Calvin’s CommentariesNumbers 28

1. And the Lord spake unto Moses. Moses, being about to speak again of the “continual” sacrifice, premises in general that the people should diligently follow in their offerings whatever God has enjoined; for by the word “observe,” (custodiendi,) not only diligence, but obedience is also expressed. But, in order that they should more earnestly beware of every transgression, God calls either that which was wont daily to be placed on the table, or that which was annexed to the burnt-offerings, His bread, as if He ate of it after the manner of men. It is indeed a hard expression, but the rudeness of His ancient people obliged Him to speak thus grossly, that, on the one hand, they might learn this rite to be acceptable to God, just as food is acceptable to man; and, on the other, that they might study to offer their sacrifices more purely and chastely.

3. And thou shalt say unto them. He repeats what we have seen in Exodus, that they should kill two lambs daily, one in the morning, and the other in the evening; but he speaks more fully of the concomitants of flour and wine, and also refers to the antiquity of this kind of sacrifice as its recommendation, because it began to be offered to God on Mount Sinai, and was a “savor of rest.” (A.V., “a sweet savor.” Margin, “Heb., a savor of my rest.") The libation of wine, of which mention is made, was also in use among heathen nations; but, inasmuch as it was without the command and promise of God, it could not but be unmeaning (insipidum ) (Fr., “c’a este moins que ripopper, comme on dit;” Ripope, i.e.,bad wine.) And it is probable (as we have seen elsewhere) that many of the heathen rites descended from the ancient fathers but as a false and empty imitation; for when they had forgotten the reason of them, all they did could only be a mere theatrical pageantry. But we have said that thus men were reminded always to have God before their eyes in their daily food; and therefore in every way to accustom themselves to cultivate holiness.

9. And on the Sabbath-day. What was omitted in the former passage is here supplied, i.e., that on the Sabbath the continual sacrifice was to be doubled, and two lambs offered instead of one; for it was reasonable that, as the seventh day was peculiarly dedicated to God, it should be exalted above other days by some extraordinary and distinctive mark. He also commands greater sacrifices to be offered at the beginning of the month or new moon, viz., two bullocks and one ram, and a goat for a sin-offering; for we know that the first day of every month was consecrated to God, that the people might more frequently have the remembrance of their religious duties renewed; and the goat for an atonement for sin was added, in order that every month they should present themselves as guilty before God to deprecate His wrath. Numbers 28

Numbers 28:16-31

16. And in the fourteenth day of the first month is the passover of the LORD. 16. Mense autem primo decima quarta die mensis, Pesah est Jehovae.

17. And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten. 17. Et in decimo quinto die mensis hujus solennitas: septem diebus panis infermentatorum comedetur.

18. In the first day shall be an holy convocation; ye shall do no manner of servile work therein: 18. Die primo convocatio sancta erit: omne servile non facietis.

19. But 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: 19. Offeretis autem oblationem ignitam, et holocaustum Jehovae juvencos fihos bovis duos, et arietem unum, et septem agnos anniculos: immaculati erunt vobis.

20. And 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; 20. Et minha eorum erit simila permixta oleo, tres decimae in singulos juvencos, et duas decimas in singulos arietes facietis.

21. A several tenth deal shalt thou offer for every lamb, throughout the seven lambs: 21. Singulas decimas facies in agnos singulos in septem agnis.

22. And one goat for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you. 22. Et hircum in sacrificium pro peccato unum, ad expiandum vos.

23. Ye shall offer these beside the burnt offering in the morning, which is for a continual burnt offering. 23. Praeter holocaustum matutinum: quod est holocaustum juge, facietis ista.

24. After 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. 24. Secundum haec facietis singulis diebus septem dierum, panem oblationis ignitae odoris quietis Jehovae: ultra holocaustum juge fiet, et libamen ejus.

25. And on the seventh day ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work. 25. Septimo autem die convocatio sancta erit vobis: omne opus servile non facietis.

26. Also 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: 26. Porro die primitiarum quando offeretis minham novato Jehovae in hebdomadibus vestris, convocatio sancta erit vobis: omne opus servile non facietis.

27. But ye shall offer the burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; two young bullocks, one ram, seven lambs of the first year; 27. Et offeretis holocaustum in odorem quietis Jehovah: juvencos filios bovis duos, arietem unum, et septem agnos anniculos.

28. And their meat offering of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto one bullock, two tenth deals unto one ram, 28. Et oblationem eorum similam permixtam oleo, tres decimas in singulos juvencos, duas decimas per arietes singulos.

29. A several tenth deal unto one lamb, throughout the seven lambs; 29. Singulas decimas per agnos singulos, septem agnis.

30. And one kid of the goats, to make an atonement for you. 30. Hircum caprarum unum ad expiandum vos.

31. Ye shall offer them beside the burnt offering, and his meat offering, (they shall be unto you without blemish) and their drink offerings. 31. Praeter holocaustum juge et minham ejus facietis: immaculati erunt vobis et libamina eorum.

16. And in the fourteenth day. It is true that the instruction here given has some connection with the feast of the passover, but since the sacrifices are avowedly treated of, and no mention is made of its other observances, except in this place, I have connected it with the continual sacrifice, as its concomitant or part. Moses cursorily refers, indeed, to what we have already seen, i.e., that the people should abstain from leaven for seven days, and eat unleavened bread; but he afterwards descends to the main point of which he here proposed to treat, viz., that the people should slay two bullocks as a burnt-offering, a ram, and seven lambs, together with a goat for a sin-offering; and that this sacrifice should be repeated through the whole week. In order, then, that the reverence paid to the passover should be increased, this extraordinary sacrifice was added to the continual one, partly that they might thus be more and more stimulated to devote themselves to God; partly that they might acknowledge how familiarly He had embraced them with His favor, inasmuch as He took these offerings from their flocks and herds, and required the sacred feast to be prepared for Him out of their cellars and granaries also; partly, too, that professing themselves to be worthy of eternal death, they should fly to Him to ask for pardon, and at the same time should understand that there was but one way of reconciliation, i.e., when God should be propitiated by sacrifice.

26. Also in the day of thefirst-fruits. Moses delivers the same commandment as to another festival, viz., that on which they offered their first-fruits. Then, also, he instructs them, the continual sacrifice was to be increased by the addition of two bullocks, one ram, seven lambs, a goat for a sin-offering, together with the minha and a libation, with the object, of which I have already spoken. A perplexing difficulty here arises, because in Leviticus 23, one bullock is mentioned instead of two, and, on the contrary, two rams instead of one. (“Josephus and Maimonides understand that they were distinct sacrifices. Aben-Ezra and others think that it was left to the priest which he would offer.” — Brightwell on the Pentateuch, in loco.) Some think that an option was left to the priests in this matter; but when I consider how precisely God’s commands were given in everything, I question whether such an alternative was left to their discretion. The notion that God had once been content with a single bullock, as some think, because they were not abundant in the desert, appears to me a subterfuge. I confess I do not know how to get out of this difficulty, unless perhaps we say, that inasmuch as sufficiently exact provision had been made, in all other particulars, that nothing should be done without reason, in this respect only they were reminded that God in Himself cares not for greater or less victims. Nor does any reverence prevent us from saying that, as it sometimes happens in minor matters, a wrong number may have crept in from the carelessness of scribes; (The conjecture of C. receives no support from the modern collections of various readings; for though the number two is wanting in one of Kennicott’s MSS., the word for bullocks is in the plural in that same MS.; and the two most ancient versions, viz., the LXX. and the Syriac agree with the received text both here and in Leviticus 23:8. — W.) and this is probably the most natural solution. The more correct reading, in my opinion, is, that they should offer two bullocks and one ram; but since it is elsewhere explained why God appointed this day, he only briefly recites here: “When they bring the fainha with the first-fruits." Numbers 29

Numbers 29:1-39

1. And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you. 1. Mense autem septimo, primo die ejusdem, convocatio sancta erit vobis: nullum opus servile facietis, dies clangoris erit vobis.

2. And ye shall offer a burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year without blemish: 2. Et faeietis holocaustum in odorem quietis Jehovae, juvencum filium bovis unum, arietem unum, agnos anniculos septem immaculatos:

3. And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram, 3. Et minham eorum ex simila permixta oleo, tres decimas per singulos juvencos, duas decimas per singulos arietes:

4. And one tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs: 4. Et decimam unam per singulos agnos, per septem agnos.

5. And one kid of the goats for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you: 5. Et hircum caprarum unum in sacrificium pro peccato, ad expiandum vos.

6. Beside the burnt offering of the month, and his meat offering, and the daily burnt offering, and his meat offering, and their drink offerings, according unto their manner, for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD. 6. Praeter holocaustum calendarum, et minham ejus, et holocaustum juge, minham que ejus, et libamina eorum, secundum titus sues, in odorem quietis, oblatio ignita Jehovae.

7. And ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein: 7. Decimo autem die mensis septimi hujus, convocatio sancta erit vobis, affligetisque animus vestras: nullum opus facietis.

8. But ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD for a sweet savour; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year; they shall be unto you without blemish: 8. Et offeritis holocaustum Jehovae in odorem quietis, juvencum filium bovis unum, arietem unum, agnos anniculos septem: immaculati erunt vobis.

9. And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals to a bullock, and two tenth deals to one ram, 9. Et minham eorum ex simila conspersa oleo, tres decimas in singulos juvencos, duas decimas in singulos arietes:

10. A several tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs: 10. Singulas decimas per agnos singulos, per septem agnos.

11. One kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the sin offering of atonement, and the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering of it, and their drink offerings. 11. Hircum caprarum unum in sacrificium pro peccato: praeter oblationem pro peccato expiationum: et holocaustum juge, et minham ejus, libaminaque eorum.

12. And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work, and ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: 12. Porre decimaquinta die mensis septimi, convocatio sancta erit vobis: nullum opus servile facietis, et celebrabitis solennitatem Jehovae septem diebus.

13. And ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD; thirteen young bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year; they shall be without blemish: 13. Et holocaustum, et oblationem ignitam in odorem quietis Jehovae, juvencos filios bovis tredecim, arietes duos, agnos anniculos quatuordecim: immaculati erunt.

14. And their meat-offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto every bullock of the thirteen bullocks, two tenth deals to each ram of the two rams, 14. Minham quoque eorum ex simila conspersa oleo, tres decimas in juvencos singulos tredecim juvencis: duas decimas in arietes singulos duobus arietibus.

15. And a several tenth deal to each lamb of the fourteen lambs: 15. Et singulas declinus per agnos singulos, quatuordecim agnos.

16. And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. 16. Et hircum caprarum unum in sacrificium pro peccato: prater holocaustum juge, minham ejus et libamen ejus.

17. And on the second day ye shall offer twelve young bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without spot: 17. Die autem secundo juvencos filios bovis duodecim, arietes duos, agnos anniculos quatuordecim immaculatos.

18. And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: 18. Et minham eorum, et libamina eorum in juvencos, in arietes, in agnos secundum numerum eorum, juxta morem.

19. And one kid of the goats for a sin offering, beside the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering thereof, and their drink offerings. 19. Et hircum caprarum unum in sacrificium pro peccato: praeter holocaustum juge, et minham ejus, et libamina eorum.

20. And on the third day eleven bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish; 20. Die vero tertio juveneos undecim, arietes duos, agnos anniculos quatuordecim immaculatos.

21. And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: 21. Et minham eorum, et libamina eorum in juvencos, in arietes, et in agnos, secundum numerum eorum, juxta morere.

22. And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering. 22. Et hircum in sacrificium pro petcato unum, praeter holocaustum juge, et minham ejus, et libamen ejus.

23. And on the fourth day ten bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish: 23. Die autem quarto juvencos decem, arietes duos, agnos anniculos quatuordecim immaculatos.

24. Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: 24. Minham eorum et libamina eorum in juvencos, in arietes, et in agnos, secundum numerum eorum, juxta morere.

25. And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. 25. Et hircum caprarum unum in sacrificium pro peccato, praeter holocaustum juge, minham ejus et libamen ejus.

26. And on the fifth day nine bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without spot: 26. Et die quinto juvencos novem, arietes duos, agnos annietrios quatuordecim immaculatos.

27. And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: 27. Et minham eorum, et libamina eorum, in juvencos, in arietes, et in agnos, secundum numerum eorum, juxta morere.

28. And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering. 28. Et hircum in sacrificium pro peccato unum, procter holocaustum juge, et minham ejus, et libamen ejus.

29. And on the sixth day eight bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish: 29. Die praterea sexto jurenons otto, arietes duos, agnos anniculos quatuordecim immaculatos.

30. And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: 30. Et minham eormn, et libamina eorum in juvencos, in arietes, et in agnos, secundum numerum eorum juxta morere.

31. And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. 31. Et hircum in sacrificium pro peccato unum: procter holocaustum juge, et minham ejus, et libamina ejus.

32. And on the seventh day seven bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish: 32. Et die septimo juvencos septem, arietes duos, agnos anniculos quatuordecim immaculatos.

33. And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: 33. Et minham eorum, et libamina eorum, in juvencos, in arietes, et in agnos, secundum numerum eorum juxta morere.

34. And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering. 34. Et hircum in sacrificium pro peccato unum, prfeter holocaustum juge, et minham ejus, et libamen ejus.

35. On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly: ye shall do no servile work therein: 35. Die octavo solennitas erit vobis: nullum opus servile facietis.

36. But ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: one bullock, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish: 36. Et offeretis holocaustum, et oblationem ignitam odoris quietis jehovae, juvencum unum, arietem unum, agnos anniculos septem immaculatos:

37. Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullock, for the ram, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner: 37. Et minham eorum, et libamina eorum, in juvencum, in arietem, et in agnos, secundum numerum eorum juxta morere.

38. And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering. 38. Et hircum in sacrificium pro peccato unum: procter holocaustum juge, et minham ejus, et libamen ejus.

39. These things ye shall do unto the LORD in your set feasts, beside your vows, and your freewill offerings, for your burnt offerings, and for your meat offerings, and for your drink offerings, and for your peace offerings. 39. Ista facietis Jehovae in solemnitatibus vestris: prater vota vestra, et spontanea vestra in holocaustis vestris, et minhis vestris, et libaminibus vestris, et sacrificiis prosperitatum.