The Hebrew noun asham means guilt or the state of moral/legal culpability. In the sacrificial system, it also designates the guilt offering (asham) — a specific sacrifice required for trespasses against holy things, violations of sworn oaths, and certain sins of commission or omission. It appears approximately 46 times in the Old Testament.
The asham is distinguished from the chatat (sin offering) in that it specifically addresses sins with measurable damage — theft, fraud, misappropriation of holy property, and violations of trust. The guilt offering required not only a sacrifice but also full restitution plus 20% (Leviticus 6:5), making it unique in its demand for both vertical reconciliation (with God) and horizontal restitution (with the wronged party). Most powerfully, Isaiah 53:10 uses asham to describe the Servant of the LORD: 'If he makes himself a guilt offering (asham), he will see his offspring and prolong his days.' This is one of the most precise messianic prophecies in the Old Testament — pointing to Christ not merely as a sin offering but as the ultimate guilt offering who pays the full debt of human trespass and makes complete restitution to God.