Leviticus 14:44 kjv
Then the priest shall come and look, and, behold, if the plague be spread in the house, it is a fretting leprosy in the house; it is unclean.
Leviticus 14:44 nkjv
then the priest shall come and look; and indeed if the plague has spread in the house, it is an active leprosy in the house. It is unclean.
Leviticus 14:44 niv
the priest is to go and examine it and, if the mold has spread in the house, it is a persistent defiling mold; the house is unclean.
Leviticus 14:44 esv
then the priest shall go and look. And if the disease has spread in the house, it is a persistent leprous disease in the house; it is unclean.
Leviticus 14:44 nlt
the priest must return and inspect the house again. If he finds that the mildew has spread, the walls are clearly contaminated with a serious mildew, and the house is defiled.
Leviticus 14 44 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Lev 13:1-59 | Laws concerning tzara'at on humans, similar diagnostic principles. | Priestly diagnosis of uncleanness. |
| Lev 14:34-37 | Initial appearance and priestly examination of tzara'at in a house. | Precedes 14:44, sets the initial context. |
| Lev 14:38-42 | Steps taken for an initial, less severe house contamination (cleaning). | Contrast to the persistence in 14:44. |
| Lev 14:45 | The prescribed action: the house must be torn down. | Direct consequence of the diagnosis in 14:44. |
| Lev 11:44-45 | Call to holiness: "Be holy, for I am holy." | Underlies the concern for purity. |
| Num 5:1-4 | Exclusion of the unclean from the camp. | Emphasizes the need for separation from defilement. |
| Deut 7:26 | Warns against bringing abominable things into one's house. | Houses can harbor defilement. |
| Isa 6:5 | Isaiah's cry of uncleanness, leading to a cleansing. | Awareness of deep-seated defilement. |
| Jer 4:18-19 | God's people suffering due to their inner corruption. | Spread of spiritual disease. |
| 1 Cor 5:6 | "A little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough." | Illustrates the spreading nature of corruption. |
| Gal 5:9 | "A little yeast leavens the whole batch of dough." | Reiterates the insidious nature of pervasive sin. |
| 2 Tim 2:17 | "Their talk will spread like gangrene." | Sin/false teaching as a spreading disease. |
| Matt 5:29-30 | Radical measures to avoid sin ("cut off your hand"). | Removing radical sin, even if painful. |
| 1 Cor 3:16-17 | The church as God's temple; warning against defiling it. | Community as a spiritual "house" to be kept pure. |
| Heb 12:14 | "Strive for peace with everyone, and for the holiness without which no one will see the Lord." | Purity is essential for relationship with God. |
| Eph 5:25-27 | Christ purifying the Church, "without stain or wrinkle." | Church's ideal state of purity. |
| Titus 1:15 | "To the pure, all things are pure, but to those who are corrupted...nothing is pure." | Impact of internal defilement on perception. |
| Ps 51:7,10 | "Cleanse me...create in me a pure heart." | Plea for inner spiritual cleansing. |
| Ez 36:25-27 | God's promise to cleanse His people and give them new hearts. | Divine provision for deep cleansing. |
| Rom 5:12 | Sin entered the world through one man and spread. | Root of pervasive defilement in humanity. |
Leviticus 14 verses
Leviticus 14 44 Meaning
Leviticus 14:44 describes a critical stage in the diagnosis of a serious, spreading ritual defilement within a house, often identified as a severe mold or mildew. This verse signifies a definitive priestly judgment: if, upon re-examination, the contamination (known as tzara'at) has worsened or spread after initial attempts at containment or removal, it is declared an "inveterate" or "persistent unclean disease." This final diagnosis implies the complete saturation of the structure with uncleanness, rendering it fundamentally defiled and beyond repair.
Leviticus 14 44 Context
Leviticus Chapter 14 outlines the detailed purification rituals for a person cleansed of tzara'at and, as seen in this verse, the diagnosis and necessary actions for tzara'at (mold or mildew) in a house. The preceding verses (Lev 14:33-43) describe the process if tzara'at is suspected in a house: a preliminary inspection, quarantining, scraping, and replacing affected stones. If, after this initial attempt at remediation, the defilement re-emerges and spreads, as determined in verse 44, the situation is deemed irremediable. The focus throughout this section is the meticulous maintenance of ritual purity within the Israelite community and their dwellings, critical for upholding the sanctity required for God's dwelling among them. Historically, these laws established the priestly authority in matters of purity and guided the Israelites in recognizing and removing sources of defilement from their daily lives and living spaces.
Leviticus 14 44 Word analysis
- then: (וְאִם - və'im - and if) Connects the verse to the preceding steps in the house purification ritual, indicating the next conditional action.
- the priest: (הַכֹּהֵן - hakkohēn) Refers to the Aaronite priest, the sole authority designated by God to diagnose and declare conditions of ritual cleanness or uncleanness. This highlights the divine delegation of authority and the objective nature of these purity judgments, not based on personal opinion but God's law.
- shall come and look: (וּבָא הַכֹּהֵן וְרָאָה - uvā hakkohēn vərāʾāh - and the priest comes and sees) Emphasizes the required direct observation and investigation by the priest. This is not a casual glance but a thorough, professional assessment.
- and if: (וְהִנֵּה - vəhinnēh - and behold) Introduces the crucial condition for the severe verdict.
- the disease: (הַנֶּגַע - hannaga' - the mark, the plague, the defiling affliction) Refers specifically to the tzara'at in the house (likely severe mold or mildew). It denotes a visible, physical affliction that renders something ritually impure.
- has spread: (פָּשְׂתָה - pāshĕtâ - spread, extended) A key diagnostic term. If the original remediation steps failed and the defilement has advanced beyond its initial boundary, covering more area, it signifies its persistent nature. This movement indicates an entrenched problem.
- in the house: (בַּבַּיִת - babbayit - in the house) Specifies the location of the defilement, differentiating it from tzara'at on skin or clothing.
- it is a persistent unclean disease: (צָרַעַת מַמְאֶרֶת הִוא - tsāra'at mam'ereth hiʾ - it is a spreading leprosy/mold)
- persistent (מַמְאֶרֶת - mam'ereth): This Hebrew word means "malignant," "inveterate," "ulcerating," or "causing to spread." It describes a condition that is deeply ingrained, aggressive, and continues to corrupt. It implies an incurable, chronic state beyond simple remediation.
- unclean (טְמֵאָה - ṭəmeʾāh - unclean, impure, defiled): This adjective directly declares the ritual status of the house. It is defiled and renders anything in contact with it, and anyone living within it, ritually impure. This uncleanness has profound implications for a holy people.
- disease: Here referring to the visible manifestation of the mold/mildew which causes ritual impurity.
- it is leprosy in the house: (צָרַעַת הַבַּיִת הִוא - tsāra'at habbayit hiʾ - it is leprosy/mold of the house) A definitive declaration of the most severe category of this particular house affliction, signaling an irreversible condition that demands radical measures (demolition). It is not literal human leprosy, but an analogous severe spiritual-physical defilement.
Leviticus 14 44 Bonus section
The severity of the "persistent unclean disease" in a house serves as a potent analogy for the danger of unconfessed or unrepentant sin in the life of an individual believer or within a Christian community. Just as superficial scraping and washing were insufficient for an entrenched defilement in a house, so too can outward adherence or superficial remedies fail to address deep-seated sin or false teaching that permeates the heart or community. The immediate command to tear down the house reflects the principle that at times, for the sake of ultimate purity and holiness, radical and seemingly destructive measures are necessary to eradicate sources of pervasive corruption. This reinforces God's uncompromising nature regarding holiness, even requiring the demolition of what was once a home, lest the defilement spread further.
Leviticus 14 44 Commentary
Leviticus 14:44 marks a grim and irreversible declaration regarding a defiled house. This verse isn't merely a factual observation of a spreading mildew; it's a divine verdict pronounced by God's designated priest, based on prescribed, meticulous observation. The "persistent unclean disease" indicates that the defilement is no longer superficial but has permeated the very structure, rendering it a source of pervasive impurity. The term mam'ereth highlights its inveterate and destructive nature, a condition that resists simple remedies and signals a deeper, more entrenched problem.
For the Israelites, a house declared "unclean" impacted their daily life, worship, and relationship with a holy God. This severe diagnosis demanded immediate and decisive action as specified in the subsequent verse—complete demolition. The spiritual implication is profound: just as a physical corruption, if unchecked, can permeate and destroy a dwelling, so too can sin or spiritual compromise, if left untended or merely superficially addressed, become ingrained within individuals or communities, spreading its defiling influence and necessitating radical, often painful, intervention to maintain purity before God. The emphasis is on the complete separation from anything that stubbornly clings to defilement.