Parshat Tazria-Metzora, Shabbat, 5 Iyar, 5785 (3 May, 2025)
Vayikra (Leviticus) Chapter 12
| 1 God spoke to Moses, saying: |
| 2 “Speak to the Israelites, saying: ‘If a woman conceives and gives birth to a male child, she becomes ritually defiled for seven days. She becomes ritually defiled to the same degree as she does during the days of her menstrual flow. |
| 3 On the eighth day, the flesh of his foreskin must be circumcised. |
| 4 For 33 days, she will remain in a transitional state, during which her uterine blood is not a source of ritual defilement. She may not touch any consecrated food, nor may she enter the Sanctuary, until the days of her purification have been completed. |
| 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. She will remain in a transitional state—during which her uterine blood is not a source of ritual defilement—for 66 days. |
| 6 When the period of her purification has been completed, whether for a son or for a daughter, she must bring the priest a sheep in its first year as an ascent-offering and a young pigeon or a turtledove as a sin-offering into the Courtyard, outside the entrance to the Tent of Meeting. |
| 7 The priest must offer it up before God and effect atonement for her. She will be purified from the source of her blood. 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, she may take two turtledoves or two young pigeons, one as an ascent-offering and one as a sin-offering. The priest must effect atonement for her and she will be rid of defilement.’” |
Vayikra (Leviticus) Chapter 13
| 1 God spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying: |
| 2 “If a person develops a wool-white spot, an egg-membrane-white spot, or a snow-white spot on the skin of his flesh, and it forms a tzara’at-lesion on the skin of his flesh, he must be brought to Aaron the priest or to one of his sons, the priests. |
| 3 The priest must examine the lesion on the skin of the flesh, and if dark hairs within the lesion have turned white, and the appearance of the lesion is deeper than that of the skin of his flesh, it is a tzara’at-lesion. When the priest sees this, he must pronounce him ritually defiled. |
| 4 If the lesion on the skin of his flesh is a snow-white spot whose appearance is not deeper than that of the skin, but no dark hairs have turned white, the priest must quarantine the person with the lesion for seven days. |
| 5 On the seventh day, the priest must examine him. If the lesion has remained the same in its appearance and the lesion has not spread on the skin, the priest must quarantine him for seven days a second time. |
| 6 The priest must examine him on the seventh day a second time. If the lesion has become darker and the lesion has not spread on the skin, the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement. It has become a mispachat. He must immerse his garments in the water of a mikveh, and then he will be rid of defilement. |
| 7 If the mispachat spreads on the skin after he was shown to the priest for his purification, he must be shown to the priest again. |
| 8 The priest must examine the mispachat. If the mispachat has spread on the skin, the priest must pronounce him ritually defiled; it has turned into tzara’at. |
| 9 If a person has a lesion that appears to be tzara’at, he must be brought to the priest. |
| 10 The priest must examine it. If there is on the skin a wool-white spot, and either it has turned the dark hairs within it white, or there is a patch of healthy, live flesh in the wool-white spot, |
| 11 it is a case of old, purulent tzara’at under the skin of his flesh. The priest must pronounce him ritually defiled. He need not quarantine him, because he is definitely defiled. |
| 12 If 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, |
| 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. He has turned completely white; he is not defiled. |
| 14 On the day that a patch of live flesh appears in it, he will become ritually defiled. |
| 15 The priest must examine the live flesh, and must pronounce him ritually defiled. The appearance of live flesh indicates that the person is defiled; the lesion is tzara’at. |
| 16 But if the live flesh once again turns white, he must come to the priest |
| 17 and the priest must reexamine him. If the lesion has turned totally white again, the priest must pronounce the lesion undefiled. The person will thus be rid of this defilement. |
| 18 If there is an inflammation of the skin of a person’s flesh, and it heals, |
| 19 and in the location of the inflammation there is a wool-white spot or a snow-white spot with red streaks, he must be shown to the priest. |
| 20 The priest must examine him. If its appearance is lower than that of the skin, and its dark hairs have turned white, the priest must pronounce him ritually defiled; it is a tzara’at-lesion that has erupted on the inflammation. |
| 21 But if, when the priest examines it, it does not contain white hair, and its appearance is not lower than that of the skin because it is darker, the priest must quarantine him for seven days. |
| 22 If it has spread on the skin, the priest must pronounce him ritually defiled; it is a tzara’at-lesion. |
| 23 If the snow-white spot remained the same size, not having spread, it is the scar tissue of the inflammation, and the priest must pronounce him rid of this defilement. |
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