Leviticus 4 (NET)

Sin Offering Regulations

1 Then the Lord spoke to Moses:1 2 “Tell the Israelites, ‘When a person sins by straying unintentionally2 from any of the Lord’s commandments which must not be violated, and violates any3 one of them4 –

For the Priest

3 “‘If the high priest5 sins so that the people are guilty,6 on account of the sin he has committed he must present a flawless young bull to the Lord7 for a sin offering.8 4 He must bring the bull to the entrance of the Meeting Tent before the Lord, lay his hand on the head of the bull, and slaughter the bull before the Lord. 5 Then that high priest must take some of the blood9 of the bull and bring it to the Meeting Tent. 6 The priest must dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle10 some of it11 seven times before the Lord toward12 the front of the veil-canopy13 of the sanctuary. 7 The priest must put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the Lord in the Meeting Tent, and all the rest of the bull’s blood he must pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the Meeting Tent.

8 “‘Then he must take up all the fat from the sin offering bull:14 the fat covering the entrails15 and all the fat surrounding the entrails,16 9 the two kidneys with the fat on their sinews, and the protruding lobe on the liver (which he is to remove along with the kidneys)17 10 – just as it is taken from the ox of the peace offering sacrifice18 – and the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar of burnt offering. 11 But the hide of the bull, all its flesh along with its head and its legs, its entrails, and its dung – 12 all the rest of the bull19 – he must bring outside the camp20 to a ceremonially clean place,21 to the fatty ash pile,22 and he must burn23 it on a wood fire; it must be burned on the fatty ash pile.

For the Whole Congregation

13 “‘If the whole congregation of Israel strays unintentionally24 and the matter is not noticed by25 the assembly, and they violate one of the Lord’s commandments, which must not be violated,26 so they become guilty, 14 the assembly must present a young bull for a sin offering when the sin they have committed27 becomes known. They must bring it before the Meeting Tent, 15 the elders of the congregation must lay their hands on the head of the bull before the Lord, and someone must slaughter28 the bull before the Lord. 16 Then the high priest29 must bring some of the blood of the bull to the Meeting Tent, 17 and that priest must dip his finger in the blood30 and sprinkle31 some of the blood seven times32 before the Lord toward33 the front of the veil-canopy.34 18 He must put some of the blood on the horns of the altar35 which is before the Lord in the Meeting Tent, and all the rest of the blood he must pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering that is at the entrance of the Meeting Tent.

19 “‘Then the priest36 must take all its fat37 and offer the fat38 up in smoke on the altar. 20 He must do with the rest of the bull just as he did with the bull of the sin offering; this is what he must do with it.39 So the priest will make atonement40 on their behalf and they will be forgiven.41 21 He42 must bring the rest of the bull outside the camp43 and burn it just as he burned the first bull – it is the sin offering of the assembly.

For the Leader

22 “‘Whenever44 a leader, by straying unintentionally,45 sins and violates one of the commandments of the Lord his God which must not be violated,46 and he pleads guilty, 23 or his sin that he committed47 is made known to him,48 he must bring a flawless male goat as his offering.49 24 He must lay his hand on the head of the male goat and slaughter50 it in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered before the Lord – it is a sin offering. 25 Then the priest must 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 he must pour out the rest of its blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering. 26 Then the priest51 must offer all of its fat up in smoke on the altar like the fat of the peace offering sacrifice. So the priest will make atonement52 on his behalf for53 his sin and he will be forgiven.54

For the Common Person

27 “‘If an ordinary individual55 sins by straying unintentionally56 when he violates one of the Lord’s commandments which must not be violated,57 and he pleads guilty 28 or his sin that he committed58 is made known to him,59 he must bring a flawless female goat60 as his offering for the sin61 that he committed. 29 He must lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter62 the sin offering in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered. 30 Then the priest must take some of its blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and he must pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. 31 Then he must remove all of its fat (just as fat was removed from the peace offering sacrifice) and the priest must offer it up in smoke on the altar for a soothing aroma to the Lord. So the priest will make atonement63 on his behalf and he will be forgiven.64

32 “‘But if he brings a sheep as his offering, for a sin offering, he must bring a flawless female. 33 He must lay his hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it for a sin offering in the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered. 34 Then the priest must 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 he must pour out all the rest of its blood at the base of the altar. 35 Then the one who brought the offering65 must remove all its fat (just as the fat of the sheep is removed from the peace offering sacrifice) and the priest must offer them up in smoke on the altar on top of the other gifts of the Lord. So the priest will make atonement66 on his behalf for his sin which he has committed and he will be forgiven.67

1sn The quotation introduced here extends from Lev 4:2 through 5:13, and encompasses all the sin offering regulations. Compare the notes on Lev 1:1 above, and 5:14 and 6:1 [5:20 HT] below. 2tn Heb “And a person, when he sins in straying.” The English translation of “by straying” (בִּשְׁגָגָה [bishgagah] literally, “in going astray; in making an error”) varies greatly, but almost all suggest that this term refers to sins that were committed by mistake or done not knowing that the particular act was sinful (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:228-29). See, e.g., LXX “involuntarily”; Tg. Onq. “by neglect”; KJV “through ignorance”; ASV, RSV, NJPS “unwittingly”; NASB, NIV, NRSV, NLT “unintentionally”; NAB, NEB “inadvertently”; NCV “by accident.” However, we know from Num 15:27-31 that committing a sin “by straying” is the opposite of committing a sin “defiantly” (i.e., בְּיַד רָמָה [bÿyad ramah] “with a raised hand,” v. 30). In the latter case the person, as it were, raises his fist in presumptuous defiance against the Lord. Thus, he “blasphemes” the Lord and has “despised” his word, for which he should be “cut off from among his people” (Num 15:30-31). One could not bring an offering for such a sin. The expression here in Lev 4:2 combines “by straying” with the preposition “from” which fits naturally with “straying” (i.e., “straying from” the Lord’s commandments). For sins committed “by straying” from the commandments (Lev 4 throughout) or other types of transgressions (Lev 5:1-6) there was indeed forgiveness available through the sin offering. See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:94-95. 3tn This is an emphatic use of the preposition מִן (min; see R. J. Williams, Hebrew Syntax, 56-57, §325). 4tn The “when” clause (כִּי, ki) breaks off here before its resolution, thus creating an open-ended introduction to the following subsections, which are introduced by “if” (אִם [’im] vv. 3, 13, 27, 32). Also, the last part of the verse reads literally, “which must not be done and does from one from them.” 5tn Heb “the anointed priest” (so ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). This refers to the high priest (cf. TEV, CEV, NLT). 6tn Heb “to the guilt of the people”; NRSV “thus bringing guilt on the people.” 7tn Heb “and he shall offer on his sin which he sinned, a bull, a son of the herd, flawless.” 8sn The word for “sin offering” (sometimes translated “purification offering”) is the same as the word for “sin” earlier in the verse. One can tell which rendering is intended only by the context. The primary purpose of the “sin offering” (חַטָּאת, khatta’t) was to “purge” (כִּפֶּר, kipper, “to make atonement,” see 4:20, 26, 31, 35, and the notes on Lev 1:4 and esp. Lev 16:20, 33) the sanctuary or its furniture in order to cleanse it from any impurities and/or (re)consecrate it for holy purposes (see, e.g., Lev 8:15; 16:19). By making this atonement the impurities of the person or community were cleansed and the people became clean. See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:93-103. 9tn Heb “from the blood of the bull” (and similarly throughout this chapter). 10tn The Hebrew verb וְהִזָּה (vÿhizzah, Hiphil of נָזָה, nazah) does indeed mean “sprinkle” or “splatter.” Contrast the different Hebrew verb meaning “splash” in Lev 1:5 (זָרָק, zaraq). 11tn Heb “of the blood.” The relative pronoun (“it”) has been used in the translation here for stylistic reasons. 12tn The particle here translated “toward” usually serves as a direct object indicator or a preposition meaning “with.” With the verb of motion it probably means “toward,” “in the direction of” (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:234; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 60); cf. NAB, CEV. 13tn The Hebrew term פָּרֹכֶת (parokhet) is usually translated “veil” (e.g., ASV, NAB, NASB) or “curtain” (e.g., NIV, NRSV), but it seems to have stretched not only in front of but also over the top of the ark of the covenant which stood behind and under it inside the most holy place (see R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 3:687-89). 14tn Heb “all the fat of the bull of the sin offering he shall take up from it.” 15tc The MT has here the preposition עַל (’al, “on, upon” [i.e., “which covers on the entrails,” as awkward in Hebrew as it is in English]), but Smr, LXX, Syriac, and Targums read אֶת (’et), which is what would be expected (i.e., “which covers the entrails”; cf. Lev 3:3, 9, 14). It may have been mistakenly inserted here under the influence of “on (עַל) the entrails” at the end of the verse. 16tn Heb “and all the fat on the entrails.” The fat layer that covers the entrails as a whole (i.e., “that covers the entrails”) is different from the fat that surrounds and adheres to the various organs (“on the entrails,” i.e., surrounding them; J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:205-7). 17tn Heb “and the protruding lobe on the liver on the kidneys he shall remove it.” 18tn Heb “taken up from”; KJV, ASV “taken off from”; NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV “removed.” See the notes on Lev 3:3-4 above (cf. also 3:9-10, 14-15). 19tn All of v. 11 is a so-called casus pendens (also known as an extraposition or a nominative absolute), which means that it anticipates the next verse, being the full description of “all (the rest of) the bull” (lit. “all the bull”) at the beginning of v. 12 (actually after the first verb of the verse; see the next note below). 20tn Heb “And he (the offerer) shall bring out all the bull to from outside to the camp to a clean place.” 21tn Heb “a clean place,” but referring to a place that is ceremonially clean. This has been specified in the translation for clarity. 22tn Heb “the pouring out [place] of fatty ash.” 23tn Heb “burn with fire.” This expression is somewhat redundant in English, so the translation collocates “fire” with “wood,” thus “a wood fire.” 24tn Heb “strays”; KJV “sin through ignorance.” The verb “strays” here is the verbal form of the noun in the expression “by straying” (see the note on Lev 4:2 above). 25tn Heb “is concealed from the eyes of”; NASB, NRSV, NLT “escapes the notice of.” 26tn Heb “and they do one from all the commandments of the Lord which must not be done” (cf. v. 2). 27tn Heb “and the sin which they committed on it becomes known”; KJV “which they have sinned against it.” The Hebrew עָלֶיהָ (’aleha, “on it”) probably refers back to “one of the commandments” in v. 13 (J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:243). 28tn Heb “and he shall slaughter.” The singular verb seems to refer to an individual who represents the whole congregation, perhaps one of the elders referred to at the beginning of the verse, or the officiating priest (cf. v. 21). The LXX and Syriac make the verb plural, referring to “the elders of the congregation.” 29tn Heb “the anointed priest” (so ASV, NAB, NASB, NIV, NRSV). This refers to the high priest (cf. TEV). 30tn The words “in the blood” are not repeated in the Hebrew text at this point, but must be supplied in the English translation for clarity. 31tn The Hebrew verb וְהִזָּה (vÿhizzah, Hiphil of נָזָה, nazah) does indeed mean “sprinkle” or “splatter.” Contrast the different Hebrew verb translated “splash” in Lev 1:5 (זָרָק, zaraq). 32tc The MT reads literally, “and the priest shall dip his finger from the blood and sprinkle seven times.” This is awkward. Compare v. 6, which has literally, “and the priest shall dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle from the blood seven times.” The MT appears to be corrupt by haplography (i.e., assuming v. 6 to be the correct form, in v. 17 the scribe skipped from “his finger” to “from the blood,” thus missing “in the blood”) and metathesis (i.e., this also resulted in a text where “from the blood” stands before “sprinkle” rather than after it; J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 47). 33tn See the note on v. 6 above. 34tn See the note on v. 6 above. 35sn See v. 7, where this altar is identified as the altar of fragrant incense. 36tn Heb “Then he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. Based on the parallel statement in 4:10 and 4:31, it is the priest who performs this action rather than the person who brought the offering. 37tn Heb “take up all its fat from it”; NASB “shall remove all its fat from it.”sn See the full discussion of the fat regulations in Lev 4:8-9 above. 38tn Heb “it”; the referent (the fat) has been specified in the translation for clarity. Only the fat is meant here, since the “rest” of the bull is mentioned in v. 21. 39sn Cf. Lev 4:11-12 above for the disposition of “the [rest of] the bull.” 40sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4). 41tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to them” or “it shall be forgiven to them.” 42sn See the note on the word “slaughter” in v. 15. 43tn Heb “And he shall bring out the bull to from outside to the camp.” 44tn This section begins with the relative pronoun אֲשֶׁר (’asher) which usually means “who” or “which,” but here means “whenever.” 45tn See the Lev 4:2 note on “straying.” 46tn Heb “and does one from all the commandments of the Lord his God which must not be done”; cf. NRSV “ought not to be done”; NIV “does what is forbidden in any of the commands.” 47tn Heb “or his sin which he sinned in it is made known to him”; NAB “if he learns of the sin he committed.” 48tn Lev 4:22b-23a is difficult. The present translation suggests that there are two possible legal situations envisioned, separated by the Hebrew אוֹ (’o, “or”) at the beginning of v. 23. Lev 4:22b refers to any case in which the leader readily admits his guilt (i.e., “pleads guilty”), whereas v. 23a refers to cases where the leader is convicted of his guilt by legal action (“his sin…is made known to him”). See R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 2:95-96; Lev 4:27-28; and esp. the notes on Lev 5:1 below. 49tn Heb “a he-goat of goats, a male without defect”; cf. NLT “with no physical defects.” 50tn The LXX has a plural form here and also for the same verb later in the verse. See the note on Lev 1:5a. 51tn Heb “Then he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. Based on the parallel statements in 4:10 and 4:31, it is the priest who performs this action rather than the person who brought the offering. 52sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4). 53tn Heb “from.” In this phrase the preposition מִן (min) may be referring to the reason or cause (“on account of, because of”; GKC 383 §119.z). As J. E. Hartley (Leviticus [WBC], 47) points out, “from” may refer to the removal of the sin, but is an awkward expression. Hartley also suggests that the phrasing might be “an elliptical expression for יְכַפֵּר עַל־לְטַהֵר אֶת־מִן, ‘he will make expiation for…to cleanse…from…,’ as in 16:30.” 54tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar). 55tn Heb “an individual from the people of the land”; cf. NASB “anyone of the common people” (KJV, ASV both similar); NAB “a private person.” 56tn Heb “If one person sins by straying, from the people of the land.” See Lev 4:2 for a note on “straying.” 57tn Heb “by doing it, one from the commandments of the Lord which must not be done.” 58tn Heb “or his sin which he sinned is made known to him”; cf. NCV “when that person learns about his sin.” 59tn Lev 4:27b-28a is essentially the same as 4:22b-23a (see the notes there). 60tn Heb “a she-goat of goats, a female without defect”; NAB “an unblemished she-goat.” 61tn Heb “on his sin.” 62tc The LXX has a plural form here (see v. 24 above and the note on Lev 1:5a). 63sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4). 64tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar). 65tn Heb “Then he”; the referent has been specified in the translation for clarity. Here “he” refers to the offerer rather than the priest (contrast the clauses before and after). 66sn The focus of sin offering “atonement” was purging impurities from the tabernacle (see the note on Lev 1:4). 67tn Heb “there shall be forgiveness to him” or “it shall be forgiven to him” (KJV similar).