Numbers 7:16
One kid of the goats for a sin offering:
Original Language Analysis
Historical Context
Sin offerings dealt with unintentional sins and ritual defilement. The blood application to the altar made atonement, allowing the offerer to approach God with other offerings. The goat, a common animal, made sin offerings accessible across economic levels, though here the princes used young goats as appropriate to their status.
Questions for Reflection
- Why must the sin offering always precede fellowship offerings in our approach to God?
- How does the substitutionary nature of the sin offering prefigure Christ's work on the cross?
- In what ways does the necessity of blood atonement challenge modern sensibilities about approaching God?
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Analysis & Commentary
The kid of the goats for a sin offering addresses the reality that even in dedication, atonement is needed. Before communion with God (peace offering) or dedication (burnt offering), sin must be addressed. The sin offering blood was sprinkled on the altar's horns and poured at its base, signifying that sin's penalty is death and only blood can atone. The Reformed doctrine of substitutionary atonement is central—an innocent victim dies in place of the guilty. This prefigures Christ, our sin offering, who bore our guilt on the cross.