Negaim 12:1 - 12:2

כל הבתים and especially in the Land of Israel, as it is written (Leviticus 14:34): “[and I inflict an eruptive plague] upon a house in the land you possess.”

חוץ משל נכרים – if they purchased a chouse in the Land of Israel. For such is implied, "אחוזתכם"/[in the land] you possess (Leviticus 14:34) is susceptible to be defiled by plagues, but the possession of heathens is not susceptible to be defiled by plagues. And just as their possession is not susceptible to be defiled by plagues, so their clothes and their bodies are not susceptible to be defiled by plagues.

יראו בתחילה – and the days that there was a plague in them all the while that they were in the hands of the heathens, do not count from the total amount.

בית עגול – that have no corners.

טריגון (triangular) – that they have three corners. [The number] “three” in the Roman language is TREI. And the same law applies concerning a house that has six corners or five.

אינו מיטמא בנגעים – for concerning plagues, it is written (Leviticus 14:37 and 14:39): "קירות", "קירות" (Leviticus 14:37: "והנה הנגע בקירת הבית"/the plague in the walls of the house; Leviticus 14:39: "והנה פשה בקירת הבית"/ “[if he sees that] the plague has spread on the walls of the house) twice – and the minority/the least of [this plural] is two, hence four.

ובאסקריא (mast, yard – where the captain sits for looking out, raft) – it is the mast/yard of a ship. But there are books that the reading אכסדיא/raft and hey are the beams that they tie together and place them in the rivers and in the sea. And in the language of the Bible, they are called רפסודות (2 Chronicles 2:15): “[We undertake to cut down as many trees of Lebanon as you need, and deliver them to you] as rafts by sea to Jaffa; you will transport them to Jerusalem.”/"רפסדות על-ים יפו ואתה תעלה אתם ירושלם".

אינן מיטמאין בנגעים – as it is written (Leviticus 14:34): "בבית ארץ [אחזתכם]"/upon a house in the land that you possess”, until the house will be attached to the ground.

על ארבע קורות – like or on four beams. For the house was built on top of beams.

אפילו על ארבעה עמודים – for the pillars are attached to the ground and they are considered four corners to the house and the roof that is upon them is susceptible to being defiled through plagues and even though it is open from all of its sides.

בית שאחד מצדדיו – one of the four walls is covered with marble MARMARA.

בסלע – a rock which is there from the Six Days of Creation.

בלבנים – that are made in a kiln/furnace.

בעפר – that the wall is made from clods/handfuls of earth.

טהור – that we require that the four walls of the house will be susceptible to uncleanness through plagues, but if one of the walls is made of something that is not appropriate to be made unclean, as for example, all of these that we have mentioned (i.e., stone, bricks, dirt), the house is clean.

בית שלא היו בו אבנים ועצים ועפר – all three of them, but rather, one of them was in it, and the plague appeared in that one, it is pure. For we require that it be appropriate to be made susceptible to uncleanness prior to seeing the plague.

עד שיהיו בו אבנים ועצים ועפר – as it is written (Leviticus 14:45): “[The house shall be torn down - ] its stones, and timber and all the coating on the house –[and taken to an impure place outside the city].”