The LORD Your Healer – Metzorah & Shabbat HaGadol – April 16

Spring is in the air and in Israel spring is the season for Passover.  The Hebrew word for “spring” is “אביב” – “aviv,” which comes from the name of the month in which the Israelites celebrated the first Passover in Egypt:

Observe the month of Aviv and celebrate the Passover to the LORD your God, for in the month of Aviv the LORD your God brought you out of Egypt by night. – Deut. 16:1

The word “Aviv” is the name of the first month of the year on the biblical/Hebrew calendar, however, during the Babylonian exile the Israelites took on the Babylonian names for the months of the year and the name of the first month became Nisan, as we read in the Bible after the time of the exile (Neh. 2:1).  In Judaism today, Nisan is the name of the first month on the Hebrew calendar and Aviv is the name for the spring season, which is associated with Passover.  Passover will begin on the evening of April 22, 2016.

Shabbat HaGadol

Each year the Sabbath which precedes the first day of Passover is called “שבת הגדול” – “Shabbat HaGadol,” which means “The Great Sabbath” or “The Sabbath of the Great One.”   The origin of “Shabbat HaGadol” traditionally goes back to the Sabbath preceding the first Passover in Egypt.  It is believed that the first Passover took place on a Wednesday (the 14th of Nisan) and therefore the lamb was chosen four days earlier on the previous Sabbath (the 10th of Nisan), which is in agreement with the biblical command (Ex. 12:1-6).

The Exodus from Egypt, which was intricately connected to the Passover lamb, is understood as a miraculous redemption that can only be attributed to the hand of God.  This great redemption began when the Passover lamb was chosen on “Shabbat HaGadol” – “The Great Sabbath” and is remembered year to year on the Sabbath before Passover.

The name “Shabbat HaGadol” is derived from the corresponding readings from the prophets, Malachi 3:4 – 4:6, which are associated with this particular Sabbath.  The selected verses from Malachi refer to a future redemption by the hand of the LORD which will be heralded by the prophet Elijah:

Behold, I am going to send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and terrible day of the LORD. – Malachi 4:5 (Mal. 3:23 in Hebrew)

The LORD has promised to bring a day of great judgement and salvation which will be preceded by the coming of Elijah the prophet.  This day is called “יום יהוה הגדול והנורא” – “yom Adonai hagadol vehanorah” – “the great and terrible day of the LORD.”   “The Great Sabbath” corresponds to this “great day of the LORD” which is spoken of here by the prophet Malachi, a day of ultimate deliverance and redemption.  

The Great Day of the LORD

On “Shabbat HaGadol” – “The Great Sabbath,” and throughout the Passover festival, there is a constant reminder of the miraculous hand of God at Passover, the first great redemption, and a longing for the future great redemption that will also be by the miraculous hand of God.  There is an acknowledgement that the first redemption of bringing the whole nation of Israel out of slavery and out of the land of Egypt was so supernatural that this event can only be attributed to God.  This same expectation awaits the Jewish people and the global body of believers today as we anticipate the coming of “the great and terrible day of the LORD,” a day of judgement, salvation, and the miraculous hand of the LORD!

The Miraculous Hand of the LORD

I believe that this theme of “the miraculous hand of the LORD” is also a hidden message in this week’s Torah Portion, which is called “מצורע” – “metzorah,” meaning “the leper.”  I mention that it is a “hidden message” because healing from leprosy and other diseases or illnesses is not something which is made clear in the text itself.

Watch this brief video summary of this week’s Torah Portion commentary:

Leprosy has been a disease that has plagued humankind without a remedy up until the twentieth century.  Although there is a cure today for leprosy, there are still many diseases in this world that are without a cure and beyond our control.  It is these uncontrollable diseases and situations in life that force us to turn to God and to look in expectation to Him alone for healing and deliverance.

Leprosy – The infectious Skin Disease

The LORD gave Moses numerous details regarding the various skin conditions of leprosy and how the children of Israel were to handle each case regarding the person who is plagued with leprosy, how to identify it, and the manner in which the priests were to determine the condition of a person with leprosy.  There are also very clear regulations and commands regarding the clothing, bedding, and belongings of a person who contracted leprosy and how each item was either to be cleansed or burned.  The majority of teaching on this subject of leprosy appears in Leviticus chapters 13 and 14.

It would seem that with so many details regarding leprosy and the leper that it was a very controllable disease that simply needed the proper treatment, however, the mysterious aspect to leprosy is that there is never a cure given for it in the Bible.  The subject of being “healed” from leprosy is taught in these chapters but there is never a method given in order to receive healing:

Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying, “This shall be the law of the leper in the day of his cleansing. Now he shall be brought to the priest, and the priest shall go out to the outside of the camp. Thus the priest shall look, and if the infection of leprosy has been healed in the leper, then the priest shall give orders to take two live clean birds and cedar wood and a scarlet string and hyssop for the one who is to be cleansed.” – Lev. 14:1-4

The LORD clearly instructed Moses with what should be done for cleansing of the leper who has been healed from his leprosy but how the leper is healed is never mentioned.  The healing from leprosy is a mystery that is recorded in the Bible but only as a miracle by the hand of the LORD (Num. 12:9-15 and 2 Kings 5:1-15. Mark 1:40-45).  To read more about this subject of leprosy and healing please read the commentary on this Torah Portion from 2015: The Mystery of Healing

The Issue of Flowing Blood

Also in this week’s Torah Portion we read about the condition of a woman who is considered unclean during her monthly menstruation period (Lev. 15:19-24).  The Scriptures than go on to explain that if a woman has a flow of blood that is beyond her regular number of days of her period or outside of her monthly period, she is considered unclean as long as she has a flow of blood:

Now if a woman has a discharge of her blood many days, not at the period of her menstrual impurity, or if she has a discharge beyond that period, all the days of her impure discharge she shall continue as though in her menstrual impurity; she is unclean. Any bed on which she lies all the days of her discharge shall be to her like her bed at menstruation; and every thing on which she sits shall be unclean, like her uncleanness at that time. Likewise, whoever touches them shall be unclean and shall wash his clothes and bathe in water and be unclean until evening. When she becomes clean from her discharge, she shall count off for herself seven days; and afterward she will be clean. – Lev. 15:25-28

The woman who finds herself in this condition with an issue of blood that doesn’t stop flowing is to be considered unclean.  No one can touch her and everything that she touches or sits on becomes unclean.  Whenever the hemorrhage stops she must separate herself for seven days and then she is considered clean.

Just as in the case of leprosy, here again we read of a physical condition that demands healing but there is no remedy for healing offered.  A woman who has a continual flow of blood which is outside of her menstruation period was considered unclean.  There is an expectation that she can be healed and that the blood will stop flowing but there are no remedies offered.  What is a woman in this condition expected to do?  How does a woman in this condition receive healing?

What is God’s Remedy for Healing?

I believe that God has included both leprosy and this condition of a woman with the issue of blood in the Bible to teach us that there will be situations in life that are totally out of our control.  There will be scenarios in life that we will encounter that have absolutely no human answers or remedies.  It is in these situations that we must go to Him for our answers and our healing.  We need to learn to turn to God in our times of helplessness and believe that He can do the miraculous.

In the same verses from the prophet Malachi which speak of the “great day of the LORD,” we read of a promise for those who fear the name of the LORD:

But for you who fear My name, the sun of righteousness will rise with healing in its wings; and you will go forth and skip about like calves from the stall. – Mal. 4:2

The LORD longs for His people to believe in Him and trust in Him, fearing His name alone.  To “fear God” is to believe that God is who He said He is and to trust His promises.  God promises healing for those who believe in Him and fear His name.

A Woman Who Believed in God

During the ministry years of Yeshua we read of an amazing testimony of a woman with an issue of blood who feared the name of the LORD and was healed:

And a woman who had a hemorrhage for twelve years, and could not be healed by anyone, came up behind Him and touched the fringe of His cloak, and immediately her hemorrhage stopped. And Yeshua said, “Who is the one who touched Me?” And while they were all denying it, Peter said, “Master, the people are crowding and pressing in on You.” But Yeshua said, “Someone did touch Me, for I was aware that power had gone out of Me.” When the woman saw that she had not escaped notice, she came trembling and fell down before Him, and declared in the presence of all the people the reason why she had touched Him, and how she had been immediately healed. And He said to her, “Daughter, your faith has made you well; go in peace.” – Luke 8:43-48

This woman had the exact condition which was spoken of in Leviticus 15, only that she didn’t just have a flow of blood for a few days or even a few months, but rather for twelve years!

We read in the Gospel of Mark that this woman had gone to one doctor after another for help and had spent all that she had but was never made well, in fact, her condition had only gotten worse (Mark 5:26).  She was considered unclean for twelve years and could not live a normal life during these years.  She could not dine with others, sit in the same house with others, or even touch another person.  This woman was separated from life and there was no hope for a cure, humanly speaking.  Despite this woman’s struggle for twelve years she still had faith in the LORD.  This woman believed in God and feared His name, as Yeshua said, “Daughter, your faith has made you well, go in peace” (Luke 8:48).

The LORD delights in seeing His people set free to live life to the fullest.  He has created us for life and He has given us His Word to guide us on the proper path, however, life isn’t a script and we need to constantly seek Him on the journey, especially when we face situations that are out of our control.

The LORD Your Healer

When the LORD first brought the Israelites out of Egypt He gave them a promise for health and life if they would listen to His voice:

And He said, “If you will give earnest heed to the voice of the LORD your God, and do what is right in His sight, and give ear to His commandments, and keep all His statutes, I will put none of the diseases on you which I have put on the Egyptians; for I, the LORD, am your healer.” – Ex. 15:26

The phrase “for I, the LORD, am your healer” in Hebrew is “כי אני יהוה רופאך” – “ki ani Adonai rophecha.”  This phrase could be translated as “for I am the LORD your healer” or “for I am the LORD who heals you.”  Either way, the point is that God is the ultimate healer and sustainer of life.  God created nature and He is above nature.  The LORD can do the supernatural because that is who He is!

As we prepare for Passover, which will begin on the evening of April 22, we are to remember the great redemption of the Exodus, the miracle of God on behalf of His chosen people.  God is the same yesterday, today, and forever.  As we contemplate the miracle of Passover, let us remember that the LORD God sees us today in all of our situations.  The situations that are impossible with man are possible with God.  He is “יהוה רופאך” – “Adonai Rofecha” – “The LORD your Healer!”

Shabbat Shalom!

If you enjoyed reading this article, share it today with friends!  We also invite you to sign up for our weekly Torah Portion commentary on the sidebar to the right.  

Help keep our weekly commentaries free and available to all. Click here to donate today: 

Torah Portion: Lev. 14:1 – Lev. 15:33

Hafatara for Shabbat HaGadol: Malachi 3:4 – Malachi 4:6 (Heb. Malachi 3:4-24)

Return to Torah Portion Homepage

Copyright Jewels of Judaism.  All rights reserved 2016