Leviticus 15:1-33

Leviticus

*Worship the *LORD in the Beauty of *Holiness

Leviticus

Gordon Churchyard

This commentary has been through Advanced Checking.

Words in boxes are from the Bible, except for the words in brackets (…).

Chapter 15

Section 4: Liquids from the body that make people *unclean, 15:1-33

v1 The *LORD said (this) to Moses and to Aaron.

v2 ‘Speak to the *Israelites. Say (this) to them. “If a liquid comes from a man’s body, (the liquid) is *unclean.

v3 (The liquid) may continue to flow from his body or it may stop. In both cases, it will make him *unclean. This is how the liquid will make him *unclean.

v4 Any bed that the sick man lies on will be *unclean. Anything that he sits on will be *unclean.

v5 Anyone who touches his bed must wash his clothes. He must also bathe in water. He will be *unclean until the evening.

v6 Someone may sit on something that the sick man has sat on. He, too, must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. He also will be *unclean until the evening.

v7 Someone may touch the sick man. He, too, must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. He also will be *unclean until the evening.

v8 The sick man may *spit on someone who is *clean. The (*clean) person must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. He will be *unclean until the evening.

v9 The (sick) man may sit on (something) when he is riding. Everything (that he sits on) will be *unclean.

v10 Also, someone may touch the things that were under (the sick) man. That person also will be *unclean until the evening. Someone may pick up these things. He must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. He will also be *unclean until the evening.

v11 The (sick) man may touch somebody before he washes his hands. That person must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. He also will be *unclean until the evening.

v12 If the (sick) man touches a *clay pot, then (someone) must break the pot. (If he touches) something wooden, then wash it with water.

v13 When the (sick) man is well again after his illness, he must wait for 7 days. Then he can become *clean again for the purposes of his religion. The man must wash his clothes and he must bathe himself in fresh water. Then he will be *clean.

v14 On the 8^th day, he must bring two *doves or two young *pigeons to the *LORD. (He must bring them) to the entrance of the *meeting tent and he must give them to the priest.

v15 The priest must kill them. One is for a *sin offering and the other one is for a *whole offering. So (the priest) will make *atonement in front of the *LORD for the man who was sick.

v16 *Semen may come out of a man. Then, he must bathe his *whole body with water. He will be *unclean until the evening.

v17 He must wash, in water, any clothing or leather that has *semen on it. It will be *unclean until the evening.

v18 A man may lie with a woman and *semen will come out from him. Then both (man and woman) must bathe in water. They will be *unclean until the evening.

v19 A woman’s blood flows regularly (every month). Her monthly *period will make her *unclean for 7 days. Also, anybody who touches her will be *unclean until the evening.

v20 Anything that she lies on during her *period will be *unclean. Also, anything that she sits on will be *unclean.

v21 Someone may touch her bed. That person must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. He will be *unclean until the evening.

v22 Someone may touch what she sits on. He, too, must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. He also will be *unclean until the evening.

v23 It does not matter (what it is). It may be her bed, or anything that she sits on. If anyone touches it, he will be *unclean until the evening.

v24 A man may lie with her during her monthly *period. If anything from her touches him, he will be *unclean for 7 days. Also, any bed that he lies on will be *unclean.

v25 A woman’s blood may flow for many days. This may not be during her monthly *period. Or, her (blood) may continue to flow beyond her monthly *period. She will then be *unclean for as long as the blood flows. This is like when she has her *period.

v26 Any bed that she lies on during (this time) will be *unclean. (This is the time) while her blood continues to flow. This is what happens to her bed during her monthly periods. Also, anything that she sits on (during this time) will be *unclean. (This is what happens) during her monthly periods.

v27 And anybody who touches these things will also be *unclean. He must wash his clothes and he must bathe in water. But he will be *unclean until the evening.

v28 When the woman is well again after her illness, she must wait 7 days. Then she will be *clean for her religion.

v29 On the 8^th day, she must bring two *doves or two young *pigeons to the priest. (He will be) at the entrance of the *meeting tent.

v30 The priest must offer one (bird) for a *sin offering and the other (bird) for a *whole offering. So, he will make *atonement for her in front of the *LORD. This is because her illness made her *unclean.

v31 You must separate the *Israelites from things that will make them *unclean. Then they will not die because they are *unclean. *Unclean people spoil my house, which is among them.” ’

v32 These are the rules for any man with a *discharge. Or (they are the rules) for anyone who is *unclean because of *semen.

v33 Also, (they are the rules) for a woman during her monthly *period, or for a man or a woman with a *discharge. (They are also the rules) for a man who lies with an *unclean woman.

Notes

This chapter is about *unclean substances that come from the human body. Verses 2-15 are about a *discharge from a man’s body because of illness. Verses 25-30 are about blood that flows from a woman’s body because of illness. Verses 16-24 are about substances that come from a healthy man’s or woman’s body. All these things are about the parts of the body that people use during sex. And they all make a person *unclean.

Many things surrounded the *Israelites that would make them *unclean. We have studied such things in previous Chapter s. But in this chapter, the *unclean substances come from inside a person. They even come from a healthy person’s body. And some of these substances are very *unclean. They can even make a person *unclean if that person just touches someone else’s bed or chair.

Many Bible students think that God is still teaching lessons about *sin in this chapter. Jesus too taught that *sin comes from inside a person (Mark 7:14-23). Of course, he was not talking about *unclean substances. He was speaking about the evil thoughts and wrong desires that cause people to do wicked things. And he taught that this was the real lesson to learn from the rules about *unclean things.

Verses 2-3 Bible students are not sure what the liquid is. It is not the liquid that we wash down the toilet. The *Hebrew word means ‘*discharge’. This is ‘a liquid that comes out’. The *Hebrew word seems to be referring to a sticky liquid. It may be one of these liquids.

• Some Bible students think that it is *semen. This normally comes from a man during sex. Probably verses 2-15 are not about *semen. Verses 16-18 are about *semen.

• Other Bible students think that the man has a sex disease. Perhaps it is a disease that we call gonorrhoea. R.K. Harrison argues this in his book about Leviticus. There are many other similar diseases.

*Unclean does not mean dirty here; although clearly, such a *discharge is not a clean thing. The word ‘*unclean’ means that the man cannot go to God’s house. The *unclean man can still pray; and he must still obey God’s law. But he cannot *worship with God’s people.

Verses 4-12 This translation has ‘sick man’ for ‘the man with a *discharge’. This is because he probably has a disease like gonorrhoea. People *spit when they send a liquid out of their mouths. ‘That person’ in verses 10 and 11 is not the sick man. It is the person that touches the sick man’s things (verse 10). Or, it is the person whom the sick man touches (verse 11). *Clay is a type of earth that people use to make pots.

Verses 13-15 These are the rules that make someone *clean again. First, he must wash his clothes and himself, verse 13. Then he must bring two birds, either *pigeons or *doves. The priest will offer them to the *LORD. Then the man will be *clean. He can go to God’s house. He will not be separate from God’s people any longer.

Verses 16-18 The *semen may come out from a man without an illness. For example, *semen sometimes comes from a man’s body while he is asleep. Or it may happen when he lies with a woman. ‘Lie with’ here means ‘has sex with’. *Semen is the liquid that comes out from a man during sex. Of course, it is not wrong for these things to happen. It is not wrong for a married man to have sex with his wife. And after *semen has come from a man’s body in these circumstances, the man does not offer *doves or *pigeons. Bible students are not sure why sex after marriage makes people *unclean until the evening. There were similar rules for a soldier if *semen came from his body during the night. He could not go back to his army until the next evening, Deuteronomy 23:10-11.

Verses 19-24 Every month until a woman is too old to have children, she has a ‘*period’. This is the time when blood and other material comes out from her body. The *Hebrew language says, ‘her blood flows’. This makes her, and people who touch her, *unclean. As in verses 16-18, they need not offer *doves or *pigeons. They only need to wash their clothes and bodies.

Verses 25-30 These are rules for a woman that has a disease of some kind. It is not her monthly *period. When she becomes well again, she must give *sacrifices. Like the man in verses 13-15, she brings two birds to the priest. He offers them as a *sin offering and a *whole offering. Then the woman is clean again.

Verse 31 When people were *unclean, they had to separate themselves. They could not join in with public *worship. They had to stay away from God’s house. They even had to do these things if nobody else knew about the matter.

If they did not separate themselves, this was a very serious matter. It would make God’s house *unclean.

Paul too warned people who want to eat the bread or to drink the wine at church (1 Corinthians 11:27-31). They must not do this if there is *sin in their lives. *Israelites had to examine themselves before they went to God’s house. They had to make sure that they were *clean. And Christians must examine themselves before they take the bread and wine. They must be free from *sin – not by their own efforts, but because Jesus died for them.

Something to do

1. Read the story of David and Bathsheba, 2 Samuel Chapter s 11-12. Note especially 11:8-11 and compare it with Leviticus 15:18 and Deuteronomy 23:9-11 and 1 Samuel 21:5.

2. Read Mark 5:25-34. Compare it with Leviticus 15:25-27 and Leviticus 15:7. This woman should not have touched anyone. But when she touched Jesus, she became well!

worship ~ to praise someone (usually God). You tell him that you believe him to be very, very great. Also, you love him and you will obey him.
LORD ~ a special name for God. In the Hebrew Bible it translates YHWH. YHWH probably means ‘he is always alive’. So the word LORD (which means ‘master’) is not a proper translation.

Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke.

Jews ~ another word for the Israelites.

Israelites ~ the LORD’s people whom Moses led out of Egypt. Afterwards, they lived in the countries called Judah and Israel.

Judah ~ the name of the southern part of the country where the Jews went to live.

Israel ~ the name of the country where the Jews went to live, especially the northern part of that country.
holiness ~ the quality of somebody who is holy, or very, very good.

holy ~ very, very good; only God is really holy. Or, a description of something that belongs to God.
unclean ~ unsuitable for God or for God’s people. When someone was unclean, that person was unable to worship at God’s house.

worship ~ to praise someone (usually God). You tell him that you believe him to be very, very great. Also, you love him and you will obey him.
Israelites ~ the LORD’s people whom Moses led out of Egypt. Afterwards, they lived in the countries called Judah and Israel.

LORD ~ a special name for God. In the Hebrew Bible it translates YHWH. YHWH probably means ‘he is always alive’. So the word LORD (which means ‘master’) is not a proper translation.

Judah ~ the name of the southern part of the country where the Jews went to live.

Israel ~ the name of the country where the Jews went to live, especially the northern part of that country.

Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke.

Jews ~ another word for the Israelites.
spit ~ to send liquid out of the mouth.
clean ~ suitable for God or for God’s people. A clean person could go to God’s house to worship him.

worship ~ to praise someone (usually God). You tell him that you believe him to be very, very great. Also, you love him and you will obey him.
clay ~ a type of earth that people use to make pots.
dove ~ a type of bird that has a gentle character.
pigeon ~ a type of bird which has a gentle character.'meeting tent ~ the special tent where God met with Moses. The priests could enter it to worship; they burnt sacrifices on the altar in front of it.

worship ~ to praise someone (usually God). You tell him that you believe him to be very, very great. Also, you love him and you will obey him.

sacrifice ~ something that people burned on an altar for God; or to burn on an altar for God. People also gave sacrifices to false gods.

altar ~ a special table where the priests burned incense, grain and animals.

incense ~ a material that gives a good smell when people burn it.
sin ~ to do wrong things; not to obey God’s rules. Or, the things we do when we sin. Evil thoughts, words and deeds are all sin, whether we do them on purpose or not.'whole offering ~ an offering that the priests burned completely on the altar. See the explanation in the note called ‘The 5 sacrifices’ near the beginning of this commentary.

offering ~ gift.

altar ~ a special table where the priests burned incense, grain and animals.

sacrifice ~ something that people burned on an altar for God; or to burn on an altar for God. People also gave sacrifices to false gods.

incense ~ a material that gives a good smell when people burn it.
atonement ~ another word for what happens when God forgives us. After God forgives us, we are ‘at one’ with him. In other words, we are united as friends (or have friendly relations) with him.
semen ~ the liquid that comes out of a man during sex.
semen ~ the liquid that comes out of a man during sex.
period ~ when women lose blood once a month.
unclean ~ unsuitable for God or for God’s people. When someone was unclean, that person was unable to worship at God’s house.

worship ~ to praise someone (usually God). You tell him that you believe him to be very, very great. Also, you love him and you will obey him.
discharge ~ a liquid that comes out of the body.
Hebrew ~ the language that the Jews spoke.

Jews ~ another word for the Israelites.

Israelites ~ the LORD’s people whom Moses led out of Egypt. Afterwards, they lived in the countries called Judah and Israel.

LORD ~ a special name for God. In the Hebrew Bible it translates YHWH. YHWH probably means ‘he is always alive’. So the word LORD (which means ‘master’) is not a proper translation.

Judah ~ the name of the southern part of the country where the Jews went to live.

Israel ~ the name of the country where the Jews went to live, especially the northern part of that country.
worship ~ to praise someone (usually God). You tell him that you believe him to be very, very great. Also, you love him and you will obey him.
clay ~ a type of earth that people use to make pots.
sacrifice ~ something that people burned on an altar for God; or to burn on an altar for God. People also gave sacrifices to false gods.

altar ~ a special table where the priests burned incense, grain and animals.

incense ~ a material that gives a good smell when people burn it.