פרק י״ג - פסוק ב
״אדם כי יהיה בעור בשרו שאת או ספחת או בהרת והיה בעור בשרו לנגע צרעת והובא אל אהרון הכוהן או אל אחד מבניו הכהנים.״
“If a man has a se’eith, a sappachath, or a baheret on the skin of his flesh, and it forms a lesion of tzaraat on the skin of his flesh, he shall be brought to Aaron the kohen, or to one of his sons, the kohanim.”
Question:
When צרעת starts to form on one's skin, they are quickly brought to אהרון or to one of his sons, the כוהנים. But what did צרעת actually look like? Was it always obvious when one was impure with צרעת? Why did Tzara'at impact a person's environment and things they owned?
A source that relates to my question:
The passuk only states that בהרת forms into צרעת. Rashi wonders what the word "בהרת" in passuk bet actually means. He says that baheret means "spot" in Old French and is similar to a verse in איוב; “It’s like bright clouds in the skies”, like how the spots are created by bright clouds in the blue sky.
Rashi says about Tzaraat: "It is a Scriptural decree that the uncleanness of lesions and their cleanness do not come about except by the pronouncement of a kohen"
ReplyDeleteI understand the fact that ONLY Kohanim could "diagnose" the Tzaraat shows that that it was difficult to "diagnose". In my understanding this meant that it was not always clear when someone was infected with Tzaraat it required someone train specifically to "diagnose".
-Elianna Ashendorf
DeleteJennifer Felder
ReplyDeleteSforno comments that Tzaraat was different skin afflictions, the common denominator being that they are of different shades of white. Tzaraat doesn't look like known skin diseases and there we can differentiate between Tzaraat and a skin irritation. Sforno states that Tzaraat normally occurs with a sin between people, so the Tzaraat is midah keneged midah that it affects their possessions and environment.
I think this description of Tzaraat is good because it gives us somewhat of a image of what Tzaraat could've looked like, while still putting it on a different level than normal skin diseases. I also agree with the midah keneged midah aspect of Tzaraat.
According to Ramban, Tzaraat represents a withdrawal of holiness from the world. Tzaraat spread to people’s houses as a result of their sin so if someone sinned they would likely notice green or red steaks on their walls. In this interpretation, hashem was literally removbig himself and his presence from that person’s home. I like this idea because it takes the literal words of the concept and adds this idea of Hashem physically in addition to emotionally removing himself from the sinner.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteSome say that צרעת was a disease called Hansen’s disease. Hansen’s disease is an infectious illness that attacks the skin and nervous system, and can cripple a person. However, biblical scholars and medical researchers today deny any link between leprosy as described in the Torah, and Hansen’s disease, which was unknown in the Biblical era. I think this is a fair explanation of what Leprosy could have been, though the fact that Biblical Scholars disagree makes me doubt it.
ReplyDeleteSource: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.haaretz.com/amp/jewish/portion-of-the-week/.premium-the-bibles-view-of-leprosy-1.5432286
Chizkuni says it was an elevation of the skin that in the shade it appeared to get more light than the rest of the face. He also said it was similar to leprosy or eczema, it was white. The person would have to be brought to Aharon even against his will. I think this is a logical explanation.
ReplyDeleteSylvie
Tova Rubin
ReplyDeleteThe Tiferet Shlomo says that tzaarat is the only physical manifestation of punishment for sinning. If you cause someone shame by speaking lashon hara then in turn you will also be shamed publicly and others will know about it. Similarly, you will feel the same amount of pain as you caused others. I like this answer because it provides a reasonable explanation for why people get tzaraat and it serves as a preventative measure so people won’t sin.
Dalia Adams
ReplyDeleteThe Ramban says that this occurs when someone gossips or is selfish. Hashem actually has mercy on this person and first punishes the house but if they do not repent, that is when they get some kind of rash or skin disease.