Vers. 83-53.-0lea1Ming the corrupt house. That the Divine Lawgiver should, in this tabernacle period of Israel's history, anticipate a time when their future houses would be affected by some disorder similar to leprosy in the human skin, and that he should direct a treatment of such houses closely corresponding with that of the human leper, is exceedingly remarkable. Nothing could possibly impress the Hebrew mind more powerfully with the ide.e. that "the face of the Lord was against" that spiritual evil of which leprosy was the chosen type. How direct the argument and forcible the conclusion that, if not only every remotest particle of leprosy itself was to be ruthlessly put away but also anything which to the bodily eye had even a. near resemblance to it, and was thus suggestive of it,-how offensive, how intolerable, in the sight of God must that evil thing itself be held I Here are- I. THREE MAIN PRINCIPLES ON THE SUBJECT OF CORRUPTION. In God's view, as we gain it from his Word, 1. Corruption (impurity) may attach to the "house" or com- munity as well as to the individual. We read of "the iniquity of the house of Israel," and of "the iniquity of the house of Judah" (Ezek. iv. 5, 6); of "the house of Israel dealing treacherously with God" (Jer. iii. 20), etc. 2. That earnest effort should be made to cleanse it from corruption. The leprous house of stone was to be cleansed: the stones in which the plague was were to be taken away (ver. 40); the house was to be scraped round about, and its unclean dust cast out of the camp (ver. 41); other stones were to be placed and other mortar used instead (ver. 42); the leprous part was to be removed and the house renovated. So mu~t the contaminated community purify itself, removing that from it which is evil and cor- rupting-its Achan, it.s Ananias and Sapphira, its Simon the sorcerer, its guilty member (I Cor. v.), etc. 3. That, all efforts failing, the house will be destroyed. "He shall break down the house, the stones of it," etc. (ver. 45). A community of any kind that is incurably corrupt (1) had better be broken up deliberately by the hand of man; but if not (2), will certainly be dissolved in time by the hand of God. The history of the world abounds in proofs that moral and spiritual corruption lead on to feebleness, decay, dissolution. II. THREE MAIN APPLICA TIONB OF THE PBINOIPLEB. To any leprous "house," to any community into which seeds of corruption have been introduced, these principles will apply. They may with peculiar appropriateness be referred to: 1. The nation. The "house of Judah" and the "house of Israel" were continually warned that they bad erred from the ways of the Lord and become corrupt, that they must cleanse themselves from their impurities, or that they would be abandoned by God to their doom. Assyria, Judiea, Egypt, Greece, Rome, the Ottoman Empire, provide striking and eloquent illus- trations. 2. The family. 'l'he "house of Eli" and the" house of Saul" il!uGtrate the principles of the text; so also many a "house" in Christian times that has risen to honour and influence, that has grown leprous (corrupt), that has not heeded the warnings of the Word of God to put away the evil of its doings, and that has fallen into decay and has disappeared. 3. The Church. '£his is the "house of God" on earth (I 'l'irn. iii. 15; 2 Tim. ii. 20; Eph. ii 19; Heb. iii. 6). This house may show signs of leprosy· and in individual Churches corruption may break out-in doctrine (Galatia), in public :Oor_ship (Corinth), in morals (Pergamos, Thyatira), in !Piri_tual lif~ (Ephesus, Sardis, Laod1cea). The corrupt Church must be cleansed, or 1t will_ be disowned of the Divine Lord, and it will perish in his high displeasure (Rev. i1, 5, 16, 23, 27; iii. 3, 17-19).-C. •
Vera. 33-57.-Leprosy in a home. From the first of these verses It is concluded that leprosy was not an ordinary disease, but a plague inflicted immediately by a jndg- ment from God. That it was so inflicted in some instances upon persons cannot be disputed .(see Numb. xii. 10; 2 Kings v. 27; xv. 5), and God threatens to curse the hoWle of the wicked with such a plague (Zech. v. 4). The Jews view it in this light, and conaequently regard leprosy as incurable except by the hand of God. But in OH. XIV, 33-57.] THE BOOK OF LEVI'fICUS. :!31