Command that they take out the stones: literally “command and they shall take out…,” as in verse 36. The passive construction of Good News Translation (“be removed and thrown”) is not helpful in languages that do not use passives. But since the identity of those performing the action is unknown, some sort of indefinite construction will have to be used. Compare verses 4 and 5.

An unclean place: that is, in a place especially designated for the disposal of objects considered unclean or impure. Such a place would obviously have to be away from the area where people lived, which is expressed in the text as outside the city.

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René and Ellington, John. A Handbook on Leviticus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1990. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .