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The Ceremony for People Healed of Leprosy

14 The Lord told Moses to say to the people:

2-3 (A) After you think you are healed of leprosy,[a] you must ask for a priest to come outside the camp and examine you. And if you are well, he will order someone to bring out two live birds that are acceptable for sacrifice, together with a stick of cedar wood, a piece of red yarn, and a branch from a hyssop plant. The priest will order someone to kill one of the birds over a clay pot of spring water. Then he will dip the other bird, the cedar, the red yarn, and the hyssop in the blood of the dead bird. Next, he will sprinkle you seven times with the blood and say, “You are now clean.” Finally, he will release the bird and let it fly away.

After this you must wash your clothes, shave your entire body, and take a bath before you are completely clean. You may move back into camp, but you must not enter your tent for seven days. Then you must once again shave your head, face, and eyebrows, as well as the hair on the rest of your body. Finally, wash your clothes and take a bath, and you will be completely clean.

10 On the eighth day you must bring to the priest two rams and a year-old female lamb that have nothing wrong with them; also bring 300 milliliters of olive oil and 3 kilograms of your finest flour mixed with oil. 11 Then the priest will present you and your offerings to me at the entrance to my sacred tent. 12 There he will offer one of the rams, together with the oil, as a sacrifice to make things right.[b] He will also lift them up[c] to show that they are dedicated to me. 13 This sacrifice is very holy. It belongs to the priest and must be killed in the same place where animals are killed as sacrifices for sins and as sacrifices to please me.[d]

14 The priest will smear some of the blood from this sacrifice on your right ear lobe, some on your right thumb, and some on the big toe of your right foot. 15 He will then pour some of the olive oil into the palm of his left hand, 16 dip a finger of his right hand into the oil, and sprinkle some of it seven times toward the sacred tent. 17 Next, the priest will smear some of the oil on your right ear lobe, some on your right thumb, and some on the big toe of your right foot, 18-20 and he will pour the rest of the oil from his palm on your head. Then he will offer the other two animals—one as a sacrifice for sin and the other as a sacrifice to please me, together with a grain sacrifice. After this you will be completely clean.

21 If you are poor and cannot afford to offer this much, you may offer a ram as a sacrifice to make things right, together with 300 milliliters of olive oil and one kilogram of flour mixed with oil as a grain sacrifice. The priest will then lift these up[e] to dedicate them to me. 22 Depending on what you can afford, you must also offer either two doves or two pigeons, one as a sacrifice for sin and the other as a sacrifice to please me. 23 The priest will offer these to me in front of the sacred tent on the eighth day.

24-25 The priest will kill this ram for the sacrifice to make things right, and he will lift it up[f] with the olive oil in dedication to me. Then he will smear some of the blood on your right ear lobe, some on your right thumb, and some on the big toe of your right foot.

26 The priest will pour some of the olive oil into the palm of his left hand, 27 then dip a finger of his right hand in the oil and sprinkle some of it seven times toward the sacred tent. 28 He will smear some of the oil on your right ear lobe, some on your right thumb, and some on the big toe of your right foot, just as he did with the blood of the sacrifice to make things right. 29-31 And he will pour the rest of the oil from his palm on your head.

Then, depending on what you can afford, he will offer either the doves or the pigeons together with the grain sacrifice. One of the birds is the sacrifice for sin, and the other is the sacrifice to please me. After this you will be completely clean.

32 These are the things you must do if you have leprosy and cannot afford the usual sacrifices to make you clean.

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Footnotes

  1. 14.2,3 leprosy: See the note at 13.3.
  2. 14.12 sacrifice to make things right: See 7.1-10.
  3. 14.12 lift them up: See the note at 7.29,30.
  4. 14.13 sacrifices to please me: See the note at 1.1-3.
  5. 14.21 lift these up: See the note at 7.29,30.
  6. 14.24,25 lift these up: See the note at 7.29,30.

Cleansing From Defiling Skin Diseases

14 The Lord said to Moses, “These are the regulations for any diseased person at the time of their ceremonial cleansing, when they are brought to the priest:(A) The priest is to go outside the camp and examine them.(B) If they have been healed of their defiling skin disease,[a](C) the priest shall order that two live clean birds and some cedar wood, scarlet yarn and hyssop(D) be brought for the person to be cleansed.(E) Then the priest shall order that one of the birds be killed over fresh water in a clay pot.(F) 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.(G) Seven times(H) he shall sprinkle(I) the one to be cleansed of the defiling disease, and then pronounce them clean. After that, he is to release the live bird in the open fields.(J)

“The person to be cleansed must wash their clothes,(K) shave off all their hair and bathe with water;(L) then they will be ceremonially clean.(M) After this they may come into the camp,(N) but they must stay outside their tent for seven days. On the seventh day(O) they must shave off all their hair;(P) they must shave their head, their beard, their eyebrows and the rest of their hair. They must wash their clothes and bathe themselves with water, and they will be clean.(Q)

10 “On the eighth day(R) they must bring two male lambs and one ewe lamb(S) a year old, each without defect, along with three-tenths of an ephah[b](T) of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering,(U) and one log[c] of oil.(V) 11 The priest who pronounces them clean shall present(W) both the one to be cleansed and their offerings before the Lord at the entrance to the tent of meeting.(X)

12 “Then the priest is to take one of the male lambs and offer it as a guilt offering,(Y) along with the log of oil; he shall wave them before the Lord as a wave offering.(Z) 13 He is to slaughter the lamb in the sanctuary area(AA) where the sin offering[d] and the burnt offering are slaughtered. Like the sin offering, the guilt offering belongs to the priest;(AB) 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 their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot.(AC) 15 The priest shall then take some of the log of oil, pour it in the palm of his own left hand,(AD) 16 dip his right forefinger into the oil in his palm, and with his finger sprinkle some of it before the Lord seven times.(AE) 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 their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot, on top of the blood of the guilt offering.(AF) 18 The rest of the oil in his palm the priest shall put on the head of the one to be cleansed(AG) and make atonement for them before the Lord.

19 “Then the priest is to sacrifice the sin offering and make atonement for the one to be cleansed from their uncleanness.(AH) After that, the priest shall slaughter the burnt offering 20 and offer it on the altar, together with the grain offering, and make atonement for them,(AI) and they will be clean.(AJ)

21 “If, however, they are poor(AK) and cannot afford these,(AL) they must take one male lamb as a guilt offering to be waved to make atonement for them, together with a tenth of an ephah[e] of the finest flour mixed with olive oil for a grain offering, a log of oil, 22 and two doves or two young pigeons,(AM) such as they can afford, one for a sin offering and the other for a burnt offering.(AN)

23 “On the eighth day they must bring them for their cleansing to the priest at the entrance to the tent of meeting,(AO) before the Lord.(AP) 24 The priest is to take the lamb for the guilt offering,(AQ) together with the log of oil,(AR) and wave them before the Lord as a wave offering.(AS) 25 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 their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot.(AT) 26 The priest is to pour some of the oil into the palm of his own left hand,(AU) 27 and with his right forefinger sprinkle some of the oil from his palm seven times before the Lord. 28 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 their right hand and on the big toe of their right foot. 29 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 them before the Lord.(AV) 30 Then he shall sacrifice the doves or the young pigeons, such as the person can afford,(AW) 31 one as a sin offering and the other as a burnt offering,(AX) together with the grain offering. In this way the priest will make atonement before the Lord on behalf of the one to be cleansed.(AY)

32 These are the regulations for anyone who has a defiling skin disease(AZ) and who cannot afford the regular offerings(BA) for their cleansing.

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Footnotes

  1. Leviticus 14:3 The Hebrew word for defiling skin disease, traditionally translated “leprosy,” was used for various diseases affecting the skin; also in verses 7, 32, 54 and 57.
  2. Leviticus 14:10 That is, probably about 11 pounds or about 5 kilograms
  3. Leviticus 14:10 That is, about 1/3 quart or about 0.3 liter; also in verses 12, 15, 21 and 24
  4. Leviticus 14:13 Or purification offering; also in verses 19, 22 and 31
  5. Leviticus 14:21 That is, probably about 3 1/2 pounds or about 1.6 kilograms