Leviticus 5

1 “If someone [a soul] sins [misses the mark, goes wrong] by failing to testify [to tell, declare openly] when he hears [listens, gives attention to] a public charge [voice of swearing, oath] about something he has witnessed [seen, known of], whether he has seen [with his eyes, perceived] it or learned [known, ascertained by seeing] of it, he shall bear [lift, carry] the iniquity [moral evil, sin]. word study 2 Or [if it happens, in the event that] if a person [soul, living being] touches [comes into physical contact with] anything unclean [impure, defiled]—whether [it is] the carcass [dead body, corpse] of any unclean [impure, defiled] wild animal [beast, creature] or livestock [domesticated animal, cattle] or crawling creature [swarming, reptile]—even [though, if] if he is unaware [ignorant, does not know] of it, he is [becomes, is considered] unclean [impure, defiled] and [morally] guilty [responsible, accountable]. word study 3 Or [as an alternative, if] if he touches [comes into contact with, reaches out to] human uncleanness [the state of being unclean, impure, or defiled]—anything [whatever thing, all things] by which [through, because of] one becomes unclean [is defiled, made impure]—even if [although, though] he is unaware [ignorant, does not know] of it [the thing, the fact], when [at the time, after] he realizes [knows, understands, is aware of] it [the fact, the thing], he is guilty [responsible, accountable, to blame]. word study 4 Or if someone [carelessly, thoughtlessly] swears [makes a vow, pronounces an oath] thoughtlessly with his lips [language, words] to do anything [whatever it may be] good [pleasing, joyful] or evil [harmful, bad]—in whatever matter [thing, situation] a man [person, individual] may rashly [without thought, impulsively] pronounce [speak, utter] an oath [promise, vow]—even if he is unaware [ignorant, does not know] of it, when he realizes [understands, knows] it, he is guilty [responsible, at fault] in the matter [thing, situation]. word study 5 If someone [becomes responsible, is found guilty] incurs guilt [is guilty of a sin, commits a wrong] in one [a single, specific] of these ways [things, matters], he must [is obligated to, should] confess [give thanks, acknowledge, admit] the sin [wrongdoing, offense] he has committed [done, perpetrated], word study 6 and he must bring his guilt offering [a trespass or fault, requiring atonement] to the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God] for the sin [missing the mark, incurring guilt] he has committed: a female [a woman or female animal, specifically] lamb [a young female sheep, or ewe-lamb] or goat [a female goat, or she-goat] from the flock [a group of sheep or goats, a community] as a sin offering [a sacrifice to atone for sin]. And the priest [a spiritual leader, serving God] will make atonement [to cover or purify, reconciling with God] for him concerning his sin [the fault or guilt that separates from God]. word study 7 If, however, he cannot afford [is not able to bring, does not have the means for] a lamb [sheep, young animal], he may bring to the LORD [Yehovah, the Lord God] as restitution [compensation, payment] for his sin [guilt, fault, offense] two turtledoves [doves] or two young pigeons [sons of the dove, gentle birds]—one as a sin offering [offering for atonement, sacrifice for guilt] and the other as a burnt offering [offering completely consumed, step to the altar]. word study 8 He is to bring [present, offer] them to the priest [spiritual leader, mediator], who shall first [initially, at the beginning] present [offer, give] the one for the sin [guilt, wrongdoing] offering [sacrifice, atonement]. He is to twist [wring, nip] its head [the topmost part of the body] at the front [opposite, before] of its neck [back of the neck, turning point] without [not, none] severing [separating, dividing] it; word study 9 then he is to sprinkle [to spirt or jump, often in a ritual] some of the blood [the liquid that flows through the body, essential for life] of the sin [guilt or punishment for sin] offering on the side [upon or above] of the altar [a place of sacrifice], while the rest [what remains or is left over] of the blood is drained out [to suck out or pour] at the base [foundation or starting point] of the altar [a place of sacrifice]. It is a sin [atonement or purification] offering. word study 10 And the priest [the spiritual leader, mediator] must prepare the second bird as a burnt offering [a sacrifice completely consumed by fire] according to the ordinance [the established law, justice, or mishpat]. In this way the priest will make atonement [cover, reconcile, or kippur] for him for the sin [missing the mark, rebellion, or chata’ah] he has committed [intentionally done wrong, or sinned], and he will be forgiven [pardoned, or nislach, freed from guilt]. word study 11 But if he cannot afford [is not able to bring] two turtledoves [turtle doves] or two young pigeons [doves], he may bring [as an offering] a tenth [one-tenth, a tithe] of an ephah [a unit of measurement, about 9 gallons] of fine flour [the best meal, refined and pure] as a sin offering [a sacrifice for atonement, to make amends]. He must not put [shall not set] olive oil [ointment] or frankincense [a white resin, used for incense] on it, because it is a sin offering [an atonement for sin, a purification]. word study 12 He is to bring it to the priest [who serves as a mediator between God and man], who shall take a handful [a memorial portion] from it as a memorial portion [a reminder of the offering, a sign of dedication] and burn it on the altar [a place of sacrifice] atop the offerings made by fire [a sacrificial act] to the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God]; it is a sin offering [an atonement for sin, a means of reconciliation]. word study 13 In this way [through this ritual, by doing that] the priest [the spiritual leader, mediator] will make atonement [cover, reconcile] for him for any of these sins [transgressions, guilt] he has committed [missed the mark, gone wrong], and he will be forgiven [pardon, have mercy]. The remainder [leftover, what is left] will belong to the priest [as a gift, offering], like the grain offering [meal offering].” word study 14 Then the LORD [Yehovah] said [to speak, communicate] to Moses [the Israelite leader, mediator], word study 15 “If someone acts unfaithfully [commits a trespass, sins through ignorance] and sins unintentionally [without realizing it, by mistake] against any of the LORD’s [Yehovah, the covenant God] holy things [set-apart possessions, sacred items], he must bring his guilt offering [a trespass offering, a sin payment] to the LORD: an unblemished [perfect, without defect] ram from the flock [a male sheep, a strong animal], of proper value [according to your estimation, worth the equivalent] in silver shekels [coins, money] according to the sanctuary shekel [the official standard, the holy weight]; it is a guilt offering [a penalty for wrongdoing, an atonement]. word study 16 Regarding any holy thing [sacred or set-apart area, the Holy Place] he has harmed [done wrong, sinned against], he must make restitution [pay compensation, restore] by adding a fifth [one-fifth, the fifth part] of its value to it and giving it to the priest [the one who serves God, leads others in worship], who will make atonement [cover, make peace] on his behalf with the ram [a strong male sheep] as a guilt offering [an offering for sin, to make amends], and he will be forgiven [pardoned, have his sin covered]. word study 17 If someone [a soul, a living being] sins [commits an offense, misses the mark] and violates [disobediently breaks] any of the LORD’s [Yehovah, The covenant Name of God] commandments [divine laws, guidelines] even though he was [without knowledge] unaware [lacking understanding, ignorant], he is guilty [responsible, deserving punishment] and shall bear [lift, carry] his punishment [iniquity, moral evil]. word study 18 He is to bring to the priest an unblemished [perfect, without defect] ram [a strong male sheep] of proper value [according to your estimation, of suitable worth] from the flock [a group of sheep or goats, a community] as a guilt offering [a trespass offering, for atonement]. Then the priest will make atonement [cover, reconcile, restore] on his behalf for the wrong [sin, offense, ignorance] he has committed in ignorance [unintentionally, without knowledge], and he will be forgiven [pardoned, released from guilt]. word study 19 It is a guilt [trespass, offense] offering [to atone for sin]; he was certainly [undeniably, without a doubt] guilty [responsible, at fault] before the LORD [Yehovah, the supreme God].” word study