Leviticus 15:23

Translation
King James Version
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.
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KJV (with Strong's)
And if it be on her bed H4904, or on any thing H3627 whereon she sitteth H3427, when he toucheth H5060 it, he shall be unclean H2930 until the even H6153.
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Complete Jewish Bible
Whether he is on the bed or on something she sits on, when he touches it, he will be unclean until evening.
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Berean Standard Bible
And whether it is a bed or furniture on which she was sitting, whoever touches it will be unclean until evening.
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American Standard Version
And if it be on the bed, or on anything whereon she sitteth, when he toucheth it, he shall be unclean until the even.
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World English Bible Messianic
If it is on the bed, or on anything whereon she sits, when he touches it, he shall be unclean until the evening.
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Geneva Bible (1599)
So that whether he touche her bed, or any thing whereon shee hath sit, he shalbe vncleane vnto the euen.
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Young's Literal Translation
`And if it is on the bed, or on the vessel on which she is sitting, in his coming against it, he is unclean till the evening.
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In the KJVVerse 3,192 of 31,102

Study This Verse

SUMMARY

Leviticus 15:23 is a precise regulation within the Mosaic Law, detailing the transmission of ritual impurity. It stipulates that if a person makes contact with a bed or any seating surface previously used by a menstruating woman, that person also becomes ritually unclean. This state of impurity lasts until sundown and necessitates a subsequent ritual purification, underscoring the pervasive nature of ceremonial defilement and the meticulous requirements for maintaining ritual purity within the Israelite community.

CONTEXT

  • Literary Context: Leviticus 15 is entirely dedicated to laws concerning various bodily discharges that render a person ritually unclean, emphasizing the distinction between the clean and the unclean necessary for a holy people to dwell in the presence of a holy God. The chapter begins with regulations for male discharges (vv. 1-18), then transitions to female discharges (vv. 19-30). Leviticus 15:19-24 specifically addresses the state of niddah, or menstruation, establishing the woman's impurity for seven days (v. 19). Verses 20-22 explain that anything she lies on or sits on during this period also becomes unclean. Leviticus 15:23, therefore, extends this principle, clarifying that any individual who subsequently touches these secondarily defiled objects also incurs impurity. The entire chapter culminates in a summary (vv. 31-33) that underscores the vital importance of these purity laws in preventing the defilement of the Tabernacle, God's sacred dwelling place among His people, thereby maintaining the sanctity of His presence.

  • Historical & Cultural Context: In ancient Israel, the concept of ritual purity was foundational to the covenant relationship with Yahweh, a holy God. These laws were not primarily about hygiene or moral sin, but about maintaining a state of ritual fitness essential for communal worship and for approaching God's holy presence. The Tabernacle, and later the Temple, symbolized God's dwelling, and its sanctity had to be meticulously protected from anything common or defiled. Unlike surrounding pagan cultures, which often associated bodily fluids with magical powers or fertility cults, Israel's purity laws distinguished them, emphasizing God's absolute holiness and the need for His people to live distinctly. The temporary nature of the impurity, often lasting "until the even" (sundown) and requiring a ritual washing, highlighted that these were transient states, not permanent defilement. This system served as a constant, tangible reminder of God's holiness and the meticulous care required to dwell in His presence, a theme woven throughout the entire book of Leviticus.

  • Key Themes: This verse contributes significantly to several key themes within Leviticus and the broader Pentateuch. Firstly, it powerfully reinforces the theme of God's Absolute Holiness and the necessity for His people to reflect that holiness in their daily lives. The pervasive nature of impurity, even through indirect contact, underscores the profound separation between the divine and the defiled. Secondly, it highlights the theme of Ritual Purity and Defilement, demonstrating how defilement is contagious and requires specific, divinely ordained processes for purification. This system served as a pedagogical tool, teaching Israel about the constant need for cleansing to approach a holy God. Thirdly, the laws, including this one, are integral to the theme of Maintaining the Sanctity of God's Dwelling Place. The ultimate purpose of these detailed regulations was to protect the Tabernacle from human impurity, ensuring that God could continue to dwell among His people without His holy presence being profaned, as explicitly stated in Leviticus 15:31.

EXPOSITION AND ANALYSIS

Key Word Analysis

  • Unclean (Hebrew, ṭâmêʼ, H2930): This term (H2930) denotes a state of ritual impurity, distinct from moral sin. A person or object designated as ṭâmêʼ was temporarily unfit for participation in sacred rituals or for contact with holy things. The impurity was contagious, as seen in this verse, and required specific purification rituals, often involving washing and waiting until sundown, to be removed. It signifies a state of ceremonial contamination, making one unsuitable for sacred interaction.
  • Toucheth (Hebrew, nâgaʻ, H5060): This verb (H5060) signifies direct physical contact. In the context of purity laws, nâgaʻ often denotes the transmission of impurity through physical touch, highlighting how ritual defilement could spread from person to object, and from object to person. This emphasizes the meticulous care required to adhere to the regulations and avoid accidental contamination.
  • Even (Hebrew, ʻereb, H6153): Referring to dusk or sundown (H6153), this phrase is crucial throughout Levitical purity laws. It signifies the end of a ritual day and the point at which, after prescribed washing, an unclean person could become clean again. This temporal limitation underscores the temporary and manageable nature of ritual impurity, distinguishing it from permanent defilement or sin and emphasizing God's provision for restoration.

Verse Breakdown

  • "And if it [be] on [her] bed": This clause specifies the first category of objects that become unclean through the primary contact with a menstruating woman. Her sleeping place or any bedding she uses is designated as a source of secondary impurity, meaning the woman's impurity is transferred to the object.
  • "or on any thing whereon she sitteth": This expands the scope of transferable impurity beyond the bed to include any seating surface—such as a chair, cushion, or mat—that the woman has used during her period of uncleanness. This demonstrates the broad reach of ritual defilement through contact.
  • "when he toucheth it": This defines the specific action that transmits the impurity from the secondarily defiled object to another person. Direct physical contact with the bed or seating surface that has been made unclean by the woman is the precise trigger for the other person's impurity.
  • "he shall be unclean until the even": This final clause states the consequence and duration of the impurity for the person who has touched the defiled object. Like the woman herself (Leviticus 15:19), the person who touches the object becomes ritually unclean, but only until sundown, at which point they would typically perform a ritual washing to regain cleanness.

Literary Devices

Leviticus 15:23, as an integral part of a larger legal code, primarily employs Legal Prescription, presenting a clear, concise, and prescriptive rule with specific conditions and consequences. The structure of the verse demonstrates a straightforward Cause and Effect relationship: contact with a contaminated object (cause) leads directly to a state of ritual impurity (effect). While not explicitly present in this single verse, the broader context of Leviticus 15 utilizes Repetition of phrases such as "unclean until the even" and the requirement for washing. This repetition serves to reinforce the temporary nature of impurity and the prescribed path to purification. Furthermore, the entire system of purity laws, including this verse, functions as Symbolism, where physical states of cleanness and uncleanness symbolize the profound distinction between God's absolute holiness and anything that is common or defiled, thereby preparing the people for a life of separation and consecration unto Him.

THEOLOGICAL AND THEMATIC CONNECTIONS

The meticulous detail of the purity laws in Leviticus, exemplified by this verse, profoundly underscores God's absolute holiness and His demand for a distinct, consecrated people. These regulations were not arbitrary but served as tangible reminders of the pervasive nature of defilement in a fallen world and the constant need for purification to dwell in the presence of a holy God. The temporary nature of the impurity, lasting "until the even," highlighted God's provision for restoration and His desire for His people to be able to re-enter a state of cleanness and fellowship. This system meticulously guarded the sanctity of the Tabernacle, preventing human impurity from defiling the sacred space where God condescended to dwell among His people, thereby impressing upon them the gravity of His presence and the seriousness of maintaining ritual and, by extension, spiritual purity.

REFLECTION AND APPLICATION

While New Covenant believers are no longer bound by the ceremonial purity laws of the Old Testament, the enduring spiritual principles embedded in Leviticus 15:23 remain profoundly relevant. This verse serves as a powerful reminder of God's unchanging holiness and the inherent separation between His perfect purity and anything defiled. For us, the focus shifts from physical ritual impurity to spiritual and moral defilement. Just as contact with a physically unclean object rendered one temporarily unfit for the Tabernacle, so too does sin—whether through our actions, thoughts, or associations—render us spiritually unfit for intimate fellowship with a holy God. This should cultivate a deep reverence for God and a fervent desire to live a life that honors Him, seeking spiritual cleansing when we fall short. It challenges us to critically examine what "touches" our lives—the influences, relationships, media, and habits—that might hinder our spiritual walk or introduce defilement into our hearts, thereby separating us from the vibrant communion God desires.

Questions for Reflection

  • How does understanding the meticulousness of God's purity laws in the Old Testament deepen your appreciation for His holiness and the seriousness of sin?
  • In what ways might we, as New Covenant believers, become "unclean" in a spiritual or moral sense today, and what is our pathway to cleansing and restoration?
  • Considering the principle of transmitted impurity, what "objects" or influences in your environment might be hindering your spiritual purity or drawing you away from God's presence?

FAQ

Was menstruation considered a sin in ancient Israel?

Answer: No, menstruation itself was not considered a sin. Leviticus 15:23 and the surrounding passages describe it as a natural, biological process that rendered a woman, and anything she touched, ritually unclean. This state of uncleanness was temporary, not punitive, and required specific rituals (like waiting "until the even" and washing) to restore ritual purity. The purpose of these laws was not to condemn natural bodily functions, but to establish a system of ritual separation that underscored God's absolute holiness and the need for His people to maintain a distinct, consecrated life, especially concerning their access to the sacred spaces of the Tabernacle (see Leviticus 15:31).

Why were these laws so detailed and seemingly harsh?

Answer: The detailed nature of these laws, including the transmission of impurity through contact with objects, served several critical purposes in ancient Israel. Firstly, they constantly reinforced the concept of God's absolute holiness and the pervasive nature of impurity in a fallen world. Secondly, they protected the sanctity of the Tabernacle, God's dwelling place among His people, from defilement. The laws were a tangible way for the Israelites to understand the constant need for purification to dwell in God's presence. While they may seem harsh to modern sensibilities, they were foundational to Israel's covenant relationship with God and their identity as a holy nation set apart from pagan practices that often blurred the lines between the sacred and the profane. The temporary nature of the impurity ("until the even") also demonstrated God's gracious provision for restoration and His desire for His people to be able to re-enter a state of cleanness and fellowship. These laws were a pedagogical tool, teaching Israel about the profound separation between a holy God and human sin and defilement, pointing forward to a more perfect cleansing.

CHRIST-CENTERED FULFILLMENT

The temporary impurity described in Leviticus 15:23, and indeed the entire system of Old Covenant purity laws, finds its ultimate and permanent fulfillment in Jesus Christ. The requirement for a person to be "unclean until the even" and then undergo ritual washing underscored humanity's inherent defilement and the inadequacy of temporary, external cleansing rituals to address the deeper problem of sin. Jesus, the perfect Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world, entered our defiled world not to become unclean by contact with sin, but to bear its full weight upon Himself. Unlike the Levitical system where contact with impurity defiled, Jesus' touch brought cleansing and healing to the unclean (e.g., His healing of the leper in Matthew 8:3 and the woman with the issue of blood in Luke 8:43-48). His shed blood on the cross provides a complete and eternal cleansing from all sin, making us truly clean before a holy God (as powerfully articulated in Hebrews 9:14 and 1 John 1:7). Through faith in Him, we are no longer temporarily clean, but permanently justified and sanctified, able to draw near to God with confidence, having been made perfectly clean by His perfect sacrifice (compare Hebrews 10:10 and Hebrews 10:14).

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Commentary on Leviticus 15 verses 19–33

This is concerning the ceremonial uncleanness which women lay under from their issues, both those that were regular and healthful, and according to the course of nature (Lev 15:19-24), and those that were unseasonable, excessive, and the disease of the body; such was the bloody issue of that poor woman who was suddenly cured by touching the hem of Christ's garment, after she had lain twelve years under her distemper, and had spent her estate upon physicians and physic in vain. This made the woman that was afflicted with it unclean (Lev 15:25) and every thing she touched unclean, Lev 15:26, Lev 15:27. And if she was cured, and found by seven days' trial that she was perfectly free from her issue of blood, she was to be cleansed by the offering of two turtle-doves or two young pigeons, to make an atonement for her, Lev 15:28, Lev 15:29. All wicked courses, particularly idolatries, are compared to the uncleanness of a removed woman (Eze 36:17), and, in allusion to this, it is said of Jerusalem (Lam 1:9), Her filthiness is in her skirts, so that (as it follows, Lev 15:17) she was shunned as a menstruous woman.

I. The reasons given for all these laws (which we are ready to think might very well have been spared) we have, Lev 15:31. 1. Thus shall you separate the children of Israel (for to them only and their servants and proselytes these laws pertained) from their uncleanness; that is, (1.) By these laws they were taught their privilege and honour, that they were purified unto God a peculiar people, and were intended by the holy God for a kingdom of priests, a holy nation; for that was a defilement to them which was not so to others. (2.) They were also taught their duty, which was to preserve the honour of their purity, and to keep themselves from all sinful pollutions. It was easy for them to argue that if those pollutions which were natural, unavoidable, involuntary, their affliction and not their sin, rendered them for the time so odious that they were not fit for communion either with God or man, much more abominable and filthy were they if they sinned against the light and law of nature, by drunkenness, adultery, fraud, and the like sins, which defile the very mind and conscience. And, if these ceremonial pollutions could not be done away but by sacrifice and offering, something greater and much more valuable must be expected and depended upon for the purifying of the soul from the uncleanness of sin. 2. Thus their dying in their uncleanness by the hand of God's justice, if while they were under any of these defilements they should come near the sanctuary, would be prevented. Note, It is a dangerous thing to die in our uncleanness; and it is our own fault if we do, since we have not only fair warning given us, by God's law, against those things that will defile us, but also such gracious provision made by his gospel for our cleansing if at any time we be defiled. 3. In all these laws there seems to be a special regard had to the honour of the tabernacle, to which none must approach in their uncleanness, that they defile not my tabernacle. Infinite Wisdom took this course to preserve in the minds of that careless people a continual dread of, and veneration for, the manifestations of God's glory and presence among them in his sanctuary. Now that the tabernacle of God was with men familiarity would be apt to breed contempt, and therefore the law made so many things of frequent incidence to be ceremonial pollutions, and to involve an incapacity of drawing near to the sanctuary (making death the penalty), that so they might not approach without great caution, and reverence, and serious preparation, and fear of being found unfit. Thus they were taught never to draw near to God but with an awful humble sense of their distance and danger, and an exact observance of every thing that was required in order to their safety and acceptance.

II. And what duty must we learn from all this? 1. Let us bless God that we are not under the yoke of these carnal ordinances, that, as nothing can destroy us, so nothing can defile us, but sin. Those may now partake of the Lord's supper who durst not then eat of the peace-offerings. And the defilement we contract by our sins of daily infirmity we may be cleansed from in secret by the renewed acts of repentance and faith, without bathing in water or bringing an offering to the door of the tabernacle. 2. Let us carefully abstain from all sin, as defiling to the conscience, and particularly from all fleshly lusts, possessing our vessel in sanctification and honour, and not in the lusts of uncleanness, which not only pollute the soul, but war against it, and threaten its ruin. 3. Let us all see how indispensably necessary real holiness is to our future happiness, and get our hearts purified by faith, that we may see God. Perhaps it is in allusion to these laws which forbade the unclean to approach the sanctuary that when it is asked, Who shall stand in God's holy place? it is answered, He that hath clean hands and a pure heart (Psa 24:3, Psa 24:4); for without holiness no man shall see the Lord.

Matthew Henry (1662–1714) — Commentary on the Whole Bible. This section covers verses 19–33. Public domain.
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Source: Quotations drawn from early Church Fathers and historical Christian theologians (AD 100–1500). Some quotes address the surrounding passage context rather than this verse alone.
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