The verse opens the divine instruction spoken to Moses that establishes the law of the sin offering under the Levitical or Mosaic dispensation as part of God's claims upon property. For a priest or for the whole congregation the prescribed offering required its blood to be carried into the holy place, sprinkled before the veil, and placed upon the horns of the golden altar, while its fat was burned upon the altar of burnt offering in the court and its body was burned outside the camp.
Sin offerings together with thank offerings were required in addition to the tithe or tenth of a person's increase, so the tithe alone was not the standard of contributions. The required offering was proportioned to the amount possessed, so the larger the entrusted capital the more valuable the gift to be returned, which means Christians possessing ten or twenty thousand dollars are still to present sin offerings and thank offerings to God. The sin offerings stood alongside the ransom for the first-born son, the first-fruits of flocks and harvest, leaving the corners of harvest fields and the dropped grain for the destitute, letting the land yield spontaneously for the needy every seventh year, sacrificial offerings, trespass offerings, remission of all debts every seventh year, expenses for hospitalities and gifts to the poor, assessments upon property, and special free-will offerings such as those for the wilderness tabernacle and the Jerusalem temple.
Together these requirements sanctified property and reminded Israel of the Giver in almost every article produced. For the conscientious these religious and charitable dues amounted to about one-third of all income for religious interests and for the poor. These dues were exacted from all rather than from a particular class, and were appointed for the people's own good and to sustain divine service. Faithfulness in these dues was tested at stated periods by asking the people whether they had faithfully performed their vows.
The verse opens the divine instruction spoken to Moses that establishes the law of the sin offering under the Levitical or Mosaic dispensation as part of God's claims upon property. For a priest or for the whole congregation the prescribed offering required its blood to be carried into the holy place, sprinkled before the veil, and placed upon the horns of the golden altar, while its fat was burned upon the altar of burnt offering in the court and its body was burned outside the camp.
Sin offerings together with thank offerings were required in addition to the tithe or tenth of a person's increase, so the tithe alone was not the standard of contributions. The required offering was proportioned to the amount possessed, so the larger the entrusted capital the more valuable the gift to be returned, which means Christians possessing ten or twenty thousand dollars are still to present sin offerings and thank offerings to God. The sin offerings stood alongside the ransom for the first-born son, the first-fruits of flocks and harvest, leaving the corners of harvest fields and the dropped grain for the destitute, letting the land yield spontaneously for the needy every seventh year, sacrificial offerings, trespass offerings, remission of all debts every seventh year, expenses for hospitalities and gifts to the poor, assessments upon property, and special free-will offerings such as those for the wilderness tabernacle and the Jerusalem temple.
Together these requirements sanctified property and reminded Israel of the Giver in almost every article produced. For the conscientious these religious and charitable dues amounted to about one-third of all income for religious interests and for the poor. These dues were exacted from all rather than from a particular class, and were appointed for the people's own good and to sustain divine service. Faithfulness in these dues was tested at stated periods by asking the people whether they had faithfully performed their vows.