And every offering of all the holy things of the children of Israel,.... Of the holy sacrifices brought by them to be offered up; that part of them which is elevated, heaved, or waved, as the heave shoulder and wave breast:

which they bring unto the priest, shall be his; what they bring to him to offer for them shall be his who performs the service, even that part of them which is his due.

And every offering of all the {d} holy things of the children of Israel, which they bring unto the priest, shall be his.

(d) Or, things offered to the Lord, as first fruits, etc.

5:9 Unto the priest - To offer by his hands.

offering: or, heave offering

9, 10. every offering . shall be his-Whatever was given in this way, or otherwise, as by freewill offerings, irrevocably belonged to the priest.

5:1-10 The camp was to be cleansed. The purity of the church must be kept as carefully as the peace and order of it. Every polluted Israelite must be separated. The wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable. The greater profession of religion any house or family makes, the more they are obliged to put away iniquity far from them. If a man overreach or defraud his brother in any matter, it is a trespass against the Lord, who strictly charges and commands us to do justly. What is to be done when a man's awakened conscience charges him with guilt of this kind, though done long ago? He must confess his sin, confess it to God, confess it to his neighbour, and take shame to himself; though it go against him to own himself in a lie, yet he must do it. Satisfaction must be made for the offence done to God, as well as for the loss sustained by the neighbour; restitution in that case is not enough without faith and repentance. While that which is wrongly gotten is knowingly kept, the guilt remains on the conscience, and is not done away by sacrifice or offering, prayers or tears; for it is the same act of sin persisted in. This is the doctrine of right reason, and of the word of God. It detects hypocrites, and directs the tender conscience to proper conduct, which, springing from faith in Christ, will make way for inward peace.