Leviticus 13 – 15
In these chapters the main focus is on skin diseases and emissions. I find it interesting that today if we contracted leprosy, our first stop would be the doctor. During this time the priests were trained to recognize the problem so the person could be quarantined. This protected the nation from a rampant infection.
Verses 13:38 & 39 talk about an instance of what is done:
38 If a man or a woman discovers bright shiny spots on the skin, including bright white ones, 39 the priest must check them out. And if he determines that the bright spots on the skin are pale, this is only a minor skin rash; the person is clean.
The Law goes into great detail on how these instances must be contained and handled since there was no real treatment. The goal was to contain the infected and ensure the greater population’s safety. The priest therefore needed to be trained and skilled in determining if this was a danger or not. So we get chapter after chapter detailing skin problems and what to do when identified. Unfortunately I glossed over much of this since skin problems today may be treated by a dermatologist, but most seems to repeat itself. I did not see a huge difference between the various skin conditions discussed.
Verse 13:56 highlights a section concerning clothing and other items we may be in contact with:
But if the priest examines it, and the affected area has faded after it has been washed, the priest must rip the affected material out of the garment, leather, or woven or knitted material.
There is great detail to ensure their clothing is clean also, to the point of inspection. Many skin problems are contracted from contact with clothing that has mildewed or rotted. Again modern cleaning techniques have developed to ensure this does not happen, but we often leave wet stuff in our gym back for too long and have to throw it out. I find it interesting how much emphasis there is on ensuring the nation is safe from disease. This is much of why I believe the nation of Israel has become targets, for example instead of adopting the Jews habits during the black plague, people died and detested the Jews for remaining healthy.
Verse 15:16 gets to the things that really matter:
If a man ejaculates, then he must bathe his whole body with water and remain impure until dusk.
Now we get to be sophomoric and see how many times I can use “ejaculate” in a paragraph. I often wonder if they were talking about nocturnal ejaculations or manual ejaculations, since later it discusses ejaculations while in bed with a woman. This makes me wonder, since that ejaculation will keep them impure until dusk implying activity during the day was normal. I wonder what is in the ejaculated semen that makes it impure. I can’t do this anymore!!
I think the point is to ensure purity throughout the nation and its people. The point is not to make these emissions wrong per-se but rather to ensure people remain clean at all times. These details are not to show the sexual side of man, but rather to show how much God cared for His people that every last detail is spelled out. No matter how uncomfortable it makes us today, these are natural functions that need to be addressed.