Numbers 19:11-20, “Whoever touches the
dead body of any person shall be unclean seven days. (12)
He shall cleanse himself with the water on the third day and on the
seventh day, and so be clean. But if he does not cleanse himself on the third
day and on the seventh day, he will not become clean. (13)
Whoever touches a dead person, the body of anyone who has died, and does
not cleanse himself, defiles the tabernacle of the LORD, and that person shall
be cut off from Israel; because the water for impurity was not thrown on him,
he shall be unclean. His uncleanness is still on him. (14)
"This is the law when someone dies in a tent: everyone who comes
into the tent and everyone who is in the tent shall be unclean seven days. (15)
And every open vessel that has no cover fastened on it is unclean. (16)
Whoever in the open field touches someone who was killed with a sword or
who died naturally, or touches a human bone or a grave, shall be unclean seven
days. (17) For the unclean they shall take some ashes of
the burnt sin offering, and fresh water shall be added in a vessel. (18)
Then a clean person shall take hyssop and dip it in the water and
sprinkle it on the tent and on all the furnishings and on the persons who were
there and on whoever touched the bone, or the slain or the dead or the
grave. (19) And the clean person shall sprinkle it on the
unclean on the third day and on the seventh day. Thus on the seventh day he
shall cleanse him, and he shall wash his clothes and bathe himself in water,
and at evening he shall be clean. (20) "If the man who is unclean does not
cleanse himself, that person shall be cut off from the midst of the assembly,
since he has defiled the sanctuary of the LORD. Because the water for impurity
has not been thrown on him, he is unclean.”
This is not the first time that we have come across instructions for
cleansing the unclean. Leviticus spends much time dealing with such issues,
what it is that makes a person unclean and how it is that they can be made
clean. The fact that the process of cleansing comes up so many times,
highlights its importance. To us it may seem to be a rather mundane, superfluous
detail and practice. But to assume this is to miss the whole point and purpose
of the cleansings of the unclean.
The first purpose is practical, the second is spiritual.
Firstly, at this point in time, the people of Israel were living in
close proximity to each other and did not have all the conveniences of a fixed
house made of stone. This made sanitation, hygiene and the spread of diseases
critical issues. The potential for a huge outbreak of a virus, plague or disease
was very high, and therefore every step had to be taken in order to prevent
this.
One of the quickest means of contracting and spreading a disease is by
coming into contact with a dead human body. Therefore, these laws are given so
that the family and the whole community is protected. These cleansings were for
the good of the whole nation.
The second purpose is spiritual. It is not that these physical
cleansing brought inward cleansing, in fact it demonstrated the opposite.
Throughout Exodus, Leviticus and Numbers it has been made abundantly clear to
the people of Israel, that only those who are clean and pure can approach God
in worship. Anyone, or anything unclean is not permitted to come before God,
and should they try to, God will respond in wrath. As a result of this truth,
the people of Israel were constantly having to cleanse themselves prior to
coming to God in worship.
This constant cleansing taught them that a deeper cleansing was
needed. Water washes off the dirt, but only for so long, as after a short while
they were dirty again and had to wash once more. This serves as a symbol, a
picture of their hearts, they could try to live in obedience, ask for God’s
forgiveness, offer up a sacrifice, and receive forgiveness from God, but that
state of forgiveness and standing before God was not permanent. In fact, by the
time they had walked out of the temple courts, sin had already risen again in
their hearts and once more they became spiritually unclean and in need of God’s
forgiveness. It was a vicious cycle, and one which never held out hope of
coming to an end or being finally satisfied, irrespective of how many
sacrifices were offered up.
Something more than water, more than the blood of an animal was need
to cleanse them completely. Here is where we see the ultimate purpose in all of
these cleansings, they point to the great cleansing work of Christ in our lives
from the inside out. He cleanses us from all unrighteousness, and removes every
stain and spot of sin. He takes out our sinful, dead hearts and gives us new,
pure and living hearts. He takes off our filthy rags and dresses us in His
robes of righteousness. We are made clean inwardly and one day we will be
completely pure. From the moment of our salvation, we are made clean and we remain
clean, for Christ’s sacrifice is sufficient to cleanse us for all eternity.
Numbers 19 should serve to encourage us, as we are reminded that we no
longer need to constantly wash and cleanse ourselves with water and then offer
up a sacrifice over and over again. Christ has cleansed us once and for all through
His perfect and sufficient sacrifice for our sin. We don’t have to be made
clean again as what Christ has cleansed, can never become unclean. We have been
washed in the blood of lamb and He has taken all our sins away. Christ now
presents us as holy and blameless before the sight of God the Father and we
find acceptance and eternal salvation.
Father of purity, light and holiness, how
we thank You today for Christ who has cleansed us from all our unrighteousness,
who has washed us white by His blood and clothed us with His righteousness. We
praise You for the new, living and pure hearts You have given to us, hearts
with Your love and laws written upon them. We thank You that You have filled us
with the Spirit of life and light, the one who leads us into paths of
righteousness. May we seek to live in keeping with our hearts, with the new
life we have received, and with the robes that we now wear. May the beautiful,
perfection and holiness of Christ radiate out from our lives, to the praise of
Your glory. Amen.
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