Jewish Bible) A sin offering also occurs in 2 Chronicles 29:21 where seven bulls, seven rams, seven lambs and seven he-goats were sacrificed on the command of King Hezekiah for the kingdom, for the sanctuary, and for Judah.
The end of the 37th weekly Torah portion
Shlach Lecha
''Shlach, Shelach, Sh'lah, Shlach Lecha'', or ''Sh'lah L'kha'' ( or — Hebrew for "send", "send to you", or "send for yourself") is the 37th weekly Torah portion (, ''parashah'') in the annual Jewish cycle of Torah reading and the fourth in the B ...
(Num. 15.22-31) again, deals with sacrifices for inadvertent violations: they are applicable for all laws, apply to both Israelites and alien residents, but exclude expiation of defiant, willful violations of ritual law (cf. ''
Kareth
The Hebrew term ''kareth'' ("cutting off" he, כָּרֵת, ), or extirpation, is a form of punishment for sin, mentioned in the Hebrew Bible and later Jewish writings. Kareth in its simplistic meaning refers to an individual being expelled fr ...
'').
In the Greek Old Testament
In the
Greek Old Testament, the Hebrew term for "sin" (''ḥatat'') is sometimes directly translated as "sin" - either by the Greek feminine noun ''hamartia'' ("sin" ἁμαρτία), or less commonly by the neuter noun ''hamartemata'' ("result of sin," "sinful thing" ἁμάρτημα) thereby duplicating the metonymy in the Hebrew text. More often the Greek paraphrases the Hebrew with expressions such as "that which is for sin" (''peri hamartias'' περὶ ἁμαρτίας) or "for sins" (''hyper hamartion'' ὑπὲρ ἁμαρτιῶν) - since the Greek noun ''hamartia'' does not have the double meaning of the noun ''ḥatat'' in Hebrew.
Chapter 4 of the Book of
Leviticus in the
Old Testament
The Old Testament (often abbreviated OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew writings by the Israelites. The ...
of
Christian biblical canons
A biblical canon is a set of texts (also called "books") which a particular Jewish or Christian religious community regards as part of the Bible.
The English word ''canon'' comes from the Greek , meaning "rule" or " measuring stick". The use ...
provides
Moses' instructions from God regarding the purification offering and chapter 15 of the
Book of Numbers
The book of Numbers (from Greek Ἀριθμοί, ''Arithmoi''; he, בְּמִדְבַּר, ''Bəmīḏbar'', "In the desert f) is the fourth book of the Hebrew Bible, and the fourth of five books of the Jewish Torah. The book has a long and com ...
partially repeats them.
Choice of sacrifice
The sacrificial animal required for a ''sin offering'' depended on the status of the sinner offering the sacrifice;
*for a
high priest
The term "high priest" usually refers either to an individual who holds the office of ruler-priest, or to one who is the head of a religious caste.
Ancient Egypt
In ancient Egypt, a high priest was the chief priest of any of the many gods rever ...
or for the entire community, a young bullock;
*for a king or
nasi, a young male
goat
The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of ...
;
*for other individuals, a female kid or lamb;
*for poor individuals unable to afford these, two
turtle doves
''Streptopelia'' is a genus of birds in the pigeon and dove family Columbidae. These are mainly slim, small to medium-sized species. The upperparts tend to be pale brown and the underparts are often a shade of pink. Many have a characteristic bla ...
or young pigeons could be substituted, one as a sin offering and the other as a
burnt offering
A holocaust is a religious animal sacrifice that is completely consumed by fire. The word derives from the Ancient Greek ''holokaustos'' which is used solely for one of the major forms of sacrifice, also known as a burnt offering.
Etymology and ...
;
*for the very poorest individuals, a tenth of an
ephah
Ephah (, ''‘Êp̄āh'', Septuagint Γαιφα, ''Gaipha'') was one of Midian's five sons as listed in the Hebrew Bible. Midian, a son of Abraham, was the father of Ephah, Epher, Enoch, Abida, and Eldaah by his wife KeturahGenesis 25:4. ...
of unscented fine flour could be offered instead of an animal.
Like all types of sacrifices offered on the
altar
An altar is a Table (furniture), table or platform for the presentation of religion, religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, Church (building), churches, and other places of wo ...
, the animal had to be completely unblemished.
Apart from such general offerings for an unintended sin, these offerings were made:
*on
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur (; he, יוֹם כִּפּוּר, , , ) is the holiest day in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Primarily centered on atonement and repentance, the day' ...
, a bull as the high priest's offering, and a young male goat on behalf of the community;
*on the appointment of a priest, a
calf
Calf most often refers to:
* Calf (animal), the young of domestic cattle.
* Calf (leg), in humans (and other primates), the back portion of the lower leg
Calf or calves may also refer to:
Biology and animal byproducts
*Veal, meat from calves
...
as the priest's offering, and a small young goat on behalf of the community;
*on the termination of a
Nazirite
In the Hebrew Bible, a nazirite or a nazarite ( he, נָזִיר ''Nāzīr'') is one who voluntarily took a vow which is described in . "Nazarite" comes from the Hebrew word ''nazir'' meaning "consecrated" or "separated". Those who put themselves ...
's vow, a yearling
ewe as the Nazirite's offering;
*after recovery from
tzaraat
''Tzaraath'' (Hebrew צָרַעַת ''ṣāraʿaṯ''), variously transcribed into English and frequently mistranslated as leprosy, describes various ritually unclean disfigurative conditions of the skin, hair of the beard and head, clothing ma ...
(skin disease), a ewe as the former sufferer's offering;
*shortly after
childbirth
Childbirth, also known as labour and delivery, is the ending of pregnancy where one or more babies exits the internal environment of the mother via vaginal delivery or caesarean section. In 2019, there were about 140.11 million births glo ...
, a dove as the woman's offering;
*after
niddah
Niddah (or nidah; he, נִדָּה), in traditional Judaism, describes a woman who has experienced a uterine discharge of blood (most commonly during menstruation), or a woman who has menstruated and not yet completed the associated requirem ...
(temporary marital separation due to menstruation) or recovery from
zavah
In Jewish ritual law, a ''zavah'' (Hebrew זבה, lit. "one whoe bodyflows") is a woman who has had vaginal blood discharges not during the usually anticipated menstrual cycle, and thus entered a state of ritual impurity. The equivalent impurity ...
(abnormal bodily discharges), a dove or young pigeon.
Ritual
The ritual of the purification offering began with the offerer confessing his/her unintentional transgression while placing his/her hands and pushing his/her full weight over the head of the animal. In the case of community offerings the elders performed this function, in the case of Yom Kippur, the high priest performed this task. The animal would then be
slaughtered
''Slaughtered'' (working title ''Schooner of Blood'') is an Australian slasher film directed by Kate Glover, and produced by Sue Brown. The film stars Steven O’Donnell and James Kerley
James (Kash Kab) Kerley is an Australian TV presenter ...
by a
Shochet ("ritual butcher"), the blood carefully collected by the
Kohen
Kohen ( he, , ''kōhēn'', , "priest", pl. , ''kōhănīm'', , "priests") is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. Levitical priests or ''kohanim'' are traditionally bel ...
("priest") in an earthen vessel and sprayed/thrown on the two outer corners of the
Mizbeach
An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paganism ...
("altar"), while the
fat
In nutrition, biology, and chemistry, fat usually means any ester of fatty acids, or a mixture of such compounds, most commonly those that occur in living beings or in food.
The term often refers specifically to triglycerides (triple es ...
,
liver
The liver is a major organ only found in vertebrates which performs many essential biological functions such as detoxification of the organism, and the synthesis of proteins and biochemicals necessary for digestion and growth. In humans, it ...
,
kidney
The kidneys are two reddish-brown bean-shaped organs found in vertebrates. They are located on the left and right in the retroperitoneal space, and in adult humans are about in length. They receive blood from the paired renal arteries; bloo ...
s, and
caul, were burnt on the roof of the altar.
On
Yom Kippur
Yom Kippur (; he, יוֹם כִּפּוּר, , , ) is the holiest day in Judaism and Samaritanism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, the first month of the Hebrew calendar. Primarily centered on atonement and repentance, the day' ...
—the Day of Atonement—some of the blood would be sprinkled in front of the veil covering the entrance to the
Holy of Holies
The Holy of Holies (Hebrew: ''Qōḏeš haqQŏḏāšīm'' or ''Kodesh HaKodashim''; also הַדְּבִיר ''haDəḇīr'', 'the Sanctuary') is a term in the Hebrew Bible that refers to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, where God's pres ...
when the blood would be sprinkled in front of the
mercy seat
According to the Hebrew Bible, the ''kaporet'' ( ''kapōreṯ'') or mercy seat was the gold lid placed on the Ark of the Covenant, with two cherubim beaten out of the ends to cover and create the space into which Yahweh was said to appear. This ...
; this was done seven times. The remainder of the blood was poured out at the base of the altar, and the earthen vessel that had contained it would be smashed.
The remaining flesh of the animal (in later rabbinical interpretation as one of the
twenty-four kohanic gifts) was later consumed by the
Kohen
Kohen ( he, , ''kōhēn'', , "priest", pl. , ''kōhănīm'', , "priests") is the Hebrew word for "priest", used in reference to the Aaronic priesthood, also called Aaronites or Aaronides. Levitical priests or ''kohanim'' are traditionally bel ...
and his family, except when the priest himself was the offerer (such as in community offerings, and in the case of the Day of Atonement), when it would be burnt at a
ritually clean
Ritual purification is the ritual prescribed by a religion by which a person is considered to be free of ''uncleanliness'', especially prior to the worship of a deity, and ritual purity is a state of ritual cleanliness. Ritual purification may ...
location outside the Temple sanctuary. Leviticus 6:26 stipulates that "the priest who offers it for sin shall eat it. In a holy place it shall be eaten, in the court of the tabernacle of meeting",
[New King James Version] a point repeated at Leviticus 7:7, whereas Leviticus 6:29 allows that "all the males among the priests may eat it", suggesting that the proceeds of sin offerings could be shared within the kohanic community. The sharing of
grain offerings within the kohanic community was more clearly endorsed by Leviticus 7:10 - "Every grain offering, whether mixed with oil or dry, shall belong to all the sons of Aaron, to one as much as the other".
When the sacrificial animal was a bird, the ritual was quite different. The bird was slaughtered by a thumb being pushed into its neck, and the head being wrung off. A second bird would then be burnt on the altar as a ''
whole sacrifice'', completely immolated by fire.
Textual criticism
According to 19th century
textual scholars
Textual scholarship (or textual studies) is an umbrella term for disciplines that deal with describing, transcribing, editing or annotating texts and physical documents.
Overview
Textual research is mainly historically oriented. Textual scholars ...
these rules originate from two different layers in the
priestly source
The Priestly source (or simply P) is perhaps the most widely recognized of the sources underlying the Torah. It is both stylistically and theologically distinct from other material in the Torah, and includes a set of claims that are contradicted b ...
, thought by scholars to be one of the source texts of the Torah; the
priestly code
The Priestly Code (in Hebrew ''Torat Kohanim'', תורת כהנים) is the name given, by academia,The book of Leviticus: composition and reception - Page 55 Rolf Rendtorff, Robert A. Kugler, Sarah Smith Bartel - 2003 "Research agrees that its r ...
within the priestly source is believed to be a series of additions to the text, from Aaronid editors, over a long period.
[''Jewish Encyclopedia'', ''Priestly Code''] The earlier source is thought to be the one referring to the flesh being consumed by the priests, the latter part of Leviticus 6 falls into this source, while the later source, which Leviticus 4 falls within, reflects a development where the flesh from sin offerings was seen as insufficiently holy and thus needing to be disposed of elsewhere.
[''Jewish Encyclopedia'', ''sin offering''] In the
Book of Hosea
The Book of Hosea ( hbo, , Sēfer Hōšēaʿ) is collected as one of the twelve minor prophets of the Nevi'im ("Prophets") in the Tanakh, and as a book in its own right in the Christian Old Testament. According to the traditional order of most ...
, a reference to the earlier form (Hosea 4:7-8) suggests a possible reason for the change - the priests were accused of rejoicing in the people's wickedness as they were living off the ''sin offerings''. Although known as ''sin offerings'', it is more likely that such offerings began as offerings made for unintentionally breaking a
taboo
A taboo or tabu is a social group's ban, prohibition, or avoidance of something (usually an utterance or behavior) based on the group's sense that it is excessively repulsive, sacred, or allowed only for certain persons.''Encyclopædia Britannic ...
(here meaning something which is seen as sacred but simultaneously prohibited).
# The offerings for recovery from discharges and childbirth being for the breaking of a taboo about contact with blood - pus potentially containing blood, menstruation obviously containing it, and in the case of childbirth blood comes with the
placenta
The placenta is a temporary embryonic and later fetal organ (anatomy), organ that begins embryonic development, developing from the blastocyst shortly after implantation (embryology), implantation. It plays critical roles in facilitating nutrien ...
. Textual scholars believe that the biblical regulation specifying the offering for childbirth in Leviticus 12 originally fell among those concerning bodily discharges in Leviticus 15 (due to various textual features), and hence that childbirth was treated as a form of abnormal ''discharge'', for which a period of recovery was required.
# The Nazarite's offering being due to the breaking of the Nazarite's own taboo nature, due to consecration to the deity, when the Nazarite vow was terminated.
#
Tzaraas was seen as a disease inflicted by God, as punishment for transgression of
mitzvot
In its primary meaning, the Hebrew word (; he, מִצְוָה, ''mīṣvā'' , plural ''mīṣvōt'' ; "commandment") refers to a commandment commanded by God to be performed as a religious duty. Jewish law () in large part consists of discus ...
, specifically
slander
Defamation is the act of communicating to a third party false statements about a person, place or thing that results in damage to its reputation. It can be spoken (slander) or written (libel). It constitutes a tort or a crime. The legal defini ...
[''Jewish Encyclopedia'', ''leprosy''] and hence people becoming inflicted with Tzaraas themselves being seen as taboo (thus being temporarily expelled from society as a result); the ''sin offering'' for recovery from Tzaaras, for which the same sacrificial animal as the Nazarite's ''sin offering'' is proscribed, being due to the breaking of this taboo state by the act of recovering.
#The Yom Kippur sin offering is considered to have developed slightly later; the biblical text seems to explain this offering as being for the purpose of protecting the high priest from death (''...so that he does not die'') when he approached the
mercy seat
According to the Hebrew Bible, the ''kaporet'' ( ''kapōreṯ'') or mercy seat was the gold lid placed on the Ark of the Covenant, with two cherubim beaten out of the ends to cover and create the space into which Yahweh was said to appear. This ...
,
an action which was taboo (as the mercy seat was seen as sacred, but approach to it was prohibited). The passage in which this is explained as being about atonement for real sin, Leviticus 16:16 rather than just breach of this taboo, being considered by textual scholars to be a later gloss added to the text.
The ''sin offering'' required when a priest had sinned, for which there is a similar sacrificial animal as the Yom Kippur offering, is considered by scholars to be a much later development, and only added to the text of Leviticus in the latest stages of its compilation, after ''sin offerings'' had begun to be seen as being about atonement for actual sin rather than relatively immediate breaches of taboos.
The other sin offerings are considered by scholars to be gradual developments; from being offered after contact with unclean animals, which is more of a taboo, to being offered for ritual uncleanliness in general, and finally to being offered for arbitrary sins.
The gradations, according to which the type of sacrificial animal depends on the social status of the sinner, are considered by textual scholars to also be a later development.
[''Jewish Encyclopedia'', ''Leviticus'']
See also
Votive offering
A votive offering or votive deposit is one or more objects displayed or deposited, without the intention of recovery or use, in a sacred place for religious purposes. Such items are a feature of modern and ancient societies and are generall ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sin-Offering
Hebrew Bible words and phrases
Twenty-four kohanic gifts
Jewish animal sacrifice
Jewish sacrificial law
Positive Mitzvoth