Chapter 27

15:24. And the multitude have forgotten to do it: they shall offer a calf out of the herd, a holocaust for a most sweet savour to the Lord, and the sacrifice and libations thereof, as the ceremonies require, and a buck goat for sin:

15:25. And the priest shall pray for all the multitude of the children of Israel: and it shall be forgiven them, because they sinned ignorantly, offering notwithstanding a burnt offering to the Lord for themselves and for their sin and their Ignorance:

15:26. And it shall be forgiven all the people of the children of Israel: and the strangers that sojourn among them: because it is the fault of all the people through ignorance.

15:27. But if one soul shall sin ignorantly, he shall offer a she goat of a year old for his sin.

15:28. And the priest shall pray for him, because he sinned ignorantly before the Lord: and he shall obtain his pardon, and it shall be forgiven him.

15:29. The same law shall be for all that sin by ignorance, whether they be natives or strangers.

15:30. But the soul that committeth any thing through pride, whether he be born in the land or a stranger (because he hath been rebellious against the Lord) shall be cut off from among his people:

15:31. For he hath contemned the word of the Lord, and made void his precept: therefore shall he be destroyed, and shall bear his iniquity.

15:32. And it came to pass, when the children of Israel were in the wilderness, and had found a man gathering sticks on the sabbath day,

15:33. That they brought him to Moses and Aaron and the whole multitude.

15:34. And they put him into prison, not knowing what they should do with him.

15:35. And the Lord said to Moses: Let that man die, let all the multitude stone him without the camp.

15:36. And when they had brought him out, they stoned him, and he died as the Lord had commanded.

15:37. The Lord also said to Moses:

15:38. Speak to the children of Israel, and thou shalt tell them to make to themselves fringes in the corners of their garments, putting in them ribands of blue:

Fringes.... The Pharisees enlarged these fringes through hypocrisy, Matt. 23.5, to appear more zealous than other men for the law of God.

15:39. That when they shall see them, they may remember all the commandments of the Lord, and not follow their own thoughts and eyes going astray after divers things,

15:40. But rather being mindful of the precepts of the Lord, may do them and be holy to their God.

15:41. I am the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, that I might be your God.

Numbers Chapter 16

The schism of Core and his adherents: their punishment.

16:1. And behold Core the son of Isaar, the son of Caath, the son of Levi, and Dathan and Abiron the sons of Eliab, and Hon the son of Pheleth of the children of Ruben,

16:2. Rose up against Moses, and with them two hundred and fifty others of the children of Israel, leading men of the synagogue, and who in the time of assembly were called by name.

Rose up.... The crime of these men, which was punished in so remarkable a manner, was that of schism, and of rebellion against the authority established by God in the church; and their pretending to the priesthood without being lawfully called and sent: the same is the case of all modern sectaries.

16:3. And when they had stood up against Moses and Aaron, they said: Let it be enough for you, that all the multitude consisteth of holy ones, and the Lord is among them: Why lift you up yourselves above the people of the Lord?

16:4. When Moses heard this, he fell flat on his face:

16:5. And speaking to Core and all the multitude, he said: In the morning the Lord will make known who belong to him, and the holy he will join to himself: and whom he shall choose, they shall approach to him.

16:6. Do this therefore: Take every man of you your censers, thou Core, and all thy company.

16:7. And putting fire in them to morrow, put incense upon it before the Lord: and whomsoever he shall choose, the same shall be holy: you take too much upon you, ye sons of Levi.

16:8. And he said again to Core: Hear ye sons of Levi.

16:9. Is it a small thing unto you, that the God of Israel hath spared you from all the people, and joined you to himself, that you should serve him in the service of the tabernacle, and should stand before the congregation of the people, and should minister to him?

16:10. Did he therefore make thee and all thy brethren the sons of Levi to approach unto him, that you should challenge to yourselves the priesthood also,

16:11. And that all thy company should stand against the Lord? for what is Aaron that you murmur against him?

16:12. Then Moses sent to call Dathan and Abiron the sons of Eliab. But they answered: We will not come.

16:13. Is it a small matter to thee, that thou hast brought us out of a land that flowed with milk and honey, to kill us in the desert, except thou rule also like a lord over us?

16:14. Thou hast brought us indeed into a land that floweth with rivers of milk and honey, and hast given us possessions of fields and vineyards; wilt thou also pull out our eyes? We will not come.

16:15. Moses therefore being very angry, said to the Lord: Respect not their sacrifices: thou knowest that I have not taken of them so much as a young ass at any time, nor have injured any of them.

Very angry.... This anger was a zeal against sin; and an indignation at the affront offered to God; like that which the same holy prophet conceived upon the sight of the golden calf, Ex. 32.19.

16:16. And he said to Core: Do thou and thy congregation stand apart before the Lord to morrow, and Aaron apart.

16:17. Take every one of you censers, and put incense upon them, offering to the Lord two hundred and fifty censers: let Aaron also hold his censer.

16:18. When they had done this, Moses and Aaron standing,

16:19. And had drawn up all the multitude against them to the door of the tabernacle, the glory of the Lord appeared to them all.

16:20. And the Lord speaking to Moses and Aaron, said:

16:21. Separate yourselves from among this congregation, that I may presently destroy them.

16:22. They fell flat on their face, and said: O most mighty, the God of the spirits of all flesh, for one man’s sin shall thy wrath rage against all?

16:23. And the Lord said to Moses:

16:24. Command the whole people to separate themselves from the tents of Core and Dathan and Abiron.

16:25. And Moses arose, and went to Dathan and Abiron: and the ancients of Israel following him,

16:26. He said to the multitude: Depart from the tents of these wicked men, and touch nothing of theirs, lest you be involved in their sins.

16:27. And when they were departed from their tents round about, Dathan and Abiron coming out stood in the entry of their pavilions with their wives and children, and all the people.

16:28. And Moses said: By this you shall know that the Lord hath sent me to do all things that you see, and that I have not forged them of my own head:

16:29. If these men die the common death of men, and if they be visited with a plague, wherewith others also are wont to be visited, the Lord did not send me.

16:30. But if the Lord do a new thing, and the earth opening her mouth swallow them down, and all things that belong to them, and they go down alive into hell, you shall know that they have blasphemed the Lord.

16:31. And immediately as he had made an end of speaking, the earth broke asunder under their feet:

16:32. And opening her mouth, devoured them with their tents and all their substance.

16:33. And they went down alive into hell, the ground closing upon them, and they perished from among the people.

16:34. But all Israel, that was standing round about, fled at the cry of them that were perishing: saying: Lest perhaps the earth swallow us up also.

16:35. And a fire coming out from the Lord, destroyed the two hundred and fifty men that offered the incense.

16:36. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

16:37. Command Eleazar the son of Aaron the priest to take up the censers that lie in the burning, and to scatter the fire of one side and the other: because they are sanctified

16:38. In the deaths of the sinners: and let him beat them into plates, and fasten them to the altar, because incense hath been offered in them to the Lord, and they are sanctified, that the children of Israel may see them for a sign and a memorial.

16:39. Then Eleazar the priest took the brazen censers, wherein they had offered, whom the burning fire had devoured, and beat them into plates, fastening them to the altar:

16:40. That the children of Israel might have for the time to come wherewith they should be admonished, that no stranger or any one that is not of the seed of Aaron should come near to offer incense to the Lord, lest he should suffer as Core suffered, and all his congregation, according as the Lord spoke to Moses.

16:41. The following day all the multitude of the children of Israel murmured against Moses and Aaron, saying: You have killed the people of the Lord.

16:42. And when there arose a sedition, and the tumult increased,

16:43. Moses and Aaron fled to the tabernacle of the covenant. And when they were gone into it, the cloud covered it, and the glory of the Lord appeared.

16:44. And the Lord said to Moses:

16:45. Get you out from the midst of this multitude, this moment will I destroy them. And as they were lying on the ground,

16:46. Moses said to Aaron: Take the censer, and putting fire in it from the altar, put incense upon it, and go quickly to the people to pray for them: for already wrath is gone out from the Lord, and the plague rageth.

16:47. When Aaron had done this, and had run to the midst of the multitude which the burning fire was now destroying, he offered the incense:

16:48. And standing between the dead and the living, he prayed for the people, and the plague ceased.

16:49. And the number of them that were slain was fourteen thousand and seven hundred men, besides them that had perished in the sedition of Core.

16:50. And Aaron returned to Moses to the door of the tabernacle of the covenant after the destruction was over.

Numbers Chapter 17

The priesthood is confirmed to Aaron by the miracle of the blooming of his rod, which is kept for a monument in the tabernacle.

17:1. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

17:2. Speak to the children of Israel, and take of every one of them a rod by their kindreds, of all the princes of the tribes, twelve rods, and write the name of every man upon his rod.

17:3. And the name of Aaron shall be for the tribe of Levi, and one rod shall contain all their families:

17:4. And thou shalt lay them up in the tabernacle of the covenant before the testimony, where I will speak to thee.

17:5. Whomsoever of these I shall choose, his rod shall blossom: and I will make to cease from me the murmurings of the children of Israel, wherewith they murmur against you.

17:6. And Moses spoke to the children of Israel: and all the princes gave him rods one for every tribe: and there were twelve rods besides the rod of Aaron.

17:7. And when Moses had Laid them up before the Lord in the tabernacle of the testimony:

17:8. He returned on the following day, and found that the rod of Aaron for the house of Levi, was budded: and that the buds swelling it had bloomed blossoms, which spreading the leaves, were formed into almonds.

The rod of Aaron for the house of Levi, was budded, etc.... This rod of Aaron which thus miraculously brought forth fruit, was a figure of the blessed Virgin conceiving and bringing forth her Son without any prejudice to her virginity.

17:9. Moses therefore brought out all the rods from before the Lord to all the children of Israel: and they saw, and every one received their rods.

17:10. And the Lord said to Moses: Carry back the rod of Aaron into the tabernacle of the testimony, that it may be kept there for a token of the rebellious children of Israel, and that their complaints may cease from me lest they die.

17:11. And Moses did as the Lord had commanded.

17:12. And the children of Israel said to Moses: Behold we are consumed, we all perish.

17:13. Whosoever approacheth to the tabernacle of the Lord, he dieth. Are we all to a man to be utterly destroyed?

Numbers Chapter 18

The charge of the priests and of the Levites, and their portion.

18:1. And the Lord said to Aaron: Thou, and thy sons, and thy father’s house with thee shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary: and thou and thy sons with thee shall bear the sins of your priesthood.

Thou, and thy father’s house with thee, shall bear the iniquity of the sanctuary.... That is, you shall be punished if, through negligence or want of due attention, you err in the discharge of the sacred functions for which you were ordained.

18:2. And take with thee thy brethren also of the tribe of Levi, and the sceptre of thy father, and let them be ready in hand, and minister to thee: but thou and thy sons shall minister in the tabernacle of the testimony.

18:3. And the Levites shall watch to do thy commands, and about all the works of the tabernacle: only they shall not come nigh the vessels of the sanctuary nor the altar, lest both they die, and you also perish with them.

18:4. But let them be with thee, and watch in the charge of the tabernacle, and in all the ceremonies thereof. A stranger shall not join himself with you.

18:5. Watch ye in the charge of the sanctuary, and in the ministry of the altar: lest indignation rise upon the children of Israel.

18:6. I have given you your brethren the Levites from among the children of Israel, and have delivered them for a gift to the Lord, to serve in the ministries of the tabernacle.

18:7. But thou and thy sons look ye to the priesthood: and all things that pertain to the service of the altar, and that are within the veil, shall be executed by the priests. If any stranger shall approach, he shall be slain.

18:8. And the Lord said to Aaron: Behold I have given thee the charge of my firstfruits. All things that are sanctified by the children of Israel, I have delivered to thee and to thy sons for the priestly office, by everlasting ordinances.

18:9. These therefore shalt thou take of the things that are sanctified, and are offered to the Lord. Every offering, and sacrifice, and whatsoever is rendered to me for sin and for trespass, and becometh holy of holies, shall be for thee and thy sons.

18:10. Thou shalt eat it in the sanctuary: the males only shall eat thereof, because it is a consecrated thing to thee.

18:11. But the firstfruits, which the children of Israel shall vow and offer, I have given to thee, and to thy sons, and to thy daughters, by a perpetual law. He that is clean in thy house, shall eat them.

18:12. All the best of the oil, and of the wine, and of the corn, whatsoever firstfruits they offer to the Lord, I have given them to thee.

18:13. All the firstripe of the fruits, that the ground bringeth forth, and which are brought to the Lord, shall be for thy use: he that is clean in thy house, shall eat them.

18:14. Every thing that the children of Israel shall give by vow, shall be thine.

18:15. Whatsoever is firstborn of all flesh, which they offer to the Lord, whether it be of men, or of beasts, shall belong to thee: only for the firstborn of man thou shalt take a price, and every beast that is unclean thou shalt cause to be redeemed,

18:16. And the redemption of it shall be after one month, for five sicles of silver, by the weight of the sanctuary. A sicle hath twenty obols.

18:17. But the firstling of a cow, and of a sheep and of a goat thou shalt not cause to be redeemed, because they are sanctified to the Lord. Their blood only thou shalt pour upon the altar, and their fat thou shalt burn for a most sweet odour to the Lord.

18:18. But the flesh shall fall to thy use, as the consecrated breast, and the right shoulder shall be thine.

18:19. All the firstfruits of the sanctuary which the children of Israel offer to the Lord, I have given to thee and to thy sons and daughters, by a perpetual ordinance. It is a covenant of salt for ever before the Lord, to thee and to thy sons.

A covenant of salt.... It is a proverbial expression, signifying a covenant not to be altered or corrupted; as salt is used to keep things from corruption; a covenant perpetual, like that by which it was appointed, that salt should be used in every sacrifice. Lev. 2.

18:20. And the Lord said to Aaron: You shall possess nothing in their land, neither shall you have a portion among them: I am thy portion and inheritance in the midst of the children of Israel.

18:21. And I have given to the sons of Levi all the tithes of Israel for a possession, for the ministry wherewith they serve me in the tabernacle of the covenant:

18:22. That the children of Israel may not approach any more to the tabernacle, nor commit deadly sin,

Deadly sin.... That is, sin which will bring death after it.

18:23. But only the sons of Levi may serve me in the tabernacle, and bear the sins of the people. It shall be an everlasting ordinance in your generations. They shall not possess any other thing,

18:24. But be content with the oblation or tithes, which I have separated for their uses and necessities.

18:25. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying:

18:26. Command the Levites, and declare unto them: When you shall receive of the children of Israel the tithes, which I have given you, offer the firstfruits of them to the Lord, that is to say, the tenth part of the tenth:

18:27. That it may be reckoned to you as an oblation of firstfruits, as well of the barnfloors as of the winepresses:

18:28. And of all the things of which you receive tithes, offer the firstfruits to the Lord, and give them to Aaron the priest.

18:29. All the things that you shall offer of the tithes, and shall separate for the gifts of the Lord, shall be the best and choicest things.

18:30. And thou shalt say to them: If you offer all the goodly and the better things of the tithes, it shall be reckoned to you as if you had given the firstfruits of the barnfloor and the winepress:

18:31. And you shall eat them in all your places, both you and your families: because it is your reward for the ministry, wherewith you serve in the tabernacle of the testimony.

18:32. And you shall not sin in this point, by reserving the choicest and fat things to yourselves, lest you profane the oblations of the children of Israel, and die.

Numbers Chapter 19

The law of the sacrifice of the red cow, and the water of expiation.

19:1. And the Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying:

19:2. This is the observance of the victim, which the Lord hath ordained. Command the children of Israel, that they bring unto thee a red cow of full age, in which there is no blemish, and which hath not carried the yoke:

A red cow, etc.... This red cow, offered in sacrifice for sin, and consumed with fire without the camp, with the ashes of which, mingled with water, the unclean were to be expiated and purified; was a figure of the passion of Christ, by whose precious blood applied to our souls in the holy sacraments, we are cleansed from our sins.

19:3. And you shall deliver her to Eleazar the priest, who shall bring her forth without the camp, and shall immolate her in the sight of all:

19:4. And dipping his finger in her blood, shall sprinkle it over against the door of the tabernacle seven times,

19:5. And shall burn her in the sight of all delivering up to the fire her skin, and her flesh, and her blood, and her dung.

19:6. The priest shall also take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet twice dyed, and cast it into the flame, with which the cow is consumed.

19:7. And then after washing his garments, and body, he shall enter into the camp, and shall be unclean until the evening.

19:8. He also that hath burned her, shall wash his garments, and his body, and shall be unclean until the evening.

19:9. And a man that is clean shall gather up the ashes of the cow, and shall pour them forth without the camp in a most clean place, that they may be reserved for the multitude of the children of Israel, and for a water of aspersion: because the cow was burnt for sin.

19:10. And when he that carried the ashes of the cow, hath washed his garments, he shall be unclean until the evening. The children of Israel, and the strangers that dwell among them, shall observe this for a holy thing by a perpetual ordinance.

19:11. He that toucheth the corpse of a man, and is therefore unclean seven days,

19:12. Shall be sprinkled with this water on the third day, and on the seventh, and so shall be cleansed. If he were not sprinkled on the third day, he cannot be cleansed on the seventh.

19:13. Every one that toucheth the corpse of a man, and is not sprinkled with this mixture, shall profane the tabernacle of the Lord, and shall perish out of Israel: because he was not sprinkled with the water of expiation, he shall be unclean, and his uncleanness shall remain upon him.

19:14. This is the law of a man that dieth in a tent: All that go into his tent and all the vessels that are there, shall be unclean seven days.

19:15. The vessel that hath no cover, nor binding over it, shall be unclean.

19:16. If any man in the field touch the corpse of a man that was slain, or that died of himself, or his bone, or his grave, he shall be unclean seven days.

19:17. And they shall take of the ashes of the burning and of the sin offering, and shall pour living waters upon them into a vessel.

19:18. And a man that is clean shall dip hyssop in them, and shall sprinkle therewith all the tent, and all the furniture, and the men that are defiled with touching any such thing:

19:19. And in this manner he that is clean shall purify the unclean on the third and on the seventh day. And being expiated the seventh day, he shall wash both himself and his garments, and be unclean until the evening.

19:20. If any man be not expiated after this rite, his soul shall perish out of the midst of the church: because he hath profaned the sanctuary of the Lord, and was not sprinkled with the water of purification.

19:21. This precept shall be an ordinance for ever. He also that sprinkled the water, shall wash his garments. Every one that shall touch the waters of expiation, shall be unclean until the evening.

19:22. Whatsoever a person toucheth who is unclean, he shall make it unclean: and the person that toucheth any of these things, shall be unclean until the evening.

Numbers Chapter 20

The death of Mary the sister of Moses. The people murmur for want of water: God giveth it them from the rock. The death of Aaron.

20:1. And the children of Israel, and all the multitude came into the desert of Sin, in the first month: and the people abode in Cades. And Mary died there, and was buried in the same place.

20:2. And the people wanting water, came together against Moses and Aaron:

20:3. And making a sedition, they said: Would God we had perished among our brethren before the Lord.

20:4. Why have you brought out the church of the Lord into the wilderness, that both we and our cattle should die?

20:5. Why have you made us come up out of Egypt, and have brought us into this wretched place which cannot be sowed, nor bringeth forth figs, nor vines, nor pomegranates, neither is there any water to drink?

20:6. And Moses and Aaron leaving the multitude, went into the tabernacle of the covenant, and fell flat upon the ground, and cried to the Lord, and said. O Lord God, hear the cry of this people, and open to them thy treasure, a fountain of living water, that being satisfied, they may cease to murmur. And the glory of the Lord appeared over them.

20:7. And the Lord spoke to Moses, saying: