Leviticus 12 (Listen)
12:1 The LORD spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Speak to the people of Israel, saying, If a woman conceives and bears a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days. As at the time of her menstruation, she shall be unclean. 3 And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. 4 Then she shall continue for thirty-three days in the blood of her purifying. She shall not touch anything holy, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying are completed. 5 But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her menstruation. And she shall continue in the blood of her purifying for sixty-six days.
6 “And when the days of her purifying are completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the entrance of the tent of meeting a lamb a year old for a burnt offering, and a pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering, 7 and he shall offer it before the LORD and make atonement for her. Then she shall be clean from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who bears a child, either male or female. 8 And if she cannot afford a lamb, then she shall take two turtledoves or two pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for her, and she shall be clean.”
Devotional:
“When her days of purification are complete, whether for a son or daughter, she is to bring to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting a year-old male lamb for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove for a sin offering.” (Leviticus 12:6)
A woman was required to offer a sacrifice for purification after giving birth not because she had sinned but because the process of childbirth would leave her ceremonially unclean. It might seem odd that something good and necessary in life would cause someone to be impure, but this stems from the loss of blood that occurs in childbirth. We read elsewhere in Leviticus that blood is a sacred thing in it belongs to God and is a key part of life. Therefore, losing blood or coming into contact with such blood loss is a reminder of the brokenness of the world and our estrangement from God. Mary herself would go through this process to become clean (Luke 2:22-24), and her Son would go to the cross and shed His blood so that we could become not just clean but forgiven.
Pray It: Jesus, thank you for entering into this world of uncleanness. Because of the brokenness of this world, I would never be able to ultimately become and stay holy, so I praise you for purifying and cleansing me through the blood of your sacrifice. Amen.
Share it: Who is someone you can share a verse or thought from this passage with today?