Annual Reading Schedule - Torah Given Through Mosheh - Week 45 - Purge Evil, We Are A Chosen People, Eat Tithe, Release Debts, Feasts, Judges, Witnesses, & King (Deuteronomy 12:28-17:20)

It's unclear to me if the first-born males of the flock and herd in Deuteronomy 15:19-23 is part of giving tithes, or if this is just an additional command specific to the first-born which is separate from the command to tithe. In any event, I get the impression that the first-born males of the flock and herd were eaten at Sukkot although it doesn't mention Sukkot specifically. I also get the impression that they were slaughtered before Yahweh in the set-apart tabernacle with the blood sprinkled on the altar (unless there was a defect in it). This also gives me the impression that the phrase "within your gates" means "in your home town rather than at Sukkot with the blood sprinkled on the altar by the priests". I may be wrong about that thought, I'm not sure. Further study is needed on my part probably.

In verse 22, the phrase, "the unclean and the clean alike" means a person who is clean or unclean can eat it. I believe this was mentioned because when something is sacrificed to Yahweh, I am fairly certain, if my memory is correct, that only those who are clean can eat of the sacrifice. However, if there was a defect in the first-born male of the flock or herd, then that would not be sacrificed and the blood would not be sprinkled on the altar. Therefore, that verse is showing us that in the case of a defect it doesn't matter if someone is clean or unclean in regards to whether or not they can eat of the first-born since in that case the first-born is not a sacrifice.

• Deuteronomy 16:2 uses the Hebrew word פֶּסַח (pesach) which is translated as "Passover". However, the plural form of this word פְּסָחִים (pesachiym) is translated as "Passover offerings" in 2 Chronicles 35:9. This shows that the word "Pesach" in and of itself does not always refer exclusively and only to the Exodus 12 Passover goat or lamb. It can also refer generally to the other offerings around the time of Passover or the Feast of Unleavened Bread. It is obvious that 2 Chronicles 35:9 is not talking about the Exodus 12 Passover because they are giving oxen, not sheep or goats.
• Deuteronomy 16:2 states "of the flock and the herd". The word "herd" is from the Hebrew word בָקָר (vaqar) which means "cattle" (Ancient Hebrew Lexicon of the Bible). Some of the KJV translations include "oxen" 75 times, "bullocks" 4 times, "ox" 3 times, "calf" 2 times, and the list goes on, but that's enough for the examples to show that this word does not mean "goat" or "sheep" which are the required animals for the Exodus 12 Passover.
  
  Interestingly, this word "vaqar" is the same Hebrew word in 2 Chronicles 35:9 which to me shows that they were more likely fulfilling Deuteronomy 16 (and related verses) in 2 Chronicles 35:9 rather than the Exodus 12 Passover which must be from the sheep or the goats (Exodus 12:5).
• Deuteronomy 16:4 states "the first day at even". What first day? In context, it is referring to the first day of seven days of unleavened bread. When is the "evening on the first day"?
  
  In Leviticus 23:32, regarding the Day of Atonement which nobody disagrees is on the 10th Day of the 7th Month, it states to begin to observe it "in the ninth day of the month at even". Would anyone try to argue that the Day of Atonement starts at the beginning of the 9th day? Of course not. Never. Nobody would ever try to say the Day of Atonement goes for 2 days. The "ninth day of the month at even" is obviously the end of the 9th day, not the beginning.
  
  So, if we're going to be consistent, then "the first day at even" is the end of the 1st Day of the Feast of Unleavened Bread, not the beginning. This would place the Deuteronomy 16 Passover offerings (which can be from cattle) approximately 24 hours after the Exodus 12 Passover (which must from sheep or goats).
• Deuteronomy 16:6 states "sacrifice the Passover at even, at the going down of the sun, at the season that you came forth out of Egypt". The time that they "came forth out of Egypt", however, is after Exodus 12 had already taken place. I tend to believe they came out at sunrise or noon because it states in Exodus 12:41 that they came out "even the selfsame day".
  
  A more correct translation is given in the Ancient Hebrew Revised Mechanical Translation as "in the bone of this day" which is from the Hebrew phrase בְּעֶצֶם הַיּוֹם (be'etsem hay'yom). What is the "bone of the day"? I don't know for certain, but I guess it means the middle of a day (i.e. sunrise as being the middle of a 24 hour day – or noon as being the middle of the daylight portion of a day). I guess it means the middle of the day because the bone is in the middle of a limb. Or, maybe it means the beginning of a day (the daylight part) because a bone is covered with muscles and tendons and skin; so a bone of something could be thought of as a very basic part of something, or a very basic start of something, before lots of other things are added (i.e. before a lot of time in the day has passed).
  
  I also tend to think they came out at either sunrise or noon because delaying until sunset does not seem to match Exodus 12:39 which states they left before the dough was leavened and could not tarry. With that perspective, sunrise or noon seems to make sense.
• Deuteronomy 16:7 states "thou shalt turn in the morning, and go unto thy tents", but Exodus 12:22 states "none of you shall go out at the door of his house until the morning". Exodus 12 implies you stay in all night, whereas Deuteronomy 16:7 implies you were out somewhere else all night and only returning home in the morning. This seems different to me; but perhaps there is something I am not seeing? For now it seems different.