Numbers 28 17

Numbers 28:17 kjv

And in the fifteenth day of this month is the feast: seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.

Numbers 28:17 nkjv

And on the fifteenth day of this month is the feast; unleavened bread shall be eaten for seven days.

Numbers 28:17 niv

On the fifteenth day of this month there is to be a festival; for seven days eat bread made without yeast.

Numbers 28:17 esv

and on the fifteenth day of this month is a feast. Seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.

Numbers 28:17 nlt

On the following day ? the fifteenth day of the month ? a joyous, seven-day festival will begin, but no bread made with yeast may be eaten.

Numbers 28 verses

Numbers 28 17 Meaning

Numbers 28:17 specifies instructions for the fifteenth day of the first month, marking the beginning of the seven-day Festival of Unleavened Bread. This day was commanded as a "holy convocation" where no ordinary "servile work" was permitted, signifying its sacred nature. The verse reiterates the central command to eat unleavened bread (matzah) throughout the entire seven-day period. It outlines a perpetual ordinance for Israel, emphasizing remembrance, purity, and worship to the Lord.

Numbers 28 17 Context

Numbers 28:17 is part of a detailed section (Num 28-29) outlining the annual calendar of feasts and their corresponding sacrificial requirements for the Israelites. This particular instruction falls under the directives for the Passover and the seven-day Feast of Unleavened Bread, which commence in the first month. These commands, given to Moses by God, are a foundational part of the covenant established at Sinai, ensuring Israel’s perpetual worship, remembrance of God's redemptive acts (especially the Exodus from Egypt), and adherence to a sanctified life. This context highlights God's demand for ordered worship and sacrificial atonement, reiterating earlier instructions found in Exodus and Leviticus.

Numbers 28 17 Word analysis

• And on the fifteenth day of this month: This precisely dates the commencement of the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The "month" refers to the first month of the sacred calendar, known as Abib or Nisan (e.g., Exod 13:4), marking spring. This day immediately follows the Passover meal on the fourteenth.
• shall be a holy convocation;
  • Original Hebrew: מִקְרָא קֹדֶשׁ (miqra qodesh)
  • Miqra means "a calling, a summoned assembly," derived from the root "to call." Qodesh means "holiness" or "sacredness."
  • Significance: This was not an ordinary gathering but a divinely ordained, sacred assembly, distinct from regular days. It mandated coming together for spiritual purposes and marked the day as consecrated to the Lord.
• ye shall do no servile work therein:
  • Original Hebrew: מְלֶאכֶת עֲבֹדָה (mela'khet avodah)
  • Mela'khet means "work" or "labor." Avodah specifically refers to "bondage work" or "laborious service."
  • Significance: This prohibition was specific to burdensome or gainful occupation, distinct from the stricter prohibition of all work on the Sabbath (Exod 20:10). On feast days, work directly related to food preparation (e.g., cooking) was generally permitted, emphasizing the sacred but festive nature of the day (Exod 12:16). It signifies a special, set-apart time from daily grind, but not an absolute cessation of all activity.
• seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten.
  • Original Hebrew: מַצּוֹת תֹּאכֵלוּ שִׁבְעַת יָמִים (matzot tokhelu shiv'at yamim)
  • Matzot refers to "unleavened bread," tokhelu means "you shall eat," and shiv'at yamim means "seven days."
  • Significance: Eating unleavened bread was the central, defining practice of the feast. It commemorated Israel's hasty departure from Egypt, leaving no time for dough to rise (Exod 12:34, 39). Spiritually, it symbolizes purity and the purging of "leaven," which in the New Testament (1 Cor 5:7-8, Gal 5:9) became a metaphor for sin, malice, and false teaching. It was a tangible, perpetual reminder of their redemption and a call to a consecrated life.

• Words-Group Analysis:
  • "on the fifteenth day of this month shall be a holy convocation; ye shall do no servile work therein": This phrase defines the sacred nature of the day. The "holy convocation" signifies God's divine summons for worship, while the prohibition of "servile work" highlights that this day is distinct from ordinary days and dedicated to spiritual matters and communion with God. It reinforces God's control over time and human activity for sacred purposes.
  • "seven days shall unleavened bread be eaten": This phrase underlines the primary commemorative action for the week. The prolonged act of consuming unleavened bread physically embeds the historical memory of the Exodus (haste, purity, reliance on God) into the daily lives of the Israelites, functioning as a continuous object lesson in humility and separation from spiritual corruption.

Numbers 28 17 Bonus section

• The emphasis on repeated, specific offerings and observances in Numbers 28-29 indicates God's desire for a disciplined and structured spiritual life among His people. It highlights that worship is not merely spontaneous but involves prescribed acts of obedience.
• The concept of "holy convocation" and abstaining from "servile work" applies to God's desire for His people to regularly set aside time for focused worship and rest from daily concerns, a principle extending even to modern Christian sabbath observance and church gatherings.
• The detailed prescriptions for feasts serve as a constant teaching tool, continually instructing generations about the pivotal moments in Israel's covenant history and reminding them of God's character (holy, delivering, covenant-keeping).
• The precision of the calendar (specific days, months, durations) reflects God's ordered nature and His desire for an ordered and consecrated relationship with His people.

Numbers 28 17 Commentary

Numbers 28:17, though concise, delivers precise commands that are pivotal to Israel's sacred calendar. It dictates the onset of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, emphasizing its twin requirements: a dedicated assembly and cessation from burdensome work. These regulations underscore the Lord's expectation that Israel's identity be perpetually linked to His deliverance from Egypt, memorialized through tangible, obedient actions. The repeated instruction to eat matzah serves as a continuous reminder of the haste of their departure and, more profoundly, symbolizes spiritual purity, urging a removal of "leaven" or corruption from their lives. This feast foreshadows the ultimate cleansing and purity offered through Christ, the "unleavened" bread of life, who provides true sustenance and removes the leaven of sin. Believers today, freed from the old leaven by Christ's sacrifice (1 Cor 5:7), are called to live lives of "sincerity and truth."