Numbers, Chapter 15

Numbers Chapter 15

Verses 1-41: Laws Concerning Offerings

1. The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
2. “Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: ‘When you come into the land you are to inhabit, which I am giving to you,
3. and you make an offering by fire to the LORD, a burnt offering or a sacrifice, to fulfill a vow or as a freewill offering or in your appointed feasts, to make a sweet aroma to the LORD, from the herd or the flock,
4. then he who presents his offering to the LORD shall bring a grain offering of one-tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of oil;
5. and one-fourth of a hin of wine for a drink offering you shall prepare with the burnt offering or the sacrifice, for each lamb.
6. ‘Or for a ram, you shall prepare as a grain offering two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with one-third of a hin of oil;
7. and for a drink offering you shall offer one-third of a hin of wine, as a sweet aroma to the LORD.
8. ‘And when you prepare a young bull as a burnt offering, or as a sacrifice to fulfill a vow, or as a peace offering to the LORD,
9. then shall be brought with the young bull a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with half a hin of oil;
10. and you shall bring as the drink offering half a hin of wine, as an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the LORD.
11. ‘Thus it shall be done for each young bull, for each ram, or for each lamb or young goat.
12. According to the number that you prepare, so shall you do with each one according to their number.
13. All who are native shall do these things in this manner, in presenting an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the LORD.
14. ‘And if a stranger dwells with you, or whoever is among you throughout your generations, and he wishes to make an offering made by fire, a sweet aroma to the LORD, as you do, so he shall do.
15. One ordinance shall be for you of the assembly and for the stranger who dwells with you, an ordinance forever throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the stranger be before the LORD.
16. One law and one custom shall be for you and for the stranger who dwells with you.’
17. The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
18. ‘Speak to the children of Israel, and say to them: When you come into the land to which I bring you,
19. then it will be, when you eat of the bread of the land, you shall offer up a heave offering to the LORD.
20. You shall offer up a cake of the first of your ground meal as a heave offering; as a heave offering of the threshing floor, so shall you offer it up.
21. Of the first of your ground meal you shall give to the LORD a heave offering throughout your generations.
22. ‘If you sin unintentionally, and do not observe all these commandments which the LORD has spoken to Moses—
23. all that the LORD has commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the day the LORD commanded and onward throughout your generations—
24. then it will be, if it is unintentionally committed, without the knowledge of the congregation, that the whole congregation shall offer one young bull as a burnt offering, as a sweet aroma to the LORD, with its grain offering and its drink offering, according to the ordinance, and one male goat as a sin offering.
25. So the priest shall make atonement for the whole congregation of the children of Israel, and it shall be forgiven them, for it was unintentional; they shall bring their offering, an offering made by fire to the LORD, and their sin offering before the LORD, for their unintentional sin.
26. It shall be forgiven the whole congregation of the children of Israel and the stranger who dwells among them, because all the people did it unintentionally.
27. ‘If one person sins unintentionally, then he shall bring a female goat in its first year as a sin offering.
28. So the priest shall make atonement for the person who sins unintentionally, when he sins unintentionally before the LORD, to make atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him.
29. You shall have one law for him who sins unintentionally, for him who is native among the children of Israel and for the stranger who dwells among them.
30. ‘But the person who does anything presumptuously, whether he is native or a stranger, that one brings reproach on the LORD, and he shall be cut off from among his people.
31. Because he has despised the word of the LORD, and has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his guilt shall be upon him.’
32. While the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day.
33. Those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation.
34. They put him in custody, because it had not been declared what should be done to him.
35. Then the LORD said to Moses, “The man must surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.”
36. So as the LORD commanded Moses, all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones, and he died.
37. The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
38. “Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners.
39. And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the LORD and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined,
40. and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for your God.
41. I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the LORD your God.”

Interpretation: This chapter elaborates on the offerings to be made by the Israelites in the Promised Land, emphasizing continuity and inclusivity in worship practices for both natives and foreigners. It also addresses unintentional and intentional sins, underscoring the importance of obedience to God’s commandments. The incident of the Sabbath breaker illustrates the severity of disregarding the Sabbath, while the commandment about tassels on garments serves as a tangible reminder to keep the commandments and maintain holiness before God.