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Law of Cleansing a Leper

14 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “This shall be the law of the leper on the day of his [ceremonial] cleansing. He shall be brought to the priest [at a meeting place outside the camp]; the priest shall go out of the camp [to meet him]; and the priest shall examine him, and if the leper has been healed of the infection of leprosy, then the priest shall give orders to take two live clean birds and cedar wood and scarlet string and [a]hyssop for the one to be cleansed.(A) Next the priest shall order that one of the birds be killed [as a sacrifice] in an earthenware container over [fresh] [b]running water. As for the live bird, he shall take it together with the cedar wood and the scarlet string and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the live bird in the blood of the bird sacrificed over the running water. He shall sprinkle [the blood] seven times on the one to be cleansed from the leprosy and shall pronounce him [ceremonially] clean. Then he shall let the live bird go free over the open field.(B) The one to be cleansed shall wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and bathe in water; and he shall be clean. After that he may come into the camp, but he shall stay outside of his tent for seven days. On the seventh day he shall shave off all his hair: he shall shave his head and his beard and his eyebrows, even all his hair [on his body]. Then he shall wash his clothes and bathe his body in water, and be clean.

10 “Now on the eighth day he shall take two male lambs without blemish, and a yearling ewe lamb without blemish, and three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with [olive] oil as a grain offering, and one log (about a pint) of oil; 11 and the priest who cleanses him shall present the man to be cleansed and his offerings before the Lord at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting. 12 Then the priest shall take one of the male lambs and offer it as a guilt offering, with the log of oil, and present them as a wave offering before the Lord. 13 He shall kill the male lamb in the place where they kill the sin offering and the burnt offering, in the sacred place [the courtyard of the tabernacle]; for the guilt offering, like the sin offering, belongs to the priest; it is most holy. 14 The priest shall take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. 15 The priest shall also take some of the log of oil, and pour it into the palm of his own left hand; 16 and the priest shall dip his right finger in the oil that is in his left palm, and with his finger sprinkle some of the oil seven times before the Lord. 17 Of the rest of the oil which is in his palm, the priest shall put some on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on top of the blood of the guilt offering. 18 The remaining oil that is in the priest’s palm shall be put on the head of the one to be cleansed. The priest shall make atonement for him before the Lord. 19 Next the priest shall offer the sin offering and make atonement for the one to be cleansed from his uncleanness, and afterward kill the burnt offering. 20 The priest shall offer the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar; and the priest shall make atonement for him, and he shall be clean.

21 “But if the cleansed leper is poor and his means are insufficient, then he is to take one lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for him, and one tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, and a log of oil, 22 and two turtledoves or two young pigeons, such as he can afford, one shall be a sin offering, the other a burnt offering. 23 He shall bring them on the eighth day for his [ceremonial] cleansing to the priest at the doorway of the Tent of Meeting, before the Lord. 24 The priest shall take the lamb of the guilt offering, and the log of oil, and shall present them as a wave offering before the Lord. 25 Next he shall kill the lamb of the guilt offering; and the priest is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. 26 The priest shall pour some of the oil into his left palm, 27 and with his right finger the priest shall sprinkle some of the oil that is in his left palm seven times before the Lord. 28 The priest shall put some of the oil in his palm on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the places where he has put the blood of the guilt offering. 29 The rest of the oil that is in the priest’s palm shall be put on the head of the one to be cleansed, to make atonement for him before the Lord. 30 Then he shall offer one of the turtledoves or young pigeons, which are within his means. 31 He shall offer what he can afford, one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, together with the grain offering. The priest shall make atonement before the Lord on behalf of the one to be cleansed. 32 This is the law for the one in whom there is an infection of leprosy, [c]whose means are limited for his [ceremonial] cleansing.”

Cleansing an Infected House

33 The Lord further spoke to Moses and Aaron, saying,

34 “When you come into the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I put [d]a mark of leprosy on a house in your land, 35 then the one who owns the house shall come and tell the priest, ‘I have seen something that looks like a mark of leprosy in my house.’ 36 The priest shall order that they empty the house before he goes in to examine the mark, so that everything in the house will not have to be declared unclean; afterward he shall go in to see the house. 37 He shall examine the mark, and if the mark on the walls of the house has greenish or reddish depressions and appears deeper than the surface, 38 the priest shall go out of the house, to the doorway, and [e]quarantine the house for seven days. 39 The priest shall return on the seventh day and look; and if the mark has spread on the walls of the house, 40 he shall order them to tear out the contaminated stones and throw them into an unclean place outside the city. 41 He shall have the entire inside area of the house scraped, and the plaster that is scraped off shall be dumped in an unclean place outside the city. 42 Then they shall take new stones and replace the [contaminated] stones, and he shall take plaster and replaster the house.

43 “If, however, the mark breaks out again in the house after he has removed the stones and has scraped and replastered the house, 44 then the priest shall come and look again, and if the mark has spread in the house, it is a malignant leprosy in the house; it is [ceremonially] unclean. 45 He shall tear down the house—its stones and its timber and all the plaster of the house—and shall take everything outside the city to an unclean place. 46 Moreover, whoever goes into the house during the time that it is quarantined becomes unclean until evening. 47 And whoever lies down in the house [to rest] shall wash his clothes, and whoever eats in the house shall wash his clothes.

48 “But if the priest comes in and inspects it and the mark has not spread in the house after the house has been replastered, he shall pronounce the house clean because the mark has not reappeared. 49 To cleanse the house then, he shall take two birds and cedar wood and scarlet string and hyssop; 50 and he shall kill one of the birds in an earthenware container over running water, 51 and he shall take the cedar wood and the hyssop and the scarlet string, and the living bird, and dip them in the blood of the slain bird as well as in the running water, and sprinkle the house seven times. 52 So he shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird and with the running water, along with the live bird and the cedar wood and the hyssop and the scarlet string. 53 But he shall let the live bird go free outside the city into the open field. So he shall make atonement for the house, and it will be clean.”

54 This is the law for any mark of leprosy—even for a scale, 55 and for the leprous garment or house, 56 and for a swelling, and for a scab, and for a bright spot on the skin— 57 to teach when they are unclean and when they are clean. This is the law of leprosy [in regard to both persons and property].

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 14:4 I.e. an aromatic plant.
  2. Leviticus 14:5 Lit living, an ancient concept probably based on motion as an indicator of life.
  3. Leviticus 14:32 Lit whose hand does not reach.
  4. Leviticus 14:34 Possibly mildew or mold, and so throughout the chapter. See 13:47-59 for similar instructions regarding fabric, leather, and other articles.
  5. Leviticus 14:38 Lit isolate.

Law of Cleansing a Person with Leprosy

14 Then the Lord spoke to Moses, saying, “This shall be the law of the person with leprosy on the day of his cleansing. (A)Now he shall be brought to the priest; and the priest shall go (B)out to a place outside of the camp. Then the priest shall look, and if the [a]leprous infection has been healed in the person with leprosy, then the priest shall give orders to take two live clean birds, (C)cedar wood, a [b]scarlet string, and hyssop for the one who is to be cleansed. The priest shall also give orders to slaughter the one bird in an earthenware vessel over [c]running water. As for the live bird, he shall take it together with (D)the cedar wood, the [d]scarlet string, and the (E)hyssop, and shall dip them and the live bird in the blood of the bird that was slaughtered over the [e]running water. (F)He shall then sprinkle seven times the one who is to be cleansed from the leprosy and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the live bird go free over the open field. (G)The one to be cleansed shall then wash his clothes and shave off all his hair, and bathe in water and (H)be clean. And afterward he may enter the camp, but he (I)shall stay outside his tent for seven days. Then it shall be on the seventh day that he shall shave off all his hair: he shall shave his head and his beard and his eyebrows, even all his hair. He shall then wash his clothes and bathe his [f]body in water and (J)be clean.

10 “Now on the eighth day he is to take two male lambs without defect, and a yearling ewe lamb without defect, and three-tenths of an [g]ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, and one [h](K)log of oil; 11 and the priest who is going to pronounce him clean shall present the person to be cleansed and [i]the offerings before the Lord at the doorway of the tent of meeting. 12 Then the priest shall take the one male lamb and bring it as a (L)guilt offering, with the [j](M)log of oil, and present them as a (N)wave offering before the Lord. 13 Next he shall slaughter the male lamb in (O)the place where they slaughter the [k]sin offering and the burnt offering, at the place of the sanctuary—for the guilt offering, (P)like the [l]sin offering, belongs to the priest; it is most holy. 14 The priest shall then take some of the blood of the (Q)guilt offering, and the priest shall put it on (R)the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. 15 The priest shall also take some of the [m](S)log of oil, and pour it into his left palm; 16 the priest shall then dip his right-hand finger into the oil that is in his left palm, and with his finger sprinkle some of the oil seven times before the Lord. 17 Of the remaining oil which is in his palm, the priest shall (T)put some on the right ear lobe of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the blood of the guilt offering; 18 as for the rest of the oil that is in the priest’s palm, he shall put it on the head of the one to be cleansed. So the priest shall make (U)atonement on his behalf before the Lord. 19 The priest shall next offer the [n](V)sin offering and make atonement for the one to be cleansed from his uncleanness. Then afterward, he shall slaughter the burnt offering. 20 The priest shall offer up the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar. So the priest shall make atonement for him, and (W)he will be clean.

21 (X)But if he is poor and his [o]means are insufficient, then he is to take one male lamb for a (Y)guilt offering as a wave offering to make atonement for him, and a tenth of an [p]ephah of fine flour mixed with oil as a grain offering, and a [q](Z)log of oil, 22 and two turtledoves or two young doves, which [r]are within his means. (AA)The one shall be a [s](AB)sin offering, and the other a burnt offering. 23 (AC)Then on the eighth day he shall bring them for his cleansing to the priest, at the doorway of the tent of meeting, before the Lord. 24 The priest shall take the lamb of the guilt offering and (AD)the [t]log of oil, and the priest shall offer them as a wave offering before the Lord. 25 Next he shall slaughter the lamb of the guilt offering; and the priest is to take some of the blood of the guilt offering and put it on (AE)the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. 26 The priest shall also pour some of the oil into his left palm; 27 and with his right-hand finger the priest shall sprinkle some of the oil that is in his left palm seven times before the Lord. 28 The priest shall then put some of the oil that is in his palm on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the place of the blood of the guilt offering. 29 Moreover, the rest of the oil that is in the priest’s palm, he shall put on the head of the one to be cleansed, to make atonement on his behalf before the Lord. 30 He shall then offer one of the turtledoves or young doves, [u]which are within his means. 31 He shall offer what [v]he can afford, (AF)the one as a [w]sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, together with the grain offering. So the priest shall make atonement before the Lord on behalf of the one to be cleansed. 32 This is the law for him in whom there is an infection of leprosy, whose [x]means are limited for his cleansing.”

Cleansing a Leprous House

33 The Lord further spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying:

34 (AG)When you enter the land of Canaan, which I am giving you as a possession, and I put a spot of leprosy on a house in the land of your possession, 35 then the one who owns the house shall come and tell the priest, saying, ‘Something like (AH)a spot of leprosy has become visible to me in the house.’ 36 The priest shall then command that they empty the house before the priest goes in to look at the spot, so that everything in the house need not become unclean; and afterward the priest shall go in to look at the house. 37 So he shall look at the spot, and if the spot on the walls of the house has greenish or reddish depressions and appears deeper than the [y]surface, 38 the priest shall come out of the house, to the [z]doorway, and [aa]quarantine the house for seven days. 39 Then the priest shall return on the seventh day and [ab]make an inspection. If the spot has indeed spread on the walls of the house, 40 the priest shall order them to pull out the stones with the spot on them and throw them away [ac]at an unclean place outside the city. 41 And he shall have the house scraped all around [ad]inside, and they shall dump the plaster that they scrape off at an unclean place outside the city. 42 Then they shall take other stones and replace the discarded stones, and he shall take other plaster and replaster the house.

43 “If, however, the spot breaks out again in the house after he has pulled out the stones and scraped the house, and after it has been replastered, 44 then the priest shall come in and [ae]make an inspection. If he sees that the spot has indeed spread in the house, it is (AI)a malignant spot in the house; it is unclean. 45 The owner shall therefore tear down the house, its stones, its timbers, and all the plaster of the house, and he shall take them outside the city to an (AJ)unclean place. 46 Moreover, whoever goes into the house during the time that he has [af]quarantined it, becomes (AK)unclean until evening. 47 Likewise, whoever lies down in the house shall wash his clothes, and whoever eats in the house shall wash his clothes.

48 “If, on the other hand, the priest comes in and [ag]makes an inspection and the spot has not indeed spread in the house after the house has been replastered, then the priest shall pronounce the house clean because the spot has [ah]not reappeared. 49 To cleanse the house then, he shall take (AL)two birds, cedar wood, a [ai]scarlet string, and hyssop, 50 and he shall slaughter the one bird in an earthenware vessel over [aj]running water. 51 Then he shall take the cedar wood, the (AM)hyssop, and the [ak]scarlet string, with the live bird, and dip them in the blood of the slaughtered bird as well as in the [al]running water, and sprinkle the house seven times. 52 So he shall cleanse the house with the blood of the bird and with the [am]running water, along with the live bird, the cedar wood, the hyssop, and the [an]scarlet string. 53 However, he shall let the live bird go free outside the city into the open field. So he shall make atonement for the house, and it will be clean.”

54 This is the law for any spot of leprosy—even for a (AN)scale, 55 and for the (AO)leprous garment or house, 56 and (AP)for a swelling, for a scab, and for a bright spot— 57 to teach [ao]when they are unclean and [ap]when they are clean. This is the law of leprosy.

Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 14:3 I.e., or a serious, unspecified disease, and so throughout the ch
  2. Leviticus 14:4 Lit scarlet color and
  3. Leviticus 14:5 Lit living
  4. Leviticus 14:6 Lit scarlet color and
  5. Leviticus 14:6 Lit living
  6. Leviticus 14:9 Lit flesh
  7. Leviticus 14:10 About 1 cubic foot or 0.03 cubic meters
  8. Leviticus 14:10 About 0.6 pt. or 0.3 liter
  9. Leviticus 14:11 Lit them
  10. Leviticus 14:12 About 0.6 pt. or 0.3 liter
  11. Leviticus 14:13 Or purification offering
  12. Leviticus 14:13 Or purification offering
  13. Leviticus 14:15 About 0.6 pt. or 0.3 liter
  14. Leviticus 14:19 Or purification offering
  15. Leviticus 14:21 Lit hand is not reaching
  16. Leviticus 14:21 About 1 cubic foot or 0.03 cubic meters
  17. Leviticus 14:21 About 0.6 pt. or 0.3 liter
  18. Leviticus 14:22 Lit his hand reaches
  19. Leviticus 14:22 Or purification offering
  20. Leviticus 14:24 About 0.6 pt. or 0.3 liter
  21. Leviticus 14:30 Lit from which his hand reaches
  22. Leviticus 14:31 Lit his hand reaches
  23. Leviticus 14:31 Or purification offering
  24. Leviticus 14:32 Lit hand does not reach
  25. Leviticus 14:37 Lit wall
  26. Leviticus 14:38 Lit doorway of the house
  27. Leviticus 14:38 Lit separate
  28. Leviticus 14:39 Lit look
  29. Leviticus 14:40 Lit to
  30. Leviticus 14:41 Lit from the house
  31. Leviticus 14:44 Lit look
  32. Leviticus 14:46 Lit separated
  33. Leviticus 14:48 Lit looks
  34. Leviticus 14:48 Lit healed
  35. Leviticus 14:49 Lit scarlet color
  36. Leviticus 14:50 Lit living
  37. Leviticus 14:51 Lit scarlet color
  38. Leviticus 14:51 Lit living
  39. Leviticus 14:52 Lit living
  40. Leviticus 14:52 Lit scarlet color
  41. Leviticus 14:57 Lit on the day of uncleanness
  42. Leviticus 14:57 Lit on the day of cleanness