Then said Haggai, If [one that is] unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.
Then said {H559} Haggai {H2292}, If one that is unclean {H2931} by a dead body {H5315} touch {H5060} any of these, shall it be unclean {H2930}? And the priests {H3548} answered {H6030} and said {H559}, It shall be unclean {H2930}.
Then Hagai asked, "If someone who is unclean from having had contact with a corpse touches any of these [food items], will they become unclean?" The cohanim answered, "They become unclean."
So Haggai asked, “If one who is defiled by contact with a corpse touches any of these, does it become defiled?” “Yes, it becomes defiled,” the priests answered.
Then said Haggai, If one that is unclean by reason of a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean? And the priests answered and said, It shall be unclean.
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Numbers 19:11
¶ He that toucheth the dead body of any man shall be unclean seven days. -
Numbers 19:22
And whatsoever the unclean [person] toucheth shall be unclean; and the soul that toucheth [it] shall be unclean until even. -
Leviticus 22:4
What man soever of the seed of Aaron [is] a leper, or hath a running issue; he shall not eat of the holy things, until he be clean. And whoso toucheth any thing [that is] unclean [by] the dead, or a man whose seed goeth from him; -
Leviticus 22:6
The soul which hath touched any such shall be unclean until even, and shall not eat of the holy things, unless he wash his flesh with water. -
Numbers 9:6
And there were certain men, who were defiled by the dead body of a man, that they could not keep the passover on that day: and they came before Moses and before Aaron on that day: -
Numbers 9:10
Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If any man of you or of your posterity shall be unclean by reason of a dead body, or [be] in a journey afar off, yet he shall keep the passover unto the LORD. -
Numbers 5:2
Command the children of Israel, that they put out of the camp every leper, and every one that hath an issue, and whosoever is defiled by the dead:
Haggai 2:13 presents a crucial question posed by the prophet Haggai to the priests, dealing with the nature and spread of ritual impurity according to the Mosaic Law. It highlights how defilement, particularly from a dead body, contaminates whatever it touches.
Context
This verse is part of a series of questions Haggai asks the priests (Haggai 2:10-13) to illustrate a spiritual truth to the people of Judah. The prophet's ministry occurred after the Babylonian exile, urging the returned exiles to resume and complete the rebuilding of the Temple in Jerusalem. In the preceding verses (Haggai 2:11-12), Haggai established that holy objects do not transfer their holiness by touch. Here, he pivots to the opposite principle: the contagious nature of impurity. The specific defilement by a "dead body" refers to a significant source of ritual uncleanness under the Levitical law, as detailed in passages like Numbers 19:11-13.
Key Themes
Linguistic Insights
The Hebrew word for "unclean" is tame (טָמֵא), which denotes ritual impurity or defilement. The phrase "unclean by a dead body" (טָמֵא לָנֶפֶשׁ - tame lanephesh) specifically points to a state of ceremonial impurity caused by contact with a corpse, which was considered one of the most serious forms of defilement under the Old Covenant, requiring specific purification rituals.
Practical Application
Haggai's lesson on ritual purity holds profound spiritual implications for believers today. Just as physical defilement spreads, so too does sin. A little leaven can leaven the whole lump (Galatians 5:9). This verse reminds us of: