Numbers 19:2

“This is the statute of the law that the LORD has commanded: Instruct the Israelites to bring you an unblemished red heifer that has no defect and has never been placed under a yoke.

Berean Standard Bible

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Study note

Setting — The LORD addresses Moses and Aaron, establishing a divine statute that requires instructing the Israelites to provide a specific animal.

The words — The verse opens with זֹאת (zot, "this") and חֻקַּת הַתּוֹרָה (chuqqat hattorah, "statute of the law"), anchoring the command in Yahweh's direct instruction (צִוָּה, tziwah, "he has commanded").

The thread — The requirement for an unyoked animal appears in Deuteronomy 21:3 for a valley atonement ritual and 1 Samuel 6:7 for a cart carrying the Ark, while Leviticus 22:20 reinforces the "no defect" standard for offerings.

Why it lands — The text demands precise obedience to a specific physical standard for the animal, requiring the Israelites to follow the exact specifications without substitution or improvisation.

Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.

The Hebrew words

King James Version

This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke:

Cross-references

Deuteronomy 21:3 Then the elders of the city nearest the victim shall take a heifer that has never been yoked or used for work,
Leviticus 22:20 You must not present anything with a defect, because it will not be accepted on your behalf.
1 Samuel 6:7 Now, therefore, prepare one new cart with two milk cows that have never been yoked. Hitch the cows to the cart, but take their calves away and pen them up.
Philippians 2:6 Who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,
1 Peter 1:19 but with the precious blood of Christ, a lamb without blemish or spot.
Isaiah 1:18 “Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are as red as crimson, they will become like wool.
Lamentations 1:14 My transgressions are bound into a yoke, knit together by His hand; they are draped over my neck, and the Lord has broken my strength. He has delivered me into the hands of those I cannot withstand.
Malachi 1:13 You also say: ‘Oh, what a nuisance!’ And you turn up your nose at it,” says the LORD of Hosts. “You bring offerings that are stolen, lame, or sick! Should I accept these from your hands?” asks the LORD.
Luke 1:35 The angel replied, “The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God.
John 10:17 The reason the Father loves Me is that I lay down My life in order to take it up again.