Worthy.Bible » Parallel » Leviticus » Chapter 5 » Verse 1-13

Leviticus 5:1-13 King James Version (KJV)

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1 And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity.

2 Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether it be a carcass of an unclean beast, or a carcass of unclean cattle, or the carcass of unclean creeping things, and if it be hidden from him; he also shall be unclean, and guilty.

3 Or if he touch the uncleanness of man, whatsoever uncleanness it be that a man shall be defiled withal, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty.

4 Or if a soul swear, pronouncing with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall pronounce with an oath, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty in one of these.

5 And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he shall confess that he hath sinned in that thing:

6 And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his sin.

7 And if he be not able to bring a lamb, then he shall bring for his trespass, which he hath committed, two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, unto the LORD; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.

8 And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin offering first, and wring off his head from his neck, but shall not divide it asunder:

9 And he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin offering upon the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be wrung out at the bottom of the altar: it is a sin offering.

10 And he shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the manner: and the priest shall make an atonement for him for his sin which he hath sinned, and it shall be forgiven him.

11 But if he be not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall put no oil upon it, neither shall he put any frankincense thereon: for it is a sin offering.

12 Then shall he bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it, even a memorial thereof, and burn it on the altar, according to the offerings made by fire unto the LORD: it is a sin offering.

13 And the priest shall make an atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him: and the remnant shall be the priest's, as a meat offering.

Leviticus 5:1-13 King James Version with Strong's Concordance (STRONG)

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1 And if a soul H5315 sin, H2398 and hear H8085 the voice H6963 of swearing, H423 and is a witness, H5707 whether H176 he hath seen H7200 or known H3045 of it; if he do not utter H5046 it, then he shall bear H5375 his iniquity. H5771

2 Or if a soul H5315 touch H5060 any unclean H2931 thing, H1697 whether it be a carcase H5038 of an unclean H2931 beast, H2416 or a carcase H5038 of unclean H2931 cattle, H929 or the carcase H5038 of unclean H2931 creeping things, H8318 and if it be hidden H5956 from him; he also shall be unclean, H2931 and guilty. H816

3 Or if he touch H5060 the uncleanness H2932 of man, H120 whatsoever uncleanness H2932 it be that a man shall be defiled H2930 withal, and it be hid H5956 from him; when he knoweth H3045 of it, then he shall be guilty. H816

4 Or if a soul H5315 swear, H7650 pronouncing H981 with his lips H8193 to do evil, H7489 or to do good, H3190 whatsoever it be that a man H120 shall pronounce H981 with an oath, H7621 and it be hid H5956 from him; when he knoweth H3045 of it, then he shall be guilty H816 in one H259 of these.

5 And it shall be, when he shall be guilty H816 in one H259 of these things, that he shall confess H3034 that he hath sinned H2398 in that thing:

6 And he shall bring H935 his trespass offering H817 unto the LORD H3068 for his sin H2403 which he hath sinned, H2398 a female H5347 from the flock, H6629 a lamb H3776 or a kid H8166 of the goats, H5795 for a sin offering; H2403 and the priest H3548 shall make an atonement H3722 for him concerning his sin. H2403

7 And if he H3027 be not able H1767 to bring H5060 a lamb, H7716 then he shall bring H935 for H854 his trespass, H817 which he hath committed, H2398 two H8147 turtledoves, H8449 or two H8147 young H1121 pigeons, H3123 unto the LORD; H3068 one H259 for a sin offering, H2403 and the other H259 for a burnt offering. H5930

8 And he shall bring H935 them unto the priest, H3548 who shall offer H7126 that which is for the sin offering H2403 first, H7223 and wring off H4454 his head H7218 from H4136 his neck, H6203 but shall not divide it asunder: H914

9 And he shall sprinkle H5137 of the blood H1818 of the sin offering H2403 upon the side H7023 of the altar; H4196 and the rest H7604 of the blood H1818 shall be wrung out H4680 at the bottom H3247 of the altar: H4196 it is a sin offering. H2403

10 And he shall offer H6213 the second H8145 for a burnt offering, H5930 according to the manner: H4941 and the priest H3548 shall make an atonement H3722 for him for his sin H2403 which he hath sinned, H2398 and it shall be forgiven H5545 him.

11 But if he H3027 be not able to bring H5381 two H8147 turtledoves, H8449 or two H8147 young H1121 pigeons, H3123 then he that sinned H2398 shall bring H935 for his offering H7133 the tenth H6224 part of an ephah H374 of fine flour H5560 for a sin offering; H2403 he shall put H7760 no oil H8081 upon it, neither shall he put H5414 any frankincense H3828 thereon: for it is a sin offering. H2403

12 Then shall he bring H935 it to the priest, H3548 and the priest H3548 shall take H7061 his handful H4393 H7062 of it, even a memorial H234 thereof, and burn H6999 it on the altar, H4196 according to the offerings made by fire H801 unto the LORD: H3068 it is a sin offering. H2403

13 And the priest H3548 shall make an atonement H3722 for him as touching his sin H2403 that he hath sinned H2398 in one H259 of these, and it shall be forgiven H5545 him: and the remnant shall be the priest's, H3548 as a meat offering. H4503

Leviticus 5:1-13 American Standard (ASV)

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1 And if any one sin, in that he heareth the voice of adjuration, he being a witness, whether he hath seen or known, if he do not utter `it', then he shall bear his iniquity.

2 Or if any one touch any unclean thing, whether it be the carcass of an unclean beast, or the carcass of unclean cattle, or the carcass of unclean creeping things, and it be hidden from him, and he be unclean, then he shall be guilty.

3 Or if he touch the uncleanness of man, whatsoever his uncleanness be wherewith he is unclean, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty.

4 Or if any one swear rashly with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall utter rashly with an oath, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty in one of these `things'.

5 And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these `things', that he shall confess that wherein he hath sinned:

6 and he shall bring his trespass-offering unto Jehovah for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him as concerning his sin.

7 And if his means suffice not for a lamb, then he shall bring his trespass-offering for that wherein he hath sinned, two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, unto Jehovah; one for a sin-offering, and the other for a burnt-offering.

8 And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin-offering first, and wring off its head from its neck, but shall not divide it asunder:

9 and he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin-offering upon the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be drained out at the base of the altar: it is a sin-offering.

10 And he shall offer the second for a burnt-offering, according to the ordinance; and the priest shall make atonement for him as concerning his sin which he hath sinned, and he shall be forgiven.

11 But if his means suffice not for two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, then he shall bring his oblation for that wherein he hath sinned, the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin-offering: he shall put no oil upon it, neither shall he put any frankincense thereon; for it is a sin-offering.

12 And he shall bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it as the memorial thereof, and burn it on the altar, upon the offerings of Jehovah made by fire: it is a sin-offering.

13 And the priest shall make atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned in any of these things, and he shall be forgiven: and `the remnant' shall be the priest's, as the meal-offering.

Leviticus 5:1-13 Young's Literal Translation (YLT)

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1 `And when a person doth sin, and hath heard the voice of an oath, and he `is' witness, or hath seen, or hath known -- if he declare not, then he hath borne his iniquity:

2 `Or when a person cometh against any thing unclean, or against a carcase of an unclean beast, or against a carcase of unclean cattle, or against a carcase of an unclean teeming creature, and it hath been hidden from him, and he unclean, and guilty;

3 `Or when he cometh against uncleanness of man, even any of his uncleanness whereby he is unclean, and it hath been hidden from him, and he hath known, and hath been guilty:

4 `Or when a person sweareth, speaking wrongfully with the lips to do evil, or to do good, even anything which man speaketh wrongfully with an oath, and it hath been hid from him; -- when he hath known then he hath been guilty of one of these;

5 `And it hath been when he is guilty of one of these, that he hath confessed concerning that which he hath sinned,

6 and hath brought in his guilt-offering to Jehovah for his sin which he hath sinned, a female out of the flock, a lamb, or a kid of the goats, for a sin-offering, and the priest hath made atonement for him, because of his sin.

7 `And if his hand reach not to the sufficiency of a lamb, then he hath brought in his guilt-offering -- he who hath sinned -- two turtle-doves or two young pigeons to Jehovah, one for a sin-offering, and one for a burnt-offering;

8 and he hath brought them in unto the priest, and hath brought near that which `is' for a sin-offering first, and hath wrung off its head from its neck, and doth not separate `it',

9 and he hath sprinkled of the blood of the sin-offering on the side of the altar, and that which is left of the blood is wrung out at the foundation of the altar; it `is' a sin-offering.

10 `And the second he maketh a burnt-offering, according to the ordinance, and the priest hath made atonement for him, because of his sin which he hath sinned, and it hath been forgiven him.

11 `And if his hand reach not to two turtle-doves, or to two young pigeons, then he hath brought in his offering -- he who hath sinned -- a tenth of an ephah of flour for a sin-offering; he putteth no oil on it, nor doth he put on it frankincense, for it `is' a sin-offering,

12 and he hath brought it in unto the priest, and the priest hath taken a handful from it -- the fulness of his hand -- its memorial -- and hath made perfume on the altar, according to the fire-offerings of Jehovah; it `is' a sin-offering.

13 `And the priest hath made atonement for him, for his sin which he hath sinned against one of these, and it hath been forgiven him, and `the remnant' hath been to the priest, like the present.'

Leviticus 5:1-13 Darby English Bible (DARBY)

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1 And if any one sin, and hear the voice of adjuration, and he is a witness whether he hath seen or known [it], if he do not give information, then he shall bear his iniquity.

2 Or if any one touch any unclean thing, whether it be the carcase of an unclean beast, or the carcase of unclean cattle, or the carcase of an unclean crawling thing, and it be hid from him, -- he also is unclean and guilty;

3 or if he touch the uncleanness of man, any uncleanness of him by which he is defiled, and it be hid from him, when he knoweth [it], then he is guilty.

4 Or if any one swear, talking rashly with the lips, to do evil or to do good, in everything that a man shall say rashly with an oath, and it be hid from him, when he knoweth [it], then is he guilty in one of these.

5 And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these, that he shall confess wherein he hath sinned;

6 and he shall bring his trespass-offering to Jehovah for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the small cattle, a sheep or doe goat, for a sin-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him [to cleanse him] from his sin.

7 And if his hand be not able to bring what is so much as a sheep, then he shall bring for his trespass which he hath sinned two turtle-doves or two young pigeons, to Jehovah; one for a sin-offering, and the other for a burnt-offering.

8 And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall present that which is for the sin-offering first, and pinch off his head at the neck, but shall not divide it;

9 and he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin-offering on the wall of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be wrung out at the bottom of the altar: it is a sin-offering.

10 And he shall offer the other for a burnt-offering, according to the ordinance. And the priest shall make atonement for him [to cleanse him] from his sin which he hath sinned, and it shall be forgiven him.

11 But if his hand cannot attain to two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin-offering: he shall put no oil on it, neither shall he put frankincense thereon; for it is a sin-offering.

12 And he shall bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it, the memorial thereof, and burn it on the altar, with Jehovah's offerings by fire: it is a sin-offering.

13 And the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin which he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him; and it shall be the priest's, as the oblation.

Leviticus 5:1-13 World English Bible (WEB)

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1 "'If anyone sins, in that he hears the voice of adjuration, he being a witness, whether he has seen or known, if he doesn't report it, then he shall bear his iniquity.

2 "'Or if anyone touches any unclean thing, whether it is the carcass of an unclean animal, or the carcass of unclean cattle, or the carcass of unclean creeping things, and it is hidden from him, and he is unclean, then he shall be guilty.

3 "'Or if he touches the uncleanness of man, whatever his uncleanness is with which he is unclean, and it is hidden from him; when he knows of it, then he shall be guilty.

4 "'Or if anyone swears rashly with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatever it is that a man might utter rashly with an oath, and it is hidden from him; when he knows of it, then he shall be guilty of one of these.

5 It shall be, when he is guilty of one of these, he shall confess that in which he has sinned:

6 and he shall bring his trespass offering to Yahweh for his sin which he has sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin.

7 "'If he can't afford a lamb, then he shall bring his trespass offering for that in which he has sinned, two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, to Yahweh; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.

8 He shall bring them to the priest, who shall first offer the one which is for the sin offering, and wring off its head from its neck, but shall not sever it completely.

9 He shall sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be drained out at the base of the altar. It is a sin offering.

10 He shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the ordinance; and the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin which he has sinned, and he shall be forgiven.

11 "'But if he can't afford two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he shall bring his offering for that in which he has sinned, the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering. He shall put no oil on it, neither shall he put any frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering.

12 He shall bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it as the memorial portion, and burn it on the altar, on the offerings of Yahweh made by fire. It is a sin offering.

13 The priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin that he has sinned in any of these things, and he will be forgiven; and the rest shall be the priest's, as the meal offering.'"

Leviticus 5:1-13 Bible in Basic English (BBE)

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1 And if anyone does wrong by saying nothing when he is put under oath as a witness of something he has seen or had knowledge of, then he will be responsible:

2 If anyone becomes unclean through touching unconsciously some unclean thing, such as the dead body of an unclean beast or of unclean cattle or of any unclean animal which goes flat on the earth, he will be responsible:

3 Or if he becomes unclean through touching unconsciously any unclean thing of man, whatever it may be, when it is made clear to him he will be responsible:

4 Or if anyone, without thought, takes an oath to do evil or to do good, whatever he says without thought, with an oath, having no knowledge of what he is doing; when it becomes clear to him, he will be responsible for any of these things.

5 And whoever is responsible for any such sin, let him make a statement openly of his wrongdoing;

6 And take to the Lord the offering for the wrong which he has done, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin-offering, and the priest will take away his sin.

7 And if he has not money enough for a lamb, then let him give, for his offering to the Lord, two doves or two young pigeons; one for a sin-offering and one for a burned offering.

8 And let him take them to the priest, who will first give the sin-offering, twisting off its head from its neck, but not cutting it in two;

9 And he is to put drops of the blood of the offering on the side of the altar, and the rest of the blood is to be drained out at the base of the altar; it is a sin-offering.

10 And the second is for a burned offering, in agreement with the law; and the priest will take away his sin and he will have forgiveness.

11 But if he has not enough money for two doves or two young pigeons, then let him give, for the sin he has done, the tenth part of an ephah of the best meal, for a sin-offering; let him put no oil on it, and no perfume, for it is a sin-offering.

12 And let him come to the priest with it, and the priest will take some of it in his hand, to be burned on the altar as a sign, among the offerings of the Lord made by fire: it is a sin-offering.

13 And the priest will take away his sin and he will have forgiveness: and the rest of the offering will be the priest's, in the same way as the meal offering.

Worthy.Bible » Commentaries » Matthew Henry Commentary » Commentary on Leviticus 5

Commentary on Leviticus 5 Matthew Henry Commentary

John Gill   Keil & Delitzsch   Robert Jamieson: Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible  

Chapter 5

This chapter, and part of the next, concern the trespass-offering. The difference between this and the sin-offering lay not so much in the sacrifices themselves, and the management of them, as in the occasions of the offering of them. They were both intended to make atonement for sin; but the former was more general, this applied to some particular instances. Observe what is here said,

  • I. Concerning the trespass. If a man sin,
    • 1. In concealing his knowledge, when he is adjured (v. 1).
    • 2. In touching an unclean thing (v. 2, 3).
    • 3. In swearing (v. 4).
    • 4. In embezzling the holy things (v. 14-16).
    • 5. In any sin of infirmity (v. 17-19). Some other cases there are, in which these offerings were to be offered (ch. 6:2-4; 14:12; 19:21; Num. 6:12).
  • II. Concerning the trespass-offerings,

Lev 5:1-6

  • I. The offences here supposed are,
    • 1. A man's concealing the truth when he was sworn as a witness to speak the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth. Judges among the Jews had power to adjure not only the witnesses, as with us, but the person suspected (contrary to a rule of our law, that no man is bound to accuse himself), as appears by the high priest adjuring our Saviour, who thereupon answered, though before he stood silent, Mt. 26:63, 64. Now (v. 1), If a soul sin (that is, a person, for the soul is the man), if he hear the voice of swearing (that is, if he be adjured to testify what he knows, by an oath of the Lord upon him, 1 Ki. 8:31), if in such a case, for fear of offending one that either has been his friend or may be his enemy, he refuses to give evidence, or gives it but in part, he shall bear his iniquity. And that is a heavy burden, which, if some course be not taken to get it removed, will sink a man to the lowest hell. He that heareth cursing (that is, that is thus adjured) and betrayeth it not (that is, stifles his evidence, and does not utter it), he is a partner with the sinner, and hateth his own soul; see Prov. 29:24. Let all that are called out at any time to bear testimony think of this law, and be free and open in their evidence, and take heed of prevaricating. An oath of the Lord is a sacred thing, and not to be dallied with.
    • 2. A man's touching any thing that was ceremonially unclean, v. 2, 3. If a man, polluted by such touch, came into the sanctuary inconsiderately, or if he neglected to wash himself according to the law, then he was to look upon himself as under guilt, and must bring his offering. Though his touching the unclean thing contracted only a ceremonial defilement, yet his neglect to wash himself according to the law was such an instance either of carelessness or contempt as contracted a moral guilt. If at first it be hidden from him, yet when he knows it he shall be guilty. Note, As soon as ever God by his Spirit convinces our consciences of any sin or duty we must immediately set in with the conviction, and prosecute it, as those that are not ashamed to own our former mistake.
    • 3. Rash swearing. If a man binds himself by an oath that he will do or not do such a thing, and the performance of his oath afterwards proves either unlawful or impracticable, by which he is discharged from the obligation, yet he must bring an offering to atone for his fully in swearing so rashly, as David that he would kill Nabal. And then it was that he must say before the angel that it was an error, Eccl. 5:6. He shall be guilty in one of these (ch. 5:4), guilty if he do not perform his oath, and yet, if the matter of it were evil, guilty if he do. Such wretched dilemmas as these do some men bring themselves into by their own rashness and folly; go which way they will their consciences are wounded, sin stares them in the face, so sadly are they snared in the words of their mouth. A more sad dilemma this is than that of the lepers, "If we sit still, we die; if we stir, we die.' Wisdom and watchfulness beforehand would prevent these straits.
  • II. Now in these cases,
    • 1. The offender must confess his sin and bring his offering (v. 5, 6); and the offering was not accepted unless it was accompanied with a penitential confession and a humble prayer for pardon. Observe, The confession must be particular, that he hath sinned in that thing; such was David's confession (Ps. 51:4), I have done this evil; and Achan's (Jos. 7:20), Thus and thus have I done. Deceit lies in generals; many will own in general they have sinned, for that all must own, so that it is not any particular reproach to them; but that they have sinned in this thing they stand too much upon their honour to acknowledge: but the way to be well assured of pardon, and to be well armed against sin for the future, is to be particular in our penitent confessions.
    • 2. The priest must make atonement for him. As the atonement was not accepted without his repentance, so his repentance would not justify him without the atonement. Thus, in our reconciliation to God, Christ's part and ours are both needful.

Lev 5:7-13

Provision is here made for the poor of God's people, and the pacifying of their consciences under the sense of guilt. Those that were not able to bring a lamb might bring for a sin-offering a pair of turtle-doves or two young pigeons; nay, if any were so extremely poor that they were not able to procure these so often as they would have occasion, they might bring a pottle of fine flour, and this should be accepted. Thus the expense of the sin-offering was brought lower than that of any other offering, to teach us that no man's poverty shall ever be a bar in the way of his pardon. The poorest of all may have atonement made for them, if it be not their own fault. Thus the poor are evangelized; and no man shall say that he had not wherewithal to bear the charges of a journey to heaven. Now,

  • I. If the sinner brought two doves, one was to be offered for a sin-offering and the other for a burnt-offering, v. 7. Observe,
    • 1. Before he offered the burnt-offering, which was for the honour and praise of God, he must offer the sin-offering, to make atonement. We must first see to it that our peace be made with God, and then we may expect that our services for his glory will be accepted. The sin-offering must make way for the burnt-offering.
    • 2. After the sin-offering, which made atonement, came the burnt-offering, as an acknowledgment of the great mercy of God in appointing and accepting the atonement.
  • II. If he brought fine flour, a handful of it was to be offered, but without either oil or frankincense (v. 11), not only because this would make it too costly for the poor, for whose comfort this sacrifice was appointed, but because it was a sin-offering, and therefore, to show the loathsomeness of the sin for which it was offered, it must not be made grateful either to the taste by oil or to the smell by frankincense. The unsavouriness of the offering was to intimate that the sinner must never relish his sin again as he had done. God by these sacrifices did speak,
    • 1. Comfort to those that had offended, that they might not despair, nor pine away in their iniquity; but, peace being thus made for them with God, they might have peace in him.
    • 2. Caution likewise not to offend any more, remembering what an expensive troublesome thing it was to make atonement.

Lev 5:14-19

Hitherto in this chapter orders were given concerning those sacrifices that were both sin-offerings and trespass-offerings, for they go by both names, v. 6. Here we have the law concerning those that were properly and peculiarly trespass-offerings, which were offered to atone for trespasses done against a neighbour, those sins we commonly call trespasses. Now injuries done to another may be either in holy things or in common things; of the former we have the law in these verses; of the latter in the beginning of the next chapter. If a man did harm (as it is v. 16) in the holy things of the Lord, he thereby committed a trespass against the priests, the Lord's ministers, who were entrusted with the care of these holy things, and had the benefit of them. Now if a man did alienate or convert to his own use any thing that was dedicated to God, unwittingly, he was to bring this sacrifice; as suppose he had ignorantly made use of the tithes, or first-fruits, or first-born of his cattle, or (which, it should seem by ch. 22:14-16, is principally meant here) had eaten any of those parts of the sacrifices which were appropriated to the priests; this was a trespass. It is supposed to be done through mistake, or forgetfulness, for want either of care or zeal; for if it was done presumptuously, and in contempt of the law, the offender died without mercy, Heb. 10:28. But in case of negligence and ignorance this sacrifice was appointed; and Moses is told,

  • 1. What must be done in case the trespass appeared to be certain. The trespasser must bring an offering to the Lord, which, in all those that were purely trespass-offerings, must be a ram without blemish, "of the second year,' say the Jewish doctors. He must likewise make restitution to the priest, according to a just estimation of the thing which he had so alienated, adding a fifth part to it, that he might learn to take more heed next time of embezzling what was sacred to God, finding to his cost that there was nothing got by it, and that he paid dearly for his oversights.
  • 2. What must be done in case it were doubtful whether he had trespassed or no; he had cause to suspect it, but he wist it not (v. 17), that is, he was not very certain; in this case, because it is good to be sure, he must bring his trespass-offering, and the value of that which he feared he had embezzled, only he was not to add the fifth part to it. Now this was designed to show the very great evil there is in sacrilege. Achan, that was guilty of it presumptuously, died for it; so did Ananias and Sapphira. But this goes further to show the evil of it, that if a man had, through mere ignorance, and unwittingly, alienated the holy things, nay, if he did but suspect that he had done so, he must be at the expense, not only of a full restitution with interest, but of an offering, with the trouble of bringing it, and must take shame to himself, by making confession of it; so bad a thing is it to invade God's property, and so cautious should we be to abstain from all appearances of this evil. We are also taught here to be jealous over ourselves with a godly jealousy, to ask pardon for the sin, and make satisfaction for the wrong, which we do but suspect ourselves guilty of. In doubtful cases we should take and keep the safer side.