The Arithmetic of Atonement: Making Sin Costly Again Text: Numbers 5:5-10
Introduction: Cheap Grace and Weightless Sin
We live in an age that has mastered the art of the cheap apology. Our public square is littered with the debris of consequence-free confessions. A politician gets caught, sheds a tear for the camera, says he takes "full responsibility," and then goes right on his way. A celebrity tweets something foolish, issues a press release drafted by a publicist, and we are all supposed to move on. In the church, we have not been immune to this. We have developed a therapeutic understanding of forgiveness that is often detached from the biblical requirement of repentance. And a central, non-negotiable component of biblical repentance is the principle of restitution.
Our modern gospel often presents a forgiveness that is spiritually ethereal and materially inert. We want our sins forgiven in heaven, but we are not so keen on seeing them made right on earth. We treat sin like a bad thought, an unfortunate feeling, or a minor misstep that can be corrected with a simple "I'm sorry." But the Bible treats sin as a debt. It is an act of cosmic treason against God and, very often, a tangible act of theft or damage against our neighbor. It creates a real deficit. It breaks things. And God, in His wisdom, has decreed that what has been broken must, as much as possible, be repaired. What has been stolen must be paid back, and then some.
This passage in Numbers is a bucket of cold, clear water thrown on the face of our sentimental age. It is a detailed, practical, and demanding piece of case law that shows us the tangible nature of both sin and forgiveness. It teaches us that true repentance has hands and feet. It doesn't just feel sorry; it gets out a checkbook. It doesn't just confess; it makes amends. This is not about earning salvation. The ram of atonement is central, as we will see. This is about demonstrating the reality of our repentance. It is about making sin costly again, not so we can pay our way to God, but so we can understand the gravity of what Christ paid for on our behalf.
In a world drowning in cheap grace, this text is a life raft of glorious, objective reality. It shows us that God's holiness is not an abstract concept; it has direct implications for how we handle our finances, our property, and our relationships. God is interested in justice, not just in the courtroom, but in every transaction between men. Let us therefore attend to His Word.
The Text
Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, "Speak to the sons of Israel, 'When a man or woman commits any of the sins of mankind, acting unfaithfully against Yahweh, and that person is guilty, then he shall confess his sins which he has committed, and he shall make restitution in full for his wrong and add to it one-fifth of it and give it to him whom he has wronged. But if the man has no kinsman redeemer to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution which is made for the wrong must go to Yahweh for the priest, besides the ram of atonement, by which atonement is made for him. Also every contribution pertaining to all the holy gifts of the sons of Israel, which they bring near to the priest, shall be his. So every man’s holy gifts shall be his; whatever any man gives to the priest, it becomes his.’"
(Numbers 5:5-10 LSB)
The Horizontal and Vertical Dimensions of Sin (v. 5-6)
We begin with the Lord's instruction to Moses.
"Then Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying, 'Speak to the sons of Israel, ‘When a man or woman commits any of the sins of mankind, acting unfaithfully against Yahweh, and that person is guilty...'" (Numbers 5:5-6 LSB)
The first thing to notice is the dual nature of the offense. The sin is described as one of the "sins of mankind," meaning a sin committed by one person against another. This is a horizontal crime. You stole your neighbor's goat, you defrauded him in a business deal, you damaged his property. But the text immediately defines this horizontal crime in vertical terms: it is an act of "acting unfaithfully against Yahweh."
This is a foundational biblical principle that our therapeutic culture has completely forgotten. All sin is ultimately against God. When David committed adultery with Bathsheba and had her husband Uriah murdered, he had sinned grievously against them both. But in his great prayer of repentance, what did he say? "Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight" (Psalm 51:4). This was not David ignoring his sin against Bathsheba and Uriah. It was him recognizing the ultimate reality. To wrong a man made in God's image is to defy the God whose image he bears. To steal from a neighbor is to steal from the one who is God's steward of that property. There are no private sins. Every sin, no matter how small or secret, is an act of cosmic rebellion. It is a breach of covenant, an act of treachery against our Sovereign Lord.
This understanding protects us from two errors. First, it prevents us from trivializing sin. Cheating on your taxes is not just a squabble with the government; it is unfaithfulness to Yahweh. Slandering a brother is not just a personal disagreement; it is unfaithfulness to Yahweh. Second, it shows why only God can ultimately forgive sin. The state can pardon a crime, and the person you wronged can forgive you, but only God can forgive the ultimate offense, the treason against His throne.
Confession Plus Twenty Percent (v. 7)
Once guilt is established, the path to restoration has two mandatory steps.
"then he shall confess his sins which he has committed, and he shall make restitution in full for his wrong and add to it one-fifth of it and give it to him whom he has wronged." (Numbers 5:7 LSB)
First comes confession. This is not a vague feeling of remorse. It is a formal, specific acknowledgment of the sin. You must say what you did. This verbal act aligns you with God's verdict on your actions. God says it was theft; you must agree and say, "I stole." God says it was deceit; you must say, "I deceived." To confess is to say the same thing about the sin that God says about it. This is the death of all our excuse-making, our victim-playing, and our self-justification.
But confession alone is just hot air. It is cheap talk. The proof of genuine confession is the second step: restitution. And notice the math. It is not enough to simply give back what was taken. The offender must "make restitution in full... and add to it one-fifth of it." He must pay back 120 percent. This is the biblical shape of an apology.
Why the extra twenty percent? This is not arbitrary. It serves several crucial functions. First, it compensates the victim not just for the thing stolen, but for the trouble caused. It accounts for the disruption, the anxiety, and the loss of use. Second, it acts as a deterrent. Sin must be made unprofitable. If the penalty for theft is simply returning the item, a thief has nothing to lose by trying. But if he knows he will have to pay it back with a hefty penalty, he will think twice. Third, and most importantly, it demonstrates the sincerity of the repentance. It gives feet to the confession. It proves that the offender understands he has caused real damage and is willing to bear a real cost to make it right. This is what Zacchaeus understood when he met Jesus. He didn't just apologize for his extortion; he pledged to pay back fourfold, going far beyond the legal requirement (Luke 19:8).
When There Is No One to Pay (v. 8)
The law then anticipates a practical problem: what if the victim is dead or cannot be found, and has no family to receive the payment?
"But if the man has no kinsman redeemer to whom restitution may be made for the wrong, the restitution which is made for the wrong must go to Yahweh for the priest, besides the ram of atonement, by which atonement is made for him." (Numbers 5:8 LSB)
This is a brilliant provision. The debt of sin does not simply vanish if the victim is unavailable. The obligation remains. Why? Because while the sin was against the man, it was ultimately an act of unfaithfulness against Yahweh. Therefore, if the human victim cannot be compensated, the debt reverts to the ultimate victim: God Himself. The payment is made "to Yahweh for the priest." The priest, as God's representative, receives the restitution on God's behalf.
This ensures that no sin is ever a "victimless crime." There is always an account to be settled. It also establishes a foundational principle of church finance. The church, as the house of God, becomes the recipient of such debts. This is the biblical basis for the church being able to receive funds from those who have acquired them unjustly and now wish to repent, but cannot locate the one they defrauded. The debt is real, and it must be paid. If it cannot be paid horizontally, it must be paid vertically.
But notice the crucial qualifier: this restitution is "besides the ram of atonement." Making things right with your neighbor is not what makes you right with God. The 120 percent payment does not atone for sin. The blood of the ram does. Restitution is the fruit of repentance, not the root of it. Atonement is accomplished by sacrifice alone. This keeps us from the error of works-righteousness. We do not pay our way back to God. Our standing before God is secured only by the substitutionary sacrifice He provides. For us, that sacrifice is not a ram, but the Lamb of God, Jesus Christ. Our good works of restitution are the necessary evidence that we have truly received His grace, not the means by which we earn it.
God's Ministers and God's Portion (v. 9-10)
The passage concludes by broadening the principle to all holy gifts.
"Also every contribution pertaining to all the holy gifts of the sons of Israel, which they bring near to the priest, shall be his. So every man’s holy gifts shall be his; whatever any man gives to the priest, it becomes his.’" (Numbers 5:9-10 LSB)
This reinforces the previous point and expands upon it. The priest, as God's designated minister, is the steward of the things given to God. Whether it is a restitution payment, a tithe, or a special contribution, what is given to the Lord through the priest belongs to the priest. This establishes the legitimacy of a professional, full-time ministry, supported by the gifts of God's people. The Levites and priests did not have a territorial inheritance like the other tribes; their inheritance was the Lord Himself, and the tithes and offerings of the people were the tangible expression of that inheritance (Numbers 18:20-21).
This is not a throwaway administrative detail. It is a statement about God's established order. God has ordained that His work in the world be supported by His people. When you give your tithe or offering to the church, you are not just paying the electric bill or the pastor's salary. You are presenting a holy gift to Yahweh. And what is given to Him, He in turn gives to His servants for the work of the ministry. This sanctifies the entire process. It makes giving an act of worship and receiving a sacred trust.
The Gospel Arithmetic
How does this Old Testament case law apply to us, who live under the New Covenant? It applies in every way, because the principles are eternal. The gospel does not abolish restitution; it fulfills and empowers it.
First, we must recognize that we are all guilty offenders. We have all "acted unfaithfully against Yahweh." And our debt is not something we can repay, not even with a twenty percent penalty. We have committed cosmic treason, and the wages of that sin is death (Romans 6:23). We stand before God as debtors with an infinite liability, and we are utterly bankrupt.
Into this hopeless situation comes our Kinsman Redeemer, Jesus Christ. He is our near kinsman, having taken on our flesh and blood. He saw our plight, and He had what was required to pay our debt. He went to the cross and made "restitution in full." But He did more than that. He didn't just bring us back to zero. He paid our debt and then lavished upon us the infinite riches of His own righteousness. He paid the 100 percent, and the twenty percent, and infinitely more. This is the great exchange of the gospel.
And what about the ram of atonement? The author of Hebrews tells us that the blood of bulls and goats could never truly take away sin (Hebrews 10:4). They were shadows, pointers to the one true sacrifice. Jesus is our great High Priest and He is also the Ram of Atonement. He offered Himself, once for all, to make perfect atonement for our sins.
Therefore, our acts of confession and restitution are not the desperate attempts of debtors to pay God back. They are the joyful, grateful responses of those whose debts have been cancelled in full. When we confess our sins to one another, we are not trying to earn forgiveness; we are living in the forgiveness already purchased for us. When we make restitution to those we have wronged, we are not trying to balance the scales of justice; we are demonstrating that the justice and mercy of God have transformed our hearts. We pay back the 120 percent not because we have to, but because we get to. We get to show the world a tangible picture of the gospel. We get to show that the grace we have received is not cheap, but costly, and that it changes everything, right down to our bank accounts.