• Torah (T): Wayiqra (Leviticus) 14:1-57
• Prophets (P): 2 Kings 7:1-20
• Apostolic (A): Luke 17:11-19
• Additional (ADD): Baruch 4:1-30

RELATED SCRIPTURES

• Psalms 51:7 (T)
• Leviticus 7:1-7 (T)
• Matthew 3:1-10; Luke 3:1-14 (T)
• Exodus 4:6-8 (T)
• Deuteronomy 24:8-9 (T)
• Numbers 12:1-16 (T)
• Matthew 9:19-22; Mark 5:24-34; Luke 8:40-48 (T, A)
• Matthew 11:1-6 (T)
• Numbers 5:1-4 (T)

RELATED ADDITIONAL REA.D.INGS

• Sectarian Manifesto 4QMMT Section B:19 (T)
• Leviticus 14:1-57 from the Jerusalem Targum aka Targum Pseudo-Jonathan (T)
• Antiquities of the Jews by Flavius Josephus 3.11.3-4 (T)

Note: (T) means the verse relates to that week’s Torah portion. (P) means the verse relates to that week’s Prophets portion. (A) means the verse relates to that week’s Apostolic portion. (ADD) means the verse relates to that week’s Additional portion.

Torah Portion (T)

14:1 YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “This will be the Torah of the infected one in the day of his cleansing: He will be brought to the priest, 3 and the priest will go out of the camp. The priest will see him. Behold, if the plague of infection is healed in the infected one, 4 then the priest will command them to take for him who is to be cleansed two living clean birds, cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop. 5 The priest will command them to kill one of the birds in a vessel of clay over living water. 6 As for the living bird, he will take it, the cedar wood, the scarlet, and the hyssop, and will dip them and the living bird in the blood of the bird that was killed over the living water. 7 He will sprinkle on him who is to be cleansed from the infection seven times, and will pronounce him clean, and will let the living bird go into the face of the field. 8 “He who is to be cleansed will wash his clothes, and shave off all his hair, and bathe himself in water; and he will be clean. After that he will come into the camp, but will dwell outside his tent seven days. 9 It will be on the seventh day, that he will shave all his hair off his head and his beard and his eyebrows. He will shave off all his hair. He will wash his clothes, and he will bathe his body in water. Then he will be clean. 10 “On the eighth day he will take two male lambs, perfect ones [a year old],^(LXX)(SP) one ewe lamb a year old, a perfect one, three tenths of an ephah of fine flour for a grain offering, mixed with oil, and one log of oil. 11 The priest who cleanses him will set the man who is to be cleansed, and those things, before YHWH, at the door of the Appointed Tent. 12 “The priest will take one of the male lambs, and bring him for a trespass offering, with the log of oil, and wave them for a wave offering before YHWH. 13 He will kill the male lamb in the place where they kill the sin offering and the burnt offering, in the place of the sanctuary; for as the sin offering is the priest’s, so is the trespass offering. It is most holy. 14 The priest will take some of the blood of the trespass offering, and the priest will put it on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. 15 The priest will take some of the log of oil, and pour it into the palm of his own left hand. 16 The priest will dip his right finger in the oil that is in his left hand, and will sprinkle some of the oil seven times before YHWH. 17 The priest will put some of the rest of the oil that is in his hand on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, upon the blood of the trespass offering. 18 The rest of the oil that is in the priest’s hand he will put on the head of him who is to be cleansed, and the priest will make atonement for him before YHWH. 19 “The priest will do the sin offering, and [the priest shall]^(LXX) make atonement for him who is to be cleansed from of his uncleanness. Afterward he will kill the burnt offering; 20 then the priest will do the burnt offering and the grain offering on the altar [before YHWH].^(LXX)(SP) The priest will make atonement for him, and he will be clean. 21 “If he is helpless and his hand is not able to overtake, then he will take one male lamb for a trespass offering to be waved, to make atonement for him, and one tenth of an ephah of fine flour mixed with oil for a grain offering, and a log of oil; 22 and two turtledoves, or two sons of a dove, which his hand will overtake; and the one will be a sin offering, and the other a burnt offering. 23 “On the eighth day he will bring them for his cleansing to the priest, to the door of the Appointed Tent, before YHWH. 24 The priest will take the lamb of the trespass offering, and the log of oil, and the priest will wave them for a wave offering before YHWH. 25 He will kill the lamb of the trespass offering. The priest will take some of the blood of the trespass offering and put it on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot. 26 The priest will pour some of the oil into the palm of his own left hand; 27 and the priest will sprinkle with his right finger some of the oil that is in his left hand seven times before YHWH. 28 Then the priest will put some of the oil that is in his hand on the tip of the right ear of him who is to be cleansed, and on the thumb of his right hand, and on the big toe of his right foot, on the place of the blood of the trespass offering. 29 The rest of the oil that is in the priest’s hand he will put on the head of him who is to be cleansed, to make atonement for him before YHWH. 30 He will do one of the turtledoves, or of the sons of a dove, from which his hand will overtake, 31 the one for a sin offering, and the other for a burnt offering, with the grain offering. The priest will make atonement for him who is to be cleansed before YHWH.” 32 This is the Torah for him in whom is the plague of infection, whose hand is not able to overtake for his cleansing. 33 YHWH spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying, 34 “When you have come into the land of Canaan, which I give to you for a possession, and I put a plague of infection in a house in the land of your possession, 35 then he who owns the house will come and tell the priest, saying, ‘There seems to me to be some sort of plague in the house.’ 36 The priest will command that they empty the house, before the priest goes in to see the plague [of spreading infection]^(DSS), that all that is in the house not be made unclean. Afterward the priest will go in to inspect the house. 37 He will see the plague; and behold, if the plague is in the walls of the house with hollow streaks, greenish or reddish, and it appears to be deeper than the wall, 38 then the priest will go out of the house to the door of the house, and shut up the house seven days. 39 The priest will come again on the seventh day, and look [at the house].^(LXX) If the plague has spread in the walls of the house, 40 then the priest will command that they take out the stones in which is the plague, and cast them into an unclean place outside of the city. 41 He will cause the inside of the house to be scraped all over. They will pour out the mortar that they scraped off outside of the city into an unclean place. 42 They will take other stones, and put them in the place of those stones; and [they]^(DSS) will take other mortar, and will plaster the house. 43 “If the plague comes again, and breaks out in the house after he has taken out the [scraped]^(LXX) stones, and after he has scraped the house, and after [he has plastered the house],^(DSS) 44 then the priest will come in and look; and behold, if the plague has spread in the house, it is an irritating infection in the house. It is unclean. 45 [They]^(DSS) will break down the house, its [stone]^(DSS), and its timber, and all the house’s mortar. He will carry them out of the city into an unclean place. 46 “Moreover he who goes into the house while it is shut up will be unclean until the evening. 47 He who lies down in the house will wash his clothes [and be unclean until evening];^(LXX) and he who eats in the house will wash his clothes. 48 “If the priest will come in, and see it, and behold, the plague hasn’t spread in the house, after the house was plastered, then the priest will pronounce the house clean, because the plague is healed. 49 [He]^(DSS) will take two birds [to cleanse the house],^(DSS) cedar wood, scarlet, and hyssop. 50 [and they]^(DSS) will kill one of the birds in a vessel of clay over living water. 51 He will take the cedar wood, the hyssop, the scarlet, and the living bird, and dip them in the blood of the slain bird, and in the living water, and sprinkle [on]^(DSS) the house seven times. 52 He will cleanse the house with the blood of the bird, and with the living water, with the living bird, with the cedar wood, with the hyssop, and with the scarlet; 53 but he will let the living bird go out of the city into the face of the field. So will he make atonement for the house; and it will be clean.” 54 This is the Torah for any plague of infection, and for an eruption, 55 and for the infection of a garment, and for a house, 56 and for a swelling, and for a scab, and for a bright spot; 57 to teach when it is unclean, and when it is clean. This is the Torah of infection.

Prophets Portion (P)

7:1 Elisha said, “Hear the word of YHWH. YHWH says, ‘Tomorrow about this time a seah of fine flour will be sold for a shekel, and two seahs of barley for a shekel, in the gate of Samaria.’ ” 2 Then the captain on whose hand the king leaned answered the man of Elohim, and said, “Behold, if YHWH made windows in the heavens, could this thing be?” He said, “Behold, you will see it with your eyes, but will not eat of it.” 3 Now there were four infected men at the entrance of the gate. They said to one another, “Why do we sit here until we die? 4 If we say, ‘We will enter into the city,’ then the famine is in the city, and we will die there. If we sit still here, we also die. Now therefore come, and let’s surrender to the army of the Syrians. If they save us alive, we will live; and if they kill us, we will only die.” 5 They rose up in the twilight to go to the camp of the Syrians. When they had come to the outermost part of the camp of the Syrians, behold, no man was there. 6 For [YHWH]^(mss)(Syr) had made the army of the Syrians to hear the sound of chariots and the sound of horses, even the noise of a great army; and they said to one another, “Behold, the king of Israel has hired against us the kings of the Hittites and the kings of the Egyptians to attack us.” 7 Therefore they arose and fled in the twilight, and left their tents, their horses, and their donkeys, even the camp as it was, and fled for their life. 8 When these infected ones came to the outermost part of the camp, they went into one tent, and ate and drank, then carried away silver, gold, and clothing and went and hid it. Then they came back, and entered into another tent and carried things from there also, and went and hid them. 9 Then they said to one another, “We aren’t doing right. Today is a day of good news, and we keep silent. If we wait until the morning light, punishment will overtake us. Now therefore come, let’s go and tell the king’s household.” 10 So they came and called to the city gatekeepers; and they told them, “We came to the camp of the Syrians, and, behold, there was no man there, not even a man’s voice, but the horses tied, and the donkeys tied, and the tents as they were.” 11 Then the gatekeepers called out and told it to the king’s household within. 12 The king arose in the night, and said to his servants, “I will now show you what the Syrians have done to us. They know that we are hungry. Therefore they have gone out of the camp to hide themselves in the field, saying, ‘When they come out of the city, we will take them alive, and get into the city.’ ” 13 One of his servants answered, “Please let some people take five of the horses that remain, which are left in the city. Behold, they are like all the multitude of Israel who are consumed. Let’s send and see.” 14 Therefore they took two chariots with horses; and the king sent them out to the Syrian army, saying, “Go and see.” 15 They went after them to the Jordan; and behold, all the path was full of garments and equipment which the Syrians had cast away in their haste. The messengers returned and told the king. 16 The people went out and plundered the camp of the Syrians. So a seah of fine flour was sold for a shekel, and two measures of barley for a shekel, according to the word of YHWH. 17 The king had appointed the captain on whose hand he leaned to be in charge of the gate; and the people trampled over him in the gate, and he died as the man of Elohim had said, who spoke when the king came down to him. 18 It happened as the man of Elohim had spoken to the king, saying, “Two seahs of barley for a shekel, and a seah of fine flour for a shekel, will be tomorrow about this time in the gate of Samaria;” 19 and that captain answered the man of Elohim, and said, “Now, behold, if YHWH made windows in the heavens, might such a thing be?” and he said, “Behold, you will see it with your eyes, but will not eat of it.” 20 It happened like that to him, for the people trampled over him in the gate, and he died [according to the word of Elohim].^(DSS)(mss)

Apostolic Portion (A)

17:11 As he was on his way to Jerusalem, he was passing along the borders of Samaria and Galilee. 12 As he entered into a certain village, ten men who were infected met him, who stood [up]^(mss) at a distance. 13 They lifted up their voices, saying, “Yeshua, Master, have mercy on us!” 14 When he saw them, he said to them, “Go and show yourselves to the priests.” As they went, they were cleansed. 15 One of them, when he saw that he was healed, turned back, glorifying Elohim with a loud voice. 16 He fell on his face at Yeshua’s feet, giving him thanks; and he was a Samaritan. 17 Yeshua answered, “Weren’t the ten cleansed? But where are the nine? 18 Were there none found who returned to give glory to Elohim, except this foreigner?” 19 Then he said to him, “Get up, and go your way. Your faith has saved you.”

Additional Portion (ADD)

The Book of Baruch is named after Baruch ben Neriah, Jeremiah’s well-known scribe, who is mentioned at Baruch 1:1, and has been presumed to be the author of the whole work. Although not in the Hebrew Bible, it is found in the Septuagint, in the Ethiopian Orthodox Bible, and the Roman Catholic, Greek Orthodox, and Russian Orthodox Churches. In some Bibles, Baruch chapter 6 is listed as a separate book called The Letter of Jeremiah, reflecting its separation from Baruch in some copies of the Greek Septuagint. Some scholars propose that it was written during or shortly after the period of the Maccabees. Although the earliest known manuscripts of Baruch are in Greek, linguistic features of the first parts of Baruch (1:1 – 3:8) have been proposed as indicating a translation from a Semitic language.

4:1 This is the book of the commandments of Elohim, and the law that endures forever: all those who hold it fast are appointed to life; but such as leave it will die. 2 Turn you, O Jacob, and take hold of it: walk toward her shining in the face of the light thereof. 3 Give not your glory to another, nor the things that are profitable to you to a strange nation. 4 O Israel, happy are we: for the things that are pleasing to Elohim are made known to us. 5 Be of good cheer, my people, the memorial of Israel. 6 You were sold to the nations, but not for destruction: because you moved Elohim to wrath, you were delivered to your adversaries. 7 For you provoked him that made you by slaughtering to demons, and not to Elohim. 8 You forgot the everlasting Elohim, that brought you up; you grieved also Jerusalem, that nursed you. 9 For she saw the wrath that is come upon you from Elohim, and said, Listen, you women that dwell about Zion: for Elohim has brought upon me great mourning; 10 for I have seen the captivity of my sons and daughters, which the Everlasting has brought upon them. 11 For with joy did I nourish them; but sent them away with weeping and mourning. 12 Let no man rejoice over me, a widow, and forsaken of many: for the sins of my children am I left desolate; because they turned away from the law of Elohim, 13 and had no regard to his statutes, neither walked they in the ways of Elohim’s commandments, nor trod in the paths of discipline in his righteousness. 14 Let those who dwell about Zion come, and remember you the captivity of my sons and daughters, which the Everlasting has brought upon them. 15 For he has brought a nation upon them from far, a shameless nation, and of a strange language, who neither reverenced bearded man, nor pitied child. 16 And they have carried away the dear beloved sons of the widow, and left her that was alone desolate of her daughters. 17 But I, what can I help you? 18 For he that brought these plagues upon you will deliver you from the hand of your enemies. 19 Go your way, O my children, go your way: for I am left desolate. 20 I have put off the garment of peace, and put upon me the sackcloth of my petition: I will cry to the Everlasting as long as I live. 21 Be of good cheer, O my children, cry to Elohim, and he will deliver you from the power and hand of the enemies. 22 For I have trusted in the Everlasting, that he will save you; and joy is come to me from the Holy One, because of the mercy which will soon come to you from your Everlasting Savior. 23 For I sent you out with mourning and weeping: but Elohim will give you to me again with joy and gladness forever. 24 For like as now those who dwell about Zion have seen your captivity: so will they see shortly your salvation from our Elohim, which will come upon you with great glory, and brightness of the Everlasting. 25 My children, suffer patiently the wrath that is come upon you from Elohim: for your enemy has persecuted you; but shortly you will see his destruction, and will tread upon their necks. 26 My delicate ones have gone rough ways; they were taken away as a flock carried off by the enemies. 27 Be of good cheer, O my children, and cry to Elohim: for you will be remembered of him that has brought these things upon you. 28 For as it was your mind to go astray from Elohim: so, return and seek him ten times more. 29 For he that brought these plagues upon you will bring you everlasting joy again with your salvation. 30 Be of good cheer, O Jerusalem: for he that called you by name will comfort you.

Related Scriptures

51:7 Purify me with hyssop, and I will be clean. Wash me, and I will be whiter than snow.

7:1 This is the Torah of the trespass offering: It is most holy. 2 In the place where they kill the burnt offering, he will kill the trespass offering; and its blood he will sprinkle around on the altar. 3 He will bring all of its fat: the fat tail, and the fat that covers the innards, 4 and he will take away the two kidneys, and the fat that is on them, which is by the hips, and the cover on the liver, with the kidneys; 5 and the priest will burn them on the altar for an offering made by fire to YHWH: it is a trespass offering. 6 Every male among the priests may eat of it. It will be eaten in a holy place. It is most holy. 7 As is the sin offering, so is the trespass offering; there is one Torah for them. The priest who makes atonement with them will have it.

Matthew 3:1 In those days, John the Immerser came, proclaiming in the wilderness of Judea, saying, 2 “Repent, for the reign of the heavens is at hand!” 3 For this is he who was spoken of by Isaiah the prophet, saying, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, make the way of the Lord ready! Make his paths straight!” (cf. Isaiah 40:3) 4 Now John himself wore clothing made of camel’s hair with a leather belt around his waist. His food was locusts and wild honey. 5 Then people from Jerusalem, all of Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him. 6 They were immersed by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins. 7 But when he saw many of the Pharisees and Sadducees coming for his immersion, he said to them, “You seed of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore produce fruit worthy of repentance! 9 Don’t think to yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father,’ for I tell you that Elohim is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones. 10 Even now the ax lies at the root of the trees. Therefore every tree that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down, and cast into the fire.

Luke 3:1 Now in the fifteenth year of the reign of Tiberius Caesar, Pontius Pilate being governor of Judea, and Herod being tetrarch of Galilee, and his brother Philip tetrarch of the region of Ituraea and Trachonitis, and Lysanias tetrarch of Abilene, 2 during the high priesthood of Annas and Caiaphas, the word of Elohim came to John, the son of Zechariah, in the wilderness. 3 He came into all the region around the Jordan, proclaiming the immersion of repentance for forgiveness of sins. 4 As it is written in the scroll of the words of Isaiah the prophet, “The voice of one crying in the wilderness, ‘Make ready the way of the Lord. Make his paths straight. 5 Every valley will be filled. Every mountain and hill will be brought low. The crooked will become straight, and the rough ways smooth. 6 All flesh will see Elohim’s salvation.’ ” (cf. Isaiah 40:3-5) 7 He said therefore to the multitudes who went out to be immersed by him, “You seed of vipers, who warned you to flee from the wrath to come? 8 Therefore produce fruits worthy of repentance, and don’t begin to say among yourselves, ‘We have Abraham for our father;’ for I tell you that Elohim is able to raise up children to Abraham from these stones! 9 Even now the ax also lies at the root of the trees. Every tree therefore that doesn’t produce good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire.” 10 The multitudes asked him, “What then must we do?” 11 He answered them, “He who has two coats, let him give to him who has none. He who has food, let him do likewise.” 12 Tax collectors also came to be immersed, and they said to him, “Rabbi, what must we do?” 13 He said to them, “Collect no more than that which is appointed to you.” 14 Soldiers also asked him, saying, “What about us? What must we do?” He said to them, “Extort from no one by violence, neither accuse anyone wrongfully. Be content with your wages.”

4:6 YHWH said furthermore to him, “Now put your hand inside your cloak.” He put his hand inside his cloak, and when he took it out, behold, his hand infected, as white as snow. 7 He said, “Put your hand inside your cloak again.” He put his hand inside his cloak again, and when he took it out of his cloak, behold, it had turned again as his other flesh. 8 “It will happen, if they will not believe you or listen to the voice of the first sign, that they will believe the voice of the latter sign.

24:8 Be careful in the plague of infection, that you observe diligently and do according to all that the priests, the Levites, teach you. As I commanded them, so you will observe to do. 9 Remember what YHWH your Elohim did to Miriam, by the way as you came out of Egypt.

12:1 Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Cushite woman whom he had married; for he had married a Cushite woman. 2 They said, “Has YHWH indeed spoken only with Moses? Hasn’t he spoken also with us?” And YHWH heard it. 3 Now the man Moses was very meek, more than all the men who were on the surface of the land. 4 YHWH spoke suddenly to Moses, to Aaron, and to Miriam, “You three come out to the Appointed Tent!” The three of them came out. 5 YHWH came down in a pillar of cloud, and stood at the door of the Tent, and called Aaron and Miriam; and they both came forward. 6 [And YHWH] said [to them], “Now hear my words. If there is a prophet among you, I, YHWH, will make myself known to him in a vision. I will speak with him in a dream. 7 My servant Moses is not so. He is faithful in all my house. 8 With him, I will speak mouth to mouth, [openly], and not in riddles; and he will see YHWH’s form. Why then were you not afraid to speak against my servant, against Moses?” 9 the anger of YHWH burned against them; and he departed. 10 The cloud departed from over the Tent; and behold, Miriam was infected, as white as snow. Aaron looked at Miriam, and behold, she was infected. 11 Aaron said to Moses, “Oh, my lord, please don’t count this sin against us, in which we have done foolishly, and in which we have sinned. 12 Let her not, I pray, be as one dead, of whom the flesh is half consumed when he comes out of his mother’s womb.” 13 Moses cried to YHWH, saying, “Heal her, Elohim, I beg you!” 14 YHWH said to Moses, “If her father had but spit in her face, shouldn’t she be ashamed seven days? Let her be shut up outside of the camp seven days, and after that she will be brought in again.” 15 Miriam was shut up outside of the camp seven days, and the people didn’t travel until Miriam was brought in again. 16 Afterward the people traveled from Hazeroth, and encamped in the wilderness of Paran.

Matthew 8:1 When he came down from the mountain, great multitudes followed him. 2 Behold, an infected one came to him and did bow down to him, saying, “Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean.” 3 Yeshua stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I want to. Be made clean.” Immediately his infection was cleansed. 4 Yeshua said to him, “See that you tell nobody; but go, show yourself to the priest, and offer the gift that Moses commanded, as a witness to them.”

Mark 1:40 An infected one came to him, begging him, kneeling down to him, and saying to him, “If you want to, you can make me clean.” 41 Being moved with compassion, he stretched out his hand, and touched him, and said to him, “I want to. Be made clean.” 42 When he had said this, immediately the infection departed from him and he was made clean. 43 He strictly warned him and immediately sent him out, 44 and said to him, “See that you say nothing to anybody, but go show yourself to the priest and offer for your cleansing the things which Moses commanded, for a witness to them.” 45 But he went out, and began to proclaim it much, and to spread about the matter, so that Yeshua could no more openly enter into a city, but was outside in desert places. People came to him from everywhere.

Luke 5:12 While he was in one of the cities, behold, there was a man full of infection. When he saw Yeshua, he fell on his face and begged him, saying, “Lord, if you want to, you can make me clean.” 13 He stretched out his hand and touched him, saying, “I want to. Be made clean.” Immediately the infection left him. 14 He commanded him to tell no one, “But go your way and show yourself to the priest, and offer for your cleansing according to what Moses commanded, for a witness to them.” 15 But the report concerning him spread much more, and great multitudes came together to hear and to be healed by him of their infirmities. 16 But he withdrew himself into the desert and prayed.

11:1 When Yeshua had finished directing his twelve disciples, he departed from there to teach and proclaim in their cities. 2 Now when John heard in the prison the works of Messiah, he sent two of his disciples 3 and said to him, “Are you he who comes, or should we look for another?” 4 Yeshua answered them, “Go and tell John the things which you hear and see: 5 the blind receive their sight, the lame walk, the infected are cleansed, the deaf hear, the dead are raised up, and the afflicted have good news preached to them. 6 Blessed is he who finds no occasion for stumbling in me.”

5:1 YHWH spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the sons of Israel that they put out of the camp every infected, everyone who has a discharge, and whoever is unclean by a corpse. 3 You will put both male and female outside of the camp so that they don’t defile their camp, in the midst of which I dwell.” 4 The sons of Israel did so, and put them outside of the camp; as YHWH spoke to Moses, so the sons of Israel did.

Related Additional Readings​

While the sectarian documents found in the caves at Qumran fairly bristle with legal discussions on a variety of issues, only this work, commonly known as 4QMMT (an acronym from the Hebrew words meaning “some of the works of the Law”), directly challenges the position of another religious group. Because of the potentially defining character of such a response, scholars have hoped to find in the Manifesto a basis for a definitive identification of the group behind the sectarian scrolls. Of course, when one expects to find something, one usually does, and so it is here. Seen as pregnant with significance, the Manifesto has given birth to a new theory. Based on legal arguments in the first section of the Manifesto, this theory suggests that the Yahad were Sadducees — not, however, the Sadducees as we know them from Josephus or the Gospels. Rather, theory holds, these are Sadducees with Essene theological tendencies.

Concerning lepers, we have de[termined that] they [may not] enter any place containing the sacred pure food, for they will be kept apart, [outside the camp (?).] Indeed it is written that from the time that he shaves and washes he must dwell outside [the camp for seven d]ays. But now, while they are still unclean, le[pers must not enter] inside [any place wi]th sacred pure food. And you know [that the one who unknowingly breaks a command] because the matter escaped his notice, he must bring a sin offering. But as for [the one who intentionally sins, it is writ]ten that he is a despiser and a blasphemer. [Indeed, while [they are yet] lepro[us], they may not eat from the holy food until sunset on the eighth day.

Josephus was born Joseph ben Mattathias in 37 AD in Jerusalem of a priestly and royal family. He excelled in his studies of Jewish law and studied with the Sadducees, Pharisees, and the Essenes, eventually aligning himself with the Pharisees. In 62 AD he went to Rome to free some imprisoned priests. After accomplishing this mission through the intercession of Nero’s wife, Poppaea, he returned to Jerusalem in 65 AD to find the country in revolt against Rome. Josephus shrewdly reinterpreted the Messianic prophecies. He predicted that Vespasian would become the ruler of the ‘entire world’. His prophecy became true in 68 AD when Nero committed suicide and Vespasian became Ceasar. As a result, Josephus was freed; he moved to Rome and became a Roman citizen, taking the Vespasian family name Flavius. Vespasian commissioned Josephus to write a history of the war, which he finished in 78 AD, the Jewish War. His second major work, the Antiquities of the Jews, was completed in 93 AD. The extant manuscripts of the book Antiquities of the Jews contain two references to Yeshua of Nazareth (18.3.3. and 20.9.1.) and one reference to the imprisonment and death of John the Baptist (18.5.2.).

3.11.3. He also ordered that those whose bodies were afflicted with infection, and that had a gonorrhea, should not come into the city; nay, he removed the women, when they had their natural purgations, till the seventh day; after which he looked on them as pure, and permitted them to come in again. The law permits those also who have taken care of funerals to come in after the same manner, when this number of days is over; but if any continued longer than that number of days in a state of pollution, the law appointed the offering two lambs for a slaughter; the one of which they are to purge by fire, and for the other, the priests take it for themselves. In the same manner do those slaughter who have had the gonorrhea. But he that sheds his seed in his sleep, if he go down into cold water, has the same privilege with those that have lawfully accompanied with their wives. And for the lepers, he suffered them not to come into the city at all, nor to live with any others, as if they were in effect dead persons; but if any one had obtained by prayer to Elohim, the recovery from that distemper, and had gained a healthful complexion again, such a one returned thanks to Elohim, with several sorts of slaughters; concerning which we will speak hereafter.

3.11.4. Whence one cannot but smile at those who say that Moses was himself afflicted with the infection when he fled out of Egypt, and that he became the conductor of those who on that account left that country, and led them into the land of Canaan; for had this been true, Moses would not have made these laws to his own dishonor, which indeed it was more likely he would have opposed, if others had endeavored to introduce them; and this the rather, because there are lepers in many nations, who yet are in honor, and not only free from reproach and avoidance, but who have been great captains of armies, and been entrusted with high offices in the commonwealth, and have had the privilege of entering into holy places and temples; so that nothing hindered, but if either Moses himself, or the multitude that was with him, had been liable to such a misfortune in the color of his skin, he might have made laws about them for their credit and advantage, and have laid no manner of difficulty upon them. Accordingly, it is a plain case, that it is out of violent prejudice only that they report these things about us. But Moses was pure from any such distemper, and lived with countrymen who were pure of it also, and thence made the laws which concerned others that had the distemper. He did this for the honor of Elohim. But as to these matters, let every one consider them after what manner he pleases.