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Commentaries and Other Bible Study Helps - Prayer Tents - Prayer Tents
27:1-30:16 Laws for the Land. Chapters 27-30 are united by these laws for the land--particularly the inheritance rules and the celebrations of the festivals.
27:1-11 The Daughters of Zelophehad. These daughters have already been mentioned (in 26:33) without an obvious reason. Now it becomes clear why they were picked out. Their father had no sons to inherit his land. Under traditional rules, daughters did not inherit from their father. The father would provide a dowry for them when they were married, but his land and other possessions were divided among his sons. If he had no sons, his estate would pass to his nearest male relative. Verses 9-10 of ch. 27 spell out the order of precedence. But the daughters point out that in this situation the land could pass out of Zelophehad's family and his name could be forgotten. To prevent this from happening, the daughters ask that they be allowed to inherit. So a new rule is devised for the case of a man without sons, whereby his daughters will inherit before his brothers or uncles (v. 8).
27:1 Noah here (Hb. No‘ah) is a woman's name and spelled differently from Noah (Hb. Noakh) in Genesis 6-9.
27:3-4 He was not . . . in the company of Korah (v. 3; see ch. 16). It is not clear why Zelophehad's daughters mention this episode. Perhaps those involved in Korah's rebellion lost their right to inherit, or perhaps these daughters just wanted to make clear that their father had not been among those notorious sinners. Nor is it clear why they raised the issue of their inheritance at this stage (27:4). Perhaps the census had led them to think about inheritance, as it was designed to assess the size of the tribes with a view to giving them sufficient land. Maybe the Manassites were already thinking of settling northern Transjordan after defeating Og, king of Bashan, there (21:31-35; 32:33-42). In any case, this request shows the faith of these women: they were sure that the land would be conquered and assigned.
27:12-23 Joshua Commissioned as Moses' Successor. The sin of Moses and Aaron at Meribah meant they could not enter the land, so a successor to Moses had to be appointed (20:10-13). The Lord designates Joshua as his successor (27:18). Then Joshua stands before Eleazar the high priest and Moses lays his hands on him, publicly declaring Joshua to be his successor (vv. 22-23).
27:12 Like Aaron, Moses must climb a mountain to die (cf. 20:22-29). From it he will see the promised land. This command is fulfilled in Deuteronomy 34.
27:20-21 some of your authority. Joshua will not have the direct communication with God that Moses had (12:1-8). Instead he will have to be instructed by Eleazar the high priest, who will use the Urim and Thummim to determine God's will (27:21). The Urim and Thummim were some sort of sacred lot and were part of the high priest's equipment (see Ex. 28:30; Lev. 8:8; cf. note on 1 Sam. 14:41-42).
28:1-29:40 Calendar of Public Sacrifices. Although Moses' days as mediator of revelation are numbered, he still is God's chosen vessel to pass on law to Israel. First among his final instructions are laws about public sacrifices (cf. other calendars, Ex. 23:10-19; 34:18-26; Leviticus 23; Deut. 16:1-17; cf. also The Hebrew Calendar). These are the sacrifices offered in the tabernacle on a daily basis by the priests on behalf of the nation. Twice a day lambs are offered as a burnt offering (see Leviticus 1): one in the morning and another in the evening. On holy days, extra sacrifices are added. These chapters explain just what is required on which day. They are summarized in the , chart. To see how many sacrifices the priests would have to offer, one must add together all the offerings that are required for each reason. For example, on a Sabbath falling on the first day of a month, the priests would have to offer: two lambs (the daily offering) plus two lambs (the Sabbath offering) plus two bulls, one ram, seven lambs, and one goat (
28:1-8 The Daily Offering. A lamb was offered in the morning and another in the evening at twilight (v. 4). This pattern of prayer in the morning and in the evening has carried on in Jewish and Christian practice throughout the centuries. Pleasing (or "soothing") aroma is a phrase that regularly describes the effect of sacrifice on God: it soothes his anger at sin (see Gen. 8:21).
28:9-10 The Sabbath Offerings. The extra burnt offerings on the Sabbath mean that twice as many are offered that day as on other days of the week.
28:11-15 The New Moon Sacrifices. The first of the month, indicated by the new moon, was an important festival; as many sacrifices were offered then as at Passover or Pentecost (see vv. 16-31). It was an occasion for family worship (1 Sam. 20:5-6; 2 Kings 4:23). It was like the Sabbath, a day when trading stopped (Amos 8:5; see also Col. 2:16).
28:16-25 The Feast of Unleavened Bread. This immediately followed Passover, which is celebrated on the fourteenth day of the first month (i.e., in late March or April).
28:17 Unleavened, that is, made without yeast (cf. Ex. 12:15-20).
28:18 Holy convocation is probably a gathering for worship. Ordinary work, lit., "work of labor." This seems to be a milder ban than the rule for the Sabbath and the Day of Atonement, when absolutely no work was permitted (see Lev. 23:3, 28; Num. 29:7).
28:19-24 These sacrifices are to be offered on each of the seven days of unleavened bread.
28:26-31 The Feast of Weeks (Pentecost). This took place seven weeks after Passover. It coincided with the grain festival in Israel, so it is called the day of the firstfruits (see also Lev. 23:15-22). This calendar (Num. 28:1-29:40) requires one more bull and one less ram than the Leviticus instruction, making it like the first of the month and the Feast of Unleavened Bread (Num. Num. 28:25-26).
29:1-6 The First Day of the Seventh Month. Every new moon was a holy day (28:11-15), but since the seventh month of the year was holy, the first day of that month was especially holy. It was therefore marked by a holy convocation, no ordinary work, the blowing of trumpets, and almost twice as many sacrifices as on other new moon festivals. According to 10:10, blowing the trumpets at the festivals is a plea to God to remember Israel. For observant Jews even today, the days from the first to the tenth of the seventh month (the Day of Atonement) are the holiest in the year, when they search their consciences and confess their sins.
29:7-11 The Day of Atonement. This day is fully described in Leviticus 16. Here is simply a list of the principal sacrifices and a reminder of the laity's duties: to hold a holy convocation and afflict yourselves (i.e., fast) and do no work.
29:12-38 The Feast of Booths. This festival involved all the Israelites living in booths (i.e., temporary dwellings) for the week to remind themselves of their lifestyle in the wilderness (see Lev. 23:33-43). Once again, this calendar (Num. 28:1-29:40) focuses on the sacrifices offered by the priests. The large number of sacrifices offered during the highlights its importance. Coming at the end of the agricultural year in October, the feast was an occasion to thank God for the harvest and to pray for plenty of rain in the next year. In Israel, rain is expected only between October and April.
29:39-40 Clarification and Summary. Verse 39 functions as a footnote to the calendar of public sacrifices (28:1-29:40), clarifying that private sacrifices prompted by vows or other circumstances may be offered whenever they are needed. The calendar of public sacrifices simply lays down the essential offerings that must always be made.
30:1-16 The Obligations of Vows. In a crisis people often make a vow: "If God delivers me from X, I promise to do Y." There are many examples in the Bible (e.g., Gen. 28:20-22; 1 Sam. 1:11). The danger is that, when the crisis is over, the vow may not be fulfilled. Stern warnings about failing to fulfill a vow are found in Deut. 23:21-23 and Eccles. 5:4-6. These laws are concerned with defining those few circumstances in which a person may be excused from fulfilling a vow. Basically, a man is always obliged to fulfill his vow (Num. 30:2), but a woman may be excused if her father or husband (the leader of the family, who is assumed to have the authority to nullify such a vow) objects to her vow as soon as he hears about it (vv. 5, 8, 12, 14). But if the man, as the head of the family, hears of his daughter's vow or his wife's vow and does not object to it, then it stands and the woman is obliged to fulfill it (vv. 4, 7, 11, 13). The placement of this law here may seem surprising, but there are several reasons why it should come here. Vows are mentioned in 29:39, and they are often involved in the offering of a sacrifice. Also, war often prompts vows, and Israel is about to start its military campaign in Canaan. In addition, the conquest of Canaan depends on God keeping his promised word to Israel, and Israel must be equally strict in carrying out her promises to God.
30:1-2 Men and Vows. The general principle here is that whether a man makes a vow (to do something positive, like offer a sacrifice) or a pledge (to avoid or abstain from something), he shall not break his word.
30:3-5 Women and vows. Until married, a woman is under her father's authority. If she makes a vow and her father objects, she will be forgiven for not carrying it out.
30:6-8 Vows Made by a Woman before Her Marriage. If a woman under a vow gets married, her new husband can cancel her vow.
30:9 Widows and Divorcees. They are not subject to the authority of a father or a husband, so their vows are binding.
