Leviticus 4:27

My Notes

What Does Leviticus 4:27 Mean?

"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." The sin offering addresses sins committed in IGNORANCE — not deliberate rebellion but UNKNOWING violation. Even the 'common people' (am ha'aretz — the people of the land, the ordinary citizenry) who sin WITHOUT KNOWING they're sinning are still GUILTY. The ignorance doesn't eliminate the guilt. The not-knowing doesn't cancel the offense. The sin is REAL even when the awareness is ABSENT.

The phrase "sin through ignorance" (techeta bishgagah — sins in error/inadvertence/ignorance) identifies a SPECIFIC CATEGORY of sin: the shegagah (inadvertent sin) is distinguished from the presumptuous sin (Numbers 15:30). The inadvertent sin is committed WITHOUT KNOWLEDGE that you're sinning — you didn't know the law, you didn't realize you were violating it, you weren't aware of the offense. The sin is still SIN. The ignorance is still GUILT-producing. But the remedy (a sin offering) is AVAILABLE.

The "any one of the common people" (nephesh achat me'am ha'aretz — one soul from the people of the land) extends the sin-offering provision to ORDINARY PEOPLE: not just the priest (verses 3-12), not just the congregation (verses 13-21), not just the ruler (verses 22-26). The COMMON PERSON — the ordinary citizen, the regular Israelite — has access to the sin offering for inadvertent sin. The provision covers EVERY LEVEL of society. Nobody is too ordinary for atonement.

Reflection Questions

• 1.What sin might you be committing without knowing — and does the provision for it comfort you?
• 2.What does ignorance NOT eliminating guilt teach about the objectivity of sin?
• 3.How does the offering scaling by social level (bull for priest, goat for commoner) describe proportional provision?
• 4.What does the sin existing BEFORE the awareness teach about the gap between doing and knowing?

Devotional

If ANY of the common people sins through IGNORANCE — against ANY of the commandments — and is GUILTY. The sin is real even when the awareness is absent. The ignorance doesn't cancel the offense. The not-knowing doesn't eliminate the guilt. The sin EXISTS before the sinner KNOWS about it. And the remedy (the sin offering) is available to EVERYONE — including the most ordinary person.

The 'sin through ignorance' (bishgagah) is the sin you didn't KNOW you were committing: you violated a commandment WITHOUT AWARENESS — you didn't know the law, you didn't realize you were breaking it, you weren't conscious of the offense. The sin is STILL SIN. The inadvertence doesn't make it NOT-SIN. The shegagah-category says: you can sin WITHOUT KNOWING and still be GUILTY. Ignorance is not innocence.

The 'any one of the common people' extends the provision DOWNWARD: the sin offering for inadvertent sin is available to the PRIEST (verse 3 — with a bull), the CONGREGATION (verse 13 — with a bull), the RULER (verse 22 — with a male goat), and the COMMON PERSON (verse 27 — with a female goat). The provision SCALES: bigger offering for bigger responsibility, smaller offering for ordinary people. But the PROVISION exists at every level. Nobody is too ordinary for the remedy.

The 'things which ought not to be done' (asher lo te'asenah — which should not be done) identifies the STANDARD the ignorant person violated: the commandments describe what OUGHT NOT to be done. The standard exists BEFORE the person knows about it. The violation happens BEFORE the awareness comes. The sin precedes the knowing. The guilt precedes the consciousness. The remedy addresses the gap between the OCCURRING and the DISCOVERING.

What sin might you be committing in IGNORANCE — and does the provision for inadvertent sin comfort or challenge you?

Commentary

Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.

Cross References

Related passages throughout Scripture