Leviticus 15:25-30 · Bible study
Leviticus 15:25-30 Commentary: Chronic Bleeding
Hebrew · 8 what the commentators say
Meaning in one sentence
Understand Leviticus 15:25-30 on chronic bleeding, ritual impurity, atonement offerings, and how Christ's healing fulfills these laws.
Research Summary
- Meaning: Chronic abnormal bleeding renders a woman ritually unclean; after the discharge stops, she must undergo seven days of purification and offer sacrifices for atonement.
- Key words: זוֹב (zov, “discharge”); נִדָּה (niddah, “menstruous impurity”); טָהֵר (taher, “be clean”); חַטָּאת (chattat, “sin offering”); עֹלָה (olah, “burnt offering”); כִּפֶּר (kipper, “make atonement”).
- Main debate: Whether the impurity is purely ceremonial or also symbolic of the moral corruption from the Fall; both sides agree atonement is needed for restoration to God’s presence.
- Theological theme: God’s holiness requires separation from uncleanness, yet He provides a gracious, accessible path for the unclean to return to worship.
- Best use: In teaching on Old Testament purity laws, preparation for understanding Christ’s healing of the bleeding woman (Matthew 9:20, 22), and in pastoral care for those with chronic illness.
Translation Comparison
BSB Berean Standard Bible 2020
25When a woman has a discharge of her blood for many days at a time other than her menstrual period, or if it continues beyond her period, she will be unclean all the days of her unclean discharge, just as she is during the days of her menstruation.
26Any bed on which she lies or any furniture on which she sits during the days of her discharge will be unclean, like her bed during her menstrual period.
27Anyone who touches these things will be unclean; he must wash his clothes and bathe with water, and he will be unclean until evening.
28When a woman is cleansed of her discharge, she must count off seven days, and after that she will be ceremonially clean.
29On the eighth day she is to take two turtledoves or two young pigeons and bring them to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
30The priest is to sacrifice one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her before the LORD for her unclean discharge.
WEB World English Bible 2000
25“‘If a woman has a discharge of her blood many days not in the time of her period, or if she has a discharge beyond the time of her period, all the days of the discharge of her uncleanness shall be as in the days of her period. She is unclean.
26Every bed she lies on all the days of her discharge shall be to her as the bed of her period. Everything she sits on shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her period.
27Whoever touches these things shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening.
28“‘But if she is cleansed of her discharge, then she shall count to herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean.
29On the eighth day she shall take two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, and bring them to the priest, to the door of the Tent of Meeting.
30The priest shall offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering; and the priest shall make atonement for her before Yahweh for the uncleanness of her discharge.
KJV King James Version 1769
25And if a woman have an issue of her blood many days out of the time of her separation, or if it run beyond the time of her separation; all the days of the issue of her uncleanness shall be as the days of her separation: she shall be unclean.
26Every bed whereon she lieth all the days of her issue shall be unto her as the bed of her separation: and whatsoever she sitteth upon shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her separation.
27And whosoever toucheth those things shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
28But if she be cleansed of her issue, then she shall number to herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean.
29And on the eighth day she shall take unto her two turtles, or two young pigeons, and bring them unto the priest, to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation.
30And the priest shall offer the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for her before the Lord for the issue of her uncleanness.
ASV American Standard Version 1901
25And if a woman have an issue of her blood many days not in the time of her impurity, or if she have an issue beyond the time of her impurity; all the days of the issue of her uncleanness she shall be as in the days of her impurity: she is unclean.
26Every bed whereon she lieth all the days of her issue shall be unto her as the bed of her impurity: and everything whereon she sitteth shall be unclean, as the uncleanness of her impurity.
27And whosoever toucheth those things shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
28But if she be cleansed of her issue, then she shall number to herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean.
29And on the eighth day she shall take unto her two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and bring them unto the priest, to the door of the tent of meeting.
30And the priest shall offer the one for a sin-offering, and the other for a burnt-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for her before Jehovah for the issue of her uncleanness.
YLT Young's Literal Translation 1898
25`And when a woman's issue of blood floweth many days within the time of her separation, or when it floweth over her separation--all the days of the issue of her uncleanness are as the days of her separation; she is unclean.
26`All the bed on which she lieth all the days of her issue is as the bed of her separation to her, and all the vessel on which she sitteth is unclean as the uncleanness of her separation;
27and any one who is coming against them is unclean, and hath washed his garments, and hath bathed with water, and been unclean till the evening.
28`And if she hath been clean from her issue, then she hath numbered to herself seven days, and afterwards she is clean;
29and on the eighth day she taketh to herself two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and hath brought them in unto the priest, unto the opening of the tent of meeting;
30and the priest hath made the one a sin-offering, and the one a burnt-offering, and the priest hath made atonement for her before Jehovah, because of the issue of her uncleanness.
Darby Darby Bible 1890
25And if a woman have her flux of blood many days out of the time of her separation, or if she have the flux beyond the time of her separation, all the days of the flux of her uncleanness shall she be as [in] the days of her separation: she is unclean.
26Every bed whereon she lieth all the days of her flux shall be unto her as the bed of her separation; and every object on which she sitteth shall be unclean, according to the uncleanness of her separation.
27And whoever toucheth them shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even.
28And if she be cleansed of her flux then she shall count seven days, and after that she shall be clean.
29And on the eighth day she shall take two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and bring them unto the priest, unto the entrance of the tent of meeting.
30And the priest shall offer the one as a sin-offering, and the other as a burnt-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for her before Jehovah for the flux of her uncleanness.
Douay-Rheims Douay-Rheims Bible 1899
25The woman that hath still issue of blood many days out of her ordinary time, or that ceaseth not to flow after the monthly courses, as long as she is subject to this disease, shall be unclean, in the same manner as if she were in her flowers.
26Every bed on which she sleepeth, and every vessel on which she sitteth, shall be defiled.
27Whosoever toucheth them shall wash his clothes: and himself being washed with water, shall be unclean until the evening.
28If the blood stop and cease to run, she shall count seven days of her purification:
29And on the eighth day she shall offer for herself to the priest, two turtles, or two young pigeons, at the door of the tabernacle of the testimony:
30And he shall offer one for sin, and the other for a holocaust, and he shall pray for her before the Lord, and for the issue of her uncleanness.
Verse in Context
Original Language (Biblical Hebrew)
Old Testament · Biblical Hebrew · Leviticus 15:25
Source: STEPBible TAGNT/TEHB (CC-BY 4.0). Click or tap a morphology code to see the full parsing.
Scholars' Consensus
Commentators agree that Leviticus 15:25-30 addresses an abnormal, disease-like discharge of blood in a woman, distinguishing it from regular menstruation (vv. 19, 24). The Cambridge Bible notes that it is “of the nature of a disease.” Gill and Keil & Delitzsch connect this condition to the woman healed by Jesus in Matthew 9:20 and Mark 5:25. The passage prescribes the same purification process as for a man with a discharge (Lev 15:13, 15): after the flow ceases, she counts seven days, then brings two turtledoves or pigeons, one as a sin offering (חַטָּאת, chattat) and one as a burnt offering (עֹלָה, olah). Adam Clarke and Matthew Henry emphasize that the offerings atone for her uncleanness, which is not personal sin but a ritual impurity rooted in the fallen human condition. The requirement underscores that all bodily infirmities, even involuntary ones, separate people from the holy God and require atonement, ultimately pointing to Christ who cleanses completely.
How settled is the interpretation?
Interpretive difficulty: Medium
Main views:
- Ceremonial-only view: The condition is involuntary and physical, similar to Lev 15:2–15 for men; no moral guilt is assigned. The sin offering addresses ritual impurity, not personal transgression.
- Symbolic-of-corruption view: Adam Clarke and others note that even involuntary conditions stem from the original Fall; the sin offering acknowledges the taint of sin on human nature (cf. Psalm 51:5).
What is clear: The woman is considered unclean, requires a waiting period and sacrificial atonement to be restored to Israel’s worship community, and this law is directly linked to Christ’s healing in the Gospels.
What Scholars Agree and Debate
| Topic | Agreed | Debated |
|---|---|---|
| Nature of impurity | The impurity is ritual, not moral; the woman is not accused of sin. | Some (e.g., Clarke) see it as a consequence of the Fall affecting the body; others hold it as purely ceremonial with no moral dimension. |
| Duration of counting | She counts seven days from the cessation of the discharge. | Wesley notes the seven days served as a trial to confirm the discharge had really stopped; others (Gill) see it as a fixed waiting period. |
| Significance of the sin offering | The sin offering (chattat) is required for atonement. | One view: the sin offering cleanses the impurity itself, not personal sin. Another view: it acknowledges that all human infirmity stems from a sinful condition, so a sin offering is appropriate. |
| Foreshadowing of Christ | The Gospels connect this law to Jesus’ healing of the woman with the issue of blood (Matthew 9:20). | Catholic and Orthodox traditions emphasize the sacramental and typological fulfillment (healing as restoration to communion). Reformed traditions tend to stress the legal substitution and atonement. Both agree Christ is the ultimate purifier. |
Historical & Cultural Context
Ancient Israel lived with the tabernacle at the center of the camp, God’s dwelling place among them. Purity laws guarded that sacred space from defilement (Lev 15:31: “Thus you shall separate the children of Israel from their uncleanness, so they will not die in their uncleanness when they defile my tabernacle”). Regular menstruation (נִדָּה, niddah) made a woman unclean for seven days (v. 19). But this passage addresses a discharge “many days” outside the normal period, a chronic condition akin to a disease. Such a woman would be cut off from normal community life, including worship, until her flow stopped and she completed the purification process.
The law treats her similarly to a man with a discharge (vv. 2, 15): both involve bodily emissions that are not sinful but ritually defiling. The requirement to “count to herself seven days” (v. 28) gave personal responsibility; no priest declared her clean until after the waiting period. On the eighth day she brought two birds, affordable offerings for the poor, to the priest at the entrance of the Tent of Meeting (אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד). The sin offering cleansed the impurity, and the burnt offering restored her standing before Yahweh. The priest’s atonement (כִּפֶּר, kipper) “before Yahweh” reestablished her access to God’s presence. This regulation shows God’s care for women with chronic conditions, providing a concrete path back to community. The Gospel accounts of the woman with the issue of blood (Matthew 9:20, 22) directly echo this law, showing Jesus as the one who grants final, complete cleansing.
Textual Notes
The supplied excerpts note a few textual variants. In verse 27, the Septuagint and five Hebrew manuscripts read “that toucheth her” (singular feminine) instead of “that toucheth those things” (plural). This variant does not change the meaning, it makes the contact more direct but the uncleanness is the same. For verse 31, the Samaritan Pentateuch, four Hebrew manuscripts, the Septuagint, and Vulgate read “ye shall warn” (הִזְהַרְתֶּם) instead of “ye shall separate” (וְהִזֵּרְתֶּם). The context supports either reading: both warn and separate the people from uncleanness. Lange’s commentary regards the traditional reading as sufficient. No other significant variants affect interpretation.
Reception History
This passage has been consistently read alongside the Gospel accounts of the woman with the issue of blood (Matthew 9:20, 22; Mark 5:25, 34; Luke 8:43, 48). Early church writers, including Origen and Jerome, saw the bleeding woman as symbolizing the human condition of uncleanness healed by Christ. The law’s requirement of two offerings, sin and burnt, was understood as pointing to both the cleansing from impurity and the restoration of covenant relationship. Medieval commentators often allegorized the seven days as the completeness of purification in Christ. During the Reformation, expositors like Matthew Henry and John Gill emphasized the atonement as a type of Christ’s sacrifice. In contemporary readings, this text is used to affirm God’s care for women with reproductive health issues and to demonstrate how the law’s purity system finds its goal in Jesus, who “made atonement for her before Yahweh for the uncleanness of her discharge.”
Preaching This Verse
Three-point outline
- The reality of unclean affliction, Chronic bleeding isolates a person from community and worship. The text names the condition honestly (vv. 25, 27). It reminds us that our bodies suffer under the fallen order, and that separation from God’s presence is a real loss.
- The path to restoration, God provides a clear, orderly process: cessation, counting, washing, and offerings (vv. 28, 30). The woman counts seven days herself, and the priest makes atonement. Restoration requires time, agency, and a sacrifice that points beyond itself.
- The greater healing in Christ, The woman in Matthew 9:20 was “unclean” for twelve years. She touched Jesus’ garment in faith, and Jesus declared her clean instantly. He absorbed her impurity and gave her wholeness, fulfilling what the Levitical system could only foreshadow.
Five-point outline
- The condition: abnormal bleeding as a chronic, defiling disease (v. 25).
- The consequences: everything touched becomes unclean; anyone who touches those things is unclean until evening (vv. 26, 27).
- The pause: after the flow stops, the woman counts seven days for verification (v. 28).
- The offerings: two birds, a sin offering for cleansing, a burnt offering for dedication (vv. 29, 30).
- The atonement: the priest makes atonement before Yahweh, restoring her to full communion (v. 30).
Illustration hooks
- Medical quarantine: Think of someone with a chronic, non-contagious condition who still feels isolated because others don’t understand. The purity laws gave a language for that isolation but also a path back.
- “All clear” after treatment: The relief a patient feels when a scan comes back clean mirrors the joy of the woman on the eighth day: the priest declares her clean, and she reenters the community.
- Long-term illness: A family member who visits weekly, prays, and waits, like the woman’s seven days of counting, shows how God’s people wait with hope for restoration.
Questions your congregation is asking
- Why did God make laws about bodily functions? Was this just about hygiene, or something deeper?
- Does this mean women are perpetually “unclean” and less holy? How do we understand this today?
- What does this passage teach about suffering and illness? Does God send sickness as punishment?
Leading a Discussion
This passage deals with a chronic physical condition that separated a woman from her community and from worship. It raises questions about how God views bodily suffering, the purpose of ritual purity, and the hope of restoration. Use these questions to guide your group’s conversation.
Discussion questions
- Read Leviticus 15:25, 27. What specific details does the law give about the woman’s condition and its effects? Why do you think the law is so detailed?
- The woman’s uncleanness spread to her bed and anything she sat on. What does this teach about how impurity was understood in ancient Israel?
- Verse 28 says she “counts to herself seven days.” Why do you think the counting was her own responsibility, not the priest’s?
- Why did she need both a sin offering and a burnt offering (v. 30)? What does each offering accomplish?
- How does the woman in Matthew 9:20, 22 connect to this passage? What does Jesus do that the law could not?
- Some Christians today downplay physical suffering as unimportant. How does this passage show that God takes our bodily reality seriously?
- How can our church community better support people with chronic health conditions that isolate them?
Word Study
The key original-language words in this verse. Select any word for its full lexicon entry — meaning, every occurrence in Scripture, and related words.
Cross-References
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (TSK, public domain)
| Leviticus 15:19 | “‘If a woman has a discharge, and her discharge in her flesh is blood, she shall be in her impurity seven days. Whoever touches her shall be unclean until the evening. |
| Leviticus 15:24 | “‘If any man lies with her, and her monthly flow is on him, he shall be unclean seven days; and every bed he lies on shall be unclean. |
| Matthew 9:20 | Behold, a woman who had a discharge of blood for twelve years came behind him, and touched the fringe of his garment; |
| Mark 5:25 | A certain woman who had a discharge of blood for twelve years, |
| Mark 7:20 | He said, “That which proceeds out of the man, that defiles the man. |
| Mark 7:23 | All these evil things come from within and defile the man.” |
| Luke 8:43 | A woman who had a flow of blood for twelve years, who had spent all her living on physicians and could not be healed by any, |
| Leviticus 15:5 | Whoever touches his bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. |
Interlinear and lexical data from STEPBible (CC BY 4.0). Cross-reference data from OpenBible.info (CC BY 4.0). Commentaries are public domain.
For personal reflection
Read the devotional page — prayer, application, and "for families"
What the Commentators Say
6 public-domain commentaries, condensed into plain language.
Adam Clarke's Commentary Methodist/Wesleyan 1826
Clarke notes that the two birds serve distinct purposes: one as a sin offering, the other as a burnt offering. He explains that even natural infirmities required these sacrifices because they stem from humanity's fallen condition, carrying a moral pollution traceable to the original defection.
Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges Anglican 1880
If the issue be abnormal, it is of the nature of a disease, and is treated in the same manner as the first case ( Lev_15:2-15 ). The woman in the Gospel ( Mat_9:20 ; Mar_5:25 ; Luk_8:43 ) was thus afflicted.
Geneva Bible Notes Reformed 1599
The Geneva Notes draw attention to the law's equal treatment of abnormal and normal female discharges: any prolonged issue of blood renders a woman unclean in the same way as her regular monthly period. The required purification, including a sin offering and burnt offering brought to the priest, makes clear that both conditions needed atonement before the Lord.
Gill's Exposition of the Bible Baptist 1748
Gill reads this law about a woman’s abnormal bleeding as a type of sin’s corruption, especially fleshly lusts. The required separation and sin offering foreshadow purification from sin through God’s grace and Christ’s blood, showing that holiness is needed before approaching God in worship.
Keil & Delitzsch OT Commentary Protestant 1876
Keil-Delitzsch stresses that persistent abnormal bleeding placed a woman under the same uncleanness and defilement rules as a man with a discharge. Their distinctive point is the reason: uncleanness contradicts Israel's calling as a holy nation where the Holy One dwells, and remaining unpurified amounts to rebellion that brings death.
Wesley's Explanatory Notes Methodist/Wesleyan 1754
Wesley notes that the seven-day waiting period after a woman's issue of blood stops is a test. It distinguishes between a temporary interruption and a genuine, permanent healing. The time of purification verifies the true cessation of the condition.