Exodus 12:2

12:2 “This month is to be your beginning of months; it will be your first month of the year. ¹ 

Numbers 28:11-15

Monthly Offerings

28:11 “‘On the first day of each month ²  you must offer as a burnt offering to the Lord two young bulls, one ram, and seven unblemished lambs a year old, 28:12 with three-tenths of an ephah of finely ground flour mixed with olive oil as a grain offering for each bull, and two-tenths of an ephah of finely ground flour mixed with olive oil as a grain offering for the ram, 28:13 and one-tenth of an ephah of finely ground flour mixed with olive oil as a grain offering for each lamb, as a burnt offering for a pleasing aroma, an offering made by fire to the Lord. 28:14 For their drink offerings, include ³  half a hin of wine with each bull, one-third of a hin for the ram, and one-fourth of a hin for each lamb. This is the burnt offering for each month ⁴  throughout the months of the year. 28:15 And one male goat ⁵  must be offered to the Lord as a purification offering, in addition to the continual burnt offering and its drink offering.

Matthew 6:33

6:33 But above all pursue his kingdom ⁶  and righteousness, and all these things will be given to you as well.

¹ sn B. Jacob (Exodus, 294-95) shows that the intent of the passage was not to make this month in the spring the New Year – that was in the autumn. Rather, when counting months this was supposed to be remembered first, for it was the great festival of freedom from Egypt. He observes how some scholars have unnecessarily tried to date one New Year earlier than the other.

² tn Heb “of your months.”

³ tn The word “include” is not in the Hebrew text but is implied. It is supplied in the translation to make a complete English sentence.

⁴ tn Heb “a month in its month.”

⁵ tn Heb “one kid of the goats.”

⁶ tc ‡ Most mss (L W Θ 0233 Ë^1,13 33 Ï lat sy mae) read τὴν βασιλείαν τοῦ θεοῦ καὶ τὴν δικαιοσύνην αὐτοῦ (thn basileian tou qeou kai thn dikaiosunhn aujtou, “the kingdom of God and his righteousness”) here, but the words “of God” are lacking in א B pc sa bo Eus. On the one hand, there is the possibility of accidental omission on the part of these Alexandrian witnesses, but it seems unlikely that the scribe’s eye would skip over both words (especially since τοῦ θεοῦ is bracketed by first declension nouns). Intrinsically, the author generally has a genitive modifier with βασιλεία – especially θεοῦ or οὐρανῶν (ouranwn) – but this argument cuts both ways: Although he might be expected to use such an adjunct here, scribes might also be familiar with his practice and would thus naturally insert it if it were missing in their copy of Matthew. Although a decision is difficult, the omission of τοῦ θεοῦ is considered most likely to be original. NA²⁷ includes the words in brackets, indicating doubt as to their authenticity.