Numbers 28:24, commentary and pictures

After this manner a sweet-savour offering made by fire was to be presented every day through the seven days of the Passover feast, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, in addition to the regular continual burnt offering and its drink offering and not instead of it. The feast began on the fifteenth day of the first month as a holy convocation and yearly sabbath without servile work and closed on the twenty-first as a holy convocation and solemn last day, with the days between kept as feast days with these added offerings in cheerfulness apart from care. That added work belonged to the daily ministration and regular general service carried on through the year in the holy place by the Levitical priesthood as mediators of the people, alongside the morning and evening burnt offering, the morning and evening incense, and the offerings for individuals, with the daily congregational sacrifices never omitted when other offerings were made. Those daily sacrifices kept remembrance of sin through the year and put the sins of the people into the sanctuary, creating the need for its yearly cleansing, while the whole earthly system was the example, shadow and figure of Christ's more excellent ministry in the true and heavenly tabernacle. Their presence on feast days no more delays the appointed antitype than the like offerings on other feasts did, for Christ our passover was sacrificed on the fourteenth of the first month, rose on the day of first fruits, and the Spirit was poured out on the very day of Pentecost. Holy convocation means a real assembling of the people for worship with sacrifice where lawful and elsewhere with instruction and spiritual worship, yet these church laws for Israel's assemblies are not binding today in their specific animal sacrifices since Christ's one offering is sufficient, though their principles remain and morning and evening family prayer and praise now take the place of those household acts of worship.

Feast Offerings and Setting

The verse appoints a fire offering of sweet savour to be brought to the Lord every day through all seven days of the Passover feast, the Feast of Unleavened Bread, in addition to the regular continual burnt offering and its drink offering and not instead of it. The daily congregational sacrifices called the continual burnt offering were never omitted when other offerings were made, so the offerings appointed for the seven-day feast were made beside that continual offering. The seven-day feast began on the fifteenth day of the first month, Nisan or Abib, kept as a holy convocation and ceremonial yearly sabbath with cessation from servile work, and ended on the twenty-first, kept as a holy convocation and solemn last day with cessation from labor and servile work forbidden. The five days between were otherwise like common days except for being feast days with these extra offerings, to be kept by laying aside care with cheerfulness prevailing.

The passage belongs to the later Passover observance, whose requirements were added after the original instructions given in Exodus and were not all practicable during the wilderness journey. On the fifteenth day of the first month, the first yearly passover sabbath, the appointed offerings were to be made daily throughout the seven days of the feast in addition to the regular daily offerings. The priests had these fifteenth-day sacrifices to attend to and had to remain ceremonially clean to do so, which explains their unwillingness to enter the judgment hall lest defilement make them unfit for that service.

The continual burnt offering consisted of two lambs of the first year, one offered in the morning and the other in the evening, with meal or flour, oil, and wine offered day by day as a pleasing offering to God. At the same time sweet incense was offered on the golden altar when the lamps are lighted, and the offerings were doubled on the Sabbath. The broader idea of the continual service also includes the other ongoing rites of the permanent services of worship, such as presenting the showbread, lighting the lamps, offering incense, and keeping the altar fire.

Sanctuary Ministration and Antitype

The verse belongs to the additional or special work appointed for the Lord's Sabbaths and for the annual sabbaths, new moons and feasts. That additional work formed part of the daily ministration and regular general service in the first apartment or holy place of the first tabernacle, carried on through the year. It stood alongside the regular morning and evening burnt offering, the morning and evening burning of sweet incense on the golden altar when the lamps are lighted, and the particular offerings presented for individuals through the year. This daily service in the first tabernacle was the first grand division of the earthly sanctuary ministration, performed by the Levitical priesthood set apart from Levi with the priesthood restricted to Aaron's family in special dress as mediators and representatives of the people, together with the other daily, Sabbath, new moon and feast services including individual offerings for sin. The daily congregational sacrifices were called the continual burnt offering, and they were not omitted when other offerings were made, so the offerings appointed for the seven days were made beside that continual offering and its drink offering as part of the full system of earthly sanctuary worship.

These daily sacrifices continued through the year, with a lamb with meal and oil offered in the morning and another in the evening and the offerings doubled on the Sabbath. Together they kept remembrance of sin in the sanctuary and put the sins of the people into the sanctuary, creating the need for its yearly cleansing, while expressing the faith of those who brought them. The whole daily ministration and full system of earthly worship was the example and shadow and figure of Christ's more excellent ministry in the true and heavenly tabernacle and looked forward to its future antitype.

These additional burnt offerings and accompanying offerings during the seven days of the Feast of Unleavened Bread are comparable to the burnt offerings made at the day of first fruits, the feast of weeks or Pentecost, and the day of atonement. They are merely preliminary and circumstantial and do not prevent the grand event of each day from meeting its antitype exactly on time on the day appointed by its type. Christ our passover was sacrificed on the fourteenth of the first month, rose on the day of first fruits, and the outpouring of the Holy Spirit came on the very day of Pentecost despite these offerings, so the like offerings on the tenth day of the seventh month cannot postpone the antitype of the work in the holiest beyond the time pointed out by the type. These daily sacrifices on feast days, like those made on Sabbaths, were typical of Christ, but their presence does not make every day a Sabbath or a shadow.

Worship Assembly and Application

The term holy convocation as used in Numbers 28:18-25 denotes an actual gathering of the people together for worship, and not a mere announcement that the day is holy. The same word is applied to the Sabbath as a holy convocation, which proves that the Sabbath also requires the people to assemble together. Where sacrifice was lawful those assemblies were marked by the presentation of sacrifice, and where it was not they were marked by instruction and spiritual worship. The seventh day was therefore set apart for public worship and for domestic piety, and not for bare rest from labor.

The chapter belongs to church laws ordering the assemblies and worship of Israel, and as laws given to Israel its particular regulations are not binding now, while their underlying principles continue. The daily offerings of flour, oil, and wine were made day by day as a pleasing offering to God and stood alongside the appointed times for prayer. Christians do not continue those animal sacrifices, because the one offering of Christ is sufficient. Morning and evening family prayer and praise now take the place of those household acts of worship.