What is the meaning of Numbers 7:70? one - The singular number highlights that each tribal leader brought just one goat, yet that lone animal was fully sufficient for the required atonement on that day. - Scripture consistently links the idea of “one” with completeness: • Exodus 12:5—“Your lamb must be an unblemished year-old male” (only one was needed per household). • Hebrews 10:14—“For by one offering He has perfected for all time those who are sanctified.” - The pattern whispers of the ultimate “one sacrifice” Christ would offer once for all. male - A male animal, reflecting headship, was appointed to stand in the place of the worshiper. - Leviticus 4:23 shows the precedent: “he shall bring his offering: a male goat without blemish.” - The requirement underscores that substitutionary sacrifice involved a representative fitted to carry the worshiper’s guilt. goat - Goats were regularly chosen for sin offerings, symbolizing both substitution and removal of guilt (compare the Day of Atonement goats). - Leviticus 16:5 sets the pattern with “two male goats for a sin offering.” - Numbers 28:15 repeats the daily necessity: “present one male goat as a sin offering to the LORD.” - The goat’s rugged nature pictures sin borne away outside the camp. for - The simple preposition points to purpose: the animal existed expressly “for” atonement, not for food or show. - Isaiah 53:5 echoes the same substitutionary purpose in Christ: “He was pierced for our transgressions.” a - The indefinite article reminds us that every leader, every month, every sinner needed “a” sacrifice; none were exempt. - Romans 3:25 stresses the ongoing need for “a propitiation through faith in His blood,” fulfilled ultimately by Christ. sin - Sin is the core problem addressed. God takes it seriously, demanding life for life. - Romans 6:23—“For the wages of sin is death.” - 1 John 3:5—“He appeared to take away sins, and in Him there is no sin.” - The offering confronts and covers personal guilt, preserving fellowship with a holy God. offering - An offering is something yielded up to God, wholly His. Here it is life substituted for life. - Hebrews 9:26 points to the greater reality: “He has appeared once for all at the end of the ages to put away sin by the sacrifice of Himself.” - Ephesians 5:2 calls Christ “a fragrant sacrificial offering to God” fulfilling every earlier type. summary Numbers 7:70 records a single male goat set aside expressly to deal with sin. Each word—one, male, goat, for, a, sin, offering—adds a brushstroke to the picture of substitutionary atonement: one sufficient sacrifice, a representative male, the familiar goat of sin rites, dedicated solely to bearing guilt, addressing universal sin, and wholly surrendered to God. Every monthly presentation pointed ahead to the solitary, once-for-all offering of Christ, who perfectly satisfied God’s righteous requirement and forever cleanses those who trust Him. |
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