Keraia
Numbers 15

Numbers 15:27

Offerings for Unintentional Sins · Numbers 15:22–31
Read Numbers 15

Translations

Modern
Also, if one person sins unintentionally, he is to present a year-old female goat as a sin offering.
Traditional
And if any soul sin through ignorance, then he shall bring a she goat of the first year for a sin offering.
Literal
And if one person sins in error, he shall bring a female goat, a daughter of a year, as a sin offering.
Latin
Quod si anima una nesciens peccaverit, offeret capram anniculam pro peccato suo:

Original

Hebrew
English
Also, if one person sins unintentionally, he is to present a year-old female goat as a sin offering.

Notes

Numbers 15:22–29

Sins done without knowing were treated differently from sins done on purpose (15:30–31). The law also made a difference between the actions of the whole community and the actions of one person (see also Leviticus 4–5).

Numbers 15:1–41

Chapters 1–14 cover a short time period, but chapter 15 marks the start of a long period. This is the main part of the forty years in the wilderness, about which little is known. There are references to events during this time (for example, Deuteronomy 8:2–6; 29:5–6; Joshua 5:4–8; Ezekiel 20:10–26; Amos 5:25–26; Acts 7:42–43).

During this period, Moses continued to give laws to guide Israel’s life as a nation. These laws would be especially important in the future. They were meant for the day when the people who survived the wilderness would enter the promised land.

This chapter addresses three main types of laws. Numbers 15 is in the middle of stories about a stubborn and disobedient Israel. It offers hope that the promised land still waited for the next generation of Israel’s people.

Theme notes and profiles

Atonement

Glossary

Biblical Concept of Law Deuteronomy, Book of Numbers, Book of Offerings and Sacrifices Wilderness Wanderings

Topics

Atonement: Made by Animal Sacrifices Ignorance: Sins of Offerings: Sin: Ordinances Concerning