And when he that hath an issue is cleansed of his issue; then he shall number to himself seven days for his cleansing, and wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in running water, and shall be clean.

LEVITICUS 15:13KJV
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Leviticus 15:13 (KJV)

What does Leviticus 15:13 mean?

Leviticus 15:13 explains that when a man with a bodily discharge is healed, he must count seven days for his cleansing, wash his clothes, and bathe himself in running water to be considered clean. This verse outlines the specific steps required for someone to be restored to ritual purity after recovering from an issue.

In this part of Leviticus, God is giving instructions to Moses for the Israelites about how to handle situations involving bodily discharges, which made a person ritually unclean. The verse describes what a man must do after his discharge stops: wait seven days, wash his clothes, and bathe in flowing water. These actions were part of a larger set of rules meant to protect the community’s health and maintain their ability to participate in worship.

The Hebrew behind Leviticus 15:13

  • The word "issue" (זוֹב, zov) refers to a bodily discharge, often understood as an abnormal flow, which made a person ritually unclean in ancient Israelite law.
  • "Cleansed" (טָהֵר, taher) means to become clean or pure, not just physically but in a ritual sense, allowing the person to rejoin community life and worship.
  • "Running" (חַי, chai) water literally means "living" water, which refers to fresh, flowing water like a stream or spring, not stagnant water. This detail highlights the importance of using water that symbolizes life and renewal in the cleansing process.
  • "Number" (סָפַר, saphar) means to count or keep track, showing that the seven days were to be carefully observed, not estimated.

Why Leviticus 15:13 matters

  • This verse clarifies that ritual impurity was not permanent; there was a clear, practical path to restoration once the physical condition ended.
  • The emphasis on "running" or "living" water shows the importance of renewal and purity, not just in body but in symbol, which connects to other biblical uses of water for cleansing.
  • Leviticus 15:13 fits into a larger section about bodily discharges, showing the careful attention given to both physical health and spiritual readiness in Israelite community life.

Where else these words appear

“issue” Hebrew H2101 · used in 10 verses

  • Leviticus 15:2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, When any man hath a running issue out of his flesh, because of his issue he is unclean.
  • Leviticus 15:19 And if a woman have an issue, and her issue in her flesh be blood, she shall be put apart seven days: and whosoever toucheth her shall be unclean until the even.
  • Leviticus 15:28 But if she be cleansed of her issue, then she shall number to herself seven days, and after that she shall be clean.

“cleansing” Hebrew H2893 · used in 13 verses

  • Leviticus 12:4 And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled.
  • Leviticus 14:2 This shall be the law of the leper in the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought unto the priest:
  • 1 Chronicles 23:28 Because their office was to wait on the sons of Aaron for the service of the house of the LORD, in the courts, and in the chambers, and in the purifying of all holy things, and the work of the service of the house of God;

“issue” Hebrew H2100 · used in 41 verses

  • Exodus 3:8 And I am come down to deliver them out of the hand of the Egyptians, and to bring them up out of that land unto a good land and a large, unto a land flowing with milk and honey; unto the place of the Canaanites, and the Hittites, and the Amorites, and the Perizzites, and the Hivites, and the Jebusites.
  • Leviticus 15:25 And 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.
  • Deuteronomy 26:15 Look down from thy holy habitation, from heaven, and bless thy people Israel, and the land which thou hast given us, as thou swarest unto our fathers, a land that floweth with milk and honey.

“wash” Hebrew H3526 · used in 48 verses

  • Genesis 49:11 Binding his foal unto the vine, and his ass's colt unto the choice vine; he washed his garments in wine, and his clothes in the blood of grapes:
  • Leviticus 14:47 And he that lieth in the house shall wash his clothes; and he that eateth in the house shall wash his clothes.
  • Numbers 8:21 And the Levites were purified, and they washed their clothes; and Aaron offered them as an offering before the LORD; and Aaron made an atonement for them to cleanse them.