February 16

Numbers 15:1 — 16:50

15 And Jehovah spoke further to Moses, saying: 2 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, ‘When YOU eventually come into the land of YOUR dwelling places, which I am giving YOU, 3 and YOU must render up an offering made by fire to Jehovah, a burnt offering or a sacrifice to perform a special vow or voluntarily or during YOUR seasonal festivals, in order to make a restful odor to Jehovah, from the herd or from the flock; 4 the one presenting his offering must also present to Jehovah a grain offering of fine flour, a tenth of an ephah, moistened with a fourth of a hin of oil. 5 And you should render up wine as a drink offering, the fourth of a hin, together with the burnt offering or for the sacrifice of each male lamb. 6 Or for a ram you should render up a grain offering of two tenths of fine flour, moistened with a third of a hin of oil. 7 And you should present wine as a drink offering, a third of a hin, as a restful odor to Jehovah.

8 “‘But in case you should render up a male of the herd as a burnt offering or a sacrifice to perform a special vow or communion sacrifices to Jehovah, 9 one must also present together with the male of the herd a grain offering of three tenths of fine flour, moistened with half a hin of oil. 10 And you should present wine as a drink offering, half a hin, as an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to Jehovah. 11 This is the way it should be done for each bull or for each ram or for one head among the male lambs or among the goats. 12 Whatever may be the number that YOU may render up, that is the way YOU should do for each one according to the number of them. 13 Every native should render up these in this way in presenting an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to Jehovah.

14 “‘And in case there should be residing as an alien with YOU an alien resident or one who is in YOUR midst for generations of YOU, and he must render up an offering made by fire, of a restful odor to Jehovah, just as YOU should do, so he should do. 15 YOU who are of the congregation and the alien resident who is residing as an alien will have one statute. It will be a statute to time indefinite for YOUR generations. The alien resident should prove to be the same as YOU before Jehovah. 16 There should prove to be one law and one judicial decision for YOU and for the alien resident who is residing as an alien with YOU.’”

17 And Jehovah went on to speak to Moses, saying: 18 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them, ‘On YOUR coming into the land where I am bringing YOU, 19 it must also occur that when YOU eat any of the bread of the land, YOU should make a contribution to Jehovah. 20 YOU should make a contribution of the firstfruits of YOUR coarse meal as ring-shaped cakes. Like the contribution of a threshing floor is the way YOU should contribute it. 21 Some of the firstfruits of YOUR coarse meal YOU should give as a contribution to Jehovah throughout YOUR generations.

22 “‘Now in case YOU should make a mistake and not do all these commandments, which Jehovah has spoken to Moses, 23 all that Jehovah has commanded YOU by means of Moses from the day that Jehovah commanded and onward for YOUR generations, 24 it must then occur that if it has been done far from the eyes of the assembly by mistake, the whole assembly must then render up one young bull as a burnt offering for a restful odor to Jehovah, and its grain offering and its drink offering according to the regular procedure, and one kid of the goats as a sin offering. 25 And the priest must make atonement for the whole assembly of the sons of Israel, and it must be forgiven them; because it was a mistake, and they, for their part, brought as their offering an offering made by fire to Jehovah and their sin offering before Jehovah for their mistake. 26 And it must be forgiven the whole assembly of the sons of Israel and the alien resident who is residing as an alien in their midst, because it was by mistake on the part of all the people.

27 “‘And if any soul should sin by mistake, then he must present a female goat in its first year for a sin offering. 28 And the priest must make atonement for the soul who made a mistake by a sin unintentionally before Jehovah, so as to make atonement for it, and it must be forgiven him. 29 As to the native among the sons of Israel and the alien resident who is residing as an alien in their midst, there should prove to be one law for YOU as respects doing something unintentionally.

30 “‘But the soul that does something deliberately, whether he is a native or an alien resident, he speaking abusively of Jehovah, in that case that soul must be cut off from among his people. 31 Because it is Jehovah’s word that he has despised and his commandment that he has broken, that soul should be cut off without fail. His own error is upon him.’”

32 While the sons of Israel were continuing in the wilderness, they once found a man collecting pieces of wood on the sabbath day. 33 Then those who found him collecting pieces of wood brought him up to Moses and Aaron and the whole assembly. 34 So they committed him into custody, because it had not been distinctly stated what should be done to him.

35 In time Jehovah said to Moses: “Without fail the man should be put to death, the whole assembly pelting him with stones outside the camp.” 36 Accordingly the whole assembly brought him forth outside the camp and pelted him with stones so that he died, just as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

37 And Jehovah went on to say this to Moses: 38 “Speak to the sons of Israel, and you must say to them that they must make for themselves fringed edges upon the skirts of their garments throughout their generations, and they must put a blue string above the fringed edge of the skirt, 39 ‘And it must serve as a fringed edge for YOU, and YOU must see it and remember all the commandments of Jehovah and do them, and YOU must not go about following YOUR hearts and YOUR eyes, which YOU are following in immoral intercourse. 40 The purpose is that YOU may remember and may certainly do all my commandments and indeed prove to be holy to YOUR God. 41 I am Jehovah YOUR God, who have brought YOU out of the land of Egypt in order to prove myself YOUR God. I am Jehovah YOUR God.’”


16 And Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, proceeded to get up, together with Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, the sons of Reuben. 2 And they proceeded to rise up before Moses, they and two hundred and fifty men of the sons of Israel, chieftains of the assembly, summoned ones of the meeting, men of fame. 3 So they congregated themselves against Moses and Aaron and said to them: “That is enough of YOU, because the whole assembly are all of them holy and Jehovah is in their midst. Why, then, should YOU lift yourselves up above the congregation of Jehovah?”

4 When Moses got to hear it he at once fell upon his face. 5 Then he spoke to Korah and to his entire assembly, saying: “In the morning Jehovah will make known who belongs to him and who is holy and who must come near to him, and whoever he may choose will come near to him. 6 Do this: Take fire holders for yourselves, Korah and his entire assembly, 7 and put fire in them and place incense upon them before Jehovah tomorrow, and it must occur that the man whom Jehovah will choose, he is the holy one. That is enough of YOU, YOU sons of Levi!”

8 And Moses went on to say to Korah: “Listen, please, YOU sons of Levi. 9 Is it such a little thing for YOU men that the God of Israel has separated YOU men from the assembly of Israel to present YOU to himself to carry on the service of Jehovah’s tabernacle and to stand before the assembly to minister to them, 10 and that he should bring you and all your brothers the sons of Levi with you near? So must YOU men also try to secure the priesthood? 11 For that reason you and all your assembly who are gathering together are against Jehovah. As for Aaron, what is he that YOU men should murmur against him?”

12 Later Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, but they said: “We are not going to come up! 13 Is it so little a thing that you have brought us up out of a land flowing with milk and honey to put us to death in the wilderness, that you should also try to play the prince over us to the limit? 14 As it is, you have not brought us into any land flowing with milk and honey, that you may give us an inheritance of field and vineyard. Is it the eyes of those men that you want to bore out? We are not going to come up!”

15 At this Moses became very angry and said to Jehovah: “Do not turn to look at their grain offering. Not one male ass have I taken away from them, nor have I harmed one of them.”

16 Then Moses said to Korah: “You and all your assembly, be present before Jehovah, you and they and Aaron, tomorrow. 17 And take each one his fire holder, and YOU men must put incense upon them and present each one his fire holder before Jehovah, two hundred and fifty fire holders, and you and Aaron each his fire holder.” 18 So they took each one his fire holder and put fire upon them and placed incense upon them and stood at the entrance of the tent of meeting together with Moses and Aaron. 19 When Korah got all the assembly together against them at the entrance of the tent of meeting, then Jehovah’s glory appeared to all the assembly.

20 Jehovah now spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying: 21 “Separate yourselves from the midst of this assembly, that I may exterminate them in an instant.” 22 At this they fell upon their faces and said: “O God, the God of the spirits of every sort of flesh, will just one man sin and you become indignant against the entire assembly?”

23 In turn Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying: 24 “Speak to the assembly, saying, ‘Get away from around the tabernacles of Korah, Dathan and Abiram!’”

25 After that Moses got up and went to Dathan and Abiram, and the older men of Israel went with him. 26 Then he spoke to the assembly, saying: “Turn aside, please, from before the tents of these wicked men and do not touch anything that belongs to them, that YOU may not be swept away in all their sin.” 27 Immediately they got away from before the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan and Abiram, from every side, and Dathan and Abiram came out, taking their stand at the entrance of their tents, together with their wives, and their sons and their little ones.

28 Then Moses said: “By this YOU will know that Jehovah has sent me to do all these deeds, that it is not of my own heart: 29 If it is according to the death of all mankind that these people will die and with the punishment of all mankind that punishment will be brought upon them, then it is not Jehovah that has sent me. 30 But if it is something created that Jehovah will create, and the ground has to open its mouth and swallow up them and everything that belongs to them and they have to go down alive into Sheol, YOU will then know for certain that these men have treated Jehovah disrespectfully.”

31 And it came about that as soon as he had finished speaking all these words, the ground that was under them began to be split apart. 32 And the earth proceeded to open its mouth and to swallow up them and their households and all humankind that belonged to Korah and all the goods. 33 So down they went, and all who belonged to them, alive into Sheol, and the earth went covering them over, so that they perished from the midst of the congregation. 34 And all the Israelites who were round about them fled at the screaming of them, for they began to say: “We are afraid that the earth may swallow us up!” 35 And a fire came out from Jehovah and proceeded to consume the two hundred and fifty men offering the incense.

36 Jehovah now spoke to Moses, saying: 37 “Say to Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest that he should take up the fire holders from within the conflagration, ‘And you scatter the fire over there; for they are holy, 38 even the fire holders of these men who sinned against their own souls. And they must make them into thin metal plates as an overlaying for the altar, because they presented them before Jehovah, so that they became holy; and they should serve as a sign to the sons of Israel.’” 39 Accordingly Eleazar the priest took the copper fire holders, which those who had been burned up had presented, and they proceeded to beat them out into an overlaying for the altar, 40 as a memorial for the sons of Israel, to the end that no strange man who is not of the offspring of Aaron should come near to make incense smoke before Jehovah, and no one might become like Korah and his assembly, just as Jehovah had spoken to him by means of Moses.

41 And directly the next day the whole assembly of the sons of Israel began to murmur against Moses and Aaron, saying: “YOU men, YOU have put Jehovah’s people to death.” 42 And it came about that when the assembly had congregated themselves together against Moses and Aaron, they then turned toward the tent of meeting; and, look! the cloud covered it, and Jehovah’s glory began to appear.

43 And Moses and Aaron proceeded to come before the tent of meeting. 44 Then Jehovah spoke to Moses, saying: 45 “YOU men, rise up from the midst of this assembly, that I may exterminate them in an instant.” At this they fell upon their faces. 46 After that Moses said to Aaron: “Take the fire holder and put fire from upon the altar in it and put on incense and go to the assembly in a hurry and make atonement for them, because the indignation has gone out from the face of Jehovah. The plague has started!” 47 Aaron at once took it, just as Moses had spoken, and went running into the midst of the congregation; and, look! the plague had started among the people. So he put the incense on and began making atonement for the people. 48 And he kept standing between the dead and the living. Eventually the scourge was stopped. 49 And those dead from the scourge amounted to fourteen thousand seven hundred, aside from those dead on account of Korah. 50 When at last Aaron returned to Moses at the entrance of the tent of meeting, the scourge had been stopped.