13:45 “As for the diseased person who has the infection, 1 his clothes must be torn, the hair of his head must be unbound, he must cover his mustache, 2 and he must call out ‘Unclean! Unclean!’
14:8 “The one being cleansed 3 must then wash his clothes, shave off all his hair, and bathe in water, and so be clean. 4 Then afterward he may enter the camp, but he must live outside his tent seven days.
15:13 “‘When the man with the discharge becomes clean from his discharge he is to count off for himself seven days for his purification, and he must wash his clothes, bathe in fresh water, 6 and be clean.
21:10 “‘The high 7 priest – who is greater than his brothers, on whose head the anointing oil is poured, who has been ordained 8 to wear the priestly garments – must neither dishevel the hair of his head nor tear his garments. 9
1 tn Heb “And the diseased one who in him is the infection.”
2 tn Heb “and his head shall be unbound, and he shall cover on [his] mustache.” Tearing one’s clothing, allowing the hair to hang loose rather than bound up in a turban, and covering the mustache on the upper lip are all ways of expressing shame, grief, or distress (cf., e.g., Lev 10:6 and Micah 3:7).
3 tn Heb “the one cleansing himself” (i.e., Hitpael participle of טָהֵר [taher, “to be clean”]).
4 tn Heb “and he shall be clean” (so ASV). The end result of the ritual procedures in vv. 4-7 and the washing and shaving in v. 8a is that the formerly diseased person has now officially become clean in the sense that he can reenter the community (see v. 8b; contrast living outside the community as an unclean diseased person, Lev 13:46). There are, however, further cleansing rituals and pronouncements for him to undergo in the tabernacle as outlined in vv. 10-20 (see Qal “be[come] clean” in vv. 9 and 20, Piel “pronounce clean” in v. 11, and Hitpael “the one being cleansed” in vv. 11, 14, 17, 18, and 19). Obviously, in order to enter the tabernacle he must already “be clean” in the sense of having access to the community.
5 tn Heb “his right finger from the oil.”
6 tn For the expression “fresh water” see the note on Lev 14:5 above.
7 tn The adjective “high” has been supplied in the translation for clarity, as in many English versions.
8 tn Heb “and he has filled his hand.” For this expression see the note on Lev 8:33.
9 tn Regarding these signs of mourning see the note on Lev 10:6. His head had been anointed (v. 10a) so it must not be unkempt (v. 10b), and his garments were special priestly garments (v. 10a) so he must not tear them (v. 10b). In the translation “garments” has been employed rather than “clothes” to suggest that the special priestly garments are referred to here; cf. NRSV “nor tear his vestments.”