D. Unclean Discharges (15:1-33)
In this speech any discharge, regular or irregular, from one’s genitals renders a person unclean. The material is presented in an inverse pattern. The law treats abnormal discharges from a male’s genitals (vv.2-15), then normal discharges (vv.16-18) followed by normal discharges from a female’s genitals (vv.19-24), and then abnormal discharges (vv.25-30). This law treats both sexes on a common basis. Both sexes were made unclean by a woman’s monthly period, which, due solely to it nature, was longer. No reason is given as to why such discharges were classified as unclean. Ancient people usually labeled emissions from the body as taboo, especially abnormal ones. Sexual discharges are tied to the wonder and mystery of life. In addition, these laws prohibited sexual activity from taking place as a part of Israelite worship. This fact is in stark contrast to the fertility rites that were common to the cults of Israel’s neighbors.
According to the law (v.24), a man who contacts a woman’s menses becomes unclean for seven days. But in 20:18 such an act carried the heavy penalty of one’s being cut off from the community. In this light this law may be interpreted to mean that a man unknowingly contacts her menses at the beginning of her period. In that case, since it happened accidentally, he becomes unclean for the same length of time as the woman.
Abnormal discharges make a person unclean for as long as the discharge lasts. Anything or any person that comes close to the area of the discharge becomes secondarily unclean. This includes a bed or anything on which the person with the discharge sits. Then any person who uses one of these objects made unclean also becomes unclean. A person made unclean secondarily becomes clean by washing his/her clothes, bathing in water, and waiting until evening. A man who has an emission of semen follows the same procedure. In these cases the uncleanness is mild. It is up to each person to comply with the law without any involvement of a priest. The only danger is entering the area of the sanctuary while ritually unclean.
A male or female with an abnormal discharge can be reinstated into community life after full recovery from the defilement. Because one’s illness is out of the ordinary, sacrifices are required. After recovering, one has to wait seven days to be sure recovery is complete. That person washes his/her clothes and bathes in water. On the eighth day one brings two doves or two young pigeons, the least expensive sacrifice, to the priest at the Tent of Meeting. He/she offers one as a burnt offering (cf. ch. 1) and one as a sin offering (cf. chs. 4-5). Then the person is fully reinstated in the community.
Jesus does away with these laws on impurity from sexual discharges. He dramatically demonstrates his power over such abnormal discharges by healing the woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years (Mk 5:25-34). Although she touches him, she does not incur his wrath for making him unclean, but she experiences his redemptive grace in healing power. While the NT is not concerned with impurity from sexual discharges, it calls every believer to conduct oneself in complete moral purity in sexual relationships (cf. 1Co 6:12-20; Heb 13:4; 1Pe 3:2-7).