Leviticus 14:1-9

Leviticus 14:1-9

[1] And the LORD  spake  unto Moses,  saying,  [2] This shall be the law  of the leper  in the day  of his cleansing:  He shall be brought  unto the priest:  [3] And the priest  shall go forth  out  of the camp;  and the priest  shall look,  and, behold, if the plague  of leprosy  be healed  in the leper;  [4] Then shall the priest  command  to take  for him that is to be cleansed  two  birds  alive  and clean,  and cedar  wood,  and scarlet,  and hyssop:  [5] And the priest  shall command  that one  of the birds  be killed  in an earthen  vessel  over running  water:  [6] As for the living  bird,  he shall take  it, and the cedar  wood,  and the scarlet,  and the hyssop,  and shall dip  them and the living  bird  in the blood  of the bird  that was killed  over the running  water:  [7] And he shall sprinkle  upon him that is to be cleansed  from the leprosy  seven  times,  and shall pronounce him clean,  and shall let the living  bird  loose  into the open  field.  [8] And he that is to be cleansed  shall wash  his clothes,  and shave  off all his hair,  and wash  himself in water,  that he may be clean:  and after  that he shall come  into the camp,  and shall tarry  abroad  out of his tent  seven  days.  [9] But it shall be on the seventh  day,  that he shall shave  all his hair  off his head  and his beard  and his eyebrows,  even all his hair  he shall shave  off: and he shall wash  his clothes,  also he shall wash  his flesh  in water,  and he shall be clean. 

What does Leviticus 14:1-9 Mean?

Contextual Meaning

The first act took place outside the camp and restored the formerly unclean person to the fellowship of the other Israelites from whom he had experienced separation because of his skin disease.
Clean animals, including clean birds, represented Israel. [1] Both of the birds used in this ritual evidently symbolized the Israelite who was about to reenter the covenant community. The bird killed probably represented the formerly unclean person whose fate was death but for God"s mercy. The bird released stood for the same person cleansed, released from the bondage of his disease, endowed with new life, and at liberty to enter the covenant fellowship again. These two birds served a symbolic function similar to that of the two goats on the Day of Atonement (ch16). [2]
Cedar wood had antiseptic qualities and was slow to decay, so it probably represented the continuance of life. The scarlet color of the thread looked like blood and symbolized sacrificial blood. The hyssop represented purification from the corruption of death since the priests used this spongy plant for purification in Israel"s rituals. The blood-water used to sprinkle the individual probably signified life and purification.