THE GUILT OFFERING
Key verse: 5:16
NIV
The Guilt Offering
14 The Lord said to Moses: 15 “When anyone is unfaithful to the Lord by sinning unintentionally(A) in regard to any of the Lord’s holy things, they are to bring to the Lord as a penalty(B) a ram(C) from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value in silver, according to the sanctuary shekel.[a](D) It is a guilt offering.(E) 16 They must make restitution(F) for what they have failed to do in regard to the holy things, pay an additional penalty of a fifth of its value(G) and give it all to the priest. The priest will make atonement for them with the ram as a guilt offering, and they will be forgiven.
17 “If anyone sins and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, even though they do not know it,(H) they are guilty and will be held responsible.(I) 18 They are to bring to the priest as a guilt offering(J) a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value. In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the wrong they have committed unintentionally, and they will be forgiven.(K) 19 It is a guilt offering; they have been guilty of[b] wrongdoing against the Lord.”(L)
6 [c]The Lord said to Moses: 2 “If anyone sins and is unfaithful to the Lord(M) by deceiving a neighbor(N) about something entrusted to them or left in their care(O) or about something stolen, or if they cheat(P) their neighbor, 3 or if they find lost property and lie about it,(Q) or if they swear falsely(R) about any such sin that people may commit— 4 when they sin in any of these ways and realize their guilt, they must return(S) what they have stolen or taken by extortion, or what was entrusted to them, or the lost property they found, 5 or whatever it was they swore falsely about. They must make restitution(T) in full, add a fifth of the value to it and give it all to the owner on the day they present their guilt offering.(U) 6 And as a penalty they must bring to the priest, that is, to the Lord, their guilt offering,(V) a ram from the flock, one without defect and of the proper value.(W) 7 In this way the priest will make atonement(X) for them before the Lord, and they will be forgiven for any of the things they did that made them guilty.”
Footnotes
- Leviticus 5:15 That is, about 2/5 ounce or about 12 grams
- Leviticus 5:19 Or offering; atonement has been made for their
- Leviticus 6:1 In Hebrew texts 6:1-7 is numbered 5:20-26, and 6:8-30 is numbered 6:1-23.
Cross references
- Leviticus 5:15 : S Lev 4:2
- Leviticus 5:15 : Lev 22:14
- Leviticus 5:15 : S Ex 29:3; Lev 6:6; Nu 5:8; 6:14; 15:6; 28:11
- Leviticus 5:15 : S Ex 30:13
- Leviticus 5:15 : ver 16, 18; Lev 6:5, 6; 7:1, 7; 14:12-17; 19:21, 22; Nu 6:12; 18:9; 1Sa 6:3; Ezr 10:19; Isa 53:10
- Leviticus 5:16 : Lev 6:4
- Leviticus 5:16 : ver 15; Lev 27:13; Nu 5:7
- Leviticus 5:17 : ver 15
- Leviticus 5:17 : S ver 1
- Leviticus 5:18 : Lev 6:6; 14:12
- Leviticus 5:18 : S ver 15
- Leviticus 5:19 : 2Ki 12:16
- Leviticus 6:2 : Nu 5:6; Ps 73:27; Ac 5:4; Col 3:9
- Leviticus 6:2 : Lev 19:11; Jer 9:4, 5
- Leviticus 6:2 : S Ex 22:7
- Leviticus 6:2 : S Ge 31:7
- Leviticus 6:3 : S Ex 23:4
- Leviticus 6:3 : S Ex 22:11
- Leviticus 6:4 : Lev 5:16; Eze 33:15; S Lk 19:8
- Leviticus 6:5 : Nu 5:7
- Leviticus 6:5 : S Lev 5:15
- Leviticus 6:6 : S Lev 5:15
- Leviticus 6:6 : Nu 5:8
- Leviticus 6:7 : S Ex 32:30
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
Source: BibleGateway
ESV
Laws for Guilt Offerings
14 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 15 (A)“If anyone commits a breach of faith and sins unintentionally in any of the holy things of the Lord, (B)he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation, a ram without blemish out of the flock, valued[a] in silver shekels,[b] according to the (C)shekel of the sanctuary, for a guilt offering. 16 He shall also make restitution for what he has done amiss in the holy thing and (D)shall add a fifth to it and give it to the priest. (E)And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering, and he shall be forgiven.
17 (F)“If anyone sins, doing any of the things that by the Lord's commandments ought not to be done, (G)though he did not know it, then realizes his guilt, he shall bear his iniquity. 18 (H)He shall bring to the priest a ram without blemish out of the flock, or its equivalent, for a guilt offering, and (I)the priest shall make atonement for him for the mistake that he made unintentionally, and he shall be forgiven. 19 It is a guilt offering; he has indeed incurred guilt before[c] the Lord.”
6 [d] The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “If anyone sins and (J)commits a breach of faith against the Lord by (K)deceiving his neighbor in (L)a matter of deposit or security, or through robbery, or (M)if he has oppressed his neighbor 3 or (N)has found something lost and lied about it, (O)swearing falsely—in any of all the things that people do and sin thereby— 4 if he has sinned and has realized his guilt and will restore (P)what he took by robbery or what he got by oppression or the deposit that was committed to him or the lost thing that he found 5 or anything about which he has sworn falsely, he shall (Q)restore it in full and shall add a fifth to it, and give it to him to whom it belongs on the day he realizes his guilt. 6 And he shall bring to the priest as his compensation to the Lord (R)a ram without blemish out of the flock, or its equivalent, for a guilt offering. 7 (S)And the priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord, and he shall be forgiven for any of the things that one may do and thereby become guilty.”
Footnotes
- Leviticus 5:15 Or flock, or its equivalent
- Leviticus 5:15 A shekel was about 2/5 ounce or 11 grams
- Leviticus 5:19 Or he has paid full compensation to
- Leviticus 6:1 Ch 5:20 in Hebrew
Cross references
- Leviticus 5:15 : ch. 22:14; [Ezra 10:2]
- Leviticus 5:15 : [Ezra 10:19]
- Leviticus 5:15 : See Ex. 30:13
- Leviticus 5:16 : ch. 6:5; 22:14; 27:13, 15, 27, 31; Num. 5:7
- Leviticus 5:16 : [See ver. 10 above]; See ch. 4:20, 26, 31, 35
- Leviticus 5:17 : ch. 4:2
- Leviticus 5:17 : Num. 15:29; [Luke 12:48]
- Leviticus 5:18 : ver. 15
- Leviticus 5:18 : [See ver. 10 above]; See ch. 4:20, 26, 31, 35
- Leviticus 6:2 : Num. 5:6
- Leviticus 6:2 : ch. 19:11
- Leviticus 6:2 : Ex. 22:7, 10
- Leviticus 6:2 : ch. 19:13; Mic. 2:2
- Leviticus 6:3 : Ex. 23:4; Deut. 22:1-3
- Leviticus 6:3 : ch. 19:12; Ex. 22:11
- Leviticus 6:4 : [See ver. 2 above]; ch. 19:13; Mic. 2:2
- Leviticus 6:5 : Num. 5:7; [ch. 5:16; 2 Sam. 12:6; Luke 19:8]
- Leviticus 6:6 : ch. 5:15, 18
- Leviticus 6:7 : See ch. 4:26
The Holy Bible, English Standard Version. ESV® Text Edition: 2016. Copyright © 2001 by Crossway Bibles, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers.
Source: BibleGateway
Firstly, the guilt offering is in regards to holy things, anything related to the tabernacle and its rituals (14-16). For example, if someone fails to bring an offering at its appointed time, they must bring a guilt offering. The required offering is a ram, which is valuable. Also, they must add a fifth of the value to cover the offering they had missed or whatever harm they had done to holy things. Offering more was a sign of genuine repentance and a desire for restitution and to live under God’s mercy and grace of restoration.
Secondly, the guilt offering is in regards to not doing something according to the law, even unknowingly (17-19). “I didn’t know,” is not an excuse. Once we realize we are wrong, we must admit our guilt and take responsibility.
Thirdly, the guilt offering is in regards to neglecting, damaging, or stealing your neighbor’s property (6:1-7). Have you ever kept something you found? It’s a form of stealing. We must return what we found and make restitution if we cheated others or damaged their belongings. Zacchaeus the tax collector practiced this (Lk 19:8).
Prayer: Father, thank you for your Son Jesus who removes my guilt. I praise you and offer my life to you. Use my life for your glory.
One Word: Jesus’ death on the cross takes away all our guilt and shame and restores us.
