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<!DOCTYPE html PUBLIC "-//W3C//DTD XHTML 1.0 Transitional//EN" "//www.w3.org/TR/xhtml1/DTD/xhtml1-transitional.dtd"><html xmlns="//www.w3.org/1999/xhtml"><head><meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /><meta name="viewport" content="width=device-width, initial-scale=1" /><title>Numbers 15:32 While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day.</title><link rel="canonical" href="https://biblehub.com/numbers/15-32.htm" /><link rel="stylesheet" href="/new9.css" type="text/css" media="Screen" /><meta property="og:image" content="https://biblehub.com/visuals/11/04_Num_15_32.jpg" /><meta property="og:title" content="Numbers 15:32 - A Sabbath-Breaker Stoned" /><meta property="og:site_name" content="Bible Hub" /><meta property="og:description" content="While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day." /><script type="application/javascript" 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cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/anc2.htm" width="100%" height="27" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></div><div id="ad1"><table width="100%" border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><iframe src="/ad12.htm" width="100%" height="48" scrolling="no" frameborder="0"></iframe></td></tr></table></div></td></tr></table><div id="movebox2"><table border="0" align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0"><tr><td><div id="topheading"><a href="/numbers/15-31.htm" title="Numbers 15:31">◄</a> Numbers 15:32 <a href="/numbers/15-33.htm" title="Numbers 15:33">►</a></div></tr></table></div><div align="center" class="maintable2"><table border="0" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" align="center"><tr><td><div id="topverse"> <a href="#audio" class="clickchap2" title="Context and Audio Bible"> Audio </a> <a href="#crossref" class="clickchap2" title="Cross References"> Cross </a> <a href="#study" class="clickchap2" title="Study Bible"> Study </a> <a href="#commentary" class="clickchap2" title="Commentary"> Comm </a> <a href="#lexicon" class="clickchap2" title="Lexicon"> Heb </a> </div><div id="leftbox"><div class="padleft"><div class="vheadingv"><b>Verse</b><a href="/bsb/numbers/15.htm" class="clickchap" style="color:#001320" title="Click any translation name for full chapter">  (Click for Chapter)</a></div><div id="par"><span class="versiontext"><a href="/niv/numbers/15.htm">New International Version</a></span><br />While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nlt/numbers/15.htm">New Living Translation</a></span><br />One day while the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they discovered a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/esv/numbers/15.htm">English Standard Version</a></span><br />While the people of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/bsb/numbers/15.htm">Berean Standard Bible</a></span><br />While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/kjv/numbers/15.htm">King James Bible</a></span><br />And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nkjv/numbers/15.htm">New King James Version</a></span><br />Now while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb_/numbers/15.htm">New American Standard Bible</a></span><br />Now while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb/numbers/15.htm">NASB 1995</a></span><br />Now while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nasb77/numbers/15.htm">NASB 1977 </a></span><br />Now while the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsb/numbers/15.htm">Legacy Standard Bible </a></span><br />Now the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, and they found a man gathering wood on the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/amp/numbers/15.htm">Amplified Bible</a></span><br />Now while the Israelites were in the wilderness, they found a man who was gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/csb/numbers/15.htm">Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />While the Israelites were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hcsb/numbers/15.htm">Holman Christian Standard Bible</a></span><br />While the Israelites were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/asv/numbers/15.htm">American Standard Version</a></span><br />And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks upon the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cev/numbers/15.htm">Contemporary English Version</a></span><br />Once, while the Israelites were traveling through the desert, a man was caught gathering firewood on the Sabbath. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/erv/numbers/15.htm">English Revised Version</a></span><br />And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks upon the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gwt/numbers/15.htm">GOD'S WORD® Translation</a></span><br />While the Israelites were in the desert, they found a man gathering wood on the day of worship.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/gnt/numbers/15.htm">Good News Translation</a></span><br />Once, while the Israelites were still in the wilderness, a man was found gathering firewood on the Sabbath. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/isv/numbers/15.htm">International Standard Version</a></span><br />As it was when the Israelis were in the wilderness, they found a man who was gathering wood on the Sabbath day. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/net/numbers/15.htm">NET Bible</a></span><br />When the Israelites were in the wilderness they found a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nheb/numbers/15.htm">New Heart English Bible</a></span><br />While the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/wbt/numbers/15.htm">Webster's Bible Translation</a></span><br />And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath-day.<div class="vheading2"><b>Majority Text Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/msb/numbers/15.htm">Majority Standard Bible</a></span><br />While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was found gathering wood on the Sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/web/numbers/15.htm">World English Bible</a></span><br />While the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the Sabbath day. <div class="vheading2"><b>Literal Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lsv/numbers/15.htm">Literal Standard Version</a></span><br />And the sons of Israel are in the wilderness, and they find a man gathering wood on the Sabbath day,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/ylt/numbers/15.htm">Young's Literal Translation</a></span><br /> And the sons of Israel are in the wilderness, and they find a man gathering wood on the sabbath-day,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/slt/numbers/15.htm">Smith's Literal Translation</a></span><br />And the sons of Israel shall be in the desert, and they shall find a man gathering wood in the day of the Sabbath.<div class="vheading2"><b>Catholic Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/drb/numbers/15.htm">Douay-Rheims Bible</a></span><br />And it came to pass, when the children of Israel were in the wilderness, and had found a man gathering sticks on the sabbath day, <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/cpdv/numbers/15.htm">Catholic Public Domain Version</a></span><br />And it happened that, when the sons of Israel were in the wilderness, and they had found a man collecting wood on the day of the Sabbath,<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nabre/numbers/15.htm">New American Bible</a></span><br />While the Israelites were in the wilderness, a man was discovered gathering wood on the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/nrsvce/numbers/15.htm">New Revised Standard Version</a></span><br />When the Israelites were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the sabbath day.<div class="vheading2"><b>Translations from Aramaic</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/lamsa/numbers/15.htm">Lamsa Bible</a></span><br />And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks on the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/hpbt/numbers/15.htm">Peshitta Holy Bible Translated</a></span><br />And the children of Israel were in the wilderness and they found one man when he gathered wood in the day of the Sabbath.<div class="vheading2"><b>OT Translations</b></div><span class="versiontext"><a href="/jps/numbers/15.htm">JPS Tanakh 1917</a></span><br />And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man gathering sticks upon the sabbath day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/sep/numbers/15.htm">Brenton Septuagint Translation</a></span><br />And the children of Israel were in the wilderness, and they found a man gathering sticks on the sabbath-day.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/parallel/numbers/15-32.htm">Additional Translations ...</a></span></div></div></div><div id="centbox"><div class="padcent"><a name="audio" id="audio"></a><div class="vheadingv"><b>Audio Bible</b></div><iframe width="100%" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/yauBFvKLNNo?start=4951" title="YouTube video player" frameborder="0" allow="accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share" allowfullscreen></iframe><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><div class="vheadingv"><b>Context</b></div><span class="hdg"><a href="/bsb/numbers/15.htm">A Sabbath-Breaker Stoned</a></span><br> <span class="reftext">32</span><span class="highl"><a href="/hebrew/1121.htm" title="1121: ḇə·nê- (N-mpc) -- Son. From banah; a son, in the widest sense (like 'ab, 'ach, etc.).">While the Israelites</a> <a href="/hebrew/3478.htm" title="3478: yiś·rā·’êl (N-proper-ms) -- From sarah and 'el; he will rule as God; Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also of his posterity."></a> <a href="/hebrew/1961.htm" title="1961: way·yih·yū (Conj-w:: V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3mp) -- To fall out, come to pass, become, be. A primitive root; to exist, i.e. Be or become, come to pass.">were</a> <a href="/hebrew/4057.htm" title="4057: bam·miḏ·bār (Prep-b, Art:: N-ms) -- A pasture, a desert, speech. From dabar in the sense of driving; a pasture; by implication, a desert; also speech.">in the wilderness,</a> <a href="/hebrew/376.htm" title="376: ’îš (N-ms) -- Man. Contracted for 'enowsh; a man as an individual or a male person; often used as an adjunct to a more definite term.">a man</a> <a href="/hebrew/4672.htm" title="4672: way·yim·ṣə·’ū (Conj-w:: V-Qal-ConsecImperf-3mp) -- To attain to, find. ">was found</a> <a href="/hebrew/7197.htm" title="7197: mə·qō·šêš (V-Piel-Prtcpl-ms) -- To forage for, straw, stubble, wood, to assemble.">gathering</a> <a href="/hebrew/6086.htm" title="6086: ‘ê·ṣîm (N-mp) -- Tree, trees, wood. From atsah; a tree; hence, wood.">wood</a> <a href="/hebrew/7676.htm" title="7676: haš·šab·bāṯ (Art:: N-cs) -- Sabbath. Intensive from shabath; intermission, i.e the Sabbath.">on the Sabbath</a> <a href="/hebrew/3117.htm" title="3117: bə·yō·wm (Prep-b:: N-msc) -- Day. From an unused root meaning to be hot; a day, whether literal, or figurative.">day.</a> </span><span class="reftext">33</span>Those who found the man gathering wood brought him to Moses, Aaron, and the whole congregation,…<div class="cred"><a href="//berean.bible">Berean Standard Bible</a> · <a href="//berean.bible/downloads.htm">Download</a></div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="crossref" id="crossref"></a><div class="vheading">Cross References</div><div id="crf"><span class="crossverse"><a href="/exodus/31-14.htm">Exodus 31:14-15</a></span><br />Keep the Sabbath, for it is holy to you. Anyone who profanes it must surely be put to death. Whoever does any work on that day must be cut off from among his people. / For six days work may be done, but the seventh day is a Sabbath of complete rest, holy to the LORD. Whoever does any work on the Sabbath day must surely be put to death.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/exodus/35-2.htm">Exodus 35:2-3</a></span><br />For six days work may be done, but the seventh day shall be your holy day, a Sabbath of complete rest to the LORD. Whoever does any work on that day must be put to death. / Do not light a fire in any of your dwellings on the Sabbath day.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/deuteronomy/5-12.htm">Deuteronomy 5:12-15</a></span><br />Observe the Sabbath day by keeping it holy, as the LORD your God has commanded you. / Six days you shall labor and do all your work, / but the seventh day is a Sabbath to the LORD your God, on which you must not do any work—neither you, nor your son or daughter, nor your manservant or maidservant, nor your ox or donkey or any of your livestock, nor the foreigner within your gates, so that your manservant and maidservant may rest as you do. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/nehemiah/13-15.htm">Nehemiah 13:15-22</a></span><br />In those days I saw people in Judah treading winepresses on the Sabbath and bringing in grain and loading it on donkeys, along with wine, grapes, and figs. All kinds of goods were being brought into Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. So I warned them against selling food on that day. / Additionally, men of Tyre who lived there were importing fish and all kinds of merchandise and selling them on the Sabbath to the people of Judah in Jerusalem. / Then I rebuked the nobles of Judah and asked, “What is this evil you are doing—profaning the Sabbath day? ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/jeremiah/17-21.htm">Jeremiah 17:21-27</a></span><br />This is what the LORD says: Take heed for yourselves; do not carry a load or bring it through the gates of Jerusalem on the Sabbath day. / You must not carry a load out of your houses or do any work on the Sabbath day, but you must keep the Sabbath day holy, just as I commanded your forefathers. / Yet they would not listen or incline their ear, but they stiffened their necks and would not listen or receive My discipline. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/isaiah/56-2.htm">Isaiah 56:2</a></span><br />Blessed is the man who does this, and the son of man who holds it fast, who keeps the Sabbath without profaning it and keeps his hand from doing any evil.”<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/ezekiel/20-12.htm">Ezekiel 20:12-13</a></span><br />I also gave them My Sabbaths as a sign between us, so that they would know that I am the LORD who sanctifies them. / Yet the house of Israel rebelled against Me in the wilderness. They did not follow My statutes and they rejected My ordinances—though the man who does these things will live by them—and they utterly profaned My Sabbaths. Then I resolved to pour out My wrath upon them and put an end to them in the wilderness.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/leviticus/24-10.htm">Leviticus 24:10-23</a></span><br />Now the son of an Israelite mother and an Egyptian father went out among the Israelites, and a fight broke out in the camp between him and an Israelite. / The son of the Israelite woman blasphemed the Name with a curse. So they brought him to Moses. (His mother’s name was Shelomith daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan.) / They placed him in custody until the will of the LORD should be made clear to them. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/2_kings/11-5.htm">2 Kings 11:5-8</a></span><br />and commanded them, “This is what you are to do: A third of you who come on duty on the Sabbath shall guard the royal palace, / a third shall be at the gate of Sur, and a third at the gate behind the guards. You are to take turns guarding the temple— / the two divisions that would go off duty on the Sabbath are to guard the house of the LORD for the king. ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/2_chronicles/36-21.htm">2 Chronicles 36:21</a></span><br />So the land enjoyed its Sabbath rest all the days of the desolation, until seventy years were completed, in fulfillment of the word of the LORD spoken through Jeremiah.<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/matthew/12-1.htm">Matthew 12:1-8</a></span><br />At that time Jesus went through the grainfields on the Sabbath. His disciples were hungry and began to pick the heads of grain and eat them. / When the Pharisees saw this, they said to Him, “Look, Your disciples are doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath.” / Jesus replied, “Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/mark/2-23.htm">Mark 2:23-28</a></span><br />One Sabbath Jesus was passing through the grainfields, and His disciples began to pick the heads of grain as they walked along. / So the Pharisees said to Him, “Look, why are they doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” / Jesus replied, “Have you never read what David did when he and his companions were hungry and in need? ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/luke/6-1.htm">Luke 6:1-5</a></span><br />One Sabbath Jesus was passing through the grainfields, and His disciples began to pick the heads of grain, rub them in their hands, and eat them. / But some of the Pharisees asked, “Why are you doing what is unlawful on the Sabbath?” / Jesus replied, “Have you not read what David did when he and his companions were hungry? ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/john/5-9.htm">John 5:9-18</a></span><br />Immediately the man was made well, and he picked up his mat and began to walk. Now this happened on the Sabbath day, / so the Jews said to the man who had been healed, “This is the Sabbath! It is unlawful for you to carry your mat.” / But he answered, “The man who made me well told me, ‘Pick up your mat and walk.’” ...<span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="crossverse"><a href="/john/7-22.htm">John 7:22-23</a></span><br />But because Moses gave you circumcision, you circumcise a boy on the Sabbath (not that it is from Moses, but from the patriarchs.) / If a boy can be circumcised on the Sabbath so that the law of Moses will not be broken, why are you angry with Me for making the whole man well on the Sabbath?</div><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a name="tsk" id="tsk"><div class="vheading">Treasury of Scripture</div><p class="tsk2">And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness, they found a man that gathered sticks on the sabbath day.</p><p class="hdg">they found a man.</p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/exodus/16-23.htm">Exodus 16:23,27,28</a></b></br> And he said unto them, This <i>is that</i> which the LORD hath said, To morrow <i>is</i> the rest of the holy sabbath unto the LORD: bake <i>that</i> which ye will bake <i>to day</i>, and seethe that ye will seethe; and that which remaineth over lay up for you to be kept until the morning… </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/exodus/20-8.htm">Exodus 20:8-10</a></b></br> Remember the sabbath day, to keep it holy… </p><p class="tskverse"><b><a href="/exodus/35-2.htm">Exodus 35:2,3</a></b></br> Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD: whosoever doeth work therein shall be put to death… </p><div class="vheading">Jump to Previous</div><a href="/numbers/15-29.htm">Children</a> <a href="/numbers/14-35.htm">Desert</a> <a href="/numbers/15-29.htm">Israel</a> <a href="/numbers/15-18.htm">Israelites</a> <a href="/leviticus/26-34.htm">Sabbath</a> <a href="/leviticus/24-8.htm">Sabbath-Day</a> <a href="/exodus/12-11.htm">Sticks</a> <a href="/numbers/14-35.htm">Waste</a> <a href="/numbers/14-35.htm">Wilderness</a> <a href="/numbers/13-20.htm">Wood</a><div class="vheading2">Jump to Next</div><a href="/numbers/15-38.htm">Children</a> <a href="/numbers/16-13.htm">Desert</a> <a href="/numbers/15-38.htm">Israel</a> <a href="/numbers/15-38.htm">Israelites</a> <a href="/numbers/28-9.htm">Sabbath</a> <a href="/numbers/28-9.htm">Sabbath-Day</a> <a href="/numbers/15-33.htm">Sticks</a> <a href="/numbers/19-5.htm">Waste</a> <a href="/numbers/16-13.htm">Wilderness</a> <a href="/numbers/15-33.htm">Wood</a><div class="vheading2">Numbers 15</div><span class="reftext">1. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/numbers/15-1.htm">The law of the meat offering, and the drink offering</a></span><br><span class="reftext">14. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/numbers/15-14.htm">The stranger is under the same law</a></span><br><span class="reftext">17. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/numbers/15-17.htm">The law of the first of the dough</a></span><br><span class="reftext">22. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/numbers/15-22.htm">The sacrifice for sins of ignorance</a></span><br><span class="reftext">30. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/numbers/15-30.htm">The punishment of presumption</a></span><br><span class="reftext">32. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/numbers/15-32.htm">He who violated the Sabbath is stoned</a></span><br><span class="reftext">37. </span><span class="outlinetext"><a href="/numbers/15-37.htm">The law of tassels</a></span><br></div></div><div id="mdd"><div align="center"><div class="bot2"><table align="center" width="100%"><tr><td><div align="center"> <script id="3d27ed63fc4348d5b062c4527ae09445"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=51ce25d5-1a8c-424a-8695-4bd48c750f35&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script> <script id="b817b7107f1d4a7997da1b3c33457e03"> (new Image()).src = 'https://capi.connatix.com/tr/si?token=cb0edd8b-b416-47eb-8c6d-3cc96561f7e8&cid=3a9f82d0-4344-4f8d-ac0c-e1a0eb43a405'; </script><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-2'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-0' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-3'> </div><br /><br />  <div id='div-gpt-ad-1529103594582-1' style='max-width: 300px;'> </div><br /><br />  <div align="center" id='div-gpt-ad-1531425649696-0'> </div><br /><br /> <ins class="adsbygoogle" style="display:inline-block;width:200px;height:200px" data-ad-client="ca-pub-3753401421161123" data-ad-slot="3592799687"></ins> <script> (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({}); </script> <br /><br /> </div> </td></tr></table></div></div></div><div id="combox"><div class="padcom"><a name="study" id="study"></a><div class="vheading"><table width="100%"><tr><td width="99%" valign="top"><a href="/study/numbers/15.htm">Study Bible</a></td><td width="1%" valign="top"><a href="/study/numbers/" title="Book Summary and Study">Book ◦</a> <a href="/study/chapters/numbers/15.htm" title="Chapter summary and Study">Chapter </a></tr></table></div><b>While the Israelites were in the wilderness</b><br>This phrase sets the scene during the Israelites' 40-year journey through the desert after their exodus from Egypt. The wilderness period was a time of testing and reliance on God for provision and guidance. It was also a formative period where God gave the Law through Moses, shaping the identity and faith of the Israelite community. The wilderness represents a place of both physical and spiritual challenges, where the Israelites learned to trust in God's promises.<p><b>a man was found gathering wood</b><br>Gathering wood may seem like a mundane task, but in the context of the Law, it was significant. The act of gathering wood on the Sabbath was a direct violation of the commandment to keep the Sabbath day holy and to rest, as outlined in <a href="/exodus/20-8.htm">Exodus 20:8-11</a>. This incident highlights the importance of obedience to God's commandments and the seriousness with which the Sabbath was to be observed. The gathering of wood could symbolize human effort and work, which was prohibited on the Sabbath, a day set apart for rest and worship.<p><b>on the Sabbath day</b><br>The Sabbath was instituted by God as a day of rest and remembrance of His creation and deliverance. It was a sign of the covenant between God and Israel (<a href="/exodus/31-13.htm">Exodus 31:13-17</a>). Observing the Sabbath was a way for the Israelites to demonstrate their trust in God's provision and to acknowledge His sovereignty. The Sabbath also foreshadows the rest found in Christ, as mentioned in <a href="/hebrews/4-9.htm">Hebrews 4:9-10</a>, where believers are invited to enter into God's rest through faith in Jesus. The violation of the Sabbath in this passage underscores the tension between human disobedience and divine law, pointing to the need for a Savior who perfectly fulfills the Law.<div class="vheading2">Persons / Places / Events</div>1. <b><a href="/topical/t/the_israelites.htm">The Israelites</a></b><br>The chosen people of God, who were journeying through the wilderness after their exodus from Egypt. They were under the Mosaic Law, which included strict observance of the Sabbath.<br><br>2. <b><a href="/topical/t/the_man_gathering_wood.htm">The Man Gathering Wood</a></b><br>An unnamed individual who was found collecting wood on the Sabbath, an act that was considered a violation of the Sabbath law.<br><br>3. <b><a href="/topical/t/the_wilderness.htm">The Wilderness</a></b><br>The setting for this event, representing both a physical and spiritual journey for the Israelites as they learned to trust and obey God.<br><br>4. <b><a href="/topical/t/the_sabbath_day.htm">The Sabbath Day</a></b><br>A holy day of rest instituted by God, meant to be a sign of the covenant between God and Israel, and a day set apart for rest and worship.<br><br>5. <b><a href="/topical/m/moses_and_the_leaders.htm">Moses and the Leaders</a></b><br>Though not mentioned directly in this verse, they were responsible for enforcing the laws given by God, including the Sabbath regulations.<div class="vheading2">Teaching Points</div><b><a href="/topical/t/the_importance_of_obedience.htm">The Importance of Obedience</a></b><br>The incident underscores the importance of obeying God's commandments, even when they seem inconvenient or unnecessary. Obedience is a demonstration of faith and trust in God's wisdom.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/t/the_holiness_of_the_sabbath.htm">The Holiness of the Sabbath</a></b><br>The Sabbath was a sign of the covenant between God and Israel, and its observance was a way to honor God. Today, Christians can reflect on how they set aside time for rest and worship.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/c/consequences_of_disobedience.htm">Consequences of Disobedience</a></b><br>The account serves as a reminder that disobedience to God's commands can have serious consequences. It calls believers to examine their lives for areas of willful disobedience.<br><br><b><a href="/topical/s/spiritual_rest_in_christ.htm">Spiritual Rest in Christ</a></b><br>While the physical observance of the Sabbath is not required for Christians, the principle of rest and reliance on God remains. Believers are encouraged to find their rest in Christ, who fulfills the law.<div class="vheading2">Lists and Questions</div><a href="/top10/lessons_from_numbers_15.htm">Top 10 Lessons from Numbers 15</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_death_for_gathering_wood_on_sabbath.htm">Numbers 15:32–36: Why is gathering wood on the Sabbath punished by death, and how does this align with a just moral system today? </a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_does_god_order_execution_for_minor_sins.htm">Why does God order the execution of people for minor offenses, such as picking up sticks on the Sabbath (Numbers 15:32-36)?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/what_causes_evil_to_exist_in_the_world.htm">How did Israel test God ten times?</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/q/why_is_sabbath-breaking_punished_severely.htm">Why does Exodus 20:8-11 mandate strict Sabbath observance, yet elsewhere in Scripture (e.g., Numbers 15:32-36) the penalty for Sabbath-breaking appears more severe? </a><a name="commentary" id="commentary"></a><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/ellicott/numbers/15.htm">Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers</a></div>(32) <span class= "bld">And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness . . . --</span>Better, <span class= "ital">Now the children of Israel were in the wilderness, and they found, </span>&c. It is probable that the incident which is here recorded is designed to illustrate the presumptuous sins which were to be punished by death. The offence may have been committed shortly after the promulgation of the commandments contained in this chapter, but all that is certain is that it was committed "in the wilderness," <span class= "ital">i.e., </span>according to Ibn Ezra, in the wilderness of Sinai, but more probably during the period of the wanderings in the wilderness after the arrival at Kadesh. No inference can be drawn from this verse as to the time at which the account was committed to writing. The observance of the Sabbath was obligatory in the wilderness as well as in the land of Canaan (comp. <a href="/context/exodus/16-27.htm" title="And it came to pass, that there went out some of the people on the seventh day for to gather, and they found none.">Exodus 16:27-30</a>), and the punishment of death had already been denounced against those who profaned it by doing any work thereon (see <a href="/exodus/31-15.htm" title="Six days may work be done; but in the seventh is the sabbath of rest, holy to the LORD: whoever does any work in the sabbath day, he shall surely be put to death.">Exodus 31:15</a>; <a href="/exodus/35-2.htm" title="Six days shall work be done, but on the seventh day there shall be to you an holy day, a sabbath of rest to the LORD: whoever does work therein shall be put to death.">Exodus 35:2</a>)<span class= "ital">, </span>but the manner in which death was to be inflicted does not appear to have been hitherto declared. The same verb which is here rendered "declared" occurs in the parallel case of the blasphemer in <a href="/leviticus/24-12.htm" title="And they put him in ward, that the mind of the LORD might be showed them.">Leviticus 24:12</a>, where it is rendered "shewed":--"And they put him in ward, that the mind of the Lord might be shewed them." The punishment of death had already been denounced against those who cursed father or mother (<a href="/leviticus/20-9.htm" title="For every one that curses his father or his mother shall be surely put to death: he has cursed his father or his mother; his blood shall be on him.">Leviticus 20:9</a>). It could hardly be thought that a lighter punishment was to be inflicted on one who blasphemed the name of Jehovah, but in that case, as in this, the mode of death does not appear to have been previously enjoined.<p><div class="vheading2"><a href="/commentaries/pulpit/numbers/15.htm">Pulpit Commentary</a></div><span class="cmt_sub_title">Verse 32.</span> - And while the children of Israel were in the wilderness. It is maintained by some that these words were intended to mark the contrast between the previous laws, which were only to be observed when the people came into their own land, and the law of the sabbath, which was strictly enforced during the period of wandering. There is no doubt that such a distinction existed in fact, but there is no reason to find the intentional assertion of it in this expression. The simpler and more natural, and therefore more <span class="accented">probable</span>, explanation <span class="accented">is</span>, that the incident was recorded after the people had left the wilderness. At the same time, there is nothing unreasonable in ascribing the narrative to Moses himself if we suppose him to have written it at the end of his life, when the people were encamped in the steppes of Moab. It seems probable that the record of the incident was inserted here as an example of a "presumptuous" sin, and of its punishment. A man that gathered sticks upon the sabbath day. This was clearly presumptuous, because the prohibition to do any work for oneself on the sabbath had been made so clear, and was so constantly forced upon their attention by the failure of the manna on that day, that ignorance could not possibly be pleaded here. <span class="p"><br /><br /></span><span class="versiontext"><a href="/commentaries/numbers/15-32.htm">Parallel Commentaries ...</a></span><span class="p"><br /><br /><br /></span><a name="lexicon" id="lexicon"></a><div class="vheading">Hebrew</div><span class="word">While the Israelites</span><br /><span class="heb">בְנֵֽי־</span> <span class="translit">(ḇə·nê-)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - masculine plural construct<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1121.htm">Strong's 1121: </a> </span><span class="str2">A son</span><br /><br /><span class="word">were</span><br /><span class="heb">וַיִּהְי֥וּ</span> <span class="translit">(way·yih·yū)</span><br /><span class="parse">Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_1961.htm">Strong's 1961: </a> </span><span class="str2">To fall out, come to pass, become, be</span><br /><br /><span class="word">in the wilderness,</span><br /><span class="heb">בַּמִּדְבָּ֑ר</span> <span class="translit">(bam·miḏ·bār)</span><br /><span class="parse">Preposition-b, Article | Noun - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_4057.htm">Strong's 4057: </a> </span><span class="str2">A pasture, a desert, speech</span><br /><br /><span class="word">a man</span><br /><span class="heb">אִ֛ישׁ</span> <span class="translit">(’îš)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_376.htm">Strong's 376: </a> </span><span class="str2">A man as an individual, a male person</span><br /><br /><span class="word">was found</span><br /><span class="heb">וַֽיִּמְצְא֗וּ</span> <span class="translit">(way·yim·ṣə·’ū)</span><br /><span class="parse">Conjunctive waw | Verb - Qal - Consecutive imperfect - third person masculine plural<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_4672.htm">Strong's 4672: </a> </span><span class="str2">To come forth to, appear, exist, to attain, find, acquire, to occur, meet, be present</span><br /><br /><span class="word">gathering</span><br /><span class="heb">מְקֹשֵׁ֥שׁ</span> <span class="translit">(mə·qō·šêš)</span><br /><span class="parse">Verb - Piel - Participle - masculine singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_7197.htm">Strong's 7197: </a> </span><span class="str2">To forage for, straw, stubble, wood, to assemble</span><br /><br /><span class="word">wood</span><br /><span class="heb">עֵצִ֖ים</span> <span class="translit">(‘ê·ṣîm)</span><br /><span class="parse">Noun - masculine plural<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_6086.htm">Strong's 6086: </a> </span><span class="str2">Tree, trees, wood</span><br /><br /><span class="word">on the Sabbath</span><br /><span class="heb">הַשַּׁבָּֽת׃</span> <span class="translit">(haš·šab·bāṯ)</span><br /><span class="parse">Article | Noun - common singular<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_7676.htm">Strong's 7676: </a> </span><span class="str2">Intermission, the Sabbath</span><br /><br /><span class="word">day.</span><br /><span class="heb">בְּי֥וֹם</span> <span class="translit">(bə·yō·wm)</span><br /><span class="parse">Preposition-b | Noun - masculine singular construct<br /></span><span class="str"><a href="/hebrew/strongs_3117.htm">Strong's 3117: </a> </span><span class="str2">A day</span><br /><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><div class="vheading">Links</div><a href="/niv/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 NIV</a><br /><a href="/nlt/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 NLT</a><br /><a href="/esv/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 ESV</a><br /><a href="/nasb/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 NASB</a><br /><a href="/kjv/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 KJV</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="//bibleapps.com/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 BibleApps.com</a><br /><a href="//bibliaparalela.com/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 Biblia Paralela</a><br /><a href="//holybible.com.cn/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 Chinese Bible</a><br /><a href="//saintebible.com/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 French Bible</a><br /><a href="/catholic/numbers/15-32.htm">Numbers 15:32 Catholic Bible</a><span class="p"><br /><br /></span><a href="/numbers/15-32.htm">OT Law: Numbers 15:32 While the children of Israel were (Nu Num.) </a></div></div></td></tr></table></div><div id="left"><a href="/numbers/15-31.htm" onmouseover='lft.src="/leftgif.png"' onmouseout='lft.src="/left.png"' title="Numbers 15:31"><img src="/left.png" name="lft" border="0" alt="Numbers 15:31" /></a></div><div id="right"><a href="/numbers/15-33.htm" onmouseover='rght.src="/rightgif.png"' onmouseout='rght.src="/right.png"' title="Numbers 15:33"><img src="/right.png" name="rght" border="0" alt="Numbers 15:33" /></a></div><div id="botleft"><a href="#" onmouseover='botleft.src="/botleftgif.png"' onmouseout='botleft.src="/botleft.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botleft.png" name="botleft" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="botright"><a href="#" onmouseover='botright.src="/botrightgif.png"' onmouseout='botright.src="/botright.png"' title="Top of Page"><img src="/botright.png" name="botright" border="0" alt="Top of Page" /></a></div><div id="bot"><iframe width="100%" height="1500" scrolling="no" src="/botmenubhnew2.htm" frameborder="0"></iframe></div></td></tr></table></div></body></html>