In the biblical context, defilement refers to a state of impurity or uncleanness that separates individuals from the holiness required by God. The concept of defilement is primarily found in the Old Testament, where it is addressed through various laws and rituals. These procedures are detailed in the books of Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy, which outline how the Israelites were to maintain purity and restore themselves to a state of cleanliness after becoming defiled.

Sources of Defilement

Defilement could occur through various means, including contact with unclean animals, bodily discharges, skin diseases, and touching a corpse. Leviticus 11-15 provides extensive regulations on what constitutes defilement and how it should be addressed. For example, Leviticus 11:24-25 states, "These will make you unclean. Whoever touches their carcasses will be unclean until evening, and whoever picks up one of their carcasses must wash his clothes, and he will be unclean until evening."

Rituals for Cleansing

The procedures for cleansing from defilement often involved washing, sacrifices, and a period of waiting. For instance, in the case of skin diseases, Leviticus 14:2-4 prescribes, "This is the law of the one afflicted with a skin disease on the day of his cleansing, when he is brought to the priest. The priest is to go outside the camp to examine him, and if the skin disease of the afflicted person has healed, the priest shall order that two live clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop be brought for the one to be cleansed."

Defilement through Contact with the Dead

Contact with a dead body was considered one of the most severe forms of defilement. Numbers 19:11-12 outlines the procedure for purification: "Whoever touches any dead body will be unclean for seven days. He must purify himself with the water on the third day and the seventh day; then he will be clean. But if he does not purify himself on the third and seventh days, he will not be clean."

Moral and Spiritual Implications

Beyond physical defilement, the Bible also addresses moral and spiritual impurity. Isaiah 59:2 highlights the separation caused by sin: "But your iniquities have built barriers between you and your God, and your sins have hidden His face from you, so that He does not hear." The New Testament expands on this concept, emphasizing the need for inner purity and the cleansing power of Jesus Christ's sacrifice. Hebrews 9:13-14 states, "For if the blood of goats and bulls and the ashes of a heifer sprinkling those who are ceremonially unclean sanctify them so that their bodies are clean, how much more will the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered Himself unblemished to God, cleanse our consciences from dead works to serve the living God?"

Significance in the New Covenant

With the advent of the New Covenant through Jesus Christ, the focus shifts from external rituals to internal transformation. Mark 7:18-23 records Jesus' teaching on defilement: "Are you still so dull? He asked. Do you not understand? Nothing that enters a man from the outside can defile him, because it does not enter his heart, but it goes into the stomach and then is eliminated. (Thus all foods are clean.) But what comes out of a man, that is what defiles him. For from within the hearts of men come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, greed, wickedness, deceit, debauchery, envy, slander, arrogance, and foolishness. All these evils come from within, and these are what defile a man."

In summary, the biblical procedure for defilement encompasses both physical and spiritual dimensions, with the Old Testament providing detailed rituals for cleansing and the New Testament emphasizing the transformative power of Christ's atonement.