דברי הימים ב, פרק כ״ט, פסוק כ״ד

The ceremony of offering sacrifices stands as a powerful national moment of atonement and purification, designed to cleanse the people from severe public failures. The king gave a clear command that these sacrifices must be offered on behalf of the entire nation. This broad need for national forgiveness arose because the whole population had fallen into the sin of idolatry [רש״י].

The purification process involved the standard practice for a sin offering, where blood was applied with a finger to the altar [מצודת דוד, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. Specifically, the blood had to be placed on the four horns of the altar. Because the nation was seeking forgiveness for a public sin committed out of oversight, the blood was also sprinkled to purify the golden altar [מלבי״ם]. The animals brought for this ceremony were divided into two distinct categories. The bulls, rams, and sheep were dedicated as burnt offerings, while the male goats were given as sin offerings [מצודת דוד].

However, the sheer number of animals brought for this ceremony presents a challenge. Under normal Torah law, a sin committed by the entire community requires the offering of a single bull. In this event, seven bulls, seven rams, and seven male goats were brought forward. To explain this difference, the commentators point out that this specific ceremony did not follow the standard, permanent law. Instead, it was a special, temporary ruling enacted exclusively for that unique moment in time [רש״י, חומת אנך].