Numbers 28

Then the LORD spoke to Moses. He said:

1And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

2"Give this command to the people of Israel. Tell them: Be careful to bring me my offering, the food for my offerings burned by fire, which makes a smell that pleases me. Bring each one at its set time.

2Command the children of Israel, and say unto them, My offering, and my bread for my sacrifices made by fire, for a sweet savour unto me, shall ye observe to offer unto me in their due season.

NoteThe offerings are called God's "bread" or food, and the smoke a "pleasing aroma", the ordinary language of sacrifice across the ancient Near East, used here as set phrases for what is placed on the altar and burned. The KJV's "sweet savour" means a soothing or pleasing smell, not a sweet taste.

3Tell them: This is the offering burned by fire that you are to bring to the LORD. Every day bring two male lambs a year old, with nothing wrong with them, as a regular burnt offering.

3And thou shalt say unto them, This is the offering made by fire which ye shall offer unto the LORD; two lambs of the first year without spot day by day, for a continual burnt offering.

NoteA burnt offering was burned whole on the altar; unlike other sacrifices, no part of it was eaten by the priests or the worshiper. "Continual" in the KJV means regular and unbroken: this pair of lambs was offered every single day, and everything else in the chapter is added on top of it.

4Offer one lamb in the morning and the other lamb at twilight.

4The one lamb shalt thou offer in the morning, and the other lamb shalt thou offer at even;

NoteThe Hebrew says "between the two evenings," the stretch of late afternoon between the sun's decline and full dark. Its exact limits were debated even in ancient times.

5With them bring a tenth of an ephah of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with a quarter of a hin of oil from pressed olives.

5And a tenth part of an ephah of flour for a meat offering, mingled with the fourth part of an hin of beaten oil.

NoteAn ephah was a dry measure of roughly 22 liters (about half a bushel), so a tenth of an ephah is around 2 liters of flour (a few pounds. A hin was a liquid measure of about 3.5 liters (nearly a gallon); a quarter hin is roughly a liter. The KJV's "meat offering" means a grain offering: in 1611 "meat" meant food of any kind, not flesh. "Beaten oil" is olive oil from olives crushed by hand rather than pressed in bulk) the finest grade.

6This is the regular burnt offering that was set up at Mount Sinai. It makes a smell that pleases the LORD. It is an offering burned by fire to him.

6It is a continual burnt offering, which was ordained in mount Sinai for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.

NoteThe instructions given at Mount Sinai are those in Exodus 29, where this daily offering was first commanded.

7The drink offering that goes with each lamb is a quarter of a hin. Pour out this strong drink to the LORD in the holy place.

7And the drink offering thereof shall be the fourth part of an hin for the one lamb: in the holy place shalt thou cause the strong wine to be poured unto the LORD for a drink offering.

NoteA drink offering was wine poured out at the altar, not drunk. The KJV's "strong wine" translates a Hebrew word for fermented drink generally. "The holy place" here means the sanctuary precinct, the enclosed area around the tabernacle, rather than a room inside it.

8Offer the second lamb at twilight, with the same grain offering and drink offering as in the morning. It is an offering burned by fire, a smell that pleases the LORD.

8And the other lamb shalt thou offer at even: as the meat offering of the morning, and as the drink offering thereof, thou shalt offer it, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD.

9On the Sabbath day bring two male lambs a year old, with nothing wrong with them. With them bring two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, and the drink offering that goes with it.

9And on the sabbath day two lambs of the first year without spot, and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, and the drink offering thereof:

NoteThe Sabbath was the seventh day of the week, kept as a day of rest from work.

10This is the burnt offering for every Sabbath. It is in addition to the regular daily burnt offering and its drink offering.

10This is the burnt offering of every sabbath, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.

11At the start of each month bring a burnt offering to the LORD: two young bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old, all with nothing wrong with them.

11And in the beginnings of your months ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, seven lambs of the first year without spot;

NoteIsrael's months were lunar, each beginning with the new moon, so "the start of each month" was a fixed monthly festival marked by its own sacrifices.

12With each bull bring three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering. With the ram bring two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering.

12And three tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one bullock; and two tenth deals of flour for a meat offering, mingled with oil, for one ram;

13With each lamb bring its own tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering. This is a burnt offering that makes a pleasing smell, an offering burned by fire to the LORD.

13And a several tenth deal of flour mingled with oil for a meat offering unto one lamb; for a burnt offering of a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.

NoteThe KJV's "a several tenth deal" means a separate tenth-of-an-ephah measure, one for each animal, not one shared between them.

14The drink offerings that go with them are half a hin of wine with each bull, a third of a hin with the ram, and a quarter of a hin with each lamb. This is the burnt offering for every month, all through the year.

14And their drink offerings shall be half an hin of wine unto a bullock, and the third part of an hin unto a ram, and a fourth part of an hin unto a lamb: this is the burnt offering of every month throughout the months of the year.

15Also offer one young male goat to the LORD as a sin offering. This comes in addition to the regular daily burnt offering and its drink offering.

15And one kid of the goats for a sin offering unto the LORD shall be offered, beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.

NoteA sin offering (Hebrew *chattat*) was less a punishment than a cleansing: its blood was used to purify the sanctuary and its equipment from the defilement that the people's wrongdoing and impurity were thought to accumulate there.

16The fourteenth day of the first month is the LORD's Passover.

16And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD.

NoteThe first month, later called Nisan, fell in early spring (March–April). Passover recalled the night Israel left Egypt; its name comes from the account of the destroyer "passing over" Israelite houses. Since a day was reckoned from sunset, the fourteenth day's Passover meal ran into the evening that began the fifteenth.

17On the fifteenth day of this month there is a festival. For seven days you are to eat bread made without yeast.

17And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.

NoteBread made without yeast is flat and quick to bake; the seven-day Festival of Unleavened Bread ran directly on from Passover and recalled a departure from Egypt too hurried for dough to rise.

18On the first day hold a holy meeting. You must not do any of your ordinary work that day.

18In the first day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein:

NoteA "holy convocation" is a sacred assembly, the people summoned together. The KJV's "servile work" does not mean slave labor; it means ordinary occupational work, the labor by which people made their living. This is a lighter restriction than the total prohibition of work on the Sabbath and the Day of Atonement.

19Instead bring an offering burned by fire to the LORD as a burnt offering: two young bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old. They must have nothing wrong with them.

19But ye shall offer a sacrifice made by fire for a burnt offering unto the LORD; two young bullocks, and one ram, and seven lambs of the first year: they shall be unto you without blemish:

20Their grain offering is to be fine flour mixed with oil. Offer three-tenths of an ephah with each bull and two-tenths of an ephah with the ram.

20And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil: three tenth deals shall ye offer for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram;

21Offer a separate tenth of an ephah with each one of the seven lambs.

21A several tenth deal shalt thou offer for every lamb, throughout the seven lambs:

22Also offer one goat as a sin offering, to make things right between you and God.

22And one goat for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you.

NoteThe Hebrew verb behind "make an atonement" carries the sense of wiping clean or covering over, the ritual removal of defilement so that the relationship with God is unobstructed.

23Offer all of this in addition to the morning burnt offering, which is the regular daily burnt offering.

23Ye shall offer these beside the burnt offering in the morning, which is for a continual burnt offering.

24In this same way, offer the food of the offering burned by fire each day for the seven days. It makes a smell that pleases the LORD. Offer it in addition to the regular burnt offering and its drink offering.

24After this manner ye shall offer daily, throughout the seven days, the meat of the sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: it shall be offered beside the continual burnt offering, and his drink offering.

25On the seventh day hold a holy meeting. You must not do any of your ordinary work.

25And on the seventh day ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work.

26On the day of the firstfruits, when you bring the LORD an offering of new grain at the end of your seven weeks, hold a holy meeting. You must not do any of your ordinary work.

26Also in the day of the firstfruits, when ye bring a new meat offering unto the LORD, after your weeks be out, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work:

NoteThis is the Festival of Weeks, counted seven weeks (fifty days) from the start of the barley harvest and later known in Greek as Pentecost. "Firstfruits" here means the first grain of the new wheat harvest, brought before the rest of the crop was used.

27Instead bring a burnt offering that makes a smell pleasing to the LORD: two young bulls, one ram, and seven male lambs a year old.

27But ye shall offer the burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; two young bullocks, one ram, seven lambs of the first year;

28Bring their grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil: three-tenths of an ephah with each bull, two-tenths of an ephah with the ram,

28And their meat offering of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto one bullock, two tenth deals unto one ram,

29and a separate tenth of an ephah with each one of the seven lambs.

29A several tenth deal unto one lamb, throughout the seven lambs;

30Also offer one young male goat, to make things right between you and God.

30And one kid of the goats, to make an atonement for you.

31Offer all of these, along with their drink offerings, in addition to the regular burnt offering and its grain offering. The animals must have nothing wrong with them.

31Ye shall offer them beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, (they shall be unto you without blemish) and their drink offerings.