Leviticus 14:4
in Leviticus 14the priest shall order that two live clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop be brought for the one to be cleansed.
BSB
The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾
ASV
then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two living clean birds, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop:
KJV
Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop:
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This verse in Leviticus 14
Commentary
6 notes on this verseTwo birds alive and clean, etc. - Whether these birds were sparrows, or turtledoves, or pigeons, we know not; probably any kind of clean bird, or bird proper to be eaten, might be used on this occasion, though it is more likely that turtle-doves or pigeons were employed, because these appear to have been the only birds offered in sacrifice. Of the cedarwood, hyssop, clean bird, and scarlet wool or fillet, were made an aspergillum, or instrument to sprinkle with.
This site's exposition
two live clean birds
on Leviticus 14:4-5
The priest calls for two live clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop. One bird is slaughtered over fresh water, which the Hebrew calls living water, so blood and water are mixed before anything is sprinkled.
The record, by era
The Puritans and the Awakening2 voices
Two birds - The one to represent Christ as dying for his sins, the other to represent him as rising again for his purification or justification. Clean - Allowed for food and for sacrifice. Cedar- wood - A stick of cedar, to which the hyssop and one of the birds was tied by the scarlet thread.
Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed,.... The command is by the priest, the taking is by any man, as Ben Gersom observes; anyone whom he shall command, the leper himself, or his friends.
The Nineteenth Century2 voices
A commentator
Jamieson, Fausset & Brown1802–1910
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)
proposed
two birds--literally, "sparrows." The Septuagint, however, renders the expression "little birds"; and it is evident that it is to be taken in this generic sense from their being specified as "clean"--a condition which would have been altogether superfluous to mention in reference to sparrows.
quarantine:debris (2026-07-29) — starts-lowercase
A commentator
Albert Barnes1798–1870
Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869)
proposed
These birds were provided by the priest for the man. They were not, like the offerings for the altar, brought by the man himself (compare Lev 14:4 with Lev 14:10), they were not presented nor brought near the sanctuary, nor was any portion of them offered on the altar. Cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop - These three substances were used as the common materials in rites of purification (compare Exo 12:22; Num 19:8; Psa 51:7; Heb 9:19): the “cedar”, or juniper, the resin or turpentine of which was a preservative against decay, and employed in medicines for elephantiasis and other skin diseases: the “scarlet”, a “tongue,” or band, of twice-dyed scarlet wool, with which the living bird, the hyssop, and the cedar wood were tied together when they were dipped into the blood and water: the color expressing the rosiness associated with health and vital energy: and the “hyssop” (see Exo 12:22), probably the Caper plant, whose cleansing virtues as a medicine, and use in the treatment of ulcers and diseases of the skin allied to leprosy, were known to the ancients. It has been conjectured that the scarlet band was used to tie the hyssop upon the cedar, so as to make a sort of brush, such as would be convenient for sprinkling.
The words behind it
13 Hebrew wordsEvery Hebrew word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.
| Hebrew | Sound | Meaning | Word study | In the Bible |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| וְצִוָּה֙ | vetzivah | and he will command | H6680 → | 494 times |
| הַכֹּהֵ֔ן | hakohen | the priest | H3548 → | 750 times |
| וְלָקַ֧ח | velakach | and someone will take | H3947 → | 966 times |
| לַמִּטַּהֵ֛ר | lamitaher | for the [one] purifying himself | H2891 → | 94 times |
| שְׁתֵּֽי־ | shetei- | two | H8147 → | 768 times |
| צִפֳּרִ֥ים | tziporim | birds | H6833 → | 40 times |
| חַיּ֖וֹת | chaiyot | living | H2416 → | 498 times |
| טְהֹר֑וֹת | tehorot | pure | H2889 → | 94 times |
| וְעֵ֣ץ | veetz | and wood of | H6086 → | 328 times |
| אֶ֔רֶז | ʾerez | cedar | H730 → | 73 times |
| וּשְׁנִ֥י | usheni | and scarlet of | H8144 → | 42 times |
| תוֹלַ֖עַת | tolaat | a worm | H8438 → | 43 times |
| וְאֵזֹֽב׃ | veezo | and hyssop | H231 → | 10 times |
וְצִוָּה֙and he will command
vetzivahH6680 →494 times
הַכֹּהֵ֔ןthe priest
hakohenH3548 →750 times
וְלָקַ֧חand someone will take
velakachH3947 →966 times
לַמִּטַּהֵ֛רfor the [one] purifying himself
lamitaherH2891 →94 times
שְׁתֵּֽי־two
shetei-H8147 →768 times
צִפֳּרִ֥יםbirds
tziporimH6833 →40 times
חַיּ֖וֹתliving
chaiyotH2416 →498 times
טְהֹר֑וֹתpure
tehorotH2889 →94 times
וְעֵ֣ץand wood of
veetzH6086 →328 times
אֶ֔רֶזcedar
ʾerezH730 →73 times
וּשְׁנִ֥יand scarlet of
usheniH8144 →42 times
תוֹלַ֖עַתa worm
tolaatH8438 →43 times
וְאֵזֹֽב׃and hyssop
veezoH231 →10 times
A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.
The walk
8 stopsEach card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.
Through
Psalms 51:7Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
it leads to
- Isaiah 1:18
“Come now, let us reason together,” says the LORD. “Though your sins are like scarlet, they will be as white as snow; though they are as red as crimson, they will become like wool.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- 1 John 1:7
But if we walk in the light as He is in the light, we have fellowship with one another, and the blood of Jesus His Son cleanses us from all sin.
- Hebrews 9:13–14
For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkled on those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that their bodies are clean,
- Numbers 19:18–20
Then a man who is ceremonially clean is to take some hyssop, dip it in the water, and sprinkle the tent, all the furnishings, and the people who were there. He is also to…
- Hebrews 9:19
For when Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, along with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and…
- Isaiah 1:18
Through
Exodus 12:22Take a cluster of hyssop, dip it into the blood in the basin, and brush the blood on the top and sides of the doorframe. None of you shall go out the door of…
it leads to
- Psalms 51:7
Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean; wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.
Reached by 2 separate paths from here.
- Psalms 51:7
Through
Hebrews 9:19For when Moses had proclaimed every commandment of the law to all the people, he took the blood of calves and goats, along with water, scarlet wool, and hyssop, and sprinkled the scroll and…
it leads to
- Exodus 24:5–11
Then he sent out some young men of Israel, and they offered burnt offerings and sacrificed young bulls as peace offerings to the LORD.
- Hebrews 9:12
He did not enter by the blood of goats and calves, but He entered the Most Holy Place once for all by His own blood, thus securing eternal redemption.
- Exodus 24:5–11
Where this verse is studied
On this page
Studies4
On this verse
About Leviticus
This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the Old Testament (1748-1763); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the Old Testament and Keil and Delitzsch, Biblical Commentary on the Old Testament: The Pentateuch.