1‘ “Suppose someone has been called as a witness to something they have seen or learned about. Then if they do not tell what they know, they have sinned. And they will be held responsible for it.2‘ “Or suppose someone touches something not ‘clean’. It could be the dead bodies of wild animals or of livestock. Or it could be the dead bodies of creatures that move along the ground. Even though those people are not aware that they touched them, they have become ‘unclean’. And they are guilty.3Or suppose they touch something ‘unclean’ that comes from a human being. It could be anything that would make them ‘unclean’. Suppose they are not aware that they touched it. When they find out about it, they will be guilty.4Or suppose someone makes a promise to do something without thinking it through. It does not matter what they promised. It does not matter whether they made the promise without thinking about it carefully. And suppose they are not aware that they did not think it through. When they find out about it, they will be guilty.5When someone is guilty in any of those ways, they must admit they have sinned.6They must bring a sin offering to pay for the sin they have committed. They must bring to the LORD a female lamb or goat from the flock. The priest will sacrifice the animal. That will pay for the person’s sin.7‘ “Suppose they can’t afford a lamb. Then they must get two doves or two young pigeons. They must bring them to the LORD to pay for their sin. One of them is for a sin offering. The other is for a burnt offering.8They must bring them to the priest. The priest will offer the one for the sin offering first. He must twist its head. But he must not twist it off completely.9Then he must splash some of the blood of the sin offering against the side of the altar. He must empty out the rest of the blood at the bottom of the altar. It is a sin offering.10Then the priest will offer the other bird as a burnt offering. He must do it in the way the law requires. That will pay for the sin they have committed. And they will be forgiven.11‘ “But suppose they can’t afford two doves or two young pigeons. Then they must bring 1.5 kilograms of the finest flour as an offering for their sin. It is a sin offering. They must not put olive oil or incense on it. That is because it is a sin offering.12They must bring it to the priest. The priest must take a handful of it. He must burn that part on the altar. It will be a reminder that all good things come from the LORD. The priest must burn it on top of the food offerings presented to the LORD. It is a sin offering.13In that way the priest will pay for any of the sins they have committed. And they will be forgiven. The rest of the offering will belong to the priest. It is the same as in the case of the grain offering.” ’
Rules for guilt offerings
14The LORD spoke to Moses. He said,15‘Suppose someone is unfaithful to me and sins. And they do it without meaning to. Here is how they sin against me or my priests. They refuse to give the priests one of the holy things set apart for them. Then they must bring me a ram from the flock. It must not have any flaws. It must be worth the required amount of silver. The silver must be weighed out in keeping with the standard weights that are used in the sacred tent. The ram is a guilt offering. It will pay for their sin.16They must also pay for the holy thing they refused to give. They must add a fifth of its value to it. They must give all of it to the priest. The priest will pay for their sin with the ram. It is a guilt offering. And they will be forgiven.17‘Suppose someone sins by doing something I command them not to do. Even though they do not know it, they are guilty. They will be held responsible for it.18They must bring to the priest a ram from the flock as a guilt offering. It must not have any flaws. And it must be worth the required amount of money. The priest will sacrifice the animal. That will pay for what they have done wrong without meaning to. And they will be forgiven.19It is a guilt offering. They have been guilty of doing wrong against me.’
Leviticus 5
English Standard Version
1“If anyone sins in that he hears a public adjuration to testify, and though he is a witness, whether he has seen or come to know the matter, yet does not speak, he shall bear his iniquity; (Le 5:17; Le 7:18; Le 10:17; Le 17:16; Le 19:8; Le 20:17; Le 20:19; Nu 5:31; Nu 9:13; 1Sa 14:24; 1Sa 14:26; 1Ki 8:31; Pr 29:24; Mt 26:63)2or if anyone touches an unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean wild animal or a carcass of unclean livestock or a carcass of unclean swarming things, and it is hidden from him and he has become unclean, and he realizes his guilt; (Le 11:24; Le 11:28; Le 11:31; Le 11:39; Nu 19:11; Nu 19:13; Nu 19:16)3or if he touches human uncleanness, of whatever sort the uncleanness may be with which one becomes unclean, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and realizes his guilt;4or if anyone utters with his lips a rash oath to do evil or to do good, any sort of rash oath that people swear, and it is hidden from him, when he comes to know it, and he realizes his guilt in any of these; (Jud 11:30; 1Sa 14:24; 1Sa 25:22; Ec 5:2; Mr 6:23; Ac 23:12)5when he realizes his guilt in any of these and confesses the sin he has committed, (Le 16:21; Le 26:40; Nu 5:7; Jos 7:19; Ezr 10:1)6he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation[1] for the sin that he has committed, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin.7“But if he cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation for the sin that he has committed two turtledoves or two pigeons,[2] one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. (Le 1:14; Le 12:8; Le 14:21)8He shall bring them to the priest, who shall offer first the one for the sin offering. He shall wring its head from its neck but shall not sever it completely, (Le 1:15; Le 1:17)9and he shall sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering on the side of the altar, while the rest of the blood shall be drained out at the base of the altar; it is a sin offering. (Le 1:15; Le 4:7; Le 4:18; Le 4:30; Le 4:34)10Then he shall offer the second for a burnt offering according to the rule. And the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin that he has committed, and he shall be forgiven. (Le 4:20; Le 4:26; Le 4:31; Le 4:35)11“But if he cannot afford two turtledoves or two pigeons, then he shall bring as his offering for the sin that he has committed a tenth of an ephah[3] of fine flour for a sin offering. He shall put no oil on it and shall put no frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering. (Nu 5:15)12And he shall bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take a handful of it as its memorial portion and burn this on the altar, on the Lord’s food offerings; it is a sin offering. (Le 2:2; Le 4:35)13Thus the priest shall make atonement for him for the sin which he has committed in any one of these things, and he shall be forgiven. And the remainder[4] shall be for the priest, as in the grain offering.” (Le 5:10)
Laws for Guilt Offerings
14The Lord spoke to Moses, saying,15“If anyone commits a breach of faith and sins unintentionally in any of the holy things of the Lord, he shall bring to the Lord as his compensation, a ram without blemish out of the flock, valued[5] in silver shekels,[6] according to the shekel of the sanctuary, for a guilt offering. (Ex 30:13; Le 22:14; Ezr 10:2; Ezr 10:19)16He shall also make restitution for what he has done amiss in the holy thing and shall add a fifth to it and give it to the priest. And the priest shall make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering, and he shall be forgiven. (Le 5:10; Le 6:5; Le 22:14; Le 27:13; Le 27:15; Le 27:27; Le 27:31; Nu 5:7)17“If anyone sins, doing any of the things that by the Lord’s commandments ought not to be done, though he did not know it, then realizes his guilt, he shall bear his iniquity. (Le 4:2; Nu 15:29; Lu 12:48)18He shall bring to the priest a ram without blemish out of the flock, or its equivalent, for a guilt offering, and the priest shall make atonement for him for the mistake that he made unintentionally, and he shall be forgiven. (Le 5:10; Le 5:15)19It is a guilt offering; he has indeed incurred guilt before[7] the Lord.”