Numbers 15:40
So you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God.
English Standard Version (ESV)
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The real goal here isn't just remembering the commands, but that the tangible reminder would lead them to actively do them, ultimately becoming holy, meaning set apart and sincerely devoted to God. It’s a powerful reminder that external observances are meant to stir internal change and outward obedience, not just to be performed for their own sake.
God instructs Moses to tell the Israelites to put fringes on their garments, a visible reminder to remember and obey all His commands. This outward symbol is meant to counteract their tendency to follow their own desires and stray from God's path. Ultimately, this practice serves as a constant call to be holy, reflecting their special relationship with the God who redeemed them from Egypt.
God knows we're forgetful. He used physical reminders for Israel, and He still does for us today. What are these signs meant to stir within us?
The fringes commanded in this passage (and elaborated in the preceding verses) weren't just decorations. They were tangible, visible reminders.
A Visual Cue
These weren't meant to have inherent spiritual power, but to serve as external aids for an internal reality.
Remembering God's words is just the first step. What's the crucial next action God calls for?
The ultimate goal of remembering God's commands isn't just intellectual assent or passive recollection. It's active obedience.
The Command to 'Do'
Understand the original words
qadosh · Hebrew Adjective
Meaning 'set apart,' it signifies being dedicated exclusively to God’s service and bearing His character. It is the status of being distinct from the secular world because one belongs to the living God.
The command for fringes in Numbers 15 wasn't given in a vacuum; it came during the Israelites' 40-year wilderness journey, a period of constant reliance on God and His commands after their liberation from Egypt. These visual reminders were intended to keep them tethered to God's law as they navigated potential temptations and strayed from His path.
c. 1446 BC
Exodus from Egypt
God miraculously delivers the Israelites from slavery in Egypt under the leadership of Moses. This event establishes God's covenant relationship with Israel.
c. 1445 BC
Wilderness Wanderings Begin
Following the Exodus, the Israelites begin their journey through the Sinai desert. During this time, God gives them His Law and establishes many of His commands.
c. 1445-1405 BC— this verse
The Command for Fringes
God instructs Moses to command the Israelites to make fringes on the borders of their garments. These were to serve as a visual reminder of all God's commandments.
c. 1405 BC
Conquest of Transjordan
Before entering the Promised Land, the Israelites conquer the territories east of the Jordan River, under Joshua's leadership after Moses' death.
This passage emphasizes the constant remembrance and practice of God's commands as a way of life, mirroring the purpose of the fringes mentioned in Numbers, which served as a visual reminder to obey.
1 Peter 1:15-16Peter directly quotes Leviticus 19:2 and applies it to believers, calling them to 'be holy' because God is holy, which echoes the command in Numbers to 'be holy to your God'.
Galatians 5:22-23While Numbers points to outward remembrance leading to obedience, this passage highlights the internal transformation brought by the Spirit, which naturally results in living out God's will and being holy.
Colossians 3:1-2Paul urges believers to set their minds on things above, directly connecting heavenly focus with seeking what is above, similar to how the fringes were meant to direct Israel's attention to God's commands.
gillNumbers 15:40: "That ye may remember, and do all my commandments, and be holy unto your God."
That ye may remember and do all my commandments,.... Which is repeated, that the end and use of these fringes might be particularly taken notice of, and attended to; that so they might not satisfy themselves with and rest in this ceremony of wearing the fringes, but be found in the observance of every moral precept, and of every religious ordinance and duty: and be holy unto your God: as in his presenc…
calvinNumbers 15:37-41: "And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,"
Speak unto the children of Israel, and bid them that they make them fringes in the borders of their garments, throughout their generations, and that they put upon the fringe of the borders a ribband of blue:
Alloquere filios Israel, et dic eis ut faciant sibi fimbrias in angulis vestimentorum suorum, per generationes suas, et ponant in fimbria anguli filum hyacinthinum.
And it shall be unto you for a fringe, that ye may lo…
The real goal here isn't just remembering the commands, but that the tangible reminder would lead them to actively do them, ultimately becoming holy, meaning set apart and sincerely devoted to God. It’s a powerful reminder that external observances are meant to stir internal change and outward obedience, not just to be performed for their own sake.
God instructs Moses to tell the Israelites to put fringes on their garments, a visible reminder to remember and obey all His commands. This outward symbol is meant to counteract their tendency to follow their own desires and stray from God's path. Ultimately, this practice serves as a constant call to be holy, reflecting their special relationship with the God who redeemed them from Egypt.
God instructs Moses to tell the Israelites to put fringes on their garments, a visible reminder to remember and obey all His commands. This outward symbol is meant to counteract their tendency to follow their own desires and stray from God's path. Ultimately, this practice serves as a constant call to be holy, reflecting their special relationship with the God who redeemed them from Egypt.
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Why does God give us these commands and expect us to remember and do them? What's the ultimate destination He calls us to?
The final and most profound purpose for remembering and doing God's commandments is to become holy. This isn't about earning salvation, but about reflecting God's own character.
What 'Holy' Means Here
"So you shall remember and do all my commandments, and be holy to your God." — The real goal here isn't just remembering the commands, but that the tangible reminder would lead them to actively do them, ultimately becoming holy, meaning set apart and sincerely devoted to God.…
