The ancient Rabbis argued that tzara'at refers not to a bodily disease but to a physical manifestation of a spiritual malaise, a punishment designed to show a malefactor that he must mend his ways. In other words, tzara'at is not so much a disease as a form of supernatural spiritual discipline.

The biblical treatment of tzara'at was complete isolation: the person was to live outside the camp, cloak himself up to his lips, and cry out, "Unclean, unclean!" Man! That's just about the most extreme form of social exclusion I could imagine!

The ancient Rabbis argued that the inward cause tzara'at was sin, particularly anti-social sins, such as lying for selfish ends, sexual immorality, false oaths, pride, and especially slander.

In Matthew 15:18-20, we find Yeshua in agreement with the other Rabbis:

"The things that come out of the mouth come from the heart, and these make a man 'unclean.' For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander. These are what make a man 'unclean'."

Through tzara'at God was rebuking anti-social behavior - whether out of pride or selfishness, failing to respect let alone love others - by making it very obvious that the offender has sinned and must be excluded from society.

Lashon hara - evil tongue: it's very serious, very bad, at least G-d thinks so. Yet it is probably the most widely disobeyed of all His commandments. Lev 19:16 teaches: "Do not go about as a talebearer among your people." James 4:11 repeats this commandment: "Speak not evil one of another." And here is what Yeshua, our Chief Rabbi, says, in Matthew 12:35-36: "I say unto you, For every idle word that men shall speak, they shall give account thereof in the day of judgment." Pretty ominous, hmm?

Our words have the power either to build up or to tear down. With our words, we can edify, building up trust and respect and community, or can destroy, tearing down reputation and relationships and spiritual intimacy. In 2 Cor 12:20, Rabbi Sha-ul, expresses lists the sins of "quarreling, jealousy, outbursts of anger, factions, slander, gossip, arrogance and disorder." Do you see how damaging bad-mouthing can be to mishpochah, to family, to community? That's what was happening with Miriam and Aaron. Even though it was true that Moses had a Cushite wife - ach! He married a goy! What was the point of bringing it up then? Only to tear him down. So you see, even the truth, spoken negatively, is destructive. Lashon hara can divide sister & brother, wife & husband, spiritual as well as natural kin. Prov 16:27-28: "An ungodly man digs up evil, and in his lips is a scorching fire. A perverse man stirs up dissension, and a gossip separates close friends." The Chasan Sofer comments that the different types of tzara'at illustrate different forms of lashon hara:

     1) Sais (a rising): A person might speak against others to raise his own
     stature.

     2) Sapachas (a scab): A person might join (sipuach) a group of people
     who speak against others. In ordinary circumstances, he would not speak
     lashon hara but to be sociable or to fit in, he would.

     3) Baheres (a bright spot): A person might have done something against
     someone else, and in an attempt to exonerate himself, he speaks against
     that person. He clarifies (bahir) or rationalizes his behavior.

I suspect that these forms of lashon hara are familiar to us. Wouldn't you say so? Well, I'm sure glad we haven't any outbreaks of tzara'at lately, aren't you? HaShem is merciful!

Imagine what it must have been felt like to have this malady, and be excluded from the community and have to cry out "Unclean, unclean"? Have any of you ever felt unworthy? Unworthy of God, unworthy of others? Well, here's the ultimate picture of unworthiness - the unclean metzora. And it's true, because of your sin, you are unworthy, unclean before G-d. Any attempt to clean yourself up will never work. As Isaiah 64:6 says, "All of us have become like one who is unclean, and all our righteous acts are like filthy rags." Surely this is a picture of the unclean metzora, covering himself in filthy rags. So, the prophet says, all human attempts to cover up one's sins with righteousness your own tzedaka, is futile. Today, Rabbis claim that acts of tzedaka will somehow atone for our sins. But the prophet, speaking by the Ruach HaKodesh, begs to differ! And Torah, in Leviticus especially, insists that the only thing that atones for sin is the blood of an innocent goat or lamb, which points to the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. For what makes you unworthy isn't just dirt, you can wash away with soap or Fantastic. It's the stain of sin on your heart. As Psalm 130:3 says, "If you, O LORD, kept a record of sins, O Lord, who could stand? But with you there is forgiveness; therefore you are feared."

I believe G-d has given us this picture of the unclean metzora, in filthy rags of self-righteousness, so that we might fear Him, repent, and be restored to Him and to the heavenly community. For the mercy of our G-d is awesome! G-d accepted Moshe's intercession for his sister, and G-d supernaturally cleansed her tzara'at. The purpose of her exclusion was not ultimately to reject her. Rather it was to give her an opportunity to repent and be restored to the community. "God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble. Submit yourselves, then, to God."

I believe we get a picture of HaShem's awesome mercy in his paradoxical prescription: 13 "the priest is to examine him, and if the disease has covered his whole body, he shall pronounce that person clean. Since it has all turned white, he is clean." If a person is completely covered with tzara'at, then he is clean? Are any of you getting the picture? I think it's important that you get the picture. Take a moment to reflect, using your spiritual imagination. Imagine yourself, wanting to come into the presence of G-d. For He has been inviting you to come: come near, come into my presence, my child! But you can't, because you've got a scab on you. The angelic cherubim block the way into his awesome presence, for a little scab? If you see yourself as only a little sinful, then from G-d's point of view, then you are unclean, unclean! You are unfit to be in His presence, or really decent society - the society of heaven! You can protest all you want about the size of your scab, you're not going any further. You can scrub at that pimple all night, you'll never be clean enough, unworthy of His glory You mght as well as see yourself as you really are - covered with uncleanness and moral filth from head to toe! Now, imagine, the Cohen haGodol, the High Priest himself has come, to judge you. He sees that you are indeed covered with tzara'at, from head to toe. You agree - you really are completely sinful and unable to clean yourself! Then the Cohen smiles. Excellent! I've got good news for you! For if you let Him make you clean, then you will be really clean, holy, and worthy of Him! In Luke 5:13, Yeshua says to the leper, covered with tzara'at: "I am willing. Be clean!"

It was for this reason that Messiah Yeshua came into the world, the first time, not to condemn but to save, to wash away your sins. Because you cannot clean yourself, He came to make you clean. You are worth it to Him. Hebrews 13:11-12 explains:

The high priest - cohen ha-gadol - carried the blood of animals into the Most Holy Place as a sin offering, but the bodies were burned outside the camp. And so Yeshua also suffered outside the city gate to make the people holy through his own blood.

He knows about your sins and the sins of your family that has made you feel so unworthy, covered from head to toe with it. Still, He says, I have a way to restore you, to recreate you in my perfect image, to clothe you completely in glory again. That way is through the atonement of Messiah Yeshua. After he was whipped and stripped and hung on a wooden beam, he looked like a man covered from head to toe with tzara'at, too! He who was completely without sin, a spotless lamb, took upon himself all the sin of the world, so that you might be clean. 1 John 1:9 promises, "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and cleanse us from all unrighteousness." It's a paradox: though you are unworthy, covered with sin, you are worth it all to him, for He loves you that much! With all His heart He wants to atone for you, to cover you with his sinless blood. Though you are a man or woman of unclean lips among a people of unclean lips, unholy, unfit to stand in His presence (see Isaiah 6:5), he will make you holy, so that you might "have confidence to enter the Holy of Holies by the blood of Yeshua" (Hebrews 10:19).