“And the leper in whom the plague is, his clothes shall be rent, and his head bare, and he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean. All the days wherein the plague shall be in him he shall be defiled; he is unclean: he shall dwell alone; without the camp shall his habitation be" (vss. 45-46).
These sad verses give us a vivid picture of the sinner. It might be that formerly he was able to use his clothes to cover the spots of leprosy. But now his clothes must be rent. There is no way now to cover his defilement. "All things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with whom we have to do." Heb. 4:1313Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in his sight: but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of him with whom we have to do. (Hebrews 4:13). Adam tried to cover himself with fig leaves, but he failed, and when God came down into the garden he had to own, "I heard Thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself." Gen. 3:1010And he said, I heard thy voice in the garden, and I was afraid, because I was naked; and I hid myself. (Genesis 3:10).
Poor sinner, your clothes are rent to the eyes of God; He sees you naked. Every spot of sin and defilement is clear and plain to Him. You cannot cover it. Where Adam failed, you have no hope to succeed, and remember, "He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy." Prov. 28:1313He that covereth his sins shall not prosper: but whoso confesseth and forsaketh them shall have mercy. (Proverbs 28:13).
We read of some who can say, "Thou hast covered my head" (Psa. 140:77O God the Lord, the strength of my salvation, thou hast covered my head in the day of battle. (Psalm 140:7)), but the poor leper must take off any covering he may have had. "His head bare" tells forth one of the most awful and one of the most solemn truths about the defiled sinner that it is possible for the mind of man to comprehend.
Dear reader, is your head covered? Or does the eye of God see nothing but uncleanness and defilement—with nothing under which you can hide?
“And he shall put a covering upon his upper lip, and shall cry, Unclean, unclean." Though his head must be bare, his mouth must be covered. The very breath of the leper can only bring defilement. There is not a suggestion that by doing his best he may someday be fit for the presence of a holy God. No, he is not even fit for company with his fellow men who are not likewise defiled. His only cry is a sad wail of warning, "Unclean! Unclean!" What folly for any poor sinner to suggest that he can cleanse himself when he is in such an awful condition that every breath he takes is defiled and defiling.
The rest of the chapter speaks of leprosy in a garment or a skin. If the Lord will, we may look at these verses later on, but now we will follow the path of the poor defiled leper, and see God's way of cleansing—when man is hopeless and helpless, when he has no way to cleanse himself.