And the priest shall take cedar wood, and hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the midst of the burning of the heifer.
Parallel translations
- WEB The priest shall take cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet, and cast it into the middle of the burning of the heifer.
- BSB The priest is to take cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet wool and throw them onto the burning heifer.
- NKJV And the priest shall take cedar wood and hyssop and scarlet, and cast them into the midst of the fire burning the heifer.
- NASB And the priest shall take cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet material, and throw it into the midst of the burning heifer.
- NLT Eleazar the priest must then take a stick of cedar, a hyssop branch, and some scarlet yarn and throw them into the fire where the heifer is burning.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
The priest threw cedar wood, hyssop, and scarlet into the fire with the burning heifer.
Overview
These same elements appear in other cleansing rites, such as the purification of lepers, and were associated with purification. Their inclusion enriched the ashes' cleansing significance. Hyssop in particular recalls the Passover and reappears in connection with cleansing in the Psalms and at the cross, tying these rites to the broader biblical theme of purification.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 6
- Lev 14:4Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop:
- Lev 14:49And he shall take to cleanse the house two birds, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop:
- Ps 51:7Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
- Lev 14:6As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water:
- Isa 1:18Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
- Heb 9:19–23For when Moses had spoken every precept to all the people according to the law, he took the blood of calves and of goats, with water, and scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book, and all the people,
Themes, concepts, people & topics
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Christ at the center
In the wilderness Christ is the water from the rock, the bronze serpent lifted up that the dying might look and live (John 3:14), and the star and scepter that Balaam saw rising out of Jacob.
How Numbers 19:6 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.