Unclean Discharges from the Body

151 And Jehovah spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 2 Speak unto the children of Israel, and say unto them, If any man have a flux from his flesh, because of his flux he is unclean. 3 And this shall be his uncleanness in his flux: whether his flesh run with his flux, or his flesh be closed from his flux, it is his uncleanness. 4 Every bed whereon he lieth that hath the flux shall be unclean; and every object on which he sitteth shall be unclean. 5 And whoever toucheth his bed shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 6 And he that sitteth on any object whereon he sat that hath the flux shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 7 And he that toucheth the flesh of him that hath the flux shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 8 And if he that hath the flux spit upon him that is clean, then he shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 9 And what carriage soever he rideth upon that hath the flux shall be unclean. 10 And whoever toucheth anything that was under him shall be unclean until the even; and he that carrieth them shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 11 And whomsoever he toucheth who hath the flux and hath not rinsed his hands in water—he shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 12 And the vessel of earth that he toucheth who hath the flux shall be broken; and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water. 13 And when he that hath a flux is clean of his flux, then he shall count seven days for his cleansing, and wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in running water, and he shall be clean. 14 And on the eighth day he shall take two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and come before Jehovah unto the entrance of the tent of meeting, and give them unto the priest. 15 And the priest shall offer them, one as a sin-offering, and one as a burnt-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for him before Jehovah for his flux. 16 And if any man's seed of copulation pass from him, then he shall bathe his whole flesh in water, and be unclean until the even. 17 And every garment, and every skin, whereon the seed of copulation shall be, shall be washed with water, and be unclean until the even. 18 And a woman with whom a man lieth with seed of copulation—they shall bathe in water, and be unclean until the even.

19 And if a woman have a flux, and her flux in her flesh be blood, she shall be seven days in her separation, and whoever toucheth her shall be unclean until the even. 20 And everything that she lieth upon in her separation shall be unclean; and everything that she sitteth upon shall be unclean. 21 And whoever toucheth her bed shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 22 And whoever toucheth any object that she sat upon shall wash his garments, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 23 And if it be on the bed, or on anything whereon she sitteth, when he toucheth it, he shall be unclean until the even. 24 And if a man lie with her at all, and the uncleanness of her separation come upon him, he shall be unclean seven days; and every bed whereon he lieth shall be unclean. 25 And if a woman have her flux of blood many days out of the time of her separation, or if she have the flux beyond the time of her separation, all the days of the flux of her uncleanness shall she be as [in] the days of her separation: she is unclean. 26 Every bed whereon she lieth all the days of her flux shall be unto her as the bed of her separation; and every object on which she sitteth shall be unclean, according to the uncleanness of her separation. 27 And whoever toucheth them shall be unclean, and shall wash his clothes, and bathe in water, and be unclean until the even. 28 And if she be cleansed of her flux then she shall count seven days, and after that she shall be clean. 29 And on the eighth day she shall take two turtle-doves, or two young pigeons, and bring them unto the priest, unto the entrance of the tent of meeting. 30 And the priest shall offer the one as a sin-offering, and the other as a burnt-offering; and the priest shall make atonement for her before Jehovah for the flux of her uncleanness. 31 And ye shall separate the children of Israel from their uncleanness, that they die not in their uncleanness, when they defile my tabernacle that is in their midst. 32 This is the law for him that hath a flux, and for the one whose seed of copulation goeth from him, and who is defiled therewith: 33 and for a woman who is sick in her separation, and for him that hath his flux; for the man and for the woman, and for him that lieth with her that is unclean.

The Day of Atonement

161 And Jehovah spoke to Moses after the death of the two sons of Aaron, when they came near before Jehovah and died; 2 and Jehovah said to Moses, Speak unto Aaron thy brother, that he come not at all times into the sanctuary inside the veil before the mercy-seat which is upon the ark, that he die not; for I will appear in the cloud upon the mercy-seat. 3 In this manner shall Aaron come into the sanctuary: with a young bullock for a sin-offering, and a ram for a burnt-offering. 4 A holy linen vest shall he put on, and linen trousers shall be upon his flesh, and he shall be girded with a linen girdle, and with the linen mitre shall he be attired: these are holy garments; and he shall bathe his flesh in water, and put them on.

5 And of the assembly of the children of Israel shall he take two bucks of the goats for a sin-offering, and one ram for a burnt-offering. 6 And Aaron shall present the bullock of the sin-offering, which is for himself, and make atonement for himself, and for his house. 7 And he shall take the two goats, and set them before Jehovah, before the entrance of the tent of meeting. 8 And Aaron shall cast lots upon the two goats: one lot for Jehovah, and the other lot for Azazel. 9 And Aaron shall present the goat upon which the lot fell for Jehovah, and offer it [as] a sin-offering. 10 And the goat upon which the lot fell for Azazel shall be set alive before Jehovah, to make atonement with it, to send it away as Azazel into the wilderness. 11 And Aaron shall present the bullock of the sin-offering, which is for himself, and shall make atonement for himself and for his house, and shall slaughter the bullock of the sin-offering which is for himself. 12 And he shall take the censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before Jehovah, and both his hands full of fragrant incense beaten small, and bring it inside the veil. 13 And he shall put the incense upon the fire before Jehovah, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy-seat which is upon the testimony, that he die not. 14 And he shall take of the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle with his finger upon the front of the mercy-seat eastward; and before the mercy-seat shall he sprinkle of the blood seven times with his finger.

15 And he shall slaughter the goat of the sin-offering, which is for the people, and bring its blood inside the veil, and do with its blood as he did with the blood of the bullock, and sprinkle it upon the mercy-seat, and before the mercy-seat; 16 and he shall make atonement for the sanctuary, [to cleanse it] from the uncleanness of the children of Israel, and from their transgressions in all their sins; and so shall he do for the tent of meeting which dwelleth among them in the midst of their uncleanness. 17 And there shall be no man in the tent of meeting when he goeth in to make atonement in the sanctuary until he come out; and he shall make atonement for himself, and for his house, and for the whole congregation of Israel. 18 And he shall go out unto the altar which is before Jehovah, and make atonement for it; and shall take of the blood of the bullock, and of the goat, and put it upon the horns of the altar round about; 19 and he shall sprinkle upon it of the blood with his finger seven times, and cleanse it, and hallow it from the uncleannesses of the children of Israel.

20 And when he hath ended making atonement for the sanctuary, and the tent of meeting, and the altar, he shall present the living goat; 21 and Aaron shall lay both his hands on the head of the living goat, and confess over it all the iniquities of the children of Israel, and all their transgressions in all their sins, and he shall put them on the head of the goat, and shall send him away to the wilderness by the hand of a man standing ready; 22 that the goat may bear upon him all their iniquities to a land apart [from men]; and he shall send away the goat into the wilderness. 23 And Aaron shall go into the tent of meeting, and shall put off the linen garments, which he put on when he went into the sanctuary, and shall leave them there; 24 and he shall bathe his flesh with water in a holy place, and put on his garments, and go forth, and offer his burnt-offering, and the burnt-offering of the people, and make atonement for himself, and for the people. 25 And the fat of the sin-offering shall he burn upon the altar. 26 And he that letteth go the goat for Azazel shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water; and afterwards he may come into the camp. 27 And the bullock of the sin-offering, and the goat of the sin-offering whose blood was brought in to make atonement in the sanctuary, shall one carry forth outside the camp; and they shall burn with fire their skins, and their flesh, and their dung. 28 And he that burneth them shall wash his clothes, and bathe his flesh in water; and afterwards he may come into the camp.

29 And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you. In the seventh month, on the tenth of the month, ye shall afflict your souls, and do no work at all, the home-born, and the stranger that sojourneth among you; 30 for on that day shall atonement be made for you, to cleanse you: from all your sins shall ye be clean before Jehovah. 31 A sabbath of rest shall it be unto you, and ye shall afflict your souls: [it is] an everlasting statute. 32 And the priest who hath been anointed, and who hath been consecrated, to exercise the priesthood in his father's stead, shall make atonement; and he shall put on the linen garments, the holy garments. 33 And he shall make atonement for the holy sanctuary; and for the tent of meeting, and for the altar shall he make atonement; and for the priests, and for the whole people of the congregation shall he make atonement. 34 And this shall be an everlasting statute unto you, to make atonement for the children of Israel [to cleanse them] from all their sins once a year. And he did as Jehovah had commanded Moses.

Jesus Brought before Pilate

271 And when it was morning all the chief priests and the elders of the people took counsel against Jesus so that they might put him to death. 2 And having bound him they led him away, and delivered him up to Pontius Pilate, the governor.

The Death of Judas

3 Then Judas, who delivered him up, seeing that he had been condemned, filled with remorse, returned the thirty pieces of silver to the chief priests and the elders, 4 saying, I have sinned [in] having delivered up guiltless blood. But they said, What is that to us? see thou [to that]. 5 And having cast down the pieces of silver in the temple, he left the place, and went away and hanged himself. 6 And the chief priests took the pieces of silver and said, It is not lawful to cast them into the Corban, since it is [the] price of blood. 7 And having taken counsel, they bought with them the field of the potter for a burying-ground for strangers. 8 Wherefore that field has been called Blood-field unto this day. 9 Then was fulfilled that which was spoken through Jeremias the prophet, saying, And I took the thirty pieces of silver, the price of him that was set a price on, whom [they who were] of the sons of Israel had set a price on, 10 and they gave them for the field of the potter, according as [the] Lord commanded me.

Pilate Questions Jesus

11 But Jesus stood before the governor. And the governor questioned him, saying, Art thou the King of the Jews? And Jesus said to him, Thou sayest. 12 And when he was accused of the chief priests and the elders, he answered nothing. 13 Then says Pilate to him, Hearest thou not how many things they witness against thee? 14 And he answered him not so much as one word, so that the governor wondered exceedingly.

Jesus Sentenced to Die

15 Now at [the] feast the governor was accustomed to release one prisoner to the crowd, whom they would. 16 And they had then a notable prisoner, named Barabbas. 17 They therefore being gathered together, Pilate said to them, Whom will ye that I release to you, Barabbas, or Jesus who is called Christ? 18 For he knew that they had delivered him up through envy. 19 But, as he was sitting on the judgment-seat, his wife sent to him, saying, Have thou nothing to do with that righteous [man]; for I have suffered to-day many things in a dream because of him. 20 But the chief priests and the elders persuaded the crowds that they should beg for Barabbas, and destroy Jesus. 21 And the governor answering said to them, Which of the two will ye that I release unto you? And they said, Barabbas. 22 Pilate says to them, What then shall I do with Jesus, who is called Christ? They all say, Let him be crucified. 23 And the governor said, What evil then has he done? But they cried more than ever, saying, Let him be crucified. 24 And Pilate, seeing that it availed nothing, but that rather a tumult was arising, having taken water, washed his hands before the crowd, saying, I am guiltless of the blood of this righteous one: see ye [to it]. 25 And all the people answering said, His blood [be] on us and on our children.

26 Then he released to them Barabbas; but Jesus, having scourged [him], he delivered up that he might be crucified.

Matthew Henry's Commentary on Matthew 27:1-26

Commentary on Matthew 27:1-10

(Read Matthew 27:1-10)

Wicked men see little of the consequences of their crimes when they commit them, but they must answer for them all. In the fullest manner Judas acknowledged to the chief priests that he had sinned, and betrayed an innocent person. This was full testimony to the character of Christ; but the rulers were hardened. Casting down the money, Judas departed, and went and hanged himself, not being able to bear the terror of Divine wrath, and the anguish of despair. There is little doubt but that the death of Judas was before that of our blessed Lord. But was it nothing to them that they had thirsted after this blood, and hired Judas to betray it, and had condemned it to be shed unjustly? Thus do fools make a mock at sin. Thus many make light of Christ crucified. And it is a common instance of the deceitfulness of our hearts, to make light of our own sin by dwelling upon other people's sins. But the judgment of God is according to truth. Many apply this passage of the buying the piece of ground, with the money Judas brought back, to signify the favour intended by the blood of Christ to strangers, and sinners of the Gentiles. It fulfilled a prophecy, Zechariah 11:12. Judas went far toward repentance, yet it was not to salvation. He confessed, but not to God; he did not go to him, and say, I have sinned, Father, against heaven. Let none be satisfied with such partial convictions as a man may have, and yet remain full of pride, enmity, and rebellion.

Commentary on Matthew 27:11-25

(Read Matthew 27:11-25)

Having no malice against Jesus, Pilate urged him to clear himself, and laboured to get him discharged. The message from his wife was a warning. God has many ways of giving checks to sinners, in their sinful pursuits, and it is a great mercy to have such checks from Providence, from faithful friends, and from our own consciences. O do not this abominable thing which the Lord hates! is what we may hear said to us, when we are entering into temptation, if we will but regard it. Being overruled by the priests, the people made choice of Barabbas. Multitudes who choose the world, rather than God, for their ruler and portion, thus choose their own delusions. The Jews were so bent upon the death of Christ, that Pilate thought it would be dangerous to refuse. And this struggle shows the power of conscience even on the worst men. Yet all was so ordered to make it evident that Christ suffered for no fault of his own, but for the sins of his people. How vain for Pilate to expect to free himself from the guilt of the innocent blood of a righteous person, whom he was by his office bound to protect! The Jews' curse upon themselves has been awfully answered in the sufferings of their nation. None could bear the sin of others, except Him that had no sin of his own to answer for. And are we not all concerned? Is not Barabbas preferred to Jesus, when sinners reject salvation that they may retain their darling sins, which rob God of his glory, and murder their souls? The blood of Christ is now upon us for good, through mercy, by the Jews' rejection of it. O let us flee to it for refuge!

Commentary on Matthew 27:26-30

(Read Matthew 27:26-30)

Crucifixion was a death used only among the Romans; it was very terrible and miserable. A cross was laid on the ground, to which the hands and feet were nailed, it was then lifted up and fixed upright, so that the weight of the body hung on the nails, till the sufferer died in agony. Christ thus answered the type of the brazen serpent raised on a pole. Christ underwent all the misery and shame here related, that he might purchase for us everlasting life, and joy, and glory.