The Mystery of Esau and Ephraim

“And upon thy sword shalt thou depend, entering at every place: yet thou shalt be supple and credulous, and be in subjection to thy brother [Jacob]; but it will be that when his sons [the children of Israel] become evil, and fall from keeping the commandments of the law, thou shalt break his yoke of servitude from off thy neck….and then will I kill Jakob my brother,” Genesis 27:40-41 Jonathan

Numbers 15

¹ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying, — Speak unto the children of Israel; perhaps the date of this communication must be fixed towards the close of the wanderings in the wilderness;

² “Speak unto the children of Israel and say unto them: ‘When ye have come into the land of your habitations, which I give unto you,

³ and will make an offering by fire unto the Lord, a burnt offering or a sacrifice in performing a vow, or in a freewill offering, or in your solemn feasts, to make a sweet savor unto the Lord of the herd or of the flock,

— or a sacrifice in performing a vow, or in a freewill offering; these were peace offerings, some of which were for thanksgiving, and others were either a vow or a freewill offering; in your solemn feasts; as the passover, pentecost, tabernacle, and the offerings in them, Leviticus 23:4,

⁴ then shall he that offereth his offering unto the Lord bring a meat offering of a tenth part of flour mingled with a fourth part of a hin of oil.

⁵ And a fourth part of a hin of wine for a drink offering shalt thou prepare with the burnt offering or sacrifice, for one lamb. — and the fourth part of an hin of wine; the same measure with the oil, and this was wine of the grapes, as the Targum of Jonathan says;

⁶ Or for a ram, thou shalt prepare for a meat offering two tenths part of flour mingled with a third part of a hin of oil.

⁷ And for a drink offering thou shalt offer a third part of a hin of wine for a sweet savor unto the Lord.

⁸ And when thou preparest a bullock for a burnt offering, or for a sacrifice in performing a vow, or peace offerings unto the Lord,

⁹ then shall he bring with a bullock a meat offering of three tenths part of flour mingled with half a hin of oil.

¹⁰ And thou shalt bring for a drink offering half a hin of wine for an offering made by fire of a sweet savor unto the Lord.

¹¹ “‘Thus shall it be done for one bullock or for one ram or for a lamb or a kid.

¹² According to the number that ye shall prepare, so shall ye do to every one according to their number. — according to the number that ye shall prepare, so shall ye do to everyone, according to their number; that is, in proportion to the number of the cattle, be they of which sort they would, should be the quantity of the meat and drink offerings.

¹³ All who are born of the country shall do these things in this manner in offering an offering made by fire of a sweet savor unto the Lord.

— all that are born of the country; the Targum of Jonathan says, “all that are born in Israel, and not among the sons of the Gentiles.” It seems clear, however, from Numbers 15:14 that the reference in this verse is to the indigenous Israelites.

¹⁴ And if a stranger sojourn with you, or whosoever be among you in your generations, and will offer an offering made by fire of a sweet savor unto the Lord, as ye do, so he shall do. — as ye do, so shall he do; bring the same meat offering and drink offering, according to the nature and number of the cattle he brings for sacrifice.

¹⁵ One ordinance shall be both for you of the congregation and also for the stranger who sojourneth with you, an ordinance for ever in your generations. As ye are, so shall the stranger be before the Lord: — as to the worship of God; his sacrifices shall be offered in the same manner, and accepted by God upon the same terms, as yours; which was a presage of the future calling of the Gentiles.

¹⁶ one law and one manner shall be for you and for the stranger who sojourneth with you.’” — one law, and one manner; one law respecting these sacrifices, and one manner of offering them; one and the same precept to be observed, and one and the same judgment or punishment inflicted in case of non-observance;

— shall be for you, and the stranger that sojourneth with you; for Israelites and proselytes; which is said to invite and encourage the latter, and may have a distant view to the calling of the Gentiles in Gospel times, when there should be no difference between Jews and Gentiles called by grace in matters of religion, but would be one in Christ;

¹⁷ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

¹⁸ “Speak unto the children of Israel and say unto them: ‘When ye come into the land whither I bring you, — when ye come into the land whither I bring you; the land of Canaan: this is another assurance of their possession of the land of Canaan, notwithstanding what had been threatened;

¹⁹ then it shall be that, when ye eat of the bread of the land, ye shall offer up a heave offering unto the Lord. — the Targum of Jonathan adds, “not of rice, or millet, or pulse,” but what was made of corn used for bread;

²⁰ Ye shall offer up a cake of the first of your dough for a heave offering; as ye do the heave offering of the threshing floor, so shall ye heave it. — as ye do the heave offering of the threshing floor, so shall ye heave it; as the two wave loaves and firstfruits of their harvest, Leviticus 23:16.

²¹ Of the first of your dough ye shall give unto the Lord a heave offering in your generations. — of the first of your dough shall ye give unto the Lord; as an acknowledgment of his being the sovereign Lord and possessor of heaven and earth, and of his being the owner and proprietor of the land of Canaan;

²² And if ye have erred and not observed all these commandments which the Lord hath spoken unto Moses—

²³ even all that the Lord hath commanded you by the hand of Moses, from the day that the Lord commanded Moses and henceforward among your generations—

²⁴ then it shall be, if aught be committed by ignorance without the knowledge of the congregation, that all the congregation shall offer one young bullock for a burnt offering for a sweet savor unto the Lord with his meat offering and his drink offering, according to the ordinance, and one kid of the goats for a sin offering.

— without the knowledge of the congregation – literally, as marginal; the words point to an error of omission which escaped notice at the time: that is, to an oversight.

²⁵ And the priest shall make an atonement for all the congregation of the children of Israel, and it shall be forgiven them, for it is ignorance; and they shall bring their offering, a sacrifice made by fire unto the Lord, and their sin offering before the Lord, for their ignorance. — and their sin offering before the Lord, for their ignorance; a kid of the goats.

²⁶ And it shall be forgiven all the congregation of the children of Israel and the stranger who sojourneth among them, seeing all the people were in ignorance. — seeing all the people were in ignorance; both the congregation of Israel and the stranger;

²⁷ “‘And if any soul sin through ignorance, then he shall bring a shegoat of the first year for a sin offering. — and if any soul sin through ignorance; any private or particular person, by breaking any of the above commands, or any other, not rightly understanding them, or not adverting: to the circumstances required in the manner of performing them;

²⁸ And the priest shall make an atonement for the soul who sinneth ignorantly, when he sinneth by ignorance before the Lord, to make an atonement for him; and it shall be forgiven him. — full atonement of sin and free forgiveness are not contrary to each other.

²⁹ Ye shall have one law for him that sinneth through ignorance, both for him that is born among the children of Israel and for the stranger who sojourneth among them. — both sinning through ignorance, the same sacrifice was offered for them, by which atonement was made, and through which their sin was forgiven; by whom are meant homeborn Israelites and proselytes of righteousness;

³⁰ But the soul who doeth aught presumptuously, whether he be born in the land or a stranger, the same reproacheth the Lord; and that soul shall be cut off from among his people. — the soul that doeth aught presumptuously; Hebrew, “with an high” or “uplifted hand”— that is, knowingly, wilfully, obstinately;

— and that soul shall be cut off from among his people, either by the hand of the magistrate, upon conviction of him, or by the immediate hand of God; no sacrifice was to be offered for such, no atonement given;

³¹ Because he hath despised the word of the Lord and hath broken His commandment, that soul shall utterly be cut off. His iniquity shall be upon him.’” — his iniquity shall be upon him; the punishment of it, no atonement being made for it by sacrifice; it shall be upon him and him only;

³² And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man who gathered sticks upon the Sabbath day. — a man that gathered sticks upon the Sabbath day; this incident is evidently narrated as an instance of presumptuous sin;

³³ And those who found him gathering sticks brought him unto Moses and Aaron and unto all the congregation. —to Moses and Aaron, and to the seventy elders, who might be at this time met together, to hear, try, and judge causes;

³⁴ And they put him under guard, because it was not declared what should be done to him. — because it was not declared what should be done to him: that is, what kind of death he should die;

³⁵ And the Lord said unto Moses, “The man shall be surely put to death. All the congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp.”

— the man shall surely be put to death; for as no fire was to be made throughout their habitations on a Sabbath day, gathering sticks for such a purpose was a work that was a violation of the sabbath, punishable with death, Exodus 35:2;

³⁶ And all the congregation brought him outside the camp and stoned him with stones, and he died, as the Lord commanded Moses. — and stoned him with stones, and he died: stoned him to death: as the Lord commanded Moses;

— and a clearer picture from the Targum – Numbers 15:32-36

And while the sons of Israel were dwelling in the wilderness, the decree of the Sabbath was known to them, but the punishment (for the profanation) of the Sabbath was not known. And there arose a man of the house of Joseph, and said with himself: I will go and pull up wood on the Sabbath day;

And witnesses saw it, and told Mosheh; and Mosheh sought instruction from the presence of the Lord, that he might teach me judgment, and make known the discipline of all the house of Israel.

And the witnesses of the man who pulled up and collected wood came, and, after they had monished him, and he had wounded the witnesses who had found him pulling up wood, brought him to Mosheh and Aharon, and all the congregation . . . .

Therefore they put him in confinement, because they had not yet heard the explanation of the judgment they should execute upon him.

And the Lord said to Mosheh: The man shall be surely put to death; the whole congregation shall stone him with stones outside the camp;

And the congregation led him forth outside the camp, and stoned him with stones that he died, as the Lord had commanded Mosheh. Jonathan Numbers 15:32-36

³⁷ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

³⁸ “Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribbon of blue

— the people are ordered by the Lord to make fringes on the borders of their garments; they were distinguished from their neighbours in their dress, as well as in their diet;

³⁹ And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may look upon it and remember all the commandments of the Lord and do them, and that ye seek not after your own heart and your own eyes, after which ye use to go a whoring,

— after your own heart, and your own eyes,that is, neither after the devices and inventions of your own minds or hearts, as Nadab and Abihu did when they offered strange fire,

⁴⁰ that ye may remember and do all My commandments, and be holy unto your God. — that ye may remember and do all my commandments; which is repeated, that the end and use of these fringes might be particularly taken notice of, and attended to;

⁴¹ I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt to be your God: I am the Lord your God.”

— I am the Lord your God; who had a right to enact laws, and enjoin the observance of them, as he was the Lord Yehovah; and they were under obligation to regard them, as he was not only their Creator but their covenant God and Father, who had bestowed his favours on them.

Numbers 16

¹ Now Korah the son of Izhar, the son of Kohath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben, took men;

— Korah, as a descendant of Levi; as a mere Levite, but as a Kohathite, entitled to carry the ark; but being left without hopes of arriving at the priesthood, may well have been jealous of the peculiar prerogatives of the priestly family;

— and Dathan and Abiram the sons of Eliab, and On the son of Peleth, sons of Reuben; they were Reubenites, not Levites;

² and they rose up before Moses with certain of the children of Israel, two hundred and fifty princes of the assembly, famous in the congregation, men of renown. — two hundred and fifty princes; or chief men of the congregation, belonged to the other tribes of Israel as well as that of Levi;

³ And they gathered themselves together against Moses and against Aaron, and said unto them, “Ye take too much upon you, seeing all the congregation are holy, every one of them, and the Lord is among them. Why then lift ye up yourselves above the congregation of the Lord?”

— wherefore lift ye up yourselves; thou, Moses, by prescribing what laws thou pleasest about the priesthood, and confining it to thy brother; and thou, Aaron, by usurping it as thy peculiar privilege?

⁴ And when Moses heard it, he fell upon his face; — fell upon his face; in shame, as the Targum of Jonathan, blushing at their sin, in opposing the ordinance of God; and through fear of the divine displeasure, and of the wrath of God coming upon them for such wickedness;

⁵ and he spoke unto Korah and unto all his company, saying, “Even tomorrow the Lord will show who are His and who is holy, and will cause him to come near unto Him. Even him whom He hath chosen will He cause to come near unto Him.

⁶ This do: Take you censers, Korah and all his company, — take you censers; the offering of incense was the peculiar prerogative and the holiest function of the priesthood;

⁷ and put fire therein and put incense in them before the Lord tomorrow. And it shall be that the man whom the Lord doth choose, he shall be holy. Ye take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.” — even to-morrow; literally, “in the morning,” the usual time of meeting for the settlement of public affairs.

⁸ And Moses said unto Korah, “Hear, I pray you, ye sons of Levi: — and he spoke unto Korah, and unto all his company; the two hundred fifty princes that were with him; what follows was said to them;

⁹ Seemeth it but a small thing unto you that the God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation of Israel, to bring you near to Himself to do the service of the tabernacle of the Lord and to stand before the congregation to minister unto them?

— that the God of Israel hath separated you from the congregation of Israel: this was a special favour, and ought to have been esteemed such, that God, who was the God of the whole people of Israel in common, should separate the tribe of Levi from all the rest of the tribes of Israel;

¹⁰ And He hath brought thee near to Him, and all thy brethren the sons of Levi with thee. And seek ye the priesthood also? — and he hath brought thee near to him; to be in his courts, to watch in his house, and wait on his priests, for which an ample provision was made by tithes. Korah is thus personally addressed.

¹¹ For this cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together against the Lord. And what is Aaron, that ye murmur against him?”

— for which cause both thou and all thy company are gathered together. It does not follow that Korah was seeking an exclusive dignity for himself; or for his tribe. His “company” apparently included representative men from all the tribes, or at least from many;

¹² And Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab, who said, “We will not come up. — and Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiram, the sons of Eliab; Moses sent messengers to call them to the house of judgment, as the Targum of Jonathan, to the court of judicature,

— Dathan and Abiram had joined Korah and his company in the address to Moses which is contained in Numbers 16:3, but they went away to their own tents: from which they refused to go up at the bidding of Moses; despised his authority, and would not obey his orders.

¹³ Is it a small thing that thou hast brought us up out of a land that floweth with milk and honey to kill us in the wilderness, unless thou make thyself altogether a prince over us? — to kill us in the wilderness, for want of food, of which they had plenty in Egypt; they suggest it may be, to what the Lord by Moses had said to them, that their carcasses should fall in the wilderness;

¹⁴ Moreover thou hast not brought us into a land that floweth with milk and honey, or given us inheritance of fields and vineyards. Wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? We will not come up!”

— wilt thou put out the eyes of these men? it may be, to denote an alleged attempt on the part of Moses to blind the eyes of the people to the violation of promises solemnly made to them, and to impose upon them a law of blind obedience to his own arbitrary injunctions;

¹⁵ And Moses was very wroth, and said unto the Lord, “Respect not Thou their offering. I have not taken one ass from them, neither have I hurt one of them.” — and Moses was very wroth; or “it heated Moses exceedingly” made him very angry, caused him to burn with wrath against them;

— and said unto the Lord, respect not thou their offering; Moses desires that the Lord would have no respect to any they had offered, but have respect to him, who had never injured any of them.

¹⁶ And Moses said unto Korah, “Be thou and all thy company before the Lord, thou and they and Aaron, tomorrow. — be thou and all thy company before the Lord; at the tabernacle, at the door of it; the Targum of Jonathan says, at the house of judgment, the court of judicature, where this affair was to be tried, and that was at the tabernacle;

¹⁷ And take every man his censer and put incense in them, and bring ye before the Lord every man his censer, two hundred and fifty censers, thou also and Aaron, each of you his censer.” — and bring ye before the Lord every man his censer, two hundred and fifty censers: according to the number of the men that were gathered with Korah;

¹⁸ And they took every man his censer and put fire in them and laid incense thereon, and stood in the door of the tabernacle of the congregation with Moses and Aaron.

— with Moses and Aaron; in a bold and presumptuous manner, as if they were their equals, disputing their authority, and putting themselves upon their trial before the Lord about it: the Targum of Jonathan says, these men stood on one side (of the door of the tabernacle), and Moses and Aaron stood on the other side of it;

¹⁹ And Korah gathered all the congregation against them unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation; and the glory of the Lord appeared unto all the congregation. — Korah gathered all the congregation; that they might be witnesses of the event, and, upon their success, which they doubted not of, might fall upon Moses and Aaron.

²⁰ And the Lord spoke unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying,

²¹ “Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may consume them in a moment.” — separate yourselves, from among this congregation; not only from Korah’s company, but from the congregation of the children of Israel, whom Korah had got together, besides the two hundred fifty men that were at first with him;

²² And they fell upon their faces, and said, “O God, the God of the spirits of all flesh, shall one man sin, and wilt Thou be wroth with all the congregation?” — and they fell upon their faces; that is, Moses and Aaron, in order to deprecate the wrath of God, and beseech him to avert the threatened judgement; and so the Targum of Jonathan has it, “they bowed themselves in prayer upon their faces;”

— shall one man sin: meaning Korah, who was the ringleader: and wilt thou be wroth with all the congregation? who, through ignorance and weakness, and by artifice and imposition, are drawn in to join with him;

²³ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

²⁴ “Speak unto the congregation, saying, ‘Get you up from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.’” — Get you up from about the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram;

²⁵ And Moses rose up and went unto Dathan and Abiram, and the elders of Israel followed him.

²⁶ And he spoke unto the congregation, saying, “Depart, I pray you, from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest ye be consumed in all their sins.”

²⁷ So they got up from the tabernacle of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram on every side; and Dathan and Abiram came out and stood in the door of their tents, and their wives and their sons and their little children.

— the tent, “the tabernacle” of Korah, as a Kohathite, stood on the south side of the tabernacle of the Lord; and those of Dathan and Abiram, as Reubenites, in the outer line of encampment on the same side.

²⁸ And Moses said, “Hereby ye shall know that the Lord hath sent me to do all these works, for I have not done them of mine own mind.

— and Moses said, hereby ye shall know that the Lord hath sent me to do all these works; to bring the people of Israel out of Egypt, to exchange the firstborn for the Levites, to make Aaron and his sons priests, to give the Levites to them, and to set Elizaphan as leading over the Kohathites, things which these men found fault with, and questioned his authority for doing them;

— for I have not done them of my own mind; or “not out of my heart” he had not devised them himself, and done them of his own head, and in any arbitrary way, without the will of God or any authority from him, as these men suggested.

²⁹ If these men die the common death of all men, or if they be visited according to the visitation of all men, then the Lord hath not sent me.

— the death of all men; by a natural death; the visitation of all men, by plague, or sword, or some usual judgment: the Lord hath not sent me: that is, I am content that you take me for an impostor, falsely pretending to be sent of God.

³⁰ But if the Lord make a new thing, and the earth open her mouth and swallow them up with all that appertain unto them, and they go down alive into the pit, then ye shall understand that these men have provoked the Lord.” — then ye shall understated that these men have provoked the Lord; by rising up against Moses and Aaron, and so against the Lord;

³¹ And it came to pass, as he had made an end of speaking all these words, that the ground cleaved asunder that was under them;

— that the ground clave asunder that was under them; not from any natural cause, forcibly making their way and bursting the earth, and so getting vent, which has been thought to be the cause of earthquakes;

— but this was by the immediate hand and almighty power of God, and came to pass just as Moses suggested it would, and as soon as he had uttered his words, which made it the more observable.

³² and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed them up, and their houses and all the men who appertained unto Korah, and all their goods. — and all the men that appertained unto Korah: not just Korah himself, for he was with the two hundred fifty men that had censers; it is highly probable, perished by fire with the two hundred fifty men.

³³ They and all that appertained to them went down alive into the pit, and the earth closed upon them; and they perished from among the congregation. — into the pit, that is, into the earth, which first opened itself to receive them, and then shut itself to destroy them, an instance of almighty power and transmit them to further punishment.

³⁴ And all Israel who were round about them fled at the cry of them, for they said, “Lest the earth swallow us up also!” — their cry was so loud, their shrieks so dreadful and piercing, that the Israelites about them fled to get out of the sound of them, as well as for their own safety;

³⁵ And there came out a fire from the Lord, and consumed the two hundred and fifty men who offered incense. — and there came out a fire from the Lord; flashes of lightning from the cloud in which he was: and consumed the two hundred and fifty men that offered incense;

³⁶ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

³⁷ “Speak unto Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest, that he take up the censers out of the burning, and scatter thou the fire yonder, for they are hallowed. — unto Eleazar, rather than to Aaron, probably because the tronblesome part of the work was more proper for him,

— and partly lest Aaron should be polluted by going amongst those dead carcasses; for it is probable this fire consumed them, as lightning sometimes take away lives, leaving their bodies dead where they were.

³⁸ The censers of these sinners against their own souls, let them make them into broad plates for a covering of the altar; for they offered them before the Lord. Therefore they are hallowed, and they shall be a sign unto the children of Israel.”

— the censers of these sinners against their own souls; who by burning incense in them sinned, and by sinning hurt and ruined their souls;

— let them make them broad plates for a covering of the altar; the altar of burnt offering, which, though it had a covering of brass, another made of these were to be over it;

— a sign; a monument or warning to all strangers to take heed of invading the priesthood, who attended at the altar continually, as it follows, Numbers 16:40; not to usurp the priest’s office; and to all the children of Israel, to learn from hence that none were to burn incense but the priests of the Lord;

³⁹ And Eleazar the priest took the brazen censers, wherewith those who were burned had offered, and they were made broad plates for a covering of the altar

— and they were made broad plates for a covering of the altar; not by Eleazar, but by workmen skilled in the art of drawing or beating any kind of metal into thin plates, by the direction and order of Eleazar.

⁴⁰ to be a memorial unto the children of Israel, that no stranger, who is not of the seed of Aaron, come near to offer incense before the Lord; that he be not as Korah and as his company, as the Lord said to him by the hand of Moses.

— to be a memorial unto the children of Israel; the whole body of them; this explains what is meant by sign, Numbers 16:38; that it was to put or keep in mind what follows: that no stranger which is not of the seed of Aaron come near to offer incense before the Lord;

— not only any Gentile but any Israelite; and not any Israelite, but even none of the Levites; none except those of the family of Aaron might offer incense before the Lord;

⁴¹ But on the morrow all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and against Aaron, saying, “Ye have killed the people of the Lord.”

— on the morrow; the day following the dreadful catastrophe, the earth swallowing up Dathan and Abiram, the burning of Korah and the two hundred fifty men of his company: all the congregation of the children of Israel murmured against Moses;

— ye have killed the people of the Lord; so they lay charge on Moses and Aaron again, because it was in vindication of them that it was done, and because they did not intercede by prayer for them; yet the people insist on it that they were the cause or occasion of their death.

⁴² And it came to pass, when the congregation was gathered against Moses and against Aaron, that they looked toward the tabernacle of the congregation; and behold, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared.

— and it came to pass, when the congregation was gathered against Moses and against Aaron; to kill them, as the Targum of Jonathan adds; (in Numbers 17:7 instead) who, perhaps, upon uttering their murmurs, made up to them, and by their gestures showed an intention to murder them;

— and, behold, the cloud covered it; and the glory of the Lord appeared; in the cloud, as in Numbers 16:19; to encourage Moses and Aaron, and to deliver them out of the hands of the people, and to the terror of them.

⁴³ And Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle of the congregation. — and Moses and Aaron came before the tabernacle of the congregation. Whose tent was not far from it, about which the people of Israel were gathered;

⁴⁴ And the Lord spoke unto Moses, saying,

⁴⁵ “Get you up from among this congregation, that I may consume them as in a moment.” And they fell upon their faces. — and they fell upon their faces; in prayer, as the Targums of Jonathan says; to implore his pardoning mercy for this sinful people; 

⁴⁶ And Moses said unto Aaron, “Take a censer and put fire therein from the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation and make an atonement for them. For there has wrath gone out from the Lord; the plague has begun.”

— Go quickly unto the congregation, with the incense, to stir up the people to repentance and prayer to prevent their utter ruin; this he might do upon this extraordinary occasion, having God’s command for his warrant, though ordinarily incense was to be offered only in the tabernacle;

— the plague has begun, in cutting off the people by a sudden and miraculous stroke; a pestilence was sent among the people, from the presence of the Lord.

⁴⁷ And Aaron took as Moses commanded, and ran into the midst of the congregation; and behold, the plague had begun among the people. And he put on incense, and made an atonement for the people. — and, behold, the plague was begun among the people; he saw them fall down dead instantly in great numbers;

⁴⁸ And he stood between the dead and the living; and the plague was stayed. — and the plague was stayed; it proceeded no further than where Aaron stood and offered his incense, and made atonement;

⁴⁹ Now those who died in the plague were fourteen thousand and seven hundred, besides those who died in the matter of Korah: 14,700; but no mention was made of those who died from the earthquake;

— now they that died in the plague were fourteen thousand and seven hundred: 14,700; beside them that died about the matter of Korah; these are not taken into the number here, even the two hundred fifty men of Korah’s company, and the families of Dathan and Abiram.

⁵⁰ And Aaron returned unto Moses unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and the plague was stayed. — and the plague was stayed: even before Aaron left the camp, and is here repeated that it continued to cease, and broke not out again.

Finally, consider this PROPHECY

“And upon thy sword shalt thou depend, entering at every place: yet thou shalt be supple and credulous, and be in subjection to thy brother [Jacob]; but it will be that when his sons [the children of Israel] become evil, and fall from keeping the commandments of the law, thou shalt break his yoke of servitude from off thy neck….and then will I kill Jakob my brother,” Genesis 27:41-42 Jonathan

~ by Japheth on March 2, 2024.

Posted in Books of Moses