Leviticus4
New International Version
1The Lord said to Moses,
2“Say to the Israelites: ‘When anyone sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands—
3“‘If the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, he must bring to the Lord a young bull without defect as a sin offering for the sin he has committed.
4He is to present the bull at the entrance to the tent of meeting before the Lord. He is to lay his hand on its head and slaughter it there before the Lord.
5Then the anointed priest shall take some of the bull’s blood and carry it into the tent of meeting.
6He is to dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle some of it seven times before the Lord, in front of the curtain of the sanctuary.
7The priest shall then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the Lord in the tent of meeting. The rest of the bull’s blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
8He shall remove all the fat from the bull of the sin offering—all the fat that is connected to the internal organs,
9both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which he will remove with the kidneys—
10just as the fat is removed from the ox sacrificed as a fellowship offering. Then the priest shall burn them on the altar of burnt offering.
11But the hide of the bull and all its flesh, as well as the head and legs, the internal organs and the intestines—
12that is, all the rest of the bull—he must take outside the camp to a place ceremonially clean, where the ashes are thrown, and burn it there in a wood fire on the ash heap.
13“‘If the whole Israelite community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, even though the community is unaware of the matter, when they realize their guilt
14and the sin they committed becomes known, the assembly must bring a young bull as a sin offering and present it before the tent of meeting.
15The elders of the community are to lay their hands on the bull’s head before the Lord, and the bull shall be slaughtered before the Lord.
16Then the anointed priest is to take some of the bull’s blood into the tent of meeting.
17He shall dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle it before the Lord seven times in front of the curtain.
18He is to put some of the blood on the horns of the altar that is before the Lord in the tent of meeting. The rest of the blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
19He shall remove all the fat from it and burn it on the altar,
20and do with this bull just as he did with the bull for the sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for the community, and they will be forgiven.
21Then he shall take the bull outside the camp and burn it as he burned the first bull. This is the sin offering for the community.
22“‘When a leader sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the commands of the Lord his God, when he realizes his guilt
23and the sin he has committed becomes known, he must bring as his offering a male goat without defect.
24He is to lay his hand on the goat’s head and slaughter it at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered before the Lord. It is a sin offering.
25Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar.
26He shall burn all the fat on the altar as he burned the fat of the fellowship offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for the leader’s sin, and he will be forgiven.
27“‘If any member of the community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, when they realize their guilt
28and the sin they have committed becomes known, they must bring as their offering for the sin they committed a female goat without defect.
29They are to lay their hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it at the place of the burnt offering.
30Then the priest is to take some of the blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar.
31They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar as an aroma pleasing to the Lord. In this way the priest will make atonement for them, and they will be forgiven.
32“‘If someone brings a lamb as their sin offering, they are to bring a female without defect.
33They are to lay their hand on its head and slaughter it for a sin offering at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered.
34Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar.
35They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the lamb of the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar on top of the food offerings presented to the Lord. In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the sin they have committed, and they will 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