Numbers 29:26-28 · Bible study
Numbers 29:26-28 Commentary: Fifth Day of Tabernacles
Hebrew · 3 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Examine the precise sacrifices commanded for the fifth day of the Feast of Tabernacles, focusing on the decreasing number of bulls and the exacting order of worship that reveals God's attention
Research Summary
- Meaning: God prescribes exactly nine bulls, two rams, and fourteen lambs for the fifth day of the Feast of Tabernacles, each without defect, along with grain, drink, and sin offerings on top of the daily burnt offering.
- Key words: bulls (par, H6499), lambs (keves, H3532), grain offering (minchah, H4503), drink offering (nesech, H5262), sin offering (chatat, H2403), continual burnt (olat tamid, H5930+H8548), ordinance (mishpat, H4941), unblemished (tamim, H8549).
- Main debate: Whether the decreasing number of bulls (thirteen to seven) holds symbolic meaning (e.g., representing the seventy nations) or is simply a ritual calendar without intrinsic symbolism.
- Theological theme: God’s perfect order in worship; the combination of regular (tamid) and festival offerings; the need for continual atonement through sacrifice.
- Best use: Teaching on the purpose of the sacrificial system, the importance of obedience in worship, and the fulfilled typology in Christ.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
26On the fifth day you are to present nine bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs a year old, all unblemished,
27along with the grain and drink offerings for the bulls, rams, and lambs, according to the number prescribed.
28Include one male goat as a sin offering, in addition to the regular burnt offering with its grain offering and drink offering.
WEB World English Bible 2000
26“‘On the fifth day: nine bulls, two rams, fourteen male lambs a year old without defect;
27and their meal offering and their drink offerings for the bulls, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance,
28and one male goat for a sin offering, in addition to the continual burnt offering, and its meal offering, and its drink offering.
KJV King James Version 1769
26And on the fifth day nine bullocks, two rams, and fourteen lambs of the first year without spot:
27And their meat offering and their drink offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, shall be according to their number, after the manner:
28And one goat for a sin offering; beside the continual burnt offering, and his meat offering, and his drink offering.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
26And on the fifth day nine bullocks, two rams, fourteen he-lambs a year old without blemish;
27and their meal-offering and their drink-offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, according to their number, after the ordinance;
28and one he-goat for a sin-offering; besides the continual burnt-offering, and the meal-offering thereof, and the drink-offering thereof.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
26`And on the fifth day nine bullocks, two rams, fourteen lambs, sons of a year, perfect ones;
27and their present, and their libations, for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, in their number, according to the ordinance;
28and one goat, a sin-offering; apart from the continual burnt-offering, and its present, and its libation.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
26And on the fifth day, nine bullocks, two rams, fourteen yearling lambs without blemish;
27and their oblation and their drink-offerings for the bullocks, for the rams, and for the lambs, by their number, according to the ordinance;
28and one he-goat for a sin-offering, — besides the continual burnt-offering and its oblation and its drink-offering.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
26The fifth day you shall offer nine calves, two rams, and fourteen lambs of a year old, without blemish:
27And the sacrifices and the libations of every one for the calves and for the rams and for the lambs you shall celebrate according to the rite:
28And a buck goat for sin, besides the perpetual holocaust, and the sacrifice and the libation thereof.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Numbers 29:26
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators observe that Numbers 29:26-28 follows a carefully structured pattern for the Feast of Tabernacles. On the fifth day, nine bulls are offered, one fewer than the previous day. Matthew Henry’s Commentary highlights the decreasing number of bulls across the seven days (from thirteen down to seven), while the number of rams (two) and lambs (fourteen) remains constant. The same phrasing appears each day: “after the ordinance” (ka'mishpat), stressing that every detail comes from divine command. The “continual burnt offering” (olat hatamid) forms an unchanging foundation for the festival offerings. Commentators agree the repetition underscores that worship is not casual; God prescribes both the quantity and the quality (the animals must be “unblemished,” temimim). The pattern invites reverence for God’s precise instructions and recognition that worship involves both celebration and careful obedience.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Literal command without symbolism: The text gives the numbers without explanation; the pattern may simply be the divinely prescribed schedule.
- Symbolic interpretation (seventy nations): The total of seventy bulls across the feast, combined with Jewish tradition, suggests intercession for the nations (Deuteronomy 32:8; Talmud).
What is clear: God commanded exactly nine bulls, two rams, and fourteen male lambs on the fifth day of the Feast of Tabernacles, along with grain and drink offerings and a sin offering goat, in addition to the daily burnt offering.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning of decreasing bulls | The passage commands a specific number of bulls for each day, forming a clear decreasing pattern (13 to 7). All traditions recognize this as an intentional divine instruction. | Some hold that the numbers are purely ritual and carry no symbolic weight; others point to Jewish tradition connecting the total of seventy bulls to the seventy nations, suggesting intercession for the whole world. |
| Role of the sin offering | A male goat as a sin offering is required each day of the feast. This demonstrates that even joyful festivals need atonement for sin. | Christians differ on the degree of typology: some see the goats as a direct foreshadowing of Christ's sin-bearing, while others view them as part of a temporary system that has now ended. |
| Relevance for Christian worship | The sacrificial system pointed forward to Christ's once-for-all sacrifice (Hebrews 10). Christians are free from the obligation to offer animals. | Catholics, Orthodox, and some Anglicans see the Eucharist as a re-presentation of Christ's sacrifice; Protestant traditions generally view it as a memorial. How this passage applies to Christian liturgy varies. |
Historical & Cultural Context
The Feast of Tabernacles (Sukkot) was the third of Israel’s pilgrimage festivals. It began on the fifteenth day of the seventh month (Tishri) and lasted seven days, followed by a sacred assembly on the eighth. The feast combined agricultural thanksgiving with a memorial of the wilderness journey when Israel lived in booths (Lev 23:33-43).
Numbers 29 details the public sacrifices offered at the tabernacle (and later at the temple) during this festival. The earlier chapter, Numbers 28, established the daily “continual burnt offering” (olat hatamid), a lamb morning and evening (Num 28:3-4). On feast days additional offerings were added to this regular sacrifice. The fifth day sits at the midpoint of the seven-day festival, with the offerings decreasing in a deliberate sequence: thirteen bulls on day one, twelve on day two, and so on down to seven on day seven.
Each animal had to be a male “without defect” (temimim, H8549), conveying that only the best was fit for God. The “grain offering” (minchah, H4503) and “drink offering” (nesech, H5262) accompanied the burnt offerings according to the prescribed recipes (Num 15:4-10). The “sin offering” (chatat, H2403) of one male goat provided purification for the congregation. The phrase “according to the ordinance” (ka'mishpat, H4941) roots the entire ceremony in God’s legal instruction, these were not human innovations but divinely mandated rites.
The pattern of decreasing bulls (thirteen to seven) totals seventy bulls over the seven days, a number often associated in Jewish tradition with the nations of the world (Gen 10, Deut 32:8). While the text does not explain this symbolism, the careful decrease invites reflection on God’s order and the thoroughness of the atonement system that would one day find its ultimate fulfillment in Christ.
Textual Notes
The consulted sources note no significant textual variants for Numbers 29:26-28. The Hebrew text is stable across manuscripts, with the same phrasing appearing consistently for each day’s offerings in the chapter.
Reception History
In Jewish tradition, the decreasing bulls of Sukkot were often interpreted as representing the seventy nations of the world (from Genesis 10). The Talmud (Sukkah 55b) states that the seventy bulls correspond to the seventy nations, offered to atone for them. Early Christian interpreters read the feast typologically: the feast’s abundance prefigured the joy of the age to come, while the decreasing bulls suggested that the old covenant sacrifices were diminishing in the presence of the new. During the Reformation, this passage was cited to show that God regulates worship by His word alone, not by human invention. Modern commentaries focus on the literary structure of Numbers 28-29 as an orderly sacrificial calendar embedded in the Pentateuch.
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- God’s precise instructions for worship. The exact count, nine bulls, two rams, fourteen lambs, shows that worship must be done according to God’s design, not human preference.
- The pattern of decreasing sacrifice. The decreasing number of bulls forms a symmetrical arc (13 → 7). This structure invites reflection on God’s economy: He does not require extravagance for its own sake, but order and obedience.
- The unchanging foundation. The “continual burnt offering” grounds all festival worship. Before we add anything to our worship, the daily commitment to God must be in place.
Five-point outline
- Day five in the context of the whole feast. The fifth day is not isolated; it is part of a seven-day descent in bulls.
- The specific vocabulary of sacrifice. Grain, drink, burnt, and sin offerings each have their own significance, they teach us about total dependence on God.
- The requirement of perfection. “Unblemished” animals speak to the quality of offering God deserves.
- The communal sin offering. Every day includes a goat for sin, reminding Israel that even joyful feasts require atonement.
- The temporal structure. The seven-day progression emphasizes that worship is not a single event but a sustained rhythm, each day matters before God.
Illustration hooks
- A school timetable that changes slightly each day but follows a clear pattern, students learn to trust the structure.
- A musician practicing scales alongside concert pieces: the daily “tamid” builds the foundation for special performances.
- Gardening: some crops are planted in decreasing numbers across rows, each row building on the previous, God’s order in creation mirrors His order in worship.
Questions your congregation is asking
- “Why did God require so many animals? Was He really pleased by the death of all those bulls and lambs?”
- “If these sacrifices are no longer required, what does this passage have to do with my life today?”
- “Does the decreasing number of bulls mean God expects less of us as we go along in faith?”
Leading a Discussion
This passage might look like a simple list of numbers and offerings. Yet the same pattern repeats day after day with only one number changing, the bulls keep decreasing. That small difference, embedded in a precise structure, invites us to ask why God gives such careful instructions for worship. The following questions will help your group move from observation to deeper reflection.
Discussion questions
- Observation: How many bulls, rams, and lambs are offered on the fifth day? What is constant across the first seven days of the feast?
- Comparison: Look at the numbers for day four (10 bulls) and day six (8 bulls) in the surrounding context. What pattern do you see across all seven days?
- Interpretation: The phrase “according to the ordinance” (ka'mishpat) appears again and again. What does this tell us about the source and authority of Israel’s worship practices?
- Interpretation: The “continual burnt offering” is the baseline; everything else is added to it. Why do you think God emphasized a daily foundation before the festival offerings?
- Application: How does the precision of these ancient regulations challenge modern attitudes toward worship, whether in church or in personal devotion?
- Application: The deaths of so many animals remind us that sin has a cost. How does this passage point to the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ (Hebrews 10:1-10)?
- Reflection: The decreasing number of bulls may symbolize something deeper, for example, the nations being gradually gathered in. What other possibilities come to mind, and why might God leave the meaning open-ended?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
2 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva note draws attention to the precise sacrificial requirements for the fifth day of the feast: nine young bulls, two rams, and fourteen lambs, each without blemish, together with their grain and drink offerings. An additional male goat is prescribed as a sin offering, and all this is offered besides the regular daily burnt offering and its accompaniments.
Lange's Commentary Reformed 1857
Lange sees the feast of tabernacles as the climax of Israel's festal year, where the joy of entering Canaan is celebrated through increasingly lavish burnt offerings. The massive scale of these sacrifices, particularly the gradual decrease from thirteen bullocks to seven, trains the people in self-consecration and teaches them to hold their possessions lightly before God.