Numbers 3:35

35 The chief of the M'rari clan was Tzuri'el the son of Avichayil. They were to camp next to the tabernacle, toward the north.

Numbers 3:35 Meaning and Commentary

Numbers 3:35

And the chief of the house of the father of the families of
Merari
I think it should rather be rendered, "and the chief of the house", that is, of the Merarites, "the father to the families of Merari"; the common father to them all, having the chief authority and power over them, and so in ( Numbers 3:24 Numbers 3:30 ) ;

[shall be] Zuriel the son of Abihail;
of whom we read nowhere else, nor is it certain of which family he was, whether of the Mahlites or Mushites:

[these] shall pitch on the side of the tabernacle northward;
to the left of it, between that and the camp of Dan.

Numbers 3:35 In-Context

33 M'rari fathered the clans of Machli and Mushi; these were the M'rari clans.

34 Of them, 6,200 males a month old and over were counted.

35 The chief of the M'rari clan was Tzuri'el the son of Avichayil. They were to camp next to the tabernacle, toward the north.

36 The M'rari clans were assigned responsibility for the frames of the tabernacle, along with its crossbars, posts, sockets and fittings, together with their maintenance;

37 also the posts of the surrounding courtyard, with their sockets, pegs and ropes.