Lepers.
Not necessarily people with what we would now know as leprosy, but any disfiguring skin complaint may have been infectious and deadly, so the rules were that people had to leave their homes and live apart, in case of contagion.
Such isolation must have been desperate, but nobody wanted to help, because of the fear of the disease.
When the man comes upon Jesus, he says "If you are willing, you could heal me and make me clean." What do you suppose he meant by that?
"I know you could do it in theory, but you won't want to."
What a strange mixture of faith and despair!
Jesus didn't hesitate for a second. he reached out and touched the man - perhaps the first touch from a non-leper that he's had in years. The touch brought as much healing as the miracle. It undid the despair and the sense of uncleanness at a stroke.
Instructions followed. The man needed to do the right thing - to go to his priest and be certified clean. That was the way to be readmitted into the community.
But unsurprisingly the man wasn't listening. Too excited to hear Jesus saying "Don't tell anyone," he makes it his business to tell absolutely everyone!
So Jesus' popularity is ramped up another level. He's definitely trending now, he might even have gone viral. Now he has to go back out into the desert to get some peace and quiet.
Luke makes it clear that Jesus did this regularly. He needed to get away from the crowds, he needed to pray. Like a diver coming up for air, he could only keep going so long without refreshing himself in God's presence.
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