Numbers 19:17

THE MESSAGE

Parallel Translations

Hebrew Names Version
For the unclean they shall take of the ashes of the burning of the sin-offering; and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

King James Version
And for an unclean person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

Lexham English Bible
For the unclean person they will take from the powder of the burnt purification offering, and they will put running water into a container.

English Standard Version
For the unclean they shall take some ashes of the burnt sin offering, and fresh water shall be added in a vessel.

New Century Version
"So you must use the ashes from the burnt offering to make that person clean again. Pour fresh water over the ashes into a jar.

New English Translation
"‘For a ceremonially unclean person you must take some of the ashes of the heifer burnt for purification from sin and pour fresh running water over them in a vessel.

Amplified Bible
'Then for the unclean person they shall take some of the ashes of the heifer burnt for the purification from sin, and running water shall be added to them in a container.

New American Standard Bible
'Then for the unclean person they shall take some of the ashes of the burnt purification from sin and running water shall be added to them in a container.

Geneva Bible (1587)
Therfore for an vncleane person they shall take of the burnt ashes of the sinne offring, and pure water shalbe put thereto in a vessel.

Legacy Standard Bible
Then for the unclean person they shall take some of the ashes of the burnt purification from sin and flowing water shall be added to them in a vessel.

Contemporary English Version
Before you can be made clean, someone who is clean must take some of the ashes from the burnt cow and stir them into a pot of spring water. That same person must dip a hyssop branch in the water and ashes, then sprinkle it on the tent and everything in it, including everyone who was inside. If you have touched a human bone, a grave, or a dead body, you must be sprinkled with that water.

Complete Jewish Bible
"For the unclean person they are to take some of the ashes of the animal burned up as a purification from sin and add them to fresh water in a container.

Darby Translation
And they shall take for the unclean of the ashes of the purification-offering that hath been burned, and shall put running water thereon in a vessel;

Easy-to-Read Version
"If you have become unclean, someone must use the ashes from the burned cow to make you clean again. They must pour fresh water over the ashes into a jar.

George Lamsa Translation
And for an unclean person they shall take some of the ashes of the burnt sin offering and shall pour running water into it in a vessel;

Good News Translation
To remove the uncleanness, some ashes from the red cow which was burned to remove sin shall be taken and put in a pot, and fresh water added.

Christian Standard Bible®
For the purification of the unclean person, they are to take some of the ashes of the burnt sin offering, put them in a jar, and add fresh water to them.

Literal Translation
And for the unclean they shall take the ashes of the burning of the sin offering, and running water in a vessel shall be put on it.

Miles Coverdale Bible (1535)
So now for the vncleane personne, they shal take of ye a?shes of this burntsynofferinge, & put springinge water theron in to a vessell,

American Standard Version
And for the unclean they shall take of the ashes of the burning of the sin-offering; and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

Bible in Basic English
And for the unclean, they are to take the dust of the burning of the sin-offering, and put flowing water on it in a vessel:

Bishop's Bible (1568)
Therfore, for an vncleane person they shal take of the burnt asshes of the sinne offeryng, and runnyng water shalbe put therto in a vessell.

JPS Old Testament (1917)
And for the unclean they shall take of the ashes of the burning of the purification from sin, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel.

King James Version (1611)
And for an vncleane person they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sinne, and running water shall bee put thereto in a vessell:

Brenton's Septuagint (LXX)
And they shall take for the unclean of the burnt ashes of purification, and they shall pour upon them running water into a vessel.

English Revised Version
And for the unclean they shall take of the ashes of the burning of the sin offering, and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

Berean Standard Bible
For the purification of the unclean person, take some of the ashes of the burnt purification offering, put them in a jar, and pour fresh running water over them.

Wycliffe Bible (1395)
And thei schulen take `of the aischis of the brennyng, and of the synne, and thei schulen sende quyk watris in to a vessel on tho aischis;

Young's Literal Translation
and they have taken for the unclean person of the ashes of the burning of the [cleansing], and he hath put upon it running water unto a vessel;

Update Bible Version
And for the unclean they shall take of the ashes of the burning of the sin-offering; and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

Webster's Bible Translation
And for an unclean [person] they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin, and running water shall be put to it in a vessel:

World English Bible
For the unclean they shall take of the ashes of the burning of the sin-offering; and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel:

New King James Version
"And for an unclean person they shall take some of the ashes of the heifer burnt for purification from sin, and running water shall be put on them in a vessel.

New Living Translation
"To remove the defilement, put some of the ashes from the burnt purification offering in a jar, and pour fresh water over them.

New Life Bible
The person who is unclean must take some of the ashes from the burning of the sin gift. Clean water must be added to them in a pot.

New Revised Standard
For the unclean they shall take some ashes of the burnt purification offering, and running water shall be added in a vessel;

J.B. Rotherham Emphasized Bible
And they shall take, for him that is un-clean, of the ashes of the burning of the sin-bearer, - and living water shall be put thereon in a vessel,

Douay-Rheims Bible
And they shall take of the ashes of the burning and of the sin offering, and shall pour living waters upon them into a vessel.

Revised Standard Version
For the unclean they shall take some ashes of the burnt sin offering, and running water shall be added in a vessel;

New American Standard Bible (1995)
'Then for the unclean person they shall take some of the ashes of the burnt purification from sin and flowing water shall be added to them in a vessel.

Contextual Overview

¹¹"Anyone who touches a dead body is ritually unclean for seven days. He must purify himself with the Water-of-Cleansing on the third day; on the seventh day he will be clean. But if he doesn't follow the procedures for the third and seventh days, he won't be clean. Anyone who touches the dead body of anyone and doesn't get cleansed desecrates God 's Dwelling and is to be excommunicated. For as long as the Water-of-Cleansing has not been sprinkled on him, he remains ritually unclean. ¹⁴"This is the rule for someone who dies in his tent: Anyone who enters the tent or is already in the tent is ritually unclean for seven days, and every open container without a lid is unclean. ¹⁶"Anyone out in the open field who touches a corpse, whether dead from violent or natural causes, or a human bone or a grave is unclean for seven days. For this unclean person, take some ashes from the burned Absolution-Offering and add some fresh water to it in a bowl. Find a ritually clean man to dip a sprig of hyssop into the water and sprinkle the tent and all its furnishings, the persons who were in the tent, the one who touched the bones of the person who was killed or died a natural death, and whoever may have touched a grave. Then he is to sprinkle the unclean person on the third and seventh days. On the seventh day he is considered cleansed. The cleansed person must then scrub his clothes and take a bath; by evening he is clean. But if an unclean person does not go through these cleansing procedures, he must be excommunicated from the community; he has desecrated the Sanctuary of God . The Water-of-Cleansing has not been sprinkled on him and he is ritually unclean. This is the standing rule for these cases. "The man who sprinkles the Water-of-Cleansing has to scrub his clothes; anyone else who touched the Water-of-Cleansing is also ritually unclean until evening. ²² "Anything the ritually unclean man touches becomes unclean, and the person who touches what he touched is unclean until evening."

Bible Verse Review
  from Treasury of Scripure Knowledge

ashes: Heb. dust, Numbers 19:9

running water shall be put thereto: Heb. living waters shall be given, Genesis 26:19, *marg. Song of Solomon 4:15, John 4:10, John 4:11, John 7:38, Revelation 7:17

Reciprocal: Exodus 40:36 - when Numbers 8:7 - water Numbers 19:12 - He shall purify Numbers 31:23 - it shall be purified Acts 21:24 - and purify

Cross-References

Genesis 13:10
Lot looked. He saw the whole plain of the Jordan spread out, well watered (this was before God destroyed Sodom and Gomorrah), like God 's garden, like Egypt, and stretching all the way to Zoar. Lot took the whole plain of the Jordan. Lot set out to the east. That's how they came to part company, uncle and nephew. Abram settled in Canaan; Lot settled in the cities of the plain and pitched his tent near Sodom. The people of Sodom were evil—flagrant sinners against God . After Lot separated from him, God said to Abram, "Open your eyes, look around. Look north, south, east, and west. Everything you see, the whole land spread out before you, I will give to you and your children forever. I'll make your descendants like dust—counting your descendants will be as impossible as counting the dust of the Earth. So—on your feet, get moving! Walk through the country, its length and breadth; I'm giving it all to you." Abram moved his tent. He went and settled by the Oaks of Mamre in Hebron. There he built an altar to God .

Genesis 18:22
The men set out for Sodom, but Abraham stood in God 's path, blocking his way.

Genesis 19:14
Lot went out and warned the fiancés of his daughters, "Evacuate this place; God is about to destroy this city!" But his daughters' would-be husbands treated it as a joke.

Genesis 19:15
At break of day, the angels pushed Lot to get going, "Hurry. Get your wife and two daughters out of here before it's too late and you're caught in the punishment of the city."

Genesis 19:16
Lot was dragging his feet. The men grabbed Lot's arm, and the arms of his wife and daughters— God was so merciful to them!—and dragged them to safety outside the city. When they had them outside, Lot was told, "Now run for your life! Don't look back! Don't stop anywhere on the plain—run for the hills or you'll be swept away."

Genesis 19:18
But Lot protested, "No, masters, you can't mean it! I know that you've taken a liking to me and have done me an immense favor in saving my life, but I can't run for the mountains—who knows what terrible thing might happen to me in the mountains and leave me for dead. Look over there—that town is close enough to get to. It's a small town, hardly anything to it. Let me escape there and save my life—it's a mere wide place in the road."

Genesis 19:26
But Lot's wife looked back and turned into a pillar of salt.

Genesis 19:31
One day the older daughter said to the younger, "Our father is getting old and there's not a man left in the country by whom we can get pregnant. Let's get our father drunk with wine and lie with him. We'll get children through our father—it's our only chance to keep our family alive."

1 Samuel 19:11
Saul sent men to David's house to stake it out and then, first thing in the morning, to kill him. But Michal, David's wife, told him what was going on. "Quickly now—make your escape tonight. If not, you'll be dead by morning!" She let him out of a window, and he made his escape. Then Michal took a dummy god and put it in the bed, placed a wig of goat's hair on its head, and threw a quilt over it. When Saul's men arrived to get David, she said, "He's sick in bed."

1 Kings 19:3
When Elijah saw how things were, he ran for dear life to Beersheba, far in the south of Judah. He left his young servant there and then went on into the desert another day's journey. He came to a lone broom bush and collapsed in its shade, wanting in the worst way to be done with it all—to just die: "Enough of this, God ! Take my life—I'm ready to join my ancestors in the grave!" Exhausted, he fell asleep under the lone broom bush. Suddenly an angel shook him awake and said, "Get up and eat!"

Gill's Notes on the Bible

And for an unclean person,.... Defiled by any of the above means:

they shall take of the ashes of the burnt heifer of purification for sin; from the place where they were laid up for this use;

:- and some have thought that they were laid up in various cities and places in the country, as well as at Jerusalem, that they might be come at easily upon occasion; otherwise they could not be had without great trouble and expense, and in some places not so soon as the law required for their purification, namely, on the third day after their defilement:

and running water shall be put thereto in a vessel; the Targum Jonathan is,

"fountain water in the midst of earthen vessel;''

for no water but fountain, spring, or river water, was made use of; and it should seem by what is said that ashes were first put into the vessel, and then the running water was put to them; and yet the Jewish writers say s, that if the ashes were put in first, and then the water, it was not right; and the meaning of what is said here is, that the water and ashes should be mixed together; for it is urged from the words: "running water in a vessel", that it is plain, that the water is put in the vessel and not to the ashes; and therefore that which is said, "shall be put thereto", is to caution the person, that after he has put the ashes upon the water, that he mixes them well with his finger, and cause the water below to rise above t.

s Maimon. Milchot, Parah Adumah, c. 9. sect. 1. t Bartenora in Misn. Temurah, c. 1. sect. 5.

Barnes' Notes on the Bible

One practical effect of attaching defilement to a dead body, and to all that touched it, etc., would be to insure early burial, and to correct a practice not uncommon in the East, of leaving the deal to be devoured by the wild beasts.