And the priest shall use them, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering. And the priest shall make atonement for him before the LORD for his discharge.
Leviticus 15 leaves leprosy behind and turns to quieter, everyday kinds of uncleanness. Verse 15 closes one such case with two birds and atonement by the priest — so why does a condition nobody chose need blood at all?
Lesser Defilement, Same Holiness
This chapter follows the law on the worst defilement of all, and the severity now drops:
F. B. HoleChapters 13 and 14 have dealt with the worst form of defilement. It usually lasted for life, and it shut a person out of the camp of Israel completely — the camp where God was pleased to dwell. Leviticus 15 deals with a range of lesser defilements. These meant a temporary separation, and careful washings, before a person could return to the camp and its privileges. These defilements sprang from the weakness of human nature, and from conditions that still exist today, as a result of the fall. Many of them could not be avoided. Even so, Israel had to recognise them as defiling and treat them so.
But if a thing cannot be avoided, why call it defiling? One writer answers:
J. N. DarbyIf it cannot be avoided, it is the display, or at least the unavoidable presence, of what is shameful, because the nature is fallen and sinful.
The Washing That Comes First
Water came first, and every case needed it:
William KellyEvery case demanded purifying. For the Jew it was water. For us it is the washing of water by the word — the water that flowed from Christ in death. The apostle who saw it bears witness to it in his Gospel and his Letter.
Not everyone in the chapter had to bring birds:
C E StuartHere we need only recall the difference between two kinds of cleansing. One was appointed for those the defilement came from. The other was for those who became unclean only by contact. The first group had to wash, and to bring sacrifices as well — a sin offering and a burnt offering. Here the sin offering comes before the burnt offering, because the outbreak of the flesh called for the sacrifices. The second group had only to wash with water.
Sin Offering First, Then Burnt Offering
Compared with leprosy, the process here is short, and it ends in more than clearance:
J. N. DarbyThis case is shameful, but it is treated as less serious morally than leprosy. In leprosy there was the display of real corruption, already there in the nature and let into the heart, so a long process was needed to purify the conscience. Here they washed only once, and they offered just a sin offering. In this way, when they offered their burnt offering, they could enter into communion through the sweet aroma of Christ.
Why Two Birds, and Not a Lamb
Elsewhere in Leviticus, doves and pigeons are the option for people who cannot afford a lamb. Here the arrangement is different:
Michael HardtFor the cleansing in Leviticus 15, on the other hand, "two turtledoves or two young pigeons" were intended for normal cases, not only for cases of poverty.
Another writer draws the same point from the text and adds the priest's care in handling so small a gift:
William KellyThen on the eighth day he took an offering. In other cases this offering was suited to the poor in Israel, but here it was for everyone alike, whenever anyone was to be cleared from this defilement… The priest was told to offer them, small as they were, with all due reverence — one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering.
Atonement Made For Him, Not By Him
The verse does not say the man makes atonement. Someone else does it for him:
C E StuartIn God's eyes they all needed atonement, yet none could make it for himself. Each had to confess that need by bringing the appointed sacrifice. Once he brought it, the priest had to deal with the blood. They all depended on the ministry of God's priest. They all needed atonement by blood. In these cases what made the offering necessary was the outflow from man's nature, and in God's eyes that outflow is uncleanness.
The man was not left wondering whether it worked:
William KellyThe offerer was not to doubt the outcome: the priest shall make atonement for him before the LORD for his discharge. It was owed to the LORD, and for the time being it was effective for the cleansing of the flesh. It was the shadow of that unfailing and everlasting atonement which only the Lord Jesus could make.
Summary
- Source. The uncleanness came out of the man himself. Washing alone was not enough, so he brought a sacrifice too.
- Sin offering. The flesh had shown itself, so the sin offering comes first.
- Burnt offering. The second bird carries him past clearance into communion, through the sweet aroma of Christ.
- Provision. Elsewhere two small birds were the poor person's option. Here they are the offering for everyone alike, and the priest handled them with full reverence.
- Atonement. No one made atonement for himself. He brought the sacrifice, the priest dealt with the blood, and the outcome was certain. It was a shadow of the one lasting atonement Christ alone could make.