its meaning. To this end we first survey the occurrences of the phrase in the priestly literature in general and then consider its meaning in this passage, Lev 10:17. The term עון basically means ‘iniquity’.35 But, being a dynamic concept and deep-rooted in Israelite Ganzheitsdenken, it expresses the iniquitous act and its consequence, or any combination of these ideas. Inevitably it must be translated ‘iniquity’, ‘guilt’, or ‘punishment’, according to the context. For convenience’s sake we adopt