Numbers 18:10

Summary

The verse instructs that a specific offering must be eaten in the most sacred place, describes it as belonging to the highest category of holiness, and specifies that every male may eat it as something holy. The syntax moves from location and status of the food to who may consume it.

Key words

• Kodesh ("[the] holy thing of", H6944G) — construct singular; combined with the following plural noun it forms the superlative expression "holy of holies," marking the highest degree of sanctity for the item eaten.
• hakkodashim ("holy things", H6944G) — plural noun with definite article, the absolute form completing the construct chain begun by kodesh.
• tokhalennu ("you will eat it", H0398) — qal imperfect, 2nd person masculine singular, with a 3rd person masculine singular object suffix ("it"); the verb form is singular, addressing one individual.
• zakhar ("male", H2145) — masculine singular adjective functioning as a noun, restricting who is permitted to eat the portion described.
• yihyeh ("it will be", H1961) — qal imperfect 3rd masculine singular of the verb "to be," establishing the ongoing status ("will be") of the object as holy.

What the text says

The verse opens with a prepositional phrase, be-kodesh ha-kodashim ("in the holy of holies"), built from a construct noun (kodesh) followed by the same noun in its definite plural form (ha-kodashim). This construct-absolute pairing is a common Hebrew mechanism for expressing a superlative — literally "holiness of holinesses," conveying the highest degree of the quality named. This phrase functions adverbially, indicating where the eating (tokhalennu) takes place, not a location name but a qualitative descriptor of sanctity.

The verb tokhalennu is second-person masculine singular, addressing one individual directly, with the object suffix -nu ("it") attached, referring back to the offering. The sentence then shifts subject: kol-zakhar ("every male") becomes the new grammatical subject of yokhal ("he will eat"), a third-person singular verb, followed by the direct object marker 'oto ("it") with its own pronominal suffix. The final clause, kodesh yihyeh-lakh ("it will be holy for you"), returns to second-person singular address, using the preposition le- ("for/to") with a 2ms suffix, closing the verse with a declarative statement about the item's continuing sacred status.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders tokhalennu (singular "you will eat it") with the plural verb φάγεσθε ("you [pl.] will eat"), shifting the addressee from an individual to a group. The LXX also adds "σὺ καὶ οἱ υἱοί σου" ("you and your sons"), phrasing not present in the Hebrew text of this verse. The Vulgate's comedes preserves the Hebrew's singular address, matching the grammatical number of tokhalennu.