Numbers 28:22

Summary

The verse specifies the offering of one male goat as a sin offering, with the stated purpose of making atonement for the community. The Hebrew syntax links the animal, its sacrificial category, and the ritual purpose in a compact construct chain followed by a purpose clause.

Key words

• se'ir ("a male goat of", H8163B) — masculine singular noun in construct state, meaning it grammatically depends on the following word to form the phrase "goat of a sin offering."
• chatat ("a sin offering", H2403H) — feminine singular noun; here it functions as the category to which the goat belongs, completing the construct chain begun by se'ir.
• 'echad ("one", H0259) — cardinal number, feminine singular, specifying the exact quantity of the offering as a single animal.
• le.khaper ("to make atonement", H3722A) — piel infinitive construct with the preposition le ("to"); the piel stem intensifies the verbal action, and the infinitive form expresses purpose — "in order to atone."
• 'aleikhem ("on you", H5921A + H9036) — preposition 'al ("on/for") with second-person masculine plural suffix, indicating the beneficiaries of the atonement.

What the text says

The verse opens with the conjunction u ("and", H9002), linking it to a preceding list of offerings. The core phrase se'ir chatat 'echad forms a construct chain: se'ir ("male goat of") is grammatically bound to chatat ("sin offering"), producing the sense "a male goat of [the category] sin offering." The numeral 'echad ("one") modifies this whole phrase, fixing the quantity at a single animal rather than describing the goat's uniqueness in any other sense.

The second half of the verse, le.khaper 'aleikhem, expresses purpose through the infinitive construct khaper preceded by the preposition le. The piel stem of the root H3722A carries an intensive or effective nuance, often associated with ritual action producing a result — here, atonement. The preposition 'al ("on/for") plus the suffix -khem ("you," masculine plural) identifies the addressees as the object toward whom the atoning action is directed. The grammatical structure places the identification of the offering first, then states its function, mirroring a common pattern in the sacrificial instructions of this chapter.

Differences between versions

The LXX renders se'ir ("male goat of") as chimairan ex aigōn ("a female goat from goats"), specifying the animal differently from the Hebrew, which does not specify gender via a separate term for "goats" as a source. The Vulgate uses hircum ("male goat"), aligning more closely with the Hebrew's masculine term. The LXX's ἐξιλάσασθαι and the Vulgate's expietur both render the piel infinitive khaper, though the Vulgate uses a passive subjunctive ("that it may be atoned") where the Hebrew infinitive construction does not mark voice in the same way.