Tazria

Defilement Contracted by Childbirth

12:1 God spoke to Moses, saying:

2 “Speak to the Israelites, saying: ‘Returning to the laws of ritual defilement, we will now discuss the ways in which the human body itself becomes a source of ritual defilement.1

If a woman miscarries even a dissolved fetus (and, all the more so, a fully formed fetus) or successfully gives birth to a male child, she becomes ritually defiled and remains so for seven days. Specifically, she becomes ritually defiled to the same degree as she doesduring the days of her menstrual flow, as will be explained later,2 even if she did not bleed during the birth.

3 On the eighth day after the birth of a viable boy, the flesh of his foreskin must be circumcised.3

4 She must immerse herself in a mikveh after seven full days have passed since she gave birth; this immersion purifies her from the ritual defilement caused by the birth. For the following 33 days, she will remain in a transitional state, during which defilement-by-bleeding is deferred4 and her uterine blood is therefore not a source of defilement should she bleed. After the 40th day from birth, her uterine blood will once again ritually defile her, as will be explained later.

Normally, once someone has immersed in a mikveh in order to purify himself of ritual defilement, he is permitted to eat terumah5 after nightfall (if he is a priest or qualifying member of his household),6 and he is permitted to eat sacrificial meat and enter the Tabernacle precincts the following morning. In the case of a woman who gives birth to a boy, however, these cutoff points are delayed: she may not eat any consecrated food, nor may she enter the Sanctuary, until the 40 days of her purification from this form of ritual defilement have been completed. Thus, she may only eat terumah after nightfall following the 40th day, and she may only eat sacrificial meat and enter the Tabernacle precincts the following morning.

5 If she gives birth to a female child, she becomes ritually defiled—to the same degree as she does during her menstruation period—and remains so for two weeks instead of one. She must immerse herself in a mikveh after these two weeks have passed; this immersion purifies her from the ritual defilement caused by the birth. Her transitional period, too, is twice that of a woman who gives birth to a boy: she will remain in this state—during which defilement-by-bleeding is deferred, her uterine blood is not a source of defilement, and she is forbidden to eat consecrated food or enter the Sanctuary—for 66 additional days. Similarly, she may only eat terumah after nightfall following the 80th day, and she may only eat sacrificial meat and enter the Tabernacle precincts the following morning.

6 When the period of her purification has been completed, whether the 40 days for a son or the 80 days for a daughter, then, the following morning (i.e., of the 41st or 81st day, respectively), she must bring a sheep in its first year as an ascent-offering and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin-offering to the entrance of the Tent of Meeting and give them to the priest. Althought the woman has committed no sin by giving birth, she is nevertheless required to bring a sin-offering in order that the birth contribute toward the eventual full atonement for Eve’s sin of having eaten of the fruit of the Tree of Knowledge of good and evil, part of the corrective punishment for which was that childbirth be painful.7

7 The priest must first offer up the sin-offering before God and thereby effect atonement for her. Inasmuch as until this point she was forbidden to eat sacrificial meat or enter the Tabernacle precincts, she was considered “defiled” in that regard. Thus—through the sin-offering—she will be purified, not only in fact but also in name, from the ritual defilement that she contracted when she delivered a child from the source of her blood,8 and from that time on be allowed to eat sacrificial meat and enter the Tabernacle precincts. After offering up her sin-offering, the priest must offer up her ascent-offering. This is the law that applies to a woman who gives birth, whether to a male or a female.

8 If she cannot afford a sheep for her sin-offering, she may—instead of bringing a sheep for an ascent-offering and a fowl for a sin-offering—take two turtledoves or two young pigeons and offer up one as an ascent-offering and one as a sin-offering. The priest must first effect atonement for her through the sin-offering and she will thus be rid of this defilement. He must then offer up the ascent-offering on her behalf.’ ”

Tzara’at that Develops out of a White Dermal Lesion

13:1 God spoke to Moses, instructing him to convey His words9 to Aaron, saying:

2 “In addition to contracting ritual defilement through birth,10 death,11 or certain discharges from the reproductive organ,12 the possibility will exist, from now on, for a person or his or her possessions to become ritually defiled by a condition termed tzara’at, the symptoms of which are specific types of lesions or discolorations, as follows. This condition specificially affects individuals of otherwise sterling character and moral excellence who have committed the sin of gossip, slander,13 or haughtiness.14 If tzara’at appears on their bodies, it will appear on their heads if they are guilty of haughtiness and elsewhere if they are guilty of gossip or slander.15 It is an entirely spiritual, miraculous condition, unrelated to any natural disease and with no physiological cause.

If a person develops (a) a wool-white spot, (b) an egg-membrane-white spot, (c) a snow-white spot, (d) a lime-white spot, or (e) a spot of any of these four degrees of whiteness tinged with red streaks—but not so many red streaks that the spot loses its white appearance16—on the skin of his flesh, covering at least an area equivalent to a square the length of each of whose sides is equal to the diameter of a Cilician bean17 [i.e., 154 mm2 or 0.24 in2], and it seems, according to the symptoms that will be described presently, that it forms a lesion of tzara’at on the skin of his flesh, he must be brought to Aaron the high priest, or to one of his sons, the regular priests, or their successors, for only they are authorized to pronounce someone or something defiled or undefiled on account of tzara’at. (Nonetheless, if a priest erroneously pronounces someone undefiled who is in fact defiled, his declaration is ineffective.18)

Since the priest must examine the lesion before pronouncing the person defiled or undefiled, a blind priest is disqualified from rendering judgment in cases of lesions suspected to be tzara’at.19 The priest may not examine someone or something suspected of suffering from tzara’at during the festivals, nor may he inspect a bridegroom (or any of the bridegroom’s possessions) during the seven days of rejoicing following the bridegroom’s wedding.20

A spot that is darker white than any of these four degrees of whiteness is a simple lack of pigmentation, which cannot develop into tzara’at.21

3Tzara’at can develop out of any of these four types of white spots. There are three signs that indicate that a white lesion has developed into tzara’at: white hairs, healthy flesh,22 and spreading (see Figure 2). The rules regarding white hairs are as follows: The priest must examine the lesion on the skin of his flesh, and if two or more originally dark hairs within the lesion have turned white since the appearance of the lesion23—whether the appearance of the lesion, in the case of a snow-white or lime-white spot, is deeper than that of the unaffected skin of his flesh (due to its shininess), even though the spot is not actually deeper than the skin, or, in the case of the wool-white or egg-membrane-white spot, the appearance of the lesion is not deeper than that of the skin (due to its dullness)24—it is a lesion of tzara’at. When the priest sees this, he must pronounce him ritually defiled.

The practical ramifications of the ritual defilement contracted on account of tzara’at are the same as those for the ritual defilement contracted by a man who has suffered two or more discrete non-seminal discharges,25 which will be discussed in detail later.26

4 These are the rules regarding spreading: If the lesion on the skin of his flesh is a snow-white or lime-white spot, whose appearance is deeper than that of the unaffected skin, or a wool-white or egg-membrane-white spot, whose appearance is not deeper than that of the unaffected skin, but no previously dark hairs have turned white since the appearance of the lesion and there is no patch of healthy skin within the lesion (as will be described presently27), then the priest must quarantine the person with the lesion in a separate house for seven days, during which the priest must not see him, in order that the priest be able afterward to discern whether the lesion has spread during this time.28

The quarantined individual is considered ritually defiled to the same extent as someone who has been conclusively diagnosed as afflicted with tzara’at.29 Nonetheless, he is not to be banished from the camp (or later, after we will be organized into three concentric camps,30 from all three camps), as is someone who has been conclusively diagnosed, as will be discussed later.31

5 On the seventh day, the priest must examine him. If (a) the lesion has remained the same in its appearance, i.e., color, and (b) the lesion has not grown and spread on the skin, and (c) no previously dark hairs within it have turned white, and32 (d) no patch of healthy flesh has appeared within it (as will be described presently), the priest must quarantine him for seven days a second time. If, however, the lesion spread, covering more (but not all33) of his body; or previously dark hairs within it turned white; or a patch of healthy flesh appeared within it; the priest must pronounce him defiled.34 In contrast, if the lesion either shrunk35 or became darker36 to the extent that it no longer qualifies as one of the four types of white spots mentioned above, the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement and he must undergo the purification process that will be detailed later.37

The seventh day of the first quarantine week also counts as the first day of the second quarantine week.38

Second Reading 6 After his second quarantine-week, the priest must examine him on the seventh (i.e., 13th) day a second time. If the lesion’s color has not become darker; or it has spread, covering more (but not all39) of his body; or previously dark hairs within it have turned white; or a patch of healthy flesh has appeared within it; it is tzara’at, and the priest must pronounce him defiled. If, however, no previously dark hairs have turned white, no patch of healthy flesh has appeared, the lesion has become darker than it was before this quarantine—even though it has not darkened to the extent that it no longer exhibits one of the four degrees of whiteness that can develop into tzara’at40—and the lesion has not spread on the skin, the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement, for it is now clear that this lesion is not a case of tzara’at: it has become a different condition, termed mispachat, which does not cause defilement; no third quarantine period is needed.41 He must immerse himself42 and his garments in a mikveh and undergo the rest of the purification process that will be described later,43 and then he will be rid of this defilement in fact.

7 If the mispachat spreads on the skin sometime after the person was shown to the priest for his purification on the 13th day, he must be shown to the priest again.

8 The priest must examine the mispachat. If the mispachat has spread on the skin since the previous examination, the priest must pronounce him defiled, for it is no longer mispachat; it has turned into tzara’at.

9 The following are the rules44 regarding the third indication of tzara’at, the appearance of healthy flesh within the lesion: As was stated previously,45 if a person has a white lesion that appears to be tzara’at, due to its falling into one of the four categories of whiteness mentioned above, he must be brought to the priest.

A Closer Look

[10] The size of a lentil bean: This area is equated with the average square area covered by 4 hairs (2 hairs by 2 hairs) as they grow naturally on the body.46 The modern-day equivalent is 17.11 mm2 or 0.026 in2.

10 The priest must examine it. If there is on the skin a wool-white spot or any of the other three types of white lesions that can develop into tzara’at, and either (a), as stated previously,47 it has turned at least two of the formerly dark hairs within it white, or (b) there is in the wool-white spot (or other type of lesion) a contiguous48 patch of healthy, live flesh at least the size of a lentil bean and enclosed completely within the lesion,49 then,

11 in the case of the appearance of healthy flesh, you should not be deceived into thinking that this is a sign that the tzara’at is healing; rather, it is a case of old, purulent tzara’at remaining under the new, healthy skin of his flesh. Bothin this case and in the case of newly white hairs, the priest must pronounce him defiled. He need not quarantine him, because he is definitely defiled.

12 As we have seen, the spreading of a lesion indicates that it is tzara’at. If, however, the tzara’at erupts all over the skin to the extent that the tzara’at covers all the skin of the person with the lesion, from his head to his feet, wherever the eyes of the priest can see it—meaning that the tzara’at need not appear on interior skin (such as that inside the nose or mouth) that is not readily visible during an external examination50—then

13 the priest must examine it. If the tzara’at has indeed covered all his flesh, he must pronounce the person with the lesion rid of this defilement. The fact that he has turned completely white indicates that this lesion is not an anomaly but the natural condition of his body; therefore, he is not defiled.51

14 Returning to the laws regarding healthy flesh that appears within a tzara’at-lesion: It was stated previously that the appearance of such a patch renders the individual defiled.52 The exception is a patch of healthy flesh that appears on the tip of a finger, toe, ear lobe, the nose, or the male reproductive organ. Such a patch does not render the person defiled, because it is impossible for the priest to see both sides of these body parts at once, and therefore he cannot see the entire lesion at once in order to render a decision on it. If, however, the body part later becomes fat, thereby spreading out the tip of the limb such that it is possible to see the entire lesion (and the entire patch of healthy flesh on it) at once, then, on the day that a patch of live flesh at least the size of a lentil bean53 appears in it, he will become defiled.

15 Therefore, he must be shown to the priest, and the priest must examine the healthy, live flesh, and must pronounce him defiled. The appearance of live flesh indicates that the person is defiled; the lesion is tzara’at.

16 But if the healthy, live flesh once again turns white, he must come to the priest

17 and the priest must reexamine him. If the lesion has indeed turned totally white again, the priest must pronounce the lesion undefiled. The person will thus be rid of this defilement.

Tzara’at that Develops out of an Inflammation

Third Reading 18 If tzara’at develops out of a partially healed inflammation, the rules of diagnosis differ slightly from those that apply when it develops out of a white spot (see Figure 3), as follows:

This type of tzara’at can only develop on a person’s flesh if there is an inflammation (i.e., a localized heating resulting from the infection) of its skin due to a blow or disease,54 and the inflammation heals enough to form a membrane. (In contrast, a fully healed inflammation is considered normal skin—even if it leaves scar tissue55—on which tzara’at can only develop out of a white lesion,56 as described above.)

19 If, in the location of the partially healed inflammation, there is left one of the four white spots that can develop into tzara’at, i.e., either a wool-white spot, an egg-membrane-white-spot, a snow-white spot, or a lime-white spot, and the spot is either uniformly white or white with red streaks—but not so many red streaks that the spot loses its white appearance57—he must be shown to the priest.58

20 The priest must examine him. If its appearance is, in the case of a snow-white or lime-white spot, lower than that of the skin (due to its shininess), or in the case of a wool-white or egg-membrane-white spot, not any lower than that of the skin (due to its dullness), and at least two of its originally dark hairs have turned white, the priest must pronounce him defiled, for the transmutation of dark hairs into white indicates that this spot is a tzara’at-lesion that has erupted on the inflammation.

21 But if, when the priest examines it, it does not contain newly white hair, and its appearance is, in the case of a snow-white or lime-white spot, lower than that of the skin, or in the case of a wool-white or egg-membrane-white spot, not any lower than that of the skin because it is darker than a snow-white or lime-white spot, the priest must quarantine him for seven days.

22 If, when the priest examines him at the end of the quarantine week, he sees that it has spread on the skin—covering more (but not all) of the body—or at least two of its previously dark hairs have turned white, the priest must pronounce him defiled, for it is now clear that this spot is a tzara’at-lesion.

23 If the snow-white spot or other spot remained the same size, not having spread, and it became darker than it was before59 (even though it has not darkened to the extent that it no longer exhibits one of the four degrees of whiteness that can develop into tzara’at60), it is only the scar tissue of the inflammation, and the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement. No second week of quarantine is required.

Unlike lesions that develop on healthy skin, the appearance of healthy flesh within a lesion that develops on an inflammation does not indicate defilement.

Tzara’at that Develops out of a Burn

Fourth Reading (Second when combined) 24 If tzara’at develops out of a partially healed burn, the rules of diagnosis are the same as when it develops out of an inflammation (see Figure 3):

This type of tzara’at can only develop on a person’s flesh if there is a burn on its skin resulting from contact with fire or something hot,61 and the healed area of the burn has begun to form a membrane. (In contrast, a fully healed burn is considered normal skin—even if it leaves scar tissue62—on which tzara’at can only develop out of a white lesion,63 as described above.64) If such a partially healed burn turns into a snow-white spot or one of the three other types of white spots that can develop into tzara’at, and the spot is either white with red streaks—but not so many red streaks that the spot loses its white appearance65—or uniformly white,

25 the priest must examine it. If at least two originally dark hairs in the snow-white or other spot have turned white, and the appearance is, in the case of a snow-white or lime-white spot, deeper than that of the skin (due to its shininess), or in the case of a wool-white or egg-membrane-white spot, not any deeper than that of the skin (due to its dullness), it is tzara’at that has spread in the burn. The priest must pronounce him defiled, for the transmutation of dark hairs into white indicates that this spot is a tzara’at-lesion.

26 But if, when the priest examines it, the snow-white spot or other spot does not contain newly white hair, and its appearance is, in the case of a snow-white or lime-white spot, lower than that of the skin, or in the case of a wool-white or egg-membrane-white spot, not any lower than that of the skin because it is paler than a snow-white or lime-white spot, the priest must quarantine him for seven days.

27 The priest must examine him on the seventh day. If the lesion has spread on the skin—covering more (but not all) of the body—or at least two of its previously dark hairs have turned white, the priest must pronounce him defiled, for it is then clear that this spot is a tzara’at-lesion.

28 If the snow-white spot or other spot remained the same size, not having spread on the skin, and it became darker than it was before (even though it has not darkened to the extent that it no longer exhibits one of the four degrees of whiteness that can develop into tzara’at66)—such that, for example, in the case of an originally snow-white spot, it is now only a wool-white spot on the burn—the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement, because it is now clear that the lesion is only the scar tissue of the burn. No second week of quarantine is required.

Although the same diagnostic procedures apply both to potential tzara’at-lesions that develop out of an inflammation and those that develop out of a burn, they are still considered two distinct types of tzara’at: adjacent appearances of these two types of lesion do not combine to cover the requisite area to be considered problematic.

Tzara’at that Develops on the Head

Fifth Reading 29 If a lesion appears on a part of the head that is usually covered with hair, the laws regarding how tzara’at can develop out of such a lesion differ from those governing how it can develop out of lesions elsewhere on the body (see Figure 4).

If a man or a woman has a lesion of any color or combination of colors,67 covering at least an area equivalent to a square each of whose sides is equal to the diameter of a Cilician bean [i.e., 154 mm2 (or 0.24 in2),68 on the normally hairy part of the head or on the part of the head where the beard grows,

30 the priest must examine the lesion. If, however, a lesion occurs on a part of the head where no hair normally grows (e.g., a woman’s chin) or where hair will normally grow but has not yet grown (e.g., a boy’s chin),69 it is diagnosed according to the rules governing lesions appearing on the rest of the body, which were discussed previously.70

If, regardless of whether71 its appearance is deeper or not deeper than that of the skin, there are at least two hairs inside it that are thin—i.e., shorter than the other hairs72—and have turned from their natural color73 into pale gold,74 the priest must pronounce him defiled, for it is a netek, which is the name75 of tzara’at of the head or the beard. If there is only one (or no) gold hair within the lesion, or if the gold hair is as long as the rest of the hair, or if within the lesion there are at least two naturally colored hairs remaining from before the lesion appeared (even if there are now also two or more gold hairs within the lesion),76 the person is not defiled.

31 But if the priest examines the netek-lesion, and, regardless of whether its appearance is deeper or not deeper than that of the skin, there are not two black hairs—or hairs of any other color, including gold—in it, the priest must quarantine the person with the netek-lesion for seven days.

32 The priest must examine the lesion on the seventh day. If the netek has shrunk to less than the symptomatic area or naturally colored hair has appeared within it, the person is no longer defiled; the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement, and he must undergo the purification process that will be detailed later.77 If the netek has spread78 and there is no naturally colored hair in its new growth, or if two or more gold hairs have appeared within it, the individual is defiled and the priest must pronounce him so.79 But if there is no change—i.e., the netek has not spread and no naturally colored or gold hair appeared in it—then, regardless of whether the appearance of the netek is deeper or not deeper than that of the skin,

33 the person must shave himself in the vicinity of the netek, but he must not shave the netek or two rows of hairs surrounding and adjacent to the netek, in order to enable the priest to easily determine if it has spread when he next examines it. The priest must then quarantine the person with the netek again for seven days.

The seventh day of the first quarantine week also counts as the first day of the second quarantine week.80

34 The priest must examine the netek on the seventh (i.e., 13th) day. If the netek has spread,81 or if gold hair has appeared within it,82 the individual is defiled and the priest must pronounce him so. If there is again no change—i.e., the netek did not spread on the skin and no gold hair appeared on it—then, regardless of whether its appearance is deeper or not deeper than that of the skin, the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement, and the individual must immerse himself and his garments in a mikveh and undergo the rest of the purification process that will be described later,83 and then he will become rid of this defilement in fact. No third quarantine period is needed.

35 But if the netek spreads on the skin after he has been declared rid of this defilement,

36 the priest must examine him, and if the netek has indeed spread on the skin, the priest need not search for a gold hair, for he is defiled on account of the netek having spread.

Similarly, if two gold hairs appear on the skin after he has been declared rid of this defilement, this suffices to defile him.84

37 But if the appearance—i.e., color—of the netek has remained the same, or if black hair or hair of any color other than gold has grown in it, the netek has healed. He is therefore not defiled, and the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement.

Suspicion of Tzara’at due to a Lack of Pigmentation

38 If a man or woman has spots on the skin of their flesh that are similar to those that can develop into tzara’at, i.e., white spots,

39 the priest must examine them. If there are dark white spots on the skin of their flesh, i.e., darker than any of the previously described four grades of whiteness that can develop into tzara’at, it is nothing more than a lack ofpigmentation that has erupted on the skin. He or she is not defiled, even if symptoms characteristic of tzara’at later develop within these spots.

Unnatural Baldness

Sixth Reading (Third when combined) 40 If a man loses all the hair on the back of his head (see Figure 5), he is unnaturally bald. Therefore, if a lesion develops on this area of his head, he cannot become defiled by it according to the diagnostic rules governing normally hairy parts of the head; such a lesion is rather diagnosed according to the rules governing lesions on the rest of the body, which were given previously.85

41 Similarly, if he loses the hair on the side of his head toward his face, including the temples on each side of the head (see Figure 6), he is unnaturally bald at the front. Therefore, if a lesion develops on this area of his head, he cannot become defiled by it according to the diagnostic rules governing normally hairy parts of the head; again, such a lesion is rather diagnosed according to the rules governing lesions on the rest of the body, which were given previously.

42 Thus, if a lesion that is either uniformly white or white with red streaks develops on the back or front bald area of such a person’s head, it is a likely case of tzara’at erupting on his back or front bald area.

43 The priest must therefore examine it. If there is indeed a lesion on his back or front bald area, and this lesion is either wool-white or another of the four shades of white, andits whiteness is either uniformly white or white with red streaks, like the appearance of tzara’at on the skin of the flesh, the lesion must be subjected to the diagnostic process described previously for a body-lesion.

44 If the lesion satisfies any of the diagnostic criteria, then he is a man afflicted with tzara’at; he is defiled. The priest must therefore pronounce him defiled on account of his lesion on his head.

Behavior Required of a Person Afflicted with Tzara’at

45 As to what must be done with a person afflicted with any type of tzara’at, i.e., a person on whom there is a lesion that has been diagnosed as tzara’at: his garments must be torn, the hair on his head must be allowed to overgrow; he must cover his face with a garment down to his mustache (or, if a woman, simply down to the upper lip) and call out loud, “Defiled! Defiled!” so people will know to stay away from him.

46 He will remain defiled as long as the lesion remains upon him. Since he is defiled on account of tzara’at, he must, unlike a person defiled in any other way, dwell isolated from other people, including other defiled persons.86 His dwelling must be outside the camp: when we will later be organized into three concentric camps,87 he must dwell outside all three. This is a just, corrective reciprocal punishment for his having caused a rift between married couples or friends through gossip or slander.

Tzara’at on Garments

47 As for the laws regarding a garment that has the lesion of tzara’at upon it, these laws apply only to lesions (a) on woolen garments, (b) on linen garments,

48(c) on threads prepared to be used as the warp or the woof of linen or wool garments,88(d) on unworked leather, or (e) on anything made from leather (see Figure 7).

49 If the lesion on the garment, on the warp- or woof-threads, on the leather garment, or on any leather article, covers at least an area equivalent to a square each of whose sides are equal to the diameter of a Cicilian bean89 [i.e., 154 mm2 or 0.24 in2] and is pure green or pure red, it is a lesion of tzara’at, and it must therefore be shown to the priest.

50 The priest must examine the lesion, confirm that it is the required color and size, and quarantine the article with the lesion for seven days.

51 He must examine the lesion on the seventh day. If the lesion has spread on the garment, the warp- or woof-threads, the leather garment, or any article made from leather, the lesion is an onerous tzara’at-lesion—in that the article’s owner will suffer inconvenience and monetary loss on its account—since it is ritually defiled and may no longer be used.

52 Rather, he must burn the garment, the warp- or woof-threads of wool or linen, or whatever leather article that has the lesion upon it, since the lesion is an onerous tzara’at-lesion. Nonetheless, only the wool, linen, or leather must be burned and destroyed in fire; if the hems of the garment are made out of a different material, they need not be destroyed.

Before it is burned, the afflicted article is ritually defiled to the same degree as a man who has suffered two or more discrete non-seminal discharges,90 which will be discussed in detail later.91

53 But if the priest examines the lesion and the lesion has not spread on the garment, the warp- or woof-threads, or whatever leather article it is on,

54 the priest must order that the part of the article on which the lesion is located be washed, and he must quarantine it again for seven days. The entire article need not be washed; only the area containing the lesion and the adjacent part.

Seventh Reading (Fourth when combined) 55 Then the priest must examine the article after the lesion has been washed and quarantined for a second week. If the lesion has not changed its color by turning a lighter or darker shade of green or red, and the lesion has either not spread at all or has spread but not covered the entire article, it is defiled. You must burn it in fire, for it is now clear that the lesion is a deep-looking lesion on the worn or new article. If, however, the discolored lesion spreads over the entire article, it thereby becomes rid of this defilement.

If the lesion does not spread but changes in color from pure red to pure green (or vice versa), it must either be treated as a new lesion and quarantined or be pronounced defiled.92

56 But if the priest examines the article after it has been washed and quarantined for a second week, and the lesion has turned a lighter or darker shade of green or red, he must rip it out of the garment, the leather, or the warp- or woof-threads, and burn the part of the article that was ripped out.

Maftir 57 If the lesion reappears on the garment, the warp- or woof-threads, or any leather article, it is a recurrent growth. You must burn in fire the entire article upon which the lesion is found.

58 Regarding any garment, warp- or woof-threads, or leather article that you wash by order of the priest, quarantine for a second week, and from which the lesion then disappears entirely, it must be immersed a second time—this time not to be washed, but to be purified93 in a mikveh—and then it will be rid of this defilement.

59 This is the law governing the diagnosis of a lesion of tzara’at on a woolen or linen garment, warp- or woof-threads, or any leather article, according to which it becomes rid of defilement or defiled.”