Numbers 29 - Clarke's commentary and critical notes on the Bible

And in the seventh month, on the first day of the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you. And in the seventh month, etc. - This was the beginning of their civil year, and was a time of great festivity, and was ushered in by the blowing of trumpets. It answers to a part of our September. In imitation of the Jews different nations began their new year with sacrifices and festivity. The ancient Egyptians did so; and the Persians still celebrate their nawi rooz, or new year's day, which they hold on the vernal equinox. The first day of the year is generally a time of festivity in all civilized nations. On this day the Israelites offered one young bullock, one ram, seven lambs, and a kid, for a sin-offering, besides minchahs or meat-offerings.

And ye shall offer a burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the LORD; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year without blemish:

And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals for a bullock, and two tenth deals for a ram,

And one tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs:

And one kid of the goats for a sin offering, to make an atonement for you:

Beside the burnt offering of the month, and his meat offering, and the daily burnt offering, and his meat offering, and their drink offerings, according unto their manner, for a sweet savour, a sacrifice made by fire unto the LORD.

And ye shall have on the tenth day of this seventh month an holy convocation; and ye shall afflict your souls: ye shall not do any work therein: On the tenth day - See the notes on Leviticus 16:29, and Leviticus 23:24 (note).

But ye shall offer a burnt offering unto the LORD for a sweet savour; one young bullock, one ram, and seven lambs of the first year; they shall be unto you without blemish:

And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals to a bullock, and two tenth deals to one ram,

A several tenth deal for one lamb, throughout the seven lambs:

One kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the sin offering of atonement, and the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering of it, and their drink offerings.

And on the fifteenth day of the seventh month ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work, and ye shall keep a feast unto the LORD seven days: On the fifteenth day of the seventh month - On this day there was to be a solemn assembly, and for seven days sacrifices were to be offered; on the first day thirteen young bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs. On each succeeding day one bullock less, till on the seventh day there were only seven, making in all seventy. What an expensive service! How should we magnify God for being delivered from it! Yet these were all the taxes they had to pay. At the public charge there were annually offered to God, independently of trespass-offerings and voluntary vows, fifteen goats, twenty-one kids, seventy-two rams, one hundred and thirty-two bullocks, and eleven hundred and one lambs! But how little is all this when compared with the lambs slain every year at the passover, which amounted in one year to the immense number of 255,600 slain in the temple itself, which was the answer that Cestius, the Roman general, received when he asked the priests how many persons had come to Jerusalem at their annual festivals; the priests, numbering the people by the lambs that had been slain, said, "twenty-five myriads, five thousand and six hundred." - For an account of the feast of tabernacles, see on Leviticus 23:34 (note).

And ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD; thirteen young bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year; they shall be without blemish:

And their meat offering shall be of flour mingled with oil, three tenth deals unto every bullock of the thirteen bullocks, two tenth deals to each ram of the two rams,

And a several tenth deal to each lamb of the fourteen lambs:

And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.

And on the second day ye shall offer twelve young bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without spot:

And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:

And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and the meat offering thereof, and their drink offerings.

And on the third day eleven bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish;

And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:

And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering.

And on the fourth day ten bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish:

Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:

And one kid of the goats for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.

And on the fifth day nine bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without spot:

And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:

And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering.

And on the sixth day eight bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish:

And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:

And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.

And on the seventh day seven bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without blemish:

And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:

And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, his meat offering, and his drink offering.

On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly: ye shall do no servile work therein: On the eighth day ye shall have a solemn assembly - This among the Jews was esteemed the chief or high day of the feast, though fewer sacrifices were offered on it than on the others; the people seem to have finished the solemnity with a greater measure of spiritual devotion, and it was on this day of the feast that our blessed Lord called the Jews from the letter to the spirit of the law, proposing himself as the sole fountain whence they could derive the streams of salvation, John 7:37. On the subject of this chapter see the notes on Leviticus 12:1-8 (note), Leviticus 16 (note), Leviticus 23 (note).

But ye shall offer a burnt offering, a sacrifice made by fire, of a sweet savour unto the LORD: one bullock, one ram, seven lambs of the first year without blemish:

Their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullock, for the ram, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:

And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering.

These things ye shall do unto the LORD in your set feasts, beside your vows, and your freewill offerings, for your burnt offerings, and for your meat offerings, and for your drink offerings, and for your peace offerings.

And Moses told the children of Israel according to all that the LORD commanded Moses. Commentary on the Bible, by Adam Clarke [1831].