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7. She shall be cleansed. In ancient times the lot of woman was not a happy one. She did much of the hard work that would ordinarily fall to a man. This is the case even today in many lands, where work both in the house and in the field is done largely by women. Little consideration was given in the case of childbirth; in fact, cruel and inhuman practices were the rule.

It was under conditions such as these that God made provision for the mothers of Israel, prescribing for them a period of comparative rest and isolation lasting for some weeks. They were to enjoy rest and quiet, time in which to regain their strength.

The rules of childbirth in this chapter show God’s tender care for the mothers. Women have an honored place in the plan of God, and rightly so. Many of them have become leaders, and some, prophets. Through the trying experiences of life they have God’s protecting care, and are invited to come to Him with their perplexities (see DA 512). Let all give them due honor.

2. The skin of his flesh. This expression appears only once in the Bible, and it seems to refer to the outer layer of the skin, the epidermis.

Leprosy was prevalent in Egypt in olden times. It was doubtless there that Israel first came into actual contact with it. Yet, in mercy, God promised to protect them from the diseases of Egypt should they obey Him (Ex. 15:26).

A rising, a scab. Rather, “a swelling or an eruption” (RSV). Whenever this occurred the man was to be brought to Aaron or to one of the priests for examination. The expression, “he shall be brought,” implies a man’s natural reluctance to go himself, knowing what it would mean to him and his family were he found infected. For this reason, he was to “be brought.”

The plague of leprosy. The word “leprosy” is derived from a word that means “to strike down,” “to strike to the ground.” Leprosy was therefore a “stroke.” The Jews considered a person stricken with leprosy to be smitten of God.

In the time of Israel, leprosy was considered the most terrible of all afflictions. It was thought to be a direct punishment from God for evil done. Whoever was a sufferer from it—be he prince or peasant—was excluded from society and considered worthy of little sympathy or compassion, an outcast among men.

Some critics suggest that ch. 13 treats of seven different diseases, but that the writer, not being a physician, erroneously believed them to be various aspects of the same disease, and ignorantly called them all leprosy. There is no agreement among critics, however, as to what these seven diseases are. If modern scientists wish to differentiate between varying forms and stages of the plague and give them different names, such is their privilege. The Bible was written for common people and is not particularly concerned with modern, scientific definitions. It uses common terminology designed for the common man.

The Bible gives no information concerning the origin, contagiousness, or cure of the disease. It was considered, as stated above, a punishment for sin. This, indeed, appears to be the case with Miriam (Num. 12:10-15), Gehazi (2 Kings 5:27), and Uzuriah (2 Chron. 26:16-21). But whatever the cause, the sufferer was isolated, driven from home, not permitted to enter any walled city, excluded from the sanctuary, and not allowed to attend any gathering whatever. Upon the approach of another human being, he was to cover his lips and cry, “Unclean, unclean.” Should he enter any house or dwelling, it too became “unclean,” as did anyone who touched him.

The disease in its first stages was marked only with some slight spot upon the skin, which gave no pain or other inconvenience, but it persisted stubbornly. Sometimes months and even years, often many years, intervened between the first appearance of the spots and their full development. Sometimes the symptoms would nearly disappear and give hope of recovery, only to reappear and become more active than ever. In advanced stages the person presented a loathsome sight. The nose and fingers might drop off, the eyelids disappear, the sight completely vanish, and the sufferer look more like an apparition than a living being.

His was a living death. His voice became a grunt, his breath unbearable, his contorted joints buried in or completely dislocated by tubercles, and his body covered with black-blue or leaden-colored patches of raw flesh where the disease had not yet completed its work. The affliction spread until it reached some vital organ, and then culminated in the death of the victim. No more loathsome sight than that of a leper can be conceived. Forsaken by relatives and friends, he was a pitiful spectacle in every way. No wonder men considered him forsaken of God.

One of his sons. It was not necessary that the high priest do the examining. It might be done by any of the priests. According to the Talmud, those of the Levites who were debarred from serving as priests because of bodily imperfections could serve as examiners.