The big picture
Leviticus 5 opens in verse 1 with “And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath…”, reaches its middle movement near verse 10 with “And he shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the manner: and the…”, and closes in verse 19 with “It is a trespass offering: he hath certainly trespassed against the LORD .” Repeated or prominent terms include offering, priest, LORD, trespass, atonement. Together, those details trace this chapter’s own movement from its opening to its conclusion.
Scripture beside the summary
Leviticus · King James Version · 19Leviticus 5:1-7
1–7: If a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether…
Leviticus 5:1–7 opens with “And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or…” and reaches “And if he be not able to bring a lamb, then he shall bring for his trespass, which he hath…” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Leviticus 5 develops its own movement around offering, priest, LORD, trespass, atonement, with particular weight carried by unclean, guilty, offering.
Context that brings the passage to life
“And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether it be a carcase of an unclean beast, or a carcase of unclean cattle, or…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“Or if he touch the uncleanness of man, whatsoever uncleanness it be that a man shall be defiled withal, and it be hid…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“Or if a soul swear, pronouncing with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall pronounce…” The promise, blessing, or covenant language needs its named recipient and scope. Those details prevent a personal word in the story from becoming a promise detached from context.
Leviticus 5:1-7
King James Version1And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his iniquity.
2Or if a soul touch any unclean thing, whether it be a carcase of an unclean beast, or a carcase of unclean cattle, or the carcase of unclean creeping things, and if it be hidden from him; he also shall be unclean, and guilty.
3Or if he touch the uncleanness of man, whatsoever uncleanness it be that a man shall be defiled withal, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty.
4Or if a soul swear, pronouncing with his lips to do evil, or to do good, whatsoever it be that a man shall pronounce with an oath, and it be hid from him; when he knoweth of it, then he shall be guilty in one of these.
5And it shall be, when he shall be guilty in one of these things, that he shall confess that he hath sinned in that thing:
6And he shall bring his trespass offering unto the LORD for his sin which he hath sinned, a female from the flock, a lamb or a kid of the goats, for a sin offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his sin.
7And if he be not able to bring a lamb, then he shall bring for his trespass, which he hath committed, two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, unto the LORD ; one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering.
Leviticus 5:8-14
8–14: He shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for…
Leviticus 5:8–14 opens with “And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin offering…” and reaches “And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Leviticus 5 develops its own movement around offering, priest, LORD, trespass, atonement, with particular weight carried by offering, priest, altar.
Context that brings the passage to life
“And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin offering first, and wring off his…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“And he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin offering upon the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“And he shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the manner: and the priest shall make an atonement…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“But if he be not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
Leviticus 5:8-14
King James Version8And he shall bring them unto the priest, who shall offer that which is for the sin offering first, and wring off his head from his neck, but shall not divide it asunder:
9And he shall sprinkle of the blood of the sin offering upon the side of the altar; and the rest of the blood shall be wrung out at the bottom of the altar: it is a sin offering.
10And he shall offer the second for a burnt offering, according to the manner: and the priest shall make an atonement for him for his sin which he hath sinned, and it shall be forgiven him.
11But if he be not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine flour for a sin offering; he shall put no oil upon it, neither shall he put any frankincense thereon: for it is a sin offering.
12Then shall he bring it to the priest, and the priest shall take his handful of it, even a memorial thereof, and burn it on the altar, according to the offerings made by fire unto the LORD : it is a sin offering.
13And the priest shall make an atonement for him as touching his sin that he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him: and the remnant shall be the priest’s, as a meat offering.
14And the LORD spake unto Moses, saying,
Leviticus 5:15-19
15–19: If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy…
Leviticus 5:15–19 opens with “If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD ; then he…” and reaches “It is a trespass offering: he hath certainly trespassed against the LORD .” by its final verse. That movement develops the focus on Leviticus 5 develops its own movement around offering, priest, LORD, trespass, atonement, with particular weight carried by trespass, LORD, offering.
Context that brings the passage to life
“If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD ; then he shall bring for his…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“And he shall make amends for the harm that he hath done in the holy thing, and shall add the fifth part thereto, and…” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
“And if a soul sin, and commit any of these things which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the LORD …” The command cannot be understood from the verb alone. Its recipient, purpose, and place in the larger covenant or argument define the responsibility.
Leviticus 5:15-19
King James Version15If a soul commit a trespass, and sin through ignorance, in the holy things of the LORD ; then he shall bring for his trespass unto the LORD a ram without blemish out of the flocks, with thy estimation by shekels of silver, after the shekel of the sanctuary, for a trespass offering:
16And he shall make amends for the harm that he hath done in the holy thing, and shall add the fifth part thereto, and give it unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him with the ram of the trespass offering, and it shall be forgiven him.
17And if a soul sin, and commit any of these things which are forbidden to be done by the commandments of the LORD ; though he wist it not, yet is he guilty, and shall bear his iniquity.
18And he shall bring a ram without blemish out of the flock, with thy estimation, for a trespass offering, unto the priest: and the priest shall make an atonement for him concerning his ignorance wherein he erred and wist it not, and it shall be forgiven him.
19It is a trespass offering: he hath certainly trespassed against the LORD .
Details worth noticing
The opening image
Leviticus 5:1 begins with “And if a soul sin, and hear the voice of swearing, and is a witness, whether he hath seen or known of it; if he do not utter it, then he shall bear his…”
Where the chapter turns
Leviticus 5:11 forms a natural hinge: “But if he be not able to bring two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, then he that sinned shall bring for his offering the tenth part of an ephah of fine…”
The final note
Leviticus 5:19 leaves the reader with “It is a trespass offering: he hath certainly trespassed against the LORD .”
A word trail through the chapter
The words offering, priest, LORD, trespass, atonement, guilty help reveal the chapter’s repeated concerns.
What does the repeated ending make readers feel?
Death becomes the chapter's persistent refrain, even as generation follows generation.
What two interruptions offer hope?
Enoch's walk with God and Lamech's hope attached to Noah.
KJV words made clear
- unto
- to
- thy
- your
- hath
- has
- spake
- spoke
Text first
Where readers differ
The chapter summary begins with what the passage says and how its parts fit together. It does not assume one denomination has already settled every question. Where a conclusion depends on a tradition, literary theory, or historical reconstruction, that dependence is named openly.
The KJV text is presented first. Interpretive conclusions are labeled, and differences are introduced only when they help a reader understand why serious communities do not always reach the same answer.
Comparative interpretive notes for this chapter are in preparation. Until reviewed notes are ready, this page separates the KJV text from summary and application without claiming that serious readers agree on every question.