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NUMBERS 15

PARAGRAPH DIVISIONS OF MODERN TRANSLATIONS

READING CYCLE THREE (see "Bible Interpretation Seminar")

FOLLOWING THE ORIGINAL AUTHOR'S INTENT AT THE PARAGRAPH LEVEL

This is a study guide commentary, which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

Read the chapter in one sitting. Identify the subjects. Compare your subject divisions with the five translations above. Paragraphing is not inspired, but it is the key to following the original author's intent, which is the heart of interpretation. Every paragraph has one and only one subject.

1. First paragraph
2. Second paragraph
3. Etc.

WORD AND PHRASE STUDY

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:1-10
  ¹Now the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ²"Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When you enter the land where you are to live, which I am giving you, ³then make an offering by fire to the Lord, a burnt offering or a sacrifice to fulfill a special vow, or as a freewill offering or in your appointed times, to make a soothing aroma to the Lord. from the herd or from the flock. ⁴The one who presents his offering shall present to the Lord a grain offering of one-tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with one-fourth of a hin of oil, ⁵and you shall prepare wine for the drink offering, one-fourth of a hin, with the burnt offering or for the sacrifice, for each lamb. ⁶Or 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; ⁷and for the drink offering you shall offer one-third of a hin of wine as a soothing aroma to the Lord. ⁸When you prepare a bull as a burnt offering or a sacrifice, to fulfill a special vow, or for peace offerings to the Lord, ⁹then you shall offer with the bull a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with one-half a hin of oil; ¹⁰and you shall offer as the drink offering one-half a hin of wine as an offering by fire, as a soothing aroma to the Lord.'"

15:2 "Speak" This Piel IMPERATIVE is repeated in vv. 18 and 37. These laws were not from the mind of Moses but revelations from YHWH, the Holy One of Israel. If Israel is to be holy (Lev. 19:2; Matt. 5:38) they must obey His word (cf. Num. 15:40).

▣ "When you enter the land" This must have been very encouraging to the children of the generation that died in the wilderness (cf. Num. 15:18).

▣ "which I am giving you" This reflects the promises of Genesis 12; 15; 22. See SPECIAL TOPIC: COVENANT PROMISES TO THE PATRIARCHS.

15:3 There follows a series of initial and recurring sacrifices to mark the theological significance of Israel's entrance into Canaan.

▣ "burnt offering" See notes at Leviticus 1.

▣ "freewill offering" See notes at Leviticus 3.

▣ "a soothing aroma" See SPECIAL TOPIC: A SOOTHING AROMA.

15:4 "grain offering" See notes at Leviticus 2. These offerings were given in a set sequence.

▣ "ephah. . .hin" See SPECIAL TOPIC: ANE WEIGHTS AND VOLUMES.

15:5 "wine for the libation" This is also mentioned in v. 10. See SPECIAL TOPIC: WINE AND STRONG DRINK.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:11-13
  ¹¹"'Thus it shall be done for each ox, or for each ram, or for each of the male lambs, or of the goats. ¹²According to the number that you prepare, so you shall do for everyone according to their number. ¹³All who are native shall do these things in this manner, in presenting an offering by fire, as a soothing aroma to the Lord.'"

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:14-16
  ¹⁴If an alien sojourns with you, or one who may be among you throughout your generations, and he wishes to make an offering by fire, as a soothing aroma to the Lord, just as you do so he shall do. ¹⁵As for the assembly, there shall be one statute for you and for the alien who sojourns with you, a perpetual statute throughout your generations; as you are, so shall the alien be before the Lord. ¹⁶There is to be one law and one ordinance for you and for the alien who sojourns with you.'"

15:14-16 YHWH always welcomed aliens who lived with Israel to join in their worship. There was one law for them both (cf. Exod. 12:49; Lev. 24:22; Num. 15:15, 16, 29).

15:15-16 "statute. . .ordinance" See SPECIAL TOPIC: TERMS FOR GOD'S REVELATION.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:17-21
  ¹⁷Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, ¹⁸"Speak to the sons of Israel and say to them, 'When you enter the land where I bring you, ¹⁹then it shall be, that when you eat of the food of the land, you shall lift up an offering to the Lord. ²⁰Of the first of your dough you shall lift up a cake as an offering; as the offering of the threshing floor, so you shall lift it up. ²¹From the first of your dough you shall give to the Lord an offering throughout your generations.'"

15:17-21 These guidelines refer to initial offerings upon entering Canaan. They were meant to symbolize YHWH's ownership of the land and its bounty.

This same symbolism is true for

1. the Sabbath ‒ see SPECIAL TOPIC: THE SABBATH
2. the tithe ‒ see SPECIAL TOPIC: TITHING IN THE MOSAIC LEGISLATION
3. the firstborn ‒ see SPECIAL TOPIC: FIRSTBORN

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:22-26
  ²²"'But when you unwittingly fail and do not observe all these commandments, which the Lord has spoken to Moses, ²³even all that the Lord has commanded you through Moses, from the day when the Lord gave commandment and onward throughout your generations, ²⁴then it shall be, if it is done unintentionally, without the knowledge of the congregation, that all the congregation shall offer one bull for a burnt offering, as a soothing aroma to the Lord, with its grain offering and its drink offering, according to the ordinance, and one male goat for a sin offering. ²⁵Then the priest shall make atonement for all the congregation of the sons of Israel, and they will be forgiven; for it was an error, and they have brought their offering, an offering by fire to the Lord, and their sin offering before the Lord, for their error. ²⁶So all the congregation of the sons of Israel will be forgiven, with the alien who sojourns among them, for it happened to all the people through error.'"

15:22-31 These paragraphs deal with intentional (i.e., defiantly, v. 30) and unintentional disobedience. See SPECIAL TOPIC: UNINTENTIONAL SINS.

15:25 "make atonement" See SPECIAL TOPIC: ATONEMENT.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:27-31
  ²⁷"'Also if one person sins unintentionally, then he shall offer a one year old female goat for a sin offering. ²⁸The priest shall make atonement before the Lord for the person who goes astray when he sins unintentionally, making atonement for him that he may be forgiven. ²⁹You shall have one law for him who does anything unintentionally, for him who is native among the sons of Israel and for the alien who sojourns among them. ³⁰But the person who does anything defiantly, whether he is native or an alien, that one is blaspheming the Lord; and that person shall be cut off from among his people. ³¹Because he has despised the word of the Lord and has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his guilt will be on him.'"

The phrase is literally "with a high hand" (BDB 926), which could denote

1. defiance, presumption
2. boldness (cf. Exod. 14:8; Num. 33:3)
3. clear-eyed rebellion against YHWH's law (note v. 31; 2 Sam. 12:9; 2 Chr. 36:16)

This is exactly the opposite mentality of "unintentional" (BDB 993).

This VERB (BDB 154, KB 180, always in Piel stem) means to impugn one's character by acting in certain ways (cf. 2 Kgs. 19:22; Isa. 37:23; Ezek. 10:27, NIDOTTE, vol, 1, pp. 828-830). YHWH is blasphemed when His people act in knowingly rebellious ways. It is not just their words but their acts that reveal their hearts (Num. 15:31)!

In the NT "YHWH" comes before the VERB for emphasis. The consequences for speaking against YHWH are spelled out in Lev. 24:15-16.

▣ "cut off" See notes at Lev. 17:10 and Num. 9:13; 20:3.

In the next verse this VERB (BDB 503, KB 500, Niphal IMPERFECT) is matched with the INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE of the same root, for emphasis (NASB, "shall be completely cut off").

This would refer to their parents.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:32-36
  ³²Now while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the sabbath day. ³³Those who found him gathering wood brought him to Moses and Aaron and to all the congregation; ³⁴and they put him in custody because it had not been declared what should be done to him. ³⁵Then the Lord said to Moses, "The man shall surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp." ³⁶So all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him to death with stones, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.

15:32-36 Like Num. 9:1-8, something happened that was not specifically dealt with in YHWH's revelation, so Moses had to consult Him to ascertain His will in the matter.

Until YHWH revealed His will, the accused was held in confinement (cf. Lev. 24:12).

15:35 "shall surely be put to death" This is an emphatic construction (i.e., an INFINITIVE ABSOLUTE and an IMPERFECT VERB of the same root, BDB 559, KB 562). See SPECIAL TOPIC: DEATH PENALTY IN ISRAEL.

▣ "all the congregation shall stone him with stones" This was a way for corporate Israel to remove sin from their midst. See SPECIAL TOPIC: STONE TO DEATH.

Even though the VERB and NOUN are from different roots (cf. 15:36), they have the same meaning and are emphatic, like Num. 14:10.

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: 15:37-41
  ³⁷The Lord also spoke to Moses, saying, ³⁸"Speak to the sons of Israel, and tell them that they shall make for themselves tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and that they shall put on the tassel of each corner a cord of blue. ³⁹It shall be a tassel for you to look at and remember all the commandments of the Lord, so as to do them and not follow after your own heart and your own eyes, after which you played the harlot, ⁴⁰so that you may remember to do all My commandments and be holy to your God. ⁴¹I am the Lord your God who brought you out from the land of Egypt to be your God; I am the Lord your God."

15:37-41 This paragraph is about "tassels" (BDB 851; NIDOTTE, vol.1, pp. 827-828). In Deut. 22:12 another word is used, "twisted threads" (BDB 152). They refer to the same thing.

1. here, they were attached to their clothing to remind the Israelites to keep the Law
2. in Deut. 22:12, they were to help separate the Israelis from the Canaanites (see note there online)
3. by Jesus' day the rabbis quoted these verses in connection to the head covering during worship (tallith, prayer shawl, cf. Matt. 23:5), which later became the yarmulke, worn daily

15:39b This phrase shows YHWH's understanding of the fallen nature of human beings after Genesis 3 (see SPECIAL TOPIC: THE FALL [Genesis 3 in the NT]).

▣ "played the harlot" This is a Semitic idiom referring to

1. Israel's worshiping the fertility gods of the ANE (cf. Exod. 34:14,15,16; Lev. 17:7; 20:5,6; Deut. 31:16)
2. YHWH as Israel's true husband (i.e., Jer. 31:32; Hosea 1-3)

15:41 This is covenant language (cf. Exod. 20:2) reminding Israel of YHWH's promises to Abraham, Gen. 15:12-22. YHWH, and only YHWH, was Israel's Deity. See SPECIAL TOPIC: MONOTHEISM.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought-provoking, not definitive.

1. Why do these laws about sacrifice break into the narrative at this point?
2. Define "unintentional sin."
3. What was the purpose of tassels?
4. How does Num. 15:40 relate to Lev. 11:44; 19:2?

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