Posts Tagged ‘Clean and unclean’

December 1st, 2019 Daily Bible Study & Questions No Comments »

Leviticus 15:1-33 Discharges

God treats men and women equal here.

God doesn’t shy away from the intimate discussions. He dives right in. This time He addresses bodily discharges.

As a woman I’m VERY familiar with this word and also acquainted with the biblical customs surrounding it. The primary discharge God addresses with women is their monthly cycle. We were first introduced to the “untouchable” or “unclean” aspect of this bodily function when Rachel hid the household gods of Laban by saying she was in that time of month and the men would NOT touch her or search where she was sitting. God hadn’t marked this “unclean” at this point but man had.

God chose to address discharges in both sexes and he chose to do so with men first. As a woman I hadn’t heard of a “discharge” that men would have. At first I thought He was referring to bloody diarrhea and such but found out (through google of course) that men can have a “discharge” from their penis. I will save the medical reasons for one’s doctor but sexually transmitted diseases and urinary tract infections are two possible causes listed. Read more »

November 26th, 2019 Daily Bible Study & Questions No Comments »

Leviticus 14:33-57 Diseased House Cleaning

Definitely not something I want in MY house!

We continue with cleansing for leprosy but this time it is a house that has the disease. The first sacrifice for cleansing is the same.

God takes us through proclaiming a house clean or unclean first before He shares the end process. As with the leper, there is a waiting period to see if the disease actually progresses or if it is something benign.

EVERYTHING has to come out of the house before the priest does his work otherwise the family risks losing their possessions too. I have a feeling if any of the household items, including clothing, was affected it should be dealt with the same way. After emptying the house the family is made to wait seven days for the decision of the priest. This is better than the two weeks required for judging a leprous person. Read more »

November 24th, 2019 Daily Bible Study & Questions No Comments »

Leviticus 14:1-32 Leprosy Cleansing

Carrying the death of the other into the newly restored freedom.

We learned of the fate of one with leprosy last time. This time we see how they are to be cleaned of this disease.

We went into the story last time but we didn’t follow the cleansing through as well as it did the infection. We had our character, Mark, recover from his disease and be reunited with his family. We didn’t go into details what that reunion would have entailed. The reason for the “abbreviated version” was because I didn’t know what was called for because I hadn’t yet read today’s portion. If I had I would have seen all that was required and maybe done a better job at bringing our hero home.

Something that occurs to me about the cleansing of the leper is the cost one has to expend for his/her cleansing. God gave a less costly version but even that required quite a lot. This person has been living on the fringes of society the whole time they were showing the disease. NO ONE wanted to associate with them so how did they pay for their own needs, let alone save for the day they would be pronounced clean. Did the person’s family provide their sacrifice? I don’t see how they could have afforded it any other way. Read more »

November 22nd, 2019 Daily Bible Study & Questions, First Person Story No Comments »

Leviticus 13:1-59 Leprosy Laws

A loving Father protecting His children

On the issue of clean and unclean God moves on to the condition of leprosy. This condition was more than skin deep and was contagious.

First off, can I say I never knew clothing could be “leprous”? Apparently it can by our reading. I wonder if this is akin to mold or mildew that gets into fabrics. I could easily understand that. At one point I purchased some fabric from the store that had been in an area with flooding and I found mildew developing in it. It had damaged the fabric threads, not just the look of it. I brought this piece back to the store for a refund.

Ok. Let’s move on to people and the issue of leprosy. I’m wondering if skin diseases were a big problem that God felt it necessary to include it in His Law. Apparently everyone knew what it looked like because when Moses performed the sing with it the elders recognized it right away. I also wonder if what they termed as leprosy was the same thing we do. Today, we call leprosy Hansen’s Disease in honor of the doctor who found its cause; the microbe. It is also curable now. Read more »

November 20th, 2019 Daily Bible Study & Questions No Comments »

Leviticus 12:1-8 Birth Regulations

Welcome baby (2 years ago)! Big brother to the new sister soon to arrive. NOT how biblical families welcomed their new little ones.

We are continuing to learn God’s laws on clean and unclean situations and circumstances. Today’s reading focuses on childbirth.

I am VERY glad we are not subject to the Laws given to Moses. As a Gentile I wouldn’t be subject to them anyway but then neither would I be included in the Lord’s family. Instead we all are under His laws of grace. I’m using that grace a LOT lately as I struggle through this book of the bible. I DON’T enjoy going through these passages on dos and don’ts. I especially don’t like reading about how women in bible days were treated. I’m certain there was a reason for God’s decrees and I KNOW that He loved them as much as any man.

One thing I was thinking about when I was “meditating” on our reading was the difference in lifestyle that God’s Law required the mother take from how society handles this issue today. Also interesting are recent changes to the laws in the United States of America regarding this issue. I know other countries offer assistance or incentives to pregnant couples. Read more »