Leviticus

5.1-19

The concept of guilt occurring "after" knowledge of one's sin, begins the chapter. A person is unclean when they touch something unclean, whether they know they've touched it or not. But if they were unaware of having become unclean and later become aware of their uncleanliness, at the point of revelation, they "will be guilty" (vv1,2,3,4,5). There is a salvation message that I believe we are to consider here relating to a status of accountability. As with the previous chapter, either a lamb or goat is acceptable for this guilt offering. In both chapters, no clear distinction is made between one being more or less valuable than the other. Whether lamb or goat, the sacrifice is required to be the more valuable female from the flock, yet if these passages are to reflect a future understanding of what Christ later uses to explain how He will divide the righteous from the unrighteous at the Final Judgement (cf. Mt 25:31-46; Rev 20:12-15), there is not to be a distinction between the value of a lamb or goat. Both are to be considered of equal value before God here in the Old Testament. When we consider Christ, we must understand that God's nature is unchanging, and therefore, His unwillingness that any should perish (2 Pet 3:9) and His grace being sufficient for all (Jn 3:16-17; 1 Jn 4:9-10) would therefore mean He values and loves the lost equally with the redeemed. As His bride, the church, today we must diligently labor for the redemption of the lost, whom Christ loves just as desperately as He loves us. We, lambs and goats, are so valuable to God, that He sent His own Son as the atoning guilt offering for our sins. We can never consider ourselves of greater value to God than the lost. The price He paid was for "all." The consequences of not accepting His atoning sacrifice are beyond comparison to anything we can comprehend. "He went once for all into the Holy Place [the Holy of Holies of heaven, into the presence of God], and not through the blood of goats and calves, but through His own blood, having obtained and secured eternal redemption [that is, the salvation of all who personally believe in Him as Savior]." (Heb 9:12 Amplified Bible)

CHAPTER 5

1 ‘Now if a person sins after he hears a public oath to testify when he is a witness, whether he has seen or otherwise known, if he does not tell it, then he will bear his guilt.
2 ‘Or a person who touches any unclean thing, whether a carcass of an unclean beast or the carcass of unclean cattle or a carcass of unclean swarming things—though it is hidden from him, yet he is unclean—will be guilty.
3 ‘Or if he touches human uncleanness, of whatever sort his uncleanness may be with which he becomes unclean, and it is hidden from him, and then he comes to know it, he will be guilty.
4 ‘Or if a person swears thoughtlessly with his lips to do evil or to do good, in whatever matter a man may speak thoughtlessly with a sworn oath, and it is hidden from him, and then he comes to know it, he will be guilty in one of these.
5 ‘So it shall be, when he becomes guilty in one of these, that he shall confess that in which he has sinned.
6 ‘He shall also bring his guilt offering to Yahweh for his sin which he has committed, a female from the flock, a lamb or a goat, as a sin offering. So the priest shall make atonement on his behalf for his sin.
7 ‘But if he cannot afford a lamb, then he shall bring to Yahweh his guilt offering for that in which he has sinned, two turtledoves or two young pigeons, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.
8 ‘And he shall bring them to the priest, who shall bring near first that which is for the sin offering and shall nip its head at the front of its neck, but he shall not separate it.
9 ‘He shall also 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.
10 ‘The second he shall then prepare as a burnt offering according to the legal judgment. So the priest shall make atonement on his behalf for his sin which he has committed, and it will be forgiven him.
11 ‘But if his means are insufficient for two turtledoves or two young pigeons, then for his offering for that which he has sinned, he shall bring the tenth of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall not place oil on it or put frankincense on it, for it is a sin offering.
12 ‘He shall then bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it as its memorial portion and offer it up in smoke on the altar, with the offerings of Yahweh by fire: it is a sin offering.
13 ‘So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his sin which he has committed from one of these, and it will be forgiven him; then the rest shall become the priest’s, like the grain offering.’”

The Statutes of Guilt Offerings

14 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
15 “If a person acts unfaithfully and sins unintentionally against the holy things of Yahweh, then he shall bring his guilt offering to Yahweh: a ram without blemish from the flock, according to your valuation in silver by shekels, in terms of the shekel of the sanctuary, for a guilt offering.
16 “And he shall make restitution for that which he has sinned against the holy thing, and he shall add to it a fifth part of it and give it to the priest. The priest shall then make atonement for him with the ram of the guilt offering, and it will be forgiven him.
17 “Now if a person sins and does any one of the things which Yahweh has commanded not to be done, but he was unaware, still he is guilty and shall bear his punishment.
18 “He is then to bring to the priest a ram without blemish from the flock, according to your valuation, for a guilt offering. So the priest shall make atonement for him concerning his error in which he sinned unintentionally and did not know it, and it will be forgiven him.
19 “It is a guilt offering; he was certainly guilty before Yahweh.”