According to the
sages these two Torah portions “tazria and metzorah” reveal great mysteries of
the Messiah.
The ancient sages had no
doubt in their minds that this Torah portion and the next (metzora) had more to
say about the Messiah than any other Torah portions in the Torah.
The Sages believe that
the one true evidence that the Messiah had come is that he would be the one to
heal “leprosy” or “tzara’at”.
Thus
the Talmud (Sanhedrin 98b) describes Moshiach as a metzora, signifying
that the messianic age is a time in which evils that have infested the world
and mankind rise to the surface, so that they can be decisively overcome and
cured.
Blessing for the
Torah:
Baruch atah YHVH, Eloheynu, Melech ha-O’lam, asher bachar banu m’kol
ha-amim,
v’natan lanu eht Torah-to. Baruch atah YHVH, noteyn ha-Torah. Ameyn.”
(Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim , King of the Universe,
(Blessed are you, YHVH, our Elohim , King of the Universe,
you have selected us from among all the peoples, and have given us your
Torah.
Blessed are you, YHVH, giver of the Torah. Ameyn.)
Torah Readings (when Tazría
is read together with Metzorah):
- 12:1 – 13:23
- 13:24-39
- 13:40-54
- 13:55 – 14: 20
- 14:21-32
- 14:33 – 15:15
- 15:16-30
- Maftir: 15:31-33
Haftarah: 2
Kings 4:42 – 5:19
Aliyah Rishon
12:1-13:23
Vayiqra/Lev 12:1
And יהוה spoke to Mosheh, saying,
When a male child is born:
Lev
12:2 “Speak to the children of Yisra’ĕl,
saying, ‘When a woman has conceived, and has given birth to a male child, then
she shall be unclean seven days, as in the days of her monthly separation she
is unclean.
‘When
a woman has conceived” “Tazria” is a hiphil feminine imperfect verb and
therefore more accurately translates as “when a seed is caused to come forth
from within her body” this implies ovulation or even conception. In vs 2 we see that this ovulation brought forth
conception and finally birth.
This statement could also refer to the promised
seed (Messiah) given in Beresheet/Gen 3:15
Ber/Gen 3:15 “And I put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your seed and her Seed1. He shall crush your head, and you
shall crush His heel.” Footnote: 1First promise of the Messiah.
She is “nidat dotah” or she is “separated to infirmity” for seven days.
“Niddah” is not some defiling act that a woman must endure - it should be seen as a prophetic reminder that
we, the bride of Messiah have also being “separated to infirmity” for seven
millennia before complete and perfect restoration occurs in the eighth
millennium.
Lev
12:3 ‘And on the eighth day the flesh of
his foreskin is circumcised.
Lev
12:4 ‘And she remains in the blood of
her cleansing thirty-three days. She does not touch whatever is set-apart, and
she does not come into the set-apart place until the days of her cleansing are
completed.
When a Female child is born:
Lev
12:5 ‘But if she gives birth to a female
child, then she shall be unclean for two weeks, as in her monthly separation,
and she remains in the blood of her cleansing for sixty-six days.
“In Hebrew thinking every child is seen as a gift
of YHVH. In Hebrew thinking the task of raising children is taken very
seriously and great devotion and care is taken to raise children according to
the instructions of Torah to help bring about the restoration of all things in
coming generations. Childbirth is wondrous. To be a parent is the closest any
of us come to YHVH Himself. That, incidentally, according to the sages is why
women are closer to YHVH than men, because they, unlike men, know what it is to
bring new life out of themselves, as YHVH brings life out of Himself. The idea
is beautifully captured in the verse in which, leaving Eden, Adam turns to his wife and calls her Chavah [Eve]
“for she is the mother of all life.”
Ber/Gen 3:20
We see that in the case of the girl that her time
of separation and dedication are twice as long as that of the male because she,
Yah willing will in later years become a source of life herself.’
As one rabbi eloquently stated the reason why a
mother is separated is as if YHVH Himself is saying: “I exempt you from coming before Me in the
place of set apartness because you are fully engaged in one of the set apart
acts of all, nurturing and caring for your child. Unlike others you do not need
to visit the Temple to be attached to life in all its set apart splendor. You are experiencing
it yourself, directly and with every fiber of your being. Days, weeks, from now
you will come and give thanks before Me (together with offerings for having
come through a moment of danger). But for now, look upon your child with
wonder. For you have been given a glimpse of the great secret, otherwise known
only to YHVH. Childbirth exempts the new mother from attendance at the Temple
because her bedside replicates the experience of the Temple. She now knows what
it is for love to beget life and in the midst of mortality to be touched by an
intimation of immortality.”
Lev
12:6 ‘And when the days of her cleansing
are completed, for a son or for a daughter, she brings to the priest a lamb a
year old, as a burnt offering, and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin
offering, to the door of the Tent of Meeting.
Lev
12:7 ‘And he shall bring it before יהוה, and make atonement for her, and
she shall be cleansed from the flow of her blood. This is the Torah for her who
has given birth to a male or a female.
Lev 12:8 ‘And if she is not able to bring a lamb, then
she shall bring two turtledoves or two young pigeons, one as a burnt offering
and the other as a sin offering. And the priest shall make atonement for her,
and she shall be clean.’ ”
Luk 2:21 And when eight days were
completed for Him to be circumcised, His Name was called יהושע, the Name given by the messenger before He was conceived in the
womb.
Luk 2:22 And when
the days of her cleansing according to the Torah of Mosheh were completed, they
brought Him to Yerushalayim to present Him to יהוה –
Luk 2:23 as it has
been written in the Torah of יהוה, “Every male who opens the womb shall be called set-apart to יהוה” –
Luk 2:24 and to give an offering according to what is
said in the Torah of יהוה, “A pair of turtledoves or two young pigeons.”
“ Metzora “. The Torah now gives intruction concerning “tzara’at” A certain teacher rather eloquently summed up this disease in the following words: : “Biography Becomes Biology”
In other words the story of our lives, hidden and seen will manifest itself in our physical condition.
“Miriam, Moshe’s sister, received leprosy for speaking ill of Moshe. From this the midrash derives that tsoraat, termed leprosy, is a punishment for the sin of ‘lashon hara’, speaking ill of others.
The meaning of this punishment is that the evil in one’s being is physically manifested. This punishment is therapeutic as it forces the sinner to come to grips with his misdeeds and change himself from the inside.
By being made repulsive to others (having tzara’at), one feels what his victims have experienced. The obligation that the Metzora, the person with tsoraat, will experience is isolation and they will be aware that something deep inside their beings is not right. This causes them to face their own true self and they focus on their own shortcomings instead of those of others.
Caroline Myss’s work “The Anatomy of Spirit” argues that “biography becomes biology”. Who we are, our thoughts, feelings and the way we live our life, impact on our physiology.
We participate in the creation of our diseases; we have the responsibility to take part of the process of healing. This approach gives insight on the Torah’s approach to Metzora, on the interplay between body and soul.
From the spirit the physical problems emerge, from the spirit the physical problem will be overcome.”
Lev 13:1 And יהוה spoke to
Mosheh and to Aharon, saying,
Lev
13:2 “When a man has on the skin of his body a swelling, a scab, or a bright
spot, and it shall become on the skin of his body like a leprous infection,
then he shall be brought to Aharon the priest or to one of his sons the
priests.
Lev
13:3 “And the priest shall look at the
infection on the skin of the body. And if the hair on the infection has turned
white, and the infection appears to be
deeper than the skin of his body, it is a leprous infection. And the priest
shall look at him, and pronounce him
unclean. (tamei)
Lev
13:4 “But (ve im = and if) if the bright spot is white on the skin of his
body, and does not appear to be deeper than the skin, and its hair has not
turned white, then the priest shall shut up the infected one seven days.
Lev 13:5 “And the priest shall look at him on the
seventh day and see, if the infection appears to be as it was, and the
infection has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall shut him up another
seven days.
Lev
13:6 “And the priest shall look at him
again on the seventh day and see, if the infection has darkened, and the
infection has not spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him
clean. It is a scab, and he shall wash his garments and be clean.
Lev
13:7 “But if the scab spreads further
over the skin, after he has been seen by the priest for his cleansing, he shall
be seen by the priest again.
Lev
13:8 “And the priest shall look and see,
if the scab has spread on the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him
unclean, it is leprosy.
Lev
13:9 “When the infection of leprosy is
on a man, then he shall be brought to the priest.
Lev 13:10 “And the priest shall look and see, if the
swelling on the skin is white, and it has turned the hair white, and there is a
spot of raw flesh in the swelling,
Lev 13:11 it is an old leprosy on the skin of his body,
and the priest shall pronounce him unclean. He does not shut him up, for he is
unclean.
Lev 13:12 “And if leprosy breaks out all over the skin,
and the leprosy shall cover all the skin of the infected one, from his head to
his foot, wherever the priest looks,
Lev 13:13 then the priest shall look and see, if the
leprosy has covered all his body, he shall pronounce the infected one clean. It
has all turned white, he is clean.
Lev
13:14 “But the day raw flesh appears on
him, he is unclean.
Lev
13:15 “And the priest shall look at the
raw flesh and pronounce him to be unclean – the raw flesh is unclean, it is
leprosy.
Lev
13:16 “Or when the raw flesh changes and
turns white again, he shall come to the priest.
Lev
13:17 “And the priest shall look at him
and see, if the infection has turned white, then the priest shall pronounce the
infected one clean, he is clean.
Lev
13:18 “And when the body has a boil in
the skin, and it is healed,
Lev
13:19 and in the place of the boil there
comes a white swelling or a bright spot, reddish-white, then it shall be seen
by the priest.
Lev
13:20 “And the priest shall look and
see, if it appears deeper than the skin, and its hair has turned white, the
priest shall pronounce him unclean, it is a leprous infection which has broken
out of the boil.
Lev
13:21 “But if the priest looks at it and
sees no white hairs in it, and it is not deeper than the skin, but has faded,
then the priest shall shut him up seven days;
Lev
13:22 and if it has spread further over
the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean, it is a leprous
infection.
Lev
13:23 “But if the bright spot stays in
its place, it has not spread, it is the scar of the boil, and the priest shall
pronounce him clean.
The Great Mystery Concerning Tzara’at.
The first aliyah introduces both major
themes of this Torah
portion viz. Instructions concerning childbirth as well as the skin disease
called “tzara’at” or psoriasis. This must not be confused with Hansens disease
or leprosy.
Some
Hebrew Terms Relating to This Passage:
tzaraas: skin disease
(improperly translated as “leprosy” in some Translations)
niddah: someone who is
separated or menstruous
tumah: spiritual impurity
metzora: one with a skin
disease; a contraction of the Hebrew word motzi and ra meaning
“one who speaks slander” ie you want to give the idea that a person is unclean
and should be avoided.
The only disease discussed in the Torah that includes laws pertaining to
its manifestation and cure is tzara'at. This renders tzara'at the
archetypical, all-inclusive disease.
The sage go on to say that Tzara’at, is derived from a lack of humility,
from the failure to yield one's own will to the will of one's Creator.
Each 3-letter root in the
Hebrew language has six possible permutations. In all the Hebrew language there
are only seven 3-letter roots whose six permutations all have meaning.
The Six Permutations of Tzara
(Rabbi Ginsberg – Inner.org)
Let us now explore the
cycle of images created by the root of tzara'at--tzara (tzadik, reish,
ayin):
Root
|
Word
|
Meaning
|
tzadik, reish, ayin
|
tzara
|
leprosy
|
tzadik, ayin, reish
|
tza'ar
|
hardship,
pain
|
reish, ayin, tzadik
|
ra'atz
|
to
smash
|
reish, tzadik, ayin
|
ratza
|
to
inflict stripes (by whipping with a strap)
|
ayin, tzadik, reish
|
atzar
|
to
halt or rule to prevent anarchic expansion
|
ayin, reish, tzadik
|
aratz
|
to
respect (a tyrant) because of his power
|
When a tzadik suffers, this does not at all interfere with his
faith in YHVH. The suffering even enhances his faith, as he is happy with the
knowledge that all that happens to him comes from YHVH and is for his ultimate
good. This is the origin of his ultimate healing
According to the Talmud, prior to his revelation, the Mashiach is
a leper who sits at the gateway of Rome (Western civilization). When this leper
is healed, he will transform to the revealed Mashiach.
The quintessential cure for this
frustration and disease is the manifestation of the Mashiach, who will
bring redemption to the entire world.
This all has a profound application on us
today as believers in Moshiach. One of the most significant evidences that we
are in Messiah is that we would have experienced the pain of isolation due to
our “infections.” We need to understand that as long as our attitudes and
behaviour defile others we ourselves are defiled and need “cleansing and separation.”
Many of us have felt the pain of this
separation for years and now we realize that this was not for our punishment
but for our cleansing and being able to serve as true priests of YHVH. How can a priest recognize and sympathize
with an “infected” person if that priest himself has not experienced the pain
and separation caused by his incompleteness and brokenness?
In the coming days of the great tribulation
a “prepared priesthood” will be able to minister to those who realize that YHVH
has to put his children under ‘quarantine’ for seven days (seven years of
tribulation) in order for them to be clean. The bride of Messiah will be
without spot or wrinkle.
Ignorance of this instruction can cause
great harm to come upon those who are believers in Messiah and seek to be part
of the bride of Messiah.
Hos 4:1 Hear the word of יהוה, you
children of Yisra’ĕl, for יהוה has a case against the inhabitants of the land: “For there is
no truth or kindness or knowledge of Elohim in the land.
Hos 4:6 “My people have perished
for lack of knowledge. Because you have rejected knowledge, I reject you from
being priest for Me. Since you have forgotten the Torah of your Elohim, I also
forget your children.
Aliyah Sheni
13:24-39
Lev 13:24 “Or when the body receives a burn on its skin
by fire, and the raw flesh of the burn shall become a bright spot, reddish-white
or white,
Lev 13:25 then the priest shall look at it and see, if
the hair of the bright spot has turned white, and it appears deeper than the
skin, it is leprosy broken out in the burn. And the priest shall pronounce him
unclean, it is a leprous infection.
Lev 13:26 “But if the priest looks at it and sees there
are no white hairs in the bright spot, and it is not deeper than the skin, but
has faded, then the priest shall shut him up seven days.
Lev 13:27 “And the priest shall look at him on the
seventh day. If it spreads further over the skin, then the priest shall
pronounce him unclean, it is a leprous infection.
Lev 13:28 “But if the bright spot stays in its place,
and has not spread on the skin, but has faded, it is a swelling from the burn.
And the priest shall pronounce him clean, for it is the scar from the burn.
Lev 13:29 “And when a man, or a woman, has an infection
on the head or in the beard,
Lev 13:30 then the priest shall look at the infection
and see, if it appears deeper than the skin, and there is thin yellow hair in
it, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean, it is an eruption, a leprosy
of the head or beard.
