Leviticus 13

Why did the Lord have so much to say to Israel about skin diseases? God made us in His image. He cares about our bodies and about all aspects of our lives. There are many infectious diseases or troubling conditions that the Lord could have used to prepare us for the coming of the Messiah and His saving work. As the Lord had much to say about food and about blood, He had a special purpose for the horrible skin conditions that were denoted by the word “leprosy.” When Jesus came, He cleansed lepers. There was something about that picture that was so appropriate. The Lord had prepared His people for the miracle of cleansing by His ceremonial law.

Various skin diseases that might be covered by the term “leprosy” in Leviticus had outward manifestations that may have been the result of an inner problem. A problem may have showed up on the skin of the body, but the disease itself could have been the result of an invading microbe attacking the body in other ways.

Leprosy was unclean, and the priests were to be the judges of this uncleanness. The priests were to examine the diseased area and make a determination. Was it deeper than the skin? If so, it was a leprous disease, and the person was to be declared unclean. If the matter was unclear, a period of separation was called for. A priest would then reexamine the person. This might happen more than once, until it became clear that the problem was not leprosy. Even if it appeared to be a false alarm, a washing of the person's clothes was required before the person could be declared clean. In the case of a spreading eruption on the skin, the priest needed to pronounce him unclean.

Leprosy was a blemish on what was to be a perfectly consistent offering to God of a clean body. This blessing of a whole and unmixed offering was apparently an important enough part of the picture, that if a person was leprous with a white complexion over the whole body, he could suddenly be declared clean, as if the wholeness overwhelmed the disease in terms of ceremonial holiness. As long as the person was covered from head to foot in every visible area, the priest could pronounce him clean of the disease. Everything was white. He was clean. But if a raw spot of flesh showed up again, he was unclean.

One horror of leprosy was that it would spread. Something that might start as a boil on the skin of one part of the body would not be so devastating if it stayed only on that part of the body. But if it was leprosy, it would not be easily contained. As an unclean spot of leprosy on a body would grow and spread to the rest of the body, bad company in the body of the faithful would soon corrupt the godliness of others.

Some diseases of the skin might be ignited by trauma, such as a burn on the skin and a resulting infection. Sin and trauma can breed more sin and even more difficulty. We are looking for some solution to the problem of body and soul leprosy that would be fully clean, and completely sustainable.

Some skin diseases might be hidden by the hair of the head or the beard. Underneath a secret cloak, an enemy of the body could be lurking. Like a whitewashed tomb, that outside might look clean, but inside were the bones of dead men.

Other skin diseases might create a spotted pattern on the skin, and yet not be the leprosy that would necessitate a declaration of “unclean.” An elderly man might lose his hair, and reveal something troubling that may have been there all along. Would the spots on the bald man's scalp be clean or unclean? The priest would have to be able to discern all these difficult cases. Yet when we consider the stains within our hearts, who is really able to know what is in a man? Where can we find a priest who will understand our true condition?

Even if we have a discerning priest who could rightly speak of these diseases, could he heal us? Will our souls find nothing to turn away the tide of the uncleanness outside us and within us? We do not want to wear garments of mourning forever, going forth for all eternity with the cry, “Unclean, unclean!” We do not want to be cut off from the body of God's people, living alone for fear that others will catch our malady.

This uncleanness that is such a part of this depraved world can even making our clothing leprous. Who will snatch us from the fire? If anyone tries, he better be careful, hating even the clothing stained by corruptible flesh. Could our clothing be washed to take away the sign of the defect that is on us?

We cannot minimize the problem of sin. These ceremonial laws have a story to tell. But now a deep solution to this devastating problem has been found in Jesus of Nazareth, the man from God who cleansed lepers. In Him, we who would have rightly been judged to be fatally unclean in our bodies and souls, have been declared righteous forever. Because of Him and all His mighty works, we can honestly confess our sins, and we find that He is faithful and just not only to forgive us our sins, but also to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.