Deuteronomy 24:8-9

Dealing With Severe Skin Disease (Deuteronomy 24:8).

When men and women were aware of an unexplainable skin disease they must play fair and consider their neighbours and ensure that they went to the priest to be examined. This was another example which demonstrated that this was not a general giving of law, but a citation of law as it affected the people. The ritual details as regards the priests were omitted, what was important was what the people should do.

Deuteronomy 24:8

‘ Take heed in the plague of skin disease, that you observe diligently, and do according to all that the priests the Levites shall teach you. As I commanded them, so you shall observe to do. Remember what Yahweh your God did to Miriam, by the way as you came forth out of Egypt.'

Note the different form used here. Moses has varied between apodicitic law, ‘you shall not--', and case law, ‘if -- then you shall'. This is exhortatory for it is not citing a specific regulation. This continual mixture of forms is another indication of a genuine speech.

His listeners were clearly expected to know about the detailed cultic teaching in Leviticus 14. What he was concerned with here was that they would obey the priests' instruction concerning it. They must do what the levitical priests told them in accordance with what God had commanded in His Instruction. What they taught was Yahweh's command. They must observe to do it.

Let them all remember what Yahweh their God did to Miriam. She disobeyed Yahweh and was stricken with a skin disease and she also had to spend seven days outside the camp (Numbers 12:10). Let them also therefore be obedient to Yahweh, especially when it came to skin disease.

Others see the ‘take heed' or ‘be on your guard' as referring to obeying God's commandments as given through the priests, with the warning that if they do not they may be stricken with skin disease like Miriam was. That would certainly fit the illustration better. But if it was so it would be the only case where reference is made to the commandments as coming through the priests (although see Deuteronomy 27:9. But even that does not directly refer to the giving of the commandments).