Leviticus 5
Holman Christian Standard Bible
Cases Requiring Sin Offerings
5 “When someone sins in any of these ways:
If he has seen, heard, or known about something he has witnessed, and did not respond to a public call to testify, he is responsible for his sin.(A)
2 Or if someone touches anything unclean(B)—a carcass of an unclean wild animal,(C) or unclean livestock, or an unclean swarming creature[a](D)—without being aware of it, he is unclean and guilty.(E)
3 Or if he touches human uncleanness(F)—any uncleanness by which one can become defiled(G)—without being aware of it, but later recognizes it, he is guilty.
4 Or if someone swears rashly(H) to do what is good or evil—concerning anything a person may speak rashly in an oath—without being aware of it, but later recognizes it, he incurs guilt in such an instance.[b]
5 If someone incurs guilt in one of these cases, he is to confess(I) he has committed that sin. 6 He must bring his restitution(J) for the sin he has committed to the Lord: a female lamb or goat from the flock as a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement(K) on his behalf for his sin.
7 “But if he cannot afford an animal from the flock, then he may bring to the Lord two turtledoves or two young pigeons(L) as restitution for his sin—one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. 8 He is to bring them to the priest, who will first present the one for the sin offering. He must twist its head at the back of the neck without severing it.(M) 9 Then he will sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the side of the altar, while the rest of the blood is to be drained out at the base of the altar;(N) it is a sin offering. 10 He must prepare the second bird as a burnt offering according to the regulation.(O) In this way the priest will make atonement on his behalf for the sin he has committed, and he will be forgiven.
11 “But if he cannot afford[c] two turtledoves or two young pigeons,(P) he may bring two quarts[d] of fine[e] flour[f](Q) as an offering for his sin. He must not put olive oil or frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering. 12 He is to bring it to the priest, who will take a handful from it as its memorial portion(R) and burn it on the altar along with the fire offerings to the Lord; it is a sin offering. 13 In this way the priest will make atonement on his behalf concerning the sin he has committed in any of these cases, and he will be forgiven. The rest will belong to the priest, like the grain offering.”(S)
The Restitution Offering
14 Then the Lord spoke to Moses: 15 “If someone offends(T) by sinning unintentionally(U) in regard to any of the Lord’s holy things,[g] he must bring his restitution offering to the Lord: an unblemished ram from the flock (based on your assessment of its value in silver shekels, according to the sanctuary shekel(V)) as a restitution offering. 16 He must make restitution(W) for his sin regarding any holy(X) thing, adding a fifth of its value to it,(Y) and give it to the priest. Then the priest will make atonement on his behalf with the ram of the restitution offering, and he will be forgiven.(Z)
17 “If someone sins and without knowing it violates any of the Lord’s commands concerning anything prohibited, he bears the consequences of his guilt. 18 He must bring an unblemished ram from the flock according to your assessment of its value as a restitution offering to the priest. Then the priest will make atonement on his behalf for the error he has committed unintentionally, and he will be forgiven. 19 It is a restitution offering; he is indeed guilty before the Lord.”
Footnotes
- Leviticus 5:2 Perhaps a fish, insect, rodent, or reptile; Gn 1:20; Lv 11:20-23,29-31
- Leviticus 5:4 Lit in one of such things
- Leviticus 5:11 Lit if his hand is not sufficient for
- Leviticus 5:11 Lit one-tenth of an ephah
- Leviticus 5:11 Or wheat; Ex 29:2
- Leviticus 5:11 Lit flour as a sin offering
- Leviticus 5:15 Things dedicated to the Lord such as tabernacle furnishings, priestly portions of the sacrifices, tenths, firstfruits, and firstborn livestock
Leviticus 5
Common English Bible
Unintentional sin
5 If you sin:
by not providing information after hearing a public solemn pledge even though you are a witness, knowing something, or having seen something so that you become liable to punishment;
2 or by touching some unclean thing—the dead body of an unclean wild animal, unclean livestock, or unclean swarming creature—but the fact goes unknown so that you become unclean and guilty of sin;
3 or by touching human uncleanness—any uncleanness that makes one unclean—and the fact goes unknown, but you later learn of it and become guilty of sin;
4 or by carelessly swearing to do something, whether bad or good—whatever one might swear carelessly—and the fact goes unknown, but you later learn of it and become guilty of sin concerning one of these things—
5 at that point, when you have become guilty of sin in one of these ways, you must confess how you have sinned 6 and bring to the Lord as compensation for the sin that was committed a female from the flock, either a sheep or goat, as a purification offering. The priest will then make reconciliation for you, to remove your sin.
Alternative offerings
7 If you can’t afford an animal from the flock, you can bring to the Lord as compensation for your sin two doves or two pigeons, one as a purification offering and the other as an entirely burned offering. 8 You will bring them to the priest, who will first present the one for the purification offering. He will pinch off its head at the back of its neck without splitting it. 9 Then he will sprinkle some of the blood of the purification offering on the side of the altar. The rest of the blood will be drained out at the base of the altar. It is a purification offering. 10 Then, with the second bird, the priest will perform an entirely burned offering according to the regulation. In this way, the priest will make reconciliation for you because of the sin you committed, and you will be forgiven.
11 If you cannot afford two doves or two pigeons, you can bring as the offering for your sin a tenth of an ephah[a] of choice flour as a purification offering. You must not put any oil on it, nor any frankincense, because it is a purification offering. 12 You will bring it to the priest, and the priest will take a handful from it—the token portion—and will burn it completely on the altar along with the food gifts for the Lord. It is a purification offering. 13 In this way, the priest will make reconciliation for you for whichever one of the sins you committed, and you will be forgiven. The rest of the offering will belong to the priest like the grain offering.
The compensation offering
14 The Lord said to Moses, 15 Whenever you commit wrongdoing, unintentionally sinning against any of the Lord’s holy things, you must bring to the Lord as your compensation a flawless ram from the flock, its value calculated in silver shekels according to the sanctuary’s shekel, as a compensation offering. 16 You will make amends for the way you have sinned against the holy thing: you will add one-fifth to its value and give it to the priest. Then the priest will make reconciliation for you with the ram for the compensation offering, and you will be forgiven.
17 If you sin by breaking any of the Lord’s commands, but without realizing it, doing something that shouldn’t be done, and then become guilty and liable to punishment, 18 you must bring a flawless ram from the flock, at the standard value, as a compensation offering to the priest. The priest will make reconciliation for you for the unintentional fault that you committed, even though you didn’t realize it, and you will be forgiven. 19 It is a compensation offering. You have definitely become guilty before the Lord.
Footnotes
- Leviticus 5:11 Two quarts; one ephah is approximately twenty quarts dry.
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