Chapter 6

1 The trespass offering for sins done wittingly. 8 The law of the burnt offering, 14 and of the meat offering. 19 The offering at the consecration of a priest. 24 The law of the sin offering.

2. Commit a trespass. From maФal, “to act treacherously,” “to be faithless.”

Lie unto his neighbour. A lie is here counted to be, first a trespass against God, then a sin against one’s neighbor. It is inconceivable that a man should lie to his neighbor in that “which was delivered him to keep,” and do so ignorantly. It would certainly seem that he knew he was not telling the truth when he affirmed he had never received that which had been entrusted to him. For him to lie, and in addition keep that which belonged to the neighbor, would be a double transgression; it would be both lying and stealing. The man would be guilty of deliberate sin.

In fellowship. That is, in partnership or in contract. In partnership, the Christian must exercise constant watchcare that each partner receives his share; and in a contract there must be faithful performance by both parties in the agreement. There must be no overreaching, no taking advantage of loopholes, but a jealous care for the interest of the other partner. If this is not done, the man who transgresses is guilty.

A thing taken away by violence. It would be stretching the truth far to claim that this could be done in ignorance. Some have attempted to justify this matter by claiming that the man thought the thing he took was his, and that he had a right to recover it by violence. The man is guilty and must bring his “trespass offering.”

Hath deceived his neighbour. To deceive indicates deliberate planning. Again, the man is guilty.

3. That which was lost. This is somewhat more serious than preceding cases in that the man not only lies, but confirms his lie by an oath. This may have been a legal oath, though probably not. In any case, he is guilty of swearing to a lie.

4. He shall restore. Inasmuch as all these cases require restitution, God prescribes for each an equitable penalty. First comes confession, then restitution. This is to be done “in the day of his trespass offering” (v. 5); in other words, restoration must accompany confession. It may not be delayed.

Restitution is a vital part of the program God sets before the man who would be free from the guilt of sin. Conviction of sin is not enough; sorrow for sin is not enough; confession is not enough. These are all desirable steps toward the kingdom, but they are not enough. They must be accompanied by a repentance so deep and thorough that the soul will not rest until every effort has been made to rectify mistakes that may have been made. This will in many cases include restoration, paying back with interest that which has been stolen, and making every effort to right wrongs. The fruits worthy of repentance that John the Baptist urged upon his hearers included restitution (Matt. 3:8).

“Trespasses” include questionable business transactions, fraudulent representation of values, wrong impressions without actual falsification, intentional crookedness, and any advantage taken of the poor or unfortunate. “Trespasses” include exorbitant charges of all kinds, excessive interest on loans, dishonest work for wages received. The course of many a man who boasts of his business acumen and who receives the approbation and praise of others for his skill in negotiation is not approved in heaven (see Hab. 2:6).

For these and many other things restitution must be made wherever possible. Where this cannot be done, it may be well to follow the instruction of old and “let the trespass be recompensed unto the Lord, even to the priest” (Num. 5:8). The present-day application of this instruction would require that the money involved be given to and used in the Lord’s work.

There are times when bankruptcy proceedings may be advisable. The debtor is thus cleared legally from his obligations and is enabled to make a new start. But the Christian is bound by Heaven to consider carefully his responsibility to any who may have been deprived of that which was their due. He is to have a tender conscience, and to act honestly in the sight of God as well as of men. Worldly men have made restitution in such cases, and have been honored in so doing. Whenever possible Christians should do the same.

Lying is one of the popular sins of today, and is gradually coming to be considered respectable. In its various forms, ranging from the bold, barefaced lie to the smooth diplomatic lie or the social “white lie,” it is commonly and universally practiced. In its milder forms it is considered a necessary means of smoothing over a disagreeable situation, and is condoned as an accepted form of speech. To lie gracefully and convincingly is a high social and political attainment, and is considered a necessary accomplishment for holding certain positions.

A lie is a falsehood uttered or acted with the intent to deceive. It is a negation of truth. The father of lies is its creator, blasted reputations and ruined characters are its children. It makes white look black, and black white (Isa. 5:20); it parts husbands and wives, lovers and friends; it creates war and kills its millions; it sears the conscience, destroys confidence and faith, is the companion of thieves, gamblers, and prostitutes, and the bosom friend of rum. It pollutes all that it touches, and is the enemy of all that is noble and true and pure. He that “loveth and maketh a lie” is at last found outside the city with “dogs, and sorcerers, and whoremongers, and murderers, and idolaters” (Rev. 22:15).

The Bible is plain on the subject of truth; it will tolerate nothing else. God is the “God of truth” (Isa. 65:16; Ps. 31:5; Deut. 32:4). The Son is truth (John 14:6). The Spirit is truth (1 John 5:6). The Word is truth (John 17:17). The law is truth (Ps. 119:142). All God’s works are truth (Dan. 4:37). His counsels are truth (Isa. 25:1). The judgment is truth (Rom. 2:2). Jerusalem is the city of truth (Zech. 8:3). The church is the pillar and ground of truth (1 Tim. 3:15). Christians are to come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4). Those who do not believe the truth will be damned (2 Thess. 2:12). Not only does God desire an outward conformity to truth; He desires truth in “the inward parts,” in the heart (Ps. 51:6; 15:2).

A passion for truth must activate the Christian. He is a representative of the God of truth, and must not bear false witness in any respect. He must first of all love truth, for it is this that sets him free (John 8:32). Having come to a knowledge of the truth (1 Tim. 2:4), through obedience to the truth (1 Peter 1:22), he is to be sanctified through the truth (John 17:19). The Spirit will guide him into all truth (John 16:13), and as Christ did, so will he bear witness to the truth (John 18:37). His witness to the truth will be in love (Eph. 4:15), and the love will be the love of the truth (2 Thess. 2:10).

A person who is filled with love of the truth will be truthful in all of life’s relations. He will hate and shun all pretension and hypocrisy; his motives will never be questionable. His yea will be yea, and his nay will be nay (James 5:12). He will not pride himself on his frankness, nor will he unnecessarily wound another’s feelings, but will in meekness instruct “those that oppose themselves” (2 Tim. 2:25). He will have the reputation of being a man whose word can be trusted.

6. His trespass offering. This is the third step. He has sinned against man; this requires restitution. But he has also sinned against God, and that requires a sacrifice.

Thy estimation. There are things whose value may be a matter of opinion, and therefore a cause of dispute. In such cases the priest shall make the valuation. In Ex. 22:1–9 a series of wrongs is enumerated in which the restitution is double, and in some cases even fourfold or fivefold. The difference in the penalties given there and here appears to be due to the fact that there the offender was forced to make restitution by “the judges” (Ex. 22:9), whereas here the acknowledgment appears to be voluntary.

7. Shall be forgiven. Forgiveness is the fourth step, and is dependent on those that precede it. Some of the things mentioned in vs. 2 and 3 are serious sins; but whatever they may be, he who makes confession and restoration “shall be forgiven.”

9. Burnt offering. Individual burnt offerings were discussed in ch. 1, and the continual burnt offering for the nation in Ex. 29:38–42. Here, additional information is given, for Aaron and his sons. The instruction applies primarily to the national morning and evening sacrifices.

10. His linen garment. The priests were required to wear their linen garments even when removing the ashes. These were the same garments they wore when offering sacrifices. All work within the sanctuary was sacred and demanded holiness of life. This in turn was symbolized by purity of garments (Zech. 3:4–7). When they left the sanctuary to carry the ashes to a clean place, they removed the linen garments.

13. Ever be burning. God Himself kindled this fire (ch. 9:24). The Jews affirm that it burned continuously until the Babylonian captivity. Some even claim that it never went out until the final destruction of the Temple in a.d. 70. To keep this fire burning required an ample supply of wood. This was gathered by the priests, who once a year invited the people to assist.

14. The meat offering. This information was given to the sons of Aaron. Whenever anyone brought a “meat” (cereal) offering (see on ch. 2:1), God’s part was to be burned on the altar; the rest belonged to the priests. It must be unleavened, and whatever was eaten with it must also be unleavened. It was to be eaten in “the holy place,” which is here defined to be “the court of the tabernacle of the congregation.” The bread was “most holy,” as were the sin offering and the trespass offering. It was so holy that everyone who even touched it must be holy also.

20. The offering of Aaron. Aaron was to offer a cereal offering equal to about 2 dry qt. (2.2 l.) of flour daily, half in the morning and half in the evening. It was to be made of fine flour with oil and baked in pieces. No frankincense is mentioned. It was to be offered on the altar, and no part of it was to be eaten.

25. The sin offering. The sin offerings of both rulers and common people were to be eaten by the priests in the holy place, that is, the court. They were most holy. Whoever touched them must be holy. Even the vessel containing them was holy. In some cases the priest who offered a sacrifice had sole right to the priest’s part. But not so with sin offerings. “All the males among the priests shall eat thereof” (v. 29).

30. No sin offering. This verse deals with the principles that governed the disposition of the bodies of the sacrifices for sin. When the blood of the sacrifice was brought within the sanctuary—as when the anointed priest or the whole congregation sinned—the body was taken outside the camp and burned. When the blood was not taken into the sanctuary but placed on the horns of the altar of burnt offering—as when a ruler or one of the common people sinned—the flesh was to be eaten by the priests. The reason for this is explained in ch. 10:16–20.

Ellen G. White comments

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