And whosoever toucheth her bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
Leviticus 15:21 belongs to the laws of cleansing given to ancient Israel in Leviticus 12-15. Touching her bed made a person ceremonially unclean, requiring washing of clothes and bathing in water, with uncleanness lasting until evening. The required separation for the rest of that day served a hygienic purpose against infectious disease, allowing air and sunshine to complete the disinfection while the person stayed apart from others.
Visible bodily uncleanness had to be removed as preparation before the deeper cleansing of the sanctuary by blood, since the sanctuary was defiled in a moral sense through human sin. The verse shows the exceeding sinfulness of sin and stands as one of the mighty object-lessons God gave in Leviticus, not merely dry legal detail. It must be read remembering that the sacrifices connected with these laws were types of Jesus Christ, with the slain beasts pointing forward to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, which gives the verse new life and makes it a blessing to the reader.
The cleansing laws are types of a cleansing work that applies to health reform, where obeying the laws of health helps prepare the body as a clean dwelling for God's Spirit. Falling away from such cleansing truths carries a warning illustrated by Israel's example.
Leviticus 15:21 belongs to the laws of cleansing given to ancient Israel in Leviticus 12-15. Touching her bed made a person ceremonially unclean, requiring washing of clothes and bathing in water, with uncleanness lasting until evening. The required separation for the rest of that day served a hygienic purpose against infectious disease, allowing air and sunshine to complete the disinfection while the person stayed apart from others.
Visible bodily uncleanness had to be removed as preparation before the deeper cleansing of the sanctuary by blood, since the sanctuary was defiled in a moral sense through human sin. The verse shows the exceeding sinfulness of sin and stands as one of the mighty object-lessons God gave in Leviticus, not merely dry legal detail. It must be read remembering that the sacrifices connected with these laws were types of Jesus Christ, with the slain beasts pointing forward to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, which gives the verse new life and makes it a blessing to the reader.
The cleansing laws are types of a cleansing work that applies to health reform, where obeying the laws of health helps prepare the body as a clean dwelling for God's Spirit. Falling away from such cleansing truths carries a warning illustrated by Israel's example.