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Topic: Proper Hygiene
[DCLM Daily Manna 30 April 2020 Daily Devotional by Pastor William Folorunso Kumuyi]
Text: Leviticus 15:1-18
1 And the LORD spake unto Moses and to Aaron, saying,
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.
3 And this shall be his uncleanness in his issue: whether his flesh run with his issue, or his flesh be stopped from his issue, it is his uncleanness.
4 Every bed, whereon he lieth that hath the issue, is unclean: and every thing, whereon he sitteth, shall be unclean.
5 And whosoever toucheth his bed shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
6 And he that sitteth on any thing whereon he sat that hath the issue shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
7 And he that toucheth the flesh of him that hath the issue shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
8 And if he that hath the issue spit upon him that is clean; then he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
9 And what saddle soever he rideth upon that hath the issue shall be unclean.
10 And whosoever toucheth any thing that was under him shall be unclean until the even: and he that beareth any of those things shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
11 And whomsoever he toucheth that hath the issue, and hath not rinsed his hands in water, he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.
12 And the vessel of earth, that he toucheth which hath the issue, shall be broken: and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
13 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.
14 And on the eighth day he shall take to him two turtledoves, or two young pigeons, and come before the LORD unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, and give them unto the priest:
15 And the priest shall offer them, the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering; and the priest shall make an atonement for him before the LORD for his issue.
16 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.
17 And every garment, and every skin, whereon is the seed of copulation, shall be washed with water, and be unclean until the even.
18 The woman also with whom man shall lie with seed of copulation, they shall both bathe themselves in water, and be unclean until the even.
KEY VERSE: “And whomsoever he toucheth that hath the issue, and hath not rinsed his hands in water, he shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the even.” – (Leviticus 15:11)
MESSAGE:
In 1818, Ignaz Phillip Semmelweis was born into a world of dying women. The finest hospitals lost one out of six young mothers to the scourge of “childbed fever.” A doctor’s daily routine began in the dissecting room where he performed autopsies. From there, he made his way to the hospital to examine expectant mothers without ever pausing to wash his hands. Dr. Semmelweis was the first man in history to associate such examinations with the resultant infection and death. His own practice was to wash with a chlorine solution; and after eleven years and the delivery of 8,537 babies, he lost only 184. He once said: ‘Gentlemen, women are dying… For God’s sake, wash your hands.’ But no one believed him then.
The book of Leviticus is replete with teachings on separation and cleansing. It teaches about clean and unclean food and the need to wash for cleanliness’ sake. In the passage under review, focus is on the uncleanness of a man, and the need to separate others from his uncleanness both for spiritual reasons and for proper hygiene. The instruction is to wash the hands and clothes and to bath in water to keep the germs and bacteria away.
The priests in the Old Testament dealt with matters of health together with the mandatory ceremonies and rituals for cleansing from sin. The priests were required to wash repeatedly and bath themselves in water before and after entering into the tabernacle and the temple to officiate.
Disease control and health education has become So compulsory today as part of prevention mechanisms. Prevention is said to be better than cure. Henceforth, let us ensure we maintain the highest forms of hygiene to prevent bacteria and disease from spreading in our homes and neighbourhoods.
THOUGHT FOR THE DAY: The Bible’s standard on spiritual and physical cleanliness is for the benefit of man.
THE BIBLE IN ONE YEAR: Joshua 19-21
