Holy, Clean, and Unclean: Leviticus

Understanding the Language of Leviticus can be hard if you're reading fast. Three key terms pop-up as we read along: Holy, Clean, and Unclean.

For many people—especially those who did not grow up in a Christian setting—this language can feel strange. Normally, human beings think in only two categories. Something is either: Good or bad, clean or dirty, and right or wrong. But in Leviticus, God introduces a different way of evaluating life. Instead of two categories, God gives three. Things can be:

• Holy
• Clean (or common)
• Unclean

This language appears clearly in Leviticus as God teaches Israel how to live while He dwells among them. His instructions are not only about worship; they address health, homes, clothing, work, community life, and even sanitation. God was shaping a people who would live differently because He was living among them.

To understand this system, we must first understand the word holy. A helpful way to think about holiness is to think of the word different(SMN). When we say God is holy, we mean God is different. When God says:

“Be holy, for I am holy.”

He is saying:

“Be different, because I am different.”

God is not like other gods people worship. There are many names and concepts of gods across cultures—Allah, Krishna, and many others created by human imagination or religious traditions. But the God revealed in Scripture declares Himself to be unique.

Even the word God itself is not a personal name; it is a title. When Moses asked God His name, God answered:

“I AM WHO I AM.” (Exodus 3:14)

This name reveals a God who is self-existing and unlike any other being.

Scripture also calls Him:

King of kings and Lord of lords. There are other kings and other lords in the world, but He is a different kind of King and a different kind of Lord.

Even the way He saves people is different. Many religions teach that people must work to earn salvation. But in the gospel, God saves first and then teaches us how to live.

Our God even took on human form and lived among us. For twelve years He lived under His mother’s care. For many years He lived quietly as a carpenter under His earthly father’s guidance. Then for three years He ministered and discipled followers who would carry the message to the world. Our God is different, and because He is different, He calls His people to live differently.

In Leviticus, God organizes life into three categories.

1. Holy (Sacred).

Holy things are set apart for God.

Examples include:

• The temple
• Priests
• Sacred utensils
• The altar
• The name of God

These things belong uniquely to God.

2. Clean (Common/Good)

Clean things are normal, everyday things. They are not sacred, but they are also not sinful. These include daily activities like food, clothing, tools, houses, and ordinary life. They are simply part of normal human living.

3. Unclean (Bad).

Unclean things are those that are polluted, defiled, or associated with impurity. Uncleanness could come from disease, contact with a dead body, or certain bodily conditions. These did not necessarily mean someone had sinned, but they created a condition that separated a person from worship until purification occurred.

Sin often works by pulling things downward through these categories. Something that is holy becomes treated as common, and eventually it becomes unclean. 

This is exactly what happens when sin enters the human heart. Holy things become profaned, and eventually they become polluted. Take the example of the name of Jesus.

HOLY

The name of Jesus is holy because it represents the Savior.

Scripture says:

“There is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved.” (Acts 4:12)

COMMON

Sometimes people shout “Jesus!” when they are shocked or afraid. They may not be calling on Him in faith; the name has simply become an expression. At that moment, something holy has become common.

That process—from holy to common—is called profaning something sacred.

UNCLEAN

Sometimes people go further and combine the name of Jesus with profanity. This moves the name from common to unclean.

The movement from common to unclean is pollution.

Remember King Belshazzar in the book of Daniel? He took sacred vessels from the temple—items meant only for worship—and used them during a drunken party praising false gods.

He did two things:

1. He turned something holy into something common.

2. Then he turned something common into something sinful.

God judged him immediately.

The worst mistake a person can make is to mix holy things with unclean things. David once took temple bread(Holy) and used it as a meal(common). That was not punished and Jesus used it as an allowable example.

But the conversation does not end there. God is also a God of mercy, and the process can be reversed. Something unclean can be cleansed to become clean and something clean can be consecrated to become holy.

This upward movement happens through sacrifice. In the Old Testament, sacrifices were offered at the altar. In the New Testament, the ultimate sacrifice was made by Jesus Christ on the cross and through that believers become living sacrifices.

His sacrifice cleanses what is unclean.

But sacrifice also involves our response—choosing to live for Him, obey His commands, and serve the King of kings. Grace is free to us, but it came at the cost of sacrifice.

One of the surprising things in Leviticus is that God talks about everything in the instructions that He gives through Moses. Not just prayer, not just worship, but also: Hygiene, skin diseases, houses, clothing, food, even how to dig a toilet pit in the ground. Why would God talk about such small things? Because God is not only a King—He is also a Father. A father answers the big questions of life, but he also sits with his children and talks about everyday things.

God was teaching His people that holiness is not just about the Tabernacle. It is about the Tabernacle and all that's around it. A friend of mine summarized this well. He said holiness must be practiced in three spaces:

1. Your neighborhood,

2. Your networks,

3. Your nation.

I like to phrase it this way: You must be holy in your home, holy wherever you hustle from, and holy in your hood. Holiness touches everything—how you dress, how you speak, how you treat people, and how you live daily life.

Many people think life is simply about being good instead of bad, but God raises the standard. In Matthew 5, Jesus teaches that:

• Adultery begins in the heart
• Murder begins with hatred

Someone may be a good person, but not a holy person and scripture says clearly that “Without holiness no one will see the Lord.” (Hebrews 12:14)

We may not practice the exact rituals of Leviticus today, but the principles remain. God calls us to respect two things:

1. Respect the Creator

A holy person honors God in every part of life.

2. Respect His Creation

If the earth belongs to the Lord, then we treat it with care.

• Christians plant trees not simply because environmental movements encourage it, but because the earth belongs to God.
• Christians avoid littering not simply because of environmental laws, but because they respect their Father’s property.

Sometimes people dismiss books like Leviticus by saying, “We are under grace now.” Yes, we are under grace. But the principles behind the law remain. The New Testament writers—Paul, Peter, Timothy, and others—learned their theology from the Old Testament Scriptures.

When Paul told Timothy to study the Scriptures, he was referring to what we now call the Old Testament. The Old Testament reveals the heart, mind, and will of God.

The New Testament shows how believers began applying those truths in their daily lives.

Leviticus teaches us something profound. God calls His people not simply to be good. He calls them to be different;

• Different in worship.
• Different in lifestyle.
• Different in how they treat others.
• Different in how they care for the world around them.

So as you re-read the book of Leviticus, remember: God’s call is still the same today. Be holy, because He is holy. Be different—because your God is different.