Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 13:24-28

24 Or if there be any flesh, in the skin whereof there is a hot burning, and the quick flesh that burneth have a white bright spot, somewhat reddish, or white;

25 Then the priest shall look upon it: and, behold, if the hair in the bright spot be turned white, and it be in sight deeper than the skin; it is a leprosy broken out of the burning: wherefore the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is the plague of leprosy.

26 But if the priest look on it, and, behold, there be no white hair in the bright spot, and it be no lower than the other skin, but be somewhat dark; then the priest shall shut him up seven days:

27 And the priest shall look upon him the seventh day: and if it be spread much abroad in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is the plague of leprosy.

28 And if the bright spot stay in his place, and spread not in the skin, but it be somewhat dark; it is a rising of the burning, and the priest shall pronounce him clean: for it is an inflammation of the burning.

We have heard how the priest would examine a simple spot in the skin, a boil, and today’s verses talk about a “burn” in the skin. At first I thought by “burn” it meant some feverish heat in the skin, but apparently the Hebrew word used, מִכְוָה (mikvah), means that the flesh had literally been burned by fire or hot metal or a smoldering stick or something like that. These verses are talking about burn wounds that become corrupted afterward.

This continues the pattern of leprosy that grows out of trauma to the body. With the simple spot, the disease developed by unknown means within the body. With the boil, a foreign agent got lodged in the skin and became an inflamed abscess. Now we have a scorching heat that burned the flesh and leaves it vulnerable other afflications.

The priest examining wounds in the skin for infection is a microcosm of what it means to live in a fallen world. We have a good system, with a clear order of how it should work, where if everything worked perfectly it would be able to sustain, grow, and repair itself in perpetuity. But inevitably, something goes wrong. Not only does something bad happen to the system, but the bad thing inevitably disrupts the function of a part of that system and causes it to not perfectly sustain, grow, and repair itself. In a word, corruption. A system that can be harmed, wounded, even killed, but then can restore itself is incorruptible. But we as individuals and societies are systems that are harmed, wounded, even killed, and left permanently dysfunctional and broken as a result. Corruptible. It is true for our bodies. It is true for our societies. It is true for our governments.

As with the leprosy, sometimes corruption in the system can be eradicated. Other good systems in the body/society/government can correct it or even cut the bad part out. Indeed, the system may overcome many corruptions, but gradually the acquisition of corruption will outstrip the ability to remove it, the system will become less effective at healing itself, and one day a corruption will come that is never removed. We will require a Savior to refresh us out of the fallen world entirely then.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 13:18-23

18 The flesh also, in which, even in the skin thereof, was a boil, and is healed,

19 And in the place of the boil there be a white rising, or a bright spot, white, and somewhat reddish, and it be shewed to the priest;

20 And if, when the priest seeth it, behold, it be in sight lower than the skin, and the hair thereof be turned white; the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a plague of leprosy broken out of the boil.

21 But if the priest look on it, and, behold, there be no white hairs therein, and if it be not lower than the skin, but be somewhat dark; then the priest shall shut him up seven days:

22 And if it spread much abroad in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a plague.

23 But if the bright spot stay in his place, and spread not, it is a burning boil; and the priest shall pronounce him clean.

Today talks about boils in the skin, and how after some of them had ruptured and healed, a white spot might appear where they used to be. The priest was to inspect that spot, see whether it was only skin deep, or if it went down deeper. If it went deeper, that was a sign of disease, whereas surface discoloration was clean.

Continuing our pattern of viewing these skin disease signs as symbols for the spiritual health of a society, the boil might be considered some tragic or disrupting event. The white spot after it has passed through describes the aftermath of that event, and whether it expands into greater problems or not. Recent modern examples of disrupting events could be the twin towers attack, the recession, and COVID. These caused great pain and disruption, they caused damage, and they left behind scars. But did we as a society spiritually heal afterward, or did that pain fester and develop into even longer-lasting harmful trends in our society? If it is the latter, we have a serious and spreading spiritual disease.

The same is true on a personal level, also. Everyone has trauma, but the question is, what do we become in the aftermath of that trauma. We might become healed…or we might spiral downward.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 13:9-17

9 When the plague of leprosy is in a man, then he shall be brought unto the priest;

10 And the priest shall see him: and, behold, if the rising be white in the skin, and it have turned the hair white, and there be quick raw flesh in the rising;

11 It is an old leprosy in the skin of his flesh, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean, and shall not shut him up: for he is unclean.

12 And if a leprosy break out abroad in the skin, and the leprosy cover all the skin of him that hath the plague from his head even to his foot, wheresoever the priest looketh;

13 Then the priest shall consider: and, behold, if the leprosy have covered all his flesh, he shall pronounce him clean that hath the plague: it is all turned white: he is clean.

14 But when raw flesh appeareth in him, he shall be unclean.

15 And the priest shall see the raw flesh, and pronounce him to be unclean: for the raw flesh is unclean: it is a leprosy.

16 Or if the raw flesh turn again, and be changed unto white, he shall come unto the priest;

17 And the priest shall see him: and, behold, if the plague be turned into white; then the priest shall pronounce him clean that hath the plague: he is clean.

Today we read how a leprosy would be recognized by the presence of “raw flesh” as opposed to flesh that had “turned white.” Raw flesh seems to be describing open sores, where the outer layers of skin have been eaten away and the open wound is visible. If it were to “turn white,” that would mean scar tissue or new skin grown over, sealing the body back up.

Viewed spiritually, this can be compared to ongoing sin versus a soul that is healing. If, for example, one is actively under an addiction, there will be ugly behaviors ongoing, like the active sores in the body. If the addict is healed, though, there will be scars and ongoing recovery, but the open wound is covered, meaning the impulsive, sinful behavior ceases to rage out of control.

When applied to an entire population, this can be compared to a society caught in a false ideology versus one that is sloughing off those lies. When a society is ideologically captured, the faulty logic spreads from one domain to another, corrupting each institution. When the people return to truth and God, there will be much to rebuild and heal from, but the source of the damage is gone.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 13:1-8

1 And the Lord spake unto Moses and Aaron, saying,

2 When a man shall have in the skin of his flesh a rising, a scab, or bright spot, and it be in the skin of his flesh like the plague of leprosy; then he shall be brought unto Aaron the priest, or unto one of his sons the priests:

3 And the priest shall look on the plague in the skin of the flesh: and when the hair in the plague is turned white, and the plague in sight be deeper than the skin of his flesh, it is a plague of leprosy: and the priest shall look on him, and pronounce him unclean.

4 If the bright spot be white in the skin of his flesh, and in sight be not deeper than the skin, and the hair thereof be not turned white; then the priest shall shut up him that hath the plague seven days:

5 And the priest shall look on him the seventh day: and, behold, if the plague in his sight be at a stay, and the plague spread not in the skin; then the priest shall shut him up seven days more:

6 And the priest shall look on him again the seventh day: and, behold, if the plague be somewhat dark, and the plague spread not in the skin, the priest shall pronounce him clean: it is but a scab: and he shall wash his clothes, and be clean.

7 But if the scab spread much abroad in the skin, after that he hath been seen of the priest for his cleansing, he shall be seen of the priest again:

8 And if the priest see that, behold, the scab spreadeth in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a leprosy.

Today begins the instructions on leprosy diagnosis and prescription. In addition to their sacrificial offerings and upkeep of the tabernacle, the priests were to observe these diseases and manage quarantine among the Israelites. Interestingly, the priests do not seem to have been general doctors. They are not described as setting bones or curing fevers or addressing many of the other common ailments to man. Their scope was specific and narrow. They focused on the spreading of disease in the skin and inspected strange bodily discharges.

These categories have obvious symbolic importance. A spreading plague in the skin is an immediate reminder of the spreading of sin through a body of people. At times a diseased notion, a faulty ideology, will run through society, and it can cause great damage before it is expelled. In some societies, we have even seen it kill the host. Meanwhile, an unclean discharge would signify unseen corruption within, again symbolic of a troubled population, one where the faulty beliefs are too entrenched to be seen for what they are, and only the emergence of disturbing behaviors from within is a sign of the deep spiritual rot beneath.

With this lens, today’s passages of observing spots in the skin takes deeper meaning. A priest would check the spot’s color, any hair that grew in it, close the subject in quarantine to observe how the condition changed over time, and returning the afflicted to broader society only when he was determined to be clean. So, too, our spiritual leaders must consider our confessions, measure whether our sinful actions were temporary weakness or a sign of persistent addiction. It may be necessary for the spiritually afflicted to be removed from certain public circles, both so that he does not spread carnal influence upon the innocent, and so that he stops receiving carnal influences from the guilty. This can happen with a social media purge, applying filters to one’s internet modem, giving up a group of friends, or even being incarcerated in prison. In any case, the goal has as its primary motive the curing of the moral deviance and rehabilitation back to righteous society.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 12:6-8

6 And when the days of her purifying are fulfilled, for a son, or for a daughter, she shall bring a lamb of the first year for a burnt offering, and a young pigeon, or a turtledove, for a sin offering, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priest:

7 Who shall offer it before the Lord, and make an atonement for her; and she shall be cleansed from the issue of her blood. This is the law for her that hath born a male or a female.

8 And if she be not able to bring a lamb, then she shall bring two turtles, or two young pigeons; the one for the burnt offering, and the other for a sin offering: and the priest shall make an atonement for her, and she shall be clean.

Yesterday I started examining the purification rites surrounding childbirth and discussed why I don’t think they are so shameful as some assume. Certainly, a shameful interpretation can be read into these verses, but it is a personal choice to do so. It is also possible to see no shame in the event, only an acknowledgement of the inherent gravity and mortality in birth. I explained what such a perspective looks like for the purification period of a mother in yesterday’s study, and now we will do the same for the sin and burnt offerings described in today’s verses.

Whether the child was a son or a daughter, the offerings were both a sin offering and a burnt offering. As we have already seen, a sin offering was meant for the absolution of sin, and a burnt offering was about dedicating one’s life to God and His purposes. The burnt offering is not controversial, but many have taken the need for a sin offering at birth as meaning that a child is born sinful; conceived by a sinful act, issued forth in a sinful state. But I don’t believe that view is necessary. I believe this ritual could be pointing to the common curse of mortality, without reflecting on the individual moral guilt of the child.

It is certainly a fact that we live in a fallen world. We all experience tragedy, we all experience suffering, and we all experience death. Every one of us is doomed by this fate and need to be saved from it via resurrection. Separate from this, though, is our own individual guilt when we commit our own sins. Sins where we had a knowledge of good but choosing to do evil. Thus, we have a universal mortal demise, and we have a personal spiritual demise, each of which must be overcome in Christ.

I believe the sin offering for an Israelite child’s birth was to acknowledge that the mother had brought her child into this universal, mortal, deathly reality, and that grim fate could only be overcome by the sacrifice of a lamb. This sacrifice is symbolic of Christ’s promise that his death and resurrection will conquer the tomb for all of us. Whether that resurrection will also redeem us from personal sin depends on whether we seek his forgiveness and enter into his covenant, but redemption from death, at least, is guaranteed.

So, it is true that there is a deep gravity to the fallen state into which we are born, but I don’t hold that we are also born in sin. We are born into the consequences of Adam and Eve’s transgression, but not into the guilt of their transgression. We only become guilty when we personally disobey. And in both cases, mortal death and spiritual sin, the sacrifice of the lamb shall overcome.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 12:1-5

1 And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying,

2 Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, If a woman have conceived seed, and born a man child: then she shall be unclean seven days; according to the days of the separation for her infirmity shall she be unclean.

3 And in the eighth day the flesh of his foreskin shall be circumcised.

4 And she shall then continue in the blood of her purifying three and thirty days; she shall touch no hallowed thing, nor come into the sanctuary, until the days of her purifying be fulfilled.

5 But if she bear a maid child, then she shall be unclean two weeks, as in her separation: and she shall continue in the blood of her purifying threescore and six days.

This chapter speaks about childbirth, and how the mother would go through a purifying period before participating in regular tabernacle ceremonies. These passages have been used as evidence by some that the Mosaic Law treated women and childbirth as shameful, given the use of terms like “unclean” and the requirement of a “sin” offering. And this has not only been the argument of those antagonistic to Christianity. Even believers have used passages such as these to suggest that we are born in sin, shameful from our very beginning, and that sex acts are inherently vile.

While I can see where such interpretations are coming from, I feel that they are unnecessarily negative. It would be very helpful to know how ancient Israelites felt about these requirements, and whether they felt ashamed of them. We do not have that information, so we must be careful to not assume how they must have felt about these requirements.

On the matter of uncleanliness, I wish to point out that unclean is not one and the same as guilty or evil. There were many things that could make one unclean, including things that a person would have no willful agency over. A man having a nighttime emission was unclean for a time. A man stumbling over the corpse of a pig was unclean for a time. It is more accurate to think of uncleanliness as the spiritual equivalent to getting mud on our clothes. Getting muddy is nothing for us to be ashamed of. Sometimes it just happens, and we are not lesser people because of it. And yet, while we are muddy, we still keep distant from formal functions, public events, and clean places. We know we have to take a bath and wash ourselves before we go to these sorts of places because there is just too much earth on us.

Being unclean in the Old Testament seems to be the same, but in the realm of the spirit. The things that make one unclean are do not need to be shameful or guilty, they just happen to leave too much “earth” on us. They are things that mark us with the residue of the mortal world. Given that perspective, it is hard to think of anything so mortal as giving birth, and it makes sense that that would therefore make one ritually, but not morally, unclean.

Not only does birth involve the bringing forth of a mortal soul, but as verse 5 specifically calls out, it involves a considerable discharge of mortal blood. Many have noted that the purifying period is doubled when having an infant girl, and that this is likely due to the fact that this act of childbirth is inseparably connected to the female sex. The bringing forth of another woman means bringing forth another vessel of mortality. It is both issue and future issue all in one, so two purification cycles.

In tomorrow’s verses we will hear about the offerings that would accompany a new child’s birth, including a sin offering. In that post I will address why I think this offering is also not so shameful as some seem to think.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 11:41-47

41 And every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth shall be an abomination; it shall not be eaten.

42 Whatsoever goeth upon the belly, and whatsoever goeth upon all four, or whatsoever hath more feet among all creeping things that creep upon the earth, them ye shall not eat; for they are an abomination.

43 Ye shall not make yourselves abominable with any creeping thing that creepeth, neither shall ye make yourselves unclean with them, that ye should be defiled thereby.

44 For I am the Lord your God: ye shall therefore sanctify yourselves, and ye shall be holy; for I am holy: neither shall ye defile yourselves with any manner of creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth.

45 For I am the Lord that bringeth you up out of the land of Egypt, to be your God: ye shall therefore be holy, for I am holy.

46 This is the law of the beasts, and of the fowl, and of every living creature that moveth in the waters, and of every creature that creepeth upon the earth:

47 To make a difference between the unclean and the clean, and between the beast that may be eaten and the beast that may not be eaten.

It is interesting that anything that moves on the belly (worms or snakes), or anything with a multitude of legs (centipedes and spider), or anything that creeps on all four (rats and lizards) are pronounced unclean, and also these are the sorts of creatures that naturally cause us the most anxious when we encounter them. Things that move in weird ways discomfort us. So, too, we sometimes see people orienting themselves around identities that God has forbidden, and these are often unnerving and uncomfortable to us as well. A man with prosthetic breasts and a falsetto voice is naturally unnerving, the same as one whose face is covered in tattoos using aggressive language. God’s laws of cleanliness tell us to trust our instincts, that our intuition is there for a reason, and we should listen to it.

In verse 44 God calls us to “sanctify ourselves” and “be holy.” Yes, we live in the world, and are unavoidably tarnished by it, but we are still to strive to be different and set apart. We should stand out as those consecrated to something higher. That upward reaching is the overarching symbol in all of the laws of clean and unclean animals. All of these symbols show that we should be striving for the supreme, the transcendent, the very best that we can be. Not that it will ever make us divine on its own, but it will orient us so that we may be caught by divinity as it passes us by.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 11:36-40

36 Nevertheless a fountain or pit, wherein there is plenty of water, shall be clean: but that which toucheth their carcase shall be unclean.

37 And if any part of their carcase fall upon any sowing seed which is to be sown, it shall be clean.

38 But if any water be put upon the seed, and any part of their carcase fall thereon, it shall be unclean unto you.

39 And if any beast, of which ye may eat, die; he that toucheth the carcase thereof shall be unclean until the even.

40 And he that eateth of the carcase of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even: he also that beareth the carcase of it shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until the even.

Today’s verses continue on the rules we saw yesterday, explaining the corrupting effect of dead unclean animals. Larger sources of water would not all be corrupted. Presumably, there would be enough clean water that any untoward elements would dissipate to only trace levels. A dead carcass on a seed was fine, the plant was still shielded within, but if the seed had been watered already, and had begun the process of growing and sprouting, the actual plant was corrupted and now unclean.

The next verses talk about touching or eating a clean animal’s carcass. This obviously means an animal that died by natural means, not one that was slaughtered for the express purpose of eating. In these cases, any who touched the carcass would be unclean, but all he had to do was wash his clothes and he would be clean again the next day.

Logically, there had to be ways in which the transference of uncleanness would cease. If an unclean carcass made a vessel unclean, which made the person who touched that vessel unclean, which made anything that person touched unclean…obviously at some point everything would be unclean. And, well, now that we are aware of germs and viruses, there is some truth to that model. The fact is, we all carry unclean things in and on us, and none of us are pure, and none of us can become so. That is why sacrificial atonement remains necessary for us all.

But in our day-to-day lives, we do find that God has provided us a buffer that prevents infinite corruption. Yes, diseases pass through us, but they do eventually die out. Filth transfers from the ground to our hands to our food to our insides, but usually in small enough quantities that our body passes it through without issue. Or, if we do get ill, we almost always quickly recover. And speaking spiritually, every day there are evil influences that tempt us and our sins beget guilt, but we do move on and feel ourselves restored again on the next day. And where our sin is more serious, still with a period of washing and waiting, we are able to move forward again. God has built resilience and restitution into us, allowing us to bounce back from the constant uncleanness of the world.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 11:32-35

32 And upon whatsoever any of them, when they are dead, doth fall, it shall be unclean; whether it be any vessel of wood, or raiment, or skin, or sack, whatsoever vessel it be, wherein any work is done, it must be put into water, and it shall be unclean until the even; so it shall be cleansed.

33 And every earthen vessel, whereinto any of them falleth, whatsoever is in it shall be unclean; and ye shall break it.

34 Of all meat which may be eaten, that on which such water cometh shall be unclean: and all drink that may be drunk in every such vessel shall be unclean.

35 And every thing whereupon any part of their carcase falleth shall be unclean; whether it be oven, or ranges for pots, they shall be broken down: for they are unclean, and shall be unclean unto you.

Today we hear how an unclean animal’s carcass touching an instrument would also make that instrument unclean. It does specify throughout these verses that this only applies to dead unclean animals, not living ones. So, there are degrees to the polluting effect of uncleanness.

Tools or clothes or sacks made unclean in this way only needed to be washed, left for a day, and then could be used again. But food or water or clay pottery that was contaminated were forever unclean and had to be discarded. Again, degrees to the pollution.

Looking at these examples from a modern, practical sense, we recognize that a dead body carries more disease than a living one. We understand how some things can be washed and reused, whereas others are better to purge entirely, particularly the food and drink that we would otherwise bring into our bodies. There are degrees of corruption and there are degrees of protection against them. The tools that we use, the clothes that we wear, our outer skin, and our inner organs, we protect each of these to increasing degrees because we become more susceptible to virus and infection the deeper the contamination reaches.

Looking at this through a spiritual lens, some unworthy behavior is more corrupt and destructive than others. A person deceived by the world, engaging in sin while still maintaining a sense of conscience is like a living unclean beast. A potential source of corruption, but not to the same degree as another person who has become entirely cynical and jaded, turned nihilistic by his sin.

And as with the Israelite’s cleanliness laws, we must protect ourselves from these sinful influences by progressive measures. Blasphemous language in our culture is a problem, but it is worse when it is projected through the television into our homes, and it is even worse again when it is coming out of our own mouths. And so on for all sins. Sin is pervasive enough that we cannot avoid all contact with it, but we can put in progressive checks and protections the closer it comes to our heart.

Posted on by Abe Austin

Scriptural Analysis- Leviticus 11:29-31

29 These also shall be unclean unto you among the creeping things that creep upon the earth; the weasel, and the mouse, and the tortoise after his kind,

30 And the ferret, and the chameleon, and the lizard, and the snail, and the mole.

31 These are unclean to you among all that creep: whosoever doth touch them, when they be dead, shall be unclean until the even.

Today’s verses call out individual animals that would also be unclean to the Israelites. First among them are rodents and reptiles, then also snails and moles. Of course, each of these would have already been forbidden under the existing laws: rodents and reptiles do not have split hooves, snails don’t have raised legs for leaping, and moles violate both requirements, whether you consider them a beast or a “creeping thing.”

Presumably these animals are called out as edge case examples, showing that if an animal seems like it might be unclean, it is unclean. So it is in moral life. We may not be able to define every type of sin and every manner of evil, but we can establish principles, provide examples, and then rule out anything else that seems like it might be in violation of those guidelines.

Let us consider one example. Is AI-generated pornography not immoral since it involves unreal characters? The scriptures may not call it out directly, but they do establish a pattern of what God has allowed in regard to sexuality, and we should omit anything questionable around that. God has allowed for a man and a woman to cleave together as one flesh, and He has forbidden extramarital sexuality. Looking at the matter of AI pornography, that starts to sound a lot like a weasel or a tortoise, something on the fringes of more familiar sin, and something we should also treat as unclean.