Tzaraat   צרעת

IN

PRE-MESSIANIC

TIMES

The Ailment of

Part 4:  When It All Turns White

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Normal Tzaraat

  • The Tzaraat we’ve seen in Part 1 and Part 2 – 
  • Let’s call it “Normal” Tzaraat
  • It becomes impure when spots in the skin turn white 
  • And keep spreading.

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What happens if the whole skin turns white?

You would think the person has reached the peak of impurity, right?

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Wrong.

The person then becomes pure!

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Does that make sense??

 

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It does.

Because we’re dealing here with a different type of Tzaraat.

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  • At first, you can’t tell.
  • All Tzaraat cases start with white spots.
  • If those white spots keep spreading, 
  • The Metzora is declared impure
  • And removed from the community.

 

Initial Observations

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  • All Metzora cases are rejected 
  • But we hope they’d recover.
  • Especially after learning (in Part 1) of the great potential hidden in Tzaraat.

Hopes of Recovery

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False Hopes

  • And then something strange happens:
  • This type of Tzaraat gets worse and worse, 
  • Until it spreads to cover the whole body. 
  • Not one inch of normal flesh!
  • His normality is totally lost.
  • And so too any hope of recovery
  • Devastating. 

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Why is this happening?!

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Sometimes when things fall apart 
they’re actually falling into place.

 

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What’s Fallen Apart?

  • This completely-white Metzora,
  • Together with all the aspirations we had for him.
  • We feel very bad for that Metzora, 
  • And for ourselves, having invested our hopes in him.

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What's fallen into place?

  • We disassociate ourselves from that Metzora
  • Close that chapter.
  • And move on to reinvest our hopes in a better, worthier cause.

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He is  Neutralised

  • Look at him – he’s white from head to toe
  • His abnormality can no longer be disguised. 
  • His fan-base has diminished.
  • Who’s going to vouch for him now?!
  • His harmful energies are thus neutralized.
  • No longer does he pose danger to the community.

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He is “Pure”

  • The Completely-White Metzora is now pure,
  • But this status isn’t testimony of good nature. 
  • Rather of his inability to adversely impact (impurify) others.

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The Difference

  • Normal Tzaraat is applicable to people of internal perfection
  • Hence it eventually heals and with flying colors.
  • Completely-White Tzaraat is applicable to people who are rotten to the core.
  • Hence it’s terminal in its very nature.

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Example

It’s really wicked people like Pharaoh who had such Tzaraat.

 

 

More about Pharaoh and his Tzaraat later.

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Summary

Normal Tzaraat Completely-White Tzaraat
Real Cause Perfection Rotten
Apparent Condition Impure - reject Impure - reject
Extent of Condition Some spots The whole body (eventually)
Assessment Fixable - there's hope Unfixable - hopeless
Remedy/Prescription Fix by Torah & humility Forget and move on
Examples Moses, Miriam, David Pharaoh

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Normal Tzaraat has a central role in the Messianic Process

(As explained in Part 3).

 


Completely-White Tzaraat
has a pivotal role as well.

Tzaraat Part 4 - when it all turns white

By Itamar Hatzvi

Tzaraat Part 4 - when it all turns white

About the special case of Tzaraat when the whole body becomes infected

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