Scorpion’s Sting
God desires His people to come before Him in daily confession of their sin.
Leviticus(8) (Part of the Sabbath(1) series)
by Marc Webb(141) on January 4, 2026 (Sunday Morning(415))
Scorpion’s Sting
Do you know how to avoid common colds? The only way to ensure that you don't pick up one of the many cold and flu viruses is to be dead. On average preschool children get nine colds a year and adults get seven. Cold viruses, of which there are many kinds, are contracted through hand-to-hand contact with an infected person or touching the surface of an object that has been touched by an infected person, such as the handle of a grocery cart or the coffee cup extended to you by a fast-food server. In other words, catching a cold is inevitable regardless of the care you take to avoid encountering the annoying cold virus. There are preventative steps you can take, including regularly washing your hands but watch out for the bathroom door handle, or staying fit through good nutrition and exercise, but beware the germs lurking on the treadmill's grip at the gym. We can't see cold viruses, but they are unavoidably enveloping us. And as we might be victims of a cold virus, we are just as likely to be the spreader of it as well.
What can be said about the common cold virus and the human condition is true of the spiritual condition of each one of us. By virtue of our human condition as sinners we are all, every one of us, inevitably committing sinful thoughts and making sinful choices daily. Even if our sin is not premeditated and even if we are most attentive to avoid sin, we cannot escape the inevitability of committing it. The Bible clearly tells us that the human soul stands in need of cleansing from sin and guilt. And the sacrificial system that is detailed in the book of Leviticus made an accommodation for the unavoidable human condition of sin. The sin offering was God's gracious provision for the guilty person by which his or her sin was removed and by which he or she received divine forgiveness. The corruption of human sin also polluted the tent of meeting and required cleansing which is why this offering is also called the purification offering. But the sacrifice of an animal only purged the corruption of the outer person, the body. What was needed was to purge the malignancy of the inner person, the soul. The Lord made a sure means of forgiveness for every one of us through the atoning sacrifice and death of Jesus Christ whose sinless life made it possible for our iniquities to be purged from our souls.
Two weeks ago, we discovered that God desired those who call Him Lord and Savior to live in an awareness of their sin and their need for repentance and forgiveness. Last week we discovered that God desired to forgive all who would come to Him in repentance of their sin. Today we will see that God desires His people to come before Him confessing their sin daily, which is required because of our sin nature. And through the atoning sacrifice and death of Jesus Christ, God graciously gives forgiveness and restoration to us. That brings us to our big idea that God desires His people to come before Him in daily confession of their sin.
Let’s pray: "Heavenly Father, as we gather to hear your Word proclaimed this morning, we ask that you open our hearts and minds by the power of your Holy Spirit. Lord, let these words be your words, not ours, pointing us always to your Son, Jesus Christ. May the words of our mouths and the meditations of our hearts be pleasing in your sight, O Lord, our Rock and Redeemer, that we might hear your truth, be transformed by it, and give you all the glory. In Jesus’ name, Amen
Before we get into this morning’s scripture, let me recap our study of God’s chosen people so far. In Exodus, Yahweh (the Lord) rescues His chosen people, the Israelites, from slavery to Pharaoh, saves them from the Egyptians at the Red Sea, and guides them to Mt. Sinai to give them His Ten Commandments. Because they were His people and He was their God, He commanded them to build a “tent” so He could dwell among them as they traveled to the Promised Land and where they could worship Him. After Moses finished the “tent of meeting” the Lord came down in all His holiness and took up residence in the Holy of Holies, between the cherubim that were on the Mercy Seat on the Ark of the Covenant. God then began to instruct Moses and the Israelites on how they were to approach Him with proper worship and because they were sinful human beings this included offerings and sacrifices. Some of these offerings and sacrifices were voluntary signifying the worshipper’s complete love and devotion for God, for His atonement for their sins and their access to His presence. They also signified the joy and celebration of the worshipper for God’s faithful provision and covenant saving relationship and the reconciliation and peace the worshipper could now have with God because of His grace and covenant.
Then God mandated the sin offering. The sin offering was mandatory because of the people’s sin nature and their sinful lives. It signified cleansing and purification for the sin that polluted both people and the Holy Place and that it required blood to fully remove sin’s penalty and pollution, allowing renewed access to God’s presence. As we have studied the sin offering, we have noticed and descending order of importance in who has sinned and the sacrifice they were to bring for their atonement. The first offerings were for the high priest and the whole Israelite community when they sinned unintentionally and then became aware of their sin. They were to bring the most expensive offering of a bull without defect. This was because their sin was the most serious and could cause the entire community to become estranged from God and His presence. The next offering was for the leaders of the community and was to be male goat without defect. And today we will study what the final group of people were to bring as an offering when they sinned unintentionally, realized their guilt and the sin they committed became known to them. We will also look at four specific unintentional sins committed by this final group and what they were to do to make atonement and be forgiven.
Now let’s turn to Leviticus 4:27-35. Follow along as I read these verses. This is what God’s Word says, “If any member of the community sins unintentionally and does what is forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, when they realize their guilt and the sin they have committed becomes known, they must bring as their offering for the sin they committed a female goat without defect. They are to lay their hand on the head of the sin offering and slaughter it at the place of the burnt offering. Then the priest is to take some of the blood with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar as an aroma pleasing to the Lord. In this way the priest will make atonement for them, and they will be forgiven. “‘If someone brings a lamb as their sin offering, they are to bring a female without defect. They are to lay their hand on its head and slaughter it for a sin offering at the place where the burnt offering is slaughtered. Then the priest shall take some of the blood of the sin offering with his finger and put it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering and pour out the rest of the blood at the base of the altar. They shall remove all the fat, just as the fat is removed from the lamb of the fellowship offering, and the priest shall burn it on the altar on top of the food offerings presented to the Lord. In this way the priest will make atonement for them for the sin they have committed, and they will be forgiven.”
The fourth and final group that God instructed on what they were to bring as a sin offering was any member of the Israelite community. The word used is speaking of an individual, not of the high priest or a leader in the community, but of the common Israelite. Again, their sin was unintentional, they had done what was forbidden in any of the Lord’s commands, they realized their guilt and the sin they committed had come to their knowledge. The sin could have come to their knowledge because another person informed them of a sin they committed or a law they unwittingly violated. Also, the individual may have become aware of their sin because they suffered consequences of their guilt and were prompted to discover whether sin was the cause. In some cases, they might simply have thought back over the past several days or weeks to see how they might have sinned. In others they might have sought an answer directly from the Lord.
But no matter how the knowledge of their sin came to light, when it did, they had to bring an offering of a female hairy goat without defect. The female goat would have been of less value than the male goat and so more affordable for the common Israelite. Of course, it had to be perfect, without defect, symbolizing Jesus Christ as the perfect and unblemished sacrifice for our sins. The goat’s rough, hairy nature symbolized an awareness of sin and was visibly linked to human guilt and rebellion against God, contrasting with the innocence of lambs in other offerings. The worshipper then was to lay their hand on the head of the female goat which identified them as the guilty party and it as their sin offering and substitute. The worshipper slaughtered the goat at the place of the burnt offering or on the north side of the altar. The priest then took over taking some of the blood with his finger and putting it on the horns of the altar of burnt offering. The horns of the altar represented power and strength and when covered with blood symbolized complete atonement from sin, purification from defilement and reconciliation with God. The penalty for sin was paid, the sacred altar was purified, and one life was exchanged for another bringing God’s forgiveness, foreshadowing Christ ultimate sacrifice. Then all the remaining blood was to be poured out at the base of the altar signifying that God was the giver of life and the life of the sacrifice was being returned to Him. The worshipper was to then remove the fat, just like that of the fellowship offering, and the priest was to burn the fat on the altar for a sweet aroma to the Lord. The fat was the choicest and best part of the animal and again, as such, was reserved for God alone.
One difference between the fat offering of the common Israelite and the offerings for the high priest, whole community and leader was that this time the priest was to burn the fat on the altar “for a sweet aroma to the Lord.” These words showed extra favor to the common Israelite. The fact that this same ritual is stated almost exactly word-for-word as the rituals performed on behalf of the high priest, the whole community and the leader showed that the sin of the common Israelite was as completely atoned for, forgiven and just as important to the Lord. Garrett says, “In fact, the forgiveness of the lowly person is actually exalted in the use of the terminology.” After each ritual has been performed, the priest is said to have made atonement for the person, or group and their sin had been forgiven. This was stated so the sinning party or parties knew beyond a shadow of the doubt that their sin was cleansed, forgiven, forgotten and they were put back into a right relationship and close fellowship with their covenant king.
Next, we see an alternative option of a lamb for the sin offering of the common Israelite. Again, it was to be a female without defect which made it less valuable than a bull and more affordable for the common person. The Hebrew word used here for “lamb” means “to dominate” and was used to symbolize that Christ would dominate over sin with His death, burial and resurrection. This made an offering of a lamb a suitable sin offering reminding us of the words of John 1:29: “Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world!” The ritual presented in verses 33 to 35a are almost exactly word-for-word from the common Israelites’ sin offering of the female goat. It all points us to remember Christ’s pure and perfect atoning death on the cross at Calvary which was foreshadowed for 1500 years by the sin offerings the Israelites brought to the “tent of meeting.” Each offering they brought with the right heart and motives, that they laid their hands on and slaughtered, restored their communion with Almighty God repeatedly. Both the goat and the lamb are a picture of Jesus Christ and were to foreshadow that there was a perfect sacrificial offering coming who would once and for all not only cover the sins of humanity but take them completely away.
God spent an extravagant amount of time in human history to point humanity to His Son Jesus for salvation. I’ve mentioned many times before that Jesus is the only way, the only truth and the only life and that no one comes to the Father except through Him. There is no relationship or peace with the Father except through believing Jesus for our salvation. All of history is all about Jesus. We need to be careful not to worship anyone or anything else. Instead, as Hebrews 12:2 says, we need to “fix our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God.” Let’s fix our attention on God’s Word and His love for us shown at the cross. Let’s turn our eyes upon Jesus and stop making excuses for not coming to Him for salvation and not accepting His gracious sacrifice on our behalf. God loves us so much that as Romans 5:8 says, “But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.” For those who have been ignoring God’s call to surrender your life to Him, it is time for you to echo Paul in Galatians 2:20, which says, “I have been crucified with Christ and I no longer live, but Christ lives in me. The life I now live in the body, I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.” That brings us to our first next step which is I will stop making excuses for not surrendering my life to Jesus, be crucified with Him and invite Jesus to live in me.
That brings us to Leviticus 5:1-5 and three specific unintentional sins that the common Israelite may have committed requiring them to bring a sin offering before the Lord. This is what God’s Word says, “If anyone sins because they do not speak up when they hear a public charge to testify regarding something they have seen or learned about, they will be held responsible. “‘If anyone becomes aware that they are guilty—if they unwittingly touch anything ceremonially unclean (whether the carcass of an unclean animal, wild or domestic, or of any unclean creature that moves along the ground) and they are unaware that they have become unclean, but then they come to realize their guilt; or if they touch human uncleanness (anything that would make them unclean) even though they are unaware of it, but then they learn of it and realize their guilt; or if anyone thoughtlessly takes an oath to do anything, whether good or evil (in any matter one might carelessly swear about) even though they are unaware of it, but then they learn of it and realize their guilt— when anyone becomes aware that they are guilty in any of these matters, they must confess in what way they have sinned.”
These specific sins are of less magnitude than what was discussed for much of chapter four and this section is a continuation of the sins of the common Israelite. The word for “anyone” is again “soul” meaning a person with a will or desire. Three specific sins are highlighted. The first has to do with an individual who hears a public charge to testify about something, and they do not speak up. They have specific knowledge in a judicial matter and are being asked on oath to divulge what they know. Or they are being asked on oath about a matter, and they are being deceitful about their answer for some reason. In the Israelite community it was an individual’s duty and responsibility to tell the truth but especially in judicial matters. This was the proper behavior that God required of all Israelites to maintain the integrity of the society ultimately ruled by God’s divine law. If someone was aware of an offense committed by someone else, they were required to tell the truth, or they would be held responsible and bear guilt. In fact, that individual would be considered in God’s eyes to have participated in what had occurred. This was a willful concealing of something that undermined the Lord’s control of His people through His law. In Matthew 26, Jesus was put under oath by the high priest to answer whether He was the Christ, the Son of God. Jesus was now bound by the law of Moses to answer and tell the truth. Of course, he did and remained without guilt in the matter.
The second type of sin was about becoming unclean, either through touching something or someone who was unclean. This is the first time the word “unclean” has been used in the Bible and is a verb meaning “the act of becoming defiled.” If someone came in contact which something or someone unclean, they also became unclean until they were “purified.” This was another reason why the sin offering was also called the purification offering. There were many things that could make a person ceremonially unclean. Three dead things are mentioned: the carcass of an unclean wild or domestic animal such as a pig or donkey and the carcass of an unclean creature that moved along the ground such as a reptile. These general categories were given to symbolize all unclean animals that would later be designated by God’s dietary laws. There were four likely reasons that an individual would be unaware of becoming unclean. One, they didn’t know they touched something unclean. Two, they were unaware of the law that would tell them they had touched something unclean. Three, they had forgotten they had become unclean by touching something unclean. And four, they had willingly ignored the fact they had touched something unclean. Also, someone would be considered unclean if they were to touch a person who was unclean. The mitigating factors here were the touching of someone who was bleeding, the touching of bodily fluids or touching someone to do with death. No matter whether it was something or someone unclean, the individual would be considered guilty even if they were unaware of becoming unclean. This was an exhortation for them to be aware of their surroundings and not to go about life like they didn’t have a care in the world. This was not considered a moral failure but a ceremonial one and as such they were still considered guilty and had to bring an offering.
The third type of sin was like the first. Someone had thoughtlessly made an oath or swore carelessly about something, and it didn’t matter if it was for good or evil. The word for “speaking thoughtlessly” means “to babble.” It comes from the idea of speaking rashly or unadvisedly. They spoke rashly in the heat of the moment and when the situation had died down, they didn’t consider the oath they had spoken. The phrase “whether good or evil” means every conceivable situation is covered and guilt has been incurred. Once the matter is brought to the attention of the offender, they were guilty under the law and would have to bring the appropriate sacrifice. In verse five we again see a word used for the first time in scripture. When a person was guilty of any of these three offenses, remaining silent under oath, touching something or someone unclean or making a rash oath, and it was brought to their attention, they became guilty and had to “confess” their sin. Even though it is not mentioned, we can surmise that the sin offerings that were to be brought in chapter four also included confession and so the necessity to confess shows that the offer itself was not enough to bring atonement, forgiveness and restoration. This again points us to the gospel and Jesus Christ as our sin-offering. There is no such thing as universal salvation. Without confessing that we are sinners, without confessing that we need a Savior and without confessing Jesus as Lord we will not be saved. Also, our sin is not cleansed without confessing as seen in 1 John 1:9, which says, “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and cleanse us of all unrighteousness.” (Big Idea) Garrett says, “Confession, whether of sin or for salvation, is necessary for things to happen.”
In conclusion of today’s message, I want you to consider this illustration. Imagine that you have a scorpion on your brow, and you don’t know it and it is prepared to thrust its deadly sting into you. Now imagine a timely friend who sees the deadly scorpion and alerts you to the danger so you can sweep it off just in the nick of time. The scorpion is our unintentional sins and the God “of all knowledge” is our gracious friend. God’s Son, His Word, and His gracious provision of confession, forgiveness and restoration is offered to us so that we will purpose to live holy lives. And when we inevitably sin, we are to come before Him in confession lest we die in our sins and are separated from God for all eternity. So, let’s purpose to live holy lives, in awareness of the scorpion sting of unintentional sin that sits on our brow. Let me finish with I John 2:1-2 and our last next step: “My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have an advocate with the Father—Jesus Christ, the Righteous One. He is the atoning sacrifice for our sins, and not only for ours but also for the sins of the whole world. Let’s purpose to listen to the Holy Spirit, to help keep us from sin or to remember God’s gracious provision of confession, forgiveness and restoration. That brings us to our second and last next step which is I will daily confess my sins finding forgiveness and restoration through God’s provision of the sin offering of Jesus Christ.
Heavenly Father, thank you for the opportunity to be in your presence and to learn from your Word. As we live our lives in this sin saturated world, help us by your Spirit to be attentive to the scorpion’s sting of sin. Help us to listen to your Holy Spirit’s prompting to daily confess our sins before you. Thank you for your forgiveness and restoration through your provision of our sin offering, Jesus Christ. And Lord pricks the hearts of those who don’t know you so that they would stop making excuses, surrender their lives to your son, be crucified with Him and invite Him to live within them. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
