Leviticus 14:1-18 Click here for Bible Verses
Hi GAMErs,
Today’s passage is Leviticus 14:1-18. Let’s go!
Leviticus 14:1-18 (NIV)
1 The LORD said to Moses,
2 “These are the regulations for the diseased person at the time of his ceremonial cleansing, when he is brought to the priest:
3 The priest is to go outside the camp and examine him. If the person has been healed of his infectious skin disease,
4 the priest shall order that two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop be brought for the one to be cleansed.
5 Then the priest shall order that one of the birds be killed over fresh water in a clay pot.
6 He is then to take the live bird and dip it, together with the cedar wood, the scarlet yarn and the hyssop, into the blood of the bird that was killed over the fresh water.
7 Seven times he shall sprinkle the one to be cleansed of the infectious disease and pronounce him clean. Then he is to release the live bird in the open fields.
8 “The person to be cleansed must wash his clothes, shave off all his hair and bathe with water; then he will be ceremonially clean. After this he may come into the camp, but he must stay outside his tent for seven days.
9 On the seventh day he must shave off all his hair; he must shave his head, his beard, his eyebrows and the rest of his hair. He must wash his clothes and bathe himself with water, and he will be clean.
10 “On the eighth day he must bring two male lambs and one ewe lamb a year old, each without defect, along with three-tenths of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering, and one log of oil.
11 The priest who pronounces him clean shall present both the one to be cleansed and his offerings before the LORD at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting.
12 “Then the priest is to take one of the male lambs and offer it as a guilt offering, along with the log of oil; he shall wave them before the LORD as a wave offering.
13 He is to slaughter the lamb in the holy place where the sin offering and the burnt offering are slaughtered. Like the sin offering, the guilt offering belongs to the priest; it is most holy.
14 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, on the thumb of his right hand and on the big toe of his right foot.
15 The priest shall then take some of the log of oil, pour it in the palm of his own left hand,
16 dip his right forefinger into the oil in his palm, and with his finger sprinkle some of it before the LORD seven times.
17 The priest is to put some of the oil remaining in his palm on the lobe of the right ear of the one to be cleansed, 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 rest of the oil in his palm the priest shall put on the head of the one to be cleansed and make atonement for him before the LORD.
Leviticus 14:3-4 (NIV)
3 The priest is to go outside the camp and examine him. If the person has been healed of his infectious skin disease,
4 the priest shall order that two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop be brought for the one to be cleansed.
In Leviticus 14 we read of what a priest would do for a leper who had been banished from society because of their skin condition. The priest was to go outside the camp to find the leper, to examine the leper, to confirm the leper’s healing, to make sacrifices on the leper’s behalf and to restore the leper back into the community. Notice that it is the priest who does all the work on behalf of the leper so that the leper could be restored.
Similarly, when we were lost and cut off from God’s presence and God’s community because of our sin condition, Jesus our great high priest went outside of heaven’s borders to find us, to search our hearts, to proclaim our healing, to make costly sacrifices for us, and to bring us back to God and God’s community. Jesus did all the work on behalf of us so that we could be restored.
It reminds me of 2 Samuel 14:14 which says:
14 Like water spilled on the ground, which cannot be recovered, so we must die. But God does not take away life; instead, he devises ways so that a banished person may not remain estranged from him.
Thank You, Lord, for Your heart to restore and bring back those who are far away from You. Use us Your church to do just that in our city. In Jesus’ name, AMEN!
