Verses 10-20 describe the part of the purification ritual which reestablishes the relationship between the formerly diseased person and God.

Two male lambs without blemish …: New English Bible follows a different Hebrew text and adds here “yearling,” but this is not recommended by HOTTP.

Without blemish: see 1.3 and 22.17-25.

Three tenths of an ephah: Good News Translation has “five pounds” in the American edition, but the British edition has “three kilograms,” and Bible en français courant has “nine kilograms.” The New Jerusalem Bible footnote estimates that the amount is 13.5 liters, while the New International Version footnote has 6.5 liters. The exact equivalent of this amount is obviously uncertain. Some commentators speculate that three tenths were necessary because there were three lambs, but the evidence for this is less than conclusive. The receptor language should translate as naturally as possible, using whatever measuring system is normally used of dry substances like flour. Compare 5.11 and 6.20 as well as Exodus 16.36 and Ruth 2.17.

Fine flour: see 2.1.

One log of oil: as usual, this refers to olive oil. The most natural term used in measuring liquids should be employed here. It should be the equivalent of about “a third of a liter” (British Good News Translation) or “half a pint” (American Good News Translation). The same amount is also used in verses 12, 15, 21, and 24.

Quoted with permission from Péter-Contesse, René and Ellington, John. A Handbook on Leviticus. (UBS Helps for Translators). New York: UBS, 1990. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .