Bible Strands
Leviticus 15:16
When a man has an emission of semen, he must bathe his whole body with water, and he will be unclean until evening.
Berean Standard Bible
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Study note
Setting — Moses conveys this directive to the Israelites during the wilderness period as part of the priestly purity regulations. The command applies to any Israelite man experiencing a specific bodily emission.
The words — The Hebrew phrase שִכְבַת זָרַע (shikhvat zara) literally means "a laying of seed," referring to the physical discharge. The verb רָחַץ (rachatz) commands a full-body washing with water to address the resulting state.
The thread — This protocol appears in Deuteronomy 23:10 requiring camp separation after nocturnal emissions, and Leviticus 15:5 extends the washing requirement to anyone who touches the affected bed. Leviticus 22:4 applies comparable contamination restrictions to priests handling sacred offerings.
Why it lands — The text mandates immediate physical cleansing and temporary ritual exclusion until evening to preserve cultic holiness. A reader must accept that natural bodily functions carry defined ritual consequences requiring concrete action.
Drafted by a language model from the text, its original words and its cross-references, then checked against them. It can still be wrong: open the verse in the app to report it.
The Hebrew words
King James Version
And if any man’s seed of copulation go out from him, then he shall wash all his flesh in water, and be unclean until the even.
Cross-references
- Deuteronomy 23:10 If any man among you becomes unclean because of a nocturnal emission, he must leave the camp and stay outside.
- Leviticus 22:4 If a descendant of Aaron has a skin disease or a discharge, he may not eat the sacred offerings until he is clean. Whoever touches anything defiled by a corpse or by a man who has an emission of semen,
- Leviticus 15:5 Anyone who touches his bed must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.
- 1 John 1:7 But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
- 1 Peter 2:11 Beloved, I urge you, as foreigners and exiles, to abstain from the desires of the flesh, which war against your soul.
- 2 Corinthians 7:1 Therefore, beloved, since we have these promises, let us cleanse ourselves from everything that defiles body and spirit, perfecting holiness in the fear of God.