- The garment:
- This leprosy in garments appears so strange to us, that it has induced some, with Bp. Patrick, to consider it as an extraordinary punishment inflicted by God upon the Israelites, as a sign of his high displeasure; while others consider the leprosy in clothes (and also houses) as having no relation to the leprosy in man. When Michaelis was considering the subject, he was told by a dealer in wool, that the wool of sheep which die of a disease, if it has not been shorn from the animal while living, is unfit to manufacture cloth, and liable to something like what Moses here describes, and which he imagines to be the plague of leprosy in garments. The whole account, however, as Dr. A. Clarke observes, seems to intimate that the garment was fretted by the contagion of the real leprosy; which it is probable was occasioned by a species of animacula, or vermin, burrowing in the skin, which we know to be the cause of the itch; these, by breeding in the garments, must necessarily multiply their kind, and fret the garments, i.e., corrode a portion of the finer parts, after the manner of moths, for their nourishment. The infection of garments has frequently been known to cause the worst species of scarlet fever, and even the plague; and those infected with psora, or itch animal, have communicated the disease even in six or seven years after the infection. "Moreover the LORDª saith,ª° Becauseª¹ the daughtersª of Zionª are haughty,ª° and walk²°¹ with stretched forthª° necksª and wantonª° eyes,ª walkingª° and mincingª° [as] they go,²°¹ and making a tinklingª° with their feet:ª ... And it shall come to pass,¹ [that] instead¹ of sweet smellª there shall be¹ stink;ª and instead¹ of a girdleª a rent;ª and instead¹ of well setª hairª baldness;ª and instead¹ of a stomacherª a girdingª of sackcloth;ª [and] burningª instead¹ of beauty.ª" {Isa 3:16-24} + "Their websª shall not¹ become¹ garments,ª neither¹ shall they cover²° themselves¹ with their works:ª their worksª [are] worksª of iniquity,ª and the actª of violenceª [is] in their hands.ª" {Isa 59:6} + "But we are¹ all¹ as an uncleanª [thing], and all¹ our righteousnessesª [are] as filthyª rags;ª and we all¹ do fadeª°°²° as a leaf;ª and our iniquities,ª like the wind,ª have taken us away.ª°" {Isa 64:6} + "And of thy garmentsª¹ thou didst take,ª° and deckedstª° thy high placesª with divers colours,ª° and playedst the harlotª° thereupon:¹ [the like things] shall not¹ come,ª° neither¹ shall it be¹ [so]." {Ezk 16:16} + "The¹ nightª is far spent,ªª° the¹ dayª is at hand:ª° let us²° thereforeª cast offª° the¹ worksª of darkness,ª andª let us put onª° the¹ armourª of light.ª" {Rom 13:12} + "That yeª put offª° concerningª the¹ formerª conversationª the¹ oldª man,ª which² is corruptª° accordingª to the¹ deceitfulª lusts;ª" {Eph 4:22} + "Forª ye are dead,ª° andª yourª lifeª is hidª° withª Christª inª God.ª" {Col 3:3} + "Andª othersª saveª° withª fear,ª pullingª° [them] out ofª the¹ fire;ª hatingª° evenª the¹ garmentª spotted²°¹ byª the¹ flesh.ª" {Jde 1:23}
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