Numbers Chapter 15 — Laws of Sacrifice and Remembrance

¹The 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,

³and will make an offering by fire to the LORD—a burnt offering, or a sacrifice, to accomplish a vow, or as a free will offering, or in your set feasts, to make a pleasant aroma to the LORD, of the herd, or of the flock—

⁴then he who offers his offering shall offer to the LORD a meal offering of one tenth of an ephah*1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel of fine flour mixed with one fourth of a hin†A hin is about 6.5 liters or 1.7 gallons. of oil.

⁵You shall prepare wine for the drink offering, one fourth of a hin, with the burnt offering or for the sacrifice, for each lamb.

⁶“ ‘For a ram, you shall prepare for a meal offering two tenths of an ephah‡1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel of fine flour mixed with the third part of a hin of oil;

⁷and for the drink offering you shall offer the third part of a hin of wine, of a pleasant aroma to the LORD.

⁸When you prepare a bull for a burnt offering or for a sacrifice, to accomplish a vow, or for peace offerings to the LORD,

⁹then he shall offer with the bull a meal offering of three tenths of an ephah§1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel of fine flour mixed with half a hin of oil;

¹⁰and 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.

¹¹Thus it shall be done for each bull, for each ram, for each of the male lambs, or of the young goats.

¹²According 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.

¹⁴If 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.

¹⁵For 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 the foreigner shall be before the LORD.

¹⁶One law and one ordinance shall be for you and for the stranger who lives as a foreigner with you.’ ”

¹⁷The 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,

¹⁹then it shall be that when you eat of the bread of the land, you shall offer up a wave offering to the LORD.

²⁰Of 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.

²¹Of 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—

²³even all that the LORD has commanded you by Moses, from the day that the LORD gave commandment and onward throughout your generations—

²⁴then 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.

²⁵The 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.

²⁶All 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 a person sins unwittingly, then he shall offer a female goat a year old for a sin offering.

²⁸The priest shall make atonement for the soul who errs when he sins unwittingly before the LORD. He shall make atonement for him; and he shall be forgiven.

²⁹You 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, blasphemes the LORD. That soul shall be cut off from among his people.

³¹Because he has despised the LORD’s word, and has broken his commandment, that soul shall be utterly cut off. His iniquity shall be on him.’ ”

³²While the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day.

³³Those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation.

³⁴They put him in custody, because it had not been declared what should be done to him.

³⁵The LORD said to Moses, “The man shall surely be put to death. All the congregation shall stone him with stones outside of the camp.”

³⁶All the congregation brought him outside of the camp, and stoned him to death with stones, as the LORD commanded Moses.

³⁷The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,

³⁸“Speak to the children of Israel, and tell them that they should make themselves fringes*or, tassels (Hebrew צִיצִ֛ת) on the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put on the fringe†or, tassel of each border a cord of blue.

³⁹It shall be to you for a fringe,‡or, tassel that you may see it, and remember all the LORD’s commandments, and do them; and that you don’t follow your own heart and your own eyes, after which you used to play the prostitute;

⁴⁰so that you may remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God.

⁴¹I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: I am the LORD your God.”