Leviticus 13
13
Rules About Skin Diseases
1The Lord said to Moses and Aaron, 2“Someone might have a swelling on their skin, or it may be a rash or a bright spot. If the sore looks like the disease of leprosy, the person must be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons, the priests. 3The priest must look at the sore on the person’s skin. If the hair in the sore has become white, and if the sore seems deeper than the person’s skin, it is leprosy. When the priest has finished looking at the person, he must announce that the person is unclean.
4“Sometimes there is a white spot on a person’s skin that does not seem deeper than the skin. If that is true, the priest must separate that person from other people for seven days. 5On the seventh day the priest must look at the person again. If the priest sees that the sore has not changed and has not spread on the skin, he must separate the person for seven more days. 6Seven days later the priest must look at the person again. If the sore has faded and has not spread on the skin, the priest must announce that the person is clean. The sore is only a rash. After washing the clothes, that person will be clean again.
7“But if the rash spreads over the skin after the person has shown himself to the priest to be made clean again, that person must come again to the priest. 8The priest must look, and if the rash has spread, he must announce that the person is unclean. The disease is leprosy.
9“Whoever has leprosy must be brought to the priest. 10He must look at that person. If there is a white swelling on the skin, if the hair has become white, and if the skin looks raw in the swelling, 11it is leprosy that has been there for a long time. The priest must announce that the person is unclean. He does not have to wait until after a period of separation, because he already knows that the person is unclean.
12“Sometimes a skin disease will spread all over a person’s body, covering the skin from head to foot. The priest must look at that person’s whole body. 13If the priest sees that the skin disease covers the whole body and that it has turned all the skin white, the priest must announce that the person is clean. 14But if the skin is raw, that person is not clean. 15When the priest sees the raw skin, he must announce that the person is unclean. The raw skin is not clean. It is leprosy.
16“If the raw skin changes and becomes white, the person must come to the priest. 17The priest must look at the person. If the skin has become white, the person who had the infection is clean, and the priest must announce this.
18“Someone might get a boil on their skin that heals over. 19Then that boil might become a white swelling or a bright, white spot with red streaks in it. If this happens, the person must show that spot to the priest. 20The priest must look at it. If the swelling is deeper than the skin, and the hair on it has become white, the priest must announce that the person is unclean. The spot is leprosy that has broken out from inside the boil. 21But if the priest looks at the spot, and there are no white hairs in it, and the spot is not deeper than the skin but is faded, the priest must separate the person for seven days. 22If the spot spreads on the skin, the priest must announce that the person is unclean; it is an infection. 23But if the bright spot stays in its place and does not spread, it is only the scar from the old boil. The priest must announce that the person is clean.
24-25“Someone might get a burn on the skin. If the raw skin becomes a white spot or a white spot with red streaks in it, the priest must look at it. If that white spot seems to be deeper than the skin, and the hair at that spot has become white, it is leprosy that has broken out in the burn. The priest must announce that the person is unclean. 26But if the priest looks at the spot, and there is no white hair in the bright spot, and the spot is not deeper than the skin but is faded, the priest must separate the person for seven days. 27On the seventh day, the priest must look at the person again. If the spot has spread on the skin, the priest must announce that the person is unclean. It is leprosy. 28But if the bright spot has not spread on the skin but has faded, it is only a scar from the burn. The priest must announce that the person is clean.
29“Someone might get an infection on the scalp#13:29 scalp The skin on a person’s head. Also in verse 42. or beard. 30A priest must look at the infection. If the infection seems to be deeper than the skin, and if the hair around it is thin and yellow, the priest must announce that the person is unclean. It is a serious skin disease.#13:30 serious skin disease This could be leprosy, or it could be another kind of contagious skin disease. 31If the disease does not seem deeper than the skin, but there is no dark hair in it, the priest must separate that person for seven days. 32On the seventh day, the priest must look at it again. If the disease has not spread, and there are no yellow hairs growing in it, and the disease does not seem deeper than the skin, 33the person must shave. But the diseased area should not be shaved. The priest must separate that person for seven more days. 34On the seventh day, the priest must look at it again. If the disease has not spread, and it does not seem deeper than the skin, the priest must announce that the person is clean. After washing those clothes, that person will be clean. 35But if the disease spreads on the skin after the person has become clean, 36then the priest must look at the person again. If the disease has spread, the priest does not need to look for yellow hair. The person is unclean. 37But if the priest thinks that the disease has stopped, and black hair is growing in it, the disease has healed. The person is clean, and the priest must announce this.
38“If anyone has white spots on the skin, 39a priest must look at them. If the spots on that person’s skin are dull white, the disease is only a harmless rash. That person is clean.
40“A man might begin to lose the hair on his head. It is only baldness, so he is clean. 41A man might lose hair from the sides of his head. He is clean. It is only another kind of baldness. 42But if there is a red and white infection on his scalp, it is a skin disease. 43A priest must look at him. If the swelling of the infection is red and white and looks like the leprosy on other parts of his body, 44then he has leprosy on his scalp. The person is unclean. The priest must announce that he is unclean.
45“People with leprosy must warn other people. They must shout, ‘Unclean, unclean!’ They must tear their clothes at the seams. They must let their hair grow wild,#13:45 They must tear … wild This also showed that a person was very sad about something. and they must cover their mouth. 46They are unclean the whole time that they have the infection. They are unclean and must live outside the camp.
47-48“Some clothing might have mildew on it. The cloth could be linen or wool, woven or knitted. Or the mildew might be on a piece of leather or on something made from leather. 49If the mildew is green or red, it must be shown to the priest. 50The priest must look at it and put it in a separate place for seven days. 51-52On the seventh day, he must look at it again. It doesn’t matter if the mildew is on leather or cloth or if the cloth is woven or knitted. And it doesn’t matter what the leather was used for. If the mildew has spread, the object is unclean because of the infection. The priest must burn it.
53“If the priest sees that the mildew did not spread on the object, it must be washed. It doesn’t matter if it is leather or cloth, or if the cloth is knitted or woven, it must be washed. 54He must order the people to wash it. Then he must separate the clothing for seven more days. 55After that time, the priest must look at it again. If the mildew still looks the same, the object is unclean. It doesn’t matter if the infection has not spread; you must burn that cloth or piece of leather.
56“But if the priest looks at that piece of leather or cloth, and the mildew has faded, he must tear the infected spot out of the piece of leather or cloth. It doesn’t matter if the cloth is woven or knitted. 57But the mildew might come back to that piece of leather or cloth. If that happens, the mildew is spreading, and the object must be burned. 58But if the mildew did not come back after washing, that piece of leather or cloth is clean, whether the cloth was woven or knitted.”
59These are the rules for mildew on pieces of leather or cloth, whether the cloth is woven or knitted.
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Leviticus 13: ERV
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© 1987, 2004 Bible League International
Leviticus 13
13
Infections
1-3 God spoke to Moses and Aaron: “When someone has a swelling or a blister or a shiny spot on the skin that might signal a serious skin disease on the body, bring him to Aaron the priest or to one of his priest sons. The priest will examine the sore on the skin. If the hair in the sore has turned white and the sore appears more than skin deep, it is a serious skin disease and infectious. After the priest has examined it, he will pronounce the person unclean.
4-8“If the shiny spot on the skin is white but appears to be only on the surface and the hair has not turned white, the priest will quarantine the person for seven days. On the seventh day the priest will examine it again; if, in his judgment, the sore is the same and has not spread, the priest will keep him in quarantine for another seven days. On the seventh day the priest will examine him a second time; if the sore has faded and hasn’t spread, the priest will declare him clean—it is a harmless rash. The person can go home and wash his clothes; he is clean. But if the sore spreads after he has shown himself to the priest and been declared clean, he must come back again to the priest who will conduct another examination. If the sore has spread, the priest will pronounce him unclean—it is a serious skin disease and infectious.
9-17“Whenever someone has a serious and infectious skin disease, you must bring him to the priest. The priest will examine him; if there is a white swelling in the skin, the hair is turning white, and there is an open sore in the swelling, it is a chronic skin disease. The priest will pronounce him unclean. But he doesn’t need to quarantine him because he’s already given his diagnosis of unclean. If a serious disease breaks out that covers all the skin from head to foot, wherever the priest looks, the priest will make a thorough examination; if the disease covers his entire body, he will pronounce the person with the sore clean—since it has turned all white, he is clean. But if they are open, running sores, he is unclean. The priest will examine the open sores and pronounce him unclean. The open sores are unclean; they are evidence of a serious skin disease. But if the open sores dry up and turn white, he is to come back to the priest who will reexamine him; if the sores have turned white, the priest will pronounce the person with the sores clean. He is clean.
18-23“When a person has a boil and it heals and in place of the boil there is white swelling or a reddish-white shiny spot, the person must present himself to the priest for an examination. If it looks like it has penetrated the skin and the hair in it has turned white, the priest will pronounce him unclean. It is a serious skin disease that has broken out in the boil. But if the examination shows that there is no white hair in it and it is only skin deep and has faded, the priest will put him in quarantine for seven days. If it then spreads over the skin, the priest will diagnose him as unclean. It is infectious. But if the shiny spot has not changed and hasn’t spread, it’s only a scar from the boil. The priest will pronounce him clean.
24-28“When a person has a burn on his skin and the raw flesh turns into a reddish-white or white shiny spot, the priest is to examine it. If the hair has turned white in the shiny spot and it looks like it’s more than skin deep, a serious skin disease has erupted in the area of the burn. The priest will pronounce him unclean; it is a serious skin disease and infectious. But if on examination there is no white hair in the shiny spot and it doesn’t look to be more than skin deep but has faded, the priest will put him in quarantine for seven days. On the seventh day the priest will reexamine him. If by then it has spread over the skin, the priest will diagnose him as unclean; it is a serious skin disease and infectious. If by that time the shiny spot has stayed the same and has not spread but has faded, it is only a swelling from the burn. The priest will pronounce him clean; it’s only a scar from the burn.
29-37“If a man or woman develops a sore on the head or chin, the priest will offer a diagnosis. If it looks as if it is under the skin and the hair in it is yellow and thin, he will pronounce the person ritually unclean. It is an itch, an infectious skin disease. But if when he examines the itch, he finds it is only skin deep and there is no black hair in it, he will put the person in quarantine for seven days. On the seventh day he will reexamine the sore; if the itch has not spread, there is no yellow hair in it, and it looks as if the itch is only skin deep, the person must shave, except for the itch; the priest will send him back to quarantine for another seven days. If the itch has not spread, and looks to be only skin deep, the priest will pronounce him clean. The person can go home and wash his clothes; he is clean. But if the itch spreads after being pronounced clean, the priest must reexamine it; if the itch has spread in the skin, he doesn’t have to look any farther, for yellow hair, for instance; he is unclean. But if he sees that the itch is unchanged and black hair has begun to grow in it, the itch is healed. The person is clean and the priest will pronounce him clean.
38-39“When a man or woman gets shiny or white shiny spots on the skin, the priest is to make an examination; if the shiny spots are dull white, it is only a rash that has broken out: The person is clean.
40-44“When a man loses his hair and goes bald, he is clean. If he loses his hair from his forehead, he is bald and he is clean. But if he has a reddish-white sore on scalp or forehead, it means a serious skin disease is breaking out. The priest is to examine it; if the swollen sore on his scalp or forehead is reddish-white like the appearance of the sore of a serious skin disease, he has a serious skin disease and is unclean. The priest has to pronounce him unclean because of the sore on his head.
45-46“Any person with a serious skin disease must wear torn clothes, leave his hair loose and unbrushed, cover his upper lip, and cry out, ‘Unclean! Unclean!’ As long as anyone has the sores, that one continues to be ritually unclean. That person must live alone; he or she must live outside the camp.
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47-58“If clothing—woolen or linen clothing, woven or knitted cloth of linen or wool, leather or leatherwork—is infected with a patch of serious fungus and if the spot in the clothing or the leather or the woven or the knitted material or anything made of leather is greenish or rusty, that is a sign of serious fungus. Show it to the priest. The priest will examine the spot and then confiscate the material for seven days. On the seventh day he will reexamine the spot. If it has spread in the garment—the woven or knitted or leather material—it is the spot of a persistent serious fungus and the material is unclean. He must burn the garment. Because of the persistent and contaminating fungus, the material must be burned. But if when the priest examines it the spot has not spread in the garment, the priest will command the owner to wash the material that has the spot, and he will confiscate it for another seven days. He’ll then make another examination after it has been washed; if the spot hasn’t changed in appearance, even though it hasn’t spread, it is still unclean. Burn it up, whether the fungus has affected the back or the front. If, when the priest makes his examination, the spot has faded after it has been washed, he is to tear the spot from the garment. But if it reappears, it is a fresh outbreak—throw whatever has the spot in the fire. If the garment is washed and the spot has gone away, then wash it a second time; it is clean.
59“These are the instructions regarding a spot of serious fungus in clothing of wool or linen, woven or knitted material, or any article of leather, for pronouncing them clean or unclean.”
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THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language copyright © 1993, 2002, 2018 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved. Used by permission of NavPress. Represented by Tyndale House Publishers.