Numbers 5:7
in Numbers 5and must confess the sin he has committed. He must make full restitution, add a fifth to its value, and give all this to the one he has wronged.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
then he shall confess his sin which he hath done: and he shall make restitution for his guilt in full, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it unto him in respect of whom he hath been guilty.
KJV
Then they shall confess their sin which they have done: and he shall recompense his trespass with the principal thereof, and add unto it the fifth part thereof, and give it unto him against whom he hath trespassed.
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This verse in Numbers 5
Commentary
6 notes on this verseShall confess their sin - Without confession or acknowledgment of sin, there was no hope of mercy held out. He shall recompense - For without restitution, in every possible case, God will not for give the iniquity of a man’s sin. How can any person in a case of defraud, with his neighbor’s property in his possession, expect to receive mercy from the hand of a just and holy God? See this subject considered in the notes on Gen 42:38 (note).
This site's exposition
When a man or woman shall commit any sin
on Numbers 5:6-7
Leviticus 6:1-5 had already set restitution for defrauding a neighbour at the principal with a fifth part added. What Numbers adds is confession said aloud, then they shall confess their sin, which Adam Clarke reads as the condition of any hope of mercy. The other addition is the wording, since a fraud worked on a neighbour is called a trespass against the Lord, and the money still goes to the man who was robbed rather than to the sanctuary.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices
They shall confess their sin - They shall not continue in the denial of the fact, but give glory to God, and take shame to themselves by acknowledging it. The principal - That is, the thing he took away, or what is equivalent to it.
Then they shall confess their sin which they have done,....
It is certain that while that which is got by injustice is knowingly retained in the hands the guilt of the injustice remains upon the conscience, and is not purged by sacrifice nor offering, prayers not tears, for it is one and the same continued act of sin persisted in.
The Nineteenth Century1 voice
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
The difference between the law recorded in that passage and this is that the one was enacted against flagrant and determined thieves, the other against those whose necessities might have urged them into fraud, and whose consciences were distressed by their sin.
The words behind it
16 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְהִתְוַדּ֗וּ | vehitvadu | and they will confess | H3034 → | |
| אֶֽת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| חַטָּאתָם֮ | chatatam | sin their | H2403 → | 295 times |
| אֲשֶׁ֣ר | ʾasher | which | H834 → | 5497 times |
| עָשׂוּ֒ | ʾasu | they have done | H6213 → | 2628 times |
| וְהֵשִׁ֤יב | veheshiv | and he will repay | H7725 → | 1056 times |
| אֶת־ | ʾet- | <obj.> | H853 → | 10935 times |
| אֲשָׁמוֹ֙ | ʾashamo | compensation its | H817 → | 46 times |
| בְּרֹאשׁ֔וֹ | berosho | in sum its | H7218 → | 599 times |
| וַחֲמִישִׁת֖וֹ | vachamishito | and fifth its | H2549 → | 45 times |
| יֹסֵ֣ף | yosef | let him add | H3254 → | 212 times |
| עָלָ֑יו | ʾalav | to it | H5921 → | 5755 times |
| וְנָתַ֕ן | venatan | and he will give [it] | H5414 → | 2011 times |
| לַאֲשֶׁ֖ר | laasher | to [the one] whom | H834 → | 5497 times |
| אָשַׁ֥ם | ʾasham | he was guilty | H816 → | |
| לֽוֹ׃ | lo | to <the> him |
וְהִתְוַדּ֗וּand they will confess
vehitvaduH3034 →
אֶֽת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
חַטָּאתָם֮sin their
chatatamH2403 →295 times
אֲשֶׁ֣רwhich
ʾasherH834 →5497 times
עָשׂוּ֒they have done
ʾasuH6213 →2628 times
וְהֵשִׁ֤יבand he will repay
veheshivH7725 →1056 times
אֶת־<obj.>
ʾet-H853 →10935 times
אֲשָׁמוֹ֙compensation its
ʾashamoH817 →46 times
בְּרֹאשׁ֔וֹin sum its
beroshoH7218 →599 times
וַחֲמִישִׁת֖וֹand fifth its
vachamishitoH2549 →45 times
יֹסֵ֣ףlet him add
yosefH3254 →212 times
עָלָ֑יוto it
ʾalavH5921 →5755 times
וְנָתַ֕ןand he will give [it]
venatanH5414 →2011 times
לַאֲשֶׁ֖רto [the one] whom
laasherH834 →5497 times
אָשַׁ֥םhe was guilty
ʾashamH816 →
לֽוֹ׃to <the> him
lo
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Leviticus 26:40But if they will confess their iniquity and that of their fathers in the unfaithfulness that they practiced against Me, by which they have also walked in hostility toward Me—
it leads to
- Proverbs 28:13
He who conceals his sins will not prosper, but whoever confesses and renounces them will find mercy.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 John 1:8–10
If we say we have no sin, we deceive ourselves, and the truth is not in us.
- Nehemiah 9:2–5
Those of Israelite descent separated themselves from all the foreigners, and they stood and confessed their sins and the iniquities of their fathers.
- Proverbs 28:13
Through
Luke 19:8But Zacchaeus stood up and said to the Lord, “Look, Lord, half of my possessions I give to the poor, and if I have cheated anyone, I will repay it fourfold.”
it leads to
- 2 Samuel 12:6
Because he has done this thing and has shown no pity, he must pay for the lamb four times over.”
- Luke 18:22–23
On hearing this, Jesus told him, “You still lack one thing: Sell everything you own and give to the poor, and you will have treasure in heaven. Then come, follow Me.”
- Proverbs 6:31
Yet if caught, he must pay sevenfold; he must give up all the wealth of his house.
- Luke 12:33
Sell your possessions and give to the poor. Provide yourselves with purses that will not wear out, an inexhaustible treasure in heaven, where no thief approaches and no moth destroys.
- 2 Samuel 12:6
Through
Joshua 7:19So Joshua said to Achan, “My son, give glory to the LORD, the God of Israel, and make a confession to Him. I urge you to tell me what you have done; do not…
it leads to
- 1 Samuel 6:5
Make images of your tumors and of the rats that are ravaging the land. Give glory to the God of Israel, and perhaps He will lift His hand from you and your gods and…
- 1 Samuel 6:5
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies1
About Numbers
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes on the Old Testament; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible.