Leviticus4
American Standard Version · Public Domain
1And Jehovah spake unto Moses, saying,
2Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any one shall sin unwittingly, in any of the things which Jehovah hath commanded not to be done, and shall do any one of them:
3if the anointed priest shall sin so as to bring guilt on the people, then let him offer for his sin, which he hath sinned, a young bullock without blemish unto Jehovah for a sin-offering.
4And he shall bring the bullock unto the door of the tent of meeting before Jehovah; and he shall lay his hand upon the head of the bullock, and kill the bullock before Jehovah.
5And the anointed priest shall take of the blood of the bullock, and bring it to the tent of meeting:
6and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle of the blood seven times before Jehovah, before the veil of the sanctuary.
7And the priest shall put of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before Jehovah, which is in the tent of meeting; and all the blood of the bullock shall he pour out at the base of the altar of burnt-offering, which is at the door of the tent of meeting.
8And all the fat of the bullock of the sin-offering he shall take off from it; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards,
9and the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the loins, and the caul upon the liver, with the kidneys, shall he take away,
10as it is taken off from the ox of the sacrifice of peace-offerings: and the priest shall burn them upon the altar of burnt-offering.
11And the skin of the bullock, and all its flesh, with its head, and with its legs, and its inwards, and its dung,
12even the whole bullock shall he carry forth without the camp unto a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn it on wood with fire: where the ashes are poured out shall it be burnt.
13And if the whole congregation of Israel err, and the thing be hid from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done any of the things which Jehovah hath commanded not to be done, and are guilty;
14when the sin wherein they have sinned is known, then the assembly shall offer a young bullock for a sin-offering, and bring it before the tent of meeting.
15And the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands upon the head of the bullock before Jehovah; and the bullock shall be killed before Jehovah.
16And the anointed priest shall bring of the blood of the bullock to the tent of meeting:
17and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle it seven times before Jehovah, before the veil.
18And he shall put of the blood upon the horns of the altar which is before Jehovah, that is in the tent of meeting; and all the blood shall he pour out at the base of the altar of burnt-offering, which is at the door of the tent of meeting.
19And all the fat thereof shall he take off from it, and burn it upon the altar.
20Thus shall he do with the bullock; as he did with the bullock of the sin-offering, so shall he do with this; and the priest shall make atonement for them, and they shall be forgiven.
21And he shall carry forth the bullock without the camp, and burn it as he burned the first bullock: it is the sin-offering for the assembly.
22When a ruler sinneth, and doeth unwittingly any one of all the things which Jehovah his God hath commanded not to be done, and is guilty;
23if his sin, wherein he hath sinned, be made known to him, he shall bring for his oblation a goat, a male without blemish.
24And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt-offering before Jehovah: it is a sin-offering.
25And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt-offering; and the blood thereof shall he pour out at the base of the altar of burnt-offering.
26And all the fat thereof shall he burn upon the altar, as the fat of the sacrifice of peace-offerings; and the priest shall make atonement for him as concerning his sin, and he shall be forgiven.
27And if any one of the common people sin unwittingly, in doing any of the things which Jehovah hath commanded not to be done, and be guilty;
28if his sin, which he hath sinned, be made known to him, then he shall bring for his oblation a goat, a female without blemish, for his sin which he hath sinned.
29And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin-offering, and kill the sin-offering in the place of burnt-offering.
30And the priest shall take of the blood thereof with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt-offering; and all the blood thereof shall he pour out at the base of the altar.
31And all the fat thereof shall he take away, as the fat is taken away from off the sacrifice of peace-offerings; and the priest shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savor unto Jehovah; and the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be forgiven.
32And if he bring a lamb as his oblation for a sin-offering, he shall bring it a female without blemish.
33And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin-offering, and kill it for a sin-offering in the place where they kill the burnt-offering.
34And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt-offering; and all the blood thereof shall he pour out at the base of the altar.
35And all the fat thereof shall he take away, as the fat of the lamb is taken away from the sacrifice of peace-offerings; and the priest shall burn them on the altar, upon the offerings of Jehovah made by fire; and the priest shall make atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned, and he shall be forgiven.
Study Guide
Public-domain commentary and original-language notes for Leviticus 4.
Chapter Summary
In this chapter: The sin-offering of ignorance for the priest. (1–12). For the whole congregation. (13–21). For a ruler. (22–26). For any of the people. (27–35).
vv1-12
Burnt-offerings, meat-offerings, and peace-offerings, had been offered before the giving of the law upon mount Sinai; and in these the patriarchs had respect to sin, to make atonement for it. But the Jews were now put into a way of making atonement for sin, more particularly by sacrifice, as a shadow of good things to come; yet the substance is Christ, and that one offering of himself, by which he put away sin. The sins for which the sin-offerings were appointed are supposed to be open acts. They are supposed to be sins of commission, things which ought not to have been done. Omissions are sins, and must come into judgment: yet what had been omitted at one time, might be done at another; but a sin committed was past recall. They are supposed to be sins committed through ignorance. The law begins with the case of the anointed priest. It is evident that God never had any infallible priest in his church upon earth, when even the high priest was liable to fall into sins of ignorance. All pretensions to act without error are sure marks of Antichrist. The beast was to be carried without the camp, and there burned to ashes. This was a sign of the duty of repentance, which is the putting away sin as a detestable thing, which our soul hates. The sin-offering is called sin. What they did to that, we must do to our sins; the body of sin must be destroyed, Ro 6:6. The apostle applies the carrying this sacrifice without the camp to Christ, Heb 13:11–13.
vv13-21
If the leaders of the people, through mistake, caused them to err, an offering must be brought, that wrath might not come upon the whole congregation. When sacrifices were offered, the persons, on whose behalf they were devoted, were to lay their hands on the heads of the victims, and to confess their sins. The elders were to do so, when the sacrifices were offered for the whole congregation. The load of sin was supposed then to be borne by the guiltless animal. When the offering is completed, it is said, atonement is made, and the sin shall be forgiven. The saving of churches and kingdoms from ruin, is owing to the satisfaction and mediation of Christ.
vv22-26
Those who have power to call others to account, are themselves accountable to the Ruler of rulers. The sin of the ruler, committed through ignorance, must come to his knowledge, either by the check of his own conscience, or by the reproof of his friends; both which even the best and greatest, not only should submit to, but be thankful for. That which I see not, teach thou me, and, Show me wherein I have erred, are prayers we should put up to God every day; that if, through ignorance, we fall into sin, we may not through ignorance abide in it.
Key Words
דָבַר: perhaps properly, to arrange; but used figuratively (of words), to speak; rarely (in a destructive sense) to subdue
מֹשֶׁה: Mosheh, the Israelite lawgiver
אָמַר: to say (used with great latitude)
בֵּן: a son (as a builder of the family name), in the widest sense (of literal and figurative relationship, including grandson, subject, nation, quality or condition, etc., (like father or brother), etc.)
יִשְׂרָאֵל: Jisrael, a symbolical name of Jacob; also (typically) of his posterity
נֶפֶשׁ: properly, a breathing creature, i.e. animal of (abstractly) vitality; used very widely in a literal, accommodated or figurative sense (bodily or mental)
חָטָא: properly, to miss; hence (figuratively and generally) to sin; by inference, to forfeit, lack, expiate, repent, (causatively) lead astray, condemn
שְׁגָגָה: a mistake or inadvertent transgression
מִצְוָה: a command, whether human or divine (collectively, the Law)
עָשָׂה: to do or make, in the broadest sense and widest application
Cross References
Leviticus 4Christ suffered outside the gate, fulfilling the typology of the sin offering burned outside the camp.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Unlike Levitical priests who offered for their own sins, Christ was holy and needed no offering.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Establishes the early precedent for burning the flesh of the sin offering outside the camp.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Direct parallel for carrying the bullock without the camp to be burned as a sin offering.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Establishes the standard formula for atonement and forgiveness achieved through the ritual.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
The parallel law for a common person who sins through ignorance.
Supported by Matthew Poole
The high priest, bound by infirmity, must offer sacrifices for his own sins as well.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Prescribes the altar of sweet incense, on whose horns the high priest's sin offering blood is placed.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
The Day of Atonement law requiring the sin offering carcass to be burned outside the camp.
Supported by Matthew Henry, JFB
Provides the parallel law for sacrifices required when the whole congregation sins through ignorance.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Contrasts the ruler's minor offering with the high priest's far more costly bullock.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Laying hands on the sacrifice typifies the transference of guilt to a substitute.
Supported by Matthew Henry, Matthew Poole
Prescribes the foundational law of laying hands on the sacrifice for atonement.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Refers to the high priest offering for himself and for the errors (ignorance) of the people.
Supported by Matthew Henry
The law for anointing the high priest, qualifying him to represent the people.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Specifies sprinkling blood seven times before the mercy seat, echoing the sevenfold sprinkling here.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Directs that the fat portion of the sin offering is burned like the peace offering.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Matches the strict ritual requirement to burn sin offerings outside the camp.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Contrasts blood placed on the outer altar horns with inner sanctuary blood.
Supported by Matthew Poole, JFB
Specifies burning the fat on the altar, modeled after peace offerings.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Identical protocol for when a ruler's or commoner's sin comes to knowledge.
Supported by JFB
Reiterates bringing a female lamb or goat as a trespass offering.
Supported by Matthew Poole
A prayer for cleansing from secret faults and sins committed in ignorance.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Contrasts weak, sinful high priests appointed by law with the perfect, eternal Son.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Laying hands on the sacrifice's head to make atonement, transfering guilt symbolically.
Supported by Matthew Henry
Eleazar sprinkling the heifer's blood seven times directly before the tabernacle.
Supported by Matthew Poole
Priestly mediation for sins of ignorance secures forgiveness for the congregation.
Supported by Matthew Poole