במדבר, פרק ה׳, פסוק ח׳

When a person steals, swears falsely to deny the crime, and later feels remorse, the path to repentance requires confessing the sin and returning the stolen property. However, a unique situation arises if the victim has passed away and leaves behind no legal heirs or close relatives to reclaim the wealth [ביאור שטיינזלץ, רש ר הירש, העמק דבר]. Because every born Jew has at least some distant relative tracing back through the generations to Jacob, a scenario involving an absolute lack of heirs can only occur if the victim was a convert to Judaism [רש״י, תורה תמימה, שפתי חכמים, מזרחי, רש ר הירש, משכיל לדוד, מלבי״ם]. This rule applies whether the deceased victim was a man or a woman [תורה תמימה, צפנת פענח, מלבי״ם]. It does not, however, apply to minors, as they cannot legally take an oath regarding a financial claim [תורה תמימה, מלבי״ם].

The required restitution consists of two distinct parts: the original principal amount that was stolen, and an additional fifth of the value, which the thief is legally obligated to pay as a penalty [רש״י, תורה תמימה, רש ר הירש, מלבי״ם]. Since the original owner is gone and has no family, the property reverts to the original owner of the entire world, God [ספורנו]. Furthermore, God is considered the protective father of the convert [חזקוני]. Driven by reverence for Heaven, the repentant thief directs the restitution to Him [אבן עזרא, חזקוני]. Because this returned wealth is legally categorized alongside sacred offerings, it is subject to strict rules similar to those governing sacrifices: the payment must be made during the day rather than at night, and the funds cannot be paid in partial installments, but must be returned in their entirety [תורה תמימה, רש ר הירש, מלבי״ם].

God acquires the returned property and then transfers it as a divine gift to the priests, facilitating the sinner's cleansing from guilt [רש״י, גור אריה, מזרחי, ביאור שטיינזלץ]. The thief does not simply hand the funds to any random priest. Instead, the money is divided equally among the specific group of priests serving their designated shift in the Temple during that week [תורה תמימה, שפתי חכמים, רלב״ג, רש ר הירש, העמק דבר, מלבי״ם, משכיל לדוד]. The priests must treat each case individually; they are not permitted to pool or offset the recovered funds from different converts against one another, but must divide each returned theft separately and equally [תורה תמימה, רש ר הירש].

Handing over the financial restitution to the priests does not absolve the thief from the spiritual requirement of bringing a guilt offering ram [רש״י, רשב״ם, שפתי חכמים, מזרחי, גור אריה, משכיל לדוד]. A profound connection exists between the financial return and the animal sacrifice. The specific priest who facilitates the spiritual atonement through the sacrifice is the very same one who receives the monetary restitution [רלב״ג, רש ר הירש, מלבי״ם]. Finally, a strict sequence of actions is required for true atonement: the thief must first complete the financial restitution by giving the money to the priest, and only after making amends for the theft can he proceed to offer the ram for his spiritual cleansing [תורה תמימה, רש ר הירש, מלבי״ם].