Leviticus 15:24
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While the verse speaks of physical uncleanness, it also carries a powerful reminder: even an accidental encounter with impurity could render someone and their surroundings unusable for seven days. This highlights how deeply God valued purity, not just as a religious concept, but as a state that affected every aspect of life, including communal interaction and proximity to the divine.
And if any man lies with her and her menstrual impurity comes upon him, he shall be unclean seven days, and every bed on which he lies shall be unclean.
English Standard Version (ESV)
This verse addresses sexual relations during a woman's menstrual period, which was considered a state of ritual impurity. The preceding verses in Leviticus 15 detail various bodily discharges that render individuals unclean, and this passage specifies the consequences if a man has intercourse with a woman while she is menstruating. The implications of such an act, particularly if done unknowingly, are a seven-day period of uncleanness for the man and the defilement of anything he lies upon.
This passage might seem strange at first glance. Why did God command such strict separation regarding intimacy during menstruation?
Leviticus 15:24 addresses the consequences of sexual intimacy during a woman's menstrual impurity. The commentaries suggest a dual purpose behind this law:
The concept of 'uncleanness' in Leviticus can be confusing. Was this about physical dirt, or something deeper?
It's crucial to understand that the 'uncleanness' described in Leviticus is primarily ceremonial, not necessarily moral sin in itself. While deliberate acts of impurity were sinful, the seven-day separation for touching menstrual impurity wasn't about the man being inherently wicked.
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Understand the original words
niddah · Hebrew Noun
In the Levitical system, this refers to the ritual and ceremonial state of separation resulting from physical processes related to blood, childbirth, or skin diseases, which render one unable to approach the sacred space of the tabernacle. It highlights the distinction between the sacred and the profane, and the necessity of purity for proximity to God.
shakab · Hebrew Verb
The act of sexual union, which in biblical law carries significant covenantal and ritual weight. When performed in the context of ritual impurity, it results in the transfer of that impurity to the individuals involved, necessitating a period of ritual separation.
This passage directly contrasts the situation in Leviticus 15:24, showing that while accidental or unknown contact resulted in seven days of uncleanness, intentional, knowing sin in this area carried the death penalty.
Ezekiel 18:6This verse lists actions considered abominable, including 'lying with his neighbor's wife,' connecting the physical act to a deeper moral and spiritual impurity that defiles.
1 Corinthians 6:18The Apostle Paul uses strong language to condemn sexual immorality, linking it to sinning against one's own body, which resonates with the concept of physical defilement and its consequences.
2 Corinthians 7:1This passage calls believers to cleanse themselves from 'all defilement of flesh and spirit,' highlighting the New Testament emphasis on both physical and spiritual purity, echoing the Old Testament's ceremonial laws.
bensonLeviticus 15:24: "And if any man lie with her at all, and her flowers be upon him, he shall be unclean seven days; and all the bed whereon he lieth shall be unclean."
Leviticus 15:24 . Seven days — If he did this ignorantly; but if it were done with his own knowledge, and that of the woman, they were both, after being accused and convicted, to be punished with death, Leviticus 20:18 ; for as there was a turpitude in the action, so it would be very prejudicial to the children should any be then…
clarkeLeviticus 15:24: "And if any man lie with her at all, and her flowers be upon him, he shall be unclean seven days; and all the bed whereon he lieth shall be unclean."
The common sense of all mankind has led them to avoid the gross impropriety referred to in this verse - and it has been a general opinion, that off-spring obtained in this way has been infected with leprous, scrofulous, and other deeply radicated diseases, from which they and their posterity have been scarcely ever freed. In Levit…
While the verse speaks of physical uncleanness, it also carries a powerful reminder: even an accidental encounter with impurity could render someone and their surroundings unusable for seven days. This highlights how deeply God valued purity, not just as a religious concept, but as a state that affected every aspect of life, including communal interaction and proximity to the divine.
This verse addresses sexual relations during a woman's menstrual period, which was considered a state of ritual impurity. The preceding verses in Leviticus 15 detail various bodily discharges that render individuals unclean, and this passage specifies the consequences if a man has intercourse with a woman while she is menstruating. The implications of such an act, particularly if done unknowingly, are a seven-day period of uncleanness for the man and the defilement of anything he lies upon.
This verse addresses sexual relations during a woman's menstrual period, which was considered a state of ritual impurity. The preceding verses in Leviticus 15 detail various bodily discharges that render individuals unclean, and this passage specifies the consequences if a man has intercourse with a woman while she is menstruating. The implications of such an act, particularly if done unknowingly, are a seven-day period of uncleanness for the man and the defilement of anything he lies upon.
"And if any man lies with her and her menstrual impurity comes upon him, he shall be unclean seven days, and every bed on which he lies shall be unclean." — While the verse speaks of physical uncleanness, it also carries a powerful reminder: even an accidental encounter with impurity could render someone and their surroundings unusable for seven days. Th…
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Last reviewed October 2026
