 35:1-36:13.

7 Gyusang Jin, 'Investigating the Text-hierarchical Structures and Composition of Numbers,' Ph.D. diss., Amsterdam: Vrije Universiteit, 2021. 6-8. As for the second major division of Numbers, Rendtdorff prefers Num 9:14, Noth and Von Rad argue for Num 10:11, and S.R.Driver indicates Num 10:28.

8 Frequency (token) indicates the number of occurrences of each participant. Relative frequency indicates the percentage of this participant. For example, if YHWH occurs 10 times in a text, then the frequency is 10. If YHWH occurs 70 times, Moses occurs 30 times in a text, the percentage of YHWH is 70%, that of Moses is 30%.

## 3. Observing the change of the percentage of the shared participants between two sections

In the table below the left two columns include the total frequency of shared participants or unique participants or the sum of both (types in the upper level, tokens in the lower level) in a major division; the right two columns present their relative frequency (percentage). 9 As seen in the right two columns the relative frequency of shared participants decreases and that of unique participants increases in the latter  section relative to the former section. In section 4.1., we will see which shared participants occur and if their percentage increases or decreases, and also which unique participants occur. I will interpret the change of the shared participants and the occurrence of unique participants by rhetorical criteria of plot or theme, and elaborate on how the outcomes indicate the separability between the two sections.

## 4. Num 1:1-8:23 relative to Num 9:1-36:13

Figure 1. The shared participants and unique participants in both divisions

| who.type      | 1.1_8.26   | 9.1_36.13   | 1.1_8.26   | 9.1_36.13   |
|---------------|------------|-------------|------------|-------------|
| shared        | 154        | 154         | 0.08       | 0.04        |
| unique        | 1743       | 3477        | 0.92       | 0.96        |
| total         | 1897       | 3631        |            |             |
| who.frequency | 1.1_8.26   | 9.1_36.13   | 1.1_8.26   | 9.1_36.13   |
| shared        | 1774       | 3270        | 0.41       | 0.30        |
| unique        | 2561       | 7605        | 0.59       | 0.70        |
| total         | 4335       | 10875       |            |             |

First, we compare the two major divisions of Numbers. As seen in the table above, the preceding section and the following section show weak connectivity and strong separability in terms of the relative frequency of participants. Moreover, the two sections show strong separability and weak connectivity in terms of the relative frequency of all participants. Therefore, the upper and lower tables support the validity of the demarcation.

9 Type indicates the number of kinds of participants that occur in a text. For example, if YHWH, Moses, and Aaron occur in a text, then the number of types of participants is 3.

## 4.1 Num 1:1-8:23 relative to Num 9:1-36:13-shared participants

In terms of the relative frequency of all participants, Num 1:1-8:23 and Num 9:1-36:13 show strong separability. On the other hand, there are shared participants whose percentage in each section increases from the preceding to the following section. The rhetorical criteria plus the change in the percentage indicates the separability between the two sections.

| participant identification     |   1.1_8.26 |   9.1_36.13 |   1.1_8.26 |   9.1_36.13 |   ID number |
|--------------------------------|------------|-------------|------------|-------------|-------------|
| YHWH                           |       0.04 |        0.07 |        173 |         760 |           1 |
| son (Moses)                    |       0.03 |        0.04 |        130 |         470 |           2 |
| (names of) sons (of Israel)    |       0.04 |        0.09 |        178 |        1010 |           3 |
| combination of Moses and Aaron |       0.00 |        0.00 |         12 |          49 |           8 |
| whole (assembly of this)       |       0.00 |        0.00 |          6 |          30 |        1088 |

Figure 2. The shared participants whose percentage increases in the latter section

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is bigger than that in the preceding section. 10 The shared participants, whose percentage increases in the following section are: YHWH, Moses, and the sons of Israel.

## 4.1.1. YHWH

YHWH in the former section commands, then participants obey. Communication is simple. By contrast,  in  the  latter  section,  YHWH commands, however, participants disobey, rebel, grumble, and collapse. In response to them, YHWH punishes, expresses anger, and instructs participants. The communication between YHWH and the other participants is mutual, active, full of struggle, and destructive. The high relative frequency of YHWH in the latter section indicates the busyness of YHWH.

## 4.1.2. Moses

Moses in the former section obeys. On the other hand, in the latter section, Moses invites arbitrarily Hobab as a guide of the camp of Israel, although already the cloud of YHWH had led them in Num 9:15-23, as well as the ark of the covenant would lead in Num 10:33-36. The narrator's witness before and after the invitation of Moses confirms that Moses's invitation is wrong. Moses in the latter section complains before YHWH, and faces the rebellion of Miriam, Aaron, and Korah's gathering.

10 The number of types of participants is too large to be displayed in a limited text. I chose only a few participants whose relative frequency is high. The same applies to the other sections in this paper.

He is deprived of the leadership to bring Israel into the land of Canaan. The high relative frequency of Moses in the latter section indicates his busyness.

## 4.1.3. Sons of Israel

The sons of Israel in the former section go through a census, the systematization of the 12 camps of the army of Israel takes place, they get the laws relevant to the relationship between husband and wife, the Nazirite, and participate in the presentation of the Levites. On the other hand, the sons of Israel disobey Passover regulations, march, grumble, doubt, despair, rebel, commit adultery and idolatry, collapse, and appear in a travelogue. The high relative frequency of the sons of Israel in the latter section indicates the busyness of the sons of Israel.

## 4.1.4. The anger of YHWH

The anger of YHWH occurs within the alerting of Israel not to approach the tent of meeting in Num 1:53. On the other hand, in the latter section, the anger of YHWH occurs frequently, attacks disobeyers and rebels. The high relative frequency of the anger of YHWH in the latter section indicates the collapse of the relationship between YHWH and disobedient Israel. In terms of plot, the shared participants in the former major division describe the ideal relationship between YHWH and the other participants. On the other hand, in the latter major division, the shared participants describe the collapse of the relationship between YHWH and the other participants.

Figure 3. The shared participants whose percentage decreases in the latter section

| participant identification                     |   1.1_8.26 |   9.1_36.13 |   1.1_8.26 |   9.1_36.13 |
|------------------------------------------------|------------|-------------|------------|-------------|
| Levite (brother of Moses, Aaron)               |       0.03 |        0.01 |        138 |          66 |
| priests (kingdom of)                           |       0.01 |        0.00 |         64 |           9 |
| Gershonite (clan of) (Levites, 2nd generation) |       0.01 |        0.00 |         40 |           2 |
| dwelling-place (of holliness)                  |       0.01 |        0.00 |         45 |          20 |
| sons (of Merari)                               |       0.01 |        0.00 |         35 |           1 |

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is smaller than that in the preceding section. The shared participants, whose percentage decreases in the following section, are the Levites, the priests, the Gershonites, the Merarites, the Kohathites, and the dwelling-place.

## 4.1.5. The Levites and the priests

The Levites and the priests in the former section receive an assigned role and are put in a hierarchical relationship. On the other hand, in the latter section, the priests rebel against Moses, and the Levites rebel  against  Aaron.  Their  low  relative  frequency  indicates  that  their  status  and  activity  fall,  and weakened after the rebellion.

## 4.1.6. The Gershonites, the Merarites, and the Kohathites

The Gershonites, the Merarites, and the Kohathites in the former section get assigned to the roles of serving at the tent of meeting. On the other hand, in the latter section, they obey their roles.

## 4.1.7. Dwelling-place

The 'Dwelling-place' in the former section is located in the middle of the camp of the army, it is the place where the Levites serve the work of the tent of meeting. On the other hand, the dwelling-place occurs in the description of the movement of the cloud of YHWH, when 70 elders of Israel are appointed, and when Korah's gathering stands before the punishment of YHWH.

In terms of theme, the shared participants in the former major division describe a theoretical establishment of the hierarchical relationship of the army of Israel and the assignment of roles to each of them. On the other hand, in the latter major division, the shared participants describe the movements, communication, and struggle of the participants instead of repeating the established theory and religious regulations. Thus, these participants occur less. Disobeyers occur less frequently than before their disobedience. Korah, Dathan, and Abiram occur in the latter section instead of the collective Levite. It is a cause of low frequency.

## 4.2 Num 1:1-8:26-unique participants relative to Num 9:1-36:13

The table below indicates a few unique participants in the former major division relative to the latter major division. It only shows a few unique participants whose relative frequency is big. Their relative frequency indicates the percentage among all the participants in the section. This indicates the separability of the two major divisions.

Figure 4. The unique participants who occur only in the preceding division

| participant identification                                    |   ID number |   1.1_8.26 |   1.1_8.26 |   9.1_36.13 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------|-------------|------------|------------|-------------|
| wife (of man of sons of Israel, of wife who goes astray)      |         772 |       0.02 |         74 |           0 |
| man (of Israel, takes a special vow as a Nazirite)            |        7907 |       0.01 |         44 |           0 |
| man (of sons of Israel, of wife who goes astray)              |        7900 |       0.01 |         27 |           0 |
| clans (sons of Gershon)                                       |          27 |       0.01 |         25 |           0 |
| clans (of sons of Kohath)                                     |          24 |       0.01 |         25 |           0 |
| clans (of sons of Merari)                                     |          30 |       0.00 |         19 |           0 |
| Nazirte (law of)                                              |        7325 |       0.00 |         17 |           0 |
| lamp stand (of table of acacia wood)                          |        8306 |       0.00 |         16 |           0 |
| first-born (of Israel)                                        |       10031 |       0.00 |         12 |           0 |
| man (of Israel, takes a special vow as a Nazirite, uncleaned) |        7906 |       0.00 |         12 |           0 |

The unique participants above point out the importance of loyalty in the relationship of marriage between husband and wife, keeping a position of the Levites relative to the supervision of the priests, and the voluntary consecration of the Nazirites. The firstborns, the Kohathites, the Merarites, and the Gershonites emphasize the role of the Levites. As a whole, the unique participants emphasize the holiness, loyalty, and the system of the army of YHWH from the lower to the upper level.

## 4.3 Num 9:1-36:13 relative to Num 1:1-8:26 - unique participants

The table below shows the unique participants that occur most among all unique participants in the following major division relative to the preceding division. Their relative frequency indicates their percentage among all the participants in the major division. They indicate the separability between the two major divisions.

Figure 5. The unique participants who occur only in the latter division

| participant identification                    |   ID number |   9.1_36.13 |   1.1_8.26 |   9.1_36.13 |
|-----------------------------------------------|-------------|-------------|------------|-------------|
| gathering (of sons of Israel) (2nd Israel)    |          72 |        0.03 |          0 |         326 |
| Balaam (son of Beor)                          |       14022 |        0.03 |          0 |         300 |
| Balak (son of Zippor)                         |       14021 |        0.01 |          0 |         152 |
| the earth (flowing with milk and honey)       |        3746 |        0.01 |          0 |         125 |
| combination of the Reubenites and the Gadites |       12771 |        0.01 |          0 |          78 |
| men (spy)                                     |        1174 |        0.00 |          0 |          49 |
| woman (makes a vow to YHWH)                   |         685 |        0.00 |          0 |          44 |
| cloud (pillar of)                             |       12926 |        0.00 |          0 |          42 |
| Moab (rams of)                                |        7595 |        0.00 |          0 |          41 |
| Joshua                                        |        8208 |        0.00 |          0 |          38 |

The unique participants, Balaam, Balak, Sihon, Moab, and Canaan, show high relative frequency. The text where they occur emphasizes that the enemy of Israel is not YHWH but those pagan participants. YHWH clarifies who are the enemies whom Israel must fight against. Rather, YHWH only wants to bless Israel and expresses a sincere loyalty to Israel. The unique participant 'the land of Canaan' occurs frequently and indicates the goal of Israel. The unique participants Joshua, the daughters of Zelophehad, Phinehas, and Caleb, are the faithful examples whom Israel must follow. The unique participants, Korah, Dathan, and Abiram, are rebels against a higher authority. The unique participant '12,000 men' of Israel performs the Midian war.

In terms of theme, the unique participants in the latter major division clarify the goal, the enemy of Israel, the opposite responses among participants in Israel, the small number of faithful participants who keep loyalty to YHWH, and the power over the pagan king and priest and the faithfulness of YHWH.

So far, I compared the two major divisions demarcated by the EDSF [divine speech formula + Locative + Time phrases] in terms of the relative frequency of participants (types and tokens). Each of the two major divisions shows weak connectivity and strong separability in terms of the relative frequency of participants (types, tokens). However, sometimes the former section or the latter section can indicate a larger number of shared participants than that of unique participants. Then, the connectivity between the two sections seems stronger than their separability. In this case, I will interpret the change of the percentage of participants by rhetorical analysis, see whether the interpretation still supports the strong separability between the sections, and the validity of the demarcation.

## 4.3.1 Num 9:1-20:22 relative to Num 20:23-33:49

Figure 6. The shared participants and unique participants in both sections

| who.type      | 9.1_20.22   | 20.23_33.49   | 9.1_20.22   | 20.23_33.49   |
|---------------|-------------|---------------|-------------|---------------|
| shared        | 109         | 109           | 0.08        | 0.05          |
| unique        | 1217        | 2002          | 0.92        | 0.95          |
| total         | 1326        | 2111          |             |               |
| who.frequency | 9.1_20.22   | 20.23_33.49   | 9.1_20.22   | 20.23_33.49   |
| shared        | 2242        | 1504          | 0.50        | 0.28          |
| unique        | 2255        | 3861          | 0.50        | 0.72          |
| total         | 4497        | 5365          |             |               |

As seen in the upper level of the table above, the preceding section and the following section show weak connectivity and strong separability in terms of the relative frequency of the types of participants. By contrast, in the lower level, the preceding section shows strong connectivity and weak separability in terms of the relative frequency of the tokens of participants. On the other hand, the following section shows weak connectivity and strong separability in terms of the relative frequency of participants. Therefore, the upper table seems to support the validity of the demarcation and the lower table does not seem to support it.

The relative frequency of the shared participants in the two sections measures the connectivity between the two sections, according to whether the relative frequency of the shared participants compared to all participants increases or decreases from the preceding section to the following section. This change will indicate the degree of separability between the two sections. The separability of the change is explained well by rhetorical analysis.

4.3.1.1. Num 9:1-20:22 relative to Num 20:23-33:49-shared participants

| participant identification   |   9.1_20.22 |   20.23_33.49 |   9.1_20.22 |   20.23_33.49 |   ID number |
|------------------------------|-------------|---------------|-------------|---------------|-------------|
| messenger (of YHWH)          |        0.00 |          0.01 |           1 |            35 |        7696 |
| Amorite (place of)           |        0.00 |          0.00 |           1 |            17 |        4193 |
| mountain Horeb               |        0.00 |          0.00 |           3 |            15 |        7472 |
| Jordan (banks of)            |        0.00 |          0.00 |           1 |            12 |        8209 |
| Eleazar (son of Aaron)       |        0.01 |          0.01 |          40 |            58 |        4677 |

Figure 7. The shared participants whose percentage increases in the latter section

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is bigger than that in the preceding section.

## 4.3.1.1.1. The messenger of YHWH

In the preceding section, the messenger of YHWH occurs in the words of Moses to the king of Edom. When Israel cried out in Egypt, YHWH sent a messenger of YHWH. On the other hand, the messenger of YHWH in the latter section blocks the way of Balaam to Balak.

## 4.3.1.1.2. The Amorites

The Amorites in the first section are dwelling in the land of Canaan where the twelve spies explore. On the other hand, Israel disinherits the Amorites and occupies their land in the latter section.

## 4.3.1.1.3. Mount Hor

Mount Hor in the first section is the point from which Israel departs in their marching in the desert. On the other hand, Mount Hor is the place where Aaron dies and is buried in the latter section. Mount Hor composes the inclusion of Num 9:1-20:22, the outer frame of it, and delineates the section from its adjacent sections. Mount Hor occurs again in Num 20:23 and in the travelogue, in Num 33, composes an inclusio of Num 20:23-33:49 again, the outer frame of it, and delineates the section separating it from its adjacent section. Mount Hor also supports the cohesiveness between Num 9:1-20:22 and Num 20:23-33:49.

## 4.3.1.1.4. The river Jordan

The river Jordan in the first section occurs as a part of the land of Canaan where the twelve spies explore. On the other hand, in the latter section, the Jordan is the place where the army of Israel encamps, as well as that of the second census, the war against Midian, and the persuasion of the Reubenites and the Gadites occur. The Jordan also occurs in the travelogue in Num 33. Likewise, it occurs frequently in the latter section and composes its cohesiveness.

## 4.3.1.1.5. Eleazar

Eleazar in the former section collects the twelve sticks of the twelve tribes during the punishment of Korah's congregation. He receives the commandment of YHWH in Num 19. After Aaron and Miriam rebel against the leadership of Moses, implicitly the role of Aaron would have been taken over by Eleazar. On the other hand, in the latter section, Eleazar succeeds officially in the role of Aaron at Mount Hor. He works with Moses in the second census, dealing with the request of the daughters of Zelophehad, the laws about feasts, the war against Midian, and the war between the Reubenites and the Gadites.

Likewise, the percentage change of the shared participants from the former to the latter section can be interpreted by the rhetorical criterion of a theme. The first section describes the marching of Israel before the war to conquer the land of Canaan. On the other hand, the latter section describes the beginning of the war against the Canaanites and the end of the marching of Israel.

Likewise, the percentage change of the shared participants in the two sections indicates separability in terms of plot and theme.

| participant identification   |   9.1_20.22 |   20.23_33.49 |   9.1_20.22 |   20.23_33.49 |   ID number |
|------------------------------|-------------|---------------|-------------|---------------|-------------|
| YHWH/ Elohim                 |        0.09 |          0.06 |         418 |           300 |           1 |
| Moses                        |        0.06 |          0.03 |         274 |           170 |           2 |
| sons (of Israel)             |        0.15 |          0.06 |         675 |           329 |           3 |
| Aaron                        |        0.03 |          0.01 |         116 |            37 |           4 |
| Mose and Aaron               |        0.01 |          0.00 |          43 |             6 |           8 |

Figure 8. The shared participants whose percentage decreases in the latter section

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is smaller than that in the preceding section. The shared participants, whose percentage in the preceding section decreases in the following section, are YHWH, Moses, the sons of Israel, Aaron, the Levites, and the land of Canaan.

## 4.3.1.1.6. YHWH

YHWH in the former section occurs frequently, He leads the marching of Israel, punishes disobeyers, and instructs the rest of Israel. On the other hand, in the latter section, YHWH commands the death of Aaron, transfers the role of Aaron to Eleazar, punishes Israel who grumbles at Meribah, restores some people who obey YHWH, nullifies the plan of Balak, makes Balaam bless Israel, destroys the Israelites who committed idolatry and adultery at Shittim, gathers the second army of Israel, admits the request of the daughters of Zelophehad, commands the war against Midian, persuades the Reubenites and the Gadites to participate in the war against the Canaanites, admits their request, and reminds Israel that YHWH brought them out of Egypt. Even if YHWH still works hard, other participants occur more frequently. Therefore, the relative frequency of YHWH decreases.

In terms of theme, YHWH in the former section punishes disobeyers at each level and lets the rest of Israel march in the desert for forty years. On the other hand, in the latter section, YHWH kills the disobeyers and gathers a completely new army of YHWH. They had been educated seeing the faults of the first generation, and responded with faith before YHWH.

## 4.3.1.1.7. Moses

Moses in the first section requests a second chance to keep the Passover for disobeyers, invites arbitrarily Hobab as a guide of the camp of Israel, asks for the death of himself after the complaint concerning manna, executes the punishment of YHWH to Miriam and Aaron, to the ten spies who did a bad report about the land, to Korah's congregation, and to the complaint at Meribah. On the other hand, in the latter section, Moses takes over the garments, transfers the role of Aaron to Eleazar, watches the death of Aaron, gives a chance of restoration to Israel by a bronze snake, executes the punishment to Israel at Shittim, delivers the request of the daughters of Zelophehad, gets the laws of the feasts, performs the Midian war, persuades the Reubenites and the Gadites and records the travelogue of Israel. In the former section, Moses disobeys YHWH, in the latter section his role continues but weakens. His decreasing percentage indicates, like with Aaron, that the influence of Moses weakens, and he hands over his role to Joshua in Num 27.

In terms of theme, Moses in the former section disobeys and executes the punishment of YHWH to disobeyers. In the latter section, Moses serves YHWH to destroy the rebels, performs the second census of the army of Israel, and persuades them not to repeat the same fault as the first generation of Israel did.

## 4.3.1.1.8. Sons of Israel

The sons of Israel in the former section disobey the first Passover, grumble, despair by the evil report of the ten spies instead of believing YHWH more, and march through Kadesh up to Mount Hor. On the other hand, in the latter section, the sons of Israel watch the death of Aaron and mourn it. However, they do not get alert from it, because again they grumble at Meribah, get the punishment by snakes, and get the blessing of YHWH through Balaam, but commit idolatry and adultery at Shittim, and collapse. The second generation of Israel remembers them as the generation of failure. The travelogue in Num 33 describes the marching of the first generation of Israel. The high relative frequency of the sons of Israel in the former shows their extremely frequent and serious disobedience, and their low percentage in the latter section shows their foolishness in repeating similar faults although they get a strong alert, lessons from the punishment, the blessing of YHWH, and their total collapse.

## 4.3.1.1.9. Aaron

Aaron in the former section hears the request of the disobeyers of the first Passover, blows the clarion to declare the beginning of the marching of Israel, rebels against higher Moses, faces the rebellion of lower Korah's gathering, gets the admonition of YHWH, and ascends on Mount Hor. On the other hand, in the latter section, Aaron takes over his role to Eleazar and dies at Mount Hor. The decreasing relative frequency of Aaron in the latter section also indicates his influence on other participants falls after his rebellion against higher Moses.

## 4.3.1.1.10. The Levites

The Levites in the former section participate in the rebellion of Korah's gathering, and get the admonition of YHWH. On the other hand, in the latter section, the Levites of the second generation get the plunder after the Midian war. The decreasing relative frequency of the Levites in the latter section also indicates their influence on other participants falls after their rebellion against higher Aaron. The Levites occur in Num 35 in which the assignment of houses and pasture to the Levites precedes the description of the house of the high priest. This reflects that YHWH responds to their complaint in Num 16-17 by rewards.

In the former section, the land of Canaan is the object that the first generation of Israel explores to conquer, but doubts it. On the other hand, in the latter section, it is the goal of the second generation of Israel. The decreasing relative frequency of the land of Canaan in the latter section indicates that specified regions of the land instead of the whole land of Canaan occur as the Israelites fight to conquer the specified regions.

Likewise, the percentage change of the shared participants from the former to the latter is interpreted by the rhetorical criteria of plot and theme. The former section describes the disobedience of the participants. On the other hand, the latter section describes the fall, the collapse of the disobeyers, and their replacement by new participants.

Likewise, the percentage change of the shared participants in the two sections indicates separability in terms of plot and theme.

<!-- formula-not-decoded -->

The table below indicates a few unique participants in the former section relative to the latter section.

Figure 9. The unique participants who occur only in the preceding section

| participant identification                                   |   ID number |   9.1_20.22 |   9.1_20.22 |   20.23_33.49 |
|--------------------------------------------------------------|-------------|-------------|-------------|---------------|
| men (spy)                                                    |        1174 |        0.01 |          49 |             0 |
| cloud (pillar of)                                            |       12926 |        0.01 |          42 |             0 |
| Aaron and his sons                                           |          11 |        0.01 |          24 |             0 |
| the Canaanite (place of)                                     |         859 |        0.00 |          22 |             0 |
| sojourner (of combination of Moses and the people of Israel) |        4776 |        0.00 |          21 |             0 |
| men (spy, 10)                                                |        2045 |        0.00 |          20 |             0 |
| Moses and people of sons of Israel                           |           7 |        0.00 |          19 |             0 |
| men (who were defiled by dead body of man)                   |        7716 |        0.00 |          19 |             0 |
| Korah, Dathan, Abiram, On and 250 chiefs of Israel           |       12855 |        0.00 |          18 |             0 |
| elders of Israel (70)                                        |       11748 |        0.00 |          17 |             0 |

The disobeyers among the unique participants are the ten spies, the man gathering wood on the Sabbath day, defiant disobeyers, Aaron and Miriam, and Korah's gathering. The unique participants, the cloud of YHWH, the Heifer, and the glory of YHWH, indicate the anger, punishment, and grace of YHWH. YHWH punishes the sins of Israel, but offers a chance to  restore  the  relationship  with YHWH. Hobab is an unessential guide of Israel. The ark of YHWH verifies that Hobab was not necessary to the camp of Israel. The seventy elders are appointed based on the complaint of Moses, but they also rebel against Moses and make it harder for him. The unique participants Joshua and Caleb are rarely faithful participants. In terms of theme, the unique participants above are relevant to the disobedience of the participants at each level and the punishment of YHWH. The ideal relationship between YHWH and the other participants in Num 3:14-8:26 is broken in Num 9:1-20:22.

<!-- formula-not-decoded -->

The table below shows the unique participants who occur frequently among all the unique participants in the following section relative to the preceding section.

Figure 10. The unique participants who occur only in the latter section

| participant identification                          |   ID number |   20.23_33.49 |   9.1_20.22 |   20.23_33.49 |
|-----------------------------------------------------|-------------|---------------|-------------|---------------|
| Balaam (son of Beor)                                |       14022 |          0.06 |           0 |           300 |
| gathering (of sons of Israel) (2nd Israel)          |          72 |          0.04 |           0 |           193 |
| Balak (son of Zippor)                               |       14021 |          0.03 |           0 |           152 |
| combination of the Reubenites and the Gadites       |       12771 |          0.01 |           0 |            78 |
| woman (makes a vow to YHWH)                         |         685 |          0.01 |           0 |            44 |
| Moab (rams of)                                      |        7595 |          0.01 |           0 |            38 |
| donkey (of Balaam)                                  |       11928 |          0.01 |           0 |            38 |
| husband (of normal wife, house of)                  |        8420 |          0.01 |           0 |            28 |
| Phinehas (son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, the priest) |       14954 |          0.00 |           0 |            26 |
| Sihon (the king of Amorite)                         |        5126 |          0.00 |           0 |            25 |

The unique participants in the latter section include Balaam, Balak, Moab, Sihon, Og, Midian, the leaders of Moab, the Midian women, and Heshbon, which are the enemies of Israel. The unique participants further include the second generation of Israel, 12,000 soldiers, the Reubenites, the Gadites, Phinehas, the daughters of Zelophehad, and the tribes of Gilead, who are faithful to YHWH and acquire the land of Canaan. The fathers of the Reubenites and the Gadites are an alert to the second generation of Israel. Other unique participants, the husband of a woman and the father of a woman, are an authority in a house, which is the minimum unit of the army of Israel. The laws in Num 30 recall the laws of a wife and a husband in Num 5. The former reiterates the same theme as the latter, specifies the relationship between a woman and a man in a house, clarifies the hierarchical relationship in various cases in a house, and prevents monotonous reiteration of the latter.

In terms of theme, the unique participants in the latter section clarify who are the enemies whom Israel must fight against, and that YHWH is the extremely trustworthy and reliable King of Israel who blesses them and overcomes the pagan king and pagan prophet. The first generation of Israel collapsed because they reckoned their Lord YHWH as an enemy, and the worthless Baal as their lord. The unique participants in the latter section modify their misconception, emphasize who are the enemies to fight against, who is the Lord whom they must trust, worship, and be loyal to, as well as the importance to respect the hierarchical system that YHWH has set up.

4.3.2. Num 20:23-33:49 relative to Num 33:50-34:29

Figure 11. The shared participants and unique participants in both sections

| who.type      | 20.23_33.49   | 33.50_34.29   | 20.23_33.49   | 33.50_34.29   |
|---------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
| shared        | 47            | 47            | 0.02          | 0.27          |
| unique        | 2064          | 124           | 0.98          | 0.73          |
| total         | 2111          | 171           |               |               |
| who.frequency | 20.23_33.49   | 33.50_34.29   | 20.23_33.49   | 33.50_34.29   |
| shared        | 1268          | 186           | 0.24          | 0.49          |
| unique        | 4097          | 197           | 0.76          | 0.51          |
| total         | 5365          | 383           |               |               |

As can be seen in the upper level of the table above, the preceding section and the following section show weak connectivity and strong separability in terms of the relative frequency of the types of participants. The two sections of the lower level in the table also show strong separability and weak connectivity in terms of the relative frequency of all participants. Therefore, the upper and lower levels of the table support the validity of the demarcation. On the other hand, I will observe whether the percentage change of the relative frequency of all the shared participants from the preceding section to the following section also indicates separability.

## 4.3.2.1. Num 20:23-33:49 relative to Num 33:50-34:29-shared participants

In terms of the relative frequency of all participants, Num 20:23-33:49 and 33:50-34:29 show strong separability. On the other hand, there are shared participants whose percentage in each section increases from the preceding section to the following section. The rhetorical interpretation of the change in the percentage indicates separability between the two sections.

Figure 12. The shared participants whose percentage increases in the latter section

| participant identification              |   20.23_33.49 |   33.50_34.29 |   20.23_33.49 | 33.50_34.29   |   ID number |      |
|-----------------------------------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|-------------|------|
| sons of Reuben                          |          0.00 |          0.01 |            10 |               |           4 |   32 |
| Gad tribe                               |          0.00 |          0.01 |             2 |               |           4 |   48 |
| sons of Israel (2nd Israel)             |          0.04 |          0.15 |           193 |               |          59 |   72 |
| the earth (flowing with milk and honey) |          0.00 |          0.07 |            19 |               |          26 | 3746 |
| mountain Horeb                          |          0.00 |          0.02 |            15 |               |           6 | 7472 |

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is bigger than that in the preceding section. The shared participants, whose percentage in the preceding section increases in the following section, are the sons of Israel (the second generation), and the land of Canaan.

## 4.3.2.1.1. Sons of Israel (the second generation)

The sons of Israel (the second generation) in the former section prove their faith and obedience before YHWH. On the other hand, in the latter section, the second generation of Israel gets an inheritance of the land of Canaan.

## 4.3.2.1.2. The land of Canaan

The land of Canaan in the former section is the goal that the second generation of Israel is to achieve. On the other hand, in the latter section, each portion of the land of Canaan is assigned to each tribe.

Figure 13. The shared participants whose percentage decreases in the latter section

| participant identification   |   20.23_33.49 |   33.50_34.29 |   20.23_33.49 |   33.50_34.29 |   ID number |
|------------------------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|-------------|
| YHWH                         |          0.06 |          0.05 |           300 |            19 |           1 |
| Moses                        |          0.03 |          0.03 |           170 |            10 |           2 |
| sons (of Israel)             |          0.06 |          0.00 |           329 |             1 |           3 |
| Eleazar (son of Aaron)       |          0.01 |          0.01 |            58 |             2 |        4677 |
| Moab (rams of)               |          0.01 |          0.00 |            38 |             1 |        7595 |

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is smaller than that in the preceding section. The shared participants, whose percentage in the preceding section decreases in the following section, are YHWH, Moses, and the sons of Israel.

## 4.3.2.1.3. YHWH

YHWH in the former section occurs frequently. He punishes disobeyers, instructs the rest of Israel, and persuades the second generation of Israel to participate in the war to conquer the land of Canaan. On the other hand, in the latter section, YHWH prohibits idolatry, commands to destroy the altar of idolatry, and distributes each portion of the land of Canaan. The high relative frequency of YHWH in the former section indicates the struggle between YHWH and the participants. On the other hand, in the latter section, the low relative frequency of YHWH indicates a harmonious relationship between YHWH and the other participants. Simply YHWH assigns an inheritance to each obedient tribe of Israel.

## 4.3.2.1.4. Moses

Moses in the former section occurs frequently. He takes over the role of Aaron to Eleazar, makes a bronze snake for punished Israel, executes the punishment to disobeyers at Shittim, does the second census, delivers the request of the daughters of Zelophehad to YHWH, persuades the Reubenites and the Gadites, and records the travelogue of Israel. On the other hand, in the latter section, Moses prohibits idolatry in Israel, commands destroying the altar of idolatry, and assigns each inheritance of the land of Canaan to each tribe of Israel. After Joshua succeeds in the role of Moses, the relative frequency of Moses in the latter section decreases more.

## 4.3.2.1.5. Sons of Israel (the first generation)

The sons of Israel of the first generation in the former section watch the death of Aaron, grumble at Meribah, get attacked by snakes, commit idolatry and adultery, collapse, occur as bad history in the second census, and occur in the travelogue in Num 33. On the other hand, in the latter section, the sons of Israel of the first generation do not occur, except in a narrator's call to the tribes of Israel in Num 34:18. Their extremely low frequency in the latter section indicates their total collapse.

In terms of theme, the shared participants in the former section struggle, disharmonize, and some of them collapse. On the other hand, in the latter section, they get each an inheritance assigned.

<!-- formula-not-decoded -->

The table below indicates a few unique participants in the former section relative to the latter section.

| participant identification                          |   ID number |   20.23_33.49 |   20.23_33.49 |   33.50_34.29 |
|-----------------------------------------------------|-------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
| Balaam (son of Beor)                                |       14022 |          0.06 |           300 |             0 |
| Balak (son of Zippor)                               |       14021 |          0.03 |           152 |             0 |
| The Reubenites and the Gadites                      |       12771 |          0.01 |            78 |             0 |
| woman (makes a vow to YHWH)                         |         685 |          0.01 |            44 |             0 |
| donkey (of Balaam)                                  |       11928 |          0.01 |            38 |             0 |
| Aaron                                               |           4 |          0.01 |            37 |             0 |
| messenger (of YHWH)                                 |        7696 |          0.01 |            35 |             0 |
| husband (of normal wife, house of)                  |        8420 |          0.01 |            28 |             0 |
| Phinehas (son of Eleazar, son of Aaron, the priest) |       14954 |          0.00 |            26 |             0 |
| Sihon (the king of Amorite)                         |        5126 |          0.00 |            25 |             0 |

## Figure 14. The unique participants who occur only in the preceding section

Some of the unique participants, Balaam, Balak, Sihon, Og, Midian, the elders of Moab, the Midian women, and Heshbon, are the enemies of Israel. Other unique participants, the Reubenites, and the Gadites, Phinehas, the daughters of Zelophehad, and the tribes of Gilead, are the participants of the faithful second generation of Israel. Some other unique participants, a woman's husband, and a woman's father, are the authority in the house. In terms of theme, the unique participants in the former section clarify the enemies of Israel, describe how obedient participants passed faith tests, and are to get an inheritance in the land of Canaan.

<!-- formula-not-decoded -->

The table below shows the unique participants who occur frequently among all the unique participants in the following section relative to the preceding section.

Figure 15. The unique participants who occur only in the latter section

| participant identification                                    |   ID number |   33.50_34.29 |   20.23_33.49 |   33.50_34.29 |
|---------------------------------------------------------------|-------------|---------------|---------------|---------------|
| boundary (eastern)                                            |       13370 |          0.02 |             0 |             9 |
| boundary (south)                                              |       13355 |          0.02 |             0 |             8 |
| the Canaanite (place of)                                      |         859 |          0.02 |             0 |             7 |
| boundary (Northern)                                           |       13369 |          0.02 |             0 |             7 |
| boundary (Western)                                            |       13354 |          0.01 |             0 |             5 |
| men (of people of Israel) (2nd generation)                    |        7728 |          0.01 |             0 |             4 |
| direnctions (of boundary of south)                            |       11990 |          0.01 |             0 |             4 |
| son (of Ammihud, Elishama) (head of tribe of Ephraim)         |        4710 |          0.01 |             0 |             3 |
| The Reubenites, the Gadites and half of the tribe of Manasseh |       12765 |          0.01 |             0 |             3 |
| border (south of)                                             |       13381 |          0.01 |             0 |             3 |

The unique participants in the latter section describe the borders of the land of Canaan, the portions of each tribe, and the directions of each inheritance of a tribe. In terms of theme, they describe the rewards that the faithful second generation of Israel is to receive.

4.3.3. Num 33:50-34:29 relative to Num 35:1-36:13

Figure 16. The shared participants and unique participants in both sections

| who.type      | 33.50_34.29   | 35.1_36.13   | 33.50_34.29   | 35.1_36.13   |
|---------------|---------------|--------------|---------------|--------------|
| shared        | 19            | 19           | 0.11          | 0.08         |
| unique        | 152           | 214          | 0.89          | 0.92         |
| total         | 171           | 233          |               |              |
| who.frequency | 33.50_34.29   | 35.1_36.13   | 33.50_34.29   | 35.1_36.13   |
| shared        | 140           | 161          | 0.37          | 0.26         |
| unique        | 243           | 469          | 0.63          | 0.74         |
| total         | 383           | 630          |               |              |

As can be seen in the upper level of the table above, the preceding section and the following section show weak connectivity and strong separability in terms of the relative frequency of the types of participants. The two sections of the lower level in the table also show strong separability and weak connectivity in terms of the relative frequency of all participants. Therefore, the upper and lower levels of the table support the validity of the demarcation. On the other hand, I will observe whether the percentage change of all the shared participants from the preceding section to the following section also indicates separability.

Figure 17. The shared participants whose percentage increases in the latter section

| participant identification                          |   33.50_34.29 |      |   35.1_36.13 33.50_34.29 |   35.1_36.13 |   ID number |
|-----------------------------------------------------|---------------|------|--------------------------|--------------|-------------|
| sons (of Israel)                                    |          0.00 | 0.01 |                        1 |            5 |           3 |
| sons (of Joseph, Ephraim)                           |          0.00 | 0.01 |                        1 |            4 |          60 |
| Joseph                                              |          0.00 | 0.00 |                        1 |            3 |          62 |
| Moab (rams of)                                      |          0.00 | 0.00 |                        1 |            2 |        7595 |
| inheritance (of sons of Israel, the 2nd generation) |          0.00 | 0.00 |                        1 |            3 |        8293 |

4.3.3.1. Num 33:50-34:29 relative to Num 35:1-36:13-shared participants

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is bigger than that in the preceding section. The shared participants, whose percentage increases in the following section, are the sons of Israel, the sons of Ephraim, and Joseph. Among the second generation of Israel, the elders of Gilead of the sons of Joseph request a rule to protect their tribal inheritance. The focus moves from the twelve tribes of Israel in the former section to one tribe among twelve tribes. The relative frequency of the participants above increases a bit. In terms of theme, the former section describes the distribution of inheritance to the twelve tribes. On the other hand, the latter section describes making a rule to protect an inheritance of a tribe in a marriage.

| participant identification                 |   33.50_34.29 |   35.1_36.13 |   33.50_34.29 |   35.1_36.13 |   ID number |
|--------------------------------------------|---------------|--------------|---------------|--------------|-------------|
| YHWH                                       |          0.05 |         0.04 |            19 |           23 |           1 |
| sons (of tribe of Manasseh, Joseph)        |          0.01 |         0.00 |             3 |            1 |          63 |
| gathering (of sons of Israel) (2nd Israel) |          0.15 |         0.12 |            59 |           74 |          72 |
| the earth (flowing with milk and honey)    |          0.07 |         0.02 |            26 |           12 |        3746 |
| Canaan (the earth)                         |          0.01 |         0.00 |             4 |            3 |       13279 |

Figure 18. The shared participants whose percentage decreases in the latter section

<!-- image -->

The table above shows a few shared participants in the two sections whose relative frequency in the following section is smaller than that in the preceding section. The shared participants, whose percentage in the preceding section decreases in the following section, are YHWH, the sons of Manasseh, the second generation of Israel, the earth of Canaan, and Canaan.

## 4.3.3.1.1. YHWH

YHWH in the former section distributes the land of Canaan to each of the twelve tribes of the second generation. On the other hand, in the latter section, YHWH accepts the request of the elders of Gilead to protect an inheritance of a tribe from a marriage of a woman of the tribe.

## 4.3.3.1.2. The second generation of Israel

The second generation of Israel in the former section gets the commandment of YHWH to prohibit idolatry, and to destroy the altar of idols, and each tribe of them gets each inheritance. By contrast, in the latter section, the second generation of Israel gets the commandment to give accommodation and pasture to the Levites, to put the cities of refugees, and to protect each inheritance.

The relative frequency of the shared participants decreases a bit in the latter section due to the fact that the latter section focuses on the request of one tribe in Israel.

In terms of theme, the former describes the distribution of the land of Canaan, the latter describes the protection of an inheritance of a tribe. It indicates separability between the two sections.

## 4.3.3.2. Num 33:50-34:29-unique participants relative to Num 35:1-36:13

The table below indicates a few unique participants in the former section relative to the latter section.

Figure 19. The unique participants who occur only in the preceding section

| participant identification                 |   ID number |   33.50_34.29 |   33.50_34.29 |   35.1_36.13 |
|--------------------------------------------|-------------|---------------|---------------|--------------|
| boundary (eastern)                         |       13370 |          0.02 |             9 |            0 |
| boundary (south)                           |       13355 |          0.02 |             8 |            0 |
| the Canaanite (place of)                   |         859 |          0.02 |             7 |            0 |
| boundary (Northern)                        |       13369 |          0.02 |             7 |            0 |
| mountain Horeb                             |        7472 |          0.02 |             6 |            0 |
| boundary (Western)                         |       13354 |          0.01 |             5 |            0 |
| sons (of Reuben)                           |          32 |          0.01 |             4 |            0 |
| Gad tribe                                  |          48 |          0.01 |             4 |            0 |
| larger group (in Israel)                   |        8275 |          0.01 |             4 |            0 |
| men (of people of Israel) (2nd generation) |        7728 |          0.01 |             4 |            0 |

The unique participants in the former section describe the borders of the land of Canaan, the inheritance of each tribe, and the directions of each inheritance.

<!-- formula-not-decoded -->

The table below shows the unique participants who occur frequently among all the unique participants in the following section relative to the preceding section.

Figure 20. The unique participants who occur only in the latter section

| participant identification                          |   ID number |   35.1_36.13 |   33.50_34.29 |   35.1_36.13 |
|-----------------------------------------------------|-------------|--------------|---------------|--------------|
| daughters (of Zelophehad)                           |       12308 |         0.03 |             0 |           22 |
| person (who throws whole stone large enough)        |        6323 |         0.03 |             0 |           22 |
| Levite (brother of Moses, Aaron)                    |          21 |         0.02 |             0 |           14 |
| towns (for refugee, 6)                              |        3517 |         0.02 |             0 |           14 |
| whoever (kills any person)                          |        1449 |         0.02 |             0 |           11 |
| person (who has strikes someone by wooden tool)     |        6333 |         0.02 |             0 |           10 |
| heads (of fathers of clans of sons of Gilead)       |        8762 |         0.02 |             0 |           10 |
| person (who strikes someone with his hand, he dies) |        6325 |         0.01 |             0 |            9 |
| person (who has killed someone, unintentionally)    |        6335 |         0.01 |             0 |            9 |
| inheritance (to daughters of Zelophehad)            |        8288 |         0.01 |             0 |            8 |

The unique participants in the latter section are weak and vulnerable participants in the society of Israel and their accommodations.

In terms of theme, the former section describes the distribution of the land of Canaan to each tribe. On the other hand, the latter section describes guaranteeing the accommodation for the weak and vulnerable, but obedient people, and the protection of an inheritance of a tribe. This indicates separability.

## 4.4. Conclusion

As has been seen so far, I compared four sections in terms of the change in the percentage of shared participants and I observed unique participants in two sections. Each section indicates weak connectivity and strong separability relative to its adjacent sections. Even the change of the percentage in shared participants from the preceding section to the following section indicates separability between the two sections. This validates the demarcations by the EDSF, and supports the demarcation of Num 9-36 as the second major division of the book of Numbers, as well as the demarcation of the four sections within Num 9-36.

## 5. Discussion on the demarcations by other scholars

There are scholars who argue Num 1:1-10:10 is the first major division of Numbers, and 10:1136:13 is the second major division of Numbers based on diachronic demarcation. On the other hand, I argue Num 1:1-8:26 is the first major division, 9:1-36:13 is the second major division, and 9:1 starts the second major division. 11

## 5.1. Num 9:1-20:22

In the next section, I will discuss why Num 9:1 is the new start by comparing the text after 9:1 and that after 10:11.

## 5.1.1. Num 10:11-12:16

Ashley defines Num 10:11-12:16 as "The Journey from Mt. Sinai to Kadesh-Barnea", which he splits into "Departure from Mt. Sinai" (10:11-36), "At Taberah" (11:1-3), "At Kibroth-hattaavah" (11:4-35), "At Hazeroth" (12:1-16). 12   In my perspective, the theme 'departure of the camp of Israel' began already in Num 9:1-23, not necessarily in 10:11. Num 9:1-23 strengthens the loyalty and obedience of the Israelites before YHWH and prepares them for marching. 13

11 I discussed about the start of the second major division of Numbers with  the opinions of scholars in the following article. See Jin, "Analysis of Participants in the First Major Division of Numbers," 45-48. Available from: doi:10.22782/eots.2022.22..001.

12 Ashley, The Book of Numbers (Grand Rapids: W. B. Eerdmans, 1995), 15-16.

13 Similarly, Rolf P. Knierim, Numbers (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 2005), 135. Knierim defines Num 10:1114:45 as "Event: failed campaign to enter the promised land," which he splits into "Programmatic departure" (10:11-36), "Distrust of Yahweh's ability to fulfill the promise" (11:1-14:45). Also, R. Dennis Cole, Numbers (Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2000), 361-378. Cole defines Num 10:11-25:18 as "The Rebellious Generation in the Wilderness," which he splits into "Rebellion Cycle A: From Sinai to Zin-Decline and Fall of the First Generation" (10:11-15:41), "Rebellion Cycle B: Korah and Company Challenge Moses" (16:119:22), "Rebellion Cycle C: From Zin to Moab: The Rebellion and Replacement of Moses" (20:1-25:19). I agree generally with his definitions on the sections. On the other hand, he used the criteria of place and theme at the same time to demarcate the sections. Therefore, his definitions in the sections are a little confusing. Also, Philip J. Budd, Numbers (Waco: Word, 1984), 109-111. Budd defines Num 10:11-28 as "The Beginning of the Journey." Also, Gray, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Numbers , (Edinburgh: T&T CLARK, 1903), 27-28. Gray defines Num 10:11-21:9 as "North of Sinai, West of the Arabah." Also, Gordon J. Wenham, Numbers: an introduction and commentary (Leicester: Inter-Varsity, 1981), 54. He defines Num 10:1112:16 as "From Sinai to Kadesh." Also, Mary Douglas, In the Wilderness: the doctrine of defilement in the Book of Numbers (Sheffield: JSOT Press, 1993), 118-121. She defines Num 10:11-14 as "Revolts," while she defines 9-9 as "offerings," 10:1-10 as "Holy Times." Also, Dennis T. Olson, The death of the old and the birth of the new: the framework of the book of Numbers and the Pentateuch (Chico, CA: Scholars Press, 1985), 119. He defines Num 9:1-14 as "The observance of the second Passover and a legal case involving one who is ritually unclean and the observance of Passover," 9:15-23 as "God's guidance of his people in the clause covering the tent of meeting and the people's obedient following of the cloud," 10:1-10 as "The blowing of the trumpet as a signal of the gathering and the departing of the holy camp of God's people," 10:11-36 as "The inauguration of the march." He includes Num 9:1-10:36 within the first major division. Also, Brevard S. Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture (London: SCM, 1979), 197. He defines Num 10:11-

## 5.1.2. Num 10:1-28

Levine defines Num 10:1-28 as "The Israelites on the March," 14 which is reasonable. However, I argue the theme of marching began from 9:1.

## 5.1.3. Num 9:15-10:36

Noth defines Num 9:15-10:36 as "The Departure from Sinai." 15 While I see 9:15-23 as the beginning of marching, he saw it as the departure of the camp of Israel.

## 5.2. Num 20:23-33:49

## 5.2.1. Num 20:1-22:1

Ashley enumerates the following three sections based on the change of places as "In and around Kadesh-Barnea"  (Num  13:1-19:22),  "The  Journey  from  Kadesh-Barnea  to  the  Plains  of  Moab" (20:1-22:1), and "On the Plains of Moab" (22:2-36:13). 16 It seems reasonable. On the other hand, I prefer to separate Num 20:22-33:49 from 9:1-20:22 based on the syntactic pattern [divine speech formula + double locative phrases] in 20:23.

## 5.2.2. Num 15:1-20:29

Knierim defines Num 15:1-20:29 as "Completion of Yahweh's punishment of all the Exodus generation: the death of the Exodus generation." 17

22:1 as the second major division. Also, Norman H. Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers (London: Nelson, 1967), 222-275. He defines Num 10:11-20:13 as "What Happened in the Wilderness." Also, Giuseppe Bernini, Il Libro dei Numeri (Torino: Marietti, 1972). He defines Num 10:11-25:18 as the second major division. Also, Thomas B. Dozeman, The New Interpreter's Bible: Numbers-Samuel (Nashville: Abingdon, 1998), 10. He defines Num 10:11-28 as "departure from Sinai."

14  Baruch Levine, Numbers 1-20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary (New York: Doubleday, 1993), 301-308. Also, Thomas W. Mann, The Book of the Torah: The Narrative Integrity of the Pentateuch (Atlanta: John Knox, 1988), 127. He defines Num 10-20 as "Mustering the Troops," 11:1-20:13 as " Mutiny and Doom."

15 Martin Noth, Numbers: A Commentary (Philadelphia: Westminster, 1968), 72-80.

16  Ashley, The Book of Numbers, 16-17. Also, Levine, Numbers 1-20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary ,  481. He defines Num 20 as "The End of the Wilderness Period-Miriam and Aaron Pass Away." Also, Gray, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Numbers , 28. He defines 20:1-13 as "Arrival at the wilderness of Sin," 20:14-21 as "Permission to pass through Edom sought and refused," 20:22-29 as "Death of Aaron at Mt. Hor." Also, Cole, Numbers, 361-362. Cole defines Num 20:1-29 as "From Kadesh of Zin to Mount Hor: The End of an Era," which he splits into "Miriam's Death" (20:1), "People murmur for water" (20:2-6), "leaders rebel vs. God" (20:9-11a), "God provides water" (20:11b), "Leaders punished" (20:12-29). He used the criteria of place and theme here at the same time again. Therefore, his definitions of the sections are confusing. His demarcations are generally reasonable. However, I prefer to demarcate 20:2329 from 9:1-20:22 based on the syntactic pattern in 20:23. The rebellion of Moses and Aaron in 20:9-11 composes inclusio with the provocative attitude of Moses in 10:31-36, and indicates thematically the closing of 9:1-20:22. On the other hand, 20:23-33:49 describes the collapse of the disobedient first generation and the rise of the obedient second generation. Also, Wenham, Numbers: an introduction and commentary , 54. He defines 20:1-22:1 as "From Kadesh to the Plains of Moab." Also, Douglas, In the Wilderness: the doctrine of defilement in the Book of Numbers , 148. She defines Num 20-27 as "Revolts." Also, Childs, Introduction to the Old Testament as Scripture , 199. He defines Num 22:2-36:13 as the third major division. Also, Dozeman, The New Interpreter's Bible: Numbers-Samuel , 11. He defines Num 20:22-29 as "death of Aaron."

17 Knierim, Numbers , 135.

In my perspective, the punishment of YHWH goes through in Num 25:1-18, not in 20:29, even Moses still survives until then, dies really in Deut 34:1-12. While Num 20:1-22 describes the death of Miriam, the refusal of the king of Edom for Israel to pass through his land, and the failure of disobeyers, 20:23-29 describes the death of Aaron, the role of the priest taken over to Eleazar, foreshadows the main theme, the transition from the first generation to the second generation of Israel, that will occur in 20:23-33:49.

## 5.2.3. Num 20:22-29

Budd defines Num 20:22-29 as "The Death of Aaron." 18   I agree with his description. On the other hand, I prefer to describe it as "The beginning of the transition from the first generation to the second generation."

## 5.2.4. Num 20:14-36:13

Noth defines 20:14-36:13 as "Preparation for and Beginning of the Conquest," 19 which does not fit the collapse of Israel (20:23-25:19), the law of vow (30), the war against Midian (31), the repentance of the sons of Manasseh, Gad, and Reuben (32), and the end of wandering (33:1-49).

## 5.2.5 Num 11:1-25:18

Olson defines Num 11:1-25:18 as "The Cycle of Rebellion, Death, and Deliverance of the Holy People of Israel with Elements of Hope but Ultimate Failure and Death." 20 He includes 11:1-25:18 within the first major division. His definition is reasonable, while I include the textual unit in the second major division.

## 5.3. Num 33:50-34:29

Note defines Num 33:50-34:29 as "Directions for the Future Allocation of Land West of the Jordan." 21 Interestingly, he demarcates the section exactly like me. However, his thematic definition does not fit alerting in Num 33:50-56, nor the distribution of inheritances to 12 tribes in 34:1-29.

## 5.3.1. Num 22:2-36:13

Ashely  splits  Num  22:2-36:13  into  "Story  of  Balaam"  (22:2-24:25),  "Incident  of  Baal-Peor" (25:1-18),  "Second  Census"  (25:19-26:65),  "Daughters  of  Zelophehad"  (27:1-11),  "Joshua Named as Moses' Successor" (27:12-23), "Further Legislation" (28:1-30:17), "War with Midian" (31:1-54),  "Transjordanian  Inheritance"  (32:1-42),  and  "Regulations  for  Living  in  Canaan" (33:50-36:13). 22 Likewise, he reckons 33:50-36:13 as one textual unit and as a part of 22:236:13.

18  Budd, Numbers, 226-228. Also, Gray, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Numbers , 28. He defines 20:22-29 as "Death of Aaron at Mt. Hor."

19  Martin Noth, Numbers: A Commentary, 148-152. Also, Mann, The Book of the Torah: The Narrative Integrity of the Pentateuch , 136-139. He defines Num 20:14-25:18 as "Blessing Turned to Curse." Also, Snaith, Leviticus and Numbers ,  276-347. He defines Num 20:14-36:13 as "What Happened from Kadesh to the Plains of Moab."

20 Olson, The death of the old and the birth of the new: the framework of the book of Numbers and the Pentateuch , 119.

21 Martin Noth, Numbers: A Commentary , 246-251. Also, Douglas, In the Wilderness: the doctrine of defilement in the Book of Numbers , 118. She defines Num 33:50-35:34 as "Keeping Faith."

22 Ashley, The Book of Numbers , 17. Also, Levine, Numbers 1-20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary , 522-580. He defines 33:50-56 as "A Polemical Admonition," 34:1-15 as "The Borders of Greater Canaan," 34:16-29 as "The Apportionment of Canaan and the Tribes of Israel." Also, Also, Gray, A

From my perspective, however, Num 33:50-36:13 is separate from 20:23-33:49 based on the syntactic pattern (20:23), as well as it is divided into 33:50-34:29 and 35:1-36:13 based on the syntactic pattern (33:50). Num 20:23-33:49 describes the transition from the collapse of the disobedient first generation of Israel to the obedient second generation of Israel, 33:50-34:29 describes the condition before distribution of the inheritances to twelve tribes and the execution of the distribution, and 35:1-36:13 describes the favor of YHWH to obedient participants. Specifically, YHWH protects the obedient Levites and priests, even unintentional murderers, and guarantees to assign inheritances to the obedient daughters of Zelophehad.

## 5.3.2. Num 26:1-36:13

Mann defines Num 26:1-36:13 as "The Inheritors of the Land." 23 His definition is generally reasonable. On the other hand, I argue for the demarcation between Num 33:50-34:29 and 35:1-36:13.

## 5.3.3. Num 32:1-33:56

Olson defines Num 32:1-33:56 as "The request by Reuben and Gad for the allotment of land in Transjordan: a potential crisis averted and a reminder of the past with words of warning and encouragement." 24 In my perspective, Num 33:50-56 is separate from 32:1-33:49.

## 5.4. Num 35:1-36:13

## 5.4.1. Num 33:50-36:13

Ashely splits  Num 33:50-36:13 into "Introduction: Canaanites Must Be Expelled" (33:50-56), "Borders of the Land" (34:1-15), "Leaders to Draw Israel's Borders" (34:16-29), "Cities of the Levites" (35:1-8), "Cities of Refuge" (35:9-34), "Additional Legislation for Daughters of Zelophehad" (36:1-13). 25   From my perspective, however, Num 35:1-36:13 is separate from 33:5034:29. I think dividing sections by the EDSF clarifies well the thematic relationships between the two sections.

Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Numbers , 28-29. He defines 33:50-36:13 as "Various laws relating to the conquest and settlement of Canaan." Also, Knierim, Numbers ,  136. Knierim defines 33:1-36:12 as "Instructions  concerning the  promised land." From my perspective, "Instructions concerning the promised land" (33:1-36:12) is too comprehensive to explain enough the function of 33:1-49, that of 33:50-34:29, and that of 35:1-36:13. Num 33:1-49 indicates the end of wandering of Israel in the desert, 33:50-34:29 describes the condition by which Israel is to get the inheritance in the promised and the execution of the distribution. Also, Budd, Numbers , 358-369. Budd defines Num 33:50-56 as "General Guidance about the Occupation," 34:1-29 as "The Boundaries of the Land." I agree with his description. Also, Cole, Numbers , 450451. Similarly, Cole defines 33:50-56 as "Instructions for the Conquest of the Land," 34:1-29 as "Preparation for Allocation of the Promised Land." Also, Wenham, Numbers: an introduction and commentary ,  54. He defines 33:50-36:13 as "Laws about land." Also, Dozeman, The New Interpreter's Bible: Numbers-Samuel , 11. He defines Num 33:1-56 as "summary of Israel's itinerary stops," 34:1-29 as "inheritance."

23  Mann, The Book of the Torah: The Narrative Integrity of the Pentateuch , 140-142. Also, Bernini , Il Libro dei Numeri , He defines Num 25:19-36:13 as the third major division.

24 Olson, The death of the old and the birth of the new: the framework of the book of Numbers and the Pentateuch , 120.

25 Ashley, The Book of Numbers , 17. Also, Knierim, Numbers, 136-137. Knierim reckons Num 33:50-36:12 as "Instructions proper." In my analysis, I argue to split 33:50-36:12 into 33:50-34:29 and 35:1-36:13. The latter section describes the obedient daughters of Zelophehad became the beneficiary to receive the inheritance, encourages readers to resemble them, not to be discouraged because of their social status.

## 5.4.2. Num 35:1-34

Bud defines Num 35:1-8 as "The Levitical Cities," 35:9-34 as "The Cities of Refuge," and 36:113 as "The Case of the Daughters of Zelophehad Resumed." 26 I agree with his description. On the other hand, I argue 35:1-36:13 as one textual unit in which YHWH protects obedient participants at all social levels and guarantees to give inheritance to them.

As discussed so far, while most scholars argue that Num 10:11 starts the second major division of Numbers, I argue that 9:1 indicates a new start. The definitions of the sections that scholars made do not cover enough of all the contents in a section. Rather, defining the divisions as 9:1-20:22, 20:2333:49, 33:50-34:29, and 35:1-36:13 in my view cover enough sufficiently all the contexts in each section that is demarcated by syntactic patterns and EDSFs.

## 6. Conclusion

Here I conclude the work in this paper and explain its intended contribution.

In 1 I introduced the syntactic pattern [divine speech formula + double locative phrases] by which I demarcated Num 9:1-36:13 into 9:1-20:22, 20:23-33:49, 33:50-34:29, and 35:1-36:13.

In 2 and  3, I explained why I  use analysis of participants, and how I do it.

In 4, I elaborated on the validity of the demarcations by analysis of participants and reached a conclusion. I compared two sections and extracted shared participants that occur commonly in both sections, and unique participants that occur only in one of the sections. A small number of shared participants indicates weak connectivity between them, while unique participants indicate strong separability of each section. The outcome supports the validity of the demarcations, and encourages keeping the research order from syntactic analysis to participants' analysis.

The analysis of participants helped also to explain the discourse function of each section, while the definitions of the sections that scholars made in my opinion do not fit enough all the contents in a section. This advantage of the analysis of participants corroborates the necessity of the methodology to analyze the Hebrew text.

While Num 1:1-8:26 provided the foundation on which participants in 9:1-36:13 will be judged, 9:136:13 describes disobedient participants at all social levels that rebel against their higher authority and collapse, and obedient participants that execute exactly what YHWH commanded and get assigned the inheritances in the promised land.

26  Budd, Numbers , 370-390. Also, Cole, Numbers, 461-475. Cole defines Num 35:1-34 as "Levitical Cities and the Cities of Refuge," 36:1-12 as "Inheritance Laws: Zelophehad Clarifications (Laws and Land)." Also, Levine, Numbers 1-20: A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary , 545-572. He defines Num 35:1-34 as "Law of Homicide and Asylum," 36:1-13 as "Tribal Endogamy and Land Tenure." Also, Gray, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on Numbers , 28-29. He defines 35:1-8 as "Levitical Cities," 35:934 as "Cities of refuge," 36:1-13 as "Marriage of heiresses (Selophehad's daughters." Also, Noth, Numbers: A Commentary ,  251-258. He defines Num 35:1-34 as "Leviticus Cities and Cities of Refuge," 36:1-13 as "Appendix on Daughters' Rights of Inheritance." Also, Douglas, In the Wilderness: the doctrine of defilement in the Book of Numbers, 118. She defines Num 33:50-35:34 as "Keeping Faith," 36:1-13 as "God's Order." Also, Olson, The death of the old and the birth of the new: the framework of the book of Numbers and the Pentateuch , 120. He defines Num 35:1-34 as "Establishment of Levitical cities and cities of refuge as instruments by which to maintain the land's holiness," 36:1-13 as "The daughters of Zelophehad revisited: the maintenance of tribal property in the same lineage group as one generation gives way to the next." He includes 35:1-34, 36:1-13 within 26:1-36:13. Also, Dozeman, The New Interpreter's Bible: Numbers-Samuel , 11. He defines Num 35:1-34 as "Levitical cities," 36:1-13 as "inheritance of the daughters of Zelophehad." From my perspective, I reckon 35:1-36:13 as one textual unit.

Num 9:1-20:22 describes participants' disobedience at all the hierarchical levels, 20:23-33:49 describes the collapse of the disobedient first generation and the rise of the obedient second generation, 33:50-34:29 describes alerting Israel to destroy idols in the land of Canaan, and the distribution of the inheritances to twelve tribes, and 35:1-36:13 describes that YHWH protects obedient participants and guarantees to assign inheritances to them.

In 5, I discussed my demarcations with the opinions of scholars and argued to execute research from syntactic analysis to participants' analysis of the Hebrew text.

Conclusively, I argue that the second major division starts at Num 9:1. The syntactic-hierarchical structure of Numbers shows reliable textual demarcations. The analysis of participants supports the validity of the demarcations, and elaborates well on the discourse function of each section, showing how it develops from a preceding section to its following section.

## References

- Allen, Ronald B. 2012. Numbers. Grand Rapids: Zondervan
- Canu Højgaard, Christian. 2021. 'Roles and Relations in Biblical Law: A Study of Participant Tracking, Semantic Roles, and Social Networks in Leviticus 17-26.' Ph.D. diss., Amsterdam: Vrije Universiteit
- Dozeman, Thomas B. 1998. The New Interpreter's Bible: Numbers-Samuel. Nashville: Abingdon
- Gesenius, Wilhelm. 1910 . Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar . Oxford: Clarendon
- Jin, Gyusang. 2021. 'Investigating the Text-hierarchical Structures and Composition of Numbers.' Ph.D. diss., Amsterdam: Vrije Universiteit
- Jin, Gyusang. 2022. "Analysis of Participants in the First Major Division of Numbers," Evangelical Old Testament Studies 22: 8-59. Available from: doi:10.22782/eots.2022.22..001
- Joosten, Jan. 2012. The Verbal System of Biblical Hebrew: A New Synthesis Elaborated on the Basis of Classical Prose. Jerusalem: Simor Publishing
- Joüon, Paul. 1991. A Grammar of Biblical Hebrew . Translated by T. Muraoka. Roma: Editrice Pontificio Istituto Biblio
- Knierim, Rolf P. 2005. Numbers. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.
- Knierim, Rolf P. 1985. 'The Composition of the Pentateuch.' Society of Biblical Literature Seminar Papers 24: 393-415
- Levine, Baruch. 1993. Numbers 1-20 : A New Translation with Introduction and Commentary .  New York: Doubleday
- Olson, Dennis T. 1985. The Death of the Old and the Birth of the New: The Framework of the Book of Numbers and the Pentateuch . Chico, CA: Scholars Press
- Olson, Dennis T. 1997. "Negotiating Boundaries." Interpretation 51.3: 229-240
- Noth, Martin. 1968. Numbers : A Commentary . Philadelphia: Westminster
- Peursen, W. T. van. 2019. "A Computational Approach to Syntactic Diversity in the Hebrew Bible." Journal of Biblical Text Research 44: 237-253
- Talstra, Eep. 1997. "A Hierarchy of Clauses in Biblical Hebrew Narrative." Pages 85-105 in Narrative Syntax and the Hebrew Bible: Papers of the Tilburg Conference 1996 .  Edited by Ellen van Wolde. Leiden: Brill
- Wenham, Gordon J. 1981 Numbers: An introduction and commentary . Leicester: Inter-Varsity