Lev 14:52-15:5 | NET2full | STEP | So he is to purify the house with the blood of the bird , the fresh water , the live bird , the piece of cedar wood , the twigs of hyssop , and the scrap of crimson fabric ,

‏ Leviticus 14:52-57

52 So he is to purify the house with the blood of the bird, the fresh water, the live bird, the piece of cedar wood, the twigs of hyssop, and the scrap of crimson fabric, 53 and he is to send the live bird away outside the city ^{▼▼tn Heb “to from outside to the city.”} into the open countryside. So he is to make atonement for the house, and it will be clean.

Summary of Purification Regulations for Infections

54 “This is the law for all diseased infections, for scall, ^{▼▼tn Heb “and for the scall”; NASB “a scale”; NIV11 “any defiling skin disease.” Cf. Lev 13:29-37.} 55 for the diseased garment, ^{▼▼sn Cf. Lev 13:47-59.} for the house, ^{▼▼sn Cf. Lev 14:33-53.} 56 for the swelling, ^{▼▼sn Cf. Lev 13:9-28, 43.} for the scab, ^{▼▼sn Cf. Lev 13:2.} and for the bright spot, ^{▼▼sn Cf. Lev 13:4, 18-28, 38-39. For explanations of all these terms for disease in Lev 14:56 see 13:2.} 57 to teach when something is unclean and when it is clean. ^{▼▼tn Heb “to teach in the day of the unclean and in the day of the clean.”} This is the law for dealing with infectious disease.” ^{▼▼tn Heb “This is the law of the disease.” Some English versions specify this as “skin disease” (e.g., NIV, NLT), but then have to add “and defiling molds” (NIV11) or “and infectious mildew” (NLT) because a house would not be infected with a skin disease.} ^{▼▼sn For an explanation of the term “disease” see Lev 13:2.}

‏ Leviticus 15:1-5

Male Bodily Discharges

1 The Lord spoke to Moses and Aaron: 2 “Speak to the Israelites and tell them, ‘When any man ^{▼▼tn Heb “Man man.” The duplication is a way of saying “any man” (cf. Lev 17:3; 22:18, etc.; see the distributive repetition of the noun in GKC 395-96 §123.c).} has a discharge ^{▼▼tn The term “discharge” actually means “to flow,” whether referring to a full flow as at a spring of water (Ps 78:20 and parallels) or in reference to the promised land as “a land flowing with milk and honey” (Exod 3:8 and parallels).} from his body, ^{▼▼tn Heb “when there is a discharge from his flesh.” It is well-recognized that the term “flesh” (i.e., “body”) in this chapter refers regularly and euphemistically to the male and female genital members or areas of the body (HALOT 164 s.v. בָּשָׂר 5.b; see also, e.g., B. A. Levine, Leviticus [JPSTC], 93). The euphemism has been retained in this translation since it is intended in the Hebrew text. Some English versions partially remove the euphemism (e.g., NAB “from his private parts”; NRSV “from his member”) while some remove it completely (e.g., NLT “a genital discharge”; TEV “from his penis”; CEV “with an infected penis”).} his discharge is unclean. 3 Now this is his uncleanness in regard to his discharge ^{▼▼tn The LXX has “this the law of his uncleanness…” (cf. v. 32 and compare, e.g., 13:59; 14:2, 56).} —whether his body secretes his discharge or blocks his discharge, he is unclean. All the days that his body has a discharge or his body blocks his discharge, ^{▼▼tc Smr, LXX, and the Paleo-Hebrew Leviticus Scroll from Qumran (11QpaleoLev; Fragment G contains Lev 14:52-15:5 and 16:2-4, and agrees with the LXX of Lev 15:3b) are in essential (although not complete) agreement against the MT in Lev 15:3b and are to be preferred in this case. The shorter MT text has probably arisen due to a lengthy haplography. See K. A. Mathews, “The Leviticus Scroll (11QpaleoLev) and the Text of the Hebrew Bible,” CBQ 48 (1986): 177-78, 198; D. N. Freedman, “Variant Readings in the Leviticus Scroll from Qumran Cave 11,” CBQ 36 (1974): 528-29; D. N. Freedman and K. A. Mathews, The Paleo-Hebrew Leviticus Scroll, 32. The MT of Lev 15:3 reads: “Now this is his uncleanness in [regard to] his discharge—whether his body secretes his discharge or blocks his discharge, this is his uncleanness.” Smr adds after MT’s “blocks his discharge” the following: “he is unclean; all the days that his body has a discharge or his body blocks his discharge, this is his uncleanness.” Thus, the MT appears to skip from Smr הוא טמא “he is unclean” in the middle of the verse to טמאתו/הו יא “this is his uncleanness” at the end of the verse, leaving out “he is unclean; all the days that his body has a discharge or his body blocks his discharge” (cf. the BHS footnote). 11Q1 (paleoLeva frag. G) is indeed fragmentary, but it does have ימי ז בו כל “…in him, all the days of the fl[ow],” supporting Smr and LXX tradition. The LXX adds after MT “blocks his discharge” the following: “all the days of the flow of his body, by which his body is affected by the flow,” followed by “it is his uncleanness” (i.e., the last two words of the MT).} ^{▼▼sn The contrast between the dripping or flowing from the male sexual member as opposed to there being a blockage is important. One might not understand that even though a blockage actually causes a lack of discharge, it is still unclean.} this is his uncleanness. ^{▼▼tn Heb “it is his uncleanness.” The last clause resumes the point of the first clause in this verse, while the material in between acts as parenthetic clarification. This verse introduces the regulations that follow in vv. 4ff.}

4 “‘Any bed the man with a discharge lies on will be unclean, ^{▼▼tn Heb “All the bed which the man with a discharge sits on it shall be unclean”; cf. NLT “Any bedding.”} and any furniture he sits on will be unclean. ^{▼▼tn Heb “and all the vessel which he sits on it shall be unclean”; NASB “everything on which he sits.”} 5 Anyone who touches his bed ^{▼▼tn Heb “And a man who touches in his bed”; NLT “touch the man’s bedding.”} must wash his clothes, bathe in water, and be unclean until evening. ^{▼▼tn Heb “he shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until the evening” (cf. also vv. 6-8, 10-11, etc.).}