To help his people to be holy, the LORD taught about maternity care. When a woman gave birth to a son, she was unclean for seven days. On the eighth day, the boy was circumcised (2,3). Then she waited another 33 days to be purified from her bleeding (4). If she gave birth to a daughter, the period would double. She was unclean for 14 days and 66 days were required for purification (5). Afterwards she offered a burnt offering with a year-old lamb and a sin offering with a young pigeon or a dove (6).

Proper maternity care is critical for pregnant women, especially for ancient mothers who gave birth to many children. The LORD taught what needed to be done for the mother and the child after giving birth. God gave time for mothers to recover and created conditions to mitigate health complications from childbirth. This could also be time for mothers to meditate on God’s grace. The burnt and sin offerings were reminders of God’s grace despite our sins and the need for atonement.
Application: Father, thank you for helping mothers to give birth. Thank you for every child who is born. And thank you for Jesus who has made atonement for every mother and child.
One Word: God protects mothers and children