This shall be the law of the person afflicted with tzara'as on the day of his cleansing. He shall be brought to the priest: And the priest shall go forth out of the camp. The priest shall examine him, and behold, if the plague of tzara'as is healed in the person afflicted with tzara'as:
The Ohr Hachaim asks why the first possuk is necessary. Why not simply tell us that a Metzora who becomes pure shall be brought to the Cohen? The Ohr Hachaim explains that tzara’as is the kind of illness that one would expect to afflict a person as a product of mold and infection, with the increased function of the liver and affects his flesh. When a person is depressed and sad, filled with heartache and loneliness, this can cause mold in his body, and his skin can break out in tzara’as.
One would expect the solution to this illness to be the opposite of this lifestyle. A person would have to find ways to gladden his soul and remove himself from the loneliness that caused his illness. He would have to socialize more and find ways to gladden his soul.
A person who finds tzara’as on his body may be tempted to consider his condition a physical one and search for physical solutions. If he is told that the tzara’as is a product of his misdeeds, such as Lashon Hara, he may be tempted not to believe it. He may look for a way to enjoy life more and find more people to surround himself with.
The Torah tells us that the Metzora is commanded to live alone, with ripped clothing, long hair, and his head covered until his mouth. He must act in a way that is diametrically opposed to the physical solution for his problem. One would expect this kind of activity to cause another tzara’as tinge to appear. He must remind himself that the physical cause of his affliction is irrelevant and only focus on the spiritual one, which is Lashon Hara.
When the person realizes that his actions are having an opposite effect, and his Teshuva and regret over his actions are curing his skin from its condition, he will realize that there was nothing natural about his condition, and it was only his aveiros that caused him to have his skin change. He will then be more careful and diligent to repair the damage he caused and stop talking Lashon Hara.
This is how we need to learn the possuk. זֹאת תִּהְיֶה תוֹרַת הַמְצֹרָע – this shall be the law of a Metzora. Chazal tell us that a Metzora is a motzi shem ra. This person said Lashon Hara about someone, and that is the only reason he was afflicted. The proof of this is בְיוֹם טׇהֳרָתוֹ – on the day of his cleansing. Even though he did things that should cause his tzara’as to become worse, he was cleansed. That shows that the tzara’as was not a natural event, and he has learned his lesson.
The next possuk affirms this. The Torah says נִּרְ פָא נֶגַע הַצָרַעַת מִּן הַצָרוּעַ - the plague of tzara'as is healed in the person afflicted with tzara'as. The Torah uses a passive expression, saying that the plague has healed, instead of saying that Hashem healed him. This teaches us that the healing came from within. The person healed himself by recognizing the true source of his tzara’as and improving his ways accordingly.
The possuk’s allusion to our Galus and ultimate redemption.
The Zohar writes that the Gentiles’ influence on Klal Yisroel resembles tzara’as. When Klal Yisroel are stained with Lashon Hara, their enemies have power over them. Chazal tell us that Klal Yisroel merited to be redeemed from Mitzrayim because there were no tell-tales among them, bringing Lashon Hara to the Mitzrim. They were told at the beginning of the redemption that they would be leaving and that they should borrow clothing from the Mitzrim, and nobody let out the secret. Additionally, nothing creates a greater distance between a person and Hashem than Lashon Hara.
בְיוֹם טׇהֳרָתוֹ זֹאת תִּהְיֶה תוֹרַת הַמְצֹרָע – this shall be the way Klal Yisroel purifies itself from the dross the Gentiles have added to it, but purifying their tongues and ways.
וְהוּבָא אֶל הַכֹהֵן - and he shall be brought to the Cohen. As the Zohar teaches, Hashem is called a Cohen. When Klal Yisroel purifies itself from the terrible aveira of Lashon Hara, they will be brought close to Hashem. This will be automatic; their actions will draw them near without any extra work necessary.
Then, Hashem will come and fight Klal Yisroel’s fights for them. וְיָצָא הַכֹּהֵן אֶל מִחוּץ לַמַחֲנֶה - the Cohen, i.e., Hashem, shall leave the camp, and He will go outside of Eretz Yisroel and fight Klal Yisroel’s fights for them.
ת טְהֹרוֹתוְצִּוָּה הַכֹהֵן וְלָקַח לַמִּטַהֵר שְתֵי צִּפֳרִּ ים חַיּוֹ – and Hashem will command, and they will take, for the purified one, two pure living birds. This, says the Ohr Hachaim, refers to the two Meshichim, as alluded to in the Zohar. Moshiach from the tribe of Yosef will be revealed, but he will be killed afterwards. Moshiach, son of Dovid, will be the one to do the final job.
He will also take עֵץ אֶרֶז וּשְנִּי תוֹלַעַת וְאֵזֹב – a cedar wood, a red thread, and a grass. The cedar wood refers to Avraham Avinu, who is called in the possuk יםהַגָדוֹל בָעֲנָקִּ הָאָדָם – the person who was great among the giants. The red thread refers to Yaakov, as the possuk calls him בתוֹלַעַת יַעֲקֹ – the worm of Yaakov. The eizov grass refers to Yitzchok, whose defining characteristic was strict judgment. This is used to tie the other ones together as one. The three merits of our three forefathers combine to purify the world of the tzara’as brought by our enemies.
First, וְצִּוָּה הַכֹהֵן וְשָחַט אֶת הַצִּפוֹר הָאֶחָת – Hashem will command them to slaughter the first bird. Moshiach ben Yosef will be killed, כְלִּי חֶרֶשׂ עַל אֶל םי יַּח םִּיַמ – to the clay vessel on living water. Humanity is called a clay vessel, as they were formed from the earth, which is also the source of clay. The purpose of Moshiach ben Yosef’s passing is to serve as a kappara for Klal Yisroel. םי יַּח םִּיַמ לַע – on the living water. Klal Yisroel must have been deficient in their connection to Torah, which is known as the living water, and Moshiach ben Yosef’s passing will serve as a kappara for that.
The Arizal exhorted his disciples to daven hard so that Moshiach ben Yosef would not die. The Ohr Hachaim explains that it is possible that through tefilla, his merits would increase sufficiently for him to survive.
Afterwards, הַמִּטַהֵר מִּן הַצָרַעַתוְהִּזָה עַל – he shall spray on the person who is being purified from the tzara’as. These will all serve as a kappara for Klal Yisroel as they are purified. שֶבַע פְעָמִּים – seven times. There are seven types of impurities that can afflict Klal Yisroel.
After the purification ceremony is over, וְשִּלַח אֶת הַצִּפֹר הַחַיָּה עַל פְנֵי הַשָדֶה – he should send the live bird over the field. The Zohar writes that Moshiach, who is compared to a bird, will be king over the entire world. Now that Klal Yisroel is pure, Moshiach can rule.
וְכִּבֶס הַמִּטַהֵר אֶת בְגָדָיו – the purified one shall wash his clothes, removing the dirty clothing from his body. This is the clothing that has become sullied from the years of exile under the gentiles. Similarly, the hair growth must be removed. Then, Klal Yisroel must וְרָחַץ בַמַיִּם וְטָהֵר – wash themselves in the waters of Torah, connecting themselves to their source. After seven days of purity, the new Beis Hamikdash will be ready, אֶל הַמַחֲנֶהוְאַחַר יָבוֹא . We hope that this will happen speedily in our days.
