Leviticus 4:28

Or if his sin, which he hath sinned, come to his knowledge: then he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a female without blemish, for his sin which he hath sinned.

EXPOSITORY (ENGLISH BIBLE)

Ellicott's Commentary for English Readers

(28) Or if his sin . . . come to his knowledge.—That is, is shown to him by another person. (See Leviticus 4:23.)

A kid of the goats.—Better, a shaggy-haired she-goat without blemish. The expression is feminine in the Hebrew. The female was of less value than the male, and was therefore more suitable to the circumstances of the ordinary people.

Benson Commentary

Leviticus 4:28. A female — Which here was sufficient, because the sin of one of those was less than the sin of the ruler, for whom a male was required.

Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary

4:27-35 Here is the law of the sin-offering for a common person. To be able to plead, when charged with sin, that we did it ignorantly, and through the surprise of temptation, will not bring us off, if we have no interest in that great plea, Christ hath died. The sins of ignorance committed by a common person, needed a sacrifice; the greatest are not above, the meanest are not below Divine justice. None, if offenders, were overlooked. Here rich and poor meet together; they are alike sinners, and welcome to Christ. From all these laws concerning the sin-offerings, we may learn to hate sin, and to watch against it; and to value Christ, the great and true Sin-offering, whose blood cleanses from all sin, which it was not possible that the blood of bulls and of goats should take away. For us to err, with the Bible in our hands, is the effect of pride, sloth, and carelessness. We need to use frequent self-examination, with serious study of the Scriptures, and earnest prayer for the convincing influences of God the Holy Spirit; that we may detect our sins of ignorance, repent, and obtain forgiveness through the blood of Christ.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

A kid of the goats - A shaggy she-goat.

Jamieson-Fausset-Brown Bible Commentary

27-34. if any one of the common people sin through ignorance—In this case the expiatory offering appointed was a female kid, or a ewe-lamb without blemish; and the ceremonies were exactly the same as those observed in the case of the offending ruler [Le 4:22-26]. In these two latter instances, the blood of the sin offering was applied to the altar of burnt offering—the place where bloody sacrifices were appointed to be immolated. But the transgression of a high priest, or of the whole congregation, entailing a general taint on the ritual of the tabernacle, and vitiating its services, required a further expiation; and therefore, in these cases, the blood of the sin offering was applied to the altar of incense [Le 4:6, 17].

Matthew Poole's Commentary

A female was here sufficient, because the sin of one of those was less than the sin of the ruler, for whom a male was required, Leviticus 4:21.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible

Or if his sin which he hath sinned come to his knowledge,.... So that he is convinced that he has sinned:

then he shall bring his offering; to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to the priest there:

a kid of the goats: a young goat:

a female without blemish; and so inferior to the offering of the ruler or prince; for the characters of men are aggravations of their sins, and sacrifices were to be in some measure answerable to them, and suitable to their circumstances:

for the sin which he hath sinned; to atone for it in a typical way.

Geneva Study Bible

Or if his sin, which he hath sinned, come to his knowledge: then he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a female without blemish, for his sin which he hath sinned.

EXEGETICAL (ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)

Leviticus 4:28

Keil and Delitzsch Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament

In the case of the sin of a common Israelite ("of the people of the land," i.e., of the rural population, Genesis 23:7), that is to say, of an Israelite belonging to the people, as distinguished from the chiefs who ruled over the people (2 Kings 11:18-19; 2 Kings 16:15), the sin-offering was to consist of a shaggy she-goat without blemish, or a ewe-sheep (Leviticus 4:32). The ceremonial in both cases was the same as with the he-goat (Leviticus 4:23.). - "According to the offerings made by fire unto the Lord" (Leviticus 4:35): see at Leviticus 3:5.