Leviticus 4:1-12

What happens when the priest himself brings guilt on the people?

Berean Standard Bible

1 Then the LORD said to Moses, 2 “Tell the Israelites to do as follows with one who sins unintentionally against any of the LORD’s commandments and does what is forbidden by them: 3 If the anointed priest sins, bringing guilt on the people, he must bring to the LORD a young bull without blemish as a sin offering for the sin he has committed. 4 He must bring the bull to the entrance to the Tent of Meeting before the LORD, lay his hand on the bull’s head, and slaughter it before the LORD. 5 Then the anointed priest shall take some of the bull’s blood and bring it into the Tent of Meeting. 6 The priest is to dip his finger in the blood and sprinkle some of it seven times before the LORD, in front of the veil of the sanctuary. 7 The priest must then put some of the blood on the horns of the altar of fragrant incense that is before the LORD in the Tent of Meeting. And he is to pour out the rest of the bull’s blood at the base of the altar of burnt offering at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. 8 Then he shall remove all the fat from the bull of the sin offering—the fat that covers the entrails, all the fat that is on them, 9 both kidneys with the fat on them near the loins, and the lobe of the liver, which he is to remove with the kidneys— 10 just as the fat is removed from the ox of the peace offering. Then the priest shall burn them on the altar of burnt offering. 11 But the hide of the bull and all its flesh, with its head and legs and its entrails and dung— 12 all the rest of the bull—he must take outside the camp to a ceremonially clean place where the ashes are poured out, and there he must burn it on a wood fire on the ash heap.

What is the context?

The opening offerings are followed by instructions concerning unintentional violations of the Lord’s commands. The first case is the anointed priest whose sin brings guilt on the people. His office does not place him beyond the need to answer for wrongdoing.

The blood is taken into the Tent of Meeting, sprinkled before the veil, and applied to the incense altar. The remaining blood goes to the base of the outer altar. After the fat is burned, the rest of the bull is burned outside the camp in a ceremonially clean place.

How is this passage commonly understood?

The BSB calls this a sin offering. The USCCB notes use purification offering to emphasize the cleansing of the sanctuary where the blood is applied. Brown–Driver–Briggs records both sin and sin-offering uses for חַטָּאת, chattat (khat-TAHT). The offering concerns real wrongdoing and its effects on the holy place; the two emphases should not be treated as unrelated rites.

Wesley draws attention to the priest’s own imperfection and the wider consequences of his sin. The special blood procedure distinguishes this case from the later offerings for a leader or an ordinary Israelite.

Where does this fit in God's plan?

Hebrews 13:10–16 explicitly connects sin offerings burned outside the camp with Jesus suffering outside the city gate. It then calls believers to identify with Him and bear His disgrace. This is a New Testament connection to the sacrificial pattern, not an invented meaning for every part of the bull.

What is our position?

We don't have a position on this passage yet. When our study reaches a conclusion the text supports, it will appear here.

Where can I study this further?

The Gospel According to Jesus

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