Any clay pot that the man with the discharge touches must be broken, and any wooden utensil must be rinsed with water.
Parallel translations
- WEB “‘The earthen vessel, which he who has the discharge touches, shall be broken; and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
- KJV And the vessel of earth, that he toucheth which hath the issue, shall be broken: and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
- NKJV The vessel of earth that he who has the discharge touches shall be broken, and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
- NASB However, an earthenware vessel which the man with the discharge touches shall be broken, and every wooden vessel shall be rinsed in water.
- NLT Any clay pot the man touches must be broken, and any wooden utensil he touches must be rinsed with water.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
An earthen vessel the unclean man touches must be broken, while a wooden one is rinsed. Porous clay could not be purified and so was destroyed.
Overview
Because earthenware absorbs impurity and cannot be cleansed, it must be smashed, whereas non-porous wood can be rinsed. This distinction taught that some defilement penetrates so deeply that only destruction suffices. It illustrates the seriousness of corruption and, by contrast, the wonder of the gospel, in which even what seems beyond cleansing is made new in Christ.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 8
- Lev 6:28The clay pot in which the sin offering is boiled must be broken; if it is boiled in a bronze pot, the pot must be scoured and rinsed with water.
- Lev 11:32–33When one of them dies and falls on something, that article becomes unclean; any article of wood, clothing, leather, sackcloth, or any implement used for work must be rinsed with water and will remain unclean until evening; then it will be clean.
- Phil 3:21who, by the power that enables Him to subject all things to Himself, will transform our lowly bodies to be like His glorious body.
- Prov 1:21in the main concourse she cries aloud, at the city gates she makes her speech:
- Prov 3:21My son, do not lose sight of this: Preserve sound judgment and discernment.
- Prov 1:23If you had repented at my rebuke, then surely I would have poured out my spirit on you; I would have made my words known to you.
- Ps 2:9You will break them with an iron scepter; You will shatter them like pottery.”
- 2 Cor 5:1Now we know that if the earthly tent we live in is dismantled, we have a building from God, an eternal house in heaven, not built by human hands.
Themes, concepts, people & topics
Resources, by level
Commentaries & study tools
Free animated overview and word-study videos for this book.
Sermons and teaching on this passage from across YouTube.
Clear, readable, conservative exposition — the best free place to start on any passage.
Matthew Henry, Barnes, Gill, the Pulpit Commentary, Ellicott, Cambridge, and more — stacked on one page for this exact verse.
The beloved Puritan exposition of this whole book — warm, devotional, and verse by verse (free, CCEL).
Hebrew/Greek interlinear, word definitions, and cross-references for this verse.
Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 15:12 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
Each word below is tagged with its Strong’s number — tap one to see the underlying Hebrew word, its meaning, and every verse that uses it.