1324 verses about Purification

Let the king appoint local governors in all the provinces of his kingdom, and let them select fair, chaste young ladies and bring them to the city Susa, into the women’s apartment. Let them be consigned to the king’s chamberlain, the keeper of the women. Then let things for purification and other needs be given to them.

The lady pleased him, and she found favor in his sight. He hurried to give her the things for purification, her portion, and the seven maidens appointed her out of the palace. He treated her and her maidens well in the women’s apartment.

Now this was the time for a virgin to go into the king, when she should have fulfilled twelve months; for so are the days of purification fulfilled, six months while they are anointing themselves with oil of myrrh, and six months with spices and women’s purifications.

And having borne a little chastening, they will receive great good; Because God made trial of them, and found them worthy of himself.

As gold in the furnace he proved them, And as a whole burnt offering he accepted them.

And incorruption brings near to God;

For wisdom is more mobile than any motion; Yes, she pervadeth and penetrateth all things by reason of her pureness.

Nay rather, being good, I came into a body undefiled.

For gold is tried in the fire, And acceptable men in the furnace of humiliation.

Water will quench a flaming fire; And almsgiving will make atonement for sins.

Turn again to the Most High, and turn away from iniquity; And greatly hate the abominable thing.

As cinnamon and aspalathus, I have given a scent of perfumes; And as choice myrrh, I spread abroad a pleasant odour; As galbanum, and onyx, and stacte, And as the fume of frankincense in the tabernacle.

And I came out as a stream from a river, And as a conduit into a garden.

In the shaking of a sieve, the refuse remains; So the filth of man in his reasoning.

Of an unclean thing what shall be cleansed? And of that which is false what shall be true?

He that washes himself after touching a dead body, and touches it again, What profit has he in his washing?

To depart from wickedness is a thing pleasing to the Lord; And to depart from unrighteousness is an atoning sacrifice.

Was not water made sweet with wood, That the virtue thereof might be known?

Put away wrong doing, and order your hands aright, And cleanse your heart from all manner of sin.

His sacrifices shall be wholly consumed Every day twice continually.

He behaved himself uprightly in the conversion of the people, And took away the abominations of iniquity.

How glorious was he when the people gathered round him At his coming forth out of the sanctuary!

As fire and incense in the censer, As a vessel all of beaten gold Adorned with all manner of precious stones:

And all the sons of Aaron in their glory, And the Lord’s offering in their hands, before all the congregation of Israel.

They wipe their faces because of the dust of the temple, which is thick upon them.

Notwithstanding the gold wherewith they are beset to make them beautiful, except one wipe off the rust, they will not shine: for not even when they were molten did they feel it.

The menstruous woman and the woman in childbed touch their sacrifices: knowing therefore by these things that they are no gods, fear them not.

like as in the burnt offerings of rams and bullocks, and like as in ten thousands of fat lambs; so let our sacrifice be in your sight this day, and grant that we may wholly go after you, for they shall not be ashamed that put their trust in you.

Then she said to her maids, Bring me oil and washing balls, and shut the garden doors, that I may wash me.

And they shed innocent blood on every side of the sanctuary, and defiled the sanctuary.

and pollute the sanctuary and those who were holy;

And many in Israel were fully resolved and confirmed in themselves not to eat unclean things.

And they brought the priests’ garments, and the first fruits, and the tithes: and they stirred up the Nazarites, who had accomplished their days.

But Judas and his kindred said, Behold, our enemies are discomfited: let us go up to cleanse the holy place, and to dedicate it afresh.

Then Judas appointed certain men to fight against those that were in the citadel, until he should have cleansed the holy place.

and they cleansed the holy place, and bare out the stones of defilement into an unclean place.

And they took counsel concerning the altar of burnt offerings, which had been profaned, what they should do with it:

and there came into their mind a good counsel, that they should pull it down, lest it should be a reproach to them, because the Gentiles had defiled it: and they pulled down the altar,

and laid up the stones in the mountain of the house in a convenient place, until there should come a prophet to give an answer concerning them.

and they built the holy place, and the inner parts of the house; and they hallowed the courts.

And they made the holy vessels new, and they brought the candlestick, and the altar of burnt offerings and of incense, and the table, into the temple.

And they burned incense upon the altar, and they lighted the lamps that were upon the candlestick, and they gave light in the temple.

And they rose up early in the morning, on the five and twentieth day of the ninth month, which is the month Chislev, in the hundred and forty and eighth year,

and offered sacrifice according to the law upon the new altar of burned offerings which they had made.

At what time and on what day the Gentiles had profaned it, even on that day was it dedicated afresh, with songs and harps and lutes, and with cymbals.

And they kept the dedication of the altar eight days, and offered burned offerings with gladness, and sacrificed a sacrifice of deliverance and praise.

And they decked the forefront of the temple with crowns of gold and small shields, and dedicated afresh the gates and the priests’ chambers, and made doors for them.

And Judas and his kindred and the whole congregation of Israel ordained, that the days of the dedication of the altar should be kept in their seasons from year to year by the space of eight days, from the five and twentieth day of the month Chislev, with gladness and joy.

and that they had pulled down the abomination which he had built upon the altar that was in Jerusalem; and that they had compassed about the sanctuary with high walls, as before, and Bethsura, his city.

And let Jerusalem be holy and free, and her borders; the tenths and the tolls also.

And Simon was reconciled to them, and did not fight against them: and he put them out of the city, and cleansed the houses wherein the idols were, and so entered into it with singing and giving praise.

And he put all uncleanness out of it, and placed in it such men as would keep the law, and made it stronger than it was before, and built therein a dwelling place for himself.

And they cried out to Simon, that he should give them his right hand; and he gave it to them: and he put them out from thence, and he cleansed the citadel from its pollutions.

and he gathered together a great number of captives, and got the dominion of Gazara, and Bethsura, and the citadel, and he took away from it its uncleannesses; and there was none that resisted him.

and in his days things prospered in his hands, so that the Gentiles were taken away out of their country, and they also that were in the city of David, those who were in Jerusalem, who had made themselves a citadel, out of which they issued, and polluted all things round about the sanctuary, and did great hurt to its purity;

Whereas we are now about to keep the purification of the temple in the month Chislev, on the five and twentieth day, we thought it necessary to certify you thereof, that you⌃ also may keep a feast of tabernacles, and a memorial of the fire which was given when Nehemiah offered sacrifices, after that he had built both the temple and the altar.

he commanded them to draw out thereof and bring to him: and when the sacrifices had been offered on the altar, Nehemiah commanded the priests to sprinkle with the water both the wood and the things laid thereupon.

accept the sacrifice for all your people Israel, and guard your own portion, and consecrate it.

And as soon as the sacrifice was consumed, then Nehemiah commanded to pour on great stones the water that was left.

And when this was done, a flame was kindled; but when the light from the altar shone near it, all was consumed.

And when the matter became known, and it was told the king of the Persians, that, in the place where the priests that were led away had hid the fire, there appeared the water, wherewith also Nehemiah and those who were with him purified the sacrifice,

then the king, inclosing the place, made it sacred, after he had proved the matter.

And Nehemiah and those who were with him called this thing Nephthar, which is by interpretation, Cleansing; but most men call it Nephthai.

Seeing then that we are about to keep the purification, we write to you; you⌃ will therefore do well if you⌃ keep the days.

even as he promised through the law,— in God have we hope, that he will quickly have mercy upon us, and gather us together out of all the earth to the holy place: for he delivered us out of great evils, and purified the place. ____________________

Now the things concerning Judas Maccabaeus and his kindred, and the purification of the great temple, and the dedication of the altar,

and recovered again the temple renowned all the world over, and freed the city, and restored the laws which were like to be overthrown, seeing the Lord became gracious to them with all forbearance:

For the temple was filled with riot and revellings by the heathen, who dallied with harlots, and had to do with women within the sacred precincts, and moreover brought inside things that were not befitting;

So he also died pure from pollution, putting his whole trust in the Lord.

And having cleansed the sanctuary they made another altar of sacrifice; and striking stones and taking fire out of them, they offered sacrifices, after they had ceased for two years, and burned incense, and lighted lamps, and set forth the show bread.

Now on the same day that the sanctuary was profaned by aliens, upon that very day did it come to pass that the cleansing of the sanctuary was made, even on the five and twentieth day of the same month, which is Chislev.

Wherefore bearing wands wreathed with leaves, and fair boughs, and palms also, they offered up hymns of thanksgiving to him that had prosperously brought to pass the cleansing of his own place.

And Judas gathering his army came to the city of Adullam; and as the seventh day was coming on, they purified themselves according to the custom, and kept the Sabbath there.

And when he had made a collection man by man to the sum of two thousand drachmas of silver, he sent to Jerusalem to offer a sacrifice for sin, doing therein right well and honorably, in that he took thought for a resurrection.

(And if he did it looking to an honorable memorial of gratitude laid up for those who die in godliness, holy and godly was the thought.) Wherefore he made the atoning sacrifice for those who had died, that they might be released from their sin.

But one Alcimus, who had formerly been high priest, and had wilfully polluted himself in the times when there was no mingling with the Gentiles, considering that there was no deliverance for him in any way, nor any more access to the holy altar,

so now, O holy Lord of all hallowing, keep undefiled forever this house that has been lately cleansed.

And they all looking up to heaven blessed the Lord who had manifested himself, saying, Blessed be he that has preserved his own place undefiled.

having set the priests according to their daily courses, being arrayed in their vestments, in the temple of the Lord.

And he spoke to the Levites, the temple-servants of Israel, that they should hallow themselves to the Lord, to set the holy ark of the Lord in the house that King Solomon the son of David had built:

And when these things were done, the priests and Levites, having the unleavened bread, stood in comely order according to the kindred,

And such a passover was not held in Israel since the time of the prophet Samuel.

Yes, all the kings of Israel held not such a passover as Josias, and the priests, and the Levites, and the Jews, held with all Israel that were present in their dwelling place at Jerusalem.

for to them said Nehemias and Attharias, that they should not be partakers of the holy things, till there arose up a high priest wearing Urim and Thummim.

And all those who had made any vow to God began to offer sacrifices to God from the new moon of the seventh month, although the temple of God was not yet built.

And to the dedication of the temple of the Lord they offered a hundred bullocks, two hundred rams, four hundred lambs;

and twelve he-goats for the sin of all Israel, according to the number of the twelve princes of the tribes of Israel.

And the children of Israel that came out of the captivity held the passover the fourteenth day of the first month, when the priests and the Levites were sanctified together,

and all those who were of the captivity; for they were sanctified. For the Levites were all sanctified together,

and they offered the passover for all them of the captivity, and for their kindred the priests, and for themselves.

And the children of Israel that came out of the captivity did eat, even all those who had separated themselves from the abominations of the heathen of the land, and sought the Lord.

And the holy vessels of the Lord, which are given you for the use of the temple of your God, which is in Jerusalem:

The nation of Israel, and the princes, and the priests and the Levites, have not put away from them the strange people of the land, nor the uncleannesses of the Gentiles, to wit, of the Canaanites, Hittites, Pherezites, Jebusites, and the Moabites, Egyptians, and Edomites.

For both they and their sons have married with their daughters, and the holy seed is mixed with the strange people of the land; and from the beginning of this matter the rulers and the nobles have been partakers of this iniquity.

That the land, which you⌃ enter into to possess as a heritage, is a land polluted with the pollutions of the strangers of the land, and they have filled it with their uncleanness.

and did give to us such a root: but we have turned back again to transgress your law, in mingling ourselves with the uncleanness of the heathen of the land.

and do his will, and separate yourselves from the heathen of the land, and from the strange women.

So their cause that held strange wives was brought to an end by the new moon of the first month.

And they gave their hands to put away their wives, and to offer rams to make reconcilement for their error.

Having arrived at Jerusalem, sacrificed, and offered thank-offerings to the Greatest God, and done whatever else was suitable to the sanctity of the place, and entered the inner court,