Ep 740 – Numbers 29

The Old Testament sacrificial was costly. Not only did it cost the life of the animal that was used as a substitute or stand-in for the guilty sinner, it cost the one making the sacrifice. As required by God, each Israelite had to offer a sacrifice for their sins, and the sheep, goat or bull they brought would have had great financial value. There was a monetary price to be paid. But it was far less costly than the penalty God had placed on man’s sin: The penalty of death. When we read through Numbers 29, we are reminded that the sheer number of Israelites meant that the annual cost to the nation, in terms of livestock, was significant. And these animals were not the lame, the sick and the old. They were the best of the best. They were required to be without flaw and in excellent health. And once they were sacrificed, their value disappeared with their last breath. But what a picture this paints of the costliness of sin. And what a vivid reminder it provides of Christ’s priceless death on man’s behalf.