Numbers 7:15-17

Amplified Bible, Classic Edition

¹⁵One young bull, one ram, one male lamb a year old, for a burnt offering;

¹⁶One male goat for a sin offering;

¹⁷And ^[a]for the sacrifice of peace offerings, two oxen, five rams, five male goats, five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Nahshon son of Amminadab.

Read full chapter

Footnotes

Numbers 7:17 Verses 12 to 17 give the detailed description of one tribe leader’s offering. Then, instead of saying that the gifts of the other tribe leaders were exactly like this one and naming the leaders, the record goes on for seventy verses repeating what has already been said eleven more times! Why? These things “were written for our learning” (Rom. 15:4 kjv). Let us seek the answer. Other commentators give Matthew Henry credit for giving the correct view. He says that both in dictating that each tribal leader have a separate day for his gift and in giving the reports equal space, regardless of the contrast in the tribe’s strength and rank in the camp, God had a definite purpose: “that an equal honor might thereby be put on each several tribe... Thus it was intimated that all the tribes of Israel had an equal share in the altar and an equal share in the sacrifices that were offered upon it. Though one tribe was posted more honorably in the camp than another, yet they and their services were all alike acceptable to God... Rich and poor meet together before God... He was letting us know that what is given is lent to the Lord, and He carefully records it, with everyone’s name prefixed to his gift, because what is so given as a labor of love (Heb. 6:10 kjv) He will repay. Christ took particular notice of what was cast into the treasury (Mark 12:41)” (Matthew Henry, A Commentary).