Chapter Twenty-Eight

A repetition of the law concerning daily sacrifices. – The law concerning sabbath and new-moon sacrifices. – A repetition of the law concerning Passover and the feast of first fruits.

Numbers 28:1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: Numbers 28:2. Command the sons of Israel and say to them: My offering, my food for my sacrifices, a pleasing aroma to me, you shall be careful to offer to me at its appointed time. Numbers 28:3. And you shall say to them, This is the offering by fire that you shall offer to the Lord: two lambs a year old without blemish, day by day, as a regular burnt offering; Numbers 28:4. You shall offer one lamb in the morning, and the other lamb you shall offer in the evening; Numbers 28:5. also a tenth of an ephah of fine flour for a grain offering, mixed with a quarter of a hin of beaten oil; Numbers 28:6. it is a regular burnt offering, which was ordained at Mount Sinai for a pleasing aroma, an offering by fire to the Lord; Numbers 28:7. and its drink offering shall be a quarter of a hin for one lamb. In the holy place you shall pour out a drink offering of wine to the Lord. Numbers 28:8. The other lamb you shall offer in the evening. Like the grain offering of the morning and like its drink offering, you shall offer it as an offering by fire, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. Exod 29:38-42.

Numbers 28:9. And on the Sabbath day two lambs a year old without blemish, and two tenths of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with oil, and its drink offering: Numbers 28:10. this is the burnt offering of every Sabbath, besides the regular burnt offering and its drink offering. The double sabbath sacrifice was offered in addition to the ordinary daily offering.

Numbers 28:11. At the beginnings of your months you shall offer a burnt offering to the Lord: two bulls from the herd, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old without blemish, Numbers 28:12. also three tenths of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with oil, for each bull; and two tenths of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with oil, for the one ram; Numbers 28:13. and a tenth of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering mixed with oil for each lamb; this is a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma, an offering by fire to the Lord; Numbers 28:14. their drink offerings shall be half a hin of wine for a bull, a third of a hin for a ram, and a quarter of a hin for a lamb. This is the monthly burnt offering for every month throughout the year. It is on the sabbath and new-moon sacrifice that mention is made here for the first time.

Numbers 28:15. Besides the regular burnt offering, you shall offer to the Lord one male goat for a sin offering; The sin offering precedes the burnt offering. When all sacrifices were offered together, their order was as follows: first of all, 1) a purification offering (“for sin,” “for guilt” or “for transgression”) was offered. After purification by the blood of the mentioned offering, 2) the burnt offering was offered, as a clear expression of man’s readiness to offer himself as a sacrifice to God, to dedicate himself wholly to Him with all his purified thoughts and purified feelings. After the burnt offering, as a sign of reconciliation and fellowship with the Godhead, followed 3) the peace offering, accompanied by a joyful meal.

Numbers 28:26. And on the day of the first fruits, when you offer a new grain offering to the Lord at your Feast of Weeks, you shall have a holy convocation. You shall not do any ordinary work, Numbers 28:27. and offer a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma to the Lord: two bulls from the herd, one ram, and seven male lambs [a year old], Numbers 28:28. also their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil, three tenths of an ephah for each bull, two tenths for one ram, Numbers 28:29. and a tenth for each of the seven lambs; Numbers 28:30. also one male goat [as a sin offering] to make atonement for you; Numbers 28:31. besides the regular burnt offering and its grain offering, you shall offer them with their drink offerings. They shall be without blemish. The day of first fruits was also called the “feast of weeks” (Num 28:26; see Lev 23:14-21; Deut 16:9-12), that is, the feast after the completion of “seven weeks” from “the appearing of the sickle on the harvest.” As the first day after the completion of seven weeks, the feast received its last name – Pentecost (2 Macc 12:32; Tob 2:1; Acts 2:1; Acts 20:16; 1 Cor 16:8).