Cleansed

This week's Sabbath reading portion from the Book of Leviticus is double-titled: Tazri'a - M'tzora, and covers Lev. chapters 12 through 15. This double title is translated as "She bears seed" and "Infected one". The priesthood was given the ordinances dealing with uncleanness among the people in these chapters. This uncleanness manifested physically as leprosy. The priests were given, by the Word of the LORD, steps to be taken to both determine the kind of infection involved, and the cleansing process to minister to the infected ones. There was also a cleansing ritual to be ministered by the priesthood for women who had just given birth also. Mary, the mother of Jesus, kept this ordinance for atonement and cleansing in the temple after she gave birth to her Son (Lk. 2:22-24/Lev. 12:1-5). The LORD recognizes the spiritual and physical vulnerability of women during and after giving birth, and He provided a ministry to them through His priesthood. Women who had issues of bleeding were considered unclean under the law, and lived in separation until that issue was resolved. Jesus healed a woman who had this problem for twelve years, and had spent all that she had seeking medical help, but had not found the relief that would allow her to resume her life. On the day of her cleansing, the woman came from behind (opisthen/optanomai - behind, back, backside/to look, behold, see, to gaze with wide open eyes at something remarkable, perceive) Jesus, so He did not see her approach. However, she found her healing by touching (haptomai/hapto - to fasten one's self to, to adhere to, to cling to, to touch/to fasten to, to kindle a fire) the hem (kraspedon - fringe or tassel at the end of a mantle to remind Jews of the law) of His garment as He passed by while the crowd pressed in upon Him. He knew immediately that someone had been healed and sought the person from among the crowd. The woman knew that her issue of blood had immediately been healed. Jesus could have just continued on His way, and the woman could have quietly withdrawn from the crowd and returned home healed, but more was needed in this encounter, and Jesus was determined to minister it. After Jesus had discovered who the person was, and listened to her story, including how she had just been healed, He said: "Daughter (thygater - daughter, daughter of God, acceptable to God, rejoicing in God's peculiar care and protection, descendant, inhabitant), be of good cheer (tharseo/tharsos - comfort, cheer/courage, confidence, boldness, daring); your faith has made you well/whole (sozo - to save, to rescue, to save a suffering one from perishing or from disease, to preserve one who is in danger of destruction, safe). Go in peace (eirene - includes the meaning "of Messiah's peace - the way that leads to peace, which is salvation")." (Lk. 8:40-48). From these words of Jesus', although the woman had been physically healed instantly, there was spiritual healing that needed to take place as well. Perhaps having had to live twelve years as an unclean outcast from family and community, the Lord knew that she needed to be saved from another kind of destruction - the destruction of being rejected, of losing everything, of feeling unloved, unwanted and condemned. She had received the revelation of Who Christ was, and she reached out to the hem of Christ's garment in a last-ditch effort of hope, and she found the comfort and safety of a daughter of God. In this example, Jesus is the perfect fulfillment of the ministry of the priesthood of Leviticus, as we will see. As priests of God in Christ (1 Peter 2:4-5, 9-10), perhaps we also can learn and apply the wisdom and provision that God established in the ministry of the priesthood in Leviticus, and its fulfillment in Christ. Although we may not frequently see the disease of leprosy in our time, we can see that many people are "infected" both spiritually and physically, and in need of the ministry of the priest. The LORD referred to the manifestation of leprosy as a plague of leprosy. The Hebrew word meaning "plague" is nega/naga meaning "plague, stricken, stripes, wound, mark, spot, stroke, blow/beaten, smite, touch, befall". Christ took those stripes, wounds and beatings so we would no longer have to. "Leprosy" is the word sara'at/sara meaning "malignant skin disease, mildew, mold/to scourge, to strike down". I can again see our ministry from Christ in the Hebrew meanings of the words involved. Isaiah used some of these same words to describe the Servant of God who would suffer these same things on the behalf of others (Isa. 53:4-6). When John the Baptist, who was in prison, sent two of his disciples to ask Jesus whether Hs was the One, meaning the Messiah, Jesus answered them: "Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: the blind see, the lame walk, the lepers are cleansed and the deaf hear; the dead are raised up and the poor have the gospel preached to them. And blessed is he who is not offended because of Me." (Mt. 11:1-6, Lk. 7:18-23). These miracles that Jesus mentioned here were considered recognizable signs that would identify the Messiah/Christ sent by God, and the cleansing of lepers was one of those signs. John's disciples were not to report what someone else told them. They had witnessed these things being done by Jesus: "And that very hour (when John's two disciples had come) He cured many of infirmities, afflictions, and evil spirits; and to many blind He gave sight." (Lk. 7:21). When Jesus cleansed a leper, He would instruct him to "show yourself to the priest and offer the gift/offering that Moses commanded, as a testimony to them", who, according to the law would then declare the leper "clean". However, Jesus was also revealing to the priest that the Messiah of Israel had come, because He had done this specific miraculous healing sign (Mt. 8:1-4, Mk. 1:41-44, Lk. 5:12-14). Jesus even brought cleansing to ten lepers at one time! They did not see their healing manifest until they were walking away. Only one of the ten turned back to Jesus, "...and with a loud voice, glorified God, and fell down on his face at His feet, giving Him thanks. And he was a Samaritan." (Lk. 17:11-16). The only one who returned was not a Jew, but a Samaritan, a people who were generally despised by the Jews at that time, who considered the Samaritans to be a "mixed" people, who did not worship God in the correct and proscribed manner. Yet the Samaritan was healed, AND he returned to Jesus in thanks. Even Jesus asked, "Were there not ten cleansed? But where are the nine? Were there not any found who returned to give glory to God except this foreigner? And He (Jesus) said to him, 'Arise, go your way. Your faith has made you well/whole." (v. 17-19). There's certainly another kind of lesson in this comment for all of us. Why did Jesus tell this leper "your faith has made you well/whole"? As in the case of all the lepers who were healed by Jesus, when they saw Him, they knew He was the Messiah who could cleanse them, and they cried out to Him for cleansing. This is where they placed their faith - in Who He was. The Book of Hebrews described this faith: "But without faith it is impossible to please Him (God), for he who comes to God must believe that He is, and that He is a rewarder of those who diligently seek Him." (Heb. 11:6). It is interesting to note from Jewish tradition that the rabbis have no record throughout their history up until the time of Christ of any priests carrying out the cleansing ritual commanded for a healed leper. They think that this is the case because, except in special isolated incidents which occurred outside of the established priesthood, lepers just did not get healed. The rabbis concluded from this that the cleansing of lepers was a miraculous sign that would be attributable to the Messiah, as Jesus also noted (see above). If this is correct, then the priests were holding and preserving this cleansing ministry as a prophetic promise of Someone who could heal and cleanse the lepers and the unclean, who was the Messiah or Christ to come. I think that we will be able to see the image of Christ in the offerings that were required to be made for discerning, cleansing and atoning regarding leprosy according to what the LORD called "the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing". (Lev. 14:1-2). In order to discern the leprosy, time was marked off in seven day increments, or sabbaths, to check the progression of the affliction. Jesus described Himself, the Son of man, as the Lord of the Sabbath and remarked that the sabbath (as a blessing) was made for man and not man for the sabbath (Mk. 2:27-28). So the journey to cleansing started with the sabbath. The items to be brought by the healed leper for his cleansing and atonement included lambs without blemish, small clean aleph-tav birds, which were probably sparrows, cedar wood, scarlet, hyssop, an earthen vessel, and running or living water, grain and oil (see Lev. 14:3-7, 12-18). We can easily see Jesus, the Messiah, in the lamb without blemish, our Passover Lamb, the Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world, the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world, who possesses the Book of Life. The small birds or sparrows used in the cleansing are sipor/sapar in Hebrew, meaning that they depart early and return (see Acts 1:9-11). All birds are biologically defined as creatures having wings and feathers, and Jesus described Himself in these terms also (Mt. 23:37-39). Jesus preached using sparrows and birds as examples (Lk. 12:6-7, Mt. 13:31-32). God keeps special watch over the life of the smallest sparrow, Jesus said, so how much more does a person's life mean to Him? The Holy Spirit is also represented as a gentle bird, a dove. The cedar wood required for the cleansing offering is the Hebrew word es/erez, meaning "timber, tree, staff, carpenter, gallows". Some have suggested that Jesus was crucified on a cross made of cedar, but that is not known for sure. Cedar also has a strong, pleasant aroma, and is a deterrent to destructive pests. Christ has a fragrance, which we also carry as His believers. It is a fragrance of life that brings life to those who are being saved, but it is the fragrance of death to the dead who refuse life in Christ (2 Cor. 2:14-16). The scarlet required for the offering of cleansing is the Hebrew word tola, which is a worm that attaches itself to a tree, and gives its life, both as a covering and food for her offspring. A costly scarlet dye was produced from this process, and was used in the tabernacle. We can see Jesus in this picture of the sacrificial life cycle of the tola worm (1 Pet. 2:24). You can read more about the tola worm in a previous post titled "theWorm" (go to the heading "Blog Archive" found on the right side of this page ----->, and look for the entry dated April 15, 2022). Hyssop (ezob) was required in the cleansing offering, which is a medicinal plant used for Jewish religious purposes in sacred purification. Hyssop was used to apply the blood of the Passover lamb in a cross-shaped pattern upon the door posts and lintels of their homes to save the Israelite slaves in Egypt from the plague of death (see Ex. 12:22). There was an earthen (heres - eruptive disease, scrape, itch) vessel (keli/kala - weapon, armor/end, finish, accomplish, fulfilled) used in this Levitical cleansing. Jesus, who came into the earth in the flesh (earthen), was appointed by God to finish the work that God had given Him to do (Jn. 4:34). When that work was ended, Jesus said on the cross, "It is finished (teleo - to finish, to end, to perform, complete, fulfil, accomplish)." (Jn. 19:30). Running ((hay) or living water was also needed for the cleansing offering. Jesus clearly identified Himself centuries later as the source of this living water, which was the water of everlasting life (Jn. 4:10, 13-14, Jn. 7:37-39). The grain and oil required for the cleansing and atoning offerings were mixed together forming a kind of unleavened bread or cake. Jesus called Himself the Bread of life, and said that whoever eats of this Bread will not die, but live forever (Jn. 6:34-35, 47-51). The olive oil was also used to anoint the healed leper. Both the Hebrew word from which we get "Messiah", and the Greek word that we translate as "Christ", have the meaning of "the anointed one". We also, as the priests of God in Christ, minister with the anointing oil: "Is anyone among you sick? Let him call for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him with oil in the name of the Lord. And the prayer of faith will save the sick, and the Lord will raise him up. And if he has committed sins, he will be forgiven." (James 5:14-15). God's cleansing and healing promise hidden in the Levitical priesthood was precious, and its fulfillment was, and continues to be, even more precious. In other events to take place during this special month, Jerusalem and Israel will celebrate Rosh Chodesh Iyar, the second month of their calendar, as Atz'ma'ut, which is Israel's Independence Day, and Jerusalem Day, when Jerusalem was rejoined to the nation in 1967. Because of this, special selections from scripture are included in this sabbath's reading portion prophesying the radiance and light that the LORD has ordained for Israel in these last days that will impact the whole world (see Micah 4:1-7, Isa. 60:1-22). In this second month we also observe Second Passover in remembrance of God's great deliverance of Israel from slavery in Egypt. If you would like to know more about Jesus' cleansing ministry, which is also our ministry in His name, you can pray with me: "Heavenly Father, You gave Moses "the law of the leper for the day of his cleansing", not only as a physical ministry appointed to Your priesthood, but as a promise of the Messiah who was to come. I can see Your Son, our healer, cleanser, and deliverer, in aspects of these ordinances. Jesus healed the lepers and the unclean, and other sicknesses and infirmities, saying, "Nothing is impossible with God." I am made whole by this faith in You, Father, and in Your Son. Cleanse me, purify me, and cover me in Your atoning blood, and fill me with Your Holy Spirit so I can minister the same to others. Your priests preserved these ordinances in the Books of the Law for me so I would have the promise fulfilled and accomplished. Bless Jerusalem and Israel as they celebrate in this Rosh Chodesh Iyar, with Atz'ma'ut, which is Israel's Independence Day, and Jerusalem Day, and the radiance and light that You have ordained for them in these last days. Bless those who will be observing the Second Passover in remembrance of Your great deliverance from slavery by the blood of our Passover Lamb. In all of these things, we look forward to the return of the King, the Messiah, Jesus. We ask these things in Jesus' name. AMEN."