Commentaria in Numeros
Chapter the Twenty-ninth
God commands that on the feast of Trumpets they offer one calf, one ram, seven lambs. Secondly, verse 7, He commands the same to be offered on the feast of Expiation. Thirdly, verse 12, He prescribes the victims on the feast of Tabernacles, to be offered through seven days.
1. The first day also of the seventh month shall be venerable and holy to you: you shall do no servile work therein, because it is the day of the sounding of the trumpets. 2. And you shall offer a holocaust for a most sweet savour to the Lord, one calf of the herd, one ram, and seven lambs of a year old without blemish: 3. and in their sacrifices, of flour sprinkled with oil, three tenths for every calf, two tenths for the ram, 4. one tenth for a lamb, which together are seven lambs: 5. and a buck goat for sin, which is offered for the expiation of the people, 6. besides the holocaust of the calends with its sacrifices, and the perpetual holocaust with the accustomed libations; with the same ceremonies you shall offer a burnt offering for a most sweet savour to the Lord. 7. The tenth day also of this seventh month shall be holy and venerable to you, and you shall afflict your souls: you shall do no servile work therein. 8. And you shall offer a holocaust to the Lord for a most sweet savour, one calf of the herd, one ram, seven lambs of a year old without blemish seven: 9. and in their sacrifices, of flour sprinkled with oil, three tenths for every calf, two tenths for the ram, 10. a tenth of a tenth for every lamb, which together are seven lambs; 11. and a buck goat for sin, besides those which are wont to be offered for sin for expiation, and the perpetual holocaust, with its sacrifice and libations. 12. And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month, which shall be holy and venerable to you: you shall do no servile work therein, but shall celebrate a solemnity to the Lord seven days. 13. And you shall offer a holocaust for a most sweet savour to the Lord, thirteen calves of the herd, two rams, fourteen lambs of a year old without blemish, 14. and in their libations, of flour sprinkled with oil, three tenths for every calf, which together are thirteen calves; and two tenths for one ram, that is, for the two rams together; 15. and a tenth of a tenth for every lamb, which together are fourteen lambs: 16. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 17. On the second day you shall offer twelve calves of the herd, two rams, fourteen lambs of a year old without blemish, 18. and the sacrifices and libations of each, for the calves and rams and lambs, you shall duly celebrate: 19. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 20. On the third day you shall offer eleven calves, two rams, fourteen lambs of a year old without blemish: 21. and the sacrifices and libations of each, for the calves and rams and lambs, you shall duly celebrate; 22. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 23. On the fourth day you shall offer ten calves, two rams, fourteen lambs of a year old without blemish: 24. and the sacrifices and libations of each, for the calves and rams and lambs, you shall duly celebrate; 25. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 26. On the fifth day you shall offer nine calves, two rams, fourteen lambs of a year old without blemish: 27. and the sacrifices and libations of each, for the calves and rams and lambs, you shall duly celebrate: 28. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 29. On the sixth day you shall offer eight calves, two rams, fourteen lambs of a year old without blemish: 30. and the sacrifices and libations of each, for the calves and rams and lambs, you shall duly celebrate; 31. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 32. On the seventh day you shall offer seven calves, and two rams, fourteen lambs of a year old without blemish: 33. and the sacrifices and libations of each, for the calves and rams and lambs, you shall duly celebrate; 34. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 35. On the eighth day, which is most solemn, you shall do no servile work, 36. offering a holocaust for a most sweet savour to the Lord, one calf, one ram, seven lambs of a year old without blemish: 37. and the sacrifices and libations of each, for the calves and rams and lambs, you shall duly celebrate; 38. and a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and its sacrifice and libation. 39. These things you shall offer to the Lord in your solemnities, besides your vows and voluntary oblations, for holocaust, for sacrifice, for libation, and for peace offerings.
1. IT IS A DAY OF THE SOUNDING OF TRUMPETS.—The feast of Trumpets was celebrated on the first day of the seventh month; of this feast I spoke on Leviticus xxiii, 24.
3. FOR EVERY CALF,—that is, for a calf. So the Hebrew. For one calf only was offered every year at the feast of Trumpets, namely in single years single calves; and this our Interpreter meant.
6. BESIDES THE HOLOCAUST OF THE CALENDS.—For the feast of Trumpets fell on the calends of the seventh month: whence on it both the victims proper to the calends and the victims proper to the feast of Trumpets had to be sacrificed, after the continual sacrifice of the lamb, as I said in chapter the same is repeated here, and is inculcated at the feast of Expiation, verse 11, and on each day of the feast of Tabernacles, as is plain from verse
7. THE TENTH DAY ALSO OF THIS SEVENTH MONTH SHALL BE HOLY TO YOU.—For that was the feast of Expiation, of which Leviticus xxiii, 27.
11. BESIDES THOSE WHICH ARE WONT TO BE OFFERED FOR SIN FOR EXPIATION,—For on this day of expiation the priest, the people and the tabernacle were expiated by the bringing in of blood into the Holy of Holies; and for doing this there was taken and immolated a calf for sin, and a ram for a holocaust. Again, two rams, of which one was the emissary, the other was made a holocaust, of which Leviticus xvi. Those sacrifices were premised for the expiation, which being done, in honour of the feast the holocausts here prescribed were sacrificed, namely one calf, one ram, seven lambs.
AND THE PERPETUAL HOLOCAUST,—that is, the continual sacrifice.
WITH ITS SACRIFICE,—that is, the mincha, which is wont to be added to the continual sacrifice.
12. AND ON THE FIFTEENTH DAY OF THE SEVENTH MONTH, WHICH SHALL BE HOLY TO YOU.—For it was then the feast of Tabernacles, which was celebrated for seven, nay for eight days, of which Leviticus xxiii, 34. Whence victims are here prescribed to be offered on each of its days, which are almost the same on every day, namely two rams and fourteen lambs, save that there are offered one calf, one ram, seven lambs, as is plain from verse 35.
14. A TENTH OF A TENTH.—One tenth of an ephi, which is a tenth of a cor, as I said in the preceding chapter.
35. ON THE EIGHTH DAY, WHICH IS MOST SOLEMN.—For it was then the feast of the Assembly and Collection, as I said verse 22; of which I said more on Leviticus xxiii, 36.
39. THESE THINGS YOU SHALL OFFER TO THE LORD IN YOUR SOLEMNITIES,
BESIDES YOUR VOWS AND VOLUNTARY OBLATIONS, FOR HOLOCAUST, FOR SACRIFICE, FOR LIBATION, AND FOR PEACE OFFERINGS,—as if to say: These victims already mentioned I command on the feasts, besides those which you shall offer from vow or of your own accord for holocaust, for sacrifice, that is, for mincha, for libation and for peace offerings. Where note: The libation was never offered by itself alone, but always with a sacrifice; whence when the sacrifice was free and spontaneous, the libation also was reckoned free and spontaneous.
on the first day thirteen calves, on the second twelve, on the third eleven, and so, consequently, always diminishing, they were offered; but on the eighth day, which was the assembly or collection, they offered only