If one bear holy flesh in the skirt of his garment, and with his skirt do touch bread, or pottage, or wine, or oil, or any meat, shall it be holy?And to this question, the priests answer "no." But then in verse 13 (KJV), God asks,
If one that is unclean by a dead body touch any of these, shall it be unclean?And to this, the priests answer "yes."
Dealing with ancient Jewish law, these verses can seem cryptic, but the message is actually fairly simple. Verse 12 is saying that one person's righteousness will not "rub off" on someone else. Verse 13, on the other hand, is saying that sinful behavior will, in fact, tend to rub off on other people.
Thus, these two verses offer a call to personal responsibility, along with a note of warning. We, and we alone, are responsible for our standing toward God. We can't count on someone else having a good standing that somehow becomes credited to us. But at the same time, wickedness does tend to become contagious.
In our prayers, let's focus on strengthening our standing with God, while also praying for protection against worldly sins.
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