1And Jehovah will speak to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 2Speak to the sons of Israel, and say to them, When a man, a man, there shall be a flowing from his flesh, his flowing unclean. 3And this shall be his uncleanness in his flowing: his flesh running with his flowing, or his flesh sealed up from his flowing, it is his uncleanness. 4Every bed which he flowing shall lie upon it, shall be unclean: and every vessel which he shall sit upon it, shall be unclean. 5And a man who shall touch upon his bed, shall cleanse his garments and shall wash in water, and be unclean till evening. 6And he sitting upon a vessel which he flowing, shall sit upon it, shall cleanse his garments, and wash in water, and shall be unclean till the evening. 7And he touching upon the flesh of him flowing, shall wash his garments, and wash in water, and shall be unclean till the evening. 8And if he flowing shall spit upon the clean; and he washed his garments, and washed in water, and was unclean till the evening. 9And every seat which he flowing shall ride upon it, shall be unclean. 10And every one touching upon any thing which shall be under him, shall be unclean till the evening: and he lifting up these things, shall wash his garments, and he washed in water, and was unclean till the evening. 11And every one which he flowing shall touch upon him (and washed not his hands in water), he washed his garments, and washed in water and was unclean till the evening. 12And the vessel of earthen which he flowing shall touch upon it, shall be broken: and every vessel of wood shall be washed in water. 13And when he flowing shall be cleansed from his flowing, and he numbered to him seven days for his cleansing, and he washed his garments and washed his flesh in living water, and was clean. 14And in the eighth day he shall take to him two turtle-doves, or two sons of the dove, and he came before Jehovah at the door of the tent of appointment, and he gave them to the priest. 15And the priest did them, one a sin and the one a burnt-offering; and the priest expiated for him before Jehovah from his flowing. 16And a man, when the effusion of seed shall go forth from him, and he washed in water all his flesh, and was unclean till the evening 17And every garment and every akin, which shall be upon it the effusion of seed, and it was washed in water, and was unclean till the evening. 18And a woman whom a man shall lie with her, with the effusion of seed, and they washed in water, and were unclean till the evening. 19And when a woman, shall be flowing, and her flowing shall be blood in her flesh, seven days shall she be in her uncleanness: and all touching upon her shall be unclean till the evening. 20And every thing which she shall lie upon it in her uncleanness, shall be unclean: and every thing which she shall sit upon it shall be unclean. 21And every one touching upon her bed shall wash his garments; and he washed in water and was unclean till the evening. 22And every one touching upon any vessel which she shall sit upon it, shall wash his garments, and he washed in water and was unclean till evening. 23And if it is upon the bed or upon the vessel which she sat upon it, in his touching upon it he shall be unclean till the evening. 24And if lying down a man shall lie with her and her uncleanness shall be upon him, and he was unclean seven days: and every bed which he shall lie upon, it shall be unclean. 25And when a woman shall flow a flowing of her blood many days out of the time of her uncleanness, or when she shall flow upon her uncleanness; all the days of the flowing from her uncleanness shall be as the days of her uncleanness: she shall be unclean. 26Every bed which she shall lie upon it all the days of her flowing, shall be to her as the bed of her uncleanness; and every vessel which she shall sit upon it shall be unclean, as the impurity of her uncleanness. 27And every one touching upon them shall be unclean, and he washed his garments, and washed in water, and was unclean till the evening. 28And if she was cleansed from her flowing, and she numbered to her seven days, and afterward she shall be clean. 29And in the eighth day she shall take to her two turtle-doves, or two sons of the dove, and she brought them to the priest to the door of the tent of appointment. 30And the priest did the one a sin, and the one a burnt-offering; and the priest expiated for her, before Jehovah, from the flowing of her uncleanness. 31And ye winnowed the sons of Israel from their uncleanness; and they shall not die in their uncleanness in defiling my dwelling which is in the midst of you. 32This the law of him flowing, and of whom the effusion of seed shall go forth from him, to be defiled in it: 33And of her being sick in her uncleanness, and of him flowing his flowing; for the male, and for the female, and for the man who shall lie with her being unclean.
Matthew Henry - Complete Commentary 1 We have here the law concerning the ceremonial uncleanness that was contracted by running issues in men. It is called in the margin (
Lev 15:2) the
running of the reins: a very grievous and loathsome disease, which was, usually the effect and consequent of wantonness and uncleanness, and a dissolute course of life, filling men's bones with the sins of their youth, and leaving them to mourn at the last, when all the pleasures of their wickedness have vanished, and nothing remains but the pain and anguish of a rotten carcase and a wounded conscience. And what fruit has the sinner then of those things whereof he has so much reason to be ashamed?
Roma 6:21. As modesty is
an ornament of grace to the head and chains about the neck, so chastity is
health to the navel and marrow to the bones; but uncleanness is a
wound and dishonour, the consumption of the flesh and the body, and a sin which is often its own punishment more than any other. It was also sometimes inflicted by the righteous hand of God for other sins, as appears by David's imprecation of a curse upon the family of Joab, for the murder of Abner.
2Sam 3:29,
Let there not fail from the house of Joab one that hath an issue, or is a leper. A vile disease for vile deserts. Now whoever had this disease upon him, 1. He was himself unclean,
Lev 15:2. He must not dare to come near the sanctuary, it was at his peril if he did, nor might he eat of the holy things. This signified the filthiness of sin, and of all the productions of our corrupt nature, which render us odious to God's holiness, and utterly unfit for communion with him. Out of a pure heart well kept are the issues of life (
Prov 4:23), but out of an unclean heart comes that which is defiling,
Matt 12:34,
Matt 12:35. 2. He made every person and thing unclean that he touched, or that touched him,
Lev 15:4-
Lev 15:12. His bed, and his chair, and his saddle, and every thing that belonged to him, could not be touched without a ceremonial uncleanness contracted, which a man must remain conscious to himself of till sunset, and from which he could not be cleansed without washing his clothes, and bathing his flesh in water. This signified the contagion of sin, the danger we are in of being polluted by conversing with those that are polluted, and the need we have with the utmost circumspection to
save ourselves from this untoward generation. 3. When he was cured of the disease, yet he could not be cleansed from the pollution without a sacrifice, for which he was to prepare himself by seven days' expectation after he was perfectly clear from his distemper, and by bathing in spring water,
Lev 15:13-
Lev 15:15. This signified the great gospel duties of faith and repentance, and the great gospel privileges of the application of Christ's blood to our souls for our justification and his grace for our sanctification. God has promised to sprinkle clean water upon us, and to cleanse us from all our filthiness, and has appointed us by repentance to wash and make ourselves clean: he has also provided a sacrifice of atonement, and requires us by faith to interest ourselves in that sacrifice; for it is
the blood of Christ his Son that cleanses us from all sin, and by which atonement is made for us, that we may have admission into God's presence and may partake of his favour.
19 This is concerning the ceremonial uncleanness which women lay under from their issues, both those that were regular and healthful, and according to the course of nature (
Lev 15:19-
Lev 15:24), and those that were unseasonable, excessive, and the disease of the body; such was the bloody issue of that poor woman who was suddenly cured by touching the hem of Christ's garment, after she had lain twelve years under her distemper, and had spent her estate upon physicians and physic in vain. This made the woman that was afflicted with it unclean (
Lev 15:25) and every thing she touched unclean,
Lev 15:26,
Lev 15:27. And if she was cured, and found by seven days' trial that she was perfectly free from her issue of blood, she was to be cleansed by the offering of two turtle-doves or two young pigeons, to make an atonement for her,
Lev 15:28,
Lev 15:29. All wicked courses, particularly idolatries, are compared to the uncleanness of a
removed woman (
Ezek 36:17), and, in allusion to this, it is said of Jerusalem (
Lam 1:9),
Her filthiness is in her skirts, so that (as it follows,
Lev 15:17) she was shunned as a menstruous woman.
I. The reasons given for all these laws (which we are ready to think might very well have been spared) we have,
Lev 15:31. 1.
Thus shall you separate the children of Israel (for to them only and their servants and proselytes these laws pertained)
from their uncleanness; that is, (1.) By these laws they were taught their privilege and honour, that they were
purified unto God a peculiar people, and were intended by the holy God for a kingdom of priests, a holy nation; for that was a defilement to them which was not so to others. (2.) They were also taught their duty, which was to preserve the honour of their purity, and to keep themselves from all sinful pollutions. It was easy for them to argue that if those pollutions which were natural, unavoidable, involuntary, their affliction and not their sin, rendered them for the time so odious that they were not fit for communion either with God or man, much more abominable and filthy were they if they sinned against the light and law of nature, by drunkenness, adultery, fraud, and the like sins, which defile the very mind and conscience. And, if these ceremonial pollutions could not be done away but by sacrifice and offering, something greater and much more valuable must be expected and depended upon for the purifying of the soul from the uncleanness of sin. 2. Thus their dying in their uncleanness by the hand of God's justice, if while they were under any of these defilements they should come near the sanctuary, would be prevented. Note, It is a dangerous thing to die in our uncleanness; and it is our own fault if we do, since we have not only fair warning given us, by God's law, against those things that will defile us, but also such gracious provision made by his gospel for our cleansing if at any time we be defiled. 3. In all these laws there seems to be a special regard had to the honour of the tabernacle, to which none must approach in their uncleanness, that they
defile not my tabernacle. Infinite Wisdom took this course to preserve in the minds of that careless people a continual dread of, and veneration for, the manifestations of God's glory and presence among them in his sanctuary. Now that the tabernacle of God was with men familiarity would be apt to breed contempt, and therefore the law made so many things of frequent incidence to be ceremonial pollutions, and to involve an incapacity of drawing near to the sanctuary (making death the penalty), that so they might not approach without great caution, and reverence, and serious preparation, and fear of being found unfit. Thus they were taught never to draw near to God but with an awful humble sense of their distance and danger, and an exact observance of every thing that was required in order to their safety and acceptance.
II. And what duty must we learn from all this? 1. Let us bless God that we are not under the yoke of these carnal ordinances, that, as nothing can destroy us, so nothing can defile us, but sin. Those may now partake of the Lord's supper who durst not then eat of the peace-offerings. And the defilement we contract by our sins of daily infirmity we may be cleansed from in secret by the renewed acts of repentance and faith, without bathing in water or bringing an offering to the door of the tabernacle. 2. Let us carefully abstain from all sin, as defiling to the conscience, and particularly from all fleshly lusts,
possessing our vessel in sanctification and honour, and not in the lusts of uncleanness, which not only pollute the soul, but
war against it, and threaten its ruin. 3. Let us all see how indispensably necessary real holiness is to our future happiness, and get our hearts purified by faith, that we may see God. Perhaps it is in allusion to these laws which forbade the unclean to approach the sanctuary that when it is asked,
Who shall stand in God's holy place? it is answered,
He that hath clean hands and a pure heart (
Pss 24:3,
Pss 24:4); for
without holiness no man shall see the Lord.