Another occasion when birds were used in sacrifice was in the cleansing of the leper. Scripture says, “All have sinned, and come short of the glory of God” (Rom. 3:23). We were all spiritual lepers! Only God could heal leprosy, whether the physical lepers in Israel, or the spiritual lepers of today.

At the beginning of the cleansing ceremony for the leper, two birds were to be taken. Notice that these birds were to be clean and living. In Noah’s offering (Gen. 8:20), we see a distinction made between clean and unclean birds. Christ was clean, and we were unclean in our sins. The birds also were to be living, in contrast to the leper who was under a death sentence. And we all were dead in our offenses and sins (Eph. 2:1), dead to God.

One of the birds was to be killed in an earthen vessel. How amazing that the eternal Son of God came into this world, and took a body, an earthen vessel, that was prepared for Him (Heb. 10:5). In His body, He “by the eternal Spirit offered Himself spotless to God” (9:14). The running water in our passage would typify the Holy Spirit.

Then, the second bird was to be dipped in the blood of the first bird and released into the air. The second bird speaks of Christ’s resurrection. He is risen, praise His name! He “has been delivered for our offenses and has been raised for our justification” (Rom. 4:25). This is why the second bird was dipped into the blood. It was the evidence that the leper was cleansed before God. For us the blood of Christ has been shed. We are cleansed and justified forever (5:1, 9)!