Leviticus 4
The full text of Leviticus 4 in the Trinity Bible Version — clear modern English, translated from the original Hebrew. Free to read.
1 The LORD said to Moses,
2 "Say to the Israelites: When anyone sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD's commands—
3 "If the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, he must bring to the LORD a young bull without defect as a sin offering for the sin he has committed.
4 He is to present the bull at the entrance to the tent of meeting before the LORD. He is to lay his hand on its head and slaughter it before the LORD.
5 Then the anointed priest shall take some of the bull's blood and carry it into the tent of meeting.
6 He is to dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle some of it seven times before the LORD, in front of the curtain of the sanctuary.
7 The priest shall then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the LORD in the tent of meeting. The rest of the bull's blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
8 He shall remove all the fat from the bull of the sin offering: the fat that covers the internal organs and all the fat that is connected to them,
9 both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the long lobe of the liver, which he shall remove along with the kidneys—
10 just as the fat is removed from the ox sacrificed as a fellowship offering. Then the priest shall burn them on the altar of burnt offering.
11 But the hide of the bull and all its flesh, as well as the head and legs, the internal organs and the dung—
12 that is, all the rest of the bull—he must take outside the camp to a place ceremonially clean, where the ashes are thrown, and burn it there in a wood fire on the ash heap.
13 "If the whole Israelite community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD's commands, even though the community is unaware of the matter, when they realize their guilt
14 and the sin they committed becomes known, the assembly must bring a young bull as a sin offering and present it before the tent of meeting.
15 The elders of the community are to lay their hands on the bull's head before the LORD, and the bull shall be slaughtered before the LORD.
16 Then the anointed priest is to take some of the bull's blood into the tent of meeting.
17 He shall dip his finger into the blood and sprinkle it before the LORD seven times in front of the curtain.
18 He is to put some of the blood on the horns of the altar that is before the LORD in the tent of meeting. The rest of the blood he shall pour out at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the tent of meeting.
19 He shall remove all the fat from it and burn it on the altar,
20 and do with this bull just as he did with the bull for the sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for the community, and they will be forgiven.
21 Then he shall take the bull outside the camp and burn it as he burned the first bull. This is the sin offering for the community.
22 "When a leader sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the commands of the LORD his God, when he realizes his guilt
23 and the sin he has committed becomes known to him, he must bring as his offering a male goat without defect.
24 He is to lay his hand on the goat's head and slaughter it at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered before the LORD. It is a sin offering.
25 Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar.
26 He shall burn all the fat on the altar as he burned the fat of the fellowship offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for the leader's sin, and he will be forgiven.
27 "If any member of the community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the LORD's commands, when they realize their guilt
28 and the sin they have committed becomes known, they must bring as their offering for the sin they committed a female goat without defect.
29 They are to lay their hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it at the place of the burnt offering.
30 Then the priest shall take some of the blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar.
31 They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar as an aroma pleasing to the LORD. In this way the priest will make atonement for them, and they will be forgiven.
32 "If someone brings a lamb as their sin offering, they are to bring a female without defect.
33 They are to lay their hand on its head and slaughter it for a sin offering at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered.
34 Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar.
35 They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the lamb of the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar on top of the food offerings presented to the LORD. In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the sin they have committed, and they will be forgiven.
Translation notes (15)
- Leviticus 4:2a The Hebrew word bishgagah, translated as "Unintentionally," means by mistake, error, or inadvertence. This is in contrast to deliberate and defiant wrongdoing, which is described elsewhere as acting "with a high hand."
- Leviticus 4:3a The Hebrew word chatta't, translated as "Sin offering," refers to the sacrifice that removes sin and cleanses the sanctuary. Many scholars prefer to translate it as "purification offering" to highlight its role in removing impurity. This term is rendered consistently throughout the book of Leviticus.
- Leviticus 4:3b The Hebrew phrase ha-kohen ha-mashiach, translated as "The anointed priest," refers to the high priest. In this context, mashiach means "anointed one" and is not used as a messianic title.
- Leviticus 4:4a The gesture of laying hands on the head of the animal symbolizes the transfer of sin from the offerer to the sacrifice, or identification with the sacrifice.
- Leviticus 4:6a Hebrew hizzah, 'sprinkle,' is the technical verb for ritual spattering. The sevenfold act signals completeness in purification rites (see Leviticus 14:7; 16:14–19; Numbers 19:4). Parokhet, 'veil,' designates the inner curtain before the Most Holy Place; the Septuagint renders it katapetasma.
- Leviticus 4:7a The altar of fragrant incense stood in the Holy Place, before the veil separating it from the Most Holy Place. The bronze altar of burnt offering, however, was outside the tent, in the court of the tabernacle.
- Leviticus 4:10a Fellowship offering translates Hebrew shelamim, 'well-being', recalling the fat-handling procedure in Leviticus 3. 'Fat' denotes chelev, 'suet, inner fat'. 'Burn' reflects qatar, 'turn into smoke' on the altar, contrasted with saraph, 'burn up', used for disposal outside the camp (4:12).
- Leviticus 4:12a Hebrew shefekh ha-deshen, 'place where the ashes are poured out,' denotes the designated ash-dump outside the camp. It is called a maqom tahor, 'clean place,' indicating that while the sin offering's carcass is removed from the camp, its disposal occurs in a ritually acceptable area rather than on the altar.
- Leviticus 4:13a The phrase "whole Israelite community" renders kol adat Yisrael; edah, 'assembly' (עֵדָה), literally 'all the assembly of Israel'. The term denotes a corporate body whose elders act representatively (see v.15); the Septuagint likewise has synagoge, 'assembly' (συναγωγή).
- Leviticus 4:15a The Hebrew verb samak, 'to lean, to lay,' refers to the elders' symbolic transfer of the community's sins onto the sacrificial bull. This action precedes the animal's ritual slaughter, emphasizing its role as a substitute for the people.
- Leviticus 4:20a The Hebrew verb כָּפַר, kaphar, 'to atone', is used here to describe the priest's ritual actions that reconcile the community to God.
- Leviticus 4:22a Hebrew nasi, 'prince' or 'chieftain' (נָשִׂיא), rendered here as 'leader', denotes a tribal head or civic ruler in the Pentateuch. The Septuagint has archon, 'ruler', which supports the broader sense.
- Leviticus 4:24a The Hebrew term chatta't (חַטָּאת) refers to an offering that deals with sin, often rendered here as 'sin offering'.
- Leviticus 4:26a 'Make atonement' renders kipper (כִּפֵּר), 'effect expiation/purge'. 'Sin offering' is chatta't (חַטָּאת), 'purification offering'; 'leader' is nasi (נָשִׂיא), 'chieftain'. 'Forgiven' renders salach (סָלַח), 'forgive', used only of God's pardon in the Hebrew Bible. Burning the fat follows the shelamim (שְׁלָמִים), 'fellowship offering'.
- Leviticus 4:31a The Hebrew re'ach nichoach (רֵיחַ נִיחֹחַ), 'pleasing aroma', literally 'soothing aroma', is a fixed cultic formula signaling divine acceptance. It recurs widely with burnt and fellowship offerings (e.g., Leviticus 1:9; 2:2; 3:5; Numbers 15:3) and echoes Genesis 8:21; the Septuagint renders it osme euodias, 'fragrant aroma'.
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