13 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying, 2 “When a person has on the skin of his body a swelling or an eruption or a spot, and it turns into a case of leprous1 disease on the skin of his body, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons the priests, 3 and the priest shall examine the diseased area on the skin of his body. And if the hair in the diseased area has turned white and the disease appears to be deeper than the skin of his body, it is a case of leprous disease. When the priest has examined him, he shall pronounce him unclean. 4 But if the spot is white in the skin of his body and appears no deeper than the skin, and the hair in it has not turned white, the priest shall shut up the diseased person for seven days. 5 And the priest shall examine him on the seventh day, and if in his eyes the disease is checked and the disease has not spread in the skin, then the priest shall shut him up for another seven days. 6 And the priest shall examine him again on the seventh day, and if the diseased area has faded and the disease has not spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean; it is only an eruption. And he shall wash his clothes and be clean. 7 But if the eruption spreads in the skin, after he has shown himself to the priest for his cleansing, he shall appear again before the priest. 8 And the priest shall look, and if the eruption has spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a leprous disease.
9 “When a man is afflicted with a leprous disease, he shall be brought to the priest, 10 and the priest shall look. And if there is a white swelling in the skin that has turned the hair white, and there is raw flesh in the swelling, 11 it is a chronic leprous disease in the skin of his body, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean. He shall not shut him up, for he is unclean. 12 And if the leprous disease breaks out in the skin, so that the leprous disease covers all the skin of the diseased person from head to foot, so far as the priest can see, 13 then the priest shall look, and if the leprous disease has covered all his body, he shall pronounce him clean of the disease; it has all turned white, and he is clean. 14 But when raw flesh appears on him, he shall be unclean. 15 And the priest shall examine the raw flesh and pronounce him unclean. Raw flesh is unclean, for it is a leprous disease. 16 But if the raw flesh recovers and turns white again, then he shall come to the priest, 17 and the priest shall examine him, and if the disease has turned white, then the priest shall pronounce the diseased person clean; he is clean.
18 “If there is in the skin of one’s body a boil and it heals, 19 and in the place of the boil there comes a white swelling or a reddish-white spot, then it shall be shown to the priest. 20 And the priest shall look, and if it appears deeper than the skin and its hair has turned white, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a case of leprous disease that has broken out in the boil. 21 But if the priest examines it and there is no white hair in it and it is not deeper than the skin, but has faded, then the priest shall shut him up seven days. 22 And if it spreads in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a disease. 23 But if the spot remains in one place and does not spread, it is the scar of the boil, and the priest shall pronounce him clean.
24 “Or, when the body has a burn on its skin and the raw flesh of the burn becomes a spot, reddish-white or white, 25 the priest shall examine it, and if the hair in the spot has turned white and it appears deeper than the skin, then it is a leprous disease. It has broken out in the burn, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a case of leprous disease. 26 But if the priest examines it and there is no white hair in the spot and it is no deeper than the skin, but has faded, the priest shall shut him up seven days, 27 and the priest shall examine him the seventh day. If it is spreading in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean; it is a case of leprous disease. 28 But if the spot remains in one place and does not spread in the skin, but has faded, it is a swelling from the burn, and the priest shall pronounce him clean, for it is the scar of the burn.
29 “When a man or woman has a disease on the head or the beard, 30 the priest shall examine the disease. And if it appears deeper than the skin, and the hair in it is yellow and thin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is an itch, a leprous disease of the head or the beard. 31 And if the priest examines the itching disease and it appears no deeper than the skin and there is no black hair in it, then the priest shall shut up the person with the itching disease for seven days, 32 and on the seventh day the priest shall examine the disease. If the itch has not spread, and there is in it no yellow hair, and the itch appears to be no deeper than the skin, 33 then he shall shave himself, but the itch he shall not shave; and the priest shall shut up the person with the itching disease for another seven days. 34 And on the seventh day the priest shall examine the itch, and if the itch has not spread in the skin and it appears to be no deeper than the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean. And he shall wash his clothes and be clean. 35 But if the itch spreads in the skin after his cleansing, 36 then the priest shall examine him, and if the itch has spread in the skin, the priest need not seek for the yellow hair; he is unclean. 37 But if in his eyes the itch is unchanged and black hair has grown in it, the itch is healed and he is clean, and the priest shall pronounce him clean.
38 “When a man or a woman has spots on the skin of the body, white spots, 39 the priest shall look, and if the spots on the skin of the body are of a dull white, it is leukoderma that has broken out in the skin; he is clean.
40 “If a man’s hair falls out from his head, he is bald; he is clean. 41 And if a man’s hair falls out from his forehead, he has baldness of the forehead; he is clean. 42 But if there is on the bald head or the bald forehead a reddish-white diseased area, it is a leprous disease breaking out on his bald head or his bald forehead. 43 Then the priest shall examine him, and if the diseased swelling is reddish-white on his bald head or on his bald forehead, like the appearance of leprous disease in the skin of the body, 44 he is a leprous man, he is unclean. The priest must pronounce him unclean; his disease is on his head.
45 “The leprous person who has the disease shall wear torn clothes and let the hair of his head hang loose, and he shall cover his upper lip2 and cry out, ‘Unclean, unclean.’ 46 He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.
47 “When there is a case of leprous disease in a garment, whether a woolen or a linen garment, 48 in warp or woof of linen or wool, or in a skin or in anything made of skin, 49 if the disease is greenish or reddish in the garment, or in the skin or in the warp or the woof or in any article made of skin, it is a case of leprous disease, and it shall be shown to the priest. 50 And the priest shall examine the disease and shut up that which has the disease for seven days. 51 Then he shall examine the disease on the seventh day. If the disease has spread in the garment, in the warp or the woof, or in the skin, whatever be the use of the skin, the disease is a persistent leprous disease; it is unclean. 52 And he shall burn the garment, or the warp or the woof, the wool or the linen, or any article made of skin that is diseased, for it is a persistent leprous disease. It shall be burned in the fire.
53 “And if the priest examines, and if the disease has not spread in the garment, in the warp or the woof or in any article made of skin, 54 then the priest shall command that they wash the thing in which is the disease, and he shall shut it up for another seven days. 55 And the priest shall examine the diseased thing after it has been washed. And if the appearance of the diseased area has not changed, though the disease has not spread, it is unclean. You shall burn it in the fire, whether the rot is on the back or on the front.
56 “But if the priest examines, and if the diseased area has faded after it has been washed, he shall tear it out of the garment or the skin or the warp or the woof. 57 Then if it appears again in the garment, in the warp or the woof, or in any article made of skin, it is spreading. You shall burn with fire whatever has the disease. 58 But the garment, or the warp or the woof, or any article made of skin from which the disease departs when you have washed it, shall then be washed a second time, and be clean.”
59 This is the law for a case of leprous disease in a garment of wool or linen, either in the warp or the woof, or in any article made of skin, to determine whether it is clean or unclean.
Section Overview
The laws on bodily impurity continue with the topic of ritually defiling skin disease: its diagnosis (ch. 13) and ritual restoration (ch. 14). These two chapters must be read theologically. As the Lord’s presence among his people reorders their lives around his holiness, it shines a light on whatever is out of step with his redemptive purposes. The defiling presence of disease and decay is incompatible with God’s holiness. Although contracting impurity is a normal part of life, it is not to be associated with the divine life. And although there is no mention of sin here, bodily disease is a result of sin and death in a fallen world. Read together as one, these chapters point to the abnormality of death and decay in God’s presence and how they will ultimately be overcome by the Lord of life. The first chapter mandates the separation of impurity from the community, while the second shows the way back to the God who heals and restores to his presence.
The instructions on diagnosing impurity proceed as seven distinct yet closely related cases of “skin disease” (Hb. tsaraʿat). These specific cases are phrased as “if-then” conditional statements that describe a protocol for diagnosing diseased persons and objects as well as the outcome for each. Each case includes (1) observable symptoms, (2) ritual examination by the priest, (3) identification of symptoms, (4) confirmation (or not) of bodily disease, and (5) pronouncement of ritual status by the priest.154 It is important to note that there is no prescription for treatment (as there is in 2 Kings 20:7). The priest pronounces the diseased person as ritually “unclean” to confirm the already-present disease and “clean” to confirm his healing. The priesthood’s ministry establishes a person’s ritual status with respect to the sanctuary.
The Hebrew tsaraʿat frequently translated as “leprous disease” requires some explanation.155 The term “leprosy” today refers to Hansen’s disease, but there is no evidence of this medical condition in the Mediterranean world before 200 BC. The LXX chose the word lepra for the Hebrew tsaraʿat because it applied to a variety of skin disorders. “Leprous disease” as described in this portion of Leviticus appears to resemble conditions such as psoriasis, vitiligo, eczema, and favus. Since it could also affect textiles, leather, and homes, it is best to think of it as a “ritually defiling skin disease/infestation.”156 An important characteristic is its spreading nature.157 The disease manifests as a growing, visible spread of peeling, flaking skin that could expose raw flesh underneath. The flaking makes the sufferer look “as one dead, whose flesh is half eaten away when he comes out of his mother’s womb” (Num. 12:12). As such, its appearance is a mark of physical death incompatible with God’s holiness.158 For fear of the contagion of ritual impurity those afflicted with skin disease were removed from the camp to live in isolation on its perimeter.
The amount of text dedicated to diagnosing skin disease and its ritual resolution is considerable, leading to the conclusion that it is best to understand this teaching as a paradigmatic case of the diseased body.159 When compared with the consecrated and ritually fit body of the high priest, we see between the two a symbolic display of life versus death. The skin-diseased person (the most impure Israelite body) and the high priest (the holiest Israelite body) stand on two opposite ends of the holiness spectrum (cf. table 3.4). The high priest is the closest person to the divine presence and consecrated to share in the sanctuary’s holiness through ceremonial investiture and anointing with sacral oil (Lev. 8:10–12). The skin-diseased person is the furthest from the divine presence and must announce his pollution by crying out “Unclean! Unclean!” The diseased body is the least ritually fit for sacred space and the consecrated body the most ritually fit. The nearer one draws to the Lord, the closer one comes to life itself. The further one is driven from God’s presence, the closer one is to death and decay.
TABLE 3.4: The Skin-Diseased Person and the High Priest
|
Skin-Diseased Person |
High Priest |
|
Hair disheveled |
Hair groomed and never disheveled |
|
Garments rent |
Garments never rent |
|
Body anointed with oil |
|
|
Outside the camp, furthest from the divine presence |
Before the sanctuary veil, nearest the divine presence |
|
Represents death in his diseased and blemished body |
Represents life in his whole and unblemished body |
Section Outline
III. Ritual Impurity (11:1–15:33) . . .
C. Diagnosing Skin Disease (13:1–59)
1. Introduction (13:1)
2. Diagnosis of Diseased Persons (13:2–44)
3. Consequence: Removal from the Camp (13:45–46)
4. Diagnosis of Diseased Garments (13:47–51)
5. Consequence: Burning or Washing (13:52–58)
6. Concluding Summary (13:59)
Response
Death and disease are incompatible with God’s presence. They exist in the world outside of Eden, a world the Lord is reclaiming and remaking for Abraham’s descendants until it extends throughout the whole earth. Sickness is a persistent reminder that the world is fallen and stands in need of restoration, repair, and renewal. The removal of those with defiling skin disease outside the camp is an important aspect of Israel’s practical, concrete expression of holiness that is instructive to the entire community. The Lord who dwells in the glory of his perfect wholeness and holiness provides his people with a theological understanding of bodily decay and its ultimate reversal (Isa. 26:19; 65:17). These laws look forward to the day when impurity itself will be banished outside the camp (Lev. 16:22). Those who must be separated in their impurity from the life of the community and the worship of God earnestly long for restoration. We likewise embrace a biblical hope that looks forward to a bodily resurrection and life eternal that is no longer susceptible to disease, death, or decay.
This hope is realized in the incarnation, wherein Christ assumed a fully embodied human life. He met those afflicted with skin disease and had compassion (Mark 1:40–42). He reached out with divine authority in his public ministry to cleanse them as a sign that God’s kingdom had come (Matt. 9:35–36; 11:5). Jesus revealed his messianic identity through healings that spoke to a restoration of all things: “The blind receive their sight, the lame walk, lepers are cleansed, and the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, the poor have good news preached to them” (Luke 7:22). Sickness and disease are borne and removed by him to fulfill the prophetic promise: “He took our illnesses and bore our diseases” (Matt. 8:17; cf. Isa. 53:4). As the feast of the Passover and Jesus’ imminent self-offering were drawing near, he reclined at the table of Simon the leper while a woman anointed his body (Mark 14:3). A man healed of disease and death’s decay eating at a table with the anointed High Priest preparing for his own death is a sign that the kingdom has arrived and the way to fellowship with God has been made open.
Jesus’ atoning death and bodily resurrection triumph over sin, disease, and death. Humanity is designed for an embodied eternity that will be accomplished through a physical resurrection from the dead. Creation itself longs to be “set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God” (Rom. 8:21). Not only creation but we ourselves eagerly await the “redemption of our bodies” (Rom. 8:23). The climax of biblical redemption takes place when the
dwelling place of God is with man. He will dwell with them, and they will be his people, and God himself will be with them as their God. He will wipe away every tear from their eyes, and death shall be no more, neither shall there be mourning, nor crying, nor pain anymore, for the former things have passed away. (Rev. 21:3–4)
Disease and death will one day be overturned and will be no more.Leviticus 13