Numbers 14–15

The People Complain Again

14That night all the people in the camp began crying loudly. ²All the Israelites complained against Moses and Aaron, and all the people said to them, “We wish we had died in Egypt or in this desert. ³Why is the Lord bringing us to this land to be killed with swords? Our wives and children will be taken away. We would be better off going back to Egypt.” ⁴They said to each other, “Let’s choose a leader and go back to Egypt.”

⁵Then Moses and Aaron bowed facedown in front of all the Israelites gathered there. ⁶Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh, who had explored the land, tore their clothes. ⁷They said to all of the Israelites, “The land we explored is very good. ⁸If the Lord is pleased with us, he will lead us into that land and give us that fertile land. ⁹Don’t turn against the Lord! Don’t be afraid of the people in that land! We will chew them up. They have no protection, but the Lord is with us. So don’t be afraid of them.”

¹⁰Then all the people talked about killing them with stones. But the glory of the Lord appeared at the Meeting Tent to all the Israelites. ¹¹The Lord said to Moses, “How long will these people ignore me? How long will they not believe me in spite of the miracles I have done among them? ¹²I will give them a terrible sickness and get rid of them. But I will make you into a great nation that will be stronger than they are.”

¹³Then Moses said to the Lord, “The Egyptians will hear about it! You brought these people from there by your great power, ¹⁴and the Egyptians will tell this to those who live in this land. They have already heard about you, Lord. They know that you are with your people and that you were seen face to face. They know that your cloud stays over your people and that you lead your people with that cloud during the day and with fire at night. ¹⁵If you put these people to death all at once, the nations who have heard about your power will say, ¹⁶‘The Lord was not able to bring them into the land he promised them. So he killed them in the desert.’

¹⁷“So show your strength now, Lord. Do what you said: ¹⁸‘The Lord doesn’t become angry quickly, but he has great love. He forgives sin and law breaking. But the Lord never forgets to punish guilty people. When parents sin, he will also punish their children, their grandchildren, their great-grandchildren, and their great-great-grandchildren.’ ¹⁹By your great love, forgive these people’s sin, just as you have forgiven them from the time they left Egypt until now.”

²⁰The Lord answered, “I have forgiven them as you asked. ²¹But, as surely as I live and as surely as my glory fills the whole earth, I make this promise: ²²All these people saw my glory and the miracles I did in Egypt and in the desert, but they disobeyed me and tested me ten times. ²³So not one of them will see the land I promised to their ancestors. No one who rejected me will see that land. ²⁴But my servant Caleb thinks differently and follows me completely. So I will bring him into the land he has already seen, and his children will own that land. ²⁵Since the Amalekites and the Canaanites are living in the valleys, leave tomorrow and follow the desert road toward the Red Sea.”

The Lord Punishes the People

²⁶The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ²⁷“How long will these evil people complain about me? I have heard the grumbling and complaining of these Israelites. ²⁸So tell them, ‘This is what the Lord says. I heard what you said, and as surely as I live, I will do those very things to you: ²⁹You will die in this desert. Every one of you who is twenty years old or older and who was counted with the people—all of you who complained against me—will die. ³⁰Not one of you will enter the land where I promised you would live; only Caleb son of Jephunneh and Joshua son of Nun will go in. ³¹You said that your children would be taken away, but I will bring them into the land to enjoy what you refused. ³²As for you, you will die in this desert. ³³Your children will be shepherds here for forty years. Because you were not loyal, they will suffer until you lie dead in the desert. ³⁴For forty years you will suffer for your sins—a year for each of the forty days you explored the land. You will know me as your enemy.’ ³⁵I, the Lord, have spoken, and I will certainly do these things to all these evil people who have come together against me. So they will all die here in this desert.”

³⁶The men Moses had sent to explore the land had returned and spread complaints among all the people. They had given a bad report about the land. ³⁷The men who gave a very bad report died; the Lord killed them with a terrible sickness. ³⁸Only two of the men who explored the land did not die—Joshua son of Nun and Caleb son of Jephunneh.

³⁹When Moses told these things to all the Israelites, they were very sad. ⁴⁰Early the next morning they started to go toward the top of the mountains, saying, “We have sinned. We will go where the Lord told us.”

⁴¹But Moses said, “Why are you disobeying the Lord’s command? You will not win! ⁴²Don’t go, because the Lord is not with you and you will be beaten by your enemies. ⁴³You will run into the Amalekites and Canaanites, who will kill you with swords. You have turned away from the Lord, so the Lord will not be with you.”

⁴⁴But they were proud. They went toward the top of the mountains, but Moses and the Ark of the Agreement with the Lord did not leave the camp. ⁴⁵The Amalekites and the Canaanites who lived in those mountains came down and attacked the Israelites and beat them back all the way to Hormah.

Rules About Sacrifices

15The Lord said to Moses, ²“Speak to the Israelites and say to them, ‘When you enter the land that I am giving you as a home, ³give the Lord offerings made by fire. These may be from your herds or flocks, as a smell pleasing to the Lord. These may be burnt offerings or sacrifices for special promises, or as gifts to him, or as festival offerings. ⁴The one who brings the offering shall also give the Lord a grain offering. It should be two quarts of fine flour mixed with one quart of olive oil. ⁵Each time you offer a lamb as a burnt offering or sacrifice, also prepare a quart of wine as a drink offering.

⁶“ ‘If you are giving a male sheep, also prepare a grain offering of four quarts of fine flour mixed with one and one-fourth quarts of olive oil. ⁷Also prepare one and one-fourth quarts of wine as a drink offering. Its smell will be pleasing to the Lord.

⁸“ ‘If you prepare a young bull as a burnt offering or sacrifice, whether it is for a special promise or a fellowship offering to the Lord, ⁹bring a grain offering with the bull. It should be six quarts of fine flour mixed with two quarts of olive oil. ¹⁰Also bring two quarts of wine as a drink offering. This offering is made by fire, and its smell will be pleasing to the Lord. ¹¹Prepare each bull or male sheep, lamb or young goat this way. ¹²Do this for every one of the animals you bring.

¹³“ ‘All citizens must do these things in this way, and the smell of their offerings by fire will be pleasing to the Lord. ¹⁴From now on if foreigners who live among you want to make offerings by fire so the smell will be pleasing to the Lord, they must offer them the same way you do. ¹⁵The law is the same for you and for foreigners, and it will be from now on; you and the foreigners are alike before the Lord. ¹⁶The teachings and rules are the same for you and for the foreigners among you.’ ”

¹⁷The Lord said to Moses, ¹⁸“Tell the Israelites: ‘You are going to another land, where I am taking you. ¹⁹When you eat the food there, offer part of it to the Lord. ²⁰Offer a loaf of bread from the first of your grain, which will be your offering from the threshing floor. ²¹From now on offer to the Lord the first part of your grain.

²²“ ‘Now what if you forget to obey any of these commands the Lord gave Moses? ²³These are the Lord’s commands given to you through Moses, which began the day the Lord gave them to you and will continue from now on. ²⁴If the people forget to obey one of these commands, all the people must offer a young bull as a burnt offering, a smell pleasing to the Lord. By law you must also give the grain offering and the drink offering with it, and you must bring a male goat as a sin offering.

²⁵“ ‘The priest will remove that sin for all the Israelites so they will belong to the Lord. They are forgiven, because they didn’t know they were sinning. For the wrong they did they brought offerings to the Lord, an offering by fire and a sin offering. ²⁶So all of the people of Israel and the foreigners living among them will be forgiven. No one meant to do wrong.

²⁷“ ‘If just one person sins without meaning to, a year-old female goat must be brought for a sin offering. ²⁸The priest will remove the sin of the person who sinned accidentally. He will remove it before the Lord, and the person will be forgiven. ²⁹The same teaching is for everyone who sins accidentally—for those born Israelites and for foreigners living among you.

³⁰“ ‘But anyone who sins on purpose is against the Lord and must be cut off from the people, whether it is someone born among you or a foreigner. ³¹That person has turned against the Lord’s word and has not obeyed his commands. Such a person must surely be cut off from the others. He is guilty.’ ”

A Man Worked on the Sabbath

³²When the Israelites were still in the desert, they found a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day. ³³Those who found him gathering wood brought him to Moses and Aaron and all the people. ³⁴They held the man under guard, because they did not know what to do with him. ³⁵Then the Lord said to Moses, “The man must surely die. All the people must kill him by throwing stones at him outside the camp.” ³⁶So all the people took him outside the camp and stoned him to death, as the Lord commanded Moses.

The Tassels

³⁷The Lord said to Moses, ³⁸“Speak to the Israelites and tell them this: ‘Tie several pieces of…