Leviticus 13:49

49 if the plague be greenish or reddish in the garment, or in the skin, or in the warp, or in the woof, or in anything of skin; it is the plague of leprosy, and shall be showed unto the priest.

Leviticus 13:49 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 13:49

And if the plague be greenish or reddish the garment, or in
the skin
Either of these two colours were signs of leprosy in garments; but it is not agreed whether stronger or weaker colours are designed; the radicals of both these words being doubled, according to some, and particularly Aben Ezra, lessen the sense of them; and so our translators understand it; but, according to Ben Gersom, the signification is increased thereby, and the meaning is, if it be exceeding green or exceeding red; and this is evidently the sense of the Misnah F16; garments are defiled by green in greens, and by red in reds, that is, by the greenest and reddest; the green, the commentators say F17, is like that of the wings of peacocks and leaves of palm trees, and the red like crimson or scarlet; and now these garments or skins, in which the green or red spots appeared, must be white, and not coloured or dyed: the canon runs thus F18; skins and garments dyed are not defiled with plagues (of leprosy); a garment whose warp is dyed, and its woof white, or its woof dyed, and its warp white, all goes according to the sight; that is, according to what colour to the eye most prevails, whether white or dyed:

either in the warp or in the woof, or in anything of the skin;
the same held good of these as of a garment, or anything else made of them:

it [is] a plague of leprosy;
it has the signs of one, and gives great suspicion that it is one:

and shall be shewed unto the priest;
by the person in whose possession it is, that it may be examined and judged of whether it is a leprosy or no.


FOOTNOTES:

F16 Misn. Negaim, c. 11. sect. 4.
F17 Maimon. & Bartenora in Misn. Edaiot, c. 7. sect. 8.
F18 Misn. ut supra, (c.11.) sect. 3, 4.

Leviticus 13:49 In-Context

47 The garment also that the plague of leprosy is in, whether it be a woollen garment, or a linen garment;
48 whether it be in warp, or woof; of linen, or of woollen; whether in a skin, or in anything made of skin;
49 if the plague be greenish or reddish in the garment, or in the skin, or in the warp, or in the woof, or in anything of skin; it is the plague of leprosy, and shall be showed unto the priest.
50 And the priest shall look upon the plague, and shut up [that which hath] the plague seven days:
51 and he shall look on the plague on the seventh day: if the plague be spread in the garment, either in the warp, or in the woof, or in the skin, whatever service skin is used for; the plague is a fretting leprosy; it is unclean.
The American Standard Version is in the public domain.