Two reminders as you read through this section on the law. First, this is an ancient world being addressed and reading it with 21st century eyes only will create great difficulty. Any literature from another time requires “historical imagination” which helps the reader to understand what is read a little bit through the eyes of a person who lived at that time. This is where your study bible notes will help a great deal. Though we cannot completely rid ourselves of our modern mindset, keeping the principle in mind will prevent a great deal of misunderstanding and confusion.
Second, keep your wide angle lens close by! As you read the details of the law that was given, keep in mind the primary purposes of God in revelation. They are twofold: to reveal himself and to redeem a people for his glory. God uses the common and everyday circumstances of people throughout the ages in order to reveal himself. The bible actual proves itself reliable by NOT omitting the bizarre and unseemly. It is a true record of all sorts of human behavior–good and bad.
With this in mind, two observations about these chapters come from this wider angle view. First, in an ancient culture without the marvels of modern medicine, God cares about the health of his people. He provided ways to protect the people from widespread infection through these laws. But at the same time, he uses the ceremonial imagery as a tutor to help the people understand an even greater need for protection. Just as physical disease threatens individuals and communities, spiritual disease–sin–does the same. Only the threat is even greater from sin. It is eternal! So the ceremonial cleansing was used as a visible symbol of the need for cleansing from sin. Much of the detail in the ceremonial cleansing is later referenced in the New Testament in relation to salvation through Christ.
Second, the laws regarding childbirth are also believed to be symbolic of a spiritual reality. The imagery of cleansing related to birth reflects the biblical teaching that all are born in sin. David’s Psalm 51 echoes this as does Romans 3. All humankind is born into a fallen and sinful state, separated from God by Adam and Eve’s rebellion and disobedience (Romans 5) which is only confirmed by our own. (Remember, you do not have to teach a child to say “no” or to lie. We think of children as innocent, but clearly they are not.) The ritual cleansing required of a woman after birth represented this reality.
God is in the details! But the details are only understand with the wider view in mind. God is intimately involved with the details of the lives of the Israelites (an ancient people) in order to reveal himself and draw them with his great love.