Leviticus 14:49 To purify the house he is to take two birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop.
The ritual described here is the same ritual used with the cleaning of the leper earlier in this chapter. I know because just the mechanics of the ritual (“take the cedar wood, the hyssop, the scarlet yarn and the live bird, dip them into the blood of the dead bird and the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times” v51) strikes me as insanity.
Leviticus 14:50 He shall kill one of the birds over fresh water in a clay pot.
I just don’t see a live bird consenting to being dipped into the blood of a dead bird (or into anything for that matter) once, much less seven times. So it makes me wonder if this is another situation where what’s really important is the number seven, often associated with completeness, perfection, fulfillment in the Bible. Viewed in this light, it could be the finality of the cleansing ritual and the cleansing itself. As Jesus says in John 19:30, “It is finished.”
Leviticus 14:51 Then he is to take the cedar wood, the hyssop, the scarlet yarn and the live bird, dip them into the blood of the dead bird and the fresh water, and sprinkle the house seven times.
Precious Savior, There is so much I do not know, do not understand about Your Word. Thank You for allowing me insights to ponder as I read and study Your Word. Draw me closer to You each morning. Amen.
Leviticus 14:52 He shall purify the house with the bird’s blood, the fresh water, the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop and the scarlet yarn.
Have a blessed day.