Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Leviticus 15:12
And the vessel of earth, that he toucheth which hath the issue, shall be broken: and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.
12. The difference between the earthen and wooden vessel is the same as that in Lev 6:28, Lev 11:32 f. The rabbis inferred from this verse that metal vessels should be washed. The Jew who purchased a brasen pot was bound to wash it, for it might have been handled by one who was ritually unclean. These ‘washings of cups, and pots, and brasen vessels,’ are referred to in Mar 7:4.
Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges
12. the vessel of earth, that hetoucheth which hath the issue, shall be brokenIt is thoughtthat the pottery of the Israelites, like the earthenware jars inwhich the Egyptians kept their water, was unglazed and consequentlyporous, and that it was its porousness which, rendering it extremelyliable to imbibe small particles of impure matter, was the reason whythe vessel touched by an unclean person was ordered to be broken.
Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
And the vessel of earth that he toucheth which hath an issue shall be broken,…. That it might not be made use of afterwards; which was ordered, that they might be careful what they touched who were in such circumstances: according to Gersom an earthen vessel received no uncleanness but from the middle, though he owns the law does not distinguish between the middle and the outside; wherefore Jarchi is of opinion, that if the back or outside of it was touched, it was unclean, and to be broken:
and every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water; and after that be used: what should be the reason why an earthen vessel defiled by touching should be broken, and a wooden vessel defiled in the same way should not, but be rinsed and cleansed, when an earthen vessel might as well be rinsed and fit for use as that, is not easy to say; it depended upon the will of the lawgiver: according to Ainsworth, the one may signify the destruction of reprobate persons, the other the cleansing of penitent sinners.
Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible
Vessels that he had touched were to be broken to pieces if they were of earthenware, and rinsed with water if they were of wood, for the reasons explained in Lev 11:33 and Lev 6:21.
Fuente: Keil & Delitzsch Commentary on the Old Testament
(12) And the vessel of earth . . . shall be broken.For the reason why vessels of a porous clay must be destroyed when contaminated by defilement, see Lev. 6:28; Lev. 11:33. This, however, is the only instance where an earthen vessel touched on the outside was defiled, thus again showing the intense loathing with which the guilt of this kind of infirmity was regarded.
Every vessel of wood shall be rinsed in water.As these kinds of vessels were both more expensive and more difficult to restore, the Law, which so frequently takes into consideration the circumstances of the people, mercifully spares the more costly utensils. These are to undergo the same baptism as human beings. The administrators of the law during the second Temple took the expression wood in a more generic sense, as denoting more enduring material than clay; hence they included vessels made of copper, brass, silver, &c. With regard to the manner in which the vessels thus polluted are to be immersed, they ordained that if the utensil is dipped with its mouth downward, or if the vessel, at the time of its immersion, contains any liquor except water, the baptism is illegal. They, moreover, ordained that all new vessels which are purchased, or otherwise acquired, must likewise be immersed, for fear lest the maker, or some of those who have handled them prior to the purchase, might have been in a state of defilement. Hence the orthodox Jews to this day literally baptize cups, plates, knives, forks, or any new utensil which they buy. It is to this law that Christ refers when He says, And many other things there be, which they have received to hold, as the washing [literally, the baptism] of cups, and pots, brazen vessels, and of tables, or, as the Margin has it more correctly, beds, or couches (Mar. 7:4).
Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)
12. The vessel of earth shall be broken The reason for this command will be found in the fact that the earthen vessels in use among the Hebrews were unglazed, and from their porous nature, capable of defilement beyond the possibility of cleansing by washing. See Lev 11:33, note.
Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments
rinsed = washed or baptized. This is what is referred to in Mar 7:4.
Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics
vessel: Lev 6:28, Lev 11:32, Lev 11:33, Pro 1:21, Pro 1:23, Pro 3:21, 2Co 5:1, Phi 3:21
shall be broken: Psa 2:9
Reciprocal: Lev 11:35 – they shall be