Leviticus 15:25-33

15:25 “‘When a woman’s discharge of blood flows ¹  many days not at the time of her menstruation, or if it flows beyond the time of her menstruation, ²  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. ³ 

Purity Regulations from Female Bodily Discharges

15:28 “‘If ⁴  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 ⁵  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. ⁶  So the priest ⁷  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 ⁸  are to set the Israelites apart from their impurity so that they ⁹  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 ¹⁰  and becomes unclean by it, ¹¹  15:33 the one who is sick in her menstruation, the one with a discharge, whether male or female, ¹²  and a man ¹³  who has sexual intercourse with an unclean woman.’”

[15:25]  ¹ tn Heb “And a woman when the flow of her blood flows.”

[15:25]  ² tn Heb “in not the time of her menstruation or when it flows on her menstruation.”

[15:27]  ³ tn See the note on v. 5 above.

[15:28]  ⁴ 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]  ⁵ 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]  ⁶ tn Heb “And the priest shall make the one a sin offering and the one a burnt offering.”

[15:30]  ⁷ tn Heb “And the priest.” The Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) can be considered to have resultative force here.

[15:31]  ⁸ 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]  ⁹ tn Heb “and they.” Here the Hebrew conjunction ו (vav, “and”) indicates a negative purpose (“lest,” so NAB, NASB).

[15:32]  ¹⁰ tn Heb “and who a lying of seed goes out from him.”

[15:32]  ¹¹ tn Heb “to become unclean in it.”

[15:33]  ¹² tn Heb “and the one with a discharge, his discharge to the male and the female.”

[15:33]  ¹³ tn Heb “and for a man.”