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Leviticus 15
The Voice
Leviticus 15
The Voice
15 The Eternal One spoke to Moses and Aaron.
Eternal One: 2 Go, talk with the Israelites, and tell them that if a man has any sort of a discharge from his body, the discharge renders him impure.
This is the general principle: a bodily discharge produces a state of ritual impurity for both men and women. As we see in this chapter, some of these discharges are abnormal and caused by active infections or diseases. When this is the case, healing is required. But some discharges are actually normal. For example, a woman’s period is normal, but there are conditions that cause her to bleed at odd times or too much. Again, in such cases, healing is required.
Eternal One: 3 A man’s discharge makes him impure regardless of whether his body allows it to flow out of him or blocks its flow altogether. 4 If the person with the discharge lies down in a bed or sits down on a couch, it becomes impure. 5-6 Any person who has contact with that bed or that couch must wash his clothes and bathe in water. He will remain impure until dusk. 7 Any person who touches the discharging man must wash his or her clothes and bathe in water. He will remain impure until dusk. 8 If the discharging man spits on a person who is ritually clean, then that person must wash his garments and bathe in water. He will remain impure until dusk. 9 If the discharging man rides on a saddle, the riding saddle will be impure as well. 10 Therefore, if anyone touches any of the items that were under the discharging man, then that person will be impure until dusk. Whoever picks up and carries any of these items must wash his clothes and bathe in water. He will remain impure until dusk. 11 If the discharging man does not wash his hands and touches another person, then that person must wash his clothes and bathe in water. He will remain impure until dusk. 12 If the discharging man touches a clay cup, then it must be shattered; but a wooden cup shall be washed with water.
The impurity of the clay is because it has penetrated the vessel, but the wood is saved because it is less porous.
13 Once the discharging man is healed, he must wait seven days to make sure the ailment doesn’t return before his ritual cleansing. He will wash his clothes and bathe in running water so that he can be ritually pure again. 14 On the eighth day, he is to bring two turtledoves or young pigeons into My presence and hand them to the priest at the entrance of the congregation tent. 15 The priest will present the birds—one of them as a purification offering for sin and the other as a burnt offering. The priest will come before Me and cover the impurity of the man with a discharge.
16 If a man ejaculates, then he must bathe his whole body with water and remain impure until dusk. 17 If an item of clothing or leather is touched by semen, then it must be cleaned thoroughly with water and will remain impure until dusk. 18 If a man ejaculates while lying with a woman, then both must bathe with water and remain impure until dusk.
The impurity referred to in these verses has to do with ceremonial and ritual practices such as making sacrifices, going to festivals, or receiving a revelation. Men, like women, have times when they become ritually impure. For men it happens whenever they have an ejaculation. For women it happens whenever they have their period. It’s important to note that these bodily functions are normal and natural, not sinful or evil. The ancients knew the power of such events for making them one with their wives and ultimately creating life. Through these bodily fluids men and women become partners with God in creating other humans who are made in the image and likeness of God. Such power cannot and must not be taken lightly.
Eternal One: 19 When a woman has her menstrual period and discharges her blood, she must stay in a state of her menstrual impurity for seven days. Any person who touches her will be impure until dusk. 20 Anything she lies down upon or sits down on during her menstruation will be impure, 21-23 and any person who touches her bed or her cushion or anything else she sits on must wash his clothes and bathe in water. He will remain impure until dusk. 24 If a man has sexual relations with a woman during her menstrual period and her menstrual blood gets on him, he will be impure for seven days, and any bed he lies down upon will be impure as well.
25 If a woman discharges blood for several days beyond her menstrual period or outside of it, then she will treat those days as if she were having her menstrual period and will be impure. 26 Treat every bed she lies down upon during her irregular discharge like the bed she lies down upon while she is in her menstrual period. Anything she sits down upon will be considered impure just as it is when she is menstruating. 27 By the same token, any person who touches the items she touches will be impure and must wash his clothes and bathe in water and remain impure until dusk. 28 When the woman’s discharge stops, she will wait seven days before she is ritually cleansed. 29 On the eighth day, she will bring two turtledoves or young pigeons and present them to the priest at the entrance of the congregation tent. 30 The priest will present one as a purification offering for sin and the other as a burnt offering. The priest will come before Me and cover the impurity of the woman with a discharge.
31 This is how you are to separate and deal with the people of Israel during those times when they are ritually impure, so that they will not die from their impurity by defiling My sanctuary that stands among them.
32 These are the instructions for what to do when someone has a discharge of any kind; and for the man who has become impure from his ejaculation, 33 for the woman who is not well from her menstrual period, for any man or woman who has a discharge, and for the man who has sexual relations with a ritually impure woman.
Leviticus 15
New International Version
Leviticus 15
New International Version
Discharges Causing Uncleanness
15 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2 “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When any man has an unusual bodily discharge,(A) such a discharge is unclean. 3 Whether it continues flowing from his body or is blocked, it will make him unclean. This is how his discharge will bring about uncleanness:
4 “‘Any bed the man with a discharge lies on will be unclean, and anything he sits on will be unclean. 5 Anyone who touches his bed must wash their clothes(B) and bathe with water,(C) and they will be unclean till evening.(D) 6 Whoever sits on anything that the man with a discharge sat on must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
7 “‘Whoever touches the man(E) who has a discharge(F) must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
8 “‘If the man with the discharge spits(G) on anyone who is clean, they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
9 “‘Everything the man sits on when riding will be unclean, 10 and whoever touches any of the things that were under him will be unclean till evening; whoever picks up those things(H) must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
11 “‘Anyone the man with a discharge touches without rinsing his hands with water must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
12 “‘A clay pot(I) that the man touches must be broken, and any wooden article(J) is to be rinsed with water.
13 “‘When a man is cleansed from his discharge, he is to count off seven days(K) for his ceremonial cleansing; he must wash his clothes and bathe himself with fresh water, and he will be clean.(L) 14 On the eighth day he must take two doves or two young pigeons(M) and come before the Lord to the entrance to the tent of meeting and give them to the priest. 15 The priest is to sacrifice them, the one for a sin offering[a](N) and the other for a burnt offering.(O) In this way he will make atonement before the Lord for the man because of his discharge.(P)
16 “‘When a man has an emission of semen,(Q) he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean till evening.(R) 17 Any clothing or leather that has semen on it must be washed with water, and it will be unclean till evening. 18 When a man has sexual relations with a woman and there is an emission of semen,(S) both of them must bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
19 “‘When a woman has her regular flow of blood, the impurity of her monthly period(T) will last seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean till evening.
20 “‘Anything she lies on during her period will be unclean, and anything she sits on will be unclean. 21 Anyone who touches her bed will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.(U) 22 Anyone who touches anything she sits on will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening. 23 Whether it is the bed or anything she was sitting on, when anyone touches it, they will be unclean till evening.
24 “‘If a man has sexual relations with her and her monthly flow(V) touches him, he will be unclean for seven days; any bed he lies on will be unclean.
25 “‘When a woman has a discharge of blood for many days at a time other than her monthly period(W) or has a discharge that continues beyond her period, she will be unclean as long as she has the discharge, just as in the days of her period. 26 Any bed she lies on while her discharge continues will be unclean, as is her bed during her monthly period, and anything she sits on will be unclean, as during her period. 27 Anyone who touches them will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.
28 “‘When she is cleansed from her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean. 29 On the eighth day she must take two doves or two young pigeons(X) and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. 30 The priest is to sacrifice one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way he will make atonement for her before the Lord for the uncleanness of her discharge.(Y)
31 “‘You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in their uncleanness for defiling my dwelling place,[b](Z) which is among them.’”
32 These are the regulations for a man with a discharge, for anyone made unclean by an emission of semen,(AA) 33 for a woman in her monthly period, for a man or a woman with a discharge, and for a man who has sexual relations with a woman who is ceremonially unclean.(AB)
Footnotes
- Leviticus 15:15 Or purification offering; also in verse 30
- Leviticus 15:31 Or my tabernacle
Leviticus 15
King James Version
Leviticus 15
King James Version
15 And the Lord spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying,
2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When any man hath a running issue out of his flesh, because of his issue he is unclean.
3 And this shall be his uncleanness in his issue: whether his flesh run with his issue, or his flesh be stopped from his issue, it is his uncleanness.
4 Every bed, whereon he lieth that hath the issue, is unclean: and every thing, whereon he sitteth, shall be unclean.
5 And whosoever toucheth his bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
6 And he that sitteth on any thing whereon he sat that hath the issue shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
7 And he that toucheth the flesh of him that hath the issue shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
8 And if he that hath the issue spit upon him that is clean; then he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
9 And what saddle soever he rideth upon that hath the issue shall be unclean.
10 And whosoever toucheth any thing that was under him shall be unclean until the even: and he that beareth any of those things shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
11 And whomsoever he toucheth that hath the issue, and hath not rinsed his hands in water, he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
12 And the vessel of earth, that he toucheth which hath the issue, shall be broken: and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
13 And when he that hath an issue is cleansed of his issue; then he shall number to himself seven days for his cleansing, and wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in running water, and shall be clean.
14 And on the eighth day he shall take to him two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, and come before the Lord unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and give them unto the priest:
15 And the priest shall offer them, the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him before the Lord for his issue.
16 And if any man's seed of copulation go out from him, then he shall wash all his flesh in water, and be unclean until the even.
17 And every garment, and every skin, whereon is the seed of copulation, shall be washed with water, and be unclean until the even.
18 The woman also with whom man shall lie with seed of copulation, they shall both bathe themselves in water, and be unclean until the even.
19 And if a woman have an issue, and her issue in her flesh be blood, she shall be put apart seven days: and whosoever toucheth her shall be unclean until the even.
20 And every thing that she lieth upon in her separation shall be unclean: every thing also that she sitteth upon shall be unclean.
21 And whosoever toucheth her bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
22 And whosoever toucheth any thing that she sat upon shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
23 And if it be on her bed, or on any thing whereon she sitteth, when he toucheth it, he shall be unclean until the even.
24 And if any man lie with her at all, and her flowers be upon him, he shall be unclean seven days; and all the bed whereon he lieth shall be unclean.
25 And if a woman have an issue of her blood many days out of the time of her separation, or if it run beyond the time of her separation; all the days of the issue of her uncleanness shall be as the days of her separation: she shall be unclean.
26 Every bed whereon she lieth all the days of her issue shall be unto her as the bed of her separation: and whatsoever she sitteth upon shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her separation.
27 And whosoever toucheth those things shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
28 But if she be cleansed of her issue, then she shall number to herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean.
29 And on the eighth day she shall take unto her two turtles, or two young pigeons, and bring them unto the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
30 And the priest shall offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for her before the Lord for the issue of her uncleanness.
31 Thus shall ye separate the children of Israel from their uncleanness; that they die not in their uncleanness, when they defile my tabernacle that is among them.
32 This is the law of him that hath an issue, and of him whose seed goeth from him, and is defiled therewith;
33 And of her that is sick of her flowers, and of him that hath an issue, of the man, and of the woman, and of him that lieth with her that is unclean.
The Voice (VOICE)
The Voice Bible Copyright © 2012 Thomas Nelson, Inc. The Voice™ translation © 2012 Ecclesia Bible Society All rights reserved.
New International Version (NIV) 
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NIV Reverse Interlinear Bible: English to Hebrew and English to Greek. Copyright © 2019 by Zondervan.