5:8 But if the individual has no close relative15 to whom reparation can be made for the wrong, the reparation for the wrong must be paid to the Lord16 for the priest, in addition to the ram of atonement by which atonement is made for him.
sn For more information on the word, see A. R. Johnson, “The Primary Meaning of גאל,” VTSup 1 (1953): 67–77.
16
tc The editors of BHS prefer to follow the Greek, Syriac, and Latin and not read “for the Lord” here, but read a form of the verb “to be” instead. But the text makes more sense as it stands: The payment is to be made to the Lord for the benefit of the priests.