Numbers 5:5–10 ERV: The Lord said to Moses, “Tell this to the Israelites: You might do something wrong to another person. When you do that, you are really sinning against God. So, you are guilty of doing wrong. You must confess that sin. Then you must fully pay for that wrong thing you did. You must add one-fifth to the payment and give it all to the person you had done wrong to. But maybe the person is dead and does not have any close relatives to accept the payment. In that case, you will give the payment to the Lord. That is, you will give the full payment to the priest. The priest must sacrifice the ram that makes people pure. This ram will be sacrificed to cover over your sins, but the priest will keep the rest of the payment. “If any of you Israelites gives a special gift to God, the priest who accepts that gift can keep it. It is his. You don’t have to give these special gifts, but if you do, the gifts belong to the priest.”
When someone wronged another person, God required that person to confess the sin, repay everything that was owed, and add one-fifth more. If the injured person had died without a close relative, the repayment was given to the priest, along with the offering for atonement. Overview of Numbers 5–6 explains that wrongdoing against another person was also considered wrongdoing against the Lord. True repentance is more than saying, “I’m sorry.” It means honestly confessing what we did and, whenever possible, repairing the harm we caused. We cannot always undo the past, but with God’s help, we can take responsibility and make like a sincere apology matters, but when possible, we should also make things right.
Dear Blessed Lord Jesus, help me recognize when I have wronged someone. Give me humility to confess, courage to apologize, and wisdom to make things right whenever I can. Thank You and praise You for Your mercy and forgiveness. Love You, thank You, praise You and give You all the honor and glory in Your Mighty Precious name Lord Jesus amen.
