Leviticus 4:25

And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt offering.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(25) And the priest shall take.—Here, again, the difference in the ritual is to be observed. In case of his own sin offering and in that of the congregation, the high priest himself performed the principal ceremony (Leviticus 4:5-17), whilst at the sin offering of the prince the common priest officiated. The blood of the victim was not sprinkled before the vail of the Holy of Holies, nor on the incense altar which stood in the Holy, but on the brazen altar which was placed outside in the court.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

4:22-26 Those who have power to call others to account, are themselves accountable to the Ruler of rulers. The sin of the ruler, committed through ignorance, must come to his knowledge, either by the check of his own conscience, or by the reproof of his friends; both which even the best and greatest, not only should submit to, but be thankful for. That which I see not, teach thou me, and, Show me wherein I have erred, are prayers we should put up to God every day; that if, through ignorance, we fall into sin, we may not through ignorance abide in it.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

See Leviticus 1:11.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

22-26. When a ruler hath sinned, and done somewhat through ignorance against any of the commandments—Whatever was the form of government, the king, judge, or subordinate, was the party concerned in this law. The trespass of such a civil functionary being less serious in its character and consequences than that either of the high priest or the congregation, a sin offering of inferior value was required—"a kid of the goats"; and neither was the blood carried into the sanctuary, but applied only to the altar of burnt offering; nor was the carcass taken without the camp; it was eaten by the priests-in-waiting.

Matthew Poole's Commentary

No text from Poole on this verse.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger,.... With the finger of his right hand, as the Talmudists (n) observe, and Gersom on the place; the priest first received the blood into a basin or ministering vessel, and then dipped the finger of his right hand into it, that next the thumb:

and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering; the four horns of it; in this there was a difference between the sacrifice of the anointed priest and of the congregation, and this of the ruler; the blood of the former was put upon the horns of the altar of incense, this upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering:

and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt offering; the South bottom of it; the order of the priest's proceeding in putting the blood was different from that used in putting it on the horns of the altar of incense; here he first put the blood upon the southeast horn, then upon the northeast, next upon the northwest, and then upon the southwest; and upon the bottom of that horn where he finished, he poured the remainder of the blood, which was the southern bottom (o).

(n) T. Bab. Zebachim, fol. 24. 1.((o) Maimon. Hilchot Maaseh Hakorbanot, c. 5. sect. 10.

Geneva Study Bible

And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt offering, and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt offering.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Leviticus 4:25

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

"If (או, see Ges. 155, 2) his sin is made known to him," i.e., if any one called his attention to the fact that he had transgressed a commandment of God, he was to bring a he-goat without blemish, and, having laid his hand upon it, to slay it at the place of burnt-offering; after which the priest was to put some of the blood upon the horns of the altar of burnt-offering, and pour out the rest of the blood at the foot of the altar, and then to burn the whole of the fat upon the altar, as in the case of the peaceoffering (see Leviticus 3:3-4), and thus to make atonement for the prince on account of his sin. עזים שׂעיר, or שׂעיר alone (lit., hairy, shaggy, Genesis 27:11), is the buck-goat, which is frequently mentioned as the animal sacrificed as a sin-offering: e.g., that of the tribe-princes (Numbers 7:16., Leviticus 15:24), and that of the nation at the yearly festivals (Leviticus 16:9, Leviticus 16:15; Leviticus 23:19; Numbers 28:15, Numbers 28:22, Numbers 28:30; Numbers 29:5, Numbers 29:16.) and at the consecration of the tabernacle (Leviticus 9:3, Leviticus 9:15; Leviticus 10:16). It is distinguished in Numbers 7:16. from the attudim, which were offered as peace-offerings, and frequently occur in connection with oxen, rams, and lambs as burnt-offerings and thank-offerings (Psalm 50:9, Psalm 50:13; Psalm 66:15; Isaiah 1:11; Isaiah 34:6; Ezekiel 39:18). According to Knobel, עזים שׂעיר, or שׂעיר, was an old he-goat, the hair of which grew longer with age, particularly about the neck and back, and עזים שׂעירת (Leviticus 4:28; Leviticus 5:16) an old she-goat; whilst עתּוּד was the younger he-goat, which leaped upon the does (Genesis 31:10, Genesis 31:12), and served for slaughtering like lambs, sheep, and goats (Deuteronomy 32:14; Jeremiah 51:40). But as the עזים שׂעיר was also slaughtered for food (Genesis 37:31), and the skins of quite young he-goats are called שׂעירת (Genesis 27:23), the difference between שׂעיר and עתּוּד is hardly to be sought in the age, but more probably, as Bochart supposes, in some variety of species, in which case seir and seirak might denote the rough-haired, shaggy kind of goat, and attud the buck-goat of stately appearance.