Clean
When God cleans us, he's not like Mr. Clean, sailing through our house like a white tornado. When God cleans us, we're clean all the way through to the depths of our being. We may not feel like we've been purified at times (especially if we've just given into temptation), but God does the cleaning in the house of our heart, and he doesn't miss a cobweb. As part of his forgiveness, God cleanses us from all our sin (see 1 John 1:9) and declares that, as far as he is concerned, we are now as white as snow.

In the Old Testament, only "clean" animals could be used as a sacrifice for sin. God explained to his people exactly which animals were clean and which were unclean. This demonstrates the crucial role purity and holiness play in helping us understand what God is like and what he requires of those who follow him. These sacrifices also remind us that only Jesus, the sinless Son of God, could be the sacrifice for our sin.

Places in the Old Testament are sometimes described as ceremonially "clean."
Leviticus 4:11-12; 6:11
Numbers 19:9
People in the Old Testament are sometimes described as ceremonially "clean."
Leviticus 7:19; 13:34
Numbers 19:9,18
2 Chronicles 30:17
Ecclesiastes 9:2
Isaiah 1:16
Ezekiel 36:25
A variety of things can be declared "clean."
2 Chronicles 13:11
Isaiah 66:20
Ezekiel 36:25; 43:26
Mark 7:19
Acts 10:15
Romans 14:20
Animals could be declared ceremonially "clean" in the Old Testament.
Genesis 7:2; 8:20
Leviticus 11:46-47
Deuteronomy 14:11
"Clean" can mean healthy.
2 Kings 5:14
Matthew 8:2; 10:8
Mark 1:40
"Clean" can mean free from guilt.
2 Samuel 22:25
Job 33:9
Psalm 24:4; 51:7
Proverbs 20:9
John 15:3
Hebrews 10:22
"Clean can signify the purity of someone's motives.
Genesis 20:5
2 Samuel 22:21
Luke 11:39-41
God cleans away our sin. In the New Testament, he does this through the blood of his Son, Jesus Christ.
Psalm 51:2
Jeremiah 33:8
Ezekiel 36:33; 37:23
Zechariah 13:1
Hebrews 9:13-15