Today we'll be concluding the section of Leviticus 13 that deals with the diagnosis and containment of contagious skin diseases. Leprosy was the primary disease that needed to be diagnosed and quarantined early and the regulations of our chapter are very detailed so the priests won't mistake a harmless skin condition for leprosy and so the priests won't misdiagnose leprosy as a harmless rash. We will learn today that the person with a definite diagnosis of leprosy had to wear a face covering to protect others.
All throughout this chapter we've been seeing the similarities between the medical advice given to the ancient Israelites by the Lord and the medical advice we're being given today during the Covid-19 pandemic. We've been told many times by the infectious disease experts and by community health experts that the mask protects those around us more than it protects us. If we are carrying Covid-19, then wearing a mask helps us to avoid releasing infectious droplets or vapors into the air when we talk or if we do any mouth-breathing or if we should happen to cough. The other people's masks provide the same type of protection for us. This is the same reason the person diagnosed with leprosy had to wear a face covering in Leviticus 13. He didn't wear it to protect himself; he already had the illness. He wore it to protect others.
As we begin our study today we learn the procedures that were to be followed if a skin condition broke out where hair grows thickly, such as on the head or on the chin under a beard. "If a man or a woman has a sore on their head or chin, the priest is to examine the sore, and if it appears to be more than skin deep and the hair in it is yellow and thin, the priest shall pronounce them unclean; it is a defiling disease on the head or chin. But if, when the priest examines the sore, it does not seem to be more than skin deep and there is no black hair in it, then the priest is to isolate the affected person for seven days." (Leviticus 13:29-31) There are harmless bumps that might come up on the scalp, such as a sore red bump from an ingrown hair or a clogged oil gland. A priest can't tell for certain whether a sore is infectious if it's only on the surface of the skin and if the hair has fallen out of the irritated spot. He will have the person isolate for seven days at which time he will perform a recheck.
"On the seventh day the priest is to examine the sore, and if it has not spread and there is no yellow hair in it and it does not appear to be more than skin deep, then the man or woman must shave themselves, except for the affected area, and the priest is to keep them isolated for another seven days." (Leviticus 13:32-33) The sore hasn't healed in a week but it hasn't gotten any worse. The priest isn't sure yet what's going on so he orders another seven days of quarantine. I'm not sure what is the purpose of the shaving unless it helps the priest to be certain, during the next recheck, that new spots aren't about to break out somewhere.
"On the seventh day the priest is to examine the sore, and if it has not spread in the skin and appears to be no more than skin deep, the priest shall pronounce them clean. They must wash their clothes, and they will be clean." (Leviticus 13:34) The rash hasn't spread and the hair is growing back. This likely wouldn't be the case for leprosy and at this point the priest knows the person is probably okay. They are to wash their clothes and then will be able to mingle in society and visit the tabernacle.
"But if the sore does spread after they have been pronounced clean, the priest is to examine them, and if he finds that the sore has spread in the skin, he does not need to look for yellow hair; they are unclean. If, however, the sore is unchanged as far as the priest can see, and if black hair has grown in it, the affected person is healed. They are clean, and the priest shall pronounce them clean." (Leviticus 13:35-37) A single boil or ingrown hair or clogged oil gland or acne lesion will usually not spread across the skin. Even if the sore is still present, if it's not worse and hair is growing back, the priest pronounces them clean. It's not a contagious rash.
"When a man or woman has white spots on the skin, the priest is to examine them, and if the spots are dull white, it is a harmless rash that has broken out on the skin; they are clean." (Leviticus 13:38-39) Leprosy scales would be white and shiny. When the priest sees that the spots are not shiny he knows he's not looking at leprosy.
The losing of one's hair doesn't necessarily indicate a plague is breaking out. As we know, many men lose their hair as they grow older. Some men become completely bald; some men only become partially bald; some men's hair just grows generally thinner at the front of his head. These forms of baldness are not to be confused with an outbreak of leprosy. "A man who has lost his hair and is bald is clean. If he has lost his hair from the front of his scalp and has a bald forehead, he is clean." (Leviticus 13:40-41)
If a man's hair starts falling out due to a rash on his head, this is something that must be brought to the notice of a priest right away. "But if he has a reddish-white sore on his bald head or forehead, it is a defiling disease breaking out on his head or forehead. The priest is to examine him, and if the swollen sore on his head or forehead is reddish-white like a defiling skin disease, the man is diseased and is unclean. The priest shall pronounce him unclean because of the sore on his head." (Leviticus 13:42-44)
The fate of a leper was dreadful. Not only did he almost certainly have a fatal illness, but he also had to isolate himself from everyone in society who was not infected with leprosy. He had to look a certain way so that no healthy person would accidentally get too close to him. "Anyone with such a defiling disease must wear torn clothes, let their hair be unkempt, cover the lower part of their face and cry out, 'Unclean! Unclean!' As long as they have the disease they remain unclean. They must live alone; they must live outside the camp." (Leviticus 13:45-46) This intense isolation is why leper colonies were formed. All the people diagnosed with leprosy were forced to live outside the camp and they banded together because human beings need the company of other human beings. Since they were all already infected, there was no additional danger to them in forming a small sad society of their own.
Leprosy was far worse than the current plague that we're dealing with because even though Covid-19 has no cure at this time, it's not a death sentence for most of the people who contract it. Unlike those stricken with leprosy in ancient times, we are not perpetually unclean if we've had Covid-19. The virus will run its course and those of us who survive will no longer be contagious in a couple of weeks. But the same principle applies regarding the wearing of a face covering. The leper wore it to protect those around him, not to protect himself. Wearing a mask probably provides us with some protection from others, but the guidelines state that the primary reason for wearing them is to protect our fellow man from us, not to protect us from our fellow man. Wearing a mask doesn't mean we're sick and it doesn't mean we're "living in fear" as so many are accusing us of doing. It means we care about our fellow man. It means this virus is so new and so poorly understood that we don't know for sure how easily it's transmitted. If we're going to err, it's better to err on the side of caution. Is a mask too much of a precaution? Is it not enough of a precaution? We aren't sure and I don't even think that's the point. The point is that the Lord, based on the four days we've spent studying contagious diseases in Leviticus 13, expects us to care about the wellbeing of those around us. That care is demonstrated by doing our part to keep those around us safe.
We may feel we have a strong immune system but that doesn't mean everyone around us does. The cashier at the grocery store may have an immune system disorder. The person standing in line behind us at the pharmacy may be going through cancer treatments. The person who waits on us in the bank may have a child at home with a health condition that makes them extremely vulnerable to catching and even dying with Covid-19. The least we can do to protect the vulnerable in our society is to wear a face covering when we interact with them, for what does the Bible say about those who are concerned for the vulnerable? "Blessed are those who have regard for the weak; the Lord delivers them in times of trouble." (Psalm 41:1) Some people have strong immune systems. Some have weaker immune systems for various reasons. The Bible makes us a beautiful promise when we care about the wellbeing of others. The Lord promises to bless us for our concern and He promises to remember our concern on the day trouble comes to our own door. Because we showed concern for others, He will deliver us from our own troubles. I want to be blessed by the Lord, don't you? So let's spend more time loving our neighbor and being concerned for their wellbeing. Let's not make the virus or the health regulations into a political matter. Let's not spend our time worrying about whether this or that health advice violates our rights somehow. Let's concentrate on what the word of God says: that we have a duty to care about and protect the health of our fellow man.
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