The In-Dept Study of the Bible
Leviticus 21
1 Yahweh said to Moses, “Speak to the
priests, the sons of Aaron, and say to them,
‘A priest shall not defile himself for the
dead among his people,
2 except for his relatives that are near to
him: for his mother, for his father, for his
son, for his daughter, for his brother,
3 and for his virgin sister who is near to
him, who has had no husband; for her he
may defile himself.
4 He shallnot defilehimself, being a chief
man among his people, to profane himself.
5 “ ‘They shall not shave their heads or
shave off the corners of their beards or
make any cuttings in their flesh.
6 They shall be holy to their God, and not
profane the name of their God, for they
offer the offerings of Yahweh made by fire,
the bread of their God. Therefore they
shall be holy.
7 “ ‘They shall not marry a woman who
is a prostitute, or profane. A priest shall
not marry a woman divorced from her
husband; for he is holy to his God.
8 Therefore you shall sanctify him, for
he offers the bread of your God. He shall
be holy to you, for I Yahweh, who sanctify
you, am holy.
9 “ ‘The daughter of any priest, if she profanes herself by playing the prostitute, she
profanes her father. She shall be burned
with fire.
10 “ ‘He who is the high priest among his
brothers, upon whose head the anointing
oilis poured, and who is consecrated to put
on the garments, shall notletthe hair of his
head hang loose, or tear his clothes.
11 He must not go in to any dead body,
or defile himself for his father or for his
mother.
12 He shall not go out of the sanctuary,
nor profane the sanctuary of his God; for
the crown of the anointing oil of his God is
upon him. I am Yahweh.
13 “ ‘He shall take a wife in her virginity.
14 He shall not marry a widow, or one divorced, or a
woman who has been defiled,
or a prostitute. He shall take a virgin of his
own people as a wife.
15 He shall not profane his offspring
among his people, for I am Yahweh who
sanctifies him.’ ”
16 Yahweh spoke to Moses, saying,
17 “Say to Aaron, ‘None of your offspring
throughout their generations who has a
defect may approach to offer the bread of
his God.
18 For whatever man he is that has a
defect, he shall not draw near: a blind
man, or a lame, or he who has a flat nose,
or any deformity,
19 or a man who has an injured foot, or
an injured hand,
20 or hunchbacked, or a dwarf, or one
who has a defect in his eye, or an itching
disease, or scabs, or who has damaged
testicles.
21 No man of the offspring of Aaron the
priest who has a defect shall come near to
offer the offerings of Yahweh made by fire.
Since he has a defect, he shall not come
near to offer the bread of his God.
22 He shall eat the bread of his God, both
of the most holy, and of the holy.
23 He shall not come near to the veil, nor
come near to the altar, because he has a
defect; that he may not profane my sanctuaries, for I am Yahweh who sanctifies
them.’ ”
24 So Moses spoke to Aaron, and to his
sons, and to all the children of Israel.