Leviticus Chapter 5 — Laws for Guilt Offerings
Leviticus 5 outlines the requirements for guilt offerings, covering specific sins like rash oaths, ritual impurity, and unintentional offenses against holy things.
1“ ‘If anyone sins, in that he hears a public adjuration to testify, 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 livestock, 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 will be guilty of one of these.
5It shall be, when he is guilty of one of these, he shall confess that in which he has sinned;
6and he shall bring his trespass offering to the LORD 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 the LORD; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.
8He shall bring them to the priest, who shall first offer the one which is for the sin offering. He shall wring off its head from its neck, but shall not sever it completely.
9He 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.
10He 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 as his offering for that in which he has sinned, one tenth of an ephah*1 ephah is about 22 liters or about 2/3 of a bushel of fine flour for a sin offering. He shall put no oil on it, and he shall not put any frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering.
12He 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 the LORD made by fire. It is a sin offering.
13The 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.’ ”
14The LORD spoke to Moses, saying,
15“If anyone commits a trespass, and sins unwittingly regarding the LORD’s holy things, then he shall bring his trespass offering to the LORD: a ram without defect from the flock, according to your estimation in silver by shekels, according to the shekel†A shekel is about 10 grams or about 0.35 ounces. of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering.
16He shall make restitution for that which he has done wrong regarding the holy thing, and shall add a fifth part to it, and give it to the priest; and the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and he will be forgiven.
17“If anyone sins, doing any of the things which the LORD has commanded not to be done, though he didn’t know it, he is still guilty, and shall bear his iniquity.
18He shall bring a ram without defect from of the flock, according to your estimation, for a trespass offering, to the priest; and the priest shall make atonement for him concerning the thing in which he sinned and didn’t know it, and he will be forgiven.
19It is a trespass offering. He is certainly guilty before the LORD.”
WEB Translation
Notable Verses
Leviticus 5:5
“It shall be, when he is guilty of one of these, he shall confess that in which he has sinned;”
This verse establishes that personal confession of a specific sin is a necessary step before the sacrifice is made.
Leviticus 5:7
““ ‘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 the LORD; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.”
This demonstrates the graduated scale of offerings, ensuring that atonement was available to those with limited financial means.
Leviticus 5:16
“He shall make restitution for that which he has done wrong regarding the holy thing, and shall add a fifth part to it, and give it to the priest;”
This verse introduces the requirement of restitution plus a twenty-percent penalty for offenses against dedicated items.
Chapter Summary
Leviticus 5 provides instructions for the 'guilt offering' or 'trespass offering,' addressing specific transgressions that require atonement. These include failing to testify as a witness, touching unclean animals or human uncleanness, and making rash oaths. When an individual realizes their guilt in these matters, they are commanded to confess their sin and bring a sacrifice to the priest. The chapter uniquely highlights God's provision for the poor; if a person cannot afford a lamb, they may offer two birds, and if they cannot afford birds, they may offer fine flour. The latter half of the chapter deals with 'trespasses' against the Lord's holy things—items or offerings dedicated to the sanctuary. For these unintentional sins, the offender must provide a ram without defect and pay full restitution for the holy item plus an additional twenty percent. This chapter emphasizes the importance of making amends and the accessibility of forgiveness for all members of the community, regardless of their wealth.
Frequently Asked Questions
A trespass offering, also known as a guilt offering, was a sacrifice required for specific sins like ritual uncleanness or unintentional misuse of holy items. Unlike a general sin offering, it often involved making financial restitution to the party that was wronged.
The law provided alternatives based on economic status. An individual could offer two birds (turtledoves or pigeons) or, if they were extremely poor, a small amount of fine flour without oil or frankincense.
When a person unintentionally sinned regarding the Lord's holy things, they were required to repay the value of what was lost or misused and add an additional twenty percent as a penalty.
Confession was required to acknowledge the specific act of wrongdoing. It ensured the individual took responsibility for their actions before the ritual of atonement was performed by the priest.
Study Note
The Hebrew word for guilt offering, 'asham,' implies a debt that must be repaid, distinguishing it from the 'sin offering' which focused primarily on purification.
Related Chapters
Leviticus 4
This chapter provides the context for general sin offerings which the guilt offerings of chapter 5 build upon.
Leviticus 6
The laws concerning the guilt offering and restitution continue into the beginning of the next chapter.
Numbers 5
This chapter contains parallel instructions regarding confession and the twenty-percent restitution for wrongs committed.
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