Offerings of Dedication

1On the day Moses finished setting up the tabernacle, he anointed and consecrated it and all its furnishings, along with the altar and all its utensils. 2And the leaders of Israel, the heads of their families, presented an offering. These men were the tribal leaders who had supervised the registration. 3They brought as their offering before the LORD six covered carts and twelve oxen—an ox from each leader and a cart from every two leaders—and presented them before the tabernacle.

4And the LORD said to Moses, 5“Accept these gifts from them, that they may be used in the work of the Tent of Meeting. And give them to the Levites, to each man according to his service.”

6So Moses took the carts and oxen and gave them to the Levites. 7He gave the Gershonites two carts and four oxen, as their service required, 8and he gave the Merarites four carts and eight oxen, as their service required, all under the direction of Ithamar son of Aaron the priest. 9But he did not give any to the Kohathites, since they were to carry on their shoulders the holy objects for which they were responsible.

10When the altar was anointed, the leaders approached with their offerings for its dedication and presented them before the altar. 11And the LORD said to Moses, “Each day one leader is to present his offering for the dedication of the altar.”

12On the first day Nahshon son of Amminadab from the tribe of Judah drew near with his offering. 13His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels,a and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels,b both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 14one gold dish weighing ten shekels,c filled with incense; 15one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 16one male goat for a sin offering; 17and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Nahshon son of Amminadab.

18On the second day Nethanel son of Zuar, the leader of Issachar, drew near. 19The offering he presented was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 20one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 21one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 22one male goat for a sin offering; 23and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Nethanel son of Zuar.

24On the third day Eliab son of Helon, the leader of the Zebulunites, drew near. 25His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 26one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 27one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 28one male goat for a sin offering; 29and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Eliab son of Helon.

30On the fourth day Elizur son of Shedeur, the leader of the Reubenites, drew near. 31His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 32one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 33one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 34one male goat for a sin offering; 35and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Elizur son of Shedeur.

36On the fifth day Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai, the leader of the Simeonites, drew near. 37His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 38one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 39one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 40one male goat for a sin offering; 41and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Shelumiel son of Zurishaddai.

42On the sixth day Eliasaph son of Deuel, the leader of the Gadites, drew near. 43His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 44one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 45one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 46one male goat for a sin offering; 47and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Eliasaph son of Deuel.

48On the seventh day Elishama son of Ammihud, the leader of the Ephraimites, drew near. 49His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 50one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 51one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 52one male goat for a sin offering; 53and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Elishama son of Ammihud.

54On the eighth day Gamaliel son of Pedahzur, the leader of the Manassites, drew near. 55His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 56one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 57one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 58one male goat for a sin offering; 59and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Gamaliel son of Pedahzur.

60On the ninth day Abidan son of Gideoni, the leader of the Benjamites, drew near. 61His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 62one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 63one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 64one male goat for a sin offering; 65and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Abidan son of Gideoni.

66On the tenth day Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai, the leader of the Danites, drew near. 67His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 68one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 69one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 70one male goat for a sin offering; 71and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Ahiezer son of Ammishaddai.

72On the eleventh day Pagiel son of Ocran, the leader of the Asherites, drew near. 73His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 74one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 75one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 76one male goat for a sin offering; 77and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Pagiel son of Ocran.

78On the twelfth day Ahira son of Enan, the leader of the Naphtalites, drew near. 79His offering was one silver platter weighing a hundred and thirty shekels, and one silver bowl weighing seventy shekels, both according to the sanctuary shekel and filled with fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering; 80one gold dish weighing ten shekels, filled with incense; 81one young bull, one ram, and one male lamb a year old for a burnt offering; 82one male goat for a sin offering; 83and a peace offering of two oxen, five rams, five male goats, and five male lambs a year old. This was the offering of Ahira son of Enan.

84So these were the offerings from the leaders of Israel for the dedication of the altar when it was anointed: twelve silver platters, twelve silver bowls, and twelve gold dishes.

85Each silver platter weighed a hundred and thirty shekels, and each silver bowl seventy shekels. The total weight of the silver articles was two thousand four hundred shekels,d according to the sanctuary shekel.

86The twelve gold dishes filled with incense weighed ten shekels each, according to the sanctuary shekel. The total weight of the gold dishes was a hundred and twenty shekels.e

87All the livestock for the burnt offering totaled twelve bulls, twelve rams, and twelve male lambs a year old—together with their grain offerings—and twelve male goats for the sin offering.

88All the livestock sacrificed for the peace offering totaled twenty-four bulls, sixty rams, sixty male goats, and sixty male lambs a year old. This was the dedication offering for the altar after it was anointed.

89When Moses entered the Tent of Meeting to speak with the LORD, he heard the voice speaking to him from between the two cherubim above the mercy seatf on the ark of the Testimony.g Thus the LORD spoke to him.

2. Numbers 7:12–29: Is the repetitive listing of identical offerings by each tribe historically realistic, or does it suggest a literary formula?

3. Numbers 7:85–88: How did a nomadic community manage the massive total of precious metals and livestock described in these verses?

4. Numbers 7:10–11: Why would God require each tribe to offer exactly the same items rather than reflecting different tribal resources?

5. Numbers 7:89: Is there any historical or archaeological evidence that Moses literally heard God's voice from the mercy seat of the ark?

1. How does Numbers 7 portray the concept of obedience to God's commands?

2. What can we learn from the detailed descriptions of the offerings given by each tribe?

3. How does the role of the Levites in Numbers 7 reflect the concept of service in faith?

4. In what ways are the offerings of the tribal leaders reflective of their commitment and devotion to God?

5. How does the repeated pattern of offerings across the twelve days of dedication speak to us about consistency in our faith practices?

6. How can the example of the Israelites' generosity in Numbers 7 inspire us in our giving today?

7. What are the modern equivalents of the offerings described in Numbers 7, and how can we incorporate these into our lives?

8. How can we interpret Moses’ interaction with God in the Tabernacle in the context of our own prayer lives?

9. In what ways does Numbers 7 encourage the act of giving and generosity in our everyday lives?

10. How does the concept of dedication demonstrated in Numbers 7 relate to personal sacrifices we make in our faith journey?

11. How can the unity displayed by the Israelites in Numbers 7 inform our understanding of community within a modern church context?

12. What is the significance of God’s voice coming from between the two cherubim, and what might this symbolize in our relationship with God?

13. How can we embody the obedience shown by the Israelites when facing our own trials?

14. What implications does the tribal leaders’ act of giving have on our perspectives of leadership and responsibility today?

15. How does the dedication of the Tabernacle inspire our dedication to places of worship in today's context?

16. How can we seek and recognize divine communication in our own lives, similar to Moses' experience in the Tabernacle?

17. What do you think motivated the leaders of each tribe to offer generously to the Tabernacle?

18. How can we practice the level of dedication shown by the Israelites in our personal and communal worship?

19. How does the divine communication received by Moses in the Tabernacle reassure us about God's guidance and blessing in our lives?

20. How can the repetitive nature of the offerings in Numbers 7 inform our understanding of discipline and commitment in our spiritual journey?