What does "drink offering" in Numbers 28:14 symbolize in our spiritual lives today? A Picture Poured Out Numbers 28:14 commands, “Their drink offerings shall be half a hin of wine with a bull, a third of a hin with a ram, and a quarter of a hin with a lamb. This is the monthly burnt offering for each month of the year”. The wine was not drunk; it was poured beside the altar, disappearing into the ground—an act rich with meaning that still speaks to hearts today. How Israel Experienced the Drink Offering • Complement to the burnt offering: both were required; neither stood alone (Exodus 29:40). • Made of wine—“the wine that cheers the heart of man” (Psalm 104:15). • Totally poured out; nothing held back (Leviticus 23:13). • Offered continually with daily, weekly, and monthly sacrifices, weaving surrender into Israel’s calendar. Completed in Christ • Jesus associated wine with His blood: “This cup is the new covenant in My blood, which is poured out for you” (Luke 22:20). • At the cross His blood flowed out (John 19:34), the greater drink offering that perfectly satisfied the Father. • Because His sacrifice is once-for-all (Hebrews 10:14), no literal libation is needed today; yet the pattern still instructs us. What It Symbolizes in Our Lives Today • Joyful worship – Wine = joy; our praise should overflow, not trickle (Psalm 100:2). • Total surrender – Like wine disappearing into the soil, our own agendas vanish under Christ’s lordship (Romans 12:1). • Willing self-sacrifice – Paul wrote, “Even if I am being poured out like a drink offering… I rejoice” (Philippians 2:17; cf. 2 Timothy 4:6). • Communion and fellowship – The poured wine accompanied the burnt offering; our fellowship flows from Christ’s once-for-all sacrifice (1 Corinthians 10:16). • Dependence on the Spirit – Wine pictures the Spirit’s filling (Ephesians 5:18); we are to be vessels He pours through into a thirsty world (John 7:38). Living Out the Libation • Begin each day by yielding every plan and preference to Jesus—no reserves. • Cultivate gratitude and joy; let worship “spill over” in song, testimony, and generosity. • Serve others at cost to yourself; see every act of love as drops from the cup of your life. • Stay in fellowship with believers around the Lord’s Table, remembering the poured-out blood that unites us. • Ask the Holy Spirit to keep you spillable—ready for God to pour you out wherever He chooses. In Christ we become living drink offerings—lives gladly emptied so that His glory and joy flow wherever He places us. |
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