What is the meaning of impurity in the Bible?

Answer

Impurity is the state of being defiled in some way. The term impurity can also denote the contaminant itself: an undesired substance that causes something to be unclean. The concepts of purity and impurity play a significant role in the Bible’s portrayal of holiness.

Within the rituals of the Old Testament Law, the Israelites frequently encountered the notions of ritual or ceremonial purity and impurity. Various factors could render an Israelite ritually unclean or impure, such as menstruation, childbirth, nocturnal emissions, contact with a dead body, and specific types of skin ailments. Consuming unclean food would result in impurity, as seen in Acts 10:14. Impurity could be ceremonially transmitted to others: any form of personal contact with an unclean individual would render the contactee unclean as well. The avenues to becoming unclean were numerous, ensuring that every Israelite, regardless of gender, would experience some period of ceremonial impurity.

When an individual was deemed unclean due to ceremonial impurity, they were isolated from the community and prohibited from worshipping at the temple for the duration of their impurity or uncleanness (Numbers 5:1-4). Nevertheless, God’s Law outlined a process for regaining purity. The purification procedure varied based on the level of impurity, ranging from physical cleansing to presenting an animal sacrifice to atone for the uncleanness. The Law’s emphasis on purity and its containment of impurity underscored God’s expectation of holiness from His people. Israel was chosen by God to have a special relationship with Him. God is holy, and He requires holiness from those who follow Him. “A little leaven leavens the whole lump” «A little leaven leaveneth the whole lump. », (Galatians 5:9, ESV); a small amount of impurity compromises integrity; a little impurity undermines the entire essence.

Title sin destroys holiness.

In the Bible, ceremonial impurity can illustrate moral impurity. One vivid example of this is leprosy—one of the skin diseases that rendered a person ceremonially impure or unclean. Because there was no cure for leprosy, a person who contracted leprosy was often permanently unclean. Lepers were outcasts for life. They were not permitted to associate with others due to the contagiousness of their disease; they could not live with their families or worship at the temple or work at jobs. Their impurity was so severe that, if they were in a public area, they were required to identify themselves by shouting, “Unclean! Unclean!” so that others could clear out and avoid any contact with them «And the leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and his head bare, and he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean. », (Leviticus 13:45). Lepers had to resort to begging, relying on the mercy of others to spare them food and other daily necessities. The impurity of leprosy is like sin in that it isolates us from our communities, separates us from God, and eventually leads to death. And this is why Jesus’ approach to the outcast lepers in His day was so startling. He didn’t turn away from them, He didn’t clear out of the way, and He didn’t draw back in horror or disdain; He reached out His hand and touched them. And instead of their leprosy making Jesus unclean, His holiness overcame their impurity and made them clean (Matthew 8:1-4;Luke 17:11-16). Jesus’ power is such that He can rid us of all impurity: physical, moral, and spiritual.

When we think of impurity, we often think of sexual sin. Sexual immorality is certainly included in the Bible’s idea of impurity, but there is more to it than that. Impurity really includes all kinds of sin and encompasses aAny activity, thought, word, or action that does not align with God’s will for our lives is considered impure. “God did not call us to be impure, but to live a holy life” «For God hath not called us unto uncleanness, but unto holiness. », (1 Thessalonians 4:7).

The Bible teaches that impurity is the inherent state of human beings after the fall. We are all born as sinful and unclean individuals (Psalm 51:5;Romans 3:23), and we must undergo cleansing to be able to encounter God. Only God is flawless; we all have been tainted by the impurity of sin. Even the smallest sin remains a deadly pollutant in our souls, and this is concerning: “Of this you can be sure: No immoral, impure or greedy person . . . has any inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and of God” (Ephesians 5:5;cf: Revelation 21:27). Like lepers, we are all desperately in need of God’s mercy and grace to extend to us and cleanse us from the impurities that contaminate us. We require Jesus’ touch and the bestowal of His righteousness «But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who of God is made unto us wisdom, and righteousness, and sanctification, and redemption: », (1 Corinthians 1:30). “Blessed is the one whose sin the LORD does not count against them” «Blessed is the man unto whom the LORD imputeth not iniquity, And in whose spirit there is no guile. », (Psalm 32:2).

The glory of the gospel is that God can transform impurity into purity and cleanse the unclean. To our everlasting delight, God is willing to do just that, for the sake of Christ: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.”

“Righteousness” “If we acknowledge our sins, he is faithful and righteous to forgive us our sins and to purify us from all unrighteousness.”, (1 John 1:9).