Leviticus 5

And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity.

1Sometimes people are asked to tell what they saw or know about a wrong. If someone knows and stays quiet, he has sinned. He must carry the guilt for it.

2Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether it be a carcase of an unclean beast, or a carcase of unclean cattle, or the carcase of unclean creeping things, and if it be hidden from him; he also shall be unclean, and guilty.

2Or someone touches something unclean, meaning not allowed under God's rules. It may be the dead body of a wild animal, a farm animal, or a crawling animal. Even if he did not notice, he is unclean and guilty.

3Or if he touch the uncleanness of man, whatsoever uncleanness it be that a man shall be defiled withal, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty.

3Or he touches something unclean that came from a person. Any kind of uncleanness counts. Even if he did not notice, he is guilty once he learns of it.

4Or if a soul swear, pronouncing with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall pronounce with an oath, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty in one of these.

4Or someone makes a promise quickly, without thinking it over. He may promise to do something bad or something good. Even if he forgot about it, he is guilty once he remembers.

5And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he shall confess that he hath sinned in that thing:

5When someone is guilty in any of these ways, he must say out loud what he did wrong.

6And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his sin.

6Then he must bring a gift to the LORD for his sin. It should be a female lamb or a young goat from his flock. This gift is an offering for sin. The priest, the man who serves God at the altar, will offer it. In this way the man's sin is covered and he is made right with God.

7And if he be not able to bring a lamb, then he shall bring for his trespass, which he hath committed, two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, unto the LORD; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.

7Some people cannot afford a lamb. Then the person brings two turtledoves or two young pigeons to the LORD. One bird is the sin offering. The other is a burnt offering, which is burned up on the altar.

8And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin offering first, and wring off his head from his neck, but shall not divide it asunder:

8He brings the birds to the priest. The priest offers the sin offering bird first. He twists its head at the neck but does not pull it off.

9And he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin offering upon the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be wrung out at the bottom of the altar: it is a sin offering.

9He sprinkles some of the blood on the side of the altar. The rest of the blood is drained out at the bottom of the altar. That bird is the sin offering.

10And he shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the manner: and the priest shall make an atonement for him for his sin which he hath sinned, and it shall be forgiven him.

10Then the priest offers the second bird as a burnt offering, in the usual way. So the man's sin is covered, and he is forgiven.

11But if he be not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall put no oil upon it, neither shall he put any frankincense thereon: for it is a sin offering.

11Some people cannot even afford two birds. Then the person brings about two quarts of fine flour instead. He must not pour oil on it. He must not put frankincense on it either. It is a sin offering.

Note"The tenth part of an ephah" was a dry measure of about two quarts of flour, enough for a few loaves of bread.

12Then shall he bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it, even a memorial thereof, and burn it on the altar, according to the offerings made by fire unto the LORD: it is a sin offering.

12He brings the flour to the priest. The priest takes a handful of it as a small part to stand for the whole gift. He burns that handful on the altar with the other gifts burned for the LORD. It is a sin offering.

13And the priest shall make an atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him: and the remnant shall be the priest’s, as a meat offering.

13So the priest makes things right for whatever sin the man did, and the man is forgiven. The flour that is left over belongs to the priest, just like a grain offering.

NoteThe KJV calls this a "meat offering." In 1611 "meat" meant food of any kind. This offering was made of grain, not animal meat.

14And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,

14The LORD spoke to Moses and said:

15If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD; then he shall bring for his trespass unto the LORD a ram without blemish out of the flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering:

15Someone may sin by mistake with the holy things that belong to the LORD. Then he must bring a ram from his flock with nothing wrong with it. The ram must be worth the right amount of silver, weighed the official way. This gift makes up for the wrong he did.

Note"Shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary" means silver weighed on the official scale kept at the place of worship.

16And he shall make amends for the harm that he hath done in the holy thing, and shall add the fifth part thereto, and give it unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and it shall be forgiven him.

16He must also pay back for the holy thing he harmed. He adds one fifth more to what it was worth. He gives all of that to the priest. The priest offers the ram, and the man is forgiven.

17And if a soul sin, and commit any of these things which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the LORD; though he wist it not, yet is he guilty, and shall bear his iniquity.

17Someone may break one of the LORD's commands without knowing it. He is still guilty, and he must carry the blame.

18And he shall bring a ram without blemish out of the flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering, unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his ignorance wherein he erred and wist it not, and it shall be forgiven him.

18He brings the priest a ram from the flock with nothing wrong with it, worth the right amount. The priest makes things right for the wrong the man did without knowing. Then he is forgiven.

19It is a trespass offering: he hath certainly trespassed against the LORD.

19This gift makes up for wrong that was done. The man truly did wrong against the LORD.