Numbers 5:6

Any sin that men commit, Heb. any sins of men, i.e. either,

1. Of common infirmity, or such sins as men commit through human frailty; for if this were done knowingly and willingly, a greater punishment was appointed. See Leviticus 6:5,6. Or rather,

2. Sins against men, or belonging to men, to wit, deceits or wrongs, whereby other men are injured, of which he manifestly speaks, as appears from Numbers 5:7,8; so this is a genitive case of the object, as Matthew 12:31, blasphemy of the Spirit (for so it is in the Greek) is blasphemy against the Holy Ghost, as it is called Mark 3:29 Luke 12:10; and power of all flesh, 1 Thessalonians 17:2, is power over all flesh; and power of spirits, Matthew 10:1, is power over or against spirits, Luke 9:1; and prayer of God, Luke 6:12, is prayer directed unto God; and the spoil of the poor, Isaiah 3:14, is the spoil taken from the poor; and violence of the children of Judah, Joel 3:19, is violence against them, as we translate it. To do a trespass against the Lord; which words may be added, either,

1. To express a new sin, of prevaricating or dealing falsely with God, either by a false oath, which is a special injury to God, or by a lie or simple denial that he hath taken any thing of his neighbour s, which also God takes as a sin especially concerning himself, who in such cases is the only judge of what is falsely said or sworn. See Acts 5:3,4. Or,

2. To aggravate the former sin, and to show that such injuries done to men are also sins against God. who hath commended justice to men as well as religion to himself. But the former is more probable, both because here is a ram of atonement to be offered to God for the special injury clone to him, as well as satisfaction is to be made to the man whom he injured; and especially by comparing this with the parallel place, Leviticus 6:2, &c. And that person be guilty, i.e. shall be sensible of his guilt, or be convicted in his conscience of his sin; for otherwise this might seem a mere tautology, if it were only meant of being really guilty of sin, which was expressed before in those words, when one shall commit any sin, i.e. be guilty of any sin.