Numbers 15:22-41
Laws Concerning Unintentional Sin
22 If you sin unintentionally, and do not observe all these commandments which the LORD has spoken to Moses— 23 all that the LORD has commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the day the LORD gave commandment and onward throughout your generations— 24 then it will be, if it is unintentionally committed, without the knowledge of the congregation, that the whole congregation shall offer one young bull as a burnt offering, as a sweet aroma to the LORD, with its grain offering and its drink offering, according to the ordinance, and one kid of the goats as a sin offering. 25 So the priest shall make atonement for the whole congregation of the children of Israel, and it shall be forgiven them, for it was unintentional; they shall bring their offering, an offering made by fire to the LORD, and their sin offering before the LORD, for their unintended sin. 26 It shall be forgiven the whole congregation of the children of Israel and the stranger who dwells among them, because all the people did it unintentionally.
27 ‘And if a person sins unintentionally, then he shall bring a female goat in its first year as a sin offering. 28 So the priest shall make atonement for the person who sins unintentionally, when he sins unintentionally before the LORD, to make atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him. 29 You shall have one law for him who sins unintentionally, for him who is native-born among the children of Israel and for the stranger who dwells among them.
Law Concerning Presumptuous Sin
30 But the person who does anything presumptuously, whether he is native-born or a stranger, that one brings reproach on the LORD, and he shall be cut off from among his people. 31 Because he has despised the word of the LORD, and has broken His commandment, that person shall be completely cut off; his guilt shall be upon him.’”
Penalty for Violating the Sabbath (Exodus 31:12–17)
32 Now while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. 33 And those who found him gathering sticks brought him to Moses and Aaron, and to all the congregation. 34 They put him under guard, because it had not been explained what should be done to him.
35 Then the LORD said to Moses, “The man must surely be put to death; all the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.” 36 So, as the LORD commanded Moses, all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones, and he died.
Tassels on Garments
37 Again the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 38 “Speak to the children of Israel: Tell them to make tassels on the corners of their garments throughout their generations, and to put a blue thread in the tassels of the corners. 39 And you shall have the tassel, that you may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the LORD and do them, and that you may not follow the harlotry to which your own heart and your own eyes are inclined, 40 and that you may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy for 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.”
This chapter ends with prohibitions on sins committed unintentionally or intentionally in proud defiance to the LORD. Then they were to make tassels as reminders of their sin nature that leads to these sins, so that when they gazed down in humility and not in proud presumption of defiance, they would be reminded of their own heart’s bent to spiritual and bodily idolatry and immorality and turn their eyes and thoughts back to God to follow His word in holiness to please Him. For those who unintentionally sinned (Leviticus 4:27-28) in not following the words of His commandments, they had to corporately make sacrifices to cover the sins of all that may still remain hidden as well as that hidden sin of the individual, no doubt, to atone for them all in case there were other such sins still unseen and unconfessed. This sacrifice of atonement covered them all, both of the congregation of God’s people and the outsider among them. Those who sinned in full knowledge of their actions, acting presumptuously in proud defiance against the word of the LORD, these who defamed God’s name were to be cast out, excommunicated from the congregation, whether of the people or outside sojourners. The guilt of those who did such acts against His word, who despised it, who willingly broke His commandments, those were sent away from the congregation to keep from misleading others as if a cancerous outbreak (2 Timothy 2:16-17) of spiritual leprosy. This is a picture of New Testament church discipline. There is also a mention of deal with those breaking the sabbath rest. We certainly do not stone anyone today for this, yet the underlying principle of denying the rest from our works to rest in those of Christ alone (Hebrews 4:4-6, 9-10, Joshua 22:4, 5, Ezekiel 20:12) and falsely teaching others it is necessary to work to earn salvation, this principle still calls for cutting the unrepentant false teaching out of the congregation (Galatians 1:8-9) as well. God calls for holiness of the whole congregation and not just the individual. We then see how sins are to be confessed or dealt with to keep the honor of God’s name in the congregation and how we need to have our own versions of significant tassel reminders of our proclivity to sin in body and soul, heart and mind, in our intake and meditation on His words of command in the scriptures, that we might be holy as He is holy (1 Peter 1:15-16) as well-pleasing (2 Corinthians 5:9-10, Hebrews 13:21) children. We do these things to remind ourselves by hearing, reading, studying, and meditating on the scriptures that we might align our lives to His word and will of grace, not working our way to eternal life (Philippians 2:12-13) but working out the work of Christ in us by our choices to follow in awe of such forgiveness and grace to save us and reminding one another (Hebrews 3:13-14, 15, 4:12-13) of these things!
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