Topical Bible: Leprosy: Infected: Men

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Topical Encyclopedia

Leprosy, a term used in the Bible to describe a variety of skin diseases, holds significant theological and social implications within the scriptural narrative. In the ancient Near East, leprosy was not only a physical ailment but also a condition that rendered individuals ceremonially unclean, affecting their participation in community and worship.

Biblical Instances of Men Infected with Leprosy

1. Moses' Hand: In Exodus 4:6-7, God provides Moses with a sign to demonstrate His power. Moses' hand becomes leprous, "white as snow," and is then miraculously healed. This incident underscores God's sovereignty and ability to afflict and heal, serving as a divine sign to authenticate Moses' mission.

2. Miriam and Aaron's Challenge: In Numbers 12, Miriam and Aaron speak against Moses, questioning his unique role as God's prophet. As a consequence, Miriam is struck with leprosy. Aaron pleads with Moses, who intercedes for her, and God commands that she be shut out of the camp for seven days. This narrative highlights the seriousness of challenging God's appointed leaders and the mercy available through intercession.

3. Naaman the Syrian: In 2 Kings 5, Naaman, a commander of the army of the king of Aram, suffers from leprosy. He seeks healing from the prophet Elisha, who instructs him to wash in the Jordan River seven times. Naaman's healing, after initial reluctance, demonstrates God's power and grace extending beyond Israel to the Gentiles, emphasizing faith and obedience.

4. Gehazi's Punishment: Following Naaman's healing, Elisha's servant Gehazi deceitfully acquires gifts from Naaman. As a result, Elisha pronounces that Naaman's leprosy will cling to Gehazi and his descendants forever (2 Kings 5:27). This account serves as a warning against greed and deceit, illustrating the moral and spiritual dimensions of leprosy as a divine judgment.

5. King Uzziah: In 2 Chronicles 26, King Uzziah, who initially prospers under God's favor, becomes proud and unlawfully enters the temple to burn incense. As a result, God strikes him with leprosy, and he remains a leper until his death, living in isolation. Uzziah's account is a cautionary tale about pride and the importance of adhering to God's established order.

Levitical Laws and Social Implications

Leviticus 13 and 14 provide detailed laws regarding the diagnosis and purification of leprosy. The priests were responsible for examining individuals and determining their status. Those declared leprous were required to live outside the camp, wear torn clothes, and cry out "Unclean, unclean!" (Leviticus 13:45-46). This separation underscores the holiness of the community and the need for purity in worship.

The purification process, once a leper was healed, involved offerings and rituals that symbolized cleansing and restoration (Leviticus 14). These laws reflect the broader biblical theme of sin and redemption, with leprosy serving as a metaphor for sin's defilement and the need for divine intervention for cleansing.

New Testament Context

In the New Testament, Jesus' healing of lepers signifies the inbreaking of God's kingdom and the restoration of those marginalized by society. In Luke 17:11-19, Jesus heals ten lepers, but only one, a Samaritan, returns to give thanks, highlighting themes of gratitude and faith. Jesus' interactions with lepers demonstrate His compassion and authority over physical and spiritual uncleanness, fulfilling the messianic prophecies of healing and restoration.

Leprosy in the Bible, particularly in the context of infected men, serves as a profound symbol of the human condition, illustrating the need for divine grace and the transformative power of faith and obedience.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Luke 17:12
And as he entered into a certain village, there met him ten men that were lepers, which stood afar off:
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

Gehazi
... have owed much of their success and more of their happiness to the fidelity and
love of men of the ... But was Naaman's the only leprosy that infected Gehazi? ...
//christianbookshelf.org/milligan/men of the bible some lesser-known/gehazi.htm

"And if Christ be in You, the Body is Dead Because of Sin: but the ...
... house, the body, so the great house, the world, was infected with this leprosy,
and so ... soul, and the world renewed, may be a fit house for righteous men. ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/sermon xxviii and if christ.htm

Original Sin
... sin break forth in the holiest men on the ... the leper touched became unclean; such
a leprosy is original ... of breath, so original corruption has infected our hearts ...
//christianbookshelf.org/watson/a body of divinity/3 original sin.htm

Whether Vengeance Should be Taken on those who have Sinned ...
... the divine judgment, when this is manifest, and God condemns men spiritually for ...
or acquiring a certain good: thus for being infected with leprosy a man ...
/.../aquinas/summa theologica/whether vengeance should be taken.htm

As in a Race Saw I the Disputers, the Children of Strife, [Trying] ...
... He infected the flock, and the leprosy broke out ... And as he plaited for Him by silent
men speechless thorns that cry out, thorns from the mind has he plaited ...
/.../ephraim/hymns and homilies of ephraim the syrian/hymn vii as in a.htm

Whether the First Sin of Our First Parent is Contracted by his ...
... soul would seem to produce other infected souls. ... corruption, although this corruption
is not leprosy or gout ... the matter otherwise by saying that all men born of ...
//christianbookshelf.org/aquinas/summa theologica/whether the first sin of.htm

Concerning Jeroboam King of Israel and Jonah the Prophet; and How ...
... by general officers and captains of thousands, who were men of valor ... soon as the
priests saw that the king's face was infected with the leprosy, they told ...
/.../josephus/the antiquities of the jews/chapter 10 concerning jeroboam king.htm

How Love is the Life of the Soul, and Continuation of the ...
... Behold, Theotimus, how two men are represented in each ... not now the old, leprous,
corrupt, infected Naaman, but a ... Naaman, because he was dead to leprosy and was ...
/.../francis/treatise on the love of god/chapter vii how love is.htm

On the Article, and in one Holy Ghost, the Comforter, which Spake ...
... shalt thou go; thou hast sold the cure of the leper, and the leprosy is thy ... to me,
He says to Daniel; young though thou be, convict old men infected with the ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture xvi on the article.htm

Of Sin by Imputation and Propagation.
... of sin entering into the world hath infected all, and gone ... that it is so, when this
leprosy hath defiled ... man's nature, and, being seen, would most humble men. ...
/.../binning/the works of the rev hugh binning/lecture xxiv of sin by.htm