Lexical Summary
tsara: Distress, trouble, affliction, adversity
Original Word:צָרַע
Part of Speech:Verb
Transliteration:tsara`
Pronunciation:tsaw-raw'
Phonetic Spelling:(tsaw-rah')
KJV: leper, leprous
NASB:leper, leprous, being a leper, lepers
Word Origin:[a primitive root]
1. to scourge, i.e. (intransitive and figurative) to be stricken with leprosy
Strong's Exhaustive Concordance
leper, leprous
A primitive root; to scourge, i.e. (intransitive and figurative) to be stricken with leprosy -- leper, leprous.
NAS Exhaustive Concordance
Word Origindenominative verb from
tsaraathDefinitionto be struck with leprosy, to be leprous
NASB Translationbeing a leper (1), leper (12), lepers (1), leprous (6).
Brown-Driver-Briggs
[] , only in passive, ; —
Participle passiveLeviticus 13:44; elsewhere as substantive, =leper,Leviticus 13:45;Leviticus 14:3;Numbers 5:2 (all P),Leviticus 22:4 (H).
Participle2 Samuel 3:29 +, 2Chronicles 26:20; plural2 Kings 7:3,8; feminineExodus 4:6 +,Numbers 12:10; —leprous, of handExodus 4:6 (J), of personNumbers 12:10 (twice in verse) (E),2 Kings 5:27; 2Chronicles 26:20;2 Kings 7:3; as substantive =leper2 Samuel 3:29;2 Kings 5:1,11;2 Kings 7:8;2 Kings 15:5 2Chronicles 26:21a, 2 Chronicles 26:21b, 2 Chronicles 26:23;Leviticus 14:2.
Topical Lexicon
Meaning and scopeצָרַע (Strong’s 6879) describes the condition of becoming stricken with ṣāraʿat, commonly rendered “leprosy” in English versions. In Scripture it is not limited to the modern medical diagnosis of Hansen’s disease but functions as a covenantal affliction signaling uncleanness, isolation, and the need for priestly assessment and divine intervention.
Canonical distribution
Found twenty times across Torah, Former Prophets, and Chronicles, the verb appears predominantly in legislation about ritual purity (Leviticus), narratives of individual judgment or mercy (Numbers 12;2 Kings 5), and royal chronicles (2 Kings 15;2 Chronicles 26). Its occurrences mark decisive moments in Israel’s history when holiness is defended and God’s presence vindicated.
Covenantal and theological significance
1. Divine prerogative: ṣāraʿat is consistently portrayed as sent or removed by the LORD. “So the LORD turned Miriam into a leper, white as snow” (Numbers 12:10).
2. Holiness safeguard: the condition protects the sanctuary from defilement (Leviticus 22:4;Numbers 5:2). Exclusion from camp or temple underscores God’s separateness and the gravity of sin.
3. Opportunity for grace: Restoration rites (Leviticus 14) reveal God’s desire to cleanse. “This is the law of the one afflicted with leprosy on the day of his cleansing” (Leviticus 14:2).
Social and ritual implications in Israel
• Isolation: The afflicted must dwell “outside the camp” and warn others by crying, “Unclean, unclean!” (Leviticus 13:45).
• Priestly mediation: Only priests diagnose and pronounce clean, illustrating the mediatorial office that anticipates the high priesthood of Christ.
• Sacrificial atonement: Two birds, cedar wood, scarlet yarn, and hyssop (Leviticus 14) picture death, resurrection, and purging, foreshadowing the cross.
Narrative portraits
Moses (Exodus 4:6) receives a sign in his own hand, demonstrating God’s power over disease.
Miriam (Numbers 12) illustrates divine discipline for rebellion yet also intercession by Moses.
Naaman (2 Kings 5:1-14) embodies Gentile inclusion, humbled by simple obedience to the prophetic word: “His flesh was restored and became like the flesh of a little child” (verse 14).
The four leprous men at Samaria’s gate (2 Kings 7:3-11) become unlikely heralds of deliverance.
King Uzziah (2 Chronicles 26:20-23) shows that even royalty is not exempt from holiness; pride brings lifetime exclusion from the house of the LORD.
Typological foreshadowing
Ṣāraʿat prefigures sin’s pervasive defilement and Christ’s cleansing work. Jesus’ instantaneous healing of lepers (for example,Matthew 8:3) fulfills the Law’s shadow, sending the healed to the priest as testimony that the Messianic age had dawned.
Lessons for ministry today
• Sin separates; only divine grace restores.
• True leadership submits to God’s holiness—pride invites discipline.
• The marginalized can become messengers of good news.
• Gospel proclamation must include both diagnosis (conviction of sin) and promise of cleansing in Christ.
Key references
Exodus 4:6;Leviticus 13:44-45;Leviticus 14:2-3;Leviticus 22:4;Numbers 5:2;Numbers 12:10;2 Samuel 3:29;2 Kings 5:1-14;2 Kings 7:3-11;2 Kings 15:5;2 Chronicles 26:20-23.
For further study
CompareIsaiah 53:4;Luke 4:27;Hebrews 13:11-13;1 Peter 2:24 to trace the prophetic and apostolic development of cleansing motifs fulfilled in Christ.
Forms and Transliterations
הַֽמְצֹרָעִ֨ים הַמְּצֹרָ֔ע הַמְּצֹרָֽע׃ הַצָּרֽוּעַ׃ המצרע המצרע׃ המצרעים הצרוע׃ וְהַצָּר֜וּעַ וּמְצֹרָ֞ע והצרוע ומצרע מְצֹרַ֣עַת מְצֹרַ֥עַת מְצֹרָ֔ע מְצֹרָ֣ע ׀ מְצֹרָ֥ע מְצֹרָֽעַת׃ מְצֹרָֽע׃ מְצֹרָע֙ מְצֹרָעִ֖ים מְצוֹרָ֣ע מצורע מצרע מצרע׃ מצרעים מצרעת מצרעת׃ צָר֖וּעַ צָר֙וּעַ֙ צָר֥וּעַ צרוע ham·mə·ṣō·rā‘ ham·ṣō·rā·‘îm hamməṣōrā‘ hammetzoRa hamṣōrā‘îm hamtzoraIm haṣ·ṣā·rū·a‘ haṣṣārūa‘ hatztzaRua mə·ṣō·rā‘ mə·ṣō·ra·‘aṯ mə·ṣō·rā·‘aṯ mə·ṣō·rā·‘îm mə·ṣō·w·rā‘ məṣōrā‘ məṣōra‘aṯ məṣōrā‘aṯ məṣōrā‘îm məṣōwrā‘ metzoRa metzoRaat metzoraIm ṣā·rū·a‘ ṣārūa‘ tzaRua ū·mə·ṣō·rā‘ ūməṣōrā‘ umetzoRa vehatztzaRua wə·haṣ·ṣā·rū·a‘ wəhaṣṣārūa‘
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