New King James Version
Numbers 16:38
38The censers of these men who sinned against their own souls, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar. Because they presented them before the Lord, therefore they are holy; and they shall be a sign to the children of Israel.”
Numbers 16:38 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)The censers of these sinners against their own souls, let them make them broad plates for a covering of the altar: for they offered them before the Lord, therefore they are hallowed: and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel.
- New International Version (NIV)the censers of the men who sinned at the cost of their lives. Hammer the censers into sheets to overlay the altar, for they were presented before the Lord and have become holy. Let them be a sign to the Israelites.”
- English Standard Version (ESV)As for the censers of these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar, for they offered them before the Lord, and they became holy. Thus they shall be a sign to the people of Israel."
- New Living Translation (NLT)Take the incense burners of these men who have sinned at the cost of their lives, and hammer the metal into a thin sheet to overlay the altar. Since these burners were used in the Lord’s presence, they have become holy. Let them serve as a warning to the people of Israel.”
Context of Numbers 16:38
36Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: 37“Tell Eleazar, the son of Aaron the priest, to pick up the censers out of the blaze, for they are holy, and scatter the fire some distance away. The censers of these men who sinned against their own souls, let them be made into hammered plates as a covering for the altar. Because they presented them before the Lord, therefore they are holy; and they shall be a sign to the children of Israel.” 39So Eleazar the priest took the bronze censers, which those who were burned up had presented, and they were hammered out as a covering on the altar, 40to be a memorial to the children of Israel that no outsider, who is not a descendant of Aaron, should come near to offer incense before the Lord, that he might not become like Korah and his companions, just as the Lord had said to him through Moses.
Read all of Numbers 16Numbers 16:38 word by word
אֵ֡ת מַחְתּוֹת֩ הַֽחַטָּאִ֨ים הָאֵ֜לֶּה בְּנַפְשֹׁתָ֗ם וְעָשׂ֨וּ אֹתָ֜ם רִקֻּעֵ֤י פַחִים֙ צִפּ֣וּי לַמִּזְבֵּ֔חַ כִּֽי־הִקְרִיבֻ֥ם לִפְנֵֽי־יְהוָ֖ה וַיִּקְדָּ֑שׁוּ וְיִֽהְי֥וּ לְא֖וֹת לִבְנֵ֥י יִשְׂרָאֵֽל׃Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- The censersמַחְתָּהmachtâh · censerH4289
- of these sinnersחַטָּאchaţţâ' · sinnerH2400
- against their own soulsנֶ֫פֶשׁnephesh · soul: lifeH5315
- let them makeעָשָׂה‛âώâh · to makeH6213
- them broadרִקּוּעַriqqûa‛ · hammered outH7555
- platesפַּחpach · plateH6341
- a coveringצִפּוּיtsipûy · platingH6826
- of the altarמִזְבֵּחַmizbêach · altarH4196
- for they offeredקָרַבqârab · to present: bringH7126
- them beforeפָּנֶהpânîym · face: beforeH6440
- the Lordיְהֹוָהyehôvâh · LORDH3068
- therefore they are hallowedקָדַשׁqâdash · to consecrate: consecateH6942
- and they shall be a signאוֹת'ôth · sign: indicatorH226
- unto the childrenבֵּןbên · son: descendant/peopleH1121
- of Israelיִשְׂרָאֵלyiώrâ'êl · IsraelH3478
Cross-references for Numbers 16:38
- 1 Kings 2:23Then King Solomon swore by the Lord, saying, “May God do so to me, and more also, if Adonijah has not spoken this word against his own life!
- Proverbs 1:18But they lie in wait for their own blood, They lurk secretly for their own lives.
- Proverbs 8:36But he who sins against me wrongs his own soul; All those who hate me love death.”
- Proverbs 20:2The wrath of a king is like the roaring of a lion; Whoever provokes him to anger sins against his own life.
- Habakkuk 2:10You give shameful counsel to your house, Cutting off many peoples, And sin against your soul.
- Numbers 16:40to be a memorial to the children of Israel that no outsider, who is not a descendant of Aaron, should come near to offer incense before the Lord, that he might not become like Korah and his companions, just as the Lord had said to him through Moses.
- Numbers 17:10And the Lord said to Moses, “Bring Aaron’s rod back before the Testimony, to be kept as a sign against the rebels, that you may put their complaints away from Me, lest they die.”
- Numbers 26:10and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them up together with Korah when that company died, when the fire devoured two hundred and fifty men; and they became a sign.
- Ezekiel 14:8I will set My face against that man and make him a sign and a proverb, and I will cut him off from the midst of My people. Then you shall know that I am the Lord.
- 1 Corinthians 10:11Now all these things happened to them as examples, and they were written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the ages have come.
- 2 Peter 2:6and turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah into ashes, condemned them to destruction, making them an example to those who afterward would live ungodly;
Commentaries on Numbers 16:38
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 38These sinners against their own souls - That is, “against their own lives.” By their sin they had brought destruction upon themselves.Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 35-40Verses 35-40 A fire went out from the Lord, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense, while Aaron, who stood with them, was preserved alive. God is jealous of the honour of his own institutions, and will not have them invaded. The sacrifice of the wicked is an abomination to the Lord. The censers are devoted, and, as all devoted things, must be made serviceable to the glory of God. This covering of the altar would remind the…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 38-40Eleazar made a bronze sheet to cover the altar, replacing or adding to the earlier one (Exodus 38:2). Like the plain blue tassels in Numbers 15:37–41, it reminded the people of Israel to obey God.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 37-4037-40. Speak unto Eleazar--He was selected lest the high priest might contract defilement from going among the dead carcasses.Read the comment
Topics related to Numbers 16:38
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Numbers 16
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- Rashi on Tanakh
- Calvin’s Commentaries
- Keil & Delitzsch Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Original Douay–Rheims Annotations
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
New King James Version — © 1982 Thomas Nelson, Inc
Commentaries