WHY DID JESUS single out lepers in his command, "Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, raise the dead, cast out devils" (Matt. 10:8)? Wouldn't those afflicted with this disease be already included among the "sick"?
Leprosy does stand out in the Bible as a unique ailment. According to scholars, the word leprosy used in Leviticus included an array of skin diseases, including the type considered incurable. Some also feel that all sickness was considered punishment for sins. However, lepers were singled out as a potential source of defilement for anyone coming in contact with them. The mere presence of a leper meant a whole community could be defiled and bring God's displeasure. (See for example, The Anchor Bible Dictionary, Vol. 4, pp. 277—282.)
Under rabbinical law, the priests examined anyone afflicted with any skin disease and declared those with leprosy as "unclean" and unfit to have contact with others. Banished from contact with their neighbors, lepers lived outside the community. They had to cry out a warning, so people could avoid coming near them (see Lev. 13:45). Lepers, living well away from the temple, could not take part in holy ordinances and ceremonies, which meant the leper was considered unfit to be in the presence of God. Before a leper could return to normal contact with others, a priest had to pronounce the person "clean." We see this law adhered to when Jesus met up with ten lepers. He told them to go and show themselves to the priests—even before their physical appearance had changed. The Biblical account says,"As they went, they were cleansed" (Luke 17:14).
