Numbers 15:3

וַעֲשִׂיתֶם אִשֶּׁה לַֽיהוָה עֹלָה אוֹ־זֶבַח לְפַלֵּא־נֶדֶר אוֹ בִנְדָבָה אוֹ בְּמֹעֲדֵיכֶם לַעֲשׂוֹת רֵיחַ נִיחֹחַ לַֽיהוָה מִן־הַבָּקָר אוֹ מִן־הַצֹּֽאן׃

Hebrew interlinear

Tap a word to see its entry

The same verse in five languages

Hebrew

וַעֲשִׂיתֶ֨ם אִשֶּׁ֤ה לַֽיהוָה֙ עֹלָ֣ה אוֹ־זֶ֔בַח לְפַלֵּא־נֶ֙דֶר֙ א֣וֹ בִנְדָבָ֔ה א֖וֹ בְּמֹעֲדֵיכֶ֑ם לַעֲשׂ֞וֹת רֵ֤יחַ נִיחֹ֙חַ֙ לַֽיהוָ֔ה מִן־הַבָּקָ֖ר א֥וֹ מִן־הַצֹּֽאן׃

Greek (Septuagint)

καὶ ποιήσεις ὁλοκαυτώματα Κυρίῳ, ὀλοκάρπωμα ἢ θυσίαν, μεγαλῦναι εὐχὴν ἢ καθ’ ἑκούσιον, ἢ ἐν ταῖς ἑορταῖς ὑμῶν ποιῆσαι ὀσμὴν εὐωδίας Κυρίῳ, εἰ μὲν ἀπὸ τῶν βοῶν ἢ ἀπὸ τῶν προβάτων·

Greek text from Swete's edition, CC BY-SA 4.0

Latin (Vulgate)

et feceritis oblationem Domino in holocaustum, aut victimam, vota solventes, vel sponte offerentes munera, aut in solemnitatibus vestris adolentes odorem suavitatis Domino, de bobus sive de ovibus:

Spanish

y hagan una ofrenda por fuego a Yehová, ya sea un holocausto, un sacrificio para cumplir un voto especial, una ofrenda voluntaria, o durante sus fiestas establecidas, para presentar un aroma agradable a Yehová, ya sea de vacas o de ovejas,

Classic Spanish (Reina-Valera 1909)

E hiciereis ofrenda encendida á Jehová, holocausto, ó sacrificio, por especial voto, ó de vuestra voluntad, ó para hacer en vuestras solemnidades olor suave á Jehová, de vacas ó de ovejas;

English

and you present an offering made by fire to the LORD from the herd or flock to produce a pleasing aroma to the LORD — either a burnt offering or a sacrifice, for a special vow or freewill offering or appointed feast —

What the text says

Summary

The verse lists the occasions and offering types for which an Israelite may present a fire offering to Yehovah: burnt offerings, sacrifices to fulfill a vow, freewill offerings, or offerings at appointed feasts, made from cattle or from the flock, producing a soothing odor to Yehovah.

Key words

  • 'i.Sheh ("a fire offering", H0801) — the general category-noun governing the whole list, specifying that what follows is offered by fire.
  • fa.le' ("fulfill", H6381) — piel infinitive construct, giving the intensive sense of "carrying out/fulfilling" specifically tied to ne.der ("a vow").
  • n.da.Vah ("a freewill offering", H5071) — feminine noun marked by the preposition vi ("in", H9003), placing it as a distinct category alongside the vow-offering.
  • mo.'a.dei.khem ("appointed feasts...your", H4150H + H9026) — construct plural noun with pronominal suffix, meaning literally "the appointed times of you (pl.)," anchoring the offering to communal festival occasions.
  • Rei.ach ni.Cho.ach ("odor of...soothing", H7381 + H5207) — construct chain meaning "odor of soothing," describing the effect/purpose of the offering rather than a separate offering type.

What the text says

The Hebrew sentence is built as a chain of alternatives joined by 'o ("or", H0176A), appearing four times, which structures the verse as a list of equivalent ritual occasions: a burnt offering ('o.Lah, H5930A) or a sacrifice (Ze.vach, H2077) to fulfill a vow, or a freewill offering, or an offering at the appointed feasts. The verb 'a.si.Tem ("you will make", H6213I) opens the verse in the qal sequential perfect, continuing a narrative sequence from prior verses and addressing the community in second-person plural.

The infinitive fa.le' ("fulfill", H6381) is governed by the preposition le. ("to", H9005), producing the sense "in fulfilling a vow" — this ties the sacrifice specifically to the act of completing a vow, rather than treating "vow" as a free-standing offering category. Similarly, la.'a.Sot ("to make", H6213H) introduces a second infinitive clause explaining the purpose of all these offerings: producing Rei.ach ni.Cho.ach ("odor of soothing") for Yehovah. The final clause specifies the animal source with min ("from", H4480A) repeated before ha.Bakar ("the herd", H1241) and ha.Tzon ("the flock", H6629G), marking cattle and flock as the two possible material sources for any of the offering types listed.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders 'i.Sheh ("fire offering") with ὁλοκαυτώματα ("whole burnt offerings"), a more specific term than the Hebrew's general fire-offering category, while the Vulgate uses the broader oblationem ("offering"). The LXX also translates fa.le' ("fulfill", H6381) with μεγαλῦναι ("to magnify/make great"), differing from the Hebrew's sense of "fulfilling" a vow and from the Vulgate's vota solventes ("paying/discharging vows").

This explanation describes the text using linguistic data; it adds no doctrine or confessional interpretation.