Numbers 15:22-29

Offerings for Unintentional Sins

22 “ ‘Now if you as a community unintentionally fail to keep any of these commands the LORD gave Moses—

23 any of the LORD’s commands to you through him, from the day the LORD gave them and continuing through the generations to come—

24 and if this is done unintentionally without the community being aware of it, then the whole community is to offer a young bull for a burnt offering as an aroma pleasing to the LORD, along with its prescribed grain offering and drink offering, and a male goat for a sin offering.^[a]

25 The priest is to make atonement for the whole Israelite community, and they will be forgiven, for it was not intentional and they have presented to the LORD for their wrong a food offering and a sin offering.

26 The whole Israelite community and the foreigners residing among them will be forgiven, because all the people were involved in the unintentional wrong.

27 “ ‘But if just one person sins unintentionally, that person must bring a year-old female goat for a sin offering.

28 The priest is to make atonement before the LORD for the one who erred by sinning unintentionally, and when atonement has been made, that person will be forgiven.

29 One and the same law applies to everyone who sins unintentionally, whether a native-born Israelite or a foreigner residing among you.

Numbers 15:22-29 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO NUMBERS 15

In this chapter the children of Israel are instructed about the meat offerings and drink offerings, and the quantities of them, which were always to go along with their burnt offerings and peace offerings they should offer when they came into the land of Canaan, Nu 15:1-12; and they are told that the same laws and ordinances would be binding equally on them that were of the country, and on the strangers in it, Nu 15:13-16; and an order is given them to offer a cake of the first dough for an heave offering, Nu 15:17-21; and they are directed what sacrifices to offer for sins of ignorance, both of the congregation and particular persons, Nu 14:22-29; but as for presumptuous sinners, they were to be cut off, Nu 14:30,31; and an instance is recorded of stoning a sabbath breaker, Nu 14:32-36; and the chapter is concluded with a law for wearing fringes on the borders of their garments, the use of which is expressed, Nu 14:35-41.

Cross References

• 1. S Leviticus 4:2
• 2. ver 21
• 3. ver 25,26
• 4. S Leviticus 5:15
• 5. Leviticus 4:14
• 6. S ver 3
• 7. Leviticus 2:1
• 8. Leviticus 23:13; Numbers 6:15
• 9. Leviticus 4:3
• 10. Leviticus 4:20; S Romans 3:25; Hebrews 2:17
• 11. ver 22,S 24
• 12. ver 14
• 13. Leviticus 4:3
• 14. S ver 24
• 15. Leviticus 4:27
• 16. Leviticus 4:3; Numbers 6:14
• 17. Numbers 8:12; Numbers 28:22
• 18. Leviticus 4:20; Leviticus 4:35
• 19. S Exodus 12:49

Footnotes

• [a]. Or "purification offering" ; also in verses 25 and 27