Leviticus 5:2-3

5:2 Or when there is ¹  a person who touches anything ceremonially ²  unclean, whether the carcass of an unclean wild animal, or the carcass of an unclean domesticated animal, or the carcass of an unclean creeping thing, even if he did not realize it, ³  but he himself has become unclean and is guilty; ⁴  5:3 or when he touches human uncleanness with regard to anything by which he can become unclean, ⁵  even if he did not realize it, but he himself has later come to know it and is guilty;

Leviticus 11:26-27

Inedible Land Quadrupeds

11:26 “‘All ⁶  animals that divide the hoof but it is not completely split in two ⁷  and do not chew the cud ⁸  are unclean to you; anyone who touches them becomes unclean. ⁹  11:27 All that walk on their paws among all the creatures that walk on all fours ¹⁰  are unclean to you. Anyone who touches their carcass will be unclean until the evening,

Leviticus 11:45

11:45 for I am the Lord who brought you up from the land of Egypt to be your God, ¹¹  and you are to be holy because I am holy.

Leviticus 11:47

11:47 to distinguish between the unclean and the clean, between the living creatures that may be eaten and the living creatures that must not be eaten.’”

Leviticus 15:5-33

15:5 Anyone who touches his bed ¹²  must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. ¹³  15:6 The one who sits on the furniture the man with a discharge sits on must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:7 The one who touches the body ¹⁴  of the man with a discharge must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:8 If the man with a discharge spits on a person who is ceremonially clean, ¹⁵  that person must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:9 Any means of riding ¹⁶  the man with a discharge rides on will be unclean. 15:10 Anyone who touches anything that was under him ¹⁷  will be unclean until evening, and the one who carries those items ¹⁸  must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:11 Anyone whom the man with the discharge touches without having rinsed his hands in water ¹⁹  must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:12 A clay vessel ²⁰  which the man with the discharge touches must be broken, and any wooden utensil must be rinsed in water.

Purity Regulations for Male Bodily Discharges

15:13 “‘When the man with the discharge becomes clean from his discharge he is to count off for himself seven days for his purification, and he must wash his clothes, bathe in fresh water, ²¹  and be clean. 15:14 Then on the eighth day he is to take for himself two turtledoves or two young pigeons, ²²  and he is to present himself ²³  before the Lord at the entrance of the Meeting Tent and give them to the priest, 15:15 and the priest is to make one of them a sin offering ²⁴  and the other a burnt offering. ²⁵  So the priest ²⁶  is to make atonement for him before the Lord for ²⁷  his discharge.

15:16 “‘When a man has a seminal emission, ²⁸  he must bathe his whole body in water ²⁹  and be unclean until evening, 15:17 and he must wash in water any clothing or leather that has semen on it, and it will be unclean until evening. 15:18 When a man has sexual intercourse with a woman and there is a seminal emission, ³⁰  they must bathe in water and be unclean until evening.

Female Bodily Discharges

15:19 “‘When a woman has a discharge ³¹  and her discharge is blood from her body, ³²  she is to be in her menstruation ³³  seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean until evening. 15:20 Anything she lies on during her menstruation will be unclean, and anything she sits on will be unclean. 15:21 Anyone who touches her bed must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:22 Anyone who touches any furniture she sits on must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. 15:23 If there is something on the bed or on the furniture she sits on, ³⁴  when he touches it ³⁵  he will be unclean until evening, 15:24 and if a man actually has sexual intercourse with her so that her menstrual impurity touches him, ³⁶  then he will be unclean seven days and any bed he lies on will be unclean.

15:25 “‘When a woman’s discharge of blood flows ³⁷  many days not at the time of her menstruation, or if it flows beyond the time of her menstruation, ³⁸  all the days of her discharge of impurity will be like the days of her menstruation – she is unclean. 15:26 Any bed she lies on all the days of her discharge will be to her like the bed of her menstruation, any furniture she sits on will be unclean like the impurity of her menstruation, 15:27 and anyone who touches them will be unclean, and he must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. ³⁹ 

Purity Regulations from Female Bodily Discharges

15:28 “‘If ⁴⁰  she becomes clean from her discharge, then she is to count off for herself seven days, and afterward she will be clean. 15:29 Then on the eighth day she must take for herself two turtledoves or two young pigeons ⁴¹  and she must bring them to the priest at the entrance of the Meeting Tent, 15:30 and the priest is to make one a sin offering and the other a burnt offering. ⁴²  So the priest ⁴³  is to make atonement for her before the Lord from her discharge of impurity.

Summary of Purification Regulations for Bodily Discharges

15:31 “‘Thus you ⁴⁴  are to set the Israelites apart from their impurity so that they ⁴⁵  do not die in their impurity by defiling my tabernacle which is in their midst. 15:32 This is the law of the one with a discharge: the one who has a seminal emission ⁴⁶  and becomes unclean by it, ⁴⁷  15:33 the one who is sick in her menstruation, the one with a discharge, whether male or female, ⁴⁸  and a man ⁴⁹  who has sexual intercourse with an unclean woman.’”

Ezekiel 44:23

44:23 Moreover, they will teach my people the difference between the holy and the common, and show them how to distinguish between the ceremonially unclean and the clean. ⁵⁰ 

Haggai 2:13-14

2:13 Then Haggai asked, “If a person who is ritually unclean because of touching a dead body ⁵¹  comes in contact with one of these items, will it become unclean?” The priests answered, “It will be unclean.”

2:14 Then Haggai responded, “‘The people of this nation are unclean in my sight,’ ⁵²  says the Lord. ‘And so is all their effort; everything they offer is also unclean. ⁵³ 

Acts 10:14

10:14 But Peter said, “Certainly not, Lord, for I have never eaten anything defiled and ritually unclean!” ⁵⁴ 

Acts 10:28

10:28 He said to them, “You know that ⁵⁵  it is unlawful ⁵⁶  for a Jew ⁵⁷  to associate with or visit a Gentile, ⁵⁸  yet God has shown me that I should call no person ⁵⁹  defiled or ritually unclean. ⁶⁰ 

Romans 14:14

14:14 I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that there is nothing unclean in itself; still, it is unclean to the one who considers it unclean.

Ephesians 5:11

5:11 Do not participate in the unfruitful deeds of darkness, but rather ⁶¹  expose them. ⁶² 

Ephesians 5:1

Live in Love

5:1 Therefore, be ⁶³  imitators of God as dearly loved children

Ephesians 1:14-16

1:14 who is the down payment ⁶⁴  of our inheritance, until the redemption of God’s own possession, ⁶⁵  to the praise of his glory.

Prayer for Wisdom and Revelation

1:15 For this reason, ⁶⁶  because I ⁶⁷  have heard ⁶⁸  of your faith in the Lord Jesus and your love ⁶⁹  for all the saints, 1:16 I do not cease to give thanks for you when I remember you ⁷⁰  in my prayers.

Ephesians 2:5

2:5 even though we were dead in transgressions, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you are saved! ⁷¹  –

Ephesians 2:11

New Life Corporately

2:11 Therefore remember that formerly you, the Gentiles in the flesh – who are called “uncircumcision” by the so-called “circumcision” that is performed on the body ⁷²  by human hands –

[5:2]  ¹ tc The insertion of the words “when there is” is a reflection of the few Hebrew mss, Smr, and LXX that have כִּי (ki, “when, if”; cf. vv. 3 and esp. 4) rather than the MT’s אֲשֶׁר (’asher, “who”). Many English versions render this as a conditional clause (“if”).

[5:2]  ² tn The word “ceremonially” has been supplied in the translation to clarify that the uncleanness involved is ritual or ceremonial in nature.

[5:2]  ³ tn Heb “and it is hidden from him,” meaning that the person who contracted the ceremonial uncleanness was not aware at the time what had happened, but later found out that he had become ceremonially unclean. This same phrase occurs again in both vv. 3 and 4.

[5:2]  ⁴ sn Lev 5:2-3 are parallel laws of uncleanness (contracted from animals and people, respectively), and both seem to assume that the contraction of uncleanness was originally unknown to the person (vv. 2 and 3) but became known to him or her at a later time (v. 3; i.e., “has come to know” in v. 3 is to be assumed for v. 2 as well). Uncleanness itself did not make a person “guilty” unless he or she failed to handle it according to the normal purification regulations (see, e.g., “wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean till evening,” Lev 15:5 NIV; cf. Lev 11:39-40; 15:5-12, 16-24; Num 19, etc.). The problem here in Lev 5:2-3 is that, because the person had not been aware of his or her uncleanness, he or she had incurred guilt for not carrying out these regular procedures, and it would now be too late for that. Thus, the unclean person needs to bring a sin offering to atone for the contamination caused by his or her neglect of the purity regulations.

[5:3]  ⁵ tn Heb “or if he touches uncleanness of mankind to any of his uncleanness which he becomes unclean in it.”

[11:26]  ⁶ tn Heb “to all” (cf. the note on v. 24). This and the following verses develop more fully the categories of uncleanness set forth in principle in vv. 24-25.

[11:26]  ⁷ tn Heb “divides hoof and cleft it does not cleave”; KJV “divideth the hoof, and is not clovenfooted”; NLT “divided but unsplit hooves.”

[11:26]  ⁸ tn See the note on Lev 11:3.

[11:26]  ⁹ sn Compare the regulations in Lev 11:2-8.

[11:27]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “the one walking on four.” Compare Lev 11:20-23.

[11:45]  ¹¹ tn Heb “to be to you for a God.”

[15:5]  ¹² tn Heb “And a man who touches in his bed”; NLT “touch the man’s bedding.”

[15:5]  ¹³ tn Heb “he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until the evening” (cf. also vv. 6-8, 10-11, etc.).

[15:7]  ¹⁴ tn Heb “And the one who touches in the flesh.” In this instance, “flesh” (or “body”) probably refers literally to any part of the body, not the genitals specifically (see the discussion in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:914).

[15:8]  ¹⁵ tn Heb “And if the man with a discharge spits in the clean one.”

[15:9]  ¹⁶ tn The Hebrew term for “means of riding” is a cognate noun from the verb “ride” later in this verse. It refers to anything on which one may ride without the feet touching the ground including, for example, a saddle, a (saddle) blanket, or a seat on a chariot (see, e.g., J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:916).

[15:10]  ¹⁷ tn Heb “which shall be under him.” The verb is perhaps a future perfect, “which shall have been.”

[15:10]  ¹⁸ tn Heb “them”; the referent (the previously mentioned items which were under the unclean person) has been specified in the translation for clarity.

[15:11]  ¹⁹ tn Heb “And all who the man with the discharge touches in him and his hands he has not rinsed in water.”

[15:12]  ²⁰ tn The Hebrew term כְּלִי (kÿli) can mean “vessel” (v. 12a) or “utensil, implement, article” (v. 12b). An article of clay would refer to a vessel or container of some sort, while one made of wood would refer to some kind of tool or instrument.

[15:13]  ²¹ tn For the expression “fresh water” see the note on Lev 14:5 above.

[15:14]  ²² tn Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10).

[15:14]  ²³ tc The MT has the Qal form of the verb בּוֹא (bo’) “to come” here, but the LXX (followed generally by the Syriac and Tg. Ps.-J.) reflects the Hiphil form of the same verb, “to bring” as in v. 29 below. In v. 29, however, there is no additional clause “and give them to the priest,” so the Hiphil is necessary in that context while it is not necessary here in v. 14.

[15:15]  ²⁴ sn See the note on Lev 4:3 regarding the term “sin offering.”

[15:15]  ²⁵ tn Heb “and the priest shall make them one a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.” See the note on Lev 1:3 regarding the “burnt offering.”

[15:15]  ²⁶ tn Heb “And the priest.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.

[15:15]  ²⁷ tn Heb “from”; see the note on 4:26.

[15:16]  ²⁸ tn Heb “And a man when a lying of seed goes out from him”; KJV, ASV “any man’s seed of copulation”; NIV, NRSV, TEV, NLT “an emission of semen.”

[15:16]  ²⁹ tn Heb “and he shall bathe all his flesh in water.”

[15:18]  ³⁰ tn Heb “And a woman who a man lies with her a lying of seed.”

[15:19]  ³¹ tn See the note on Lev 15:2 above.

[15:19]  ³² tn Heb “blood shall be her discharge in her flesh.” The term “flesh” here refers euphemistically to the female sexual area (cf. the note on v. 2 above).

[15:19]  ³³ tn See the note on Lev 12:2 and R. E. Averbeck, NIDOTTE 1:925-27.

[15:23]  ³⁴ tn Heb “and if on the bed it (הוּא, hu’) is or on the vessel which she sits on it, when he touches it….” The translation and meaning of this verse is a subject of much debate in the commentaries (see the summary in J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:938-40). It is difficult to determine what הוּא refers to, whether it means “he” referring to the one who does the touching, “it” for the furniture or the seat in v. 22, “she” referring to the woman herself (see Smr היא rather than הוא), or perhaps anything that was lying on the furniture or the bed of vv. 21-22. The latter view is taken here (cf. J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 202).

[15:23]  ³⁵ tn The MT accent suggest that “when he touches it” goes with the preceding line, but it seems to be better to take it as an introduction to what follows (see J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 202).

[15:24]  ³⁶ tn Heb “and if a man indeed lies with her and her menstrual impurity is on him.”

[15:25]  ³⁷ tn Heb “And a woman when the flow of her blood flows.”

[15:25]  ³⁸ tn Heb “in not the time of her menstruation or when it flows on her menstruation.”

[15:27]  ³⁹ tn See the note on v. 5 above.

[15:28]  ⁴⁰ tn Heb “And if…” Although this clause is parallel to v. 13 above, it begins with וְאִם (vÿ’im, “and if”) here rather than וְכִי (vÿkhi, “and when/if”) there.

[15:29]  ⁴¹ tn Heb “from the sons of the pigeon,” referring either to “young pigeons” or “various species of pigeon” (contrast J. Milgrom, Leviticus [AB], 1:168 with J. E. Hartley, Leviticus [WBC], 14; cf. Lev 1:14 and esp. 5:7-10).

[15:30]  ⁴² tn Heb “And the priest shall make the one a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.”

[15:30]  ⁴³ tn Heb “And the priest.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.

[15:31]  ⁴⁴ tn Heb “And you shall.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here (cf. KJV, ASV, NASB, NCV, NRSV).

[15:31]  ⁴⁵ tn Heb “and they.” Here the Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) indicates a negative purpose (“lest,” so NAB, NASB).

[15:32]  ⁴⁶ tn Heb “and who a lying of seed goes out from him.”

[15:32]  ⁴⁷ tn Heb “to become unclean in it.”

[15:33]  ⁴⁸ tn Heb “and the one with a discharge, his discharge to the male and the female.”

[15:33]  ⁴⁹ tn Heb “and for a man.”

[44:23]  ⁵⁰ sn This task was a fundamental role of the priest (Lev 10:10).

[2:13]  ⁵¹ tn Heb “unclean of a person,” a euphemism for “unclean because of a dead person”; see Lev 21:11; Num 6:6. Cf. NAB “unclean from contact with a corpse.”

[2:14]  ⁵² tn Heb “so this people, and so this nation before me.” In this context “people” and “nation” refer to the same set of individuals; the repetition is emphatic. Cf. CEV “this entire nation.”

[2:14]  ⁵³ sn The point here is that the Jews cannot be made holy by unholy fellowship with their pagan neighbors; instead, they and their worship will become corrupted by such associations.

[10:14]  ⁵⁴ tn Possibly there is a subtle distinction in meaning between κοινός (koinos) and ἀκάθαρτος (akaqarto") here, but according to L&N 53.39 it is difficult to determine precise differences in meaning based on existing contexts.

[10:28]  ⁵⁵ tn Here ὡς (Jws) is used like ὅτι (Joti) to introduce indirect discourse (cf. BDAG 1105 s.v. ὡς 5).

[10:28]  ⁵⁶ tn This term is used of wanton or callously lawless acts (BDAG 24 s.v. ἀθέμιτος).

[10:28]  ⁵⁷ tn Grk “a Jewish man” (ἀνδρὶ ᾿Ιουδαίῳ, andri Ioudaiw).

[10:28]  ⁵⁸ tn Grk “a foreigner,” but in this context, “a non-Jew,” that is, a Gentile. This term speaks of intimate association (BDAG 556 s.v. κολλάω 2.b.α). On this Jewish view, see John 18:28, where a visit to a Gentile residence makes a Jewish person unclean.

[10:28]  ⁵⁹ tn This is a generic use of ἄνθρωπος (anqrwpo").

[10:28]  ⁶⁰ tn Possibly there is a subtle distinction in meaning between κοινός (koinos) and ἀκάθαρτος (akaqartos) here, but according to L&N 53.39 it is difficult to determine precise differences in meaning based on existing contexts.

[5:11]  ⁶¹ tn The Greek conjunction καὶ (kai) seems to be functioning here ascensively, (i.e., “even”), but is difficult to render in this context using good English. It may read something like: “but rather even expose them!”

[5:11]  ⁶² tn Grk “rather even expose.”

[5:1]  ⁶³ tn Or “become.”

[1:14]  ⁶⁴ tn Or “first installment,” “pledge,” “deposit.”

[1:14]  ⁶⁵ tn Grk “the possession.”

[1:15]  ⁶⁶ sn The conjunctive phrase For this reason points back to the preceding section, vv. 3-14, which is also summed up in this verse in the expression because I have heard of your faith. In other words, the author’s prayer can be made for his audience because he knows that they are true believers.

[1:15]  ⁶⁷ tn Grk “even I.”

[1:15]  ⁶⁸ tn Grk “having also heard.”

[1:15]  ⁶⁹ tc Ì⁴⁶ א* A B P 33 1739 1881 2464 Hier lack “your love” (τὴν ἀγάπην, thn agaphn), while various other groups of mss have different arrangements of the phrase “your love toward all the saints” (τὴν ἀγάπην τὴν εἰς πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους, thn agaphn thn ei" panta" tou" Jagiou"). Most witnesses, especially the later ones (א² D¹ Ψ Ï latt sa), read τὴν ἀγάπην τὴν εἰς πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους. Externally, the shorter reading is superior. Internally, the omission of τὴν ἀγάπην is a significantly harder reading, for the saints become an object of faith on par with the Lord Jesus. If this reading is authentic, however, the force of πίστις (pisti") is probably closer to “faithfulness,” a meaning that could perhaps be suitable toward both the Lord and the saints. Nevertheless, if the shorter reading is authentic, later scribes would no doubt have been tempted to alter it. With the parallel in Col 1:4 at hand, τὴν ἀγάπην would have been the most obvious phrase to add. (TCGNT 533 suggests that ἣν ἔχετε would have been added instead of the second τήν if the shorter reading were original, in conformity with Col 1:4, but this is not necessarily so: Scribes often altered the text as minimally as possible, and since the second τήν was already present, replacing it with ἣν ἔχετε, when the meaning was not significantly different from the second τήν, seems unlikely.) Further, ἀγάπην comes after “saints” (thus, τὴν εἰς πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους ἀγάπην) in some witnesses (81 104 326 365 1175), and the second τήν is lacking (thus, τὴν ἀγάπην εἰς πάντας τοὺς ἁγίους) in others (D* F G). Such a floating text normally indicates inauthenticity. On the other hand, τὴν ἀγάπην could easily have dropped out of the text by way of haplography, the Alexandrian scribes’ eyes skipping from τήν to τήν. The weak first declension feminine article-noun-article construction is common enough in the NT, occurring over 40 times, yet in four of these texts there is some ms evidence for an omission similar to Eph 1:15 (Rom 11:17; 2 Tim 3:10; Rev 11:2; 21:9). But in none of these places is the Alexandrian testimony united in the omission as it is here. Further, a wholesale Alexandrian omission of τὴν ἀγάπην presupposes a much stronger genealogical relation among the Alexandrian mss than many scholars would embrace. What seems to tip the scales in favor of the longer reading, however, is the intrinsic evidence: The question of whether πίστις could be used to mean faithfulness in the general sense toward both the Lord and the saints is quite problematic. All in all, a decision is difficult, but the longer reading is, with hesitation, preferred.

[1:16]  ⁷⁰ tn Grk “making mention [of you].”

[2:5]  ⁷¹ tn Or “by grace you have been saved.” The perfect tense in Greek connotes both completed action (“you have been saved”) and continuing results (“you are saved”).

[2:11]  ⁷² tn Grk “in the flesh.”