Lesson

#8
For unto you a child is born . . .
(Levi&cus 12: 1-8)

For unto you a child is born . . .

Lessons 1-6 focused on Levi&cus, Part 1: Sacrice, the means by which a

sinful people gain access to an innitely holy God. With Lesson #7 we
entered Levi&cus, Part 2: Sanc:ca:on, the means by which a covenant
people live an in&mate rela&onship with God. Chapters 1122 address the
greater topic of holiness in daily life, while Chapter 11 focuses specically
on what animals God permits his covenant people to eat. In Lesson 7 we
learned that God limits the esh his people may eat to four categories:
land animals, sh, birds, and insects. And within each of these four
categories God severely limits even those to a very few.
One may argue that these laws were understandable in ancient &mes in a
hot, unhygienic environment, but they are clearly irrelevant today.
To the contrary, we learned that careful aRen&on to what one eats has
nothing whatsoever to do with physical cleanliness, hygiene or nutri&on;
rather, in Levi&cus 11 God introduces a set of moral and ethical principles
that advances his plan of redemp&on and leads one on a path to holiness.

For unto you a child is born . . .

Few things are more basic to

the human condi&on than
food and sex. And with sex
comes childbirth. As we
discovered a deeper meaning
in the dietary laws of chapter
11, so in chapter 12 we shall
discover a deeper meaning in
the birth of a child, as well as
in the rela&onship between a
woman and her son or
daughter.
BoWcelli. Madonna of the Book (oil on
panel), 1480. Museo Poldi Pezzoli, Milan.
For unto you a child is born . . .

Before moving into the brief eight

verses of Levi&cus 12 and the topic of
childbirth, we need to address a
lingering ques&on from Lesson 8.
With all the aRen&on paid to the
dietary laws in Lesson 8 (Levi&cus 11),
a Chris&an reader may well ask, I
know these food laws introduce a
moral and ethical paradigm in Gods
plan of redemp&on, but with the
coming of Christ arent all these laws
null and void? Aaer all, we are saved
by grace through faith in Christ, not by
anything we eat or dont eat, do or
dont do.

For unto you a child is born . . .

Thats a very good

point! I was thinking
same thing myself as
Not through
me. all
we went
those food details.
Not me. I
got hungry!

For unto you a child is born . . .

If we take a look at the New

Testament, we nd four instances
that address this very topic:
1.
2.
3.
4.

Jesus heated encounter with the Scribes

and Pharisees regarding clean and
unclean behavior in Mark 7: 1-23.
St. Peters reverie at Simon the tanners
home in Acts 10: 1-49, the story of
Cornelius, the rst Gen&le convert.
The decision at the Jerusalem Council of
A.D. 50 in Acts 15.
St. Pauls formal argument in Romans
(A.D. 57) that we are saved by grace
through faith, and the prac&cal
implica&ons of that argument in Romans
14: 13-23.

For unto you a child is born . . .

Lets take a look at each

one in turn:
1.

2.

3.
4.

Jesus heated encounter with the

Scribes and Pharisees regarding
clean and unclean behavior in
Mark 7: 1-23.
St. Peters reverie at Simon the
tanners home in Acts 10: 1-49, the
story of Cornelius, the rst Gen&le
convert.
The decision at the Jerusalem Council
of A.D. 50 in Acts 15.
St. Pauls formal argument in Romans
(A.D. 57) that we are saved by grace
through faith, and the prac&cal
implica&ons of that argument in
Romans 14: 13-23.

For unto you a child is born . . .

James Tissot. Woe Unto You Scribes and Pharisees (opaque watercolor over graphite on gray
woven paper), c. 1886-1894. Brooklyn Museum, New York.

For unto you a child is born . . .

Lets take a look at each one in

turn:
1.

2.

3.
4.

Jesus heated encounter with the

Scribes and Pharisees regarding
clean and unclean behavior in
Mark 7: 1-23.
St. Peters reverie at Simon the
tanners home in Acts 10: 1-49, the
story of Cornelius, the rst Gen&le
convert.
The decision at the Jerusalem Council
of A.D. 50 in Acts 15.
St. Pauls formal argument in Romans
(A.D. 57) that we are saved by grace
through faith, and the prac&cal
implica&ons of that argument in
Romans 14: 13-23.

For unto you a child is born . . .

Domenico FeW. Vision of St. Peter (oil on canvas), c. 1619.

Museum of Art History, Vienna.

For unto you a child is born . . .

10

Lets take a look at each one in

turn:
1.

2.

3.
4.

Jesus heated encounter with the

Scribes and Pharisees regarding
clean and unclean behavior in
Mark 7: 1-23.
St. Peters reverie at Simon the
tanners home in Acts 10: 1-49, the
story of Cornelius, the rst Gen&le
convert.
The decision at the Jerusalem Council
of A.D. 50 in Acts 15.
St. Pauls formal argument in Romans
(A.D. 57) that we are saved by grace
through faith, and the prac&cal
implica&ons of that argument in
Romans 14: 13-23.

For unto you a child is born . . .

11

St. James the Just (Russian Orthodox Icon), contemporary.

For unto you a child is born . . .

12

Lets take a look at each one in

turn:
1.

2.

3.
4.

Jesus heated encounter with the

Scribes and Pharisees regarding
clean and unclean behavior in
Mark 7: 1-23.
St. Peters reverie at Simon the
tanners home in Acts 10: 1-49, the
story of Cornelius, the rst Gen&le
convert.
Decision at the Jerusalem Council of
A.D. 50 in Acts 15.
St. Pauls formal argument in Romans
(A.D. 57) that we are saved by grace
through faith, and the prac&cal
implica&ons of that argument in
Romans 14: 13-23.

For unto you a child is born . . .

13

Rembrandt. The Apostle Paul (oil on canvas), c. 1657.

Na&onal Gallery of Art, Washington D.C.

For unto you a child is born . . .

14

So, what do
we conclude
from
Not a
mll
e
this?
Ooooh,
I know!

For unto you a child is born . . .

15

As Jacob Milgrom so
insighnully points out:
The food prohibi:ons are the Torahs
personal recommenda:on as the best way of
achieving [a] higher ethical life. Together the
food prohibi:ons, the blood prohibi:on, and
ritual slaughter reveal an intricate ethical
web of dietary restric:ons that teaches the
Israelites to have reverence for life . . . [and]
that bringing death to living things is a
concession of Gods grace and not a privilege
of humanitys whim.
(Levi:cus, a Con:nental Commentary, p. 107.)

Excuse me, is this kosher?

16

Thus, by respec&ng life in all its

forms, the Israelites aspire to a
higher moral and ethical plane, a
life of what Levi&cus calls
qadosh, or holiness.
Jesus and the early church do not
cri&cize the dietary laws per se;
rather, they cri&cize the misuse of
the dietary laws in the dynamic of
redemp&on, seeing them as the
vehicles for aRaining redemp&on,
rather than as a means of living a
redeemed life.

Excuse me, is this kosher?

17

Got it!

For unto you a child is born . . .

18

Now, on to our topic

at hand, Levi&cus 12
and childbirth!

And he said . . .

19

As we move into Lesson #8

we address the 2nd of the
seven sec&ons in the
sanc&ca&on chapters of
Levi&cus:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.

Food of Gods people (11: 1-47)

Children of Gods people (12: 1-8)
Cleansing of leprosy (13: 1 14: 57)
Cleansing of bodily emissions (15: 1-32)
The Day of Atonement (16: 1-34)
The sanc&ty of life (17: 1-16)
Applica&ons of the laws (18: 1-20: 27)
Addendum: Addi&onal commands for
Gods priests (21: 1 22: 33)

For unto you a child is born . . .

20

Children of Gods People

Leviticus 12: 1-8
The Lord said to Moses: Tell the Israelites: When a woman
has a child, giving birth to a boy, she shall be unclean
[impure] for seven days, with the same uncleanness as during
her menstrual period. On the eighth day, the flesh of the
boys foreskin shall be circumcised, and then she shall spend
thirty-three days more in a state of blood purity; she shall
not touch anything sacred nor enter the sanctuary till the
days of her purification are fulfilled. If she gives birth to a
girl, for fourteen days she shall be as unclean as during her
menstrual period, after which she shall spend sixty-six days
in a state of blood purity.

For unto you a child is born . . .

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With the birth of a son, a woman:

1. Is unclean [impure] for seven days, as
during her menstrual period;
2. On the eighth day her son is circumcised;
3. For thirty-three days she is in a state of
blood purity.

This totals 40 days

With the birth of a daughter, a woman:
1. Is unclean [impure] for fourteen days,
as during her menstrual period;
2. For sixty-six days she is in a state of
blood purity.

This totals 80 days

For unto you a child is born . . .

22

I think we need to look

very carefully at these
eight verses, if were
to understand them
properly.
We sure do!

For unto you a child is born . . .

23

As we learned previously blood is sacred, for

the life of all esh is its blood (Levi&cus 17:
14), and hence the blood of the sacricial
animals is given back to God on the altar, and
in the dietary laws God forbids ea&ng blood.
Blood is the arch-symbol of life.
Consequently, when a woman gives birth
when she brings life into the worldthe loss
of her bloodthe loss of liferepresents the
intricate, primal dance between life and
death. Thus for seven days, during the &me
of her heaviest blood ow, she is ritually
impure, as during her menstrual cycle.
With the principal of sanctum contagion,
anything she touches becomes ritually
impure, as well. During this &me her
husband must recognize this profound
reality, and he must not have intercourse
with her.
Excuse me, is this kosher?

24

If she gives birth to a boy, he is

circumcised on the eighth day, as God
commanded Abraham in Genesis 17.
Circumcision was widely prac&ced in the
ancient Near East in biblical &mes, as it is
today. In most cultures it was (and is) a
boys rite of passage into manhood, a
prepara&on for marriage. Only among
Jews was circumcision done on the
eighth day of a boys life.
For a Jew, circumcision is a sign of Gods
covenant with his people, and the
circumcision of a boy on the eighth day
incorporates him into the covenant
community at this very early age.
Circumcision is to a Jew what bap&sm is
to a Chris&an.
Excuse me, is this kosher?

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Aaer the boys circumcision, the

woman waits an addi&onal thirty-
three days, and as her bleeding
subsides, she is in a state of
blood purity.
This is dierent from her
impurity during the rst seven
days aaer giving birth or during
her menstrual period. In a state
of blood purity she is only
restricted from the sacred; she
has unrestricted access to the
common sphere, including sexual
rela&ons with her husband.
Excuse me, is this kosher?

26

But if a woman gives

birth to a girl, all
those &mes are
doubled! I wonder
why?
Not me
Shes
cute!

For unto you a child is born . . .

27

Many claim that the longer

period of impurity
associated with the birth of
a girl suggests that a girl is
of less worth than a boy,
somehow causing a longer
period of impurity for her
mother.
Id suggest quite the
opposite.

And he said . . .

28

It is, indeed, true that Psalm 127

tells us:

(Psalm 127: 3-5)

Truly sons are a giT from the Lord,

a blessing, the fruit of the womb.
Indeed, the sons of youth
are like arrows in the hand of a warrior.
O the happiness of the man
who has lled his quiver with these arrows!
He will have no cause for shame
when he disputes with his foes in the gateways.

For unto you a child is born . . .

29

From a biblical perspec&veand from the

perspec&ve of the Near East in both ancient
&mes and todaya woman giving birth to a
boy is a great blessing, for a boy carries on
the family name and line; a son both protects
and provides for his family; and the eldest
son becomes his fathers heir, the new family
patriarch, ensuring the familys survival and
prosperity.
Conversely, a girl marries outside the family
and carries on someone elses family line,
producing children for someone elses family,
ensuring their their survival and prosperity.
Hence, the desire for sons in Scripture.

For unto you a child is born . . .

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But that in no way diminishes the

value of a daughter in the eyes of
God or her mother.
Perhaps the extended &me of
impurity gives a mother
addi&onal bonding &me with
her daughter, recognizing the
unique nature of their mother/
daughter rela&onship.
If thats the case, the extended
&me implies nothing nega&ve;
rather, it is a blessing.

For unto you a child is born . . .

31

Children of Gods People, cont.

Leviticus 12: 1-8
When the days of her purification for a son or for a
daughter are fulfilled, she shall bring to the priest at the
entrance of the tent of meeting a yearling lamb for a burnt
offering and a pigeon or a turtledove for a purification
offering. The priest shall offer them before the Lord to
make atonement for her flow of blood. Such is the ritual
for the woman who gives birth to a child, male or female.
If, however, she cannot afford a lamb, she may take two
turtledoves or two pigeons, the one for a burnt offering and
the other for a purification offering. The priest shall make
atonement for her, and thus she will again be clean.

For unto you a child is born . . .

32

Hans Holbein the Elder. The Presenta:on of Christ in the Temple (Tempera and oil on r), c. 1500.
Kunsthalle Hamburg, Germany.

For unto you a child is born . . .

33

1. Why does Jesus cri&cizes the scribes and

Pharisees for their me&culous observance of
the Mosaic law?
2. St. Paul tells us that as Chris&ans we are
saved by grace through faith. If that is true,
what role do good works play in our
rela&onship with Christ, if any?
3. Why is an Israelite boy circumcised on the
eighth day aaer his birth?
4. Why is there no parallel rite for a girl?
5. Mary follows the law in Levi&cus 12
me&culously aaer the birth of Jesus. Is she
correct in doing so?
For unto you a child is born . . .

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Copyright 2015 by William C. Creasy

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For unto you a child is born . . .

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