Wash Your Hands

 

Is hand washing important? There are around 100 scriptures on washing. Many of those scriptures mention washing hands. Here are some scriptures that deal with hand washing: 

•  James 4:8 Draw nigh to God, and he will draw nigh to you. Cleanse your hands, ye sinners; and purify your hearts, ye double minded.

• Exodus 30:17-21 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Thou shalt also make a laver of brass, and his foot also of brass, to wash withal: and thou shalt put it between the tabernacle of the congregation and the altar, and thou shalt put water therein. For Aaron and his sons shall wash their hands and their feet thereat: When they go into the tabernacle of the congregation, they shall wash with water, that they die not; or when they come near to the altar to minister, to burn offering made by fire unto the Lord: So they shall wash their hands and their feet, that they die not: and it shall be a statute for ever to them, even to him and to his seed throughout their generations.

• Psalms 24:3-4 Who shall ascend into the hill of the Lord? or who shall stand in his holy place? He that hath clean hands, and a pure heart; who hath not lifted up his soul unto vanity, nor sworn deceitfully.

Washing of hands and feet is symbolic of making yourself clean for God. 

Today we know many reasons for washing hands. When God made the rule is said we were to wash hands so we would not die. 

Washing hands prevents illnesses and spread of infections to others

Hand washing with soap removes germs from hands. This helps prevent infections because:

• People frequently touch their eyes, nose, and mouth without even realizing it. Germs can get into the body through the eyes, nose and mouth and make us sick.
• Germs from unwashed hands can get into foods and drinks while people prepare or consume them. Germs can multiply in some types of foods or drinks, under certain conditions, and make people sick.
• Germs from unwashed hands can be transferred to other objects, like handrails, tabletops, or toys, and then transferred to another person’s hands.
• Removing germs through hand washing therefore helps prevent diarrhea and respiratory infections and may even help prevent skin and eye infections.

Teaching people about hand washing helps them and their communities stay healthy. Hand washing education in the community:

• Reduces the number of people who get sick with diarrhea by 23-40% 
• Reduces diarrhea illness in people with weakened immune systems by 58% 
• Reduces respiratory illnesses, like colds, in the general population by 16-21%
• Reduces absenteeism due to gastrointestinal illness in schoolchildren by 29-57%

Not washing hands harms children around the world

About 1.8 million children under the age of 5 die each year from diarrhea diseases and pneumonia, the top two killers of young children around the
world.

• Hand washing with soap could protect about 1 out of every 3 young children who get sick with diarrhea and almost 1 out of 5 young children with respiratory infections like pneumonia.
• Although people around the world clean their hands with water, very few use soap to wash their hands. Washing hands with soap removes germs much more effectively.
• Hand washing education and access to soap in schools can help improve attendance.
• Good hand washing early in life may help improve child development in some settings.
• Estimated global rates of hand washing after using the toilet are only 19% .

Hand washing helps battle the rise in antibiotic resistance

Preventing sickness reduces the amount of antibiotics people use and the likelihood that antibiotic resistance will develop. Hand washing can prevent about 30% of diarrhea-related sicknesses and about 20% of respiratory infections (e.g., colds). Antibiotics often are prescribed unnecessarily for these health issues. Reducing the number of these infections by washing hands frequently helps prevent the overuse of antibiotics—the single most important factor leading to antibiotic resistance around the world. Hand washing can also prevent people from getting sick with germs that are already resistant to antibiotics and that can be difficult to treat.

God knew about germs before we did. He created a law that involved hand washing to save His people from deadly disease.