Numbers 19:17
For the purification of the unclean person, take some of the ashes of the burnt sin offering, put them in a jar, and pour fresh water over them.
For the purification of the unclean person,

Contact with a human corpse made an Israelite ceremonially unclean for seven days and barred participation in the worshiping community. Death displayed the curse brought by sin, and God required cleansing before the defiled person could return to the camp and draw near to Him.

Num 8:7 This is what you must do to cleanse them: Sprinkle them…
Lev 14:7 Seven times he shall sprinkle the one to be cleansed…

take some of the ashes of the burnt sin offering,

The ashes came from the red heifer sacrificed and burned outside the camp according to Numbers 19:1–10. Kept for repeated use, they provided God’s appointed means of cleansing from corpse defilement. The sacrifice outside the camp anticipates Christ, who suffered outside Jerusalem to sanctify His people through His own blood (Hebrews 13:11–12).

Lev 6:10-11 And the priest shall put on his linen robe…
Lev 16:27 The bull for the sin offering and the goat……
Heb 9:13 For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes…

put them in a jar,

The ashes were preserved for use whenever defilement occurred, showing that God had provided cleansing before impurity arose. The careful preparation of the ashes upheld the holiness of God and the seriousness of approaching Him on His terms.

Num 5:17 Then he is to take some holy water in a clay jar…
Lev 14:5-6 Then the priest shall command that one of the birds……

and pour fresh water over them.

Running water was added to the ashes to prepare the water of purification, which was later sprinkled on the unclean person on the third and seventh days. Water associated with life stood in deliberate contrast to the contamination of death. The rite could cleanse outward ceremonial defilement, while Christ’s sacrifice cleanses the conscience from sin and grants believers access to God (Hebrews 9:13–14).

Lev 14:50-52 and he shall slaughter one of the birds over fresh water…
Lev 15:13 When the man has been cleansed from his discharge…

Persons / Places / Events
1. The Israelites
The people of God who received the laws and instructions for purification.

2. Moses and Aaron
Leaders of the Israelites who conveyed God's laws and instructions.

3. The Red Heifer
A special sacrificial animal whose ashes were used for purification.

4. The Tabernacle
The dwelling place of God among the Israelites, where sacrifices and rituals were performed.

5. The Unclean Person
An individual who had become ceremonially unclean and required purification.
Teaching Points
The Importance of Purity
God values both physical and spiritual purity. The ritual of using ashes and water symbolizes the need for cleansing from sin and impurity.

Symbolism of Water and Ashes
The combination of ashes and fresh water represents the cleansing power of God. Just as water cleanses physically, God's provision cleanses spiritually.

Foreshadowing Christ's Sacrifice
The ritual points to the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, whose blood purifies us from all sin, fulfilling the law's requirements.

Community Responsibility
The community played a role in maintaining purity, reflecting the importance of accountability and support in the body of Christ.

Continuous Need for Cleansing
Just as the Israelites needed regular purification, believers must continually seek spiritual cleansing through repentance and faith in Christ.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the ritual of purification in Numbers 19:17 reflect God's holiness and the need for purity among His people?

2. In what ways does the use of ashes and water in the purification process point to the work of Jesus Christ?

3. How can we apply the principles of community responsibility and accountability in maintaining spiritual purity today?

4. What are some practical ways we can seek spiritual cleansing and renewal in our daily lives?

5. How do the purification rituals in the Old Testament enhance our understanding of the New Testament teachings on sin and redemption?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Leviticus 14
Discusses the purification process for leprosy, showing the importance of ceremonial cleanliness.

Hebrews 9
Explains how the Old Testament purification rituals foreshadowed the ultimate purification through Christ's sacrifice.

Psalm 51
David's plea for purification and cleansing from sin, highlighting the spiritual aspect of purity.

John 4
Jesus speaks of living water, symbolizing spiritual cleansing and eternal life.

1 John 1
Emphasizes the cleansing power of Jesus' blood for sin, connecting to the theme of purification.
Purge Me with Hyssop, and I Shall be CleanW. Binnie Numbers 19:1-10, 17-19
Defilement from the DeadD. Young Numbers 19:1-22
The Law of the Red Heifer AppliedD. G. Watt, M. A.Numbers 19:1-22
The Ordinance of the Red HeiferW. Jones.Numbers 19:1-22
The Ordinance of the Red HeiferJ. M. Gibson, D. D.Numbers 19:1-22
The Red HeiferSpurgeon, Charles HaddonNumbers 19:1-22
The Red Heifer a Wilderness TypeC. H. Mackintosh.Numbers 19:1-22
The Red Heifer an Analogue of the ChristW. Jones.Numbers 19:1-22
The Water of Purification, and its LessonsE.S. Prout Numbers 19:1-22
People
Aaron, Eleazar, Israelites, Moses
Places
Wilderness of Paran
Topics
Added, Ashes, Burned, Burning, Burnt, Cleansing, Dust, Flowing, Fresh, Heifer, Jar, Offering, Pour, Purification, Purification-offering, Running, Sin, Sin-offering, Thereon, Thereto, Unclean, Vessel
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Numbers 19:17

     5445   potters and pottery

Numbers 19:1-22

     7340   clean and unclean

Numbers 19:10-20

     7416   purification

Numbers 19:11-21

     8325   purity, nature of

Numbers 19:17-20

     4470   hyssop

Numbers 19:17-21

     7426   ritual washing

Library
Nor, in that the Law Orders a Man to be Purified Even after Intercourse...
23. Nor, in that the Law orders a man to be purified even after intercourse with a wife, doth it show it to be sin: unless it be that which is allowed by way of pardon, which also, being in excess, hinders prayers. But, as the Law sets [1999] many things in sacraments and shadows of things to come; a certain as it were material formless state of the seed, which having received form will hereafter produce the body of man, is set to signify a life formless, and untaught: from which formless state,
St. Augustine—On the Good of Marriage

Fifth Sunday in Lent
Text: Hebrews 9, 11-15. 11 But Christ having come a high priest of the good things to come, through the greater and more perfect tabernacle, not made with hands, that is to say, not of this creation, 12 nor yet through the blood of goats and calves, but through his own blood, entered in once for all into the holy place, having obtained eternal redemption. 13 For if the blood of goats and bulls, and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling them that have been defiled, sanctify unto the cleanness of the flesh:
Martin Luther—Epistle Sermons, Vol. II

Li. Dining with a Pharisee, Jesus Denounces that Sect.
^C Luke XI. 37-54. ^c 37 Now as he spake, a Pharisee asketh him to dine with him: and he went in, and sat down to meat. [The repast to which Jesus was invited was a morning meal, usually eaten between ten and eleven o'clock. The principal meal of the day was eaten in the evening. Jesus dined with all classes, with publicans and Pharisees, with friends and enemies.] 38 And when the Pharisee saw it, he marvelled that he had not first bathed himself before dinner. [The Pharisee marveled at this because
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Jesus' Triumphal Entry into Jerusalem.
(from Bethany to Jerusalem and Back, Sunday, April 2, a.d. 30.) ^A Matt. XXI. 1-12, 14-17; ^B Mark XI. 1-11; ^C Luke XIX. 29-44; ^D John XII. 12-19. ^c 29 And ^d 12 On the morrow [after the feast in the house of Simon the leper] ^c it came to pass, when he he drew nigh unto Bethphage and Bethany, at the mount that is called Olivet, ^a 1 And when they came nigh unto Jerusalem, and came unto Bethphage unto { ^b at} ^a the mount of Olives [The name, Bethphage, is said to mean house of figs, but the
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

John the Baptist's Person and Preaching.
(in the Wilderness of Judæa, and on the Banks of the Jordan, Occupying Several Months, Probably a.d. 25 or 26.) ^A Matt. III. 1-12; ^B Mark I. 1-8; ^C Luke III. 1-18. ^b 1 The beginning of the gospel [John begins his Gospel from eternity, where the Word is found coexistent with God. Matthew begins with Jesus, the humanly generated son of Abraham and David, born in the days of Herod the king. Luke begins with the birth of John the Baptist, the Messiah's herald; and Mark begins with the ministry
J. W. McGarvey—The Four-Fold Gospel

Numbers
Like the last part of Exodus, and the whole of Leviticus, the first part of Numbers, i.-x. 28--so called,[1] rather inappropriately, from the census in i., iii., (iv.), xxvi.--is unmistakably priestly in its interests and language. Beginning with a census of the men of war (i.) and the order of the camp (ii.), it devotes specific attention to the Levites, their numbers and duties (iii., iv.). Then follow laws for the exclusion of the unclean, v. 1-4, for determining the manner and amount of restitution
John Edgar McFadyen—Introduction to the Old Testament

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