Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 4:27-31

27 And 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;

28 Or 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.

29 And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin offering, and slay the sin offering in the place of the burnt offering.

30 And 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.

31 And 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 savour unto the Lord; and the priest shall make an atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him.

Now we come to how the sin offering was performed for the common Israelite, following the same basic pattern as for the leader, the congregation, and the priest. Today let us focus on an element that has been in all of these repeated descriptions, but that we have not yet had time to touch on.

Notice in verse 27 how it says these offerings are for those that “sin through ignorance,” and it has said the same thing for each other instance. So that would mean ways that people trespassed against God’s law without knowing or meaning to. Perhaps they overlooked a ritual, or forgot a commandment, or were unsure of the moral rightness of an action and later regretted their decision.

This, of course, would be different from deliberate and serious sin. Later, in the book of Numbers, we will hear about “high-handed sin,” which means an act of willful defiance against the Lord. For these people, they were what Paul called “under the law,” meaning subject to the penalties of crime. Whether that meant exile, curses, or even death.

Thus, we are meant to understand that the tabernacle ordinances were meant for those who were actively trying to follow God. Yes, those that brought a sin offering had sinned, but they were still oriented towards doing what was right, and they just needed to correct the minor indiscretions common to life. However, if a person were living a deliberately sinful lifestyle, then they would not be taking part in rituals and sacrifices. They would first need to repent, return to the path of goodness, and then would take part in the rituals, now that they were sincerely trying to follow the Father.

SacrificeEligible oblationStepsExplanation
Sin offeringBullock, young goatSacrifice for sin
The same performance for an individual, community, priest, or leaderAn equal path to God for all
Hands placed on head, slaughteredAnimal takes the place of us
Blood placed on horns of the altarA heartfelt plea to the Lord for mercy
Fat and kidneys burned on altarCleansing our behavior and desire
Skin, dung, and flesh burned beyond the campThe sinful behavior purged out of us

Full table.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Exodus 19:3-6

3 And Moses went up unto God, and the Lord called unto him out of the mountain, saying, Thus shalt thou say to the house of Jacob, and tell the children of Israel;

4 Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto myself.

5 Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine:

6 And ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and an holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel.

After Moses ascended into Mount Sinai the Lord called out to him, extending a promise and a covenant to all of Israel. My initial reaction to the things that the Lord is saying to the Israelites was that it seemed out of the ordinary. There are two qualities here that feel out-of-place for the Lord to be extending to the Israelites. One is such direct and frank communication from God, the other is promises of great blessings.

Thus far in the Biblical record, hearing God’s words and receiving His promises had been reserved for the prophets and patriarchs who had dedicated their entire lives to Him. Noah, Abraham, and Moses may not have been perfect, but they were clearly striving to be righteous vessels of God, which is more than can be said for the Israelites at this point of time. So why would God be giving messages and promises to population that was still so prone to wander?

But then I realized, that’s kind of the whole point. Moses’s great value to the Israelites was that he did have the close and intimate relationship with God where he could receive the Lord’s word and promises, and then he could then carry those back to the people who were still finding their way. Every Israelite could receive the word and promise of God, whether they were worthy of it or not. And certainly this is also the case today. Even the greatest of sinners today knows the word of God. They know about the golden rule, and that they should love their enemies, and that heaven is the reward for the righteous. They also know about God’s law for humanity, and the promises He extends to those that enter His fold. Regardless of whether they live according to these pearls of wisdom or not, regardless of whether they would ever hear these messages directly from the mouth of God or not, they still know these things and have the opportunity to accept them.

Through Moses, and the prophets that followed him, the transcendent became common. The unnatural became familiar. The divine condescended to the level of the ordinary man.

And what was the great promise and covenant that Israel received? That if they would obey God’s voice, and keep the covenant that He would reveal to them by degrees, then they would “be a peculiar treasure” a “kingdom of priests,” and a “holy nation.” In short, they would be lifted up from the base and the worldly, becoming a people set apart for the work of the Lord. They would be the Lord’s community, even while living in the midst of a fallen world. They would be the overlap between heaven and earth, a lifted and glowing ideal that no man could attain on his own, but could attain through the Lord.