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Numbers 15

1 - The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
2 - "Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, 'When you have come into the land of your habitations, which I give to you,
3 - and will make an offering by fire to The LORD, a burnt offering, or a sacrifice, to accomplish a vow, or as a freewill offering, or in your set feasts, to make a pleasant aroma to The LORD, of the herd, or of the flock;
4 - then he who offers his offering shall offer to the LORD a meal offering of one tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with the fourth part of a hin of oil.
5 - You shall prepare wine for the drink offering, the fourth part of a hin, with the burnt offering, or for the sacrifice, for each lamb.
6 - "'Or for a ram, you shall prepare for a meal offering two tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with the third part of a hin of oil;
7 - and for the drink offering you shall offer the third part of a hin of wine, of a pleasant aroma to The LORD.
8 - When you prepare a bull for a burnt offering, or for a sacrifice, to accomplish a vow, or for peace offerings to The LORD;
9 - then shall he offer with the bull a meal offering of three tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with half a hin of oil:
10 - and you shall offer for the drink offering half a hin of wine, for an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to The LORD.
11 - Thus shall it be done for each bull, or for each ram, or for each of the male lambs, or of the young goats.
12 - According to the number that you shall prepare, so you shall do to everyone according to their number.
13 - "'All who are native-born shall do these things in this way, in offering an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to The LORD.
14 - If a stranger lives as a foreigner with you, or whoever may be among you throughout your generations, and will offer an offering made by fire, of a pleasant aroma to The LORD; as you do, so he shall do.
15 - For the assembly, there shall be one statute for you and for the stranger who lives as a foreigner, a statute forever throughout your generations. As you are, so shall the foreigner be before The LORD.
16 - One law and one ordinance shall be for you, and for the stranger who lives as a foreigner with you.'"
17 - The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
18 - "Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them, 'When you come into the land where I bring you,
19 - then it shall be that when you eat of the bread of the land, you shall offer up a wave offering to The LORD.
20 - Of the first of your dough you shall offer up a cake for a wave offering. As the wave offering of the threshing floor, so you shall heave it.
21 - Of the first of your dough, you shall give to the LORD a wave offering throughout your generations.
22 - "'When you err, and don't observe all these commandments, which the LORD has spoken to Moses,
23 - even all that the LORD has commanded you by Moses, from the day that the LORD gave commandment, and onward throughout your generations;
24 - then it shall be, if it was done unwittingly, without the knowledge of the congregation, that all the congregation shall offer one young bull for a burnt offering, for a pleasant aroma to The LORD, with its meal offering, and its drink offering, according to the ordinance, and one male goat for a sin offering.
25 - The priest shall make atonement for all the congregation of the children of Israel, and they shall be forgiven; for it was an error, and they have brought their offering, an offering made by fire to The LORD, and their sin offering before The LORD, for their error.
26 - All the congregation of the children of Israel shall be forgiven, as well as the stranger who lives as a foreigner among them; for with regard to all the people, it was done unwittingly.
27 - "'If one person sins unwittingly, then he shall offer a female goat a year old for a sin offering.
28 - The priest shall make atonement for the soul who errs, when he sins unwittingly before The LORD, to make atonement for him; and he shall be forgiven.
29 - You shall have one law for him who does anything unwittingly, for him who is native-born among the children of Israel, and for the stranger who lives as a foreigner among them.
30 - "'But the soul who does anything with a high hand, whether he is native-born or a foreigner, the same blasphemes The LORD. That soul shall be cut off from among his people.
31 - Because he has despised The LORD's word, and has broken his commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off. His iniquity shall be on 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 - The LORD said to Moses, "The man shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him with stones outside of the camp."
36 - All the congregation brought him outside of the camp, and stoned him to death with stones, as the LORD commanded Moses.
37 - The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
38 - "Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them that they should make themselves fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put on the fringe of each border a cord of blue:
39 - and it shall be to you for a fringe, that you may look on it, and remember all The LORD's commandments, and do them; and that you not follow after your own heart and your own eyes, after which you use to play the prostitute;
40 - that you may remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to 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."
Numbers Images and Notes

The Book of Numbers

Numbers 14:14 - And they will tell [it] to the inhabitants of this land: [for] they have heard that thou LORD [art] among this people, that thou LORD art seen face to face, and [that] thy cloud standeth over them, and [that] thou goest before them, by day time in a pillar of a cloud, and in a pillar of fire by night.

The Old Testament - A Brief Overview

Bible Survery - Numbers
Hebrew Name - Bemidhbar "in the wilderness"
Greek Name - Numbers "numberings"
Author - Moses
Date - From 1490-1451 BC Approximately
Theme - The Journey to the Promised Land
Types and Shadows - In Numbers Jesus is the Pillar of Cloud by Day and the Pillar of Fire by Night

Photo of the Sinai Wilderness
Photo of the Sinai Wilderness

Summary of The Book of Numbers

The book of Numbers takes its name from the account of the census that happened two times among the congregation of Israel in Numbers 1-4 and Numbers 26. The Greek title was used even though there is really no connection with the "numberings." The original Hebrew title which means "in the wilderness," is much more accurate, because the book of Numbers is it's really an accurate history of the events that happened during the period of wandering in the wilderness and not necessarily a book about statistics. The book of Numbers seems to follow naturally after the book of Leviticus in the order of the books of Moses in the Old Testament. After the children of Israel received the laws at Mount Sinai, they began the journey as described in the book of Exodus, and they were ready to march directly into the land of Canaan. The book of Numbers reveals how the children of Israel became prepared, and went to various trials, and how they were sinful in not trusting the Lord. Their sinful ways resulted in 37 years of wandering through the harsh wilderness. The book of Numbers concludes with the children of Israel once again at the edge of the land of Canaan, where they received instructions for the conquest of Canaan and the division of the land.

Quick Reference Map
Map of the Route of the Exodus
Map of the Possible Route of the Exodus (Click to Enlarge)

The principle divisions of the book are as follows:

Outline of the Book of Numbers

1) The preparation for the departure from Sinai (1:1-10:10). The events described here took place in nineteen days. In this time a census was taken of all men who were over twenty and who could serve in military efforts (1-4). The total obtained was 603,550 (1:46). This would indicate that the total population of the group was probably near three million. The census was followed by the cleansing and blessing of the congregation (5-6), the offering of gifts from the various tribes (7), the consecration of the Levites (8) and the observance of the Passover at Sinai (9:1-14).

2 ) The journey from Sinai to Kadesh-barnea (10:11-14:45). This section includes the account of the coming of the quail (11), the rebellion against Moses by Miriam and Aaron (12), and the fateful mission of the spies (13, 14).

3) The wanderings of the desert wilderness (15-19). As noted above, this covered a period of thirty-seven years, from the end of the second to the beginning of the fortieth year in the wilderness. Ch. 15 includes various laws and a record of capital punishment for Sabbath breaking. The rebellion of Korah (ch. 16) and the budding of Aaron's rod (ch. 17) are also mentioned here.

4 ) The history of the last year, from the second arrival of the Israelites at Kadesh till they reach "the plains of Moab by Jordan near Jericho" (20-36: 13). Notable sections of this are the story of Balaam (22:2-24:25), the zeal of Phinehas (ch. 25), the second census (26:1-51) , instructions for dividing the land (26:52-27: 11), the appointment of Joshua as Moses' successor (27: 12-23), various laws concerning offerings and vows ( 28-30 ), the war with Midian (ch. 31), the settlement of the tribes east of the Jordan (ch. 32), a review of the locations at which Israel had camped during their wanderings (33: 1-49), more instructions concerning the conquest and division of Canaan (33:50-34:29 ), the appointment of the cities of refuge (ch. 35) and instructions concerning the marriage of land-owning Israelite women (ch. 36).

ARCHAEOLOGY

Ancient Bronze Snake

Bronze Snake from Lachish

Bronze Snake from Lachish, Late Bronze Age

Quick Reference Maps - Numbers

The Exodus of the Hebrews

Mount Horeb

The Red Sea

Canaan Before Joshua

Kadesh barnea

Moab and Ammon

 

Numbers Resources

The Wilderness Wanderings

More About the Book of Numbers
Numbers in the Picture Study Bible
Timeline of the Ancient World
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