The Meaning of Leviticus 12:4 Explained

Leviticus 12:4

KJV: 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.

YLT: and thirty and three days she doth abide in the blood of her cleansing; against any holy thing she doth not come, and unto the sanctuary she doth not go in, till the fulness of the days of her cleansing.

Darby: And she shall continue thirty-three days in the blood of her cleansing; no holy thing shall she touch, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her cleansing are fulfilled.

ASV: And she shall 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.

KJV Reverse Interlinear

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. 

What does Leviticus 12:4 Mean?

Context Summary

Leviticus 12:1-8 - Purification After Child-Bearing
The birth of a boy involved seven days' ceremonial defilement; of a girl, fourteen. Not the child, but the mother, was adjudged to be unclean, securing her a period of retirement and rest. The gracious gradation in the sacrifices made it possible for the poorest to obey, and it is a memorable fact that the mother of our Lord brought two pigeons or doves-meet emblems of her gentle nature-when she presented her babe in the Temple. See Luke 2:24. Our Lord became poor, that through His poverty we might be eternally enriched. In the light of this ceremonial, we are led back to Psalms 51:5, which we must personally and sadly ponder.
The initial rite of the Hebrew religion stood for separation. The parent taught the child to remember that he belonged to a separated race. It was impossible for him to consort with those who were aliens from the commonwealth of Israel. We all need to undergo the circumcision of Christ, which consists in putting away the sins of the flesh, and ceasing to trust in our own energy. See Colossians 2:11-12. [source]

Chapter Summary: Leviticus 12

1  The purification of a woman after childbirth
6  Her offerings for her purifying

What do the individual words in Leviticus 12:4 mean?

Then thirty days and three days she shall continue in the blood of [her] purification Any sacred thing not she shall touch and into the sanctuary nor come until are fulfilled the days of her purification
וּשְׁלֹשִׁ֥ים יוֹם֙ וּשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת יָמִ֔ים תֵּשֵׁ֖ב בִּדְמֵ֣י טָהֳרָ֑ה בְּכָל־ קֹ֣דֶשׁ לֹֽא־ תִגָּ֗ע וְאֶל־ הַמִּקְדָּשׁ֙ לֹ֣א תָבֹ֔א עַד־ מְלֹ֖את יְמֵ֥י טָהֳרָֽהּ

וּשְׁלֹשִׁ֥ים  Then  thirty 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Number, common plural
Root: שְׁלֹשִׁים  
Sense: thirty, thirtieth.
יוֹם֙  days 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
וּשְׁלֹ֣שֶׁת  and  three 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Number, masculine singular construct
Root: מִשְׁלֹשׁ 
Sense: three, triad.
יָמִ֔ים  days 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
תֵּשֵׁ֖ב  she  shall  continue 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: יָשַׁב 
Sense: to dwell, remain, sit, abide.
בִּדְמֵ֣י  in  the  blood 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: דָּם  
Sense: blood.
טָהֳרָ֑ה  of  [her]  purification 
Parse: Noun, feminine singular
Root: טָהֳרָה  
Sense: purifying, cleansing, purification, purity, cleanness.
בְּכָל־  Any 
Parse: Preposition-b, Noun, masculine singular construct
Root: כֹּל  
Sense: all, the whole.
קֹ֣דֶשׁ  sacred  thing 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular
Root: קֹדֶשׁ  
Sense: apartness, holiness, sacredness, separateness.
תִגָּ֗ע  she  shall  touch 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: נָגַע  
Sense: to touch, reach, strike.
וְאֶל־  and  into 
Parse: Conjunctive waw, Preposition
Root: אֶל  
Sense: to, toward, unto (of motion).
הַמִּקְדָּשׁ֙  the  sanctuary 
Parse: Article, Noun, masculine singular
Root: מִקְדָּשׁ  
Sense: sacred place, sanctuary, holy place.
לֹ֣א  nor 
Parse: Adverb, Negative particle
Root: הֲלֹא 
Sense: not, no.
תָבֹ֔א  come 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Imperfect, third person feminine singular
Root: בֹּוא 
Sense: to go in, enter, come, go, come in.
עַד־  until 
Parse: Preposition
Root: עַד  
Sense: as far as, even to, until, up to, while, as far as.
מְלֹ֖את  are  fulfilled 
Parse: Verb, Qal, Infinitive construct
Root: מָלֵא 
Sense: to fill, be full.
יְמֵ֥י  the  days 
Parse: Noun, masculine plural construct
Root: יׄום 
Sense: day, time, year.
טָהֳרָֽהּ  of  her  purification 
Parse: Noun, masculine singular construct, third person feminine singular
Root: טָהֳרָה  
Sense: purifying, cleansing, purification, purity, cleanness.

What are the major concepts related to Leviticus 12:4?

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