Old Testament · Law

Leviticus 15

Bodily Discharges

Laws about the body that feel uncomfortably specific. But the message is profound: nothing about human life is outside God's concern.

Berean Standard Bible BSB KJV

1And the LORD said to Moses and Aaron,

2“Say to the Israelites, ‘When any man has a bodily discharge, the discharge is unclean.

3This uncleanness is from his discharge, whether his body allows the discharge to flow or blocks it. So his discharge will bring about uncleanness.

4Any bed on which the man with the discharge lies will be unclean, and any furniture on which he sits will be unclean.

5Anyone who touches his bed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

6Whoever sits on furniture on which the man with the discharge was sitting must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

7Whoever touches the body of the man with a discharge must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

8If the man with the discharge spits on one who is clean, that person must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

9Any saddle on which the man with the discharge rides will be unclean.

10Whoever touches anything that was under him will be unclean until evening, and whoever carries such things must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

11If the man with the discharge touches anyone without first rinsing his hands with water, the one who was touched must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

12Any clay pot that the man with the discharge touches must be broken, and any wooden utensil must be rinsed with water.

13When the man has been cleansed from his discharge, he must count off seven days for his cleansing, wash his clothes, and bathe himself in fresh water, and he shall be clean.

14On the eighth day he is to take two turtledoves or two young pigeons, come before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, and give them to the priest.

15The priest is to sacrifice them, one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for the man before the LORD because of his discharge.

16When a man has an emission of semen, he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

17Any clothing or leather on which there is an emission of semen must be washed with water, and it will remain unclean until evening.

18If a man lies with a woman and there is an emission of semen, both must bathe with water, and they will remain unclean until evening.

19When a woman has a discharge consisting of blood from her body, she will be unclean due to her menstruation for seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean until evening.

20Anything on which she lies or sits during her menstruation will be unclean,

21and anyone who touches her bed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

22Whoever touches any furniture on which she was sitting must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

23And whether it is a bed or furniture on which she was sitting, whoever touches it will be unclean until evening.

24If a man lies with her and her menstrual flow touches him, he will be unclean for seven days, and any bed on which he lies will become unclean.

25When a woman has a discharge of her blood for many days at a time other than her menstrual period, or if it continues beyond her period, she will be unclean all the days of her unclean discharge, just as she is during the days of her menstruation.

26Any bed on which she lies or any furniture on which she sits during the days of her discharge will be unclean, like her bed during her menstrual period.

27Anyone who touches these things will be unclean; he must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.

28When a woman is cleansed of her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean.

29On the eighth day she is to take two turtledoves or two young pigeons and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.

30The priest is to sacrifice one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her before the LORD for her unclean discharge.

31You must keep the children of Israel separate from their uncleanness, so that they do not die by defiling My tabernacle, which is among them.

32This is the law of him who has a discharge, of the man who has an emission of semen whereby he is unclean,

33of a woman in her menstrual period, of any male or female who has a discharge, and of a man who lies with an unclean woman.’”

Understand This

Leviticus 15, explained

What Leviticus 15 is saying

Regulations address bodily discharges that cause ritual impurity: chronic male discharge, seminal emission, menstruation, and irregular female bleeding. Contact with affected persons or objects transmits impurity. Purification involves waiting periods and sacrificial offerings. The chapter concludes with the purpose statement: to keep Israel separate from their uncleanness, lest they die by defiling God's tabernacle.

The background behind it

These laws reflect the ancient association between bodily fluids (especially those connected to reproduction and life-force) and sacred boundaries. Similar purity concerns appear across ancient Near Eastern cultures, but Israel's system is uniquely oriented toward protecting the tabernacle's sanctity rather than warding off demons.

Themes running underneath

The purity laws surrounding reproduction connect the life-giving processes of the body to the holiness of God's dwelling. Impurity is not sin but a state incompatible with approaching the sanctuary. The symmetrical treatment of male and female discharges establishes gender parity in the purity system—both sexes experience bodily impurity and both follow analogous restoration processes.

Why it still matters

While the specific regulations are culturally distant, they teach that the body and its functions are not spiritually irrelevant. The system's purpose—protecting communion with God—reminds believers that physical existence and spiritual life are integrated.

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Scripture text: Berean Standard Bible — used by permission, Bible Hub.