Reading
SAA Notes
The procedure in this chapter is that which Jesus tells the leper He cleansed to go and do. (Matthew 8:2,3) Jesus said the same thing to the ten lepers He healed â though only the Samaritan came back to thank Him. (Luke 17:12-17) The atonement offering also reminded the cleansed sufferer of his greater need to be cleansed of that worse leprosy â sin.
SJA Notes
* Father God, you are holy. Please show us Your wisdom today from Your word.
“He [leprous person] shall be brought to the priest, and the priest shall go out of the camp, and the priest shall look.”
The priest shall go out of the camp.
Outside the camp.
In the previous chapter we read of the leprous person,
“He shall remain unclean as long as he has the disease. He is unclean. He shall live alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.”
In Hebrews we are prompted to think about what being “outside the camp” means,
“So Jesus also suffered outside the gate in order to sanctify the people through his own blood. Therefore let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he endured.”
Having leprosy would mean a great deal of reproach. You even had to cry out “Unclean! Unclean!”
We know that while leprosy is a bodily disease, our sin is a much more terrible and potent disease that stains our soul.
So Jesus went outside of the city gates, walked the loneliest road, coming to a hill where He was crucified and died.
Jesus bore the reproach of our sin, unclean unclean!
But Jesus won the day!
His blood shed cleanses us, His once-for-all sacrifice doing what these temporal atones could not do.
Jesus went outside the camp and suffered for us so that we would escape and be saved into eternal life.
Let us then wrestle with what it means to bear the reproach of His Name in this world.
* Dear Lord God,
Please help us today to point people to You, even when rebuke and reproach might come our way.
Amen.