Keraia
Leviticus 6

Leviticus 6:2

Sins Requiring a Guilt Offering · Leviticus 6:1–7
Read Leviticus 6

Translations

Modern
“If someone sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD by deceiving his neighbor in regard to a deposit or security entrusted to him or stolen, or if he extorts his neighbor
Traditional
If a soul sin, and commit a trespass against the Lord, and lie unto his neighbour in that which was delivered him to keep, or in fellowship, or in a thing taken away by violence, or hath deceived his neighbour;
Literal
“If a soul sins and acts unfaithfully—an unfaithfulness—against YHWH and has lied to his neighbor concerning a deposit, or concerning a pledge of hand, or concerning a robbery, or if he has extorted his neighbor,
Latin
Anima quæ peccaverit, et contempto Domino, negaverit proximo suo depositum quod fidei ejus creditum fuerat, vel vi aliquid extorserit, aut calumniam fecerit,

Original

Hebrew
English
“If someone sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD by deceiving his neighbor in regard to a deposit or security entrusted to him or stolen, or if he extorts his neighbor

Notes

Leviticus 6:2

If someone sins and acts unfaithfully against the LORD by deceiving his neighbor: FWhen a person sins against an associate, they are also unfaithful to the Lord. For believers, there is no such thing as a nonreligious (secular) sin. Every sin involves God, even when it is directed against another person or group.

In these cases, a guilt offering was required. God’s forgiveness was needed, but the sinner first had to make restitution (pay back or repair the wrong) to the injured person (Leviticus 6:5–7; compare Matthew 5:23–24). Unlike offenses against sacred property (Leviticus 5:14–16), both accidental and intentional offenses against another person’s property could be forgiven.

Leviticus 5:14–6:7

The guilt offering (called ’asham in Hebrew, meaning “guilt”) dealt with cases of property loss or damage. This could be either holy property set apart for God (Leviticus 5:14–16) or ordinary property belong to a person (6:1–7). The offering required both replacement and repayment for the loss (5:16; 6:5).

This offering could be called a “penalty offering” because the ram served as a penalty. It could also be called a “replacement offering” because a person had to replace the loss before offering the ram. In the guilt offering, the loss was not only a failure in God's eyes, as with the sin offering (5:14–6:7). It was also a loss of property to another person or to the sanctuary. Compare Matthew 5:23–24.

Theme notes and profiles

Ancient Law Codes Atonement Pure Worship

Parallels

Leviticus 5:14–19 Leviticus 7:1–10

Glossary

Biblical Concept of Law Criminal Law and Punishment Deuteronomy, Book of Guilt Offering History of Israel Law of Moses Leviticus, Book of Moses Neighbor Offerings and Sacrifices

Topics

Contraception Contracts: Scriptures Illustrative of the Binding Force of Damages and Compensation: General Scriptures Concerning Dishonesty: General Scriptures Concerning Falsehood: General Scriptures Concerning Neighbor: General Scriptures Concerning Oath: Unclassified Scriptures Relating To Offerings: Sin: Ordinances Concerning Offerings: Trespass: Ordinances Concerning Perjury: General Scriptures Concerning Restitution: To be Made for Dishonesty Sacrifices: Different Kinds of Trespass offering for Intentional Sins Swearing Falsely: Fraud often Leads To Theft and Thieves: General Scriptures Concerning Trespass offering: To be offered for Breach of Trust, or Fraud Trustee: Mosaic Law Concerning Types of Christ: Trespass offering