Leviticus 6:3

3 or he finds lost property and lies about it and swears {falsely} {in regard to} any one of these things by which {a person} might commit sin,

Leviticus 6:3 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 6:3

Or have found that which was lost, and lieth concerning it,
&c.] Who having found anything lost, at once concludes it his own, and converts it to his own use, never inquiring after the proprietor of it, or taking any method to get knowledge of him, and restore it to him; but so far from that, being suspected of finding it, and charged with it denies it: Maimonides F11 gives a reason why a lost thing should be restored, not only because so to do is a virtue in itself praiseworthy, but because it has a reciprocal utility; for if you do not restore another's lost things, neither will your own be restored to you:

and sweareth falsely;
which is to be understood, not of the last case only, but of all the rest, or of anyone of them, as it follows:

in any of all these that a man doeth, sinning therein;
by unfaithfulness in a trust, cheating, defrauding, lying, and false swearing.


FOOTNOTES:

F11 Moreh Nevochim, par. 3. c. 40.

Leviticus 6:3 In-Context

1 Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
2 "When a person {displays infidelity} against Yahweh and he deceives his fellow citizen regarding something entrusted or {a pledge} or stealing or he exploits his fellow citizen,
3 or he finds lost property and lies about it and swears {falsely} {in regard to} any one of these things by which {a person} might commit sin,
4 {and when} he sins and is guilty, then he shall bring back {the things he had stolen} or {what he had extorted} or {something with which he had been entrusted} or the lost property that he had found,
5 or {regarding} anything about which he has sworn {falsely}, then he shall repay it {according to} its value and shall add one-fifth of its value to it--he must give it {to whom it belongs} on the day of his guilt offering.

Footnotes 3

  • [a]. Literally "in accordance with deception"
  • [b]. Literally "on" or "upon"
  • [c]. Literally "the man"
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