Leviticus 14

Leviticus 14:1

D. The Cleansing of Leprosy (Chap. 14)14:1-7 Here is given the ritual for cleansing a leper after he had been healed: First he was inspected by the priest outside the camp. If healed, he offered two living and clean birds, with cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop. The cedar wood and the hyssop, coming from a lofty tree and a lowly plant, picture the judgment of God on all men and on all that the world contains, from the highest to the lowest things. Scarlet is associated with sins in Isa_1:18, so the thought here may be of God’s judgment on sins. One bird was killed . . . over running water, and the other with the cedar wood and the scarlet and the hyssop was dipped in the blood of the slain bird.

The cleansed leper was sprinkled with the blood seven times and pronounced clean. Then the living bird was allowed to go free. In many ways, leprosy is a type of sin. It rendered a man unclean, it excluded him from the camp of God and the people of God, it made the victim miserable, etc. This is why there needed to be an application of blood (the blood of Christ) and the running water (the Holy Spirit’s regenerating work) in the cleansing of a leper. When a sinner turns to the Lord in repentance and faith today, the death and resurrection of Christ (pictured by the two birds) is reckoned to his account. The blood is applied through the power of the Spirit and, in God’s sight, the person is clean. Rock of Ages, cleft for me, Let me hide myself in Thee; Let the water and the blood, From Thy riven side which flowed, Be of sin the double cure, Cleanse me from its guilt and power. Augustus M. Toplady14:8-20 The cleansed leper washed his clothes, shaved off all his hair, and washed his body (v. 8). Then he was allowed to enter the camp, but he could not enter his own tent for seven more days. Seven days later he again washed and shaved and was pronounced clean (v. 9). On the eighth day, he brought offerings to the LORD (vv. 10, 11): a trespass offering (vv. 12-18); a sin offering (v. 19); a burnt offering (v. 20). The priest applied the blood to the leper’s ear, hand, and foot (v. 14). This speaks of hearing God’s Word, of doing God’s will, and of walking in God’s ways. 14:21-32 If the cleansed leper was too poor to bring all the required animals, then he was permitted to bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering, but he still had to bring the lamb for the trespass offering. A grain offering accompanied the trespass, sin, and burnt offerings in each instance. 14:33-53 Finally, laws for the detection of leprosy . . . in a house are given. These would apply when the people finally reached Canaan and dwelt in permanent houses rather than in tents. “Leprosy” in a house was probably some sort of fungus, mildew, or dry rot. The Lord made provision for the house to be emptied before the priest went in so that the contents need not become unclean or be quarantined (vv. 36, 38). At first only the affected stones in a house were removed. But if the leprosy continued to break out, the house was torn down (vv. 39-45). In the event that the leprosy was arrested in the house, the priest followed a ritual of cleansing similar to that for a leper (vv. 48-53). 14:54-57 This paragraph is a summary of chapters 13 and 14.