Numbers 15:2-16

15:2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When you enter the land where you are to live,¹ which I am giving you,² 15:3 and you make an offering by fire to the Lord from the herd or from the flock (whether a burnt offering or a sacrifice for discharging a vow or as a freewill offering or in your solemn feasts) to create a pleasing aroma to the Lord, 15:4 then the one who presents his offering to the Lord must bring³ a grain offering of one-tenth of an ephah of finely ground flour mixed with one fourth of a hin of olive oil.⁴ 15:5 You must also prepare one-fourth of a hin of wine for a drink offering⁵ with the burnt offering or the sacrifice for each lamb.⁶ 15:6 Or for a ram, you must prepare as a grain offering two-tenths of an ephah of finely ground flour mixed with one-third of a hin of olive oil, 15:7 and for a drink offering you must offer one-third of a hin of wine as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 15:8 And when you prepare a young bull as a burnt offering or a sacrifice for discharging a vow or as a peace offering to the Lord, 15:9 then a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of finely ground flour mixed with half a hin of olive oil must be presented⁷ with the young bull, 15:10 and you must present as the drink offering half a hin of wine with the fire offering as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 15:11 This is what is to be done⁸ for each ox, or each ram, or each of the male lambs or the goats. 15:12 You must do so for each one according to the number that you prepare.

15:13 “‘Every native-born person must do these things in this way to present an offering made by fire as a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 15:14 If a resident foreigner is living⁹ with you – or whoever is among you¹⁰ in future generations¹¹ – and prepares an offering made by fire as a pleasing aroma to the Lord, he must do it the same way you are to do it.¹² 15:15 One statute must apply¹³ to you who belong to the congregation and to the resident foreigner who is living among you, as a permanent¹⁴ statute for your future generations. You and the resident foreigner will be alike¹⁵ before the Lord. 15:16 One law and one custom must apply to you and to the resident foreigner who lives alongside you.’”

¹tn Heb “the land of your habitations.”

²tn The Hebrew participle here has the futur instans use of the participle, expressing that something is going to take place. It is not imminent, but it is certain that God would give the land to Israel.

³tn The three words at the beginning of this verse are all etymologically related: “the one who offers his offering shall offer.”

⁴sn Obviously, as the wording of the text affirms, this kind of offering would be made after they were in the land and able to produce the grain and oil for the sacrifices. The instructions anticipated their ability to do this, and this would give hope to them. The amounts are difficult to determine, but it may be that they were to bring 4.5 liters of flour and 1.8 liters each of oil and wine.

⁵sn The drink-offering was an ancient custom, mentioned in the Ugaritic tablets of Ras Shamra (14th century b.c.). The drink offering was poured out at the base of the altar (see Sir 50:15 and Josephus, Ant. 3.9.4 [3.234]).

⁶tn Heb “for the one lamb,” but it clearly means “for each lamb.”

⁷tn The text changes from direct address here to the third person form of the verb. If the MT is correct, then to make a smooth translation it would need to be made a passive (in view of the fact that no subject is expressed).

⁸tn Heb “according to thus shall it be done.”

⁹tn The word גּוּר (gur) was traditionally translated “to sojourn,” i.e., to live temporarily in a land. Here the two words are from the root: “if a sojourner sojourns.”

¹⁰tn Heb “in your midst.”

¹¹tn The Hebrew text just has “to your generations,” but it means in the future.

¹²tn The imperfect tenses must reflect the responsibility to comply with the law, and so the classifications of instruction or obligation may be applied.

¹³tn The word “apply” is supplied in the translation.

¹⁴tn Or “a statute forever.”

¹⁵tn Heb “as you, as [so] the alien.”