The Expositor's Bible: The Book of LeviticusKellogg, Samuel H. (Samuel Henry)
Religion
The Expositor's Bible: The Book of Leviticus
Kellogg, Samuel H. (Samuel Henry)
Bible. Leviticus -- Commentaries; Bible. Leviticus -- Criticism, interpretation, etc.
And so the ram having been brought and presented by the guilty person,
with confession of his fault, it was slain by the priest, like the
sin-offering. The blood, however, was not applied to the horns of the
altar of burnt-offering, still less brought into the Holy Place, as in
the case of the sin-offering; but (vii. 2) was to be sprinkled "upon
the altar round about," as in the burnt-offering. The reason of this
difference in the application of the blood, as above remarked, lies in
this, that, as in the burnt-offering, the idea of sacrifice as
symbolising expiation takes a place secondary and subordinate to
another thought; in this case, the conception of sacrifice as
representing satisfaction for trespass.
The next section (vv. 17-19) does not expressly mention sins of
trespass; for which reason some have thought that it was essentially a
repetition of the law of the sin-offering. But that it is not to be so
regarded is plain from the fact that the victim is still the same as
for the guilt-offering, and from the explicit statement (ver. 19) that
this "is a guilt-offering." The inference is natural that the
prescription still has reference to "trespass in the holy things of
the Lord;" and the class of cases intended is probably indicated by
the phrase, "though he knew it not." In the former section, the law
provided for cases in which though the trespass had been done
unwittingly, yet the offender afterward came to know of the trespass
in its precise extent, so as to give an exact basis for the
restitution ordered in such cases. But it is quite supposable that
there might be cases in which, although the offender was aware that
there had been a probable trespass, such as to burden his conscience,
he yet knew not just how much it was. The ordinance is only in so far
modified as such a case would make necessary; where there was no exact
knowledge of the amount of trespass, obviously there the law of
restitution with the added fifth could not be applied. Yet, none the
less, the man is guilty; he "bears his iniquity," that is, he is
liable to the penalty of his fault; and in order to the
re-establishment of his covenant relation with God, the ram must be
offered as a guilt-offering.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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