OET interlinear NUM 3:47

uW Translation Notes:

Note 1 topic: translate-bmoney

חֲמֵ֛שֶׁת שְׁקָלִ֖ים & בְּ⁠שֶׁ֤קֶל & הַ⁠שָּֽׁקֶל

five_of shekels & by,the_shekel_of & the,shekel

In ancient times, a shekel was a measure of weight for silver that equaled about 11 grams. You could try to express this in terms of modern money values, but if you did, that could cause your Bible translation to become outdated and inaccurate, since those values can change over time. Instead, you might say something general like “pieces of silver,” or use the biblical term in the text and explain the value in a note.

Note 2 topic: figures-of-speech / reduplication

חֲמֵ֧שֶׁת חֲמֵ֛שֶׁת

five_of five_of

Yahweh repeats the same word five in order to intensify his expression of the idea that it conveys. If your language can repeat words for intensification, it would be appropriate to do that here in your translation. If not, your language may have another way of expressing the intensification. Alternate translation: [precisely five]

Note 3 topic: figures-of-speech / synecdoche

לַ⁠גֻּלְגֹּ֑לֶת

for,head

Yahweh is using skull to represent a whole person. If it would be helpful in your language, you could use an equivalent expression from your culture or state the meaning plainly. Alternate translation: [for each person]

Note 4 topic: figures-of-speech / possession

הַ⁠קֹּ֨דֶשׁ֙

of,the_holy_place

Yahweh is using the possessive form to describe a shekel that was used in the holy place. If a speaker of your language would not use the possessive form for this, you could express this idea in another way. Alternate translation: [that is used in the holy place]

Note 5 topic: translate-bweight

עֶשְׂרִ֥ים גֵּרָ֖ה

twenty gerahs

A gerah was a unit of weight equal to about 0.6 grams. Twenty gerahs equaled one shekel, or about 11 grams. In your translation, you could use the ancient measurement and spell the word “gerah” the way it sounds in your language. You could also use modern measurements, or you could use the ancient measurement and put a modern measurement in parentheses in the text or in a footnote.