Leviticus 13:47-59
New English Translation
Infections in Garments, Cloth, or Leather
47 “When a garment has a diseased infection in it,[a] whether a wool or linen garment,[b] 48 or in the warp or woof[c] of the linen or the wool, or in leather or anything made of leather,[d] 49 if the infection[e] in the garment or leather or warp or woof or any article of leather is yellowish green or reddish, it is a diseased infection and it must be shown to the priest. 50 The priest is to examine and then quarantine the article with the infection for seven days.[f] 51 He must then examine the infection on the seventh day. If the infection has spread in the garment, or in the warp, or in the woof, or in the leather—whatever the article into which the leather was made[g]—the infection is a malignant disease. It is unclean. 52 He must burn the garment or the warp or the woof, whether wool or linen, or any article of leather which has the infection in it. Because it is a malignant disease it must be burned up in the fire. 53 But if the priest examines it and[h] the infection has not spread in the garment or in the warp or in the woof or in any article of leather, 54 the priest is to command that they wash whatever has the infection and quarantine it for another seven days.[i] 55 The priest must then examine it after the infection has been washed out, and if[j] the infection has not changed its appearance[k] even though the infection has not spread, it is unclean. You must burn it up in the fire. It is a fungus, whether on the back side or front side of the article.[l] 56 But if the priest has examined it and[m] the infection has faded after it has been washed, he is to tear it out of[n] the garment or the leather or the warp or the woof. 57 Then if[o] it still appears again in the garment or the warp or the woof, or in any article of leather, it is an outbreak. Whatever has the infection in it you must burn up in the fire. 58 But the garment or the warp or the woof or any article of leather which you wash and infection disappears from it[p] is to be washed a second time and it will be clean.”
Summary of Infection Regulations
59 This is the law[q] of the diseased infection in the garment of wool or linen, or the warp or woof, or any article of leather, for pronouncing it clean or unclean.[r]
Read full chapterFootnotes
- Leviticus 13:47 tn Heb “And the garment, if there is in it a mark of disease.”
- Leviticus 13:47 tn Heb “in a wool garment or in a linen garment.”
- Leviticus 13:48 sn The warp (vertical) and woof (horizontal) thread may be two different sets of thread not yet woven together, or they may refer to two different kinds of thread already woven, in which case one might have the disease in it while the other does not. See the explanation in J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:809-10.
- Leviticus 13:48 tn Heb “in any handiwork of skin” (cf. KJV, ASV, NRSV); most other modern English versions have “leather.”
- Leviticus 13:49 tn Heb “and the infection is.” This clause is conditional in force, and is translated as such by almost all English versions.
- Leviticus 13:50 tn Heb “And the priest shall see the infection and he shall shut up the infection seven days.”
- Leviticus 13:51 tn Heb “to all which the leather was made into a handiwork.”
- Leviticus 13:53 tn Heb “And if the priest sees and behold”; NASB “and indeed.”
- Leviticus 13:54 tn Heb “a second seven days.”
- Leviticus 13:55 tn Heb “and behold” (so KJV, ASV).
- Leviticus 13:55 tn Heb “the infection has not changed its eye.” Smr has “its/his eyes,” as in vv. 5 and 37, but here it refers to the appearance of the article of cloth or leather, unlike vv. 5 and 37 where there is a preposition attached and it refers to the eyes of the priest.
- Leviticus 13:55 tn The terms “back side” and “front side” are the same as those used in v. 42 for the “back or front bald area” of a man’s head. The exact meaning of these terms when applied to articles of cloth or leather is uncertain. It could refer, for example, to the inside versus the outside of a garment, or the back versus the front side of an article of cloth or leather. See J. Milgrom, Leviticus (AB), 1:814, for various possibilities.
- Leviticus 13:56 tn Heb “And if the priest saw and behold….”
- Leviticus 13:56 tn Heb “and he shall tear it from.”
- Leviticus 13:57 tn Heb “And if”; NIV, NCV “But if”; NAB “If, however.”
- Leviticus 13:58 tn Heb “and the infection turns aside from them.”
- Leviticus 13:59 sn The Hebrew term translated “law” (תּוֹרָה, torah) introduces here a summary or colophon for all of Lev 13. Similar summaries are found in Lev 7:37-38; 11:46-47; 14:54-57; and 15:32-33.
- Leviticus 13:59 tn These are declarative Piel forms of the verbs טָהֵר (taher) and טָמֵא (tameʾ) respectively (cf. the notes on vv. 3 and 6 above).
Leviticus 13:47-59
Expanded Bible
Rules About Mildew
47 “Clothing might have ·mildew [or mold; C the same Hebrew word as for “skin disease”; 13:2] on it. It might be clothing made of linen or wool 48 (either woven or knitted), or of leather, or something made from leather. 49 If the mildew [13:47] in the clothing, leather, or woven or knitted material is green or red, it is a spreading mildew. It must be shown to the priest. 50 The priest must ·look at [examine] the mildew, and he must put that piece of clothing in a ·separate [confined; quarantined] place for seven days. 51 On the seventh day he must ·look at [examine] the mildew [13:47] again. If the mildew has spread on the cloth (either woven or knitted) or the leather, no matter what the leather was used for, it is a mildew [13:47] that destroys; it is unclean [C in a ritual sense]. 52 The priest must burn the clothing. It does not matter if it is woven or knitted, wool or linen, or made of leather, because the mildew is spreading. It must be burned.
53 “If the priest sees that the mildew [13:47] has not spread in the cloth (either knitted or woven) or leather, 54 he must order the people to wash that piece of leather or cloth. Then he must ·separate [confine; quarantine] the clothing for seven more days. 55 After the piece with the mildew has been washed, the priest must ·look at [examine] it again. If the mildew [13:47] still looks the same, the piece is unclean, even if the mildew has not spread. You must burn it in fire; it does not matter if the mildew is on one side or the other.
56 “But when the priest ·looks at [examines] that piece of leather or cloth, the mildew [13:47] might have faded after the piece has been washed. Then the priest must tear the mildew out of the piece of leather or cloth (either woven or knitted). 57 But if the mildew comes back to that piece of leather or cloth (either woven or knitted), the mildew is spreading. And whatever has the mildew must be burned with fire. 58 When the cloth (either woven or knitted) or the leather is washed and the mildew [13:47] is gone, it must be washed again; then it will be clean [C in a ritual sense].
59 “These are the ·teachings [laws; instructions] about mildew [13:47] on pieces of cloth (either woven or knitted) or leather, to decide if they are clean or unclean [C in a ritual sense].”
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