NOTES for Num 7:1-89
To the modern reader, the twelvefold repetition of the list of offerings from Israel's twelve tribes for the dedication of the tabernacle seems excessive. We are hunters for information. The ancient Israelites treated the sacred text differently. These words were read aloud in a chant, drawing the reader and listeners into the solemnity of the moment—the people standing before their God. Every person knew that he belonged to one of the tribes and therefore felt the equality of all before God. Today, only the realization that we are not merely all equal before God, but that each of us is precious in God's eyes, can lead us to unity.