Scripture Daily

Context No. 1748 of 4322 · Numbers

Context · Reflection

Numbers 28:9-15: in context

9“‘On the Sabbath day, you shall offer two male lambs a year old without defect, and two tenths of an ephah of fine flour for a meal offering mixed with oil, and its drink offering: 10this is the burnt offering of every Sabbath, in addition to the continual burnt offering and its drink offering. 11“‘In the beginnings of your months, you shall offer a burnt offering to the LORD: two young bulls, one ram, seven male lambs a year old without defect, 12and three tenths of an ephah of fine flour for a meal offering mixed with oil, for each bull; and two tenth parts of fine flour for a meal offering mixed with oil, for the one ram; 13and one tenth part of fine flour mixed with oil for a meal offering to every lamb, as a burnt offering of a pleasant aroma, an offering made by fire to the LORD. 14Their drink offerings shall be half a hin of wine for a bull, the third part of a hin for the ram, and the fourth part of a hin for a lamb. This is the burnt offering of every month throughout the months of the year. 15Also, one male goat for a sin offering to the LORD shall be offered in addition to the continual burnt offering and its drink offering.

God lays out the appointed offerings that mark the rhythms of Israel's worship: the offerings for each Sabbath, and the offerings for the beginning of each month. And running through them is a recurring phrase: these are in addition to the continual burnt offering. Beyond the special offerings of Sabbath and new moon, there was a daily, continual offering, morning and evening, that never ceased. The weekly and monthly offerings were added on top of a steady, unbroken baseline of daily devotion.

The phrase that recurs is worth noticing: the continual burnt offering. Underneath all the special offerings, the Sabbath sacrifices, the new-moon sacrifices, the feasts, there was a daily, continual offering that went up every morning and every evening without fail. It was the steady baseline of Israel's worship, the unbroken rhythm of devotion on which all the special observances were built. There is wisdom here about the shape of a life of devotion to God. We are often drawn to the special, the intense, the occasional high points, the feast days, the mountaintop experiences, the seasons of fervor. And those have their place. But beneath them, Scripture sets a continual offering, a steady, daily, unspectacular rhythm of devotion that does not depend on feeling or occasion, that goes up morning and evening simply because it is the appointed thing. The special offerings were added on top of this daily baseline, not in place of it. So a healthy life with God is built not mainly on occasional intensity but on continual, daily faithfulness, the steady rhythm of prayer, of turning to God, of offering ourselves to him morning and evening, day after day, whether we feel like it or not. Sporadic fervor is no substitute for continual devotion. The daily offering that never ceased was the backbone of Israel's worship; and a daily, steady turning to God is the backbone of ours. The question is not only whether we have our feast days, our high points, but whether we have the continual offering, the unbroken daily rhythm beneath them.

Is my devotion to God built mainly on occasional intensity, the feast days and the high points, or do I have beneath it a continual offering, a steady daily rhythm of prayer and turning to God, morning and evening, that goes up whether I feel like it or not?

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