sa.lach denotes the granting of pardon for sin or wrongdoing, whether requested or stated as an outcome.

The dominant use describes a speaker asking for, promising, granting, withholding, or declaring pardon in relation to sin, iniquity, rebellion, or wrongdoing. A second, common construction states that people or a congregation are forgiven following priestly atonement or an offering.

1. Granting or seeking pardon for wrongdoing · dominant

   Qal forms occur in direct appeals and declarations concerning guilt: in Numbers 14:19 the imperative asks for pardon for the people's iniquity, and in Numbers 14:20 the first-person perfect answers that request. In 1 Kings 8:50 the petition concerns a people who sinned and transgressed, while in Jeremiah 31:34 the first-person imperfect is followed by the statement that their sin will be remembered no more.

   Numbers 14:19Numbers 14:201 Kings 8:50Jeremiah 31:34Psalm 25:112 Kings 24:4
2. Being forgiven after atonement · common

   Niphal forms state the resulting status of the offender or group after the priest makes atonement. In Leviticus 4:26 the APB renders the sequence, “the priest shall make atonement for him for his sin, and he shall be forgiven,” and Numbers 15:26 extends that outcome to the congregation and the sojourner in an unintentional act.

   Leviticus 4:20Leviticus 4:26Leviticus 5:10Leviticus 19:22Numbers 15:25Numbers 15:26

In the Anselm Project Bible: The APB usually presents the relevant clauses with “forgive” or “forgiven”; in Numbers 14:19-20 it uses “pardon,” and in Jeremiah 33:8 it uses “pardon” alongside cleansing. These English choices confirm the clauses' overall presentation rather than define each form individually.