Leviticus, 4

1. "If any person refuses to give the information which, as a witness of something he has seen or learned, he has been adjured to give, and thus commits a sin and has guilt to bear;

1. Yahweh spoke to Moses and said:

2. or if someone, without being aware of it, touches any unclean thing, as the carcass of an unclean wild animal, or that of an unclean domestic animal, or that of an unclean swarming creature, and thus becomes unclean and guilty;

2. 'Speak to the Israelites and say: "If anyone sins inadvertently against any of Yahweh's commandments and does anything prohibited by them,

3. or if someone, without being aware of it, touches some human uncleanness, whatever kind of uncleanness this may be, and then recognizes his guilt;

3. if the one who sins is the anointed priest, thus making the people guilty, then for the sin which he has committed he must offer Yahweh a young bull, an unblemished animal from the herd, as a sacrifice for sin.

4. or if someone, without being aware of it, rashly utters an oath to do good or evil, such as men are accustomed to utter rashly, and then recognizes that he is guilty of such an oath;

4. He will bring the bull before Yahweh at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, will lay his hand on its head and slaughter it before Yahweh.

5. then whoever is guilty in any of these cases shall confess the sin he has incurred,

5. The anointed priest will then take some of the bull's blood and carry it into the Tent of Meeting.

6. and as his sin offering for the sin he has committed he shall bring to the LORD a female animal from the flock, a ewe lamb or a she-goat. The priest shall then make atonement for his sin.

6. He will then dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle it seven times in front of the sanctuary curtain, before Yahweh.

7. "If, however, he cannot afford an animal of the flock, he shall bring to the LORD as the sin offering for his sin two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a sin offering and the other for a holocaust.

7. The priest will then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of incense smoking before Yahweh in the Tent of Meeting, and will pour all the rest of the bull's blood at the foot of the altar of burnt offerings at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

8. He shall bring them to the priest, who shall offer the one for the sin offering first. Snapping its head loose at the neck, yet without breaking it off completely,

8. "Of the bull offered as a sacrifice for sin, he will set aside all the fat: the fat covering the entrails, all the fat on the entrails,

9. he shall sprinkle some of the blood of the sin offering against the side of the altar. The rest of the blood shall be squeezed out against the base of the altar. Such is the offering for sin.

9. both kidneys, the fat on them and on the loins, the mass of fat which he will remove from the liver and kidneys-

10. The other bird shall be offered as a holocaust in the usual way. Thus the priest shall make atonement for the sin the man committed, and it will be forgiven.

10. exactly as was done with the portion set aside in the communion sacrifice -- and the priest will burn these pieces on the altar of burnt offerings.

11. "If he is unable to afford even two turtledoves or two pigeons, he shall present as a sin offering for his sin one tenth of an ephah of fine flour. He shall not put oil or frankincense on it, because it is a sin offering.

11. "The bull's skin and all its meat, its head, its shins, its entrails and its offal,

12. When he has brought it to the priest, the latter shall take a handful of this flour as a token offering, and this he shall burn as a sin offering on the altar with the other oblations of the LORD.

12. the whole bull he will then have carried out of the camp to a clean place, the place where the fatty ashes are thrown, and will burn it on a wood fire; it must be burnt where the ashes are thrown.

13. Thus the priest shall make atonement for the sin that the man committed in any of the above cases, and it will be forgiven. The rest of the flour, like the cereal offerings, shall belong to the priest."

13. "If the whole community of Israel has sinned inadvertently and, without being aware of it has incurred guilt by doing something forbidden by Yahweh's commandments,

14. The LORD said to Moses,

14. once the sin of which it is guilty has been discovered, the community must offer a young bull, an unblemished animal from the herd, as a sacrifice for sin, and bring it in front of the Tent of Meeting.

15. "If someone commits a sin by inadvertently cheating in the LORD'S sacred dues, he shall bring to the LORD as his guilt offering an unblemished ram from the flock, valued at two silver shekels according to the standard of the sanctuary shekel.

15. The elders of the community will then lay their hands on the bull's head before Yahweh, and the bull will be slaughtered before Yahweh.

16. He shall also restore what he has sinfully withheld from the sanctuary, adding to it a fifth of its value. This is to be given to the priest, who shall then make atonement for him with the guilt-offering ram, and he will be forgiven.

16. "The anointed priest will then take some of the bull's blood into the Tent of Meeting.

17. "If someone, without being aware of it, commits such a sin by doing one of the things which are forbidden by some commandment of the LORD, that he incurs guilt for which he must answer,

17. He will then dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle it seven times in front of the curtain, before Yahweh.

18. he shall bring as a guilt offering to the priest an unblemished ram of the flock of the established value. The priest shall then make atonement for the fault which was unwittingly committed, and it will be forgiven.

18. He will then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar standing before Yahweh inside the Tent of Meeting, and then pour all the rest of the blood at the foot of the altar of burnt offerings at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

19. Such is the offering for guilt; the penalty of the guilt must be paid to the LORD."

19. "He will then set aside all the fat from the animal and burn it on the altar.

20. The LORD said to Moses,

20. He will then deal with the bull as he did with the bull in the sacrifice for sin. It will be dealt with in the same way; and once the priest has performed the rite of expiation for the people, they will be forgiven.

21. "If someone commits a sin of dishonesty against the LORD by denying his neighbor a deposit or a pledge for a stolen article, or by otherwise retaining his neighbor's goods unjustly,

21. "He will then have the bull carried out of the camp and will burn it as he burned the first one. This is the sacrifice for the sin of the community.

22. or if, having found a lost article, he denies the fact and swears falsely about it with any of the sinful oaths that men make in such cases,

22. "When a leader has sinned and inadvertently incurred guilt by doing something forbidden by the commandments of Yahweh his God

23. he shall therefore, since he has incurred guilt by his sin, restore the thing that was stolen or unjustly retained by him or the deposit left with him or the lost article he found

23. (or if the sin which he has committed is drawn to his attention), he must bring a he-goat as his offering, an unblemished male.

24. or whatever else he swore falsely about; on the day of his guilt offering he shall make full restitution of the thing itself, and in addition, give the owner one fifth of its value.

24. He will then lay his hand on the goat's head and slaughter it on the spot where the burnt offerings are slaughtered before Yahweh. This is a sacrifice for sin;

25. As his guilt offering he shall bring to the LORD an unblemished ram of the flock of the established value. When he has presented this as his guilt offering to the priest,

25. the priest will take some of the victim's blood on his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offerings. He will then pour the rest of its blood at the foot of the altar of burnt offerings

26. the latter shall make atonement for him before the LORD, and he will be forgiven whatever guilt he may have incurred."

26. and burn all the fat on the altar, as with the fat in the communion sacrifice. This is how the priest must perform the rite of expiation for him to free him from his sin, and he will be forgiven.

27.

27. "If one of the country people sins inadvertently and incurs guilt by doing something forbidden by Yahweh's commandments

28.

28. (or if the sin which he has committed is drawn to his attention), he must bring a she-goat as his offering for the sin which he has committed, an unblemished female.

29.

29. He will then lay his hand on the victim's head and slaughter it on the spot where the burnt offerings are slaughtered.

30.

30. The priest will take some of its blood on his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offerings. He will then pour all the rest of the blood at the foot of the altar.

31.

31. He will then remove all the fat, as the fat was removed for the communion sacrifice, and the priest will burn it on the altar as a smell pleasing to Yahweh. This is how the priest must perform the rite of expiation for him, and he will be forgiven.

32.

32. "If he wishes to bring a lamb as an offering for this kind of sacrifice, he must bring an unblemished female.

33.

33. He will then lay his hand on the victim's head and slaughter it as a sacrifice for sin on the spot where the burnt offerings are slaughtered.

34.

34. The priest will take some of the victim's blood on his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offerings. He will then pour all the rest of the blood at the foot of the altar.

35.

35. He will then remove all the fat, as was done for the sheep in the communion sacrifice, and the priest will burn it as food burnt for Yahweh. This is how the priest must perform for him the rite of expiation for the sin which he has committed, and he will will be forgiven."