Numbers 15
International Standard Version
Offerings by the Israelis
15 Later, the Lord instructed[a] Moses, 2 “Tell the Israelis that 3 when you enter the land where you’ll be living that I’m about to give you, you are to make an offering by fire to the Lord, either a burnt offering, a sacrificial offering to fulfill a vow, or a voluntary offering at the appointed time, to make a pleasing aroma to the Lord either from your cattle or from your flocks. 4 The offeror is to bring the oblation to the Lord, containing one tenth of an ephah[b] of fine flour as a grain offering, mixed with one fourth of a hin[c] of olive oil. 5 Also prepare one fourth of a hin[d] of wine for a drink offering or for the sacrifice of each lamb.
6 “For a ram, prepare a grain offering consisting of two tenths of an ephah[e] of fine flour mixed with one third of a hin[f] of olive oil. 7 Now as for your drink offering, offer one third of a hin[g] of wine as a pleasing aroma to the Lord.
8 “When you prepare a bull as a burnt offering, or as a sacrifice to fulfill a vow, or for peace offerings to the Lord, 9 then the bullock is to be presented accompanied by a meal offering of three tenths of an ephah[h] of fine flour mixed with half a hin[i] of oil.
10 “As for drink offerings, offer half a hin[j] of wine, for an offering made by fire is a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 11 Do this for each bullock, ram, male lamb, or goat. 12 Depending on the number of offerings[k] that you prepare, do for each one according to their number. 13 Every native born person is to do these things, bringing an offering made by fire as a pleasing aroma to the Lord.”
Offerings by Resident Aliens
14 “Now, if a resident alien[l] lives[m] with you, or whoever else is with you throughout your generations, let him make an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the Lord. Just as you do, so is he to do. 15 There is to be a single standard for your community, one statute for you and the resident alien who lives with you, a long lasting statute throughout your generations. Just as you do, so is the resident alien to do in the presence of the Lord. 16 There is to be one law and one ordinance for you and for the resident alien who lives with you.”
Offerings on Entering the Land
17 Then the Lord instructed Moses: 18 “Tell the Israelis that when they enter the land that I’m about to bring you to, 19 when you have eaten some of the bread that the land produces, you are to offer a raised offering to the Lord. 20 You are to offer a cake made from the first of your bread dough as a raised offering to the Lord. Offer it as a raised offering right off your threshing floor. 21 From then on, throughout your generations give the first of your bread dough to the Lord.”
Offerings for Inadvertent National Sin
22 “Here’s what you are to do[n] when you all[o] go astray and fail to observe all these commands that the Lord had spoken to Moses, 23 including anything that the Lord commanded you by the authority[p] of Moses, starting from the day the Lord commanded Moses and continuing through your generations. 24 When anything is done without the knowledge[q] of the congregation, the entire community is to offer one young bull for a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma to the Lord, along with its meal and drink offerings offered according to procedure, and one male goat for a sin offering. 25 Then the priest is to make atonement for the entire community of the Israelis, and they will be forgiven[r] for inadvertent sins. They are to bring their offering, an offering made by fire to the Lord, as well as their sin offering, into the Lord’s presence on account of their error. 26 Then the entire community of Israel will be forgiven, along with the resident alien who lives among them, since all the people will have sinned inadvertently.”
Offerings for Inadvertent Personal Sin
27 “Now when one person[s] sins inadvertently, then he is to bring a one year old female goat for a sin offering. 28 Then, in the Lord’s presence, the priest is to make atonement for the person who sinned inadvertently, that is, to make atonement on his behalf so he may be forgiven. 29 You are to have a single law for the one who does things inadvertently, whether for the native-born Israeli or for the resident alien who lives among you.”
On Willful Sin
30 “But if some person acts with a high hand, whether a native-born or a resident alien, he blasphemes God, and that person is to be eliminated from among his people. 31 Because he has despised the law of the Lord and has broken his commands, that person is certainly to be eliminated. His iniquity will remain on him.”
32 As it was when the Israelis were in the wilderness, they found a man who was gathering wood on the Sabbath day. 33 The ones who found him gathering wood brought him to Moses, Aaron, and all the people. 34 Then they confined him until it could be declared what should be done to him. 35 Then the Lord told Moses, “The man is certainly to die. The entire community is to stone him to death outside the camp.” 36 So the whole community brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones so that he died, just as the Lord had commanded Moses.
On Garments and Reminders
37 Later, the Lord instructed Moses, 38 “Tell the Israelis that they are to make tassels at the edges of their garments throughout their generations and that they are to put a violet cord on the tassels at the edges of their garments. 39 That way, when you see the tassel, you’ll remember all the commands of the Lord and you’ll observe them. Then you won’t seek your own interests and desires[t] that lead you to be unfaithful. 40 Therefore, remember to observe all my commands and to be holy in the presence of your God. 41 I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord your God.”
Footnotes
- Numbers 15:1 Or spoke
- Numbers 15:4 The Heb. lacks the unit of measurement
- Numbers 15:4 I.e. about one quart; the hin was equivalent to about one gallon
- Numbers 15:5 I.e. about one quart; the hin was equivalent to about one gallon
- Numbers 15:6 The Heb. lacks the unit of measurement
- Numbers 15:6 I.e. about one third of a gallon; the hin was equivalent to about one gallon
- Numbers 15:7 I.e. about one third of a gallon; the hin was equivalent to about one gallon
- Numbers 15:9 The Heb. lacks the unit of measurement
- Numbers 15:9 I.e. about two quarts; the hin was equivalent to about one gallon
- Numbers 15:10 I.e. about two quarts; the hin was equivalent to about one gallon
- Numbers 15:12 The Heb. lacks of offerings
- Numbers 15:14 Or foreigner
- Numbers 15:14 Lit. sojourn
- Numbers 15:22 The Heb. lacks Here’s what you are to do
- Numbers 15:22 Lit. you (pl.)
- Numbers 15:23 Lit. by the hand
- Numbers 15:24 Lit. is hidden from the eyes
- Numbers 15:25 Or it are to be forgiven them
- Numbers 15:27 Lit. soul
- Numbers 15:39 Lit. heart and your own eyes
Numbers 15
EasyEnglish Bible
Rules about sacrifices
15 The Lord said to Moses, 2 ‘Say to the Israelites, “You will go into the land that I am giving to you. 3 When you are living there, you can sacrifice bulls, male sheep or goats to the Lord. You will burn them on the altar as a burnt offering. You may offer special sacrifices to the Lord when you have promised to do it. Or you may offer sacrifices because you choose to do it. Also, you will give sacrifices during your regular festivals. The smell of these sacrifices as they burn will please the Lord. 4 The person who gives the gift to the Lord must also give a gift of flour. He must mix the flour with oil. It should be 1 kilogram of your best flour. Mix this flour with 1 litre of olive oil. 5 You must also give 1 litre of wine for each lamb. You must give that as a drink offering with each burnt offering or sacrifice.
6 If the animal is a male sheep, you must also offer 2 kilograms of flour. Mix this flour with 1.5 litres of olive oil. 7 Also, you must pour 1.5 litres of wine on the altar as a drink offering. The smell of the smoke from this sacrifice will please the Lord.
8 A person can give a young bull as a burnt offering. This may be a special sacrifice that he has promised to give to God. Or it may be a friendship offering to the Lord. 9 Also, you must offer 3 kilograms of flour. Mix this flour with 2 litres of olive oil. Do that if the bull is a burnt offering, or a friendship offering. Do the same if you offer this sacrifice because of a promise. 10 Also, you must pour 2 litres of wine on the altar as a drink offering. The smell of this smoke will please the Lord.
11 You must do the same thing for each bull or for each male sheep. And you must do the same thing for each male lamb or for each young goat. 12 You must do that for every animal that you offer as a gift to God. 13 All the Israelites must do that when they burn sacrifices. The smell of them as they burn will please the Lord. 14 A stranger who is living in your land may want to give a gift by fire to the Lord. He must do the same as you do now, and for all future time. 15 These rules will be the same for the Israelites and for all foreign people who live with them. These rules are for now and for all future time. Both you and the foreign person must obey the Lord's rules. 16 There is the same law for you and for the foreign person who is living among you. There is only one set of rules.” ’
17 The Lord said to Moses, 18 ‘Tell the Israelites this. I am bringing them into the land of Canaan. After they have gone into it, they must obey my rules. 19 When they first eat the food from that land, they must give a special offering to the Lord. 20 You must give a cake as a special offering from the first of your flour. You must do it as you give your special gift from your threshing floor. 21 From the first of your flour, you must give to the Lord a special offering. And your descendants must continue to do that.
22 The people might not obey a rule that the Lord told Moses about. But they might not know that they are not obeying a rule. 23 It might be any rule that the Lord gave to you by Moses. 24 Perhaps somebody does not know that they are not obeying one of my rules. When that happens, they must sacrifice a young bull as a burnt offering. The smell of the smoke from this sacrifice will please the Lord. Also, they must give a grain offering, a drink offering and a male goat as a sin offering. 25 Then the priest will make things right with God for all the Israelites. The Lord will forgive them. That is because their sin was a mistake. They have brought their offering, an offering by fire to the Lord. And they have brought their sin offering to the Lord, for their mistake. 26 God will forgive all the Israelites and the foreign people who live among you. That is because your sin was a mistake. And also you offered the proper sacrifices to me.
27 Also, a person may not know that something is a sin. If he does that thing, he must sacrifice a female goat. The goat must be one year old. It will be a sin offering. 28 The priest will bring the gift to the Lord. That is to make things right. Then the Lord will forgive that person who did the sin. The person did not know that he had done a wrong thing. 29 The same rule is for the Israelites and for all the foreign people who live among them. That is when it was a mistake. 30 But a person might do something that he knows to be wrong. He does it because he wants to do it. That person is as bad as someone who insults the Lord. It does not matter whether he is an Israelite or a foreign person. You must make that person separate from all the people. 31 That person thought that the Lord's command was not important. He has not obeyed God's rules. So you must make that person completely separate from the people. He is a guilty person.’
A man does not obey the rules for the day of rest
32 When the Israelites were in the desert, a man was picking up sticks on the day of rest. 33 Some people found him while he was picking up the sticks. They took him to Moses and Aaron and to all the people. 34 They were not sure what to do with the man. So they put him by himself in a tent. Men stood at the door of the tent so that he could not leave it. 35 The Lord said to Moses, ‘This man must die. All the people must take him outside the camp. They must throw stones at him to kill him.’ 36 So the people took the man outside the camp. They threw stones at him until he died. That was what the Lord had told Moses to do.
Tassels
37 The Lord said to Moses, 38 ‘Tell the Israelites that they must put tassels on the corners of their clothes. They must fix the tassels on blue strings. They must do this now and for all future time. 39 You will be able to look at the tassels. They will help you to remember all the Lord's rules. Then you can obey them. Then you will not only do what you yourself want to do. You will not turn away from me. 40 When you see the tassels, you will remember to obey all my rules. You will be holy for your God. 41 I am the Lord your God. I brought you out from Egypt to be your God. I am the Lord your God.’
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