The first two sections of Leviticus discussed the five sacrifices/offerings used in worship (Leviticus 1:1-7:38) and the consecration of priests, who assisted the people in worship (Leviticus 8:1-10:20). The third section (Leviticus 11:1-16:34) is a discussion of what was considered unclean (unacceptable to God) in worship. Unclean foods (Leviticus 11), uncleanness in childbirth (Leviticus 12), uncleanness in disease (Leviticus 13-14), uncleanness in human discharges (Leviticus 15), and cleansing of the tabernacle on the Day of Atonement (Leviticus 16) were the areas where guidelines were given by God to Moses. God defined uncleanness for the Israelites so that they could remain distinct from pagan nations surrounding them and be holy before Him (11:44-45). After establishing the difference between clean and unclean foods (Leviticus 11), the Lord spoke to Moses regarding the uncleanness of a mother following childbirth (Leviticus 12). Following the birth of a male child, the mother remained ceremonially unclean seven days (12:1-2) and then on the eighth day the newborn child was to be circumcised (12:3), which was the sign of God’s covenant with Abraham (Genesis 17:9-14). The mother would remain unclean 33 additional days after the circumcision, which was a total of 40 days that she would not be able to enter the sanctuary or touch sacred items (12:4). If the mother gave birth to a daughter she would be unclean for 80 days following the birth (12:5). It is not apparent why there was a longer time of uncleanness for the birth of a daughter. Whether the child born was a male or female, when the time her uncleanness expired she was to offer a burnt offering (Leviticus 1) and a sin offering (Leviticus 4:1-5:13) with the assistance of the priest (12:6). The priest would offer these sacrifices before the Lord and the new mother would be declared clean (12:7-8).
Leviticus 13 discusses the role of priests in diagnosing, treating, and cleansing skin diseases in worshipers. Although priests were not considered doctors, they did serve as the ones who helped prevent contagious diseases from spreading. Whenever a suspicious spot appeared on a person’s skin, he was to be brought to the priest who would examine the spot and determine whether the spot was a disease (13:1-2). If the spot was diseased, the priest would declare him unclean (13:3); however, if a diagnosis could not be made, the man would be isolated for seven days and then reexamined (13:4-8). Any spread of the spot to other areas would result in a diagnosis of a disease and the man or woman would become unclean (13:9-11). The word leprosy appearing throughout this passage is probably not only limited to the disease of leprosy, but also rashes, measles, smallpox, or scarlet fever. In some cases the body would turn white from the disease after a few weeks, but this meant that the skin was healing and he would be declared clean by the priest (13:12-17). Guidelines are also given concerning boils (13:18-23), burns (13:24-28), sores on the head or in the beard (13:29-37), and various other skin diseases (13:38-46). Attention was also given to the garments worn by those infected with contagious skin diseases, whether they were to be burned or washed (13:47-59).
Leviticus 14 discusses the cleansing ritual associated with healed lepers. The priest would meet the healed leper outside the camp and perform a purification ceremony on him (14:1-7). The one being purified was to wash their clothes, shave, and bathe before returning to camp where they would remain outside their tent for seven days (14:8). They would need to shave, wash their clothes, and bathe once again before being declared ceremonially clean (14:9). On the eighth day a trespass, sin, burnt, and grain offerings were to be made by the priest on behalf of the worshiper (14:10-20). Guidelines are also provided for those worshipers who may be too poor to offer the commanded sacrifices (14:21-32). The concluding thoughts in this section deal with handling a house which has been plagued with mildew (14:33-57). Why was the establishment of these guidelines important? Establishing these guidelines would not only prevent disease from spreading throughout the nation of Israel, but also serve as a tangible reminder that a person must be clean to worship God.
Dear God, may my heart be clean so that my worship will be acceptable in Your sight.
