Last updated on June 6, 2022
Jesus Cleanses a Leper
12 While he was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.” 13 And Jesus stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I will; be clean.” And immediately the leprosy left him. 14 And he charged him to tell no one, but “go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.” 15 But now even more the report about him went abroad, and great crowds gathered to hear him and to be healed of their infirmities. 16 But he would withdraw to desolate places and pray.
This passage begin a set of 7 stories (which you can also find, more or less, in Mark 1:40-3:6) that demonstrate Jesus’ authority and ministry. In the Pillar New Testament Commentary James R. Edwards writes of this section and beyond:
“In 5:12-16 he demonstrates authority over leprosy and uncleanness; in 5:17-26, authority over sin; in 5:27-39, authority to reconcile the deep and chronic divide between Jews and Gentiles; and in 6:1-11, authority to redefine Sabbath, the longest of the Ten Commandments and the only commandment ordained by God at creation. Jesus is thus not like a radio transmitter or messenger who relays a signal unaltered, a mere transmitter of Jewish tradition. He is like a commander at headquarters who receives, interprets, and reissues tradition with new and transforming authority. Unlike the scribes and Pharisees, whose ministries are defined by Torah, Jesus exercises sovereign authority as an interpreter of Torah and, in so doing, reconstitutes Judaism itself.” (Eerdmans, 2015)
Leprosy (also called “Hansen’s Disease“) was not uncommon. According to Edwards it “is a chronic infectious disease caused by a bacillus that gravitates to peripheral nerves and cooler regions of the body. As the coolest region of the body, skin is usually affected first and most significantly by leprosy. It is not surprising that in the ancient world leprosy was considered a skin disease, which, like all skin diseases, is difficult to diagnose and heal. Its conditions are discussed in two lengthy chapters in Lev 13–14 that read like an ancient manual on dermatology.” Those who were infected were considered “unclean” and had to announce they were unclean if anyone got close. In ancient Israel they were also required to live outside the camp and wear something like a mask; basically, they were required to socially distance themselves permanently (50 paces…way more than 6 ft). ( see Lev. 13:45-46) The laws were not arbitrary, legalistic prohibitions. Before modern medicines, masks, and vaccines, laws about what was clean-and-unclean were like an ancient disease-control strategy.
Lepers, in a way, were treated as dead before they actually died and were condemned to a slow and painful life of ostracism. They were even referred to as the “living dead” (Num. 12:12). The leper’s sudden presence in this story would be like someone with a bomb strapped to them running into a crowd and asking for help. When the leper approaches Jesus then, he is violating both social custom and laws in order to be healed.
But notice the leper’s words: “Lord, if you will, you can make me clean.”
This man does not question Christ’s ability or authority. He submits himself to it. Specifically, he submits himself to God’s will. As the Anglican Reformer, Hugh Latimer, observed:
The leper took Christ to be a savior, and so he came to him for help. So we should also come to him, for he is the Savior of humankind, and he is the only helper who can nourish both our bodies and our souls. He saves our souls by his word, if when we hear it we believe it. The salvation of our bodies will occur at the Last Day, when body and soul will come together and there will be rewarded—that is, if the soul is saved, the body will be saved, for soul and body will go together—and so he saves both our bodies and our souls. And pay attention here also to the behavior of the leper, for not even the greatest doctor of theology should be ashamed to learn from his example: in him a marvelous, strong faith and a firm confidence in Christ appears. He did not doubt at all that Christ was able to help him, and he trusted fully in his goodness and mercy. Therefore his faith moved him to come to Christ and to seek his help.
A Sermon on the Third Sunday After Epiphany (1552) in Luke: Reformation Commentary on Scripture Edited by Beth Kreitzer (IVP Acaadmic, 2015) p. 116
I wish I could say I had a faith like this and, perhaps, if similar desperation were placed on me I would have it – with the Holy Spirit’s help. But I’d probably be more likely to talk myself out of it and wallow in self-pity. “Why would Jesus care about me and my needs? I’m just one, doomed man. Perhaps I could just ask him to put me out of my misery. What if I got other people sick in the process? Would I just be embarrassing myself? What if I say the wrong words? What if he doesn’t even want to do it?”
In reflecting on this, I wonder how one makes the distinction between faith and courage. Consider the following quote from C.S. Lewis’ Surprised by Joy (p. 161): “As [Samuel] Johnson points out, where courage is not, no other virtue can survive except by accident.”
I don’t think that faith and courage are the same, but I’m struck by the need for them to seemingly coexist. Or is “need” the right word? When is an act of courage not an act of faith and vice-versa? Lewis, chronicling his journey back to Christianity, follows up his recollection of Johnson’s words saying, “Cowardice drove me into hypocrisy and hypocrisy into blasphemy.” He was referring to his decision to pretend to be a Christian in front of his father rather than reveal his then atheistic views. I’m certainly no atheist, but how many of us, in our cowardice, have compromised what we believe?
Anyway, I think this overlap of faith and courage is worth pondering and one which certainly convicts me.
Back to the passage: The command by Jesus in verse 14, is strange; at least, at first: “And he charged him to tell no one, but ‘go and show yourself to the priest, and make an offering for your cleansing, as Moses commanded, for a proof to them.'” The Jewish priest could pronounce people clean or unclean according to the OT law (Lev 13:50; 14:2-4). If one was declared clean, they would then be required to offer sacrifices and go through an 8-day waiting period. In other words, Jesus wasn’t trying to hide or to brag. He simply was telling the man he saved not to break the law.
Interestingly, some early commentators and those in the Reformation see the command for silence as a way of telling the Leper: not everyone is called to preach the Word. Given the context of Jewish law and culture, I find this reading unpersuasive. News about Jesus’s power gets out anyway and he continues to draw attention.
But then, curiously, he still withdrew from the crowds to be alone and pray. In this, Jesus is not simply manifesting his fully human side, but I believe he’s also leading by example. The German theologian and reformer, Johannes Brenz, writes:
Again Christ shuns the multitude and goes into a deserted place, lest in gathering many people around himself, he might seem to be vainglorious or else to be promoting rebellion against the civil authority. Also, he went off on his own to rest himself from his work for a little while, from preaching the gospel and healing the sick. But we must note here how Christ relaxed and spent his time in his solitude: he spent this time in prayer, giving thanks to God the Father for the benefits which he gave to people through himself, God’s Son. What can be sweeter than prayer by which we talk with the Lord our God and discuss things with him with regular conversation? For God is our Father, our Savior, our Redeemer and our happiness.
An Ecclesiasticall Exposition upon Saint Luke 5 Luke: Reformation Commentary on Scripture Edited by Beth Kreitzer (IVP Acaadmic, 2015) p. 116
Brenz may be reading more into this than what is there, but I do agree that Luke’s recognition of Jesus’ actions is not incidental. If Jesus – the Son of God and the Savior of the World – had to rest, why do we think we can go without it? In our workaholic culture, we would do well to remember both the Sabbath itself, and the discipline of resting and spending time with God the Father in prayer.
Comments are closed.