Matthew Poole and continuators on Leviticus 14

2 This shall be the law of the leper, in the day of his cleansing: he shall be brought unto the priest .

Not into the Priests house, but to some place without the camp or City, Levit. 13. 46. which the Priest should appoint.

Marginal references: Mat. 8. 24. Mar. 1. 40, 4. Luk. 5. 12, 14. and 17. 14.

3 And the priest shall go forth out of the camp, and the priest shall look, and behold, if the plague of leprosie be healed in the leper,

To wit, by God. For God alone did heal or cleanse him really, the Priest onely ministerially and declaratively, as Ministers are said to remit sins, though it be granted that none can truly and properly forgive sins but God, Mark 2. 7.

4 Then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed, two birds alive, and clean , and Cedar-wood , and scarlet , and hyssop ,

The one to represent Christ as dying for his sins, the other to represent him as rising again for his purification or justification.

Allowed for food and for sacrifice.

A stick of Cedar to which the hyssop and one of the Birds was tied by the scarlet thred. Cedar seems to be chosen to note that the leper was now freed from that putrefaction or corruption, which his leprosie had brought upon him, that kind of wood being in a manner incorruptible.

A thred of wool of a scarlet colour, Heb. 9. 19. to represent both the lepers sinfulness, Isa. 1. 18. and the blood of Christ, and the happy change of the lepers colour and complexion, which before was wan and loathsome, now sprightly and beautiful.

Chosen partly for its fragrant smell, which signified the cure of the lepers ill sent, and partly for conveniency in the use of sprinkling. See Exod. 12. 22.

Marginal references: Or, sparrows.; Numb. 19. 6. Psal. 51. 7.

5 And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel, over running water .

To wit, by some other man. The Priest did not kill it himself, because it was not properly a sacrifice, as being killed without the camp, and not in that place to which all sacrifices were confined; and if it had been a sacrifice, that might be killed by another, so long as the sprinkling of the blood of it, which was the most proper and essential act in the sacrifice, was done by the Priest.

It seems to be a Metathesis or transplacing of words for, over-running water put in an earthen vessel. Thus the blood of the bird and the water were mixed together, partly for the conveniency of sprinkling, and partly to signifie Christ who came by water and blood, 1 Iohn 5. 6. The running water, i. e. spring or river water by its liveliness and motion did fitly signifie the restoring of liveliness to the leper who was in a manner dead with his leprosie, as was noted before.

Marginal references: Heb. living water. Gen. 6. 29.

7 And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosie, seven times , and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field .

To signifie his perfect cleansing and restoration to all his former priviledges. Compare Levit. 4. 17. and 7. 15, 16. 10. 14, 19.

The place of its former abode, signifying the taking off that restraint which was laid upon the leper and the liberty which the leper now had to return to his former habitation and conversation with other men.

Marginal references: Heb. upon the face of the field.

8 And he that is to be cleansed, shall wash his clothes, and shave off all his hair , and wash himself in water, that he may be clean: And after that he shall come into the camp, and shall tarry abroad out of his tent seven dayes.

Partly to discover his perfect soundness, partly to preserve him from relapse through any seeds or relicks of it which might remain in his hair or in his clothes; and partly to teach him to put off his old lusts and to become a new man.

Out of his former habitation, in some separate place, least some of his leprosie yet lurking in him should break forth to the infection of his family.

Marginal references: Numb. 12. 15.

9 But it shall be on the seventh day, that he shall shave all his hair off his head, and his beard, and his eye-brows, even all his hair he shall shave off: And he shall wash his clothes, also he shall wash his flesh in water, and he shall be clean.

Which began to grow again since it was first shaved, and now for more caution is shaved again.

10 And on the eighth day, he shall take two helambs without blemish, and one ewe lamb of the first year without blemish, and three tenth deales of fine flour for a meat-offering mingled with oyl , and one log of oyl.

Oyl is added here as a fit sign of Gods grace and mercy, and of the lepers healing.

A measure for liquid things containing six eggshels full.

Marginal references: Heb. [illegible: 1 word] of her year.; chap. 2. 1.

11 And the priest that maketh him clean , shall present the man that is to be made clean, and those things before the LORD, at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation:

The healing is ascribed to God, ver. 13. but the ceremonial cleansing or making of him clean and fit for society was an act of the Priest using the rites which God had prescribed, whereby the sinner was cleansed.

12 And the priest shall take one he-lamb, and offer him for a trespass-offering , and the log of oyl, and wave them for a wave-offering, before the LORD.

To teach them, that sin was the cause of leprosie and of all diseases, and that these ceremonial observations had a further meaning, even to make them sensible of their spiritual diseases, their sins, and to fly to God in Christ for the cure of them.

Marginal references: Exod. 29. [illegible: 1 word]

13 And he shall slay the lamb in the place where he shall kill the sin-offering, and the burntoffering, in the holy place : for as the sin-offering is the priests, so is the trespass-offering: it is most holy .

To wit, in the Court of the Tabernacle. See Levit. 1. 11. and 7. 7.

Both of them are equally holy, and therefore to be offered in the same place.

Marginal references: Exod. 29. 11▪ chap. 3. 8. [illegible: 1 word] 4. 4, 24.; chap. 7. [illegible: 1+ letters].; chap. 2. 3. and 21. 22.

14 And the priest shall take some of the blood, of the trespass-offering, and the priest shall put it upon the tip of the right ear hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot .

To signifie, that he was now free to hear Gods word in the appointed places, from which he was before excluded, and to touch any person or thing without defiling it, and to go whither he pleased.

To signifie, that he was now free to hear Gods word in the appointed places, from which he was before excluded, and to touch any person or thing without defiling it, and to go whither he pleased.

Marginal references: Exod. 29. [illegible: 1 word] chap. 8. 23.

15 And the priest shall take some of the log of oyl , and pour it into the palm of his own left hand.

As the blood signified Christs blood by which men obtain remission of sins, so the oyl noted the graces of the spirit by which they are regenerated and renewed.

16 And the priest shall dip his right-finger in the oyl that is in his left hand, and shall sprinkle of the oyl with his finger seven times before the LORD .

(i. e.) Before the second vail which covered the Holy of Holies, where God is oft said to dwell and to be present in a peculiar manner.

17 And of the rest of the oyl that is in his hand, shall the priest put upon the tip of the right ear of him that is to be cleansed and upon the thumb of his right hand, and upon the great toe of his right foot, upon the blood of the trespass-offering .

(i. e.) Upon the place of that blood, as it is expressed, verse 28. or where that blood was put, ver. 14. Or, over and besides the blood, &c. i. e. As the blood was put in those places, so shall the oyl be.

36 Then the priest shall command that they empty the house, before the priest go into it, to see the plague, that all that is in the house be not made unclean : and afterward the priest shall go in to see the house.

(i. e.) The possessours of the house.

It is observable here, that neither the people nor the houshold stuffe were polluted till the leprosie was discovered and declared by the Priest, to shew what great difference God makes between sins of ignorance and sins against knowledge and conscience.

Marginal references: Or, prepare.

37 And he shall look on the plague: and behold if the plague be in the walls of the house , with hollow strakes , greenish or reddish, which in sight are lower than the wall:

This was an extraordinary judgment of God peculiar to this people, either as a punishment of their sins, which were much more sinful and inexcusable than the sins of other nations, or as a special mean and help to Repentance, which God afforded to them above other people; or as a document of the mischievous nature of sin, typified by leprosie, which did not onely destroy persons, but their habitations also: see Zech. 5. 4.

Such as were in the bodies of leprous persons, Levit. 13. 3.

40 Then the priest shall command that they take away the stones in which the plague is, and they shall cast them into an unclean place without the city.

Where they used to cast dirt and filthy things.

41 And he shall cause the house to be scraped within round about, and they shall pour out the dust that they scrape off, without the city into an unclean place.

The mortar or other rubbish.

57 To teach when it is unclean, and when it is clean: this is the law of leprosie.

To direct the Priest when to pronounce a person or house clean or unclean. So it was not left to the Priests power or will, but they were tied to plain rules, such as the people might discern no less then the Priest.

Marginal references: Heb in the day of the unclean, and in the day of the clean: