In biblical terms, the concept of "discharge" is primarily associated with ceremonial cleanliness and the laws given to the Israelites regarding bodily emissions. These laws are detailed in the Old Testament, particularly in the book of Leviticus, and they reflect the broader theme of holiness and purity that is central to the Mosaic Law.

Old Testament Context

The primary passages concerning discharge are found in Leviticus 15. This chapter outlines the regulations for both men and women regarding bodily discharges, which were considered sources of ceremonial impurity. The text distinguishes between different types of discharges, including those that are natural and those that are abnormal or diseased.

For men, Leviticus 15:2-3 states: "When any man has a bodily discharge, the discharge is unclean. This uncleanness is due to his discharge, whether his body allows the discharge to flow or blocks it." The passage goes on to describe the necessary purification rituals, which include washing and waiting periods, to restore ceremonial cleanliness.

For women, the laws address both menstrual discharges and other types of discharges. Leviticus 15:19-20 says: "When a woman has a discharge and the discharge from her body is blood, she shall be in her menstrual impurity for seven days, and anyone who touches her will be unclean until evening." The chapter further details the purification process for women after their menstrual period or other discharges.

Theological Significance

The laws concerning discharge are part of the broader Levitical code, which emphasizes the distinction between the holy and the common, the clean and the unclean. These regulations served to remind the Israelites of God's holiness and their need for purity in approaching Him. The physical act of cleansing and the waiting periods symbolized the spiritual preparation required to be in the presence of a holy God.

The concept of discharge and the associated laws also highlight the fallen state of humanity and the pervasive nature of sin and impurity. The need for purification rituals underscores the separation between God and man due to sin, pointing to the ultimate need for redemption and atonement.

New Testament Perspective

In the New Testament, the focus shifts from ceremonial laws to the spiritual realities they foreshadowed. Jesus Christ, through His life, death, and resurrection, fulfills the requirements of the Law, including those concerning purity and cleanliness. In Mark 5:25-34, the account of the woman with the issue of blood illustrates this transition. The woman, who had suffered from a discharge for twelve years, was healed by her faith in Jesus. This healing not only restored her physically but also ceremonially, as she was no longer considered unclean.

The New Testament teaches that believers are cleansed through faith in Christ, who provides a once-for-all purification from sin. Hebrews 10:22 encourages believers to "draw near with a sincere heart in full assurance of faith, having our hearts sprinkled to cleanse us from a guilty conscience and our bodies washed with pure water."

Practical Implications

While the specific laws regarding discharge are not applicable to Christians today, the principles behind them remain relevant. Believers are called to live lives of holiness and purity, recognizing the seriousness of sin and the need for continual spiritual cleansing. The concept of discharge serves as a reminder of the importance of maintaining a right relationship with God through confession, repentance, and reliance on the cleansing power of Jesus Christ.1. (v. t.) To relieve of a charge, load, or burden; to empty of a load or cargo; to unburden; to unload; as, to discharge a vessel.

2. (v. t.) To free of the missile with which anything is charged or loaded; to let go the charge of; as, to discharge a bow, catapult, etc.; especially, said of firearms, -- to fire off; to shoot off; also, to relieve from a state of tension, as a Leaden jar.

3. (v. t.) To of something weighing upon or impeding over one, as a debt, claim, obligation, responsibility, accusation, etc.; to absolve; to acquit; to clear.

4. (v. t.) To relieve of an office or employment; to send away from service; to dismiss.

5. (v. t.) To release legally from confinement; to set at liberty; as, to discharge a prisoner.

6. (v. t.) To put forth, or remove, as a charge or burden; to take out, as that with which anything is loaded or filled; as, to discharge a cargo.

7. (v. t.) To let fly, as a missile; to shoot.

8. (v. t.) To set aside; to annul; to dismiss.

9. (v. t.) To throw off the obligation of, as a duty or debt; to relieve one's self of, by fulfilling conditions, performing duty, trust, and the like; hence, to perform or execute, as an office, or part.

10. (v. t.) To send away (a creditor) satisfied by payment; to pay one's debt or obligation to.

11. (v. t.) To give forth; to emit or send out; as, a pipe discharges water; to let fly; to give expression to; to utter; as, to discharge a horrible oath.

12. (v. t.) To prohibit; to forbid.

13. (v. i.) To throw off or deliver a load, charge, or burden; to unload; to emit or give vent to fluid or other contents; as, the water pipe discharges freely.

14. (n.) The act of discharging; the act of relieving of a charge or load; removal of a load or burden; unloading; as, the discharge of a ship; discharge of a cargo.

15. (v. t.) Firing off; explosive removal of a charge; explosion; letting off; as, a discharge of arrows, of artillery.

16. (v. t.) Act of relieving of something which oppresses or weighs upon one, as an obligation, liability, debt, accusation, etc.; acquittance; as, the discharge of a debtor.

17. (v. t.) Act of removing, or getting rid of, an obligation, liability, etc.; fulfillment, as by the payment of a debt, or the performance of a trust or duty.

18. (v. t.) Release or dismissal from an office, employment, etc.; dismissal; as, the discharge of a workman by his employer.

19. (v. t.) Legal release from confinement; liberation; as, the discharge of a prisoner.

20. (n.) The state of being discharged or relieved of a debt, obligation, office, and the like; acquittal.

21. (v. t.) That which discharges or releases from an obligation, liability, penalty, etc., as a price of ransom, a legal document.

22. (n.) A flowing or issuing out; emission; vent; evacuation; also, that which is discharged or emitted; as, a rapid discharge of water from the pipe.

670. apophortizomai -- to discharge a cargo
... to discharge a cargo. Part of Speech: Verb Transliteration: apophortizomai Phonetic
Spelling: (ap-of-or-tid'-zom-ahee) Short Definition: I unload, discharge ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/670.htm - 6k

630. apoluo -- to set free, release
... depart. 630 (from 575 , "away from" and 3089 , "to loose, release") -- properly,
to let go; release (discharge), dismiss. This term ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/630.htm - 10k

2673. katargeo -- to render inoperative, abolish
... I bring to naught, sever, abolish Definition: (a) I make idle (inactive), make of
no effect, annul, abolish, bring to naught, (b) I discharge, sever, separate ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/2673.htm - 9k

3781. opheiletes -- a debtor
... sinner. 3781 (a masculine ) -- a ; someone under to pay back (discharge)
a debt. For the , 3781 ("being a ") where Christ paid . ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/3781.htm - 7k

5055. teleo -- to bring to an end, complete, fulfill
... From telos; to end, ie Complete, execute, conclude, discharge (a debt) -- accomplish,
make an end, expire, fill up, finish, go over, pay, perform. ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/5055.htm - 8k

863. aphiemi -- to send away, leave alone, permit
... forgive, (d) I permit, suffer. 863 (from 575 , "away from" and , "send") --
properly, ; (discharge). Word Origin from apo and hiemi ...
//strongsnumbers.com/greek2/863.htm - 10k

4917. mishlachath -- a discharge, deputation, sending
... mishlachath. 4918 . a discharge, deputation, sending. Transliteration: mishlachath
Phonetic Spelling: (mish-lakh'-ath) Short Definition: band. ... discharge, sending ...
/hebrew/4917.htm - 6k

2101. zob -- an issue (of fluid)
... 2100, 2101. zob. 2102 . an issue (of fluid). Transliteration: zob Phonetic
Spelling: (zobe) Short Definition: discharge. Word Origin ...
/hebrew/2101.htm - 6k

2100. zub -- to flow, gush
... root Definition to flow, gush NASB Word Usage discharge (14), flow (1), flowed
(1), flowing (19), flows (1), gushed (2), has (1), has a discharge (1), pine ...
/hebrew/2100.htm - 6k

6824. tsaphah -- an outflow
... 6823, 6824. tsaphah. 6825 . an outflow. Transliteration: tsaphah Phonetic
Spelling: (tsaw-faw') Short Definition: discharge. Word ...
/hebrew/6824.htm - 6k

Celsus Supposes that Men "Discharge the Duties of Life Until they ...
... Chapter LVII. Celsus supposes that men "discharge the duties of life until
they are loosened from its? Celsus supposes that men ...
/.../origen/origen against celsus/chapter lvii celsus supposes that.htm

Of Discharge from Tithes.
... A COMPENDIUM OF THE LAW RELATING TO TITHES. 7. Of Discharge from Tithes.
Mere non-payment of tithes, though for time immemorial, is ...
/.../prideaux/directions to church-wardens/7 of discharge from tithes.htm

Exhortations to the Discharge of Relative Duties.
... Chapter IX."Exhortations to the discharge of relative duties. Ye husbands, love
your wives; and ye wives, your husbands. Ye children, reverence your parents. ...
/.../chapter ix exhortations to the discharge.htm

If the Members Rise, must they Discharge the Same Functions as Now ...
... Chapter III."If the members rise, must they discharge the same functions
as now? They say, then, if the body shall rise entire ...
/.../chapter iii if the members rise.htm

Whether Intellectual Knowledge is Derived from Sensible Things?
... et Vigil.) that Democritus held that knowledge is cause by a "discharge of images."
And the reason for this opinion was that both Democritus and the other ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether intellectual knowledge is derived.htm

Be Ye Therefore Perfect, Even as Your Father which is in Heaven is ...
... God cannot discharge us from the obligation to be perfect, as I have defined perfection.
If he were to attempt it, he would just so far give a license to sin. ...
/.../finney/lectures to professing christians/be ye therefore perfect even.htm

On the Fifth Command in the Decalogue
... of things necessary for them to the uses of life according to their dignity, ought
to extend itself not only to the time when they discharge this duty, but ...
/.../arminius/the works of james arminius vol 2/disputation lxxviii on the fifth.htm

Ordination and Duties of the Clergy.
... and the word of teaching, may in meekness instruct Thy people, and sincerely serve
Thee with a pure mind and a willing soul, and may fully discharge the holy ...
/.../various/constitutions of the holy apostles/sec iii ordination and duties of.htm

The Helpless State of the Sinner under Condemnation.
... will come when the rigor of Divine justice will not be able to inflict any thing
more than thou hast endured, and when thou mayest claim thy discharge as a ...
/.../chapter vii the helpless state.htm

Whence it is not Right Either that those of the Clergy who have ...
... But when they lapsed, as having carried themselves with ostentation, [2317] and
brought reproach upon themselves, they can no longer discharge their sacred ...
/.../peter/the writings of peter of alexandria/canon x whence it is.htm

Discharge (30 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary 1. (vt) To relieve of a charge, load, or burden; to empty
of a load or cargo; to unburden; to unload; as, to discharge a vessel. ...
/d/discharge.htm - 18k

Continues (32 Occurrences)
... Leviticus 15:3 This shall be his uncleanness in his discharge: whether his body
runs with his discharge, or his body has stopped from his discharge, it is his ...
/c/continues.htm - 15k

Menstrual (9 Occurrences)
... Leviticus 15:19 "'If a woman has a discharge, and her discharge in her flesh is
blood, she shall be in her impurity seven days: and whoever touches her shall ...
/m/menstrual.htm - 9k

Bathe (35 Occurrences)
... Leviticus 15:6 He who sits on anything whereon the man who has the discharge sat
shall wash his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the ...
/b/bathe.htm - 18k

Pay (212 Occurrences)
... 2. (vt) To satisfy, or content; specifically, to satisfy (another person) for service
rendered, property delivered, etc.; to discharge one's obligation to; to ...
/p/pay.htm - 37k

Shoot (51 Occurrences)
... 3. (vi) To discharge, causing a missile to be driven forth; -- followed by a word
denoting the weapon or instrument, as an object; -- often with off; as, to ...
/s/shoot.htm - 24k

Touches (55 Occurrences)
... Leviticus 15:7 "'He who touches the body of him who has the discharge shall wash
his clothes, and bathe himself in water, and be unclean until the evening. ...
/t/touches.htm - 22k

Flux (26 Occurrences)
... 5. (n.) A fluid discharge from the bowels or other part; especially, an excessive
and morbid discharge; as, the bloody flux or dysentery. See Bloody flux. ...
/f/flux.htm - 16k

Thunder (48 Occurrences)
... Noah Webster's Dictionary. 1. (n.) The sound which follows a flash of lightning;
the report of a discharge of atmospheric electricity. ...
/t/thunder.htm - 25k

Sits (52 Occurrences)
... (WEB NAS RSV NIV). Leviticus 15:4 "'Every bed whereon he who has the discharge lies
shall be unclean; and everything he sits on shall be unclean. ...
/s/sits.htm - 21k

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Discharge: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

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