SERIES F --- WILDERNESS WANDERINGS --- LESSON 08

FESTIVAL OFFERINGS

THE FEAST OF TRUMPETS AND THE DAY OF ATONEMENT

From Numbers 29

Each year, on the first day of the seventh month, you shall bring the people together in a sacred convocation – Rosh Hashanah {the Feast of Trumpets}, Adonai told Moses. On that day no hard work shall be done and a burnt offering shall be presented to Me. This should consist of one young bull, one ram and seven-year-old male lambs, all without blemish. With these animals you shall present a grain offering of fine flour mixed with oil - nine quarts with the bull, six quarts with the ram and three quarts with each of the seven lambs. You also shall offer a male goat as atonement for sin. These offerings will present a fragrance that is pleasant to Me. They shall be in addition to the daily burnt offering and the monthly burnt offering which shall be made on that day according to My Laws concerning them. You also shall gather the people in a holy convocation on the tenth day of the same month. On that day you shall do no hard work but come humbly before Adonai. You shall present to Me on that day a burnt offering which shall be exactly the same as the offering of the first day of that month, which is Rosh Hashanah. These offerings shall be in addition to the sin offerings presented on Yom Kippur {the Day of Atonement}, which falls once each year on that day. They also shall be in addition to the daily burnt offerings with their grain and drink offerings. On the fifteenth day of the seventh month, you shall bring the people together again in a holy convocation. This shall be the beginning of a seven-day feast before Adonai. No hard work shall be done on the fifteenth day. On that day you shall present to Adonai a burnt offering of thirteen young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without blemish. With these animals you shall present the grain offering of finely ground flour mixed with olive oil; nine quarts with each young bull, six quarts with each ram and three quarts with each lamb. You also must offer a male goat as a sin offering. These shall be offered in addition to the daily burnt offering with its grain and drink offering. On the second day of the feast, the offering shall be twelve young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without blemish, presented with the same amount of grain and drink offerings. A male goat also shall be offered as a sin offering, as well as the usual daily offerings. On the third day of the feast, the offering shall be eleven young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without blemish, presented with the same amount of grain and drink offerings. A male goat also shall be offered as a sin offering, as well as the usual daily offerings. On the fourth day of the feast, the offering shall be ten young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without blemish, presented with the same amount of grain and drink offerings. A male goat also shall be offered as a sin offering, as well as the usual daily offerings. On the fifth day of the feast, the offering shall be nine young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without blemish, presented with the same amount of grain and drink offerings. A male goat also shall be offered as a sin offering, as well as the usual daily offerings. On the sixth day of the feast, the offering shall be eight young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without blemish, presented with the same amount of grain and drink offerings. A male goat also shall be offered as a sin offering, as well as the usual daily offerings. On the seventh day of the feast, the offering shall be seven young bulls, two rams and fourteen male lambs a year old, all without blemish, presented with the same amount of grain and drink offerings. A male goat also shall be offered as a sin offering, as well as the usual daily offerings. On the eighth day of the feast, gather the people again in a holy convocation and do no hard work on that day. Offer a burnt offering of one young bull, one ram and seven male lambs a year old, all without blemish. A male goat also shall be offered as a sin offering, as well as the usual daily offerings. These offerings must be given with your annual feasts, in addition to other offerings for vows, freewill offerings, burnt offerings, grain offerings, drink offerings or peace offerings. When Adonai had finished giving Moses these Instructions, Moses repeated them to all the people.

COMMENTS

LIFE THEY LEFT BEHIND: COSMETICS IN ANCIENT EGYPT

Women in ancient Egypt cared as much about their appearance as women do today. If a woman was not a slave or a servant, she spent much time trying to improve the way she looked. She washed her face not just with water, but also with soda, which bleached it whiter as it cleaned. Then the skin was moisturized with perfumed oils. After that, makeup was put on. Cosmetics were not already prepared. They had to be made up from the start. Pigments had to be ground to a fine dust with a mortar and pestle or on a slate palette. Yellow was ground from yellow ochre, a kind of clay or limonite, an iron ore. Red came from red ochre or hematite, another iron ore. Green and blue both came from copper ore. The ground pigments were then mixed in careful proportions with fats or oils. They were applied as rouge, lipstick or eye shadow. Egyptian women stained their palms and the soles of their feet with a reddish-brown flower dye called henna, which they also used to colour their hair. Henna is used by many women as a hair rinse to this day. The ladies of ancient Egypt had as many concoctions for real or imagined skin and beauty problems as women do in the modern world. Honey was a favourite ingredient in the many recipes for toning skin and body. A deodorant was made by mixing incense and dough. They tried to fight off wrinkles in several different ways. Here is one of the recipes in circulation at the time: [Take gum of incense, beeswax, fresh balanites oil and rush-nut. Grind to a fine powder. Put in dough and apply to the face every day. Do it and you shall see.]