then the priest shall look; and indeed if the bright spots on the skin of the body are dull white, it is a white spot that grows on the skin. He is clean.
Parallel translations
- WEB then the priest shall examine them; and behold, if the bright spots on the skin of their body are a dull white, it is a harmless rash, it has broken out in the skin; he is clean.
- KJV Then the priest shall look: and, behold, if the bright spots in the skin of their flesh be darkish white; it is a freckled spot that groweth in the skin; he is clean.
- BSB the priest shall examine them, and if the spots are dull white, it is a harmless rash that has broken out on the skin; the person is clean.
- NASB then the priest shall look, and if the bright spots on the skin of their bodies are a faint white, it is eczema that has broken out on the skin; he is clean.
- NLT the priest must examine the affected area. If he finds that the shiny patches are only pale white, this is a harmless skin rash, and the person is ceremonially clean.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
Scripture quotations taken from the (NASB®) New American Standard Bible®, Copyright © 1960, 1971, 1977, 1995, 2020 by The Lockman Foundation. Used by permission. All rights reserved. lockman.org
Scripture quotations are taken from the Holy Bible, New Living Translation, copyright © 1996, 2004, 2015 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers, Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
Quick answer
If the spots are a dull white, it is only a harmless rash and the person is clean. Faded white blotches carry no defilement.
Overview
When the bright spots are a dull white, it is merely a harmless rash that has broken out in the skin, and the person is clean. Not every skin blemish is defiling; this one is benign. The reassuring verdict reminds us that God distinguishes truly between the harmful and the harmless, never condemning where there is no real corruption.
Cross-references & the web
Cross-references · 3
- Eccl 7:20Surely there is not a righteous man on earth, who does good and doesn’t sin.
- Rom 7:22–25For I delight in God’s law after the inward man,
- Jas 3:2For in many things we all stumble. If anyone doesn’t stumble in word, the same is a perfect man, able to bridle the whole body also.
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Christ at the center
Every sacrifice, every priest, and every day of atonement points beyond itself to the one perfect offering and the great High Priest who, by his own blood, makes the unclean holy once for all.
How Leviticus 13:39 points to him is part of the one story that runs through all Scripture — meet Jesus at the heart of the web, or follow a trail that traces him from Genesis to Revelation.
Original language
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