“As Jesus
Entered a village,
Ten lepers
Approached him.
They kept
Their distance.”
καὶ εἰσερχομένου αὐτοῦ εἴς τινα κώμην ἀπήντησαν δέκα λεπροὶ ἄνδρες, οἳ ἔστησαν πόρρωθεν
Only Luke has this story about the curing of the ten lepers, although Luke had Jesus cure a leper earlier in chapter 5:12-16, that can be found in the other synoptics, Matthew, chapter 8:1-4, and Mark, chapter 1:40-45. Luke indicated that Jesus entered a village (καὶ εἰσερχομένου αὐτοῦ εἴς τινα κώμην), where 10 lepers approached or met him (ἀπήντησαν δέκα λεπροὶ ἄνδρες). However, these lepers kept their distance (οἳ ἔστησαν πόρρωθεν). Leprosy was some kind of skin disease that was usually found among poor people. Today, there are about 2,000,000 people with leprosy or Hansen’s disease, mostly in India, Indonesia, and Brazil. The Greek word “λέπρας” used here is a broader definition of leprosy than just Hansen’s disease. Leprosy was a Jewish religious problem also. What to do about it was clearly defined in Leviticus, chapters 13-14. Leprosy in the wide sense was considered unclean and had religious connotations, since only a priest could declare a person clean, with a distinct ritual for cleansing the leper. As a leper, they were considered unclean and not fit to live in normal communal life. Thus, there were spiritual, physical, social, and religious implications with being a leper. Here there were 10 lepers in this village, so that they might have been a small leper colony. They approached Jesus, but kept their appropriate distance from him, since they were quarantined from being with other non-leper people. Have you ever met a leper?
Eugene Finnegan Bible Project 