Bible Glide

Numbers 15

Numbers 15 Summary, Context, and Full Chapter

Numbers 15 gives practical instructions for life with God in the land ahead. It covers offerings, atonement for unintentional sin, the serious case of deliberate disobedience, and a visible reminder meant to keep God's people faithful.

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What happens in Numbers 15?

The chapter opens with regulations for burnt offerings, vow offerings, and peace offerings, with grain and drink offerings added in set amounts. These laws apply to native Israelites and to foreigners living among them. It then turns to offerings from the first of the dough once the people enter the land. The middle section explains how unintentional sin is handled for the whole community or for one person, while defiant sin is treated as a grave offense. The chapter closes with a man judged for gathering wood on the Sabbath and with tassels given as a daily reminder to remember and obey the LORD.

This chapter follows the defeat and rebellion in Numbers 14 and looks ahead to life in the promised land. It gives laws that shape Israel's worship, accountability, and daily remembrance before the long wilderness story continues in Numbers 16.

Themes to notice

  • OfferingsGod sets ordered patterns for sacrifices that express worship, thanks, and devotion.
  • ForgivenessUnintentional sin is met with atonement, showing both human weakness and God's mercy.
  • RemembranceTassels and Sabbath law help the people keep God's commands before them.

Questions for Numbers 15

  • What do the detailed offering instructions show about how God wanted His people to worship Him?
  • How does the chapter distinguish between unintentional sin and defiant sin?
  • Why would tassels and Sabbath obedience help Israel stay faithful in daily life?

Read the full text of Numbers 15 below, then open it in the reader to highlight, take notes, or ask follow-up Bible questions. No account is required to read.

Numbers 15

Laws about Offerings

1Then the LORD said to Moses,2“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: After you enter the land that I am giving you as a home3and you present an offering made by fire to the LORD from the herd or flock to produce a pleasing aroma to the LORD—either a burnt offering or a sacrifice, for a special vow or freewill offering or appointed feast—4then the one presenting his offering to the LORD shall also present a grain offering of a tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with a quarter hin of olive oil.5With the burnt offering or sacrifice of each lamb, you are to prepare a quarter hin of wine as a drink offering.

6With a ram you are to prepare a grain offering of two-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with a third of a hin of olive oil,7and a third of a hin of wine as a drink offering, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.8When you prepare a young bull as a burnt offering or sacrifice to fulfill a vow or as a peace offering to the LORD,9present with the bull a grain offering of three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with half a hin of olive oil.10Also present half a hin of wine as a drink offering. It is an offering made by fire, a pleasing aroma to the LORD.11This is to be done for each bull, ram, lamb, or goat.12This is how you must prepare each one, no matter how many.

13Everyone who is native-born shall prepare these things in this way when he presents an offering made by fire as a pleasing aroma to the LORD.14And for the generations to come, if a foreigner residing with you or someone else among you wants to prepare an offering made by fire as a pleasing aroma to the LORD, he is to do exactly as you do.15The assembly is to have the same statute both for you and for the foreign resident; it is a permanent statute for the generations to come. You and the foreigner shall be the same before the LORD.16The same law and the same ordinance will apply both to you and to the foreigner residing with you.”

17Then the LORD said to Moses,18“Speak to the Israelites and tell them: When you enter the land to which I am bringing you19and you eat the food of the land, you shall lift up an offering to the LORD.20From the first of your dough, you are to lift up a cake as a contribution; offer it just like an offering from the threshing floor.21Throughout your generations, you are to give the LORD an offering from the first of your dough.

Offerings for Unintentional Sins

22Now if you stray unintentionally and do not obey all these commandments that the LORD has spoken to Moses—23all that the LORD has commanded you through Moses from the day the LORD gave them and continuing through the generations to come—24and if it was done unintentionally without the knowledge of the congregation, then the whole congregation is to prepare one young bull as a burnt offering, a pleasing aroma to the LORD, with its grain offering and drink offering according to the regulation, and one male goat as a sin offering.25The priest is to make atonement for the whole congregation of Israel, so that they may be forgiven; for the sin was unintentional and they have brought to the LORD an offering made by fire and a sin offering, presented before the LORD for their unintentional sin.26Then the whole congregation of Israel and the foreigners residing among them will be forgiven, since it happened to all the people unintentionally.

27Also, if one person sins unintentionally, he is to present a year-old female goat as a sin offering.28And the priest shall make atonement before the LORD on behalf of the person who erred by sinning unintentionally; and when atonement has been made for him, he will be forgiven.29You shall have the same law for the one who acts in error, whether he is a native-born Israelite or a foreigner residing among you.

30But the person who sins defiantly, whether a native or foreigner, blasphemes the LORD. That person shall be cut off from among his people.31He shall certainly be cut off, because he has despised the word of the LORD and broken His commandment; his guilt remains on him.”

A Sabbath-Breaker Stoned

32While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day.33Those who found the man gathering wood brought him to Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation,34and because it had not been declared what should be done to him, they placed him in custody.

35And the LORD said to Moses, “The man must surely be put to death. The whole congregation is to stone him outside the camp.”36So the whole congregation took the man outside the camp and stoned him to death, as the LORD had commanded Moses.

The Law of Tassels

37Later, the LORD said to Moses,38“Speak to the Israelites and tell them that throughout the generations to come they are to make for themselves tassels for the corners of their garments, with a blue cord on each tassel.39These will serve as tassels for you to look at, so that you may remember all the commandments of the LORD, that you may obey them and not prostitute yourselves by following your own heart and your own eyes.40Then you will remember and obey all My commandments, and you will be holy to your God.41I am the LORD your God who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God. I am the LORD your God.”

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