Study Desk

The LORD said to Moses,

"These are the regulations for the diseased person at the time of his ceremonial cleansing, when he is brought to the priest:

The priest is to go outside the camp and examine him. If the person has been healed of his infectious skin disease, ^(F28)

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.

Then the priest shall order that one of the birds be killed over fresh water in a clay pot.

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.

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.

"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.

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.

"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 ^(F29) of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering, and one log ^(F30) of oil.

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.

"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.

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.

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.

The priest shall then take some of the log of oil, pour it in the palm of his own left hand,

dip his right forefinger into the oil in his palm, and with his finger sprinkle some of it before the LORD seven times.

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.

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 .

"Then the priest is to sacrifice the sin offering and make atonement for the one to be cleansed from his uncleanness. After that, the priest shall slaughter the burnt offering

and offer it on the altar, together with the grain offering, and make atonement for him, and he will be clean.

"If, however, he is poor and cannot afford these, he must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for him, together with a tenth of an ephah ^(F31) of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering, a log of oil,

and two doves or two young pigeons, which he can afford, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.

"On the eighth day he must bring them for his cleansing to the priest at the entrance to the Tent of Meeting, before the LORD .

The priest is to take the lamb for the guilt offering, together with the log of oil, and wave them before the LORD as a wave offering.

He shall slaughter the lamb for the guilt offering and take some of its blood 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.

The priest is to pour some of the oil into the palm of his own left hand,

and with his right forefinger sprinkle some of the oil from his palm seven times before the LORD .

Some of the oil in his palm he is to put on the same places he put the blood of the guilt offering-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.

The rest of the oil in his palm the priest shall put on the head of the one to be cleansed, to make atonement for him before the LORD .

Then he shall sacrifice the doves or the young pigeons, which the person can afford,

one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering, together with the grain offering. In this way the priest will make atonement before the LORD on behalf of the one to be cleansed."

These are the regulations for anyone who has an infectious skin disease and who cannot afford the regular offerings for his cleansing.