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Leviticus 13:1 open_in_new
This Is The Word Of Yahweh (Leviticus 13:1).
‘And Yahweh spoke to Moses and to Aaron, saying,'
Here Aaron is for the second time included with Moses in receiving the word of Yahweh (compare Leviticus 11:1), and will be again in Leviticus 14:33 and Leviticus 15:1. This suggests that at times he approached Yahweh in Moses' company, although never as the prime person. In spite of his status he could not outrank Moses. But here he was present as a witness to what God said. Judging by the Book of Numbers, where Aaron is not conjoined with Moses in this way until after the confirmation of Aaron's position in Numbers 18, it was prior to the arrival in Kadesh.
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Leviticus 13:2-8 open_in_new
Dealing With Skin Eruptions (Leviticus 13:2-8).
“When a man shall have in the skin of his flesh a rising, or a scab, or a bright spot, and it become in the skin of his flesh the plague of a suspicious skin disease, then he shall be brought to Aaron the priest, or to one of his sons the priests, and the priest shall look on the plague in the skin of the flesh, and if the hair in the plague be turned white, and the appearance of the plague be deeper than the skin of his flesh, it is the plague of a suspicious skin disease, and the priest shall look on him, and pronounce him unclean.”
If a man discovers that he has a skin eruption he is required to report it to the priests. This is because it, temporarily at least, makes it dangerous for him to enter the tabernacle court in case he is not a whole person, in case he is ‘unclean'. The priests will then examine it, and if the hair in the eruption or spot has turned white and the eruption or spot appears to be more than skin deep they are to declare it a suspicious skin disease, possibly a type of leprosy.
“And if the bright spot be white in the skin of his flesh, and the appearance of it is not deeper than the skin, and its hair is not turned white, then the priest shall shut up the one who has the plague seven days, and the priest shall look on him on the seventh day, and, behold, if in his eyes the plague be at a standstill, and the plague be not spread in the skin, then the priest shall shut him up seven days more, and the priest shall look on him again the seventh day, and, behold, if the plague be dim, and the plague be not spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean. It is a scab: and he shall wash his clothes, and be clean.”
On the other hand if the hair in the plague spot is not white, and the eruption or spot does not appear to go deep they are to put him in quarantine for seven days and then view it again. Then they must re-examine it, and if it has still not changed they must quarantine him for a further seven days, and if after the fourteen days it appears no worse, but rather a little better, he declares it to be only a scab and declares the man clean. All the man has to do then is to wash his clothes and be clean. One reason for this, of course, is in case the scab has affected the clothes while he has been waiting. But the ritual reason would be in order to remove from him the taint of the place where he was in quarantine, and to reveal him as ‘clean'.
“But if the scab spread abroad in the skin, after he has shown himself to the priest for his cleansing, he shall show himself to the priest again, and the priest shall look; and, behold, if the scab be spread in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a suspicious skin disease.”
On the other hand, if the scab spreads while he is in quarantine, or even after he has been released, the man must immediately call for the priest, who will re-examine it, and if he sees that it has spread he must declare the man unclean.
The main point of this process as far as the priests were concerned was that it protected the holiness of the Sanctuary, and of Israel, but the second benefit as far as Israel was concerned was that a man with a suspicious skin disease would either be cleared, or would be removed from the camp so as to prevent infection.
Daily we too should bring ourselves for examination before our great High Priest, Jesus Christ. We must ask ourselves, ‘if I come up for examination before Him with Whom we have to do, what is there in me that will reveal me as unwhole, imperfect, unclean, fit only to be cast out of His presence? And if there is present sin which goes deep or is spreading we must bring it to Him for Him to deal with. We must seek for the blood of Jesus Christ, God's Son, to cleanse us from all sin (1 John 1:7). Then we can come for our further examination without fear. The plague will have been stayed and we will have been made clean. It will turn out that our sin, while disfiguring, was but a scab on something quickly healed by the Great Physician and as quickly dealt with. Although in many cases the scab may remain.
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Leviticus 13:9-17 open_in_new
Dealing With Chronic Skin Diseases (Leviticus 13:9-17).
‘When the plague of a suspicious skin disease is in a man, then he shall be brought to the priest, and the priest shall look, and, behold, if there be a white rising in the skin, and it has turned the hair white, and there be quick raw flesh in the rising, it is an old suspicious skin disease in the skin of his flesh, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean. He shall not shut him up, for he is unclean.”
In this case the man or his relatives are suspicious about some symptom that has occurred in someone who has previously been cleared of skin disease, because it look so inflamed, so they bring him to the priest. The priest will then check it and if he discovers that there is a white rising in the skin which has turned the hair white, and also an inflamed rising elsewhere in the skin, he must immediately declare him unclean. Quick action needs to be taken. He is not to be quarantined within the camp but immediately put out of the camp.
‘And if the suspicious skin disease breaks out abroad in the skin, and the suspicious skin disease covers all the skin of him who has the plague from his head even to his feet, as far as appears to the priest, then the priest shall look, and, behold, if the suspicious skin disease has covered all his flesh, he shall pronounce him clean who has the disease: it is all turned white. He is clean.”
On the other hand if in fact he discovers that the skin disease has spread to cover the whole of his body from head to foot it is clearly something harmless and he can be declared clean. It may simply be due to a lack of pigmentation.
“But whenever raw flesh appears in him, he shall be unclean. And the priest shall look on the raw flesh, and pronounce him unclean. The raw flesh is unclean. It is a suspicious skin disease.”
But whenever raw flesh appears the situation changes, the man is declared unclean.
“Or if the raw flesh change again, and be changed to white, then he shall come to the priest, and the priest shall look on him, and, behold, if the plague be turned into white, then the priest shall pronounce him clean who has the disease. He is clean.”
But if the raw flesh then changes again and becomes white the priest can alter the diagnosis and proclaim him clean. So ‘raw flesh' that remains raw flesh and gets worse is clearly the test. If it does so the man is unclean, if it dies down the man is clean.
The constant repetition stresses the need for us to continually examine ourselves before our Great High Priest. There are many different types of sin by which we can be affected. What is there about us that would draw attention to our plagued condition? Let us quickly respond to it and rid ourselves of it that we might be truly ‘clean'.
We must distinguish between what is superficial and does not really affect us at all, giving only an appearance of sin, what is not truly sin within (although we should still avoid the appearance of sin - 1 Thessalonians 5:22), not filling our thoughts with trivialities, and what is more serious and becomes ‘raw flesh', inflamed and deep. If the latter is at all true of us we need quickly to ensure that we come to the Great Physician and seek His remedy. Then we will be able to be declared clean.
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Leviticus 13:18-23 open_in_new
Dealing With Boils/Ulcers (Leviticus 13:18-23).
“And when the flesh has a boil in its skin, and it is healed, and in the place of the boil there is a white rising, or a bright spot, reddish-white, then it shall be shown to the priest, and the priest shall look; and, behold, if the its appearance be deeper than the skin, and its hair be turned white, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a suspicious skin disease. It has broken out in the boil.”
If a man has a boil (or ulcer) he also must come to the priest with it. No man must enter the court of the tabernacle with such a boil unless it has been checked. And if the boil has subsided and has been replaced by a white rising or a bright reddish-white spot, and it goes deeper than the skin and the hairs have turned white, the priest must declare him unclean. He has a suspicious skin disease as a result of the boil.
“But if the priest look on it, and, behold, there are no white hairs in it, and it is not deeper than the skin, but is uninflamed, then the priest shall shut him up seven days, if it spread abroad in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean: it is a suspicious disease. But if the bright spot stay in its place, and be not spread, it is the scar of the boil; and the priest shall pronounce him clean.”
On the other hand if there are no white hairs in it, and it is not deeper than the skin, but appears uninflamed, then the priest must quarantine him for seven days, and if he then finds it has spread abroad he must declare the man unclean, but if there is no spread it is merely the scar of the boil. The man can then be declared clean.
We are all aware how quickly a boil can spring up. One moment we seem to be well and whole, and then suddenly there it is, often a sign that all is not really well with us. And sin springs up just as quickly, and often that too is evidence of even more sin. We must be as quick to take our ‘boils' to the Master, as these men were to take themselves before the priest, for if we do not our boil may become worse, and end in marring our whole lives.
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Leviticus 13:24-28 open_in_new
Dealing With Burns (Leviticus 13:24-28).
“Or when the flesh has a burn from a fire on its skin, and the live part of the burn becomes a bright spot, reddish-white, or white, then the priest shall look on it, and, behold, if the hair in the bright spot is turned white, and its appearance is deeper than the skin; it is a suspicious skin disease. It has broken out as a result of the burn, and the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a suspicious skin disease.”
When a man has a severe burn which results in a bright reddish-white or white spot, he must again consult the priest. The priest will then examine it. If the hair on the bright spot has turned white, and appears to be more than skin deep, it is a suspicious skin disease. It has arise because of the burn, and he will be declared unclean.
“But if the priest looks on it, and, behold, there is no white hair in the bright spot, and it is no deeper than the skin, but is uninflamed, then the priest shall shut him up seven days, and the priest shall look on him on the seventh day, and if it spread abroad in the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is a suspicious skin disease. And if the bright spot stay in its place, and is not spread in the skin, but is uninflamed; it is the rising of the burn, and the priest shall pronounce him clean. For it is the scar of the burn.”
On the other hand if the priest examines it and there is no white hair in the bright spot, and it is no more than skin deep, and is uninflamed, then the priest must quarantine him for seven days, and if then the spot has spread abroad the man must be declared unclean. But if it has not spread abroad but remains as it is and is uninflamed, it is merely the rising of the burn and he can be declared clean. It is simply the scar of the burn.
A burn is regularly the result of carelessness. But one moment of carelessness has resulted in this person having to go into quarantine and live in fear of an adverse verdict. How careless are we about sin? That makes us unwhole as well. How grateful we should be that the result is not for us a period of doubt as to whether all will be well, because for us there is instant forgiveness if our repentance is genuine. We can come immediately to the Great Physician and He will make us whole, but it means avoiding ‘burns' in the future.
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Leviticus 13:29-37 open_in_new
Dealing With Sores (Leviticus 13:29-37).
“And when a man or woman has a plague on the head or on the beard, then the priest shall look on the plague, and, behold, if its appearance is deeper than the skin, and there is yellow thin hair in it, then the priest shall pronounce him unclean. It is an itch. It is a suspicious skin disease of the head or of the beard.”
This is not just a ‘suspicious skin disease' but a suspected ‘plague'. It could be favus or psoriasis. The person has an itch on their head or beard. If it seems to go below the skin and there is yellowish thin hair in it, then the person is proclaimed unclean. It is a suspicious skin disease, the suspicion being that it will be permanent.
“And if the priest look on the plague, and, behold, its appearance is not deeper than the skin, and there is no black hair in it, then the priest shall shut up the one who has the plague for seven days, and on the seventh day the priest shall look on the disease, and, behold, if the itch has not spread, and there is no yellow hair in it, and the appearance of the itch is not deeper than the skin, then he shall be shaved, but will not shave the itch, and the priest shall shut up the one who has the itch for seven days more, and on the seventh day the priest shall look on the itch, and, behold, if the itch has not spread in the skin, and its appearance is not deeper than the skin, then the priest shall pronounce him clean, and he shall wash his clothes, and be clean.”
But if the plague does not go deeper than the skin, and there are no black hairs in it the person is to be quarantined for seven days, after which the priest will look at it again, and if the itch has still not spread and there are no yellowish hairs in it, and it does not go more than skin deep, the person may shave everywhere but where the itch is. Thus up to this time they have not been allowed to shave, and the men at least would be feeling very uncomfortable and shabby. But once they have shaved something of their self-confidence will be restored. This is another indication of God's concern for the details of our lives.
Then they will be quarantined for another seven days. If on this second viewing the itch has still not spread in the skin, and it does not appear to be more than skin deep, the person is pronounced clean. They must wash their clothes and will then be clean.
“But if the itch spreads abroad in the skin after his cleansing, then the priest shall look on him; and, behold, if the itch has spread in the skin, the priest shall not seek for the yellow hair, he is unclean. But if in his eyes the itch is at a standstill and black hair has grown up in it, the itch is healed, he is clean, and the priest shall pronounce him clean.”
But if the person comes back and says that the itch is spreading that is all that is required for him to be declared unclean and excluded from the camp. The priest, however, with his experience may consider that the itch has not spread, and if he sees that new black hair has grown on the itch the person will be pronounced clean.
Sin can be like an itch. And when it begins to itch it is in order to remind us to go to our great High Priest, Jesus Christ, for the itch may be the symptom of something deeper. It needs to be examined before Him so as to ensure what is its cause and that it is properly dealt with. This person may in fact have judged his own position harshly, but the priest with his experience had saved him from the consequences of his error. We too sometimes judge ourselves too harshly. How good it is then when we learn from the Master that He is satisfied with us as we are. We often think that we have become so unclean, that there is little hope for us now, but He assures us that He has dealt with any uncleanness, and that really He is pleased with our progress, and that if we will but trust Him He will see us through. He is the One Who makes holy (Hebrews 2:11). We need to be able to learn to accept forgiveness and to respond to His work within (Philippians 2:13).
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Leviticus 13:38,39 open_in_new
Dealing With Rashes (Leviticus 13:38-39).
“And when a man or a woman has in the skin of the flesh bright spots, even white bright spots, then the priest shall look; and, behold, if the bright spots in the skin of their flesh be of a dull white, it is a minor skin disease, it has broken out in the skin. He is clean.”
This kind of skin complaint can be dealt with quickly. If the person has white bright spots and they are a dull white it is simply a minor skin disease and can be ignored. The person is clean. It may be impetigo, or acne, or eczema. It would be a different matter if they were the inflamed white vesicles of clinical leprosy.
It matters not how small and insignificant something is, Jesus Christ is still interested in it. It is by constantly coming to Him that we make sure that any ‘spots' we have are not signs of something which could destroy us. Fortunately much of the time our ‘spots' turn out not to be too important, and can be removed by our own decisions. But we would be foolish to ignore them.
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Leviticus 13:40-44 open_in_new
Dealing With Baldness (Leviticus 13:40-44).
“And if a man's hair has fallen off his head, he is bald; yet he is clean. And if his hair has fallen off from the front part of his head, he is forehead bald; yet he is clean.”
The falling out of the hair, which some might have seen as disastrous, is nothing to be concerned about as far as cleanness is concerned. The bald man is as ‘clean' as the man with plenty of hair.
“But if there is on the bald head, or the bald forehead, a reddish-white plague, it is a suspicious skin disease breaking out on his bald head, or his bald forehead. Then the priest shall look on him; and, behold, if the rising of the plague be reddish-white on his bald head, or on his bald forehead, as the appearance of a suspicious skin disease in the skin of the flesh, he is a diseased man, he is unclean. The priest shall surely pronounce him unclean. His plague is in his head.”
On the other hand if there is a reddish-white plague on his head or forehead, it is a suspicious skin disease. Then the priest must examine him and if the reddish-white plague on his head has the same appearance as the suspicious skin disease on the skin of the flesh elsewhere (compare Leviticus 13:19), he is a diseased man. He is unclean. The plague is in his head and he will be pronounced unclean.
Baldness is a reminder of things that we might have in our lives and can do nothing about. We wish they were not there but we have to endure them. But we can be sure that such things, if we can do nothing about it, do not prevent our fellowship with God. But let those things once become signs of a plague and they must be dealt with instantly. Then must we do what the Israelite could not do, turn to the Great Physician. Then we can be sure that He will sustain and heal us, putting right any wrong within and making us whole.
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Leviticus 13:45,46 open_in_new
The Sad Consequences For The Permanently Unclean (Leviticus 13:45-46).
“And the leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and the hair of his head shall go loose, and he shall cover his upper lip, and he shall cry, Unclean, unclean. All the days during which the plague is in him he shall be unclean. He is unclean. He shall dwell alone. His dwelling shall be outside the camp.”
And what is to happen to those who turn out to have a serious and genuine suspicious skin disease? They must go into mourning, they must tear their clothes, they must let their hair hang loose, they must cover their upper lips, and they must cry, ‘unclean, unclean' (compare Leviticus 10:6; Leviticus 21:10; Ezekiel 24:17; Ezekiel 24:22; Genesis 37:34; Numbers 14:6; 2 Samuel 1:11; 2Ki 11:14; 2 Kings 19:1; 2 Kings 22:11; 2 Kings 22:19; Ezra 9:5; Micah 3:7). As long as the plague is on them they shall be unclean. They must dwell outside the camp. They must dwell alone (or presumably with others in the same condition).
Theirs was a terrible fate, a terrible predicament. They could no longer enjoy the normal society of men, they could not enter the camp, and of course they had no opportunity to approach the tabernacle. Theirs was a living death.
And the fact that they were to go into permanent mourning brings out how their diseases were seen. They had to mourn because in a sense they were bearing their own sins and the sins of Israel. They had been smitten as a warning to others.
But one day One was to come Who would also be smitten. He too would be like one plagued. But He would be being plagued because He was bearing the sin of many. His face would be marred by suffering more than is usual for the sons of men. As One from Whom men hide their faces He would be despised and we would not esteem Him. He would have no beautiful form nor comeliness, and when men saw Him He would have no splendour that they should desire Him. He would be a man of sorrows, humiliated by grief. But He would be wounded for our transgressions, He would be bruised for our iniquities, the chastising of our peace would be on Him, and with His stripes would we be healed (Isaiah 51:13 to Isaiah 53:12).
And we too were once spiritually in the same condition as those poor diseased men and women. We too were like that. And one day, if we are Christ's, God awoke us and enabled us to see that we were unclean, unworthy, hopeless, bowed down with the disease of sin. All we could do was mourn and cry ‘unclean' unclean' as Isaiah did of old (Isaiah 6:5). Are we sufficiently aware of how grateful we should be that the Master came our way, and suffered so, and seeing us in our uncleanness stretched out His hand and touched us and said, ‘Be made whole'? And thus were we able to arise and enter not only the camp, not only the tabernacle, but Heaven itself with Him. And our filthy garments were taken off us, and replaced with His garments of righteousness of glistening white. And we no longer had to cry, ‘unclean, unclean', but ‘holy, holy, holy, is the Lord of hosts Who has delivered us from so great a death, and does deliver, and will yet deliver us'. Thanks be to God for His unspeakable gift.
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Leviticus 13:47-59 open_in_new
Deliverance From A Fungoid Plague In What We Wear (Leviticus 13:47-59).
The laws of uncleanness now move on to uncleanness in clothing. It is quite possible from what follows that in the conditions under which they lived in the wilderness, and possibly even continuing into Canaan, there were types of fungus that could infest clothing which were especially dangerous to men and women. It may have been a type of fungus unknown to us, although we are, of course, familiar with types of mould which are toxic when eaten. This fungus was distinguished by being ‘greenish or reddish', somewhat similar to the plague that can affect a building (Leviticus 14:37). The very fact of the definition suggests that other types of mould were not looked on in quite the same way.
However from the point of view of the ritual the significant thing was that such fungus, whether mould or mildew or whatever it was, was seen as defiling, possibly even death-dealing. It marred the ‘perfection' required in the camp, and must be dealt with ritually. It jarred on God's holiness and even on the holiness of Israel. So provision was made for the way that it could be discerned and if necessarily dealt with. For most of the people could not afford just to throw away clothes because they had become stained. Thus it was ensured that they only had to get rid of them if absolutely necessary.
It may seem a little trivial to introduce the idea of fungus in clothing in between the description of skin diseases in men and women that could result in their being cast out of the camp, and the restoration of such people if their skin disease was healed, but the intention was probably to indicate that there was indeed the hope of healing for some. The clothing was not totally condemned. Some could be restored. It was a prelude to hope. And it does bring out how important clothing was seen to be.
Thus there is probably a greater significance to the introduction of clothing here. In Israel's view religiously speaking clothes were vital for fallen mankind. They were part of the reason why he could be accepted before God. They covered man's nakedness. For there may be in mind here the coats of skins in Genesis 3:21.
We have already observed the slow movement through from Genesis 1 to Genesis 3 in Leviticus 11 and Leviticus 12, and in Genesis 3:21 clothing was an epoch making event for mankind. Up to this point man had been naked, but man now wore clothes for the first time and was clothed before God. His nakedness was covered. He was again acceptable in God's eyes. And he must never again go naked. Indeed a further curse would come when Noah's nakedness was revealed (Genesis 9:25).
This vital covering of nakedness is also stressed with regard to the altar of burnt offering and the sanctuary. There were to be no steps to the altar lest the nakedness of the offerer be revealed (Exodus 20:26). Indeed the priests must wear breeches for this very reason (Exodus 28:42). If that be so then the warning now comes that even such clothing as Adam and Eve received could become ‘unclean'. It was not a once for all provision. Uncleanness could get in anywhere. And if they do become unclean they must once more be made clean. Our clothing before God must be ‘clean'.
“The garment also that a fungous plague (actually the same word as for suspicious skin disease) is in, whether it be a woollen garment, or a linen garment; whether it be in warp, or woof; of linen, or of woollen; whether in a skin, or in anything made of skin; if the plague be greenish or reddish in the garment, or in the skin, or in the warp, or in the woof, or in anything of skin; it is a fungous plague, and shall be shown to the priest. And the priest shall look on the plague, and shut up that which has the plague seven days, and he shall look on the plague on the seventh day. If the plague be spread in the garment, either in the warp, or in the woof, or in the skin, whatever service the skin is used for; the plague is a fretting fungus; it is unclean. And he shall burn the garment, whether the warp or the woof, in woollen or in linen, or anything of skin, wherein the plague is: for it is a fretting fungus. It shall be burnt in the fire.”
The description of possible garments is comprehensive even though some of the technical terms in Hebrew are unknown to us. It applies to woollen garments, linen garments or clothing made of skins. We do not know what the Hebrew words behind ‘warp and woof' mean, but they probably technically signify every part of the garment inside and out. No matter where the fungous plague is it must be dealt with, because it is a ‘fretting fungus' and is ‘unclean'.
The garment must first be shown to the priest who must shut it up for seven days. Then it must be looked at again, and if the fungus is spreading through the garment it is clearly a ‘fretting fungus' and must immediately be burned in fire.
“And if the priest shall look, and, behold, the plague is not spread in the garment, either in the warp, or in the woof, or in anything of skin, then the priest shall command that they wash the thing in which the plague is, and he shall shut it up seven days more, and the priest shall look, after that the plague is washed, and, behold, if the plague has not changed its colour, and the plague is not spread, it is unclean. You shall burn it in the fire. It is a fungus whether the bareness be within or without.”
If the fungus has not spread the garment must be washed and then shut up for another seven days. If the plague still retains its colour it must be burned with fire no matter whether it is on the inside or the out, it must be burned. It is a suspicious disease.
“And if the priest look, and, behold, the plague be dim after its washing, then he shall rend it out of the garment, or out of the skin, or out of the warp, or out of the woof, and if it appear still in the garment, either in the warp, or in the woof, or in anything of skin, it is breaking out. You shall burn that in which the plague is with fire.”
However, if the mark of the plague has faded through washing then the particular patch can be torn out of the garment and replaced by a good patch. But if signs of the plague still continue it is ‘breaking out', the garment must be burned.
“And the garment, either the warp, or the woof, or whatever thing of skin it be, which you shall wash, if the plague be departed from them, then it shall be washed the second time, and shall be clean.”
But if there are no further effects the garment should be washed a second time and will be clean.
“This is the law of the plague of leprosy in a garment of woollen or linen, either in the warp, or the woof, or anything of skin, to pronounce it clean, or to pronounce it unclean.”
This may well have been a colophon to the original tablet or other record, enabling the tablet to be quickly identified, or it may simply be a summarising statement.
The whole lesson for us from the above is quite clear. Our moral lives are regularly looked at in terms of garments. Isaiah could say, ‘all our righteousnesses are as a polluted garment', menstrually unclean, something similar to fungoid garments (Isaiah 64:6). Joshua the High Priest after the Exile had his ‘filthy garments' (befouled with man's uncleanness) removed from him (Zechariah 3:3-4), in readiness for God's coming action. And in contrast the bride of the Lamb is to be clothed in linen clean and white, which represents the righteousnesses of God's people, God's ‘holy ones' (Revelation 19:8). Compare also Ezekiel 16:10 and Zechariah 3:5. Thus we have in this passage a warning that we must deal quickly and severely with any sin, especially such as has a tendency to spread. If our moral garments become plagued they must be destroyed, and we must put on new garments of righteousness. Sin must not be dallied with, it must be cast off and burnt.
It is especially a reminder that by nature we are all clothed in polluted garments, which must be cast off, destroyed, and replaced by the righteousness of Christ (2 Corinthians 5:21), as a man puts on a wedding garment when invited to a wedding (Matthew 22:11-12). Our only hope is to be clothed in the righteousness of Christ (see Ephesians 5:26-27).