ונתתי נגע צרעת בבית ארץ אחזתכם... ונתץ את הבית את אבניו ואת עציו ואת כל עפר הבית
A balance must be maintained between reward and punishment. With regard to nigei batim, an affliction that strikes a house, the owner must call the Kohen to determine if, in fact, it is tamei, ritually contaminated. Prior to making his tamei pronouncement, the Kohen orders that everything be removed from the house, which must now be demolished. Otherwise, whatever is in the house will be declared tamei as well. The lesson we derive from here is that the punishment one administers should not be overly aggressive, certainly not more noteworthy than the infraction. A balance should exist. Prior to punishing…
