Protecting the Covenant Community
13: 45-46
Protecting the covenant community DIG: How was the unclean person to act? Say? What was the purpose of teaching the concepts of being ritually clean and ritually unclean? How did God use tsara’at as an example of the holiness for the Israelites? How can believers determine their own spiritual health? When you have been victorious in a battle with a sin-symptom, what led to your victory? What practical warnings against sin would you give others?
REFLECT: How do you distinguish between the kingdom of sin and death, and the Kingdom of Life and Righteousness? What guides your decisions? What is your “owners manual?” In what sense is Yeshua Messiah your own personal physician (Isaiah 53:5)? Why is it that unless the heart is changed, there can be no solving the sin problem? What happens to the “good news” message of the Gospel when the “bad news” of sin defiling all it touches is left out?
Beginning with the previous Torah portion (to see link click Bc – On the Eighth Day), and continuing with this one, we have been examining the concepts of being ritually clean and ritually unclean in terms of what they can teach us about two kingdoms: the kingdom of sin and death (see Bv – The Test of Tsara’at), and the Kingdom of Life and Righteousness (see Cg – The Test of M’tsora).
This concluding section on infectious skin diseases refers to anyone who had been pronounced unclean from any one of the seven previous cases. The ritually defiling skin diseases (see Bw – Holiness and Tsara’at) resulted in impurities spread easily by physical contact, verses 45-46 focus on minimizing contact between those who have contacted tsara’at and those who have not. This would have the added benefit of minimizing the spread of any defiling skin diseases that were contagious. Those with tsara’at were required to follow three mitzvot.
First, they had to change their physical appearance, perhaps in part to warn others from a distance. Everyone who has tsara‘at sores is to wear torn clothes and unbound hair, cover his upper lip and cry (13:45a). These actions were also part of mourning (Leviticus 10:6; Ezeki’el 24:17), and therefore, especially appropriate for those experiencing the pain of living outside the covenant community.
Second, they were to cry out, “Unclean! Unclean!” As long as he has sores, he will be unclean (13:45b), clearly alerting others of their condition.
Third, since he is unclean, he must live in isolation; he must live outside the camp (13:46). This did not mean that they had to live alone. The Hebrew word for isolation (badad) simply means to be “apart from” a larger group, although contact with others who lived “apart” was still possible. At the very least, those with tsara’at could live with others who suffered from the same affliction. At the very most, it seems possible that family members or friends could join them, since it was not wrong to become unclean in this instance, only to fail to deal with the impurity properly. To purify themselves, family or friends might have to do something along the lines of Leviticus 14:46-47 before re-entering the camp.
Nevertheless, living apart from the covenant community was still a hardship, since the community was the covenant community (Deuteronomy 1:8; Ephesians 2:19). Any while those with tsara’at could certainly still praise and worship ADONAI, their deepest longing would have been to do so with their covenant brothers and sisters at the Tabernacle. Those with tsara’at were to follow those three mitzvot as long as their condition persisted. This was not meant to increase their hardship, but to prevent the impurity from spreading.230 Being outside the camp parallels the expulsion of Adam and Eve from the garden in Genesis 3. The execution of criminals took place outside the camp (Numbers 15:35:36). It was little wonder that when a man was diagnosed as being ritually unclean he had to go into mourning. Yet from a public health point of view isolation was essential.231
ADONAI was using tsara’at as an illustration of the kingdom of sin and death. There was to be no compromise when it came to tsara’at, and there was to be no compromise in the purity and holiness of the individual Israelite so that he would not die in a state of ritual uncleanness for defiling God’s holy Tabernacle/Temple (Leviticus 15:31).
We, like the ancient Israelites, should not compromise our spiritual purity and holiness. We need to realize that there is a spiritual battle going on in our lives. John warns us: do not love the world or the things of the world. If anyone loves the world, then the love of the Father is not in him; for all that is in the world – the desires of the old nature, the desires of the eyes, and pride in our achievements and possessions – these are not from the Father, but are from this world. The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever (First John 2:15-17).
The kingdom of the world and the kingdom of God are inherently incompatible, mutually exclusive and opposed to one another (First John 4:5-6, 5:4-5; John 15:19; Galatians 6:14). True believers, therefore, will not be characterized by a habitual love for the world, nor will worldly people demonstrate a genuine affection for the Gospel and its Lord (John 3:20; Acts 7:51, 13:8-10, 17:5 and 13; Romans 8:7; Colossians 1:21, and First Thessalonians 2:14-16).
Clearly, there is an unmistakable line of demarcation between the things of God and the things of the world. The ongoing moral and ethical deterioration of contemporary culture makes this obvious. Even brief consideration provides a lengthy list of cultural agendas that are aggressively hostile to biblical teachings: an attack on the traditional family by feminism; an active promotion of sexual promiscuity and homosexuality (see Ae – the Bible and Homosexual Practice); an emphasis on materialism and hedonism by the secular media; a steady decline in standards of personal integrity and business ethics; the confusion of right and wrong by postmodern relativism; and so on . . .
To support his rebuke, John doesn’t offer a long list of specifics or detailed illustrations. Instead, he presents three general reasons believers must not love the world: because of who they are, because of what the world does, and because of where the world is going.
1. Because of who believers are: If anyone loves the world, then the love of the Father is not in him (First John 2:15b). Because believers are forgiven (Psalm 86:5, 130:3-4; Isaiah 1:18; Matthew 26:28; Luke 1:77; Ephesians 1:7 and 4:32; Colossians 1:14, 2:13-14, 3:13; First John 2:12), have a true knowledge of God (Second Corinthians 2:14, 4:6; Ephesians 4:13; Colossians 1:9-10), have the Word of God living in them (Psalm 119:11; Colossians 3:16), have overcome Satan (James 4:7; First John 4:4), and have an increasingly intimate relationship with the Father (First John 2:12-14), they cannot love the world. Anyone who loves the world demonstrates that the love of the Father is not in him. Like Demas, such a spiritual defector reveals that any previous claim to know and love God was nothing but a lie (First John 2:19).
Nevertheless, the basic identity of believers as the children of ADONAI does not make us immune to the world’s allure. Because we are still sinners – saved by grace – we are tempted through our remaining flesh by the world’s behaviors and schemes (Matthew 26:41; First Corinthians 10:13; Galatians 6:1; Ephesians 6:16; James 1:12-14; First Peter 5:8-9). Whether the temptation comes from worldly priorities, worldly amusements, worldly riches, or worldly lusts, we need to resist the world’s efforts to seduce us. Yeshua warned His listeners: No servant can serve two masters; for he will either hate the one and love the other, or else he will be devoted to one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money (Luke 16:13).
2. Because of what the world does: For all that is in the world – the desires of the old nature, the desires of the eyes, and pride in our achievements and possessions – these are not from the Father, but are from this world (First John 2:16). Although it manifests itself in external actions, the roots of sin go much deeper, embedded in the very fabric of the depraved human heart. Sin permeates the fallen mind, internally defiling the sinner in every aspect of his being (Matthew 15:18-20). Thus, the TaNaKh likens sin to a deadly plague (First Kings 8:38), filthy garments (Zechariah 3:3-4), or even filthy menstrual rags (Isaiah 64:6). Sin is so foul that Ha’Shem hates it (Proverbs 15:9) and sinners loathe themselves because of their inherent weakness (Ezeki’el 6:9). Sin is so humanly incurable that sinners have no capacity in and of themselves to remedy their sin (Romans 8:7-8; First Corinthians 2:14; Ephesians 2:1). Finally, sin is universal. David wrote: They have all turned aside, together they have become corrupt; there is no one who does good, not even one (Psalm 14:3; Isaiah 53:1-3; Ecclesiastes 7:20; Romans 3:10-12, 3:23, and 5:12).
The three-fold attack on humanity through the flesh, the eyes and the pride in our achievements and possessions can be most easily seen in Genesis 3:1-7, one of the most foundational and pivotal passages in Scripture. There Satan utilized the same threefold temptation to attack his target. Adam and Eve succumbed in Genesis 3:6, plunging the human race into sin. When the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it had a pleasing appearance and that the tree was desirable for making one wise, she took some of its fruit and ate. She also gave some to her husband, who was with her; and he ate. The Adversary appealed to Eve’s desire for food (the desires of the old nature), her desire to have something attractive (the desires of the eyes), and her desire to have wisdom (the pride of life). Adam accepted the same enticements without protest and ate the fruit his wife gave him, and the Lawless One’s kingdom gained its initial foothold on earth.
It is not surprising, then, to see that the world, under the Tempter’s leadership, continues to assault sinners through those same three pathways of temptation. The Ruler of Darkness plays on the corruptibility of the fallen human heart to achieve the maximum impact for evil and chaos in the world. But we are not slaves to the diabolical, corrupt world system (Romans 6:5-14; James 4:7; First Peter 5:8-9; First John 4:1-6). Like our Lord, who has redeemed us, we possess the ability to successfully resist the temptations of this world (Romans 8:1-13; James 4:7).
3. Because of where the world is going: The world is passing away, and also its lusts; but the one who does the will of God lives forever (First John 2:15-17). The third reason we are not to love the world is because it is passing away. The principle of the kingdom of sin and death is the exact opposite of the principle of the Kingdom of Life and Righteousness. Therefore, the living dead in the world are destined for eternal death in hell, but believers are destined for eternal life in heaven (see the commentary on The Life of Christ Ms – The Eternal Security of the Believer). The one who does the will of God, who trusts and obeys Messiah, has nothing to fear concerning the world’s process of self-destruction (First Thessalonians 1:10 and 5:9). It is God’s will that people believe the Gospel, repent of their sin, and embrace Yeshua Messiah as their personal Lord and Savior (Mark 1:15; John 6:29; First Timothy 2:4-6). By doing this they will demonstrate that they love what ADONAI loves and hate what He hates. They will clearly no longer be devoted to the unbelieving world system and will shun its continuous appeal to sin, which comes through the desires of the old nature, the desires of the eyes, and pride in achievements and possessions.232
What is the future of disease or illness? In the present world . . . death. But in ADONAI’s new creation, it will be done away with because of Messiah’s victory over the grave. For the believer, this life of pollution and pain, of disease and death, will end with the glorification of the people of God. Because disease and death are incompatible with the glory of YHVH, nothing impure will enter the heavenly City (Revelation 21:27). The same promise has not been given to the wicked (Revelation 22:11).233 There is no middle ground.
Dear Heavenly Father, Praise You for Your perfect balance of Holiness and Love. The great depth of Your holiness is shown by the Seraphim in heaven repeatedly calling out about Your holiness. Seraphim . . . called out to another, saying: Holy, holy, holy, is ADONAI-Tzva’ot! The whole earth is full of His glory (Isaiah 6:3). Your desire is for those who love You, follow You by their walking in love. The one who does not love does not know God, for God is love (First John 4:8). You command Your children to be holy (Leviticus 11:44a, 19:2, 20:7 and 26).
Yet, You also model hating violence. ADONAI examines the righteous. But the wicked and one loving violence His soul hates (Psalms 11:5). David, the man after Your own heart (Acts 13:22) hated evil, when he said: I detest the company of evildoers, and do not sit with the wicked. I will wash my hands in innocence, so I can walk around Your altar, ADONAI (Psalms 26:5-6). Even in the B’rit Chadashah You tell Your children to be holy. For it is written, “Kedoshim you shall be, for I am kadosh.” If you call on Him as Father – the One who judges impartially according to each one’s deeds – then live out the time of sojourning in reverent fear (First Peter 1:16-17, First Thes. 4:7) and to hate/detest evil. Let love be without hypocrisy- detesting what is evil, holding fast to the good (Romans 12:9).
When to hate? When to love? Praise You for Your life that lives out the answer to both of these questions. Your great love desires all to be saved. The Lord is not slow in keeping His promise, as some consider slowness. Rather, He is being patient toward you – not wanting anyone to perish, but for all to come to repentance (Second Peter 3:9). Your promise of love was not an open promise to all people; but a promise to those whose faith turns them away from their sin and towards loving and following You. Your love and forgiveness was revealed to the paralytic and all who had faith and repented of their sins (Mark 2:12).
Though love was Your new commandment “I give you a new commandment, that you love one another. Just as I have loved you, so also you must love one another (John 13:34); yet holiness was also important. It was not a cold holiness of a dead deed, but Your warm love and holiness were inseparably wrapped together so that Your love and Your holiness paid the price for sin (John 1:29) to give Your righteousness (Second Corinthians 5:21) to all whose hearts were cleansed by Your blood (Ephesians 1:7).
There is a correlation to whom You allow into heaven and who was allowed into the camp of Your covenant people. You protected Your covenant people in Leviticus 13:44-46 by having the unclean lepers outside the camp. In the same way, all who will live in heaven will be protected from uncleanness, for no sin/uncleanness will ever be able to enter heaven. And nothing unholy shall ever enter it, nor anyone doing what is detestable or false, but only those written in the Book of Life (Revelation 21:27).
Your love offers heaven/inside the camp, to all who have love/faith in You turning from sins/repentance to follow You. Yeshua came to heal. Lepers healed by Yeshua (Matt 8:1-4, Luke 17:11-19) were made whole and could reenter the camp. Your holiness cannot allow any unclean heart in heaven. Sinners (Romans 3:23, 6:23) who turn to Yeshua in faith (Romans 10:9-10) are made whole by Yeshua’s blood (Ephesians 1:7), and are able to enter heaven. Yet heaven is not so much a place to go, but a Person to be with. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they may have the right to the tree of life and that they may enter the city by the gates (Revelation 22:13-14). Lepers made whole, could come back and live inside the camp. Sinners cleansed/made whole by Jesus’ blood, can live with God in His holy heaven. Thank You Yeshua for Your great love and holiness coming together in Your cross and resurrection power. We love and worship You! In Yeshua’s holy Name and power of His resurrection. Amen
Leave A Comment