In Leviticus 12 it says that the woman who gave birth to a boy is only unclean for seven days, but one who gave birth to a girl is unclean for two weeks.\u00a0 Why is that?<\/p>\n\t
“Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean. And on the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. She shall then continue in the blood of her purification thirty-three days. She shall not touch any hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary until the days of her purification are fulfilled. But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her customary impurity, and she shall continue in the blood of her purification sixty-six days. When the days of her purification are fulfilled, whether for a son or a daughter, she shall bring to the priest a lamb of the first year as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering, to the door of the tabernacle of meeting’<\/em>” (Leviticus 12:2-6).<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
It was because of the blood flow that occurs during the birth of a child that a woman became unclean. However, since a male child was circumcised on the eighth day, that sacrifice of the foreskin with its blood flow was considered “payment” for the second week of uncleanness, and mom only needed 33 more days for purification. Because females did not have a circumcision rite, the woman remained unclean for two weeks and needed 66 more days for purification.<\/p>\n
Or another way to look at it, in a society where men valued boys, mom got to rest an extra forty days when she had a girl.<\/p>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Question: In Leviticus 12 it says that the woman who gave birth to a boy is only unclean for seven days, but one who gave birth to a girl is unclean for two weeks.\u00a0 Why is that? Answer: “Speak to the children of Israel, saying: ‘If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child,…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"advanced_seo_description":"","jetpack_seo_html_title":"","jetpack_seo_noindex":false,"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[20],"tags":[528,202],"class_list":["post-28467","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-answer","tag-equity","tag-uncleanness"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_likes_enabled":true,"jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":34466,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/could-you-explain-the-importance-of-waiting-eight-days-for-circumcision\/","url_meta":{"origin":28467,"position":0},"title":"Could you explain the importance of waiting eight days for circumcision?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"August 21, 2012","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Could you explain the importance of waiting eight days for circumcision? Answer: \"Speak to the children of Israel, saying: 'If a woman has conceived, and borne a male child, then she shall be unclean seven days; as in the days of her customary impurity she shall be unclean. And\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":18515,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/where-does-it-say-that-a-man-cant-be-with-his-wife-during-her-monthly-periods\/","url_meta":{"origin":28467,"position":1},"title":"Where does it say that a man can’t be with his wife during her monthly periods?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"April 24, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Where in the Bible does it talk about a woman's monthly cycle and that a man should not be with her while she is on her monthly?\u00a0 My man and I were having a Bible discussion yesterday and he said he read something about that in the Bible but\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":9647,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/is-having-sex-while-a-woman-is-having-her-period-a-sin\/","url_meta":{"origin":28467,"position":2},"title":"Is having sex while a woman is having her period a sin?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"May 2, 2007","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Is having sex with a woman while she is having her period (menstrual cycle) a sin in the Bible? I know it is mention somewhere in the Old Testament that it is a sin. What does the New Testament say? Answer: Under the Old Testament, the Israelites were told\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":69694,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-was-one-woman-called-daughter-instead-of-woman\/","url_meta":{"origin":28467,"position":3},"title":"Why was one woman called “daughter” instead of “woman”?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"September 7, 2024","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: Good morning, brother. I have been reading Luke 7 about the woman who was a sinner and brought an alabaster flask of fragment oil. She stood at Jesus' feet, washed His feet with her tears, and wiped them with the hair of her head. Jesus refers to her in\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":51769,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/why-did-the-false-mother-after-being-offered-the-child-by-the-real-mother-suddenly-declares-she-wants-the-baby-dead\/","url_meta":{"origin":28467,"position":4},"title":"Why did the false mother, after being offered the child by the real mother, suddenly declares she wants the baby dead?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"October 19, 2017","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: In I Kings 3:16-28, why does the false mother, after being offered the real mother's baby, suddenly wants the baby dead? Answer: Two prostitutes lived in the same house. One gave birth to a son and the second gave birth to a boy three days later. However, the second\u2026","rel":"","context":"In "Answer"","block_context":{"text":"Answer","link":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/category\/answer\/"},"img":{"alt_text":"","src":"","width":0,"height":0},"classes":[]},{"id":17944,"url":"https:\/\/www.lavistachurchofchrist.org\/cms\/am-i-restricted-to-only-marrying-the-boy-i-first-had-sex-with\/","url_meta":{"origin":28467,"position":5},"title":"Am I restricted to only marrying the boy I first had sex with?","author":"Jeffrey Hamilton","date":"February 19, 2009","format":false,"excerpt":"Question: I was really having trouble ever since I had sex before marriage. I asked for forgiveness and I was terrified that I would not be forgiven, but tonight I went to church. 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