81. Thursday after Third Sunday after Epiphany.
Purge me with hyssop,
and I shall be clean;
wash me, and I shall be
whiter than snow.
Leviticus 14, 2-8. This shall be the law of the leper in the day of his cleansing: He shall be brought unto the priest: And the priest shall go forth out of the camp; and the priest shall look, and, behold, if the plague of leprosy be healed in the leper, then shall the priest command to take for him that is to be cleansed two birds alive and clean, and cedar wood, and scarlet, and hyssop: And the priest shall command that one of the birds be killed in an earthen vessel over running water: As for the living bird, he shall take it, and the cedar wood, and the scarlet, and the hyssop, and shall dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the running water: And he shall sprinkle upon him that is to be cleansed from the leprosy seven times, and shall pronounce him clean, and shall let the living bird loose into the open field. And he that is to be cleansed shall wash his clothes, and shave off all his hair, and wash himself in water, that he may be clean: and after that he shall come into the camp, and shall tarry abroad out of his tent seven days.
❦
The lepers were excluded from communion with the people of Israel, and were regarded exactly as though dead. They were incurable. It was not until the leprosy had covered the whole body, leaving no sound spot to be seen, that the lepers were cleansed and were to be readmitted as members of society and into communion with God. — The two sparrows are to be regarded as one, and represent the leper. The cedar wood signifies incorruption, scarlet is the life-color, and hyssop represents purification; and the sparrow dies in the man’s stead. The blood is mixed with fresh water in a vessel, and into this the living bird is dipped, together with the cedar and scarlet and hyssop; the man is then sprinkled, and the sparrow let loose. The leper is then regarded as having died and been brought to life again, and is clean.
Sin has made us unclean; nay, even dead. In our sin and unbelief we are separated from God and his people. Not until we acknowledge ourselves as wholly sinful, with no part untouched by disease, can we be cleansed. Christ died in our stead, and lives again; he has united his atoning life and blood with the water of our baptism, and lives alway to make intercession for us. By being sprinkled herewith we are cleansed of the foulness of sin, admitted into a covenant with God, and are of his people. For he stepped into our place when he became man, and died, and rose again, and went home to God; and we become one with him in baptism. The little children who receive baptism are cleansed of the leprosy of sin, and are quickened; for they do not resist the grace of God. But when one who has been baptized reaches years of discretion, he must make the grace of baptism his own in conscious faith; and this faith cannot be born in our heart, unless we recognize the fact that we are altogether sinful and have no righteousness of our own, and unless we have no hope of life and purity save through Jesus. If you are wholly sinful and altogether lost, you will cling to him as your only and perfect Savior; then you are pure in his sight, and you are of his people. Then you shall wash your clothes, and shave off all your hair, and wash yourself in water; that is, you shall put away your sinful life, and prove yourself a new creature in Christ.
Lord, teach us thy way of grace, and lead us in this way. We are covered with leprosy; do thou cleanse us. We are dead; do thou quicken us. We are lost; have mercy on us, and save us. Make us to see our corruption in all its hideousness, and give us healing in thy life and in thy death. Amen.*
Nothing in my hand I bring;
Simply to thy cross I cling;
Naked, come to thee for dress,
Helpless, look to thee for grace,
Foul, I to the Fountain fly:
Wash me, Savior, or I die!
[TLH 376, LSB 761, ELH 286; listen here]
* Here the head of the family says a short morning or evening prayer in his own words, and closes with the Lord’s Prayer and the Benediction. This is to be done every day. If the stanzas are not sung, they may be read in their proper place before the impromptu petition and the Lord’s Prayer.