Leviticus 5:3
Or 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. Or 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.
Touching any human uncleanness defiles a person even when hidden from him at first, and when he learns of it he stands guilty and must confess his sin and bring his offering for the priest to make atonement with its blood, after which he is forgiven. The guilt was already borne even while he did not know it, for provision was made for sins done in ignorance which became sins of knowledge once discovered. These individual offerings belonged to the daily ministration in which the sinner brought an unblemished victim as his substitute, laying his hand upon it in confession to transfer the sin to the animal whose death acknowledged his liability to death, and through its blood or the priest's person the sin was carried into the sanctuary and left there until its yearly cleansing. As part of the ceremonial law given because of sin, they showed that sin demands a penalty and were offered in faith in the coming Redeemer, finding fulfillment in Jesus Christ whose priestly service in the heavenly sanctuary reveals God's way. Ignorance does not make uncleanness right, so once sin is recognized it must be repented of and put away, while God in judging guilt weighs the sinner's opportunities to know what is right and the intents of the heart.
Defilement, Knowledge and Requirement
Touching any human uncleanness that can defile a person brings defilement even when hidden from him at first, and guilt is incurred when he learns of it. The case belongs among individual trespasses requiring confession before atonement and forgiveness. As part of the sin-offering instructions, it belongs to a service in which the sinner brought an offering and the priest used its blood to make atonement in the sanctuary. Guilt was already borne even while unaware, for provision was made for sins committed in ignorance which became sins of knowledge when discovered. Once the uncleanness became known, the person was to bring an offering, and the priest made atonement, after which the person was forgiven and no longer bore that iniquity.
When the defilement became known, the offender was to confess the sin. Confession was made with the hand laid on an unblemished animal as substitute, symbolically transferring the sin to the animal whose death acknowledged liability to death. Its blood represented life, and the offering symbolically transferred the individual's sin to the sanctuary. When known, the offender was to bring an offering, and the priest made atonement with its blood in the sanctuary, after which he was forgiven and no longer bore that iniquity. Under the law of Moses touching human uncleanness made a person unclean, so that onlookers feared defilement from touching a leper.
Sanctuary Service and Christ
This text belongs to the ceremonial law, distinct from the moral law, which was instituted in consequence of sin. It stands among the instructions for individual sins and trespasses in Leviticus 1-7, especially Leviticus 4-5, which set forth the main features of the service commanded through Moses so that God might dwell among His people. Within that setting it presents the case of one defiled by human uncleanness who becomes guilty upon learning of it, placed among individual trespasses requiring confession before atonement and forgiveness, in which the sinner brought an offering and the priest used its blood to make atonement in the sanctuary.
These individual offerings were part of the daily ministration through the year, in which the sinner brought a victim and sin and guilt were transferred through its blood into the sanctuary, which was cleansed in the yearly service. The sinner confessed his sin while placing his hand on an unblemished animal, symbolically transferring the sin to the animal and accepting it as his substitute, with the animal's death acknowledging the sinner's liability to death. Its blood represented life, and the offering symbolically transferred the individual's sin to the sanctuary. When offered in faith, the confessed sin was transferred through the sacrifice's blood or the priest's person into the sanctuary and figuratively left there until the yearly cleansing of the sanctuary.
The offerings show that sin demands a penalty and are shadows finding their fulfillment in Jesus Christ. Offered in faith, they expressed faith in the coming Redeemer. As part of that sanctuary Scripture, which is the pattern and shadow of the heavenly sanctuary, this text reveals God's way, power and glory and teaches Christ's priestly service in heaven for learning, instruction in righteousness and hope.
Ignorance and Moral Responsibility
Contact with human uncleanness defiles a person even when he does not know of it at the time, and guilt attaches when he comes to know it. Ignorance does not make sin right, for defilement is real whether perceived or not. Once sin is recognized it must be confessed, repented of, and put away, regardless of what the intentions were when the act was done. In judging guilt, account is taken of the sinner's opportunities to know what is right and of the intents of the heart.