Numbers 15:35

15:35 Then the Lord said to Moses, “The man must surely be put to death; the whole community must stone ¹  him with stones outside the camp.”

Numbers 15:1

Sacrificial Rulings

15:1 ² The Lord spoke to Moses:

Numbers 21:13

21:13 From there they moved on and camped on the other side of the Arnon, in the wilderness that extends from the regions ³  of the Amorites, for Arnon is the border of Moab, between Moab and the Amorites.

Luke 4:29

4:29 They got up, forced ⁴  him out of the town, ⁵  and brought him to the brow of the hill on which their town was built, so that ⁶  they could throw him down the cliff. ⁷ 

Hebrews 13:12-13

13:12 Therefore, to sanctify the people by his own blood, Jesus also suffered outside the camp. 13:13 We must go out to him, then, outside the camp, bearing the abuse he experienced. ⁸ 

¹ tn The sentence begins with the emphatic use of the infinitive absolute with the verb in the Hophal imperfect: “he shall surely be put to death.” Then, a second infinitive absolute רָגוֹם (ragom) provides the explanatory activity – all the community is to stone him with stones. The punishment is consistent with other decrees from God (see Exod 31:14,15; 35:2). Moses had either forgotten such, or they had simply neglected to (or were hesitant to) enact them.

² sn The wilderness wandering officially having begun, these rules were then given for the people to be used when they finally entered the land. That they would be provided here would be of some encouragement to the nation after their great failure. God still spoke of a land that was to be their land, even though they had sinned greatly. This chapter collects a number of religious rules. The first 16 verses deal with rulings for sacrifices. Then, vv. 17-36 concerns sins of omission. Finally, rules concerning tassels are covered (vv. 37-41). For additional reading, see G. B. Gray, Sacrifice in the Old Testament (Oxford: Clarendon, 1925); B. A. Levine, In the Presence of the Lord (SJLA); D. J. McCarthy, “The Symbolism of Blood and Sacrifice,” JBL 88 (1969): 166-76; “Further Notes on the Symbolism of Blood and Sacrifice,” JBL 92 (1973): 205-10; J. Milgrom, “Sin Offering or Purification Offering,” VT 21 (1971): 237-39; N. H. Snaith, “Sacrifices in the Old Testament,” VT 7 (1957): 308-17; R. J. Thompson, Penitence and Sacrifice in Early Israel; R. de Vaux, Studies in Old Testament Sacrifice.

³ tn Or “border.”

⁴ tn Grk “cast.”

⁵ tn Or “city.”

⁶ tn The Greek conjunction ὥστε (Jwste) here indicates their purpose.

⁷ sn The attempt to throw him down the cliff looks like “lynch law,” but it may really be an indication that Jesus was regarded as a false prophet who was worthy of death (Deut 13:5). Such a sentence meant being thrown into a pit and then stoned.

⁸ tn Grk “his abuse.”