people are first pardoned, and then lead out to see the last mite exacted without the camp. See the same order observed, and for the same reason, we suppose, at vers. 11, 12. None but a pardoned man could have uttered Paul's cry, "O wretched man that I am; who shall deliver me from the body of this death?" (Rom. vii. 24.)

The identity of Christ and his people, also, is taught by their offering being burned exactly in all respects as the priest's, whose offering more especially typified Jesus.

THE RULER'S SIN.

Vers. 22, 23. "When a ruler hath sinned, and done somewhat through ignorance against any of the commandments of the Lord his God concerning things which should not be done, and is guilty; or if his sin, wherein he hath sinned, come to his knowledge; he shall bring his offering, a kid of the goats, a male without blemish."

"If a ruler has sinned and is suffering the penalty," as in ver. 13th. The ruler may sin ignorantly, and be led to know his sin by some suffering, like Abimelech, in Gen. xx. 3-17; or it might be by some friend's reproof, or by new circumstances occurring. So ver. 27.

The ruler is such a one as those princes (") of the tribes in Numb. vii. It includes all civil magistrates. His high responsibility is here shown just as in Prov. xxix. 12, "If a ruler hearken to lies, all his servants will be wicked."

It is said, "The Lord his God;" as if to call attention to the duty of publicly recognizing the Lord, and of rulers having the Lord as their own God. A ruler is specially bound to be a man of God. This is taken for

granted here," The Lord his God."

No casting off of

Messiah's cords here. He that ruleth over men must be

as the Just One, "ruling in the fear of God."

"A kid of the goats" is his sin-offering. It is a different victim from that offered by the priest or congregation in order to show that God definitely marks sin. And yet still the essence of atonement is the same, the blood of a victim that dies. Priest or prince must alike be atoned for by blood. The "male without blemish” is the spotless Saviour, the Son of man.

Vers. 24, 25. "And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the goat, and kill it in the place where they kill the burnt-offering before the Lord: it is a sin-offering. And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt-offering, and shall pour out his blood at the bottom of the altar of burnt-offering."

It seems intentionally twice stated here, that the Altar of Burnt-offering was to be the place where his sinoffering was to be presented;-it is to be killed where the usual sacrifices for that altar are killed, and its blood is to be sprinkled there. The reason may be this:-The altar of incense in the holy place was peculiarly the scene of the priest's intercession, and of the people's prayers as a congregation. The sins in holy things pointed inward, toward the holy place. On the other hand, a ruler's sin pointed toward the camp. Hence the blood that atones for his sin is sprinkled on the horns of that altar where it would be publicly observed. The cry of the blood on the four horns, -the strong cry, based on all-prevailing atonement,-was to ascend within hearing, as it were, of all his subjects, inasmuch as his sins affected the welfare of the nation.

Ver. 26. "And he shall burn all his fat upon the altar, as the fat of the sacrifice of peace-offerings: and the priest shall make an atonement for him as concerning his sin, and it shall be forgiven him."

The last clause may be intended to draw attention to the fact, that in this instance the atonement is because of this particular sin, and not simply because he is a sinner in nature and by common actual transgressions. The opportunity is here embraced of impressing on us the need of atonement for particular sins,-for every sin by itself; and for those little regarded sins which we apologize for by saying, "I did not know of it." Jonathan's sin in taking a little honey (1 Sam. xiv. 39, 43), and Abimelech's sin (Gen. xx. 6), show how jealous God is of even what appears sin, especially in public persons.

SINS OF INDIVIDUALS.

Vers. 27, 28. "And if any of the common people sin through ignorance, while he doeth somewhat against any of the commandments of the Lord concerning things which ought not to be done, and be guilty; 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."

"A female" is here offered. Each kind of sin is thus definitely noticed, and each sinner's case treated by itself. But why is it a female, since Christ is typified by these offerings?—It is not easy to say. Perhaps it was intended by God that by occasionally taking female sacrifices, Israel should be kept from ever once supposing that atonement was not intended equally for the daughters of Zion. The circumstance that a female kid is here fixed upon served to take off the impression that the male intimated only the atonement of the men of Israel. Though, however, its being male or female is of use for other lessons, it is not the chief point to be noticed; the point to be observed is, that the blood is an atonement. The subsidiary ideas are not to be dwelt upon always; but

everywhere the principle of atonement by blood is to be kept in the sinner's view.

"For his sin which he hath sinned." Lest the man should think that the sin was trifling, because he was a common man, and not a ruler, this emphatic notice is taken of his sin :

Vers. 29, 30, 31. "And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sinoffering, and slay the sin-offering in the place of the burnt-offering. And the priest shall take of the blood thereof with his finger, and put it upon the horns of the altar of burnt-offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar. And he shall take away all the fat thereof, as the fat is taken away from off the sacrifice of peace-offerings; and the priest shall burn it upon the altar for a sweet savor unto the Lord; and the priest shall make an atonement for him, and it shall be forgiven him."

The clause, "For a sweet savor unto the Lord," occurs here, though omitted in the three preceding cases. The reason may be to show the worshipper, that though he was a common man, and not a ruler, yet still as much attention is paid to him as to the others. The offering which he presents is a sweet savor, as much as Noah's. The full acceptance and full favor shown to every believer alike is immeasurably sweet. One family! all alike accepted! and all alike kept as the apple of his eye! And thus this sin, that unawares was troubling him, is away. And when even one sin, and that a sin of ignorance, is thus completely removed, who can tell how much light may flow into our own cleansed souls? A new window is opened,-a new eye, for the scale has fallen from it.

Ver. 32, 33, 34. "And if he bring a lamb for a sin-offering, he shall bring it a female without blemish. And he shall lay his hand upon the head of the sin-offering, and slay it for a sin-offering, in the place where they kill the burnt-offering. And the priest shall take of the blood of the sin-offering with his finger, and put it upon the

horns of the altar of burnt-offering, and shall pour out all the blood thereof at the bottom of the altar."

It might sometimes not be easy to bring a kid. If so, let a lamb be taken. Only blood must be shed. The poor man's lamb is specially noticed and fully received as the rich man's offering. "Like precious faith," is the common property of all God's family,-"One Lord, one faith."

Ver. 35. "And he shall take away all the fat thereof, as the fat of the lamb is taken away from the sacrifice of the peace-offerings; and the priest shall burn them upon the altar, according to the offerings made by fire unto the Lord: and the priest shall make an atonement for his sin that he hath committed, and it shall be forgiven him." The expression, "according to the offerings made by fire," should be "in addition to (b) the offerings,"-the daily sacrifice, morning and evening, or, "upon the offerings," i. e., over the very remnants of the daily sacrifice. It is exactly like chap. iii. 5. We are there taught that particular sins must be cast upon the one great Atonement; and the cases that occur in this chapter of special guilt are just specific applications of the great truth taught in the daily sacrifice.

Israel was taught that their different offerings were all of one nature in the main with the general burnt-offering;-one Saviour only was prefigured, and one atonement. These sin-offerings, presented "upon the daily sacrifice," resemble tributary streams pouring in their waters into one great ocean. "Christ once suffered for sins, the just for the unjust, to bring us unto God." (1 Pet. iii. 18.)* Oh, how anxious is our God to purge us

* In Numb. xxii. 26, another direction is given, viz., in a case where the nation had for a time forsaken the law of Moses. This happened under several idolatrous kings, such as Manasseh. Ignorance became the sin of