Midras Bilangan 7:86: Bamidbar Rabbah & Sifrei Bamidbar

“And his offering: One silver dish” (Numbers 7:13), it is taught: This tells that they were crafted from the outset only for the sake of his offering.
“One silver basin of seventy shekels, in the sacred shekel” (Numbers 7:13), I have derived regarding only the basin, as it specified in its regard “in the sacred shekel.” The dish, from where is it derived? The verse states: “Both of them full of high quality flour” (Numbers 7:13). Just as this one is in the sacred shekel, so, too, that one, in the sacred shekel. Rabbi Ḥananya son of the brother of Rabbi Yehoshua says: It is not necessary, as it is already stated: “All the silver of the vessels was two thousand and four hundred, in the sacred shekel” (Numbers 7:85). Why does the verse state: “Both of them full”? It is because they were equal in measure. What is the difference between a dish and a basin? The dish, its wall was thick; the basin, its wall was thin.
“High quality flour mixed with oil,” this was of the gift offering.³⁹It was not from the flour and oil belonging to the Tabernacle.
“One gold ladle, ten shekels, full of incense” (Numbers 7:14).
“One young bull, one ram, one lamb in its first year, as a burnt offering” (Numbers 7:15).
“One goat as a sin offering” (Numbers 7:16).
“And for the peace offering, two cattle, five rams, five goats, five sheep in their first year. This was the offering of Naḥshon son of Aminadav” (Numbers 7:17).
“One gold ladle, ten shekels…” (Numbers 7:14), Rabbi Ḥanin said: It renders everything in the ladle as one, as a sacred vessel connects everything that is inside it to become impure.⁴⁰If there are distinct pieces in the vessel, and one of them comes in contact with impurity, they all become impure, because they are considered one single piece while in the vessel. If one who immersed that day⁴¹His purification will not be complete until the evening, and his status is that of second degree impurity. touches some of what is in it, he disqualifies it all.
“Gold…ten shekels” – it is of gold, its weight is of silver. Do you say thus, it is of gold, its weight is of silver; or, it is of silver and its weight is of gold? The verse states: “All the gold of the ladles, one hundred and twenty” (Numbers 7:86); consequently, you should not say according to the former formulation, but rather according to the latter formulation: It is of gold and its weight is of silver.
“Full of incense,” this is incense of a gift offering.
“One young bull” (Numbers 7:15), that there was not another in its herd that equaled it.⁴²The midrash expounds the word one, eḥad, to mean special, meyuḥad. “One ram,” that there was not another in its herd that equaled it. “In its first year,” this is its own first year, but not the year according to the tally of the world.⁴³The year ends on the anniversary of the sheep’s birth, not at the end of the calendar year.
“As a burnt offering” (Numbers 7:15), it states that they were all fit for a burnt offering.⁴⁴Namely, maybe only the sheep were brought as a burnt offering. Or [should we interpret] “sheep,” in whose regard it was specified, was fit for a burnt offering, but the rest of them were not fit for a burnt offering? The verse states: “One bull…one ram…one sheep,” telling that all of them are fit for a burnt offering.
“One goat as a sin offering” (Numbers 7:16), it is to atone for a grave in the depths.⁴⁵A grave in the depths is one which nobody is currently aware of. Since somebody who walked over the grave would become impure, but would have no knowledge of his impurity, he might unwittingly enter the Tabernacle or partake of consecrated meat while impure. Since he is unaware of his impurity, he will not bring the sacrifice required of a person who unintentionally did one of these acts.
“And for the peace offering” (Numbers 7:17), [does] it state that they were all fit for a peace offering, or “cattle,” in whose regard it was specified, must be fit for a peace offering, but the rest of them need not be fit for a peace offering? The verse states: “And for the peace offering, [two cattle, five rams, five goats, five sheep in their first year],” stating that all of them must be fit for a peace offering.
“This was the offering of Naḥshon son of Aminadav” (Numbers 7:17), he brought it from what was his, and did not collect from his tribe and bring.
“This was the offering,” this one brought incense as a gift offering, but an individual does not bring incense as a gift offering. This one brings a sin offering without having sinned, but an individual does not bring a sin offering without having sinned. This one, his offering overrides Shabbat, but, [normally] an individual’s offering does not override Shabbat.

“Twelve golden ladles, full of incense, ten each ladle, in the sacred shekel; all the gold of the ladles was one hundred and twenty” (Numbers 7:86).
“Twelve golden ladles…” – why is it stated? It is because it says: “One gold ladle of ten shekels” (Numbers 7:14) but you do not know whether it is gold and its weight is silver, or is it of silver and its weight is of gold.¹⁰³The question is whether the word gold is describing the material from which the ladle is made, or is describing the weight, i.e., the weight of ten gold units of volume, rather than the weight of ten silver identical units, presuming that the gold weight differs from the silver weight. When it says: “All the gold of the ladles was one hundred and twenty,” you should not say like the latter formulation, but rather according to the former formulation.
They ascribe to each and every one of them that he presented an offering of twelve ladles, and these were the ones that they donated and no disqualification befell them.

Rabbi Pinḥas ben Ya’ir said: Twelve silver dishes, twelve silver basins, twelve golden ladles, twelve cattle, twelve rams, twelve lambs, twelve goats correspond to twelve constellations, corresponding to twelve months of the solar year and twelve months of the lunar year, correspond to the twelve tribes, the twelve princes, twelve implementers of the soul,¹⁰⁴Two hands, two feet, two kidneys, spleen, liver, gall bladder, stomach, maw, and craw. and the twelve loaves of showbread on the Table.
“All the silver of the vessels was two thousand and four hundred, in the sacred shekel” (Numbers 7:85) – from when the world was created until Moses was thirty-two years old, when he began to instruct Israel in Egypt, were two thousand four hundred years. “Twelve golden ladles” (Numbers 7:86) that weigh one hundred and twenty – it corresponds to the days of Moses the pious.
Likewisethe living offerings correspond to these: Bulls correspond to kings;¹⁰⁵There were twelve righteous kings. rams correspond to princes; goats correspond to chiefs, deputies, and governors;¹⁰⁶There were four of each of these categories who served under the kings. and lambs correspond to officials and “the Keretites and the Peletites” (II Samuel 8:18).
Twenty-four bulls of the peace offerings corresponded to the twenty-four books, and the twenty-four priestly watches, and atonement for the twenty-four thousand who perished due to Baal Peor (see Numbers 25:9).
“Sixty rams, sixty goats, sixty lambs” – they corresponded to the sixty myriads; and corresponded to the esoterica [sod], whose numerical value¹⁰⁷The numerical value of its first letter. is sixty; and corresponded to “they are sixty queens” (Song of Songs 6:8); corresponded to the second Temple, which was built sixty by sixty: “Its height shall be sixty cubits and its width sixty cubits” (Ezra 6:3); and Elisha served Israel sixty years; corresponded to the “sixty cities, the entire region of Argov” (Deuteronomy 3:4); “Isaac was sixty years old” (Genesis 25:26);¹⁰⁸When Esau and Jacob were born. corresponding to the sixty letters of the Priestly Benediction, as it is stated: “Sixty warriors surrounding it” (Song of Songs 3:7).
The offering of each and every prince was peace offerings of three species, fifteen for each of them, corresponding to the verse: “May the Lord bless you” (Numbers 6:24), which contains fifteen letters. Each and every species was of five each, corresponding to the fact that each and every verse is five letters longer than its predecessor. How so? The verse “may…bless you” is fifteen letters. The next verse has five letters more, as it consists of twenty letters. “May the Lord lift His countenance” (Numbers 6:26) is five letters longer than it, as it is twenty-five letters. Because it concludes the Priestly Benediction with peace: “And grant you peace” (Numbers 6:26), that is why they sacrificed peace offerings corresponding to them.
“Sixty rams, sixty goats, sixty lambs” – that is one hundred and eighty, corresponding to the years of Isaac.
“This was the dedication of the altar after it was anointed” – if it was “on the day that it was anointed” (Numbers 7:84), is it, perhaps, before it was anointed? The verse states: “After it was anointed.” From here you learn on the day that it was anointed, and after it was anointed, the princes began to present their offerings.