Leviticus 13:33

33 he shall be shaven, but the place of the scall he shall not shave; and the priest shall shut up the one that has the scall for seven days the second time.

Leviticus 13:33 Meaning and Commentary

Leviticus 13:33

He shall be shaven
His head or beard, where the scall was, as Aben Ezra; and so Ben Gersom, who adds, the law is not solicitous whether this shaving is by a priest or not; so it seems any one might shave him: but the scall shall he not shave;
that is, the hair that is in it, but that was to continue and grow, that the colour of it might be easily discerned at the end of seven other days; according to the Targums of Onkelos and Jonathan, he was to shave round about it, but not that itself; Jarchi says, he was to leave two hairs near it F21, that he might know whether it spread; for if it spread it would go over the hairs, and into the part that was shaven; when it would be a clear case it was a spreading leprosy: now, that there might be an opportunity of observing this, whether it would or not, the following method was to be taken: and the priest shall shut up [him that hath] the scall seven days
more;
by which time it would be seen whether there was any increase or decrease, or whether at a stand, and of what colour the hair was, by which judgment might be made of the case.


FOOTNOTES:

F21 Misn. Negaim, c. 10. sect. 5.

Leviticus 13:33 In-Context

31 But when the priest looks on the plague of the scall and if it does not look deeper than the skin and there is no black hair in it, then the priest shall shut up the one that has the plague of the scall seven days;
32 and in the seventh day the priest shall look on the plague; and if the scall appears not to have spread and there is no yellowish hair in it and the scall appears not to be deeper than the skin,
33 he shall be shaven, but the place of the scall he shall not shave; and the priest shall shut up the one that has the scall for seven days the second time.
34 And in the seventh day the priest shall look on the scall; and if the scall is not spread in the skin nor in appearance deeper than the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean; and he shall wash his clothes and be clean.
35 But if the scall spreads much in the skin after his cleansing,
The Jubilee Bible (from the Scriptures of the Reformation), edited by Russell M. Stendal, Copyright © 2000, 2001, 2010