Seinsible Birth Laws (Leviticus 12)

Were God’s laws millenia ahead of modern science? Various sources state that the blood clotting agents, vitamin K and prothrombin, are at optimum levels on the 8th day after birth. Circumcision provided health benefits for a future wife, drastically reducing incidences of cervical cancer. Let’s look at Leviticus 12.

How far advanced were these ancient laws regarding circumcision?

And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean. And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised. (Leviticus 12:1-3 KJV)

Most modern doctors recommend that a woman wait about six weeks after childbirth before resuming normal marital relations. How far advanced were these ancient commands regarding the period after childbirth?

Then she shall remain in the blood of her cleansing for thirty-three days; she shall not touch any holy thing; and she shall not enter the sanctuary until the days of her cleansing are fulfilled. But if she bears a female child, then she shall be unclean for two weeks, as in her menstruation; and she shall remain in the blood of her cleansing for sixty-six days. (Leviticus 12:4-5 LSB)

What offering is the new mother to make when the days of her purification are over?

When the days of her purification are completed, for a son or for a daughter, she shall bring to the priest at the doorway of the tent of meeting a one-year-old lamb as a burnt offering and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin offering. Then he shall offer it before the Lord and make atonement for her, and she shall be cleansed from the flow of her blood. This is the law for her who gives birth to a child, whether a male or a female. (Leviticus 12:6-7 NASB)

What if the mother is too poor for a lamb offering?

But if she cannot afford a lamb, she is to bring two doves or two young pigeons, one for a burnt offering and the other for a sin offering. In this way the priest will make atonement for her, and she will be clean. (Leviticus 12:8 NIV)

Similar rules for the poor applied to other offerings. What does Joseph and Mary’s offering tell us about their economic status?

Now when the days of her purification according to the law of Moses were completed, they brought Him to Jerusalem to present Him to the Lord (as it is written in the law of the Lord, “Every male who opens the womb shall be called holy to the Lord”), and to offer a sacrifice according to what is said in the law of the Lord, “A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.” (Luke 2:22-24 NKJV)

Do Christians need to be circumcised? Can regular washing prevent infections? What kind of circumcision is applicable for Christians, of the flesh or of the heart?

When you came to Christ, you were “circumcised,” but not by a physical procedure. Christ performed a spiritual circumcision—the cutting away of your sinful nature. (Colossians 2:11 NLT)

Were God’s laws millenia ahead of modern science? You decide!