The Sin Offering: Leviticus 4

Narrator: Chris Genthree

Leviticus 4 • 2 min. read • grade level: 12

The various sin offerings being identified with that which was in itself abhorrent to God, were not burnt on the altar, but were wholly consumed "outside the camp;" God thus marking His sense of the terrible character of sin, even when laid on Jesus—His soul's delight—who "suffered without the gate," saying, as the expression of His soul's agony in that awful hour, "My God, My God, why hast Thou forsaken Me?" But let it ever be remembered, that even in those sacrifices which represented Jesus made sin for us, and thus only on the cross, officially obnoxious to God, that personally He never was more dear to His God and Father; for the blood (the life) was sprinkled before Jehovah, and in certain cases put upon the horns of the golden altar—worship; and upon the brazen altar - approach; while all the fat was burnt upon the altar, ascending to Jehovah and heaven as a sweet savor.

The various grades in the offerings express the various measures of apprehension found amongst God's people in respect to the one sacrifice of Christ If we have measures of apprehension, we have also degrees of sin, and this latter is specially pointed out here. The gravity of sin must be measured by the dignity of the offended One, and the relative position of the offender. First, then, we have the sin of the anointed priest (Lev. 4:3-12³If the priest that is anointed do sin according to the sin of the people; then let him bring for his sin, which he hath sinned, a young bullock without blemish unto the Lord for a sin offering. ⁴And he shall bring the bullock unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation before the Lord; and shall lay his hand upon the bullock's head, and kill the bullock before the Lord. ⁵And the priest that is anointed shall take of the bullock's blood, and bring it to the tabernacle of the congregation: ⁶And the priest shall dip his finger in the blood, and sprinkle of the blood seven times before the Lord, before the vail of the sanctuary. ⁷And the priest shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of sweet incense before the Lord, which is in the tabernacle of the congregation; and shall pour all the blood of the bullock at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. ⁸And he shall take off from it all the fat of the bullock for the sin offering; the fat that covereth the inwards, and all the fat that is upon the inwards, ⁹And the two kidneys, and the fat that is upon them, which is by the flanks, and the caul above the liver, with the kidneys, it shall he take away, ¹⁰As it was taken off from the bullock of the sacrifice of peace offerings: and the priest shall burn them upon the altar of the burnt offering. ¹¹And the skin of the bullock, and all his flesh, with his head, and with his legs, and his inwards, and his dung, ¹²Even the whole bullock shall he carry forth without the camp unto a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn him on the wood with fire: where the ashes are poured out shall he be burnt. (Leviticus 4:3‑12)); secondly, of the whole congregation (Lev. 4:13-21¹³And if the whole congregation of Israel sin through ignorance, and the thing be hid from the eyes of the assembly, and they have done somewhat against any of the commandments of the Lord concerning things which should not be done, and are guilty; ¹⁴When the sin, which they have sinned against it, is known, then the congregation shall offer a young bullock for the sin, and bring him before the tabernacle of the congregation. ¹⁵And the elders of the congregation shall lay their hands upon the head of the bullock before the Lord: and the bullock shall be killed before the Lord. ¹⁶And the priest that is anointed shall bring of the bullock's blood to the tabernacle of the congregation: ¹⁷And the priest shall dip his finger in some of the blood, and sprinkle it seven times before the Lord, even before the vail. ¹⁸And he shall put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar which is before the Lord, that is in the tabernacle of the congregation, and shall pour out all the blood at the bottom of the altar of the burnt offering, which is at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation. ¹⁹And he shall take all his fat from him, and burn it upon the altar. ²⁰And he shall do with the bullock as he did with the bullock for a sin offering, so shall he do with this: and the priest shall make an atonement for them, and it shall be forgiven them. ²¹And he shall carry forth the bullock without the camp, and burn him as he burned the first bullock: it is a sin offering for the congregation. (Leviticus 4:13‑21)); thirdly, of the ruler (Lev. 4:22-26²²When a ruler hath sinned, and done somewhat through ignorance against any of the commandments of the Lord his God concerning things which should not be done, and is guilty; ²³Or if his sin, wherein he hath sinned, come to his knowledge; he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a male without blemish: ²⁴And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt offering before the Lord: it is a sin offering. ²⁵And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt offering. ²⁶And he shall burn all his fat upon the altar, as the fat of the sacrifice of peace offerings: and the priest shall make an atonement for him as concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him. (Leviticus 4:22‑26)); fourthly, of any of the common people (Lev. 4:27-35²⁷And if any one of the common people sin through ignorance, while he doeth somewhat against any of the commandments of the Lord concerning things which ought not to be done, and be guilty; ²⁸Or if his sin, which he hath sinned, come to his knowledge: then he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a female without blemish, for his sin which he hath sinned. ²⁹And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and slay the sin offering in the place of the burnt offering. ³⁰And the priest shall take of the blood thereof with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar. ³¹And he shall take away all the fat thereof, as the fat is taken away from off the sacrifice of peace offerings; and the priest shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savor unto the Lord; and the priest shall make an atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him. ³²And if he bring a lamb for a sin offering, he shall bring it a female without blemish. ³³And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and slay it for a sin offering in the place where they kill the burnt offering. ³⁴And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar: ³⁵And he shall take away all the fat thereof, as the fat of the lamb is taken away from the sacrifice of the peace offerings; and the priest shall burn them upon the altar, according to the offerings made by fire unto the Lord: and the priest shall make an atonement for his sin that he hath committed, and it shall be forgiven him. (Leviticus 4:27‑35)). If the priest, who represented the people before Jehovah, or the congregation, sinned, the blood—the witness of death—was sprinkled seven times (spiritual perfection) before the Lord, and also put upon the horns of the golden altar; this latter use of the blood was in order that the worship and communion of the redeemed congregation might be righteously and holily maintained, or, if lost, restored; but when a prince or ruler, or one of the common people transgressed, the worship of the Lord's host was not necessarily interrupted, and hence, in their case the blood was merely put upon the horns of the brazen altar. The sin of the anointed priest, and the corporate sin of the whole congregation, were the most serious cases of any; on their sin the judgment of God rested more heavily than in the other cases, for in theirs only is it said that the sin offering was to be wholly burned outside the camp. It may be remarked, that so thoroughly is this aspect of the death of Jesus identified with the sin of man, that in the original it is the same word for "sin" and "sin offering."

All these sacrifices and the teachings based thereon have a solemn voice to us, and read us deeply impressive lessons, which may God grave upon our hearts.

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