Leviticus 14:33-16:34

New International Version

Cleansing From Defiling Molds

³³ The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ³⁴ “When you enter the land of Canaan,^(A) which I am giving you as your possession,^(B) and I put a spreading mold in a house in that land, ³⁵ the owner of the house must go and tell the priest, ‘I have seen something that looks like a defiling mold in my house.’ ³⁶ The priest is to order the house to be emptied before he goes in to examine the mold, so that nothing in the house will be pronounced unclean. After this the priest is to go in and inspect the house. ³⁷ He is to examine the mold on the walls, and if it has greenish or reddish^(C) depressions that appear to be deeper than the surface of the wall, ³⁸ the priest shall go out the doorway of the house and close it up for seven days.^{(D) 39} On the seventh day^(E) the priest shall return to inspect the house. If the mold has spread on the walls, ⁴⁰ he is to order that the contaminated stones be torn out and thrown into an unclean place outside the town.^{(F) 41} He must have all the inside walls of the house scraped and the material that is scraped off dumped into an unclean place outside the town. ⁴² Then they are to take other stones to replace these and take new clay and plaster the house.

⁴³ “If the defiling mold reappears in the house after the stones have been torn out and the house scraped and plastered, ⁴⁴ the priest is to go and examine it and, if the mold has spread in the house, it is a persistent defiling mold; the house is unclean.^{(G) 45} It must be torn down—its stones, timbers and all the plaster—and taken out of the town to an unclean place.

⁴⁶ “Anyone who goes into the house while it is closed up will be unclean till evening.^{(H) 47} Anyone who sleeps or eats in the house must wash their clothes.^(I)

⁴⁸ “But if the priest comes to examine it and the mold has not spread after the house has been plastered, he shall pronounce the house clean,^(J) because the defiling mold is gone. ⁴⁹ To purify the house he is to take two birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop.^{(K) 50} He shall kill one of the birds over fresh water in a clay pot.^{(L) 51} Then he is to take the cedar wood, the hyssop,^(M) the scarlet yarn and the live bird, dip them into the blood of the dead bird and the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times.^{(N) 52} He shall purify the house with the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop and the scarlet yarn. ⁵³ Then he is to release the live bird in the open fields^(O) outside the town. In this way he will make atonement for the house, and it will be clean.^(P)”

⁵⁴ These are the regulations for any defiling skin disease,^(Q) for a sore, ⁵⁵ for defiling molds^(R) in fabric or in a house, ⁵⁶ and for a swelling, a rash or a shiny spot,^{(S) 57} to determine when something is clean or unclean.

These are the regulations for defiling skin diseases and defiling molds.^(T)

Discharges Causing Uncleanness

15 The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, ² “Speak to the Israelites and say to them: ‘When any man has an unusual bodily discharge,^(U) such a discharge is unclean. ³ Whether it continues flowing from his body or is blocked, it will make him unclean. This is how his discharge will bring about uncleanness:

⁴ “‘Any bed the man with a discharge lies on will be unclean, and anything he sits on will be unclean. ⁵ Anyone who touches his bed must wash their clothes^(V) and bathe with water,^(W) and they will be unclean till evening.^{(X) 6} Whoever sits on anything that the man with a discharge sat on must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

⁷ “‘Whoever touches the man^(Y) who has a discharge^(Z) must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

⁸ “‘If the man with the discharge spits^(AA) on anyone who is clean, they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

⁹ “‘Everything the man sits on when riding will be unclean, ¹⁰ and whoever touches any of the things that were under him will be unclean till evening; whoever picks up those things^(AB) must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

¹¹ “‘Anyone the man with a discharge touches without rinsing his hands with water must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

¹² “‘A clay pot^(AC) that the man touches must be broken, and any wooden article^(AD) is to be rinsed with water.

¹³ “‘When a man is cleansed from his discharge, he is to count off seven days^(AE) for his ceremonial cleansing; he must wash his clothes and bathe himself with fresh water, and he will be clean.^{(AF) 14} On the eighth day he must take two doves or two young pigeons^(AG) and come before the Lord to the entrance to the tent of meeting and give them to the priest. ¹⁵ The priest is to sacrifice them, the one for a sin offering^[a](AH) and the other for a burnt offering.^(AI) In this way he will make atonement before the Lord for the man because of his discharge.^(AJ)

¹⁶ “‘When a man has an emission of semen,^(AK) he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean till evening.^{(AL) 17} Any clothing or leather that has semen on it must be washed with water, and it will be unclean till evening. ¹⁸ When a man has sexual relations with a woman and there is an emission of semen,^(AM) both of them must bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

¹⁹ “‘When a woman has her regular flow of blood, the impurity of her monthly period^(AN) will last seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean till evening.

²⁰ “‘Anything she lies on during her period will be unclean, and anything she sits on will be unclean. ²¹ Anyone who touches her bed will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.^{(AO) 22} Anyone who touches anything she sits on will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening. ²³ Whether it is the bed or anything she was sitting on, when anyone touches it, they will be unclean till evening.

²⁴ “‘If a man has sexual relations with her and her monthly flow^(AP) touches him, he will be unclean for seven days; any bed he lies on will be unclean.

²⁵ “‘When a woman has a discharge of blood for many days at a time other than her monthly period^(AQ) or has a discharge that continues beyond her period, she will be unclean as long as she has the discharge, just as in the days of her period. ²⁶ Any bed she lies on while her discharge continues will be unclean, as is her bed during her monthly period, and anything she sits on will be unclean, as during her period. ²⁷ Anyone who touches them will be unclean; they must wash their clothes and bathe with water, and they will be unclean till evening.

²⁸ “‘When she is cleansed from her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean. ²⁹ On the eighth day she must take two doves or two young pigeons^(AR) and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ³⁰ The priest is to sacrifice one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. In this way he will make atonement for her before the Lord for the uncleanness of her discharge.^(AS)

³¹ “‘You must keep the Israelites separate from things that make them unclean, so they will not die in their uncleanness for defiling my dwelling place,^[b](AT) which is among them.’”

³² These are the regulations for a man with a discharge, for anyone made unclean by an emission of semen,^{(AU) 33} for a woman in her monthly period, for a man or a woman with a discharge, and for a man who has sexual relations with a woman who is ceremonially unclean.^(AV)

The Day of Atonement^(AW)

16 The Lord spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron who died when they approached the Lord.^{(AX) 2} The Lord said to Moses: “Tell your brother Aaron that he is not to come whenever he chooses^(AY) into the Most Holy Place^(AZ) behind the curtain^(BA) in front of the atonement cover^(BB) on the ark, or else he will die. For I will appear^(BC) in the cloud^(BD) over the atonement cover.

³ “This is how Aaron is to enter the Most Holy Place:^(BE) He must first bring a young bull^(BF) for a sin offering^[c] and a ram for a burnt offering.^{(BG) 4} He is to put on the sacred linen tunic,^(BH) with linen undergarments next to his body; he is to tie the linen sash around him and put on the linen turban.^(BI) These are sacred garments;^(BJ) so he must bathe himself with water^(BK) before he puts them on.^{(BL) 5} From the Israelite community^(BM) he is to take two male goats^(BN) for a sin offering and a ram for a burnt offering.

⁶ “Aaron is to offer the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household.^{(BO) 7} Then he is to take the two goats and present them before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting. ⁸ He is to cast lots^(BP) for the two goats—one lot for the Lord and the other for the scapegoat.^{[d](BQ) 9} Aaron shall bring the goat whose lot falls to the Lord and sacrifice it for a sin offering. ¹⁰ But the goat chosen by lot as the scapegoat shall be presented alive before the Lord to be used for making atonement^(BR) by sending it into the wilderness as a scapegoat.

¹¹ “Aaron shall bring the bull for his own sin offering to make atonement for himself and his household,^(BS) and he is to slaughter the bull for his own sin offering. ¹² He is to take a censer full of burning coals^(BT) from the altar before the Lord and two handfuls of finely ground fragrant incense^(BU) and take them behind the curtain. ¹³ He is to put the incense on the fire before the Lord, and the smoke of the incense will conceal the atonement cover^(BV) above the tablets of the covenant law, so that he will not die.^{(BW) 14} He is to take some of the bull’s blood^(BX) and with his finger sprinkle it on the front of the atonement cover; then he shall sprinkle some of it with his finger seven times before the atonement cover.^(BY)

¹⁵ “He shall then slaughter the goat for the sin offering for the people^(BZ) and take its blood behind the curtain^(CA) and do with it as he did with the bull’s blood: He shall sprinkle^(CB) it on the atonement cover and in front of it. ¹⁶ In this way he will make atonement^(CC) for the Most Holy Place^(CD) because of the uncleanness and rebellion of the Israelites, whatever their sins have been. He is to do the same for the tent of meeting,^(CE) which is among them in the midst of their uncleanness. ¹⁷ No one is to be in the tent of meeting from the time Aaron goes in to make atonement in the Most Holy Place until he comes out, having made atonement for himself, his household and the whole community of Israel.

¹⁸ “Then he shall come out to the altar^(CF) that is before the Lord and make atonement for it. He shall take some of the bull’s blood and some of the goat’s blood and put it on all the horns of the altar.^{(CG) 19} He shall sprinkle some of the blood on it with his finger seven times to cleanse it and to consecrate it from the uncleanness of the Israelites.^(CH)

²⁰ “When Aaron has finished making atonement for the Most Holy Place, the tent of meeting and the altar, he shall bring forward the live goat.^{(CI) 21} He is to lay both hands on the head of the live goat^(CJ) and confess^(CK) over it all the wickedness and rebellion of the Israelites—all their sins—and put them on the goat’s head. He shall send the goat away into the wilderness in the care of someone appointed for the task. ²² The goat will carry on itself all their sins^(CL) to a remote place; and the man shall release it in the wilderness.

²³ “Then Aaron is to go into the tent of meeting and take off the linen garments^(CM) he put on before he entered the Most Holy Place, and he is to leave them there.^{(CN) 24} He shall bathe himself with water in the sanctuary area^(CO) and put on his regular garments.^(CP) Then he shall come out and sacrifice the burnt offering for himself and the burnt offering for the people,^(CQ) to make atonement for himself and for the people.^{(CR) 25} He shall also burn the fat of the sin offering on the altar.

²⁶ “The man who releases the goat as a scapegoat^(CS) must wash his clothes^(CT) and bathe himself with water;^(CU) afterward he may come into the camp. ²⁷ The bull and the goat for the sin offerings, whose blood was brought into the Most Holy Place to make atonement, must be taken outside the camp;^(CV) their hides, flesh and intestines are to be burned up. ²⁸ The man who burns them must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water; afterward he may come into the camp.^(CW)

²⁹ “This is to be a lasting ordinance^(CX) for you: On the tenth day of the seventh month^(CY) you must deny yourselves^[e](CZ) and not do any work^(DA)—whether native-born^(DB) or a foreigner residing among you— ³⁰ because on this day atonement will be made^(DC) for you, to cleanse you. Then, before the Lord, you will be clean from all your sins.^{(DD) 31} It is a day of sabbath rest, and you must deny yourselves;^(DE) it is a lasting ordinance.^{(DF) 32} The priest who is anointed and ordained^(DG) to succeed his father as high priest is to make atonement. He is to put on the sacred linen garments^{(DH) 33} and make atonement for the Most Holy Place, for the tent of meeting and the altar, and for the priests and all the members of the community.^(DI)

³⁴ “This is to be a lasting ordinance^(DJ) for you: Atonement is to be made once a year^(DK) for all the sins of the Israelites.”

And it was done, as the Lord commanded Moses.